Little did I know that one day, as I was folding laundry, I would stop and say, “Oh, honey, go get the camera! Look, our daughter is wearing her panties on her head.” Or that, while talking on the phone to my friend Amy, I'd say, “Oh my goodness, I’ll have to call you back. My son’s playing with the dog food again and I think he just ate a piece.” Or that nothing could tear up a house quicker than the search for Puppy or Belly (the kids' security blankets.)

Little did I know that on my thirtieth birthday, the picture we would take would be one where I'm trying to hold on to both of my wiggly children, with my windblown hair all in my face, and we'd only get the one shot before everyone started to cry.

Little did I know about all of the sleepless nights, hours and hours spent consoling crying babies, and moments of pure exhaustion. And, little did I know that it was possible to love two tiny creatures before I had ever even met them. That they would consume my thoughts and that my heart would be forever changed.

Little did I know, five years in the future, my daughter would call out to me in the middle of the night. I would come to her room, pick her up, and say, “Sweetie pie, what’s wrong?”

She would cry, “Mommy, I needed you.”

And I would reply, “Sweetheart, I needed you, too.”