Happy 1st Birthday, Ella!

One year ago today, God changed my life again. I became a mother for the second time, and God blessed us with another miracle. Her name is Ella Claire. Before she arrived, I wondered, "How could I possibly love another baby as much as my first?" And, yet, as soon as she arrived, God doubled the size of my heart. And, I do love her more than I thought was possible. What a blessing she has been! During my pregnancy, I was convinced I was having a boy. My second pregnancy was completely different from my first. Instead of being sick for 14 weeks, I threw up everyday for 6 months. It was so bad that I started having contractions at 25 weeks due to dehydration. And, everyone except my husband thought it was a boy. Well, so much for a mother's intuition. When I heard the doctor say, "It's a girl!" I almost thought he was kidding. Travis says he wished he'd taken a picture of the look of shock on my face. Yet, even though I was wrong, I fell in love with her right away. Look at how she's grown...

30 seconds old

30 minutes old

1 month old

2 months old

3 months old

4 months old

5 months old

6 months old

7 months old

8 months old

9 months old

10 months old

11 months old

1 year old

I love that Ella is her own person. She's still just as sweet as Grace, but much more independent and outgoing. She has 5 teeth now (3 on top, 2 on bottom). Her hair is exactly the same blond color as Grace's, but with less curls. Her eyes are also the same green, but everyone says they're shaped just like mine. Ella loves the water--baths in the sink and the tub, swimming lessons on Saturdays--she's never been afraid. She loves to play Peek-A-Boo and Pat-a-Cake, read books, swing, and go for wagon rides. She does not like to sit still. She's not walking on her own yet, but walks around the house pushing the doll stroller and cruises around all the furniture. She's been crawling for about 6 months and makes mad dashes for the stairs if the baby gate isn't closed. She loves the camera. She adores Baylor and calls him by name. She wakes Grace up in the mornings by crawling on top of her and smothering her with kisses. Her vocabulary consists of mama, dada, bay, book, baby, bye-bye, this, ight (light), out and off. Sometimes, we think she even says her name- El-La. She waves goodbye and blows kisses. She points to things and says, "This?" She tickles herself and says, "ticka, ticka, ticka." She knows that she's "SO BIG" and raises her arms over her head. When you ask her what a monkey says, she goes, "Ooo ooh!" When you ask her what a kitty says, she goes "MEEEOOOWW!" She shakes her head and her finger when she doesn't want something. She signs "more" when she needs more of something (usually food). She loves to eat. She stopped eating baby food at around 9 months. She likes Cheerios, granola, bananas, strawberries, grapes, mango, mandarin oranges, carrots, broccoli, noodles, spaghetti with meat sauce, lentils, Ritz crackers and graham crackers. Just like Grace, she does not like cheese. Her favorite restaurant is Babe's- casual atmosphere, yummy food, and she'll actually sit still for the entire meal. We haven't indulged her sweet tooth much, but if she's anything like her mama and sister, she'll love sweets, too. She's very social, always waving and smiling at people. At Kindermusik, she goes around the room to visit with each family. She plays her instruments (and often tastes them) and hums along to the songs. One of the most special things this year as been watching the bond between sisters...

My cup runneth over with blessings. The thought that God chose me to raise these two precious girls is overwhelming. I'm doing the best that I can, and I hope He's pleased. I'm so thankful to have a wonderful support system in Travis, Gabby and the rest of our families and friends.