Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your long hair!

Rachael is three. She'll be 4 in September. She has long, red hair... so she's my redheaded Rapunzel. She has beautiful blue eyes, and the sweetest little face. She still has pudgy baby hands. She is a girly girl... loves dresses, nail polish, pink, and all things girl. Sweet, sweet girl!

Thursday I met Rachael for the first time on Skype. She was a little shy at first, but she was curious. She said to Brian, "Who is she?"
Brian said, "That's Amber. Can you say 'hey'?"
"Where is she, Daddy?"
"On the computer screen." Then she went back to ignoring me/ being shy.

Brian took Rachael into the living room to brush her hair (she had just gotten a bath) and she continued to cast curious glances my way. I talked to her a little bit. Then she looked at Brian and said, "Where is she?"
"She's at her house."
"Where does she live?"
"In Tennessee. It's another state. It's up the mountain..."
"...and down the mountain?"
"Yes." And then the words that completely melted my heart.
"How do we get her, Daddy?"
"Would you like to meet Amber and see her one day?"
"Yes."

Rachael started to interact with me a tiny bit more. My dog, Kirby, started barking, which gave me something with which to engage Rachael. Then Brian left her watching a movie for a few minutes. He stayed where she could hear me talking and come check me out if she wanted. So she would go over to Brian and give him hugs and kisses and sneak glances at me.

Brian got a phone call, and while he was on the phone, my mom came into my room and I was showing her some children's books that I bought. Brian came back and Rachael was with him. She wanted to know what book I had, so he told her to ask me. I asked her if she wanted me to read it to her, and so began the first book of several that I would read over the next few minutes. We read The Fish with the Deep Sea Smile by Margaret Wise Brown and then If You Give a Pig a Pancake by Laura Numeroff and we read Otis by Loren Long. The first meeting went well.

The next night, Brian picked Rachael up from her mom's house and he asked her if she liked it when I read books to her. She was quiet for a minute, thinking about it, and remembering and then answered that she did like it. Then, according to Brian, she said, "Are we going to Amber's house?"
"Not tonight. It's too far."
"But you can drive really fast!" I agreed with Rachael, but I guess we'll both have to wait. :)

Yesterday, I was on the phone with Brian and he was getting Rachael dressed in her swimsuit so she could go outside and play with her cousins. I told him I wanted to say hello, so he told Rachael, "Someone wants to talk to you."
"Is it Amber?" Love love love her. <3 Then she told me about her octopus swimsuit (it's adorable!) before running out the door to play.

Last night, when I got on Skype and Brian called me, he was sitting in Rachael's bed with her... So she popped up and said, "Will you read me the book about the fish with the deep sea smile?" How could I refuse?! So I read her a few books, and she and I chatted about her rubber duck and a few other bath toys and what color they were and whether they were at Mommy's house or Daddy's house. Brian tucked her in and said prayers with her. Then she got in bed and wanted to know what my bed looked like (she's so good at those stall tactics!) so I showed her my room and then told her goodnight.

I'm so honored that Brian has chosen not only to share himself with me, but to share with me the very best part of himself... his little girl. I'm also thankful that she likes me! Pretty sure I fell in love with her the moment I heard her little voice. I can't wait to meet her one day and make memories with her.