"Mama, it's sunny outside! It's almost summer, wake up, wake up! C'mon, let's be early birds! Oh please mama! Get out of bed!"

Lindsay groaned and rolled over, pulling her pillow over her head. The protection wasn't enough; Levi just jumped onto the bed and yanked the pillow away.

"Morning smooches!" she giggled. "Mama get UP!"

"No, I'm too tired."

"Well I'm not and grampa says we need to use up all of our day doing constructive things. Sleeping is for the night. You can't disobey grampa!"

"Baby, can you give me one more hour?"

"Nope! You promised me a picnic for my birthday! You sweared and crossed your heart."

"We can have a picnic for lunch."

"Oh but don't you want to love me and hug me and play with me all day? On my birthday? It's a special day! It's the very first day we ever seen each other, and ever loved each other. It's the beginning of our great adventure together. My birthday is the start of it all!"

Lindsay couldn't help but laugh her agreement as she rolled over and pulled her daughter into her arms.

"Levitica Jane Monroe, I love you more than anything in this whole world."

"I know! I love you that much too! Except I don't even know what all's in the world, but I am sure I still love you the most. Please can we get up and go play?"

"Alright, I'll get up. Let's unwrap your presents and then I'll make you breakfast."

"I got presents?" she asked excitedly. "But I thought my present was spending the day together."

"I know, but I got you some stuff anyway. And the family sent you some cards too."

"Oh wow! I am so lucky! Let's go!"

Lindsay chuckled and struggled up from the bed, wishing for just a little more sleep. She and Adam had stayed up until the wee hours of the morning talking and while it had seemed like a good idea at the time, she hadn't banked on Levi waking up with the sun.

"Mama, you didn't say there were so many presents!" Levi squealed, clapping her hands. "This is so great! Can we open them all now?"

"Sure sweetie."

The presents were piled on the coffee table and they sat down on the couch together, Levi giggling uncontrollably with excitement. Lindsay tried to be enthusiastic too but the frequency of her yawning was bringing tears to her eyes.

"I made you coffee," Levi said, halfway through opening the first present. "I knew you would want it."

"Oh, thank you baby."

"I will pause while you go get it."

Lindsay smirked and went into the kitchen, pouring a cup of coffee and adding some creamer, before going back out to the couch.

"All set? Okay. This one is from… you! I read that all by myself! I couldn't read the card last birthday, when I turned five. Crazy what can change in a year huh?"

"Yeah, it's crazy," Lindsay agreed softly, tucking Levi's hair behind her ear.

"Oh mama this is so cute! How did you know I would like this outfit? When did you get it? How did you know I would want purple? Can I wear it today?"

"Sure you can wear it today."

"I really love it mama, thank you!"

"I'm glad you like it."

"Now, let's see. How about this one from grama and grampa! What do you think it is?"

"I have no idea."

Levi ripped into the paper excitedly, her eyes bugging out of her head.

"Mama it's a jewelry maker! It's just what I wanted! How did they know?"

"A little birdie told them."

"Well how did that birdie know? Oh boy I can't wait to use this! I am gonna make friendship bracelets, one kind for me and you and one kind for me and Gabby! Will you help me with it later?"

"Of course. Maybe after we get back from our picnic."

"Okay! Should I open the last present or all the cards now?"

"Maybe we should wait on the cards and that will make your birthday last all day."

"Oh okay! So I will do the present now."

She reached over for it and read the tag, her nose scrunching up until she recognized the name.

"This is from Adam! What in the world would he get me?"

She tore the paper off the box with a heightened enthusiasm and squealed with joy when the gift was revealed.

"It's an ice-cream maker mama! He remembered! He remembered when we were at the store and I said I would love that. He remembered it and he got it for me! Oh mama, he really loves me! Can I call him right now to say thank you? Can I please?"

"It's too early now, but we'll talk to him later okay?"

"Okay! Mama, this is the best birthday ever! Everyone loves me so much!"

"Yeah we do. C'mere, I want to hold you for a bit."

Levi giggled and climbed into Lindsay's lap, cuddling up happily.

"Mama, the first time you ever saw me, when I was just born and covered in goo, what did you think?"

"I thought "I sure hope she's cute under all that goo.""

"No for reals mama!"

"I thought that you were the best thing that had ever happened to me, you were the most wonderful surprise I could ever have. I thought you were so beautiful and so perfect and I promised you that I would be the best mama in the world for you."

"I don't remember that but I wish I did. Did you hug and kiss me even with the goo?"

"Yes I did, and once they washed you off, I just couldn't stop hugging and kissing you. You were so perfect. Your eyes were blue back then and they were big and bright and I could have just looked at them forever. You made me so happy that day baby. And every day after that you've made me happier than I ever thought I could be."

"I am so glad I got borned to you mama. I wouldn't want anyone else. You and me are together forever."

Lindsay stiffened at the words; the whole thing with Josh was so up in the air that she was in a constant state of worry and fear. Even this simple proclamation sent her upset stomach into overdrive.

"I'm glad too sweetie. I love you."

"Love you too. Gimme a real good squeeze-hug okay?"

"Okay. Give me one back."

They sat together for a long while in silence, much as they had on that first day together six years before. As much as Lindsay had loved her daughter then, she couldn't believe how much more in love she'd fallen since. Every day brought something more, just when she thought her heart was full to bursting, there it was again, more love, unfathomable.

"Mama, can you tell me a special something? One that you want me to remember forever?"

Lindsay sat up a little, taking Levi's face gently in her hands and kissing her forehead.

"Baby, I want you to always know that you are my daughter and that can't change. No one else will ever love you as much as I do, and I will never love you less. No one and nothing can ever take you away from me. Understand?"

"Yes. I will remember."

"Good. What do you want for breakfast?"

"Could we have waffles? I like to fill the holes with syrup."

"Whatever you want kiddo."

"Can you make a flower crown for my hair?" Levi asked, dropping the pile of dandelions into Lindsay's lap, then plopping down on the blanket and yawning.

"Sure. You just want dandelions in it?"

"Those are not dandelions."

"Oh they're not?"

"Nope. I call them sunbursts. Because it looks like the sun is bursting."

"Oh I see. Well is that all you want in it?"

"Mm-hmm. I can't find nothing else."

Lindsay smirked but didn't correct the grammar, setting to work instead on the flowers.

"Mama, when you were a teeny-tiny like me, did you and grama make flower chains?"

"We sure did. Grandma makes way better ones than I ever could."

"Could you teach me someday? Before I have a teeny-tiny?"

"Yes I will."

Levi stretched and rolled over to look at the sky, pulling her arms behind her head and contemplating the clouds with much seriousness.

"Mama?"

"Yes?"

"Do you think a cloud is sad when it floats away? Is it crying when it rains? Where do the clouds go when there's too much sun? Could we go up in the sky and catch some clouds in a jar for me? What would that be like?"

"Good golly Miss Molly, so many questions."

"Someday I want to be a tree. My feet will be covered in the earth and I will always have fresh air in my branches. I will be tall and strong. And I can watch the world from up really high. Birds will be my friends and they will make nests in my hair."

"My little hippie," Lindsay chuckled, handing her the completed flower chain. "There you go sunshine."

"Oh mama it's beautiful! Can't you make one for you too? So we match?"

"Sure. Go pick me a few more."

Levi giggled and stood up, running across the grass to the patch of dandelions she'd picked from before. Her simple joy was contagious and Lindsay realized she hadn't worried about Josh or lawyers or custody since early that morning. Even at the passing thought of them she didn't flinch, just let them go by as she watched her daughter in a flight of fancy.

She skipped around in a circle, singing to herself and stopping every few moments to pick a prime dandelion. Her long hair tangled behind her and her feet were covered in grass stains and dirt but Lindsay wasn't sure of a time when her daughter had looked more beautiful.

"Here mama. These ones are just glorious. Can we read together as soon as you're done?"

"Sure sweetie. Why don't you look in the basket and pick a book."

Levi nodded and sat down on the blanket, flipping the basket open and pulling out the stack of books they'd brought.

"Hmm, maybe not the Laura books," she said, tossing a copy of Little House in the Big Woods off to the side. "Oh boy, Charlotte's Web! Can we read this one mama? I like when you do the animal voices."

"Okay. Anything else you'd like today?" she asked with a little smirk.

"No, today is just perfect. Well maybe there is one thing. Maybe, could we go out for dinner? Would that be alright?"

"Sure. You be thinking about where you want to go."

"Hmm. I will think. You know what? A little bit, I wish we were in Montana right now. I would like a glass of grama's sweet tea and that elk jerky grampa makes. That would be the greatest."

"That does sound pretty good right now," Lindsay agreed, finishing off her own flower chain and putting it on her head. "There, how do I look?"

"You look… um… what's that big huge word that means beautiful? The one you called me the other day that sounded like a doctor word?"

"Pulchritudinous?"

"Yes that! That's how you look."

"Thank you."

"Can we read now?"

Lindsay nodded and they settled back against the old oak tree, cracking the book open. They'd read the story together once or twice before, the first time to cure Levi of her fear of spiders. This time she slapped her hand over the page right after the first chapter and looked up at Lindsay indignantly.

"Why didn't you name me Fern?"

"Because I would have always called you Fern Gully."

"Why?"

"Because."

"Well I would like to be called Fern. It's a good name. It makes me think of sunshine and the woods and the smell of the barn."

"Oh it does?"

"I could also be called Loretta Lynn. I like her."

"Did I ever tell you that you're very strange?"

"Yep! What would you be called if you could change your name?"

"I don't know honey."

"Hmm. I will think of a name for you maybe. How about Carol like on the Brady show?"

"No, I don't think I could ever fill Florence Henderson's shoes."

"Well I'll think about it. Keep reading."

Lindsay smiled and dropped a kiss to Levi's hair, wishing she could freeze this day in time forever, coming back to revisit it frequently. She'd be remembering it often and she was sure the memory would be worn out by the time all these upcoming bad days were over.