My Sweet Little Avery,

A number of years ago, not long after your Dad and I got married, I had walked into a Starbucks one Sunday afternoon.  It was the weekend before Halloween and the air was cool enough to make you wish you had mittens.  The ground was covered with beautiful leaves and the bright sun warmed our spirits.  It was a truly gorgeous day.

As I waited in line for my coffee, I noticed a Mom sitting with her two daughters at a table by the window.  The little girls were maybe about six or seven years old and they were sipping hot chocolates that left whipped cream mustaches above their upper lip.  All three of them were dressed in Halloween costumes and were snuggled up around the table reading a book together.  Something about it was just so lovely…so sweet…so amazingly blessed…

And I couldn’t stop watching them.

A couple of years later we found ourselves standing on the side of a country road early one Thanksgiving morning to cheer on your Aunt Christina as she completed one of her many marathons.  While we waited, another race began…a race that included about two hundred little runners all under three feet tall!  And that’s where your Daddy saw her!  The little girl with the long braids and the over sized t-shirt!  She was about four years old and was running her little heart out with the biggest grin on her face and her Dad by her side.  Something about it was so lovely…so sweet…so amazingly blessed…

And your Daddy couldn’t stop watching them.

Then you were born!  On a cold December morning, one year ago today.  When I heard you cry for the first time…I cried too.  When your Daddy brought you over to me, I started to talk to you and you stopped crying.  You just calmly snuggled into your blanket, in your Daddy’s arms…and listened to our voices.  You later curled up under the blankets with me as we both just closed our eyes and let the world rustle around us.  Your Daddy stroked your head while he called anxiously awaiting family members…and then it snowed.  Something about it was so lovely…so sweet…so amazingly blessed…

And we couldn’t stop watching you.

As we celebrate your first birthday today, I realize that it hasn’t actually just been a year…you’ve really been with us all along.  We’ve been waiting for you…we’ve been longing for you…we’ve been dreaming about you.  And the reality of you is so much better than anything we ever could have imagined.  Your beautiful face…your gentle heart…your hilarious disposition.  Just when we thought that our world couldn’t get any better…you came along…and you made it snow.

There are just no words to express what a gift it is to witness your life.  To wake up every morning hearing you laugh…to hold you in my arms and to watch sleep…to experience the entire world become a better place because you are a part of it.  And any time the days grow dark or the hours feel long…I just take one look at you and everything changes.

Because I am reminded that, with you, everything is so lovely…so sweet…so amazingly blessed…

Happy first birthday my sweet girl!

xoxo