((dear charlottes.))

a year ago today, a nurse put you in my arms and my heart nearly burst at the new knowledge of you, my bebe., charlotte virginia eisley. from the beginning, you were our surprise, and, on that rainy tuesday a year ago, you surprised me by being a darling little girlie, and by looking so much like me (the first of which i'd had a feeling, the second of which was entirely unexpected.). i will never forget how you looked so beautiful, so wise, as you looked up at me with your little hands folded together. i've been taken with your hands ever since, even though now they tend to reach for things they shouldn't (and show no signs of stopping!). i am curious to know if you enjoy doing things with your hands when you're older; for now, you are as tactile as your mother.

it has been the most amazing year of my life, spending it with your daddy and you. i am so very blessed to not only know you as human beings, but, to share a life with you both! it's an incredible fact that i thank God for everyday, one that has overwhelmed my heart these past couple of days in light of you reaching such a significant milestone in your young life!

since naming you charlotte, there have been a million other charlotte-babies born, so, you might have friends with the same name when you get older. we were going to call you charlie, but, it didn't suit you like charlottes. does. you fit right in with us like that. marks. and kates~* and charlottes.!

you're delightful to be with. i've never thought that personality traits were passed down genetically, but, you have caused me to question that thinking. we see so many parts of ourselves in you, it's amazing, confounding, entertaining, and a wee bit scary. i absolutely love watching you develop into the person God has created. i pray i will always love you and guide you in the way you should go, knowing and following the purposes for which God created you (He has a plan for your life, something only you were created to be!). may i never be guilty of trying to make you become who *i* think God created you to be. i'm really excited, charlottes., because, there's no limit to what God can do in and through you if you rely on Him. plus, i think you're pretty spectacular.

in the year i've known you, i've already seen you bless others with your loving nature. that amazes and humbles me. i watch you love all sorts of people with no regard of who they are or what they look like. perhaps you'll have a phase where you need to observe rather than interact with new faces, but, if you do, after you come through that, i hope you will grow up seeing people as they are: as marvels, just like yourself.

there are so many things i haven't documented in writing about your first year, charlottes.. like, how we moved from our beautiful valley when you were 3 1/2 months old. you spent hours laying and sleeping on the floor of our empty apartment while i moved us one car-load at a time (with help from friends, i might add. these are people you will hopefully grow up knowing well; you are blessed to know some pretty amazing friends already.). you randomly rolled over one day, but, waited another 2 months before you did it again. or, how you have been a frequent traveler, flying on my lap, and sometimes visiting with the voluntary stranger who thinks you're super cute (that is, until you recently began being so busy and my holding you on my lap means holding you "down" on my lap. i can't complain, though. you are a fantastic flyer and love the chance to meet new people. on a recent trip while going back to our seat from the lavatory found you waving to the entire plane, as if you were royalty visiting from a far country. everyone loved it and many waved back.). we have been on 6 major trips together, and if i've counted correctly, you have had a total of 24 flights. you've spent the past few months as "the youngest" of three as you have gone to work with me, to nanny your little friends. it's been fun to watch you go from not even crawling, to standing up and opening the cabinet doors (you will stand up and walk with help, but, only if you're in the mood to do so. currently, crawling is faster and you like to get places fast.), from observing their play to participating in it, from not eating solids to chewing table food (and paper, houseplants, any crumbs you find laying about, and, oh, anything you can fit in your mouth.), from not communicating clearly to using signs for please/thank-you/more/all done and saying "mummum", "hi dad!", "all done", "up", and "hiiiii". i should mention that you adore animals, of all kinds; we aren't sure if you like them more than people or if its a close tie. the 8 teeth you have currently cut between 5 1/2 months to 8 1/2 months; we even had 3 appear in one week! you are rarely a fussy baby and the teething only affected you for a couple of weeks, but, you had a bad cold at the same time once and you were pretty miserable for a bit. that eventually passed, you went back to sleeping through the night [since you were 8 months], and were your cheerful self again. you've been through a phase of gritting your new teeth ::shudder::, and one of biting (with your attenae-like piggytails, we kid that sunny from lemony snicket is your role model.). i keep remembering how, when you were 3-6 months old, you would sit in your car seat, always crossing your legs at the ankles. it was adorable.

now, your legs hang off the edge of your car seat. you are long and dainty; lean but incredibly strong. you're so busy and determined, we are making a concentrated effort to train you to "be still", something you dislike very much. you are the type of child for which seatbelts were created, and surprisingly, you actually enjoy car rides, and spent 13 hours traveling with us in the mountains this week without any kind of meltdown. you're a complex blend of laidback yet knowing what you want. i appreciate that you show your emotions; it would appear you have strong emotional reactions to things, but, can get over negative ones fairly quickly. when you hurt yourself, you rarely cry, and once again, never for long. you blow kisses to people and love to point at things and last week, took to blowing kisses to people then pointing at them as if to say, "you... that kiss was for you.''... when you crawl you remind us of a little insect in how you move. your favorite foods are avocado, banana, grapes, yogurt, and eggs. you also eat sushi with us! you are independent and want to do things yourself, often insisting you feed yourself with your spoon. you love dancing, swinging, and sliding down slides! you have a connection with your daddy already; you get incredibly excited when you see him, and love to go to him for snuggles, and to play together. you are an early riser, often waking at 5am. we bring you into our bed for the highlight of your day, bouncing around on our heads. what started as a peaceful time snuggling you a year ago has turned into our family circus. you're still learning not to mess with the window blinds or pull mommie's hair (especially when she's sleeping.), but, somewhere in your brain you knew that on mother's day morning, you should wake me up with a beautiful kiss on the lips.

speaking of lips, i love your little lips. and kisses, which you have begun giving me often (one day last week, you would nuzzle my neck and blow raspberries, then laugh at yourself.). i love your skin, your hair (your piggytails!), your beautiful eyes the color of daddy's. you have me to thank for your ears and thighs, and i have you to thank for showing me how perfectly lovely they really are.

baby girl, i could write so much more and could try to remember so much more, so many memories that bear mention, but, i should get to sleep, because, you'll be up early! even if i don't keep the best written records, i know we'll have a stellar photo album to look at together one day and if you're like your parents, you'll probably enjoy pictures better than reading anyway (but, i'm really hoping you'll love to read!).

i can't thank God enough for entrusting you to your daddy and me. nearly every night, after you have gone to sleep, your daddy and i turn to each other and say how amazing you are. you, in our lives, is a deep and profound gift. happy birthday.

i love you, my darling bebe.,
mommie~*