To Milla On Her First Birthday

To our sweet Milla girl on her first birthday,

I meant to write this letter to you on your actual birthday, and then, wanted to write it the day after that, but now, two FULL days after your birthday am I finally getting around to writing you what I hope will be the first of many birthday letters.

First of all, let me tell you what a treasured girl you are! Your Dad and I hoped and prayed and suffered several heartaches as we waited for you to come our way. Your middle name means "God will add." We searched for the perfect name to give Him the glory in bringing you to us. You are our precious girl, Milla Josephine, much prayed for and much loved. We are so thankful for all of the joy that you bring to our family.

A few things about you at age one:

You are a very pleasant and good-natured little girl, a real joy. You are hardly ever unhappy. Your Grumpy affectionately named you "Chilla Milla". I think it fits pretty well. You are easy to please, but definitely have a mind of your own. You really show your temper when someone (usually a sibling) gets in your face. We've had to discipline you for screaming and hitting your sister and brother on occasion. :)

You are naturally very curious and LOVE to put things into your mouth. I'm constantly telling you to "Spit it out." You are a bit of a rascal in that way, always undoing things, taking things apart, always up for an adventure. You love keeping me on my toes.

You love to eat almost everything and seem to relish your food. We hear a lot of "Mmmmm." when you put food into your mouth. The only things you really dislike are bananas and cheese. You REALLY like to drink. When we give you water, you gulp it down super fast and say, "Ahhhh."

Your Bible class teachers adore you and tell me about how much of a chatterbox you are with the other kids in Bible class. They say that you are a little parrot, repeating everything they say. They also remark on your attentiveness and interest in Bible class. You love music of all kinds and often request that I sing certain songs to you. Right now we sing all of your Bible class songs, Bye-Oh-Baby, and your Milla songs with Milla words (Auld Lang Syne, Jesus Name Above All Names, and Edelweiss).

People constantly tell me what a beautiful baby you are. Most often, they will comment on your pretty eyes. You love people. You still feel most comfortable with me, but love to smile at others and, as long as you feel good, are comfortable going to most people.

You love to be held and rocked. I spend so much time rocking you and singing to you each day. I'm a little bit of a softie towards you. I don't know if it is because I waited for you for so long, or because I realize how quickly time passes. Your Dad and I don't want all of your little milestones to come quickly. We know that you will be a big girl soon enough.

I do laugh at how laid back you are, especially since we no longer follow a rigid schedule with you, like we did with your two siblings. I used to think mothers like me were the negligent type, not together enough to make sure their babies got enough sleep so that their bodies and brains would grow properly. How funny it is that you are my most laid back, flexible baby yet! I am so thankful for your adaptability.

I remarked to someone the other day how I used to spend hours upon hours reading to Mary Alice and Major when they were your age. Sorry, sweet one, but you spend most of your day entertaining yourself doing such brain building activities as walking around and around the coffee table and listening to me read to the other kids. You are no less loved, and you seem to have learned so much independently.

You like watching Mary Alice and Major, and sometimes you like hanging out or playing with them, but most often they seem to get on your nerves. This might be because you don't like people to be in your face. You definitely appreciate your personal space. :)

Your language has exploded lately. You can repeat most simple words. My favorite Christmas memory this year was watching you say "Pretty!" about all things sparkly and lighted. You point at EVERYTHING and say "Pretty!" I LOVE it! Some of your favorite words are "Mama, pretty, ball, bubba, pa pa (please), ni ni (night night), ma (milk), siky (silky), bi bu (Bible), goo ga (Good girl), bigga (big girl), scat(when you sneeze) and Uh-oh."

Sweet Milla girl, I marvel at what a blessing God gave us when he entrusted us with you. I am so excited about watching you grow and change. We are so thankful and humbled to be your guardians and looking forward to seeing what you will become.

Here are a few words from one of your Milla songs.

"Milla girl, sweet Milla girl"
"You're an answer to prayer,"
"Sent from above, it's you we love"
"You're the best one I've ever seen."
"May you know as you live and grow,"
"God forsakes you never."
"May you be wise,"
"See others through God's eyes,"
"And bring Him glory forever."

That last line is my prayer for you Milla girl. God has a purpose for your life, sweet girl. It is my prayer that you would bring Him glory...always.

Love,
Mom