Happy Birthday, Zoe

Today Rob's daughter, Zoe, turns eleven. Hard to believe (so I can only imagine how Rob must feel about it). I can remember the first time I saw her when the local youth strings program came to play at my school; I'd already met Rob and knew about her, and when I saw her there was no doubt that she was his daughter. She was seven at the time, a little pixieish with a spring in her step (she still walks on her tiptoes and claims it's from trying to avoid broken glass while walking barefoot). I met her a year later, at age eight, and I've got to give her credit: if my divorced dad had gotten a new girlfriend I can't say I'd be too pleased and certainly wouldn't have taken pains to disguise my disapproval, but she immediately accepted me. What makes me feel even better is how often she voices her emphatic agreement about our partnership; she really feels like I'm the best person for her father, which means a great deal to me. That kind of support is priceless. It's strange to have watched her go from a little girl to the 11 year-old she is today (though I won't see that for another month or so). She's growing so quickly and she's turning out to be a pretty neat kid, which comes as no surprise, given who her father is. How could she not?

Happy birthday, Zoe Ramone!