BIRTHDAY TREE

One of our favorite things about our home is the special tree in our backyard. When we moved in (December 1999) the tree looked dead and especially un-lovely to a pregnant wife who had just left perpetually green Atlanta. I decided that if it remained that ugly in the spring we would cut it down. Early in April the tree began to bud. At 36 weeks pregnant, I declared that the baby would be born on the day that the tree bloomed. Sure enough, on April 30 we saw our beautiful tree bloom for the first time. That same day, Avery Elizabeth made her way into the world, 5 days early. From that day forward, we have dubbed it "Avery's birthday tree" and we look forward to this time every year!