One Year

Dear Audrey Elizabeth,

From this amazing moment, when you, our beautiful daughter, were placed in my arms....our lives were forever changed. I feel the need to cling to these moments with you, because I know the next few years will pass as quickly as this one has. I do my best to make the most of every moment I have with you. I scoop you up when you crawl or walk up to my knees, stand up and say "mama, up!"; spend as much time as I can playing with you, cuddling with you and just watching you, in awe of the little girl you are; I try to squeeze in a few more minutes of bath time and rock you just a little longer before laying you in your bed at night.
I want to remember every detail of your first year. I want to remember how you wrinkle up your little nose when you're acting silly, how you tuck things under your neck, how sweet the sound of Mama is coming out of your mouth. I want to always be able to feel your little arms around my neck, and remember how easily you sit on my hip and how fond you are of our routine we have as a family.

Here are a few things that make you so fabulous right now little girl.....the list, like you, is ever changing!:

You are full of energy and love to do things independently, but you still need and ask for help.

You LOVE books and choose them to play with and read more than most other things. You love to bring us a book and climb in our laps to read it. You have old favorites that we've read a million times, and you enjoy new ones too.

You love babies...caring for your dolls, pointing to babies in books, magazines, out in public, anywhere. You are a true girl!:) You crack us up when you crawl up in your doll bed to sit and play with them.

You love music and instruments and dancing. You have so much fun bopping to a beat and creating your own beat any chance you get. You love when we all sing to you and act silly to music. And your laughter totally encourages us to act sillier and dance more!

You love your paci, which you have started to call your mimi. We don't know where this word came from, but you love your mimi.....the more you can have and hold at once, the happier you are.

Fruit is your food of choice these days. You'll eat pretty much any fruit and love it.

You know what you want and what you don't and you voice that opinion.

You are so smart! You know and use so many words and follow directions so well. We are always amazed by how much you know and can do.

You try to carry around things that are generally too big for you to carry, but that doesn't stop you from trying to get things where you want them.

You grow more beautiful with each passing day. You get compliments and tons of attention everywhere we go...both for your beauty, your blue eyes, smile, and your precious personality!

You love your Mama and Daddy. You give us both so much love and so equally. You want each of us at different times and love when we are all three together. And we love that too. You have made us a family, and have brought us more joy, more laughter and kept us busier in one year than we could possibly imagine. We can only imagine how amazing the next year with you will be, beautiful girl.

You have brought out a side of your Daddy that I didn't know was there. You have softened him to all the wonderful things that come with having a girl. You are more excited to see him than you are to see anybody. I believe he may carry you around until your ten, and you'll be happy to be clinging to his side with your arm hooked over his shoulder like you do, just being with him. You two have such a special bond and it's so sweet to see.

I feel it is truly my life's purpose to be your Mama, and I feel so blessed to have that honor. I love you little girl. Happy First Birthday!

Mama