Letters To My Little One | One Year Old

Letters To My Little One | One Year Old

thursday, april 13, 2017

dear baby doll,

as i sit down to write this one year old letter, i am truly in awe.  it seems like i just started writing these letters to you when you were just 20 weeks along in my belly, and now i am writing you on your first birthday.  it just truly doesn’t seem possible that time can pass this quickly.  i told your daddy that the years i spent praying for this family seem like yesterday and now here we are, as our family turns a year old.

you have a full on personality now and everything about you is uniquely you.  the way you wave both arms when waving “bye, bye” and clap your hands whenever you hear us exclaim, “yay!”  the way you stick your little tongue out when you are studying something or thinking.  the way you throw food on the floor, even though mama is begging you to eat it instead.  the way you crawl fast down the hallway, giggling as mama chases after you.  they way your arms and legs move in excitement, all at the same time, when you see daddy after work.  the way you put your head down on the carpet when the puppy comes near you, and then giggle when you kisses your face.  the way you grab your hanging pajamas in your closet and sway them back and forth, back and forth.  the way you always sleep on your tummy and only sleep on your back when you get too warm.  the way you gently look at books, the paper kind, and love to flip through the pages.  the way you absolutely, positively hate getting your face washed after a meal but absolutely, positively love brushing your teeth once it’s over.  the way you crinkle your nose and purse your lips.

all of these things are so beautifully you.  and we truly woudn’t want you any other way.  how it is possible that we got so lucky with the sweetest baby?  for all the mistakes we’ve made in life, we must have done something right to deserve such a beautiful blessing.  you are truly our biggest accomplishment.

when it comes to food, you truly love peas, olives, cheerios, steak, potatoes, green beans and much more.  when you first started eating finger foods you would eat well, but now you find more enjoyment throwing your food on the floor for the dogs.  sometimes it can be adorable, but most of the time we are begging you to eat.

at 11 months, 7 days you went on a nursing strike for 5-6 days and were not very interested in nursing.  while mama knew we were going to transition you to milk at one year old, it was still a little surprising to see your sudden disinterest.  we took it as a sign that you were ready and after talking with your pediatrician, you were cleared to begin cow’s milk.  we introduced it about a week later at 11 1/2 months, as mama really wanted to be sure you were close to your birthday.  after your few days of the nursing strike, you began nursing like normal again, much too mama’s relief.  while i know we will be ending our nursing at one year old, it is nice to enjoy the last times with you instead of being pushed away.  while we are both ready, i will truly miss the morning feeds when i would come get you from your crib and we would cuddle and feed in mama’s room before going back to sleep for a few more hours.

at one year old, you are becoming a really good swimmer and have excelled so wonderfully since your first day at swim school.  you really love the water and especially love splashing the water while we sing songs and kicking your feet in the water while you are sitting on the edge of the pool, waiting to get in.  you also love to collect the duckies and put them into the basket, and have learned to drop them into the basket yourself now!

our days are filled with lots of play, these days.  you are amazing at independent play and love to play with your blocks.  you love taking them out of the bin and then putting some of them back in and you also love to spread your golden books all around your room.  you get a lot of joy taking those golden books out of their book basket and tossing them on the floor; it is endlessly entertaining for you.

you are learning to pull yourself up and can get all the way up on your knees without help.  we transitioned your play center into the table version and you like to pull up on that, but have yet to get up on your feet on your own.  with help, you like to stand by the mirror in our walk in closet and look at yourself and you like to stand next to the ottoman in your room and pat the top of it.  you are getting so strong and we are certain you will be trying to walk in no time.

even after a year, it still amazes us how quickly you learn and develop.  one day you will be struggling to crawl and a couple days later, you will master it and crawl faster than we imagined.  it must be all the good sleep you get each night that is helping you during the day.  you are still such an amazing sleeper and sleep regularly for 13 hours each night in your own bed.  and you are still napping, twice a day beautifully as well.  if there is one thing we did right, it’s teaching you how to sleep well and we are so happy that you are such a good sleeper…meaning we can be good sleepers too!  we are one refreshed little family!

last night, we began a new tradition with you.  a frozen yogurt family date on your birthday eve.  last year on april 12th, your daddy and i were sitting on the couch after dinner and all of a sudden thought, “let’s go on a frozen yogurt date!”  it was so beautifully spontaneous and we weren’t sure exactly why we suddenly felt the need to go have a sweet treat, but we did.  we were expecting you in three days and thought it would be nice to have one last spontaneous night out before you arrived.  little did we know, we would meet you the following day.  looking back, we always find irony that we suddenly had a last night date the night before you came.  and now, we have decided it should be a birthday eve tradition.  something we do every year with you.  so last night, we buckled into the car and went for frozen yogurt.

as we begin your second year, it is going to be so much fun to compare “this summer and last summer,” “this fall and last fall,” “this winter and last winter,” and “this spring and next spring.”  to see how much you have changed in one year leaves us unsure of who you will be a year from today.  what we do know is that you are going to be a very sweet and smart little girl, who is very, very loved.

happiest of birthdays to you, doll.  we love you more than words could ever express and cannot wait to continue this beautiful life as a family with you.

love,

mama

to read more about my journey with motherhood and mama adventures, be sure to check out the posts trending below.