On January 6, Elizabeth turned one year old. We had a low-key celebration at home with family and close friends. It was a festive book-end to our holiday season.
Our little baby is a full-on toddler now. Most of the time, she would much prefer to be chasing her big sister than being hoisted around on my hip. She has become a signing fool. She signs "more" "all done" "water" "drink" "eat" "book" "dog" "bird" "cold" "elephant" "baby" and "ball." Her verbal vocabulary is more limited. She says "mama" and "dada" and that's about it. And she mainly just says "dada." She is obsessed with her old man right now. When he sits down on the couch, within seconds she has a book in hand and is demanding for him to read it to her. Even when just us girls are driving around in the car, she is saying "dada" in the back seat, like she's wondering where he is.
Saying goodbye to Elizabeth's babyhood was hard for me. Her first year was my mom's last year. Because in her infancy my younger daughter was light and not yet old enough to squirm a whole lot, Mom could hold and comfort and love her even as her own body weakened. Elizabeth's bright blue eyes and chubby cheeks were two of the most potent antidotes we had to fight the agony we frequently felt in 2009. It is true that babies are always a gift, but Elizabeth came at a time when there was nothing we needed more, and for that I will always consider her first year to be one of my life's greatest treasures.
In this picture, Bubbles plays pattycake with three month old Elizabeth.
3 comments:
I couldn't agree with you more about the timing of our little ones. While my dad's mom never got to meet Drew, and my mom's mom was pretty out of it for most of her life - she has totally been a ray sunshine for both grandpas during their rough patches. It sounds like Elizabeth has been just what everyone has needed. Thinking of you :)
Love you friend; give those girls some kisses from me.
Happy Belated Birthday, Elizabeth!
Lovely post, Samantha. You brought tears to my eyes.
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