Two-year letter (a bit late)

Dear Audrey,

I know I'm late on this one, but I know you'll forgive me. I don't think I was ready to accept that I have a two-year-old. Plus, one or the other of us has been sick since the first of November. It's been a trying time.

You have changed into a different person in the last year, although many things have stayed the same. You're still a wonderful, sweet, caring little girl. You just aren't as little now. Sometimes I wish I could reverse time and experience your babyhood again, but I know I'd miss the person you are now.

Your personality is so wonderful. You're easy-going, just like your daddy. You're cheerful and playful. You're funny. You're loving. You're everything I could ever hope for in a daughter.

And you're tall! I didn't realize that for a while, since you're not often around kids your own age. But I've been noticing it lately, and my thoughts were confirmed when we took you in for your 2-year checkup. You are in the 93rd percentile for height. Say what? To say I'm shocked would be an understatement. I mean, I'm 5'2" on a good day!

Once thing that hasn't changed too much is your eating habits. You started refusing meat about a year ago, and you're continuing that trend. In fact, you're very picky about food now, much to our frustration. I guess it's just a toddler thing.

You know so many words now, and you've been using complete sentences for a while. Your intelligence and skills of observation constantly amaze me. Your favorite activity is still reading books, which is great. I guess you take after me that way:)

You love your daddy to pieces, and he's often the only one who can soothe you when you're upset. In fact, I can hear you in your bedroom right now chattering happily about Daddy. He loves you so much.

And so do I, little angel. You're my miracle.

Love,
Mommy

16 month letter

Dear Audrey,

This is an appropriate picture to use for today, since you have become quite the talker at 16 months! You can say at least 50 words, maybe more. Not just things like milk, Mommy, Daddy, but words like monkey and necklace. Sure, you can't enunciate like we can, but you're definitely saying these words. You repeat a lot of what you hear. Just a little while ago, I said, "Oh my gosh!" and you walked around saying gosh. It's amazing.

You're keeping up the vegetarian diet, and now you've got me on it, too. Since you won't eat meat, I'm looking up vegetarian recipes for you, and I'm eating them also. You even ate Cottage Cheese Patties, and so did I. Mealtime is getting scary around here:)

You're becoming less shy around others, although it takes you a long time to warm up to people. You attended your first birthday party recently, and you perked up as soon as you saw the little girl's dog. You were pretty comfortable after that.

Your cousins can't stay away from you. They used to be excited to see me and Daddy, but now they're only interested in you! I can't say that I blame them.

You're running all over the place now, and lots of times, you don't stop until you hit something or fall down. We've dealt with lots of boo-boos, that's for sure. It's only recently that I stopped making Daddy check your eyes for a concussion every time you hit your head.

I've never seen a sweeter child. Yesterday, when we were lying on a quilt outside, you rested your head on my stomach and just looked at me. And I thanked God for giving you to us. You "hug" me and Daddy all the time, wrapping your arms around our legs and squeezing. When we hold you, sometimes you'll pat our back or arms, just like we do when you need some love.

I'm looking forward to Easter and seeing how you do with the egg hunt, dyeing eggs, the Easter Bunny, etc. I think you'll have a wonderful time.

With all my love,
Mommy

10 month letter

Dear Audrey,



You are ten months old today! You're getting to be such a big girl. At your last appointment on September 13, you weighed 18 pounds and measured 28.25 inches long. You're so long that some 12-month pants fit you now.


The day before your 9-month appointment, you started crawling. You'd been working on it for a few weeks, and you did it! Daddy and I were so proud. I was happy that Daddy was home (it was a Sunday), so that he could witness it, too.


How life has changed since you've begun to crawl! You started out slowly, hesitantly, but now you're very fast. We have to watch you like a hawk so you don't get into anything you're not supposed to touch. You always try to get my cell phone, laptop, reading glasses...basically anything you shouldn't have! Daddy's done a lot of baby-proofing around the house so that you won't get hurt. Nevertheless, you've fallen several times and bumped your head, and it breaks my heart to see you cry.


Your naps are getting longer, but you're down to two a day, normally. They usually last at least an hour, but if you're very tired, they last longer.


Your favorite thing to do is the same as last month...standing and holding on to the ottoman. You've started trying to cruise around furniture, and you love it when Daddy and I help you "walk". You love it when we read to you, and I think your favorite book right now is On the Night You Were Born. It's so perfect because it describes exactly how special you are.


You went to your first football game this month, stayed by yourself in two different church nurseries, and experimented with Stage 3 foods. You were not a fan; you gagged and spit them out. I guess we have to try that again.


You're getting the hang of the sippy cup, although I'm not sure if you're chewing on it or drinking sometimes. You love eating puffs, and you'll shove 10 into your mouth at once if we give you that many. We don't make that mistake anymore.


Daddy and I both love you so much, and our lives are brighter because of you. The whole family adores you, and they fight over who gets to hold you next. You're such a sweet baby and so loving, and everyone wants to be around you.


Happy 10-month birthday, Bug.


With all my love,
Mommy

9 month letter

Our Lovebug

Dear Audrey,

Nine months old...I can hardly believe it. I feel like writing that in every one of your letters, because it seems as if time is flying by. You are the greatest joy of our lives, and Daddy and I are so proud to be your parents.

You make people smile everywhere you go. We took you to Falls Park yesterday, and you were a hit! People kept looking at you and commenting on how beautiful and sweet you are. And they're so right.

You're becoming more mobile each and every day. You can scoot backwards across your nursery floor in the blink of an eye. You're trying your best to figure out crawling, but you haven't quite gotten the hang of it yet. Sometimes, I think you're going to skip crawling altogether and just walk. One of your favorite things to do is stand up while holding on to the ottoman. You can do that for several minutes at a time, which just shows how strong your legs are.

You're now eating Stage 2 foods, and your favorite vegetable seems to be sweet potatoes. You're eating like a champ, and you'll try anything once. You ate two containers of peaches, even though I know you really didn't like them. After your last bite, you closed your eyes and shuddered. Don't worry; we won't be buying you peaches anytime soon.

Every day I spend with you is such a joy, and I treasure every moment. Your kisses and hugs are the absolute best way to brighten up my day. Some nights, I don't even want to put you to bed because I want to spend more time with you.

Thank you for being such a wonderful daughter. You mean everything to me.

With all my love,
Mommy

8 months old today

August 5, 2010

Dear Audrey,

The best way to describe this month is to use Dickens' quote from A Tale of Two Cities; "It was the best of times; it was the worst of times." If I'm being positive, though, I'd have to say that it's all turned out well in the end.

You've made some incredible accomplishments this month. Thanks to sleep training, you're now putting yourself to sleep at night (with your Green Heart Bear, of course), and you're sleeping a solid 11-12 hours a night. We're still working on naps, since you prefer not to sleep more than 30 minutes at a time during the day. You'll get there, though.

You're now sitting up without assistance. You have the best laugh, a low, mischievous chuckle that I treasure every time I hear. You've tasted all the vegetables Gerber has to offer, and you're now starting your first fruit. You weren't sure about the applesauce at first, but now you love it.

You're the sweetest child. You take my hair in your hands and run your fingers through it, very gently. It makes my heart soar. You have two teeth, which I love to see when you give us that beautiful smile.

You made it through a serious case of salmonella this month, with a fever that spiked up to 102.6 with Tylenol. We (and the doctors) thought it was just a stomach virus, but your tests came back and showed us the truth. I was devastated, like I didn't protect you enough. But your daddy and I took good care of you, and I'm so thankful he was home for the summer to help care for you.

You're feeling so much better now, almost good as new. Your eyes still look a little haunted, but I'm just glad my prayers were answered and the salmonella didn't get into your bloodstream. You're a fighter, aren't you?

I love you so much. I love kissing your drooly mouth. And I love the rare times when you say "Ma ma ma ma ma." Thanks for bring such joy to our life. Happy 8th month birthday, love.

With all my love,
Mommy

6 months today

Saturday, June 5, 2010

Dear Audrey,

When I opened my eyes this morning, one of the first thoughts I had was, Audrey is 6 months old today. I knew, of course, that it was coming, but it just hit me hard as I stared at your sleepy, peaceful face. You're still sleeping right beside me, in the co-sleeper, although I know that has to end soon. Most babies have been out of their parents' rooms and in their own cribs for quite a while now, and I know it's almost time for you, too. I decided that you would sleep in our bedroom for the first six months, since doctors believe this reduces the risk of SIDS and also improves the bond between baby and parents. And I don't regret it one bit, since you are perfectly healthy and I can't imagine the bond between us being any stronger.


But I also can't imagine waking up every day and not seeing your adorable face gazing back at me, one of the first things I see. You're the one who wakes me up almost every day. You don't wake up screaming anymore; you just look around for a while, soaking in your environment, and you start making cooing sounds that eventually bring me out of sleep. Let me tell you, that's the best alarm clock I've had in my entire life.

Sometimes, it seems impossible that you have been with us for half a year, but then again, I can barely remember my life before you arrived. You have made such a complete and utter change in my priorities, my capacity to love, even my day-to-day routine, that I can't envision my life without you in it.

You have grown so much in such a short time, both physically and mentally. When you were born, you weighed 7 lbs even, and at your last doctor's appointment, you were over 14 lbs. I know you weigh more than that now, but it's just hard to believe that you've already doubled your weight. And you're so long! I always thought I'd have a short baby, since I'm only 5'2", but you're already over the 70th percentile in length. Wow. That's a big accomplishment, coming from the long line of shorties on my side of the family. I guess you're going to be tall like your Daddy's side of the family, which is good. You'll be able to reach all the top cupboards for me when you get older!

And the way you've grown mentally is incredible. You used to just lie there, of course, like every newborn, looking gorgeous but not doing much with the exception of screaming from time to time. Now, you're even more beautiful than you were (imagine that), but you've turned into a little person. You can sit up with assistance, play with toys, roll over, eat rice cereal with a spoon, and...my favorite thing of all, put your arm around me when I'm carrying you. You like to leave the other arm dangling at your side, which is something Nanny says I always did as a baby. But when you circle your other arm around my shoulder as I hold you, my heart melts like warm chocolate with love for you.

We'll be taking your picture today, with you wearing your white onesie and your six-month sticker on it. As I pulled the sticker out of its envelope this morning, I wanted to cry when I saw that number. But I want you to know, I've never been happier. Thank you for bringing so much joy into my life.

With all my love,
Mommy