To my Baby Girl on her Birthday

My Precious Molly-

It was bright and early, one year ago today, that we welcomed you into our lives. You have blessed our family so much and we have enjoyed getting to know you and your little personality over the last 12 months. The love that I feel for you is unlike any other love that I have experienced in my life; it is automatic, unconditional, deep, full, and ever-growing. It's a feeling I could never adequately describe, a feeling I knew nothing about before this year, but a feeling I know you will understand someday when you have a child of your own. I thank God everyday for the opportunity He has given to your Dad and me to love you, care for you, shape you and guide you.

On this special day, I thought I'd share with you some of the things I love so much about you, the ways in which you've grown, and some special memories.

• One of my favorite memories is of the moment the midwife laid your tiny, wriggling, screaming body on my chest and we "met" for the first time. She said, "Wow, what a lusty cry," but you quieted down pretty quickly, snuggled into my chest, and puckered up those adorable rosebud lips. I just couldn't stop smiling. I kept kissing your head and your tiny hands and simply saying, "Hi Molly. Hello. I love you!" You still are quite the screamer, but you also calm down pretty quickly when you're snuggled in your Mama's arms.

• In one year, you've grown from 7 lb. 12 oz. to over 16 lbs. and you've added 6 inches to your height. You're still our little peanut, but as you grow more and more independent, you're starting to act less like a baby and more like a little girl.
• You're a crawling speed-demon, but you also love to cruise around the room from one piece of furniture to the next. Just in the last few weeks, you've started to balance in a standing position on your own. You are very cautious and will go straight back to crawling at the first sign of unbalance, but I know you'll be walking (and then running) around the house in no time. If walking is anything like crawling and cruising, then one day you're just going to take off. You're not really into all this "trial-and-error" falling business. You're going to wait until you're good and ready and then impress us all with your baby swagger.
• You love to eat and are always willing to try new foods. Some of your favorites are asparagus, yogurt, bananas, cottage cheese, eggs, bread, and pretty much any kind of fruit. You also love your snacks (cheerios, mum mums, puffs, teething biscuits). You're not a big fan of sweet potatoes, broccoli, or green beans. You like finger foods a lot, but you always end up putting WAY more in your mouth than you should and turn yourself into a little "chipmunk cheeks."

• I love the way you sleep all curled up on your belly, your cheek snuggled into your lovie, your legs tucked up under you like a little frog, and your 10 tiny toes poking out from under your cute little tushie.
• I love that you view everything in your world with a wide-eyed wonderment. You would hate to blink and miss a single thing going on around you. Those big blue eyes of yours are always seeking, studying, and observing. I hope you never lose that sense of wonderment.

• I love the pure joy you get out of the simple things in life. If I just say, "This little piggie went to market," a smile begins to play on your little rosebud lips. By the time we get to "And THIS little piggie went...", that smile has spread clear across your face, your eyes are sparkling and your whole little body is wriggling in anticipation of the "wee, wee, wee, wee, all the way home."
• One of your favorite things to do is swing in your tree swing in the evening. You grab onto the ropes with your pudgy little hands, throw your head back, and smile so wide that I'm afraid you'll catch some bugs in your mouth.
• You like to "talk" to whomever or whatever will listen. Sometimes that's me and Daddy. Sometimes it's your books and toys. You just toddle and crawl your way about the house jabbering on, "Ya-ya-ya-ya, da-da-da-da, aye-aye-aye-aye." I'm still waiting for your "ma-ma-ma-ma" ;)
  
• I look forward to bathtime every night. Ever since you were a tiny brand-new baby, you've loved your bath. You splash and play and laugh and squeal until your fingers and toes get all wrinkled up. And then I wrap you up in a little towel cocoon and snuggle you into my chest so I can smell your sweet, clean baby smell.

• One of our favorite things to do together is read. We'll gather up a big pile of books, settle into our favorite chair and read some stories together. I read the words while you rub on the pictures and turn the pages. You love to hear the squeak your finger makes when you rub it hard on the page of a boardbook. You like to hear the stories too.

• I actually enjoy the nights that you wake me up in the wee hours for some "Mommy-cuddles" and nursies. We lay in bed together while I stroke your hair and rub your back. These few precious minutes in the pre-dawn darkness remind me of the many precious minutes we spent together in the middle of the night when you were tiny. At the time, I didn't realize how much I'd miss our mid-night rendevous when they were gone.
• Right now you are pretty wary of anyone who is not Mommy or Daddy. Sometimes this can be a real challenge, but it helps remind us that you love us. Even if you can't say it, you show us all the time. Just in the last few days, you've been a little less wary around strangers and even downright happy playing with Grandma and your cousins. I'm proud of how brave you are without me holding your hand.
• Your laughter is one of the sweetest sounds in the world. I remember the first time you laughed for me, I thought I was going to bust open with happiness. You love to laugh and you have many different kinds. I love every single one, from your squeals and giggles to your deep belly laughs. I hope we'll be laughing together for years and years to come.

So, dear Molly, those are just a few special tid-bits for you on your birthday. I love you "across the river and over the hills. I love you right up to the moon and back." And I can't wait to see what the next year (and the many years after) will bring.

Happy Birthday, Molly Joy.

Love, Mommy