Dear Ainsley,
A few days ago Daddy quoted a song from the musical Rent. At first I thought he was just playing around and then it hit me what and why he was singing it.
"Five Hundred Twenty-Five Thousand, Six Hundred Minutes. Five Hundred Twenty-Five Thousand, Moments so dear. Five Hundred Twenty-Five Thousand, Six Hundred Minutes... How Do You Measure - Measure A Year?"
First, I was surprised that he actually knew the words... But I knew why he was saying them. 525,600 minutes ago I was writing a post about how I wasn't sure when we would meet you. How do we measure your first year?
I remember...
I remember the day when we found out that we were going to be parents. Oh, how excited we were.
I remember the day we first saw a picture of you. You looked more like a little Yoda than a little baby. Boy... did we get that right?
I remember calling you Fred... and Daddy calling you Fredina. Because he knew that you were a Girl from Day 2!
I remember the day we found out you were a Girl... I cried because that meant we now had a wedding (yours) to pay for. And also because I know that there would come a day (like all teenagers with their mothers) where you will say you hate me... and that just broke my heart.
I remember the time I first felt you kick. And the look on Daddy's face when he finally could feel.
I remember sitting in our closet looking at of your clothes and talking to you. I would tell you about all the places I wanted to take you and the adventures we would share.
I remember the day when we discovered you liked ukulale music.
I remember the countless trips to triage... and just hoping you would stick around for a little while longer.
I remember the prayers I would say every night... Giving thanks for allowing me to be your mother for another day and praying for one more day.
I remember the pain, the discomfort, and being tired all the time. But at 3:31pm that day... it was all just a distant memory.
I remember not hearing you cry and was worried something was wrong.
I remember waking up the next day and touching my belly. It felt so weird because you were no longer there... and then looking over and seeing you in your Daddy's arms...
You became our little girl... our Froggy... an amazing little person!
For the past year... you have become my partner in crime and Daddy's little girl. Since you have arrived, we look at each day as an exciting adventure that we get to share with you.
I remember your smiles at 5am.
I remember the days you fell off the bed or the couch.
I remember the way you would fall asleep on us... and now the big girl sleeping in her bed.
I remember all of your 1st! Your first tooth, your first meal, your first "dada", our first hug, your first trip, your first shots, your first taste of ice cream, your first Christmas... just to name a few.
Now... I tell you (much like I did when I sat in the closet looking at all of your clothes) of all the exciting things we are going to do or places we are going to see one day.... You have grown so much in the past year and we can't wait to see what the next 525,600 minutes brings us.
Happy Birthday Ainsley!
Love,
Mommy
