I'm 1!

A few days late, but here it is nonetheless.

Our little girl turned 1 on May 13th. It's hard to imagine that one whole year ago we woke up, nice and rested and then my water broke. Our life changed and I wouldn't go back. Hadley has brought much joy to our lives. Even during the tough times when she wouldn't sleep or eat; when I wasn't sure what to do with her endless crying, every single second of it was worth it.

She has grown into a beautiful little girl. I love her eyes accented by her long eyelashes. She has the cutest little toes and fingers. Her chubby legs make me smile. Her laugh is infectious. Hadley has a strong and independent personality, she isn't afraid to crawl off into the unknown. Among that independent toddler is a little girl who loves to snuggle with her parents and her favorite blanket. She has a gentle spirit even though she loves to steal toys or touch her fellow babies with not-so gentle touches. Her curiosity makes her fun to watch. When she cries, it breaks my heart, although I secretly love knowing she wants me to comfort her.

She's mastered crawling and standing. It's hard to imagine her walking, she's still so little, but I know soon it will happen. When she does start walking we'll be chasing after her as she gleefully runs off to explore. Even now she loves to play chase down our hallways, she'll even look back to make sure we're chasing her. Her little face seems to change more and more each day, making her look so grown up. The girl can eat too! She'll load her little cheeks up like a chipmunk and you can't give her food fast enough. Luckily most people who see her eat know we do really feed her, because at every meal it's like she hasn't eaten for weeks.

She's babbling away as if she's known how to talk her whole 1 year of life. We swear she's said 'hi,' 'yeah,' and 'hey'. Of course she'll call out 'mama' or 'dada' in her ramblings as if to make sure we're still there beside her. She can point to our nose, mouth and eyes as we say the words, and will pass her basketball back and forth with us. She waves simply by putting her hand in the air, no motion needed is her philosophy. And boy oh, boy, is she a dancer. She loves it! She comes up with new moves every week.

I praise God for each day with her. She is truly a gift. I also pray daily for her, that God will guide her each step and that she will learn what it means to love God fully. This is one of the hardest jobs I've ever had in my life but certainly the best. We look forward to the person she will become!

Oh, and she loves cake!