iffley road: 1 year later.

to our sweet, sweet girl on her first birthday:

while i've been holding back tears all morning from the thought of having been blessed with you for a year now, i will no longer contain myself. (AHHHHH, that feels better.) how can one expect a mother to keep composure when her heart is so full of gratitude for her blessings?? she simply cannot. (mascara running down my cheeks...)

so darling girl, this has been the shortest year of our lives. everyone says that, but i feel like just yesterday you were placed in my arms for the first time! if the first year has gone by this fast, i can only imagine how the rest of your life is going to whizzzzz by. i hate it.

never has our life been filled with so much joy. nearly everyday of your life we've been stopped by random strangers who exclaim "oh, God bless her!" indeed, we feel so blessed to have you in our lives and we can't even remember life without you. we don't even WANT to remember life without you.

although you are a spitting image of your dad, you definitely have your moms personality (thank heavens;) you are so quick to smile, AT ANYONE. you make the day of everyone we meet by flashing them that big smile of yours. (see below. heart melting.) and that laugh. do you get tired of us trying to make you laugh all day? probably... but thanks for humoring us...

you've always been a very vocal baby, and we just love it. these days you are such a bundle of laughs with your sound imitations and yelling. nothing gets our attention more that a little excited shriek from our 20lb remiford. i can only imagine your reaction when we give you your cake at dinner tonight--- first experience with sugar.. (i already have anxiety...) you're going to LOVE it. maybe too much.

we have loved watching you grow and learn. although not walking yet, your crawling like a little ant and its just to die for. but really, what's not cute about you?! wellllll.... you do throw food on the ground a lot... mommy doesn't really like that.....

in addition to your charming demeanor and excited attitude about everything, we have loved how adventurous you are! from very early on, you were eating every food put in front of you (and even non-food items... we're still working on that). and it's SO FUN watching you enjoy what's in front of you. you really have a "french attitude" when it comes to food. tres bien, darling.

so here we are, in this great big city, only a speck among the millions. but remember how much your family loves you. you have brightened our lives in a way only you could do. you have a spirit that is close to Heavenly Father, and we see that spirit everyday.

joyeux anniversaire, sweet girl! forgive mommy for all the times i burst into tears today, but know that's nothing new. at least once a day i feel overwhelmed by tears of love for you, i'm just good at hiding it. (oh, it's nothing dear, just allergies....) i swear one day my heart is going to burst.