January 13, 2015
Dear Piper,
Today is your first birthday. I can't believe how quickly your first year of life has gone by. It seems like the day you were born was just a week ago. I can remember it all so vividly. I remember how I felt the first time I saw you. I remember what my life was like before you--but I cannot imagine my life without you. I everything before you were born feels like it is in a haze. I feel like becoming your mother has opened my mind to see the world in different ways.
It truly is amazing how quickly you have grown. I have to start off by telling you how emotional this day has made me. Right now I just want you to stay this little baby. I have enjoyed the last year with you so very much that I do not want it to end. At the same time, I so look forward to the little girl you are becoming.
I am not completely sure of your weight--I will find out at your doctors appointment on Friday. I am guessing that it is somewhere around 24 pounds. You are really tall and still have the cutest little pot belly that I have ever seen. What can I say? You love to eat. Your favorite foods are cheese and bread. You will eat almost any kind of bread I throw at you from bagels to cake. You love shredded cheese, and especially cream cheese on a bagel.
You are quite the handful now. You have really started taking off walking in the last week before your birthday. You love to walk from the couch to your play kitchen and even around in circles. You babble non-sense constantly--although I am sure it makes perfect sense to you. You hardly ever miss a chance to sway and dance along to music. I hope you never lose that quality. You love watching The Wiggles in my lap. I don't mind at all because while you watch them--I can watch you. You are like a sponge. Everything is so new and exciting. You have no knowledge of any of the unpleasantness that is out there in our world. You are carefree and you love without bounds. I would give anything to be like you.
Almost nightly, Your daddy and I sneak in to your room and watch you sleep. We marvel at how truly beautiful you are. You have the longest eyelashes and the most gorgeous plump lips. You still have my green eyes, and I am hoping they will stay that way forever--but if they don't, then I have a feeling I will love their new color even more.
You love to play with our cat, Finder. You like to pet her and scratch her head. You often try to bite her. I have caught you dragging her by her tail once and by a clump of fur on her belly a few more times. She didn't really seem to mind. I know that she loves you a lot. She tries to sneak in your room to sleep with you at night, but we are afraid that she would wake you. Maybe one day soon we will let her. You also love our dog, Callie. You so badly want to play with her--but she is just not too sure about you. You see, she was mommy's girl before you came along, and she is not too happy about being replaced. She does love to hang out around your high chair while you are eating. You think it is hilarious to feed her your unwanted scraps.
You have a pretty big vocabulary. I am really impressed with the number of words and sounds that you can make. So far you have said: mama, dada, doggy, kitty, hi, bye, hey, cheese, tree, good, light, right, and eye. I think that it indicates that you will be one smart little girl.
Within the last two weeks you have fallen in love with books. Before you would hardly sit still for an entire book, but now you almost cry when I finish reading one and beg for me to read it again. Your favorite books are Brown Bear Brown Bear, What Do You See? and The Very Hungry Caterpillar. Those are usually the first ones you pull off your shelf every night before bed. You love to take baths as well. AND you sleep 12 hours at night and have since you were 9 months old. Overall you have been a very good baby. If your dad and I never have another it is because we are afraid that we would get the other end of the spectrum next time.
On Saturday we are having your first birthday party. All of your friends and family are going to gather together to celebrate you. It's an owl theme because we have owls in your nursery. I am hoping that you will smash your cake into a billion pieces. I am sure that I will shed more than a few tears. One day you will understand why I cry at the drop of a hat when it comes to you. It is emotional loving someone as much as I love you.
So, happy first birthday baby Piper. Today you are officially no longer a baby to the outside world. You are a toddler. On the inside I know the truth--you will always be my baby girl. There is something really special that happens to a woman when she gives birth to a little girl--she becomes a mother. An irrationally protective, endlessly silly, yet constantly crying-- mother. Being a mother is so much more than I thought it was. It means caring and thinking of someone else before yourself. No one ever told me that having you would break my heart and rebuild it to be twice as big. I now know that I am capable of unconditional all-consuming love. In life--it just doesn't get any better than that. I thank you so much for giving me that gift. I promise I will try my hardest to be the best mother I can. I love you.
Love,
Mom
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