You are now 1 year old as of a few weeks ago! This first year of life with you- even with many sleepless nights- has been an absolute pleasure because of your disposition. You are a absolute joy! Your smile and laugh are contagious and your cheeks are irresistible! One of my very favorite things to do is hold you up so we're face to face and rub cheeks with you. It's a big ol' slice of heaven.
A few weeks before your 1st birthday, many big developmental things happened at once. You started to crawl, popped your first 2 teeth, began to pull yourself up on things and even started to stand for a few seconds without holding on to anything! This week you started drinking actual milk (goodbye formula!) from a sippy cup on your own. You seem to LOVE your newfound independence to crawl where you want to go and drink when you want to drink. (Readers: Think frat boy pounding beer but much more innocent.) Here are some things I want to remember from your first year of life:
- I was a little anxious before giving birth to you and this angel of a nurse said that when she was about to give birth to her second she was worried she wouldn't have enough love to give since she had SO much love for her first and she had plenty. I do too! The love for you is overflowing, actually.
- The first thing they said when you came out was "Woah! She is so big!" You are the most huggable, snuggle-able (not a word, I know) baby. You
likelove to eat like we do! You fit right in. - You were named after my two grandpas- Ern and Harlan (Buddala). For the first year of your life- including the day we left the hospital- we've been seeing groups of white butterflies so often. I had never seen a purely white butterfly until you were born. I'm pretty sure it's Ern coming to say hello to us and especially you. He had a very calm, peaceful presence like they do.
- You have a lot of nicknames: Em, Emmy, pumpkin, EmDogg
- You seem to enjoy yourself wherever you are and whoever you're with. You love daycare. You love home days. You even have a few buddies- Maya and Ella- at the ripe age of 1.
Thanks for being born and thanks for being you. I'm so excited to keep watching your personality blossom!
Love,
Mama
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Leading up to Sydney and Emily's birthdays (August and September) I found myself feeling extra sentimental and even a little bit sad. They LOVE us and depend on us when they're babies and they keep getting older (weird- they're the only ones! haha!). Then a good friend pointed out to me exactly what I needed to hear. He said, "Well, what's the alternative?". That was exactly the shoulder shaking that I needed. These girls are thriving, growing, and happy AND they're ours! Since then I've mostly just been basking in the gratitude that we have these ridiculously funny, loving and healthy girls. HAPPY late birthday to you, Syd and Em!
