My sweet baby girl,
I just put you to bed after a full day of birthday activities – I can hardly believe a year has flown by already and you are well on your way to being a toddler. I honestly can’t remember what life was like before you – you are such an important part of this family. It is no secret that I never imagined myself a girl mom – always thought I’d raise a house full of boys – pink, purses, shoes and tutus just aren’t my thing but along you came and now I can’t imagine not having my girl – and I promise to let you dance if you want to 🙂
I worried a bit about how your brother would adjust to you after being an only child for close to five years but from day one he has loved you and you him. He is so sweet with you and you just light up when you see him – I love watching your relationship develop. You guys share a room and in the morning I can hear you laughing over his antics 🙂 You’re a bit more feisty than your brother was at this age but still a fairly easy baby. You were an amazing sleeper from day one – sleeping 5-6 hours stretches in the beginning and up to ten hours a night by 10 weeks. The last few weeks you’ve been waking up in the middle of the night so I’m suspecting a growth spurt or maybe some new teeth on the way. You have 7 teeth so far – four on the top and three on the bottom 🙂 You are my little thumb sucker which is incredibly cute now especially when you snuggle up with your lovie but I’m sure when I’m trying to break you of the habit in a few years I won’t think it’s so cute 😉
You just started pulling up to stand and have taken a few wobbly steps while hanging on for dear life to the side of the couch – I suspect you will be a late walker but you can crawl at lightning speed and love to do laps around Grandma and Papa’s house. You were slow to warm up to foods but now eat just about anything we give you – your favorites are yogurt, cheese, banana, rice biscuits, grilled cheese, green beans and bread. You especially like things you can pick up yourself and when you’ve decided you’re done eating you just start pitching the food pieces over the side of your seat. Shadow appreciates this and camps out under your chair while you eat. You say mama and dada and I have heard a papa or two – you babble tons but not much else makes sense to us yet. You love music, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, your pink sheep and whatever your brother is playing with.
This first year with you has been amazing little girl – I have loved watching you grow and feel so blessed to be your mama. I cannot wait to see what life has in store for you and your brother. Happy Birthday Ellie girl – mama, dada and brother love you so so much <3
