happy two, lou!

My petite LouLou turns 2 this Friday.

And I feel happy.

Happy...

• ...because of this feisty girl of mine.

• remembering the swiftest & loveliest labor and delivery of all time 2 years ago.  Born in the water - because she had and does have her own ideas about how things should happen.  Low was playing in the background.

• being able to send out a birthday invite that simply says, "Meet us on our porch!" and know that all of our Kinshasa friends will just show up for a little toddler dance party in the humid evening.  We'll eat passion fruit and mangosteens.  Mupwa will make her a birthday bouquet.  She'll wear a birthday crown made with pagne. Her 2nd birthday will always be a Congo birthday.

•  thinking about eating the gooey traditional birthday monkey bread.

• planning a playlist (Tom Waits, Konono No. 1, M.I.A., The Handsome Furs, Joy Division, The Black Keys, New York Dolls, & Kinshasa One Two).  This girl can dance (thank goodness someone in the family can...).

We'll be missing our stateside family and friends - absolutely.  Celebrations while living thousands of miles away are bittersweet.  We'll have them on Skype, but it won't be the same.  Different and hilarious as the internet cuts in and out on our bad central African connection - but a little sad too.  We'll look forward to celebrating again this summer when we're back in Virginia.  

In the meanwhile, the 16th of March will be a gala event in celebration of two-year-old-hood.  

On our porch (as it's prime mosquito time).  With laughing friends.  And delicious food.  And crazy music (both completely inappropriate and perfect for children).  

It's a good life.