Happy Day, Sunshine!

I am so glad for today.

The last few days my mind has been replaying all the events that led to M's early birth. But, today is M's day. Today, I woke up happy. Today, it doesn't really matter how M got here but just that we have her.

Before we had to take M out of Mother's Morning Out, the teachers called her their Ray of Sunshine, and they agreed to each take turns holding her because she made them so happy.

We feel that way too. J is kind, but he's not overly affectionate with anyone other than M. She is irresistible, squishable, and squeezable; we all dote on her. She's exuberant, both in her happiness and in her irritation.

She squeals and squawks. She grunts like a little piggy. She's always making some noise. Or kicking. She is in constant motion, unless she's asleep. M just learned to army crawl across the floor, dragging her right leg behind her. It's not graceful at all, but it gets her where she needs to go, which is apparently everywhere. She's a quick learner. I watched her, in less than 10 seconds, figure out how to open a cabinet door and let it slam to make noise. In just a few minutes, we taught her to wave, and a few days later she'd added "Hey!" to it. (I think it's telling about her personality that hey is her first word.) I swear she said, "Ball!" today, as one rolled past her. It's like once she's made her mind up to try something, nothing will stop her, and I see that as an awesome trait--unless she's made her mind up to pull on the Christmas tree or put pieces of grass from the floor in her mouth or yank a bowl full of cereal off the table. I feel like she will give me so much joy and many gray hairs, but hopefully much more joy than gray hairs.

M does not see obstacles.

She's so determined...

She just keeps going until she gets where she wants!

She and J are polar opposites, and I love it. She is the warmth to his reserve; he is the regulator to her exuberance. She is willing to try anything, when he's hesitant to do anything new. She has no fear--throw her higher, flip her over, toss her around, and the louder she laughs. J has plenty of fear for the both of them. J is careful, thoughtful, and precise. I always thought he would slow her down until a friend pointed out that she might convince him to do all sorts of crazy things. What I love most are all the things both kids share. They are both so bright and so full of life and so energetic. They will keep me on my toes, that is for sure.

So, on M's special day, I am so glad we have her. I love that today is her day, and I celebrate what a unique, special, priceless, adorable, fun child she is. She lights us all up. She is definitely our ray of sunshine.

Happy 1st Birthday, M!