Happy Birthday my little Princess

I have always wanted to write my kids a letter and think that I need to start this tradition for their birthdays. So here it goes, hopefully my letter writing will improve over time too! ;o)

Dear Genesis,

There are so many things that I want to say to you and that I never want you to forget, so hopefully by making an annual letter to you, you will know how much you are loved, cherished and such blessing in our lives.

Your name means 'the beginning' and it holds such a significant place in our hearts, not only for you, but for our family as a whole. We pray each and everyday that you will be the beginning of some pretty profound changes within our family. We will do everything to ensure that you know that you are God's princess, and how much he loves you and desires to have a personal relationship with you. We will do everything to love, support, encourage and uplift you.

I want to be an example of a godly woman of faith to you and I desire to be a mentor to you, but I will warn you, I am not sure how exactly to do this and I am going to make mistakes. I will ask for forgiveness often and I will need a lot of grace and mercy from God (and you) to be this example in your life.

I can not believe that you are one! Where did this year go? You have grown so fast. We have enjoyed watching your many milestones and your sweet little personality develop. There have been countless nights where we have went to bed and shared all of the funny, amazing things you did that absolutely melted our hearts.

You have such a maternal instinct and really love your babies and real babies too! You get so upset if your big brother is upset and if you hear another baby upset. Our little cuddle-bug as we affectionately call you is suiting. You love to give hugs and lots of kisses and we love receiving them, even your big brother!

I thought that little girls were supposed to be 'less active' than boys. While you were an amazing baby, super content, smiley and easygoing, you are still one active little girl. I guess the fact that you have a really active big brother to keep up with, doesn't help. You are our monkey, you climb things that I never thought you could or would, and I find you in some pretty obscure places. You have places to go and it shows as you were rolling around at 3 months, crawling at 6 and walking at 11 months. I was hoping that you would really take your time!

You are also one strong minded little girl and while we knew to expect that having some incredibly strong minded genes run in the family, I will do everything to nurture that strength and teach you how to use it wisely (something that I am still working on, but have really come a long way with).

We nicknamed you the vacuum right when you were born. You impressed so many by how fast and furiously you could suck back a bottle. Then you really became our vacuum and any piece of lint, dust, fluff, whatever, you would find on the floor went into your mouth. I would have to check you constantly and it was almost like checking the lint trap on the dryer. You did give us a pretty good scare though when you decided to suck back a 'sticker'. That was one of the scariest moments of my life. It is also at times like those that I am reminded what a precious gift you are. I have always known that and will always know that, but sometimes we take things for granted and need a little reminder. However, this does not grant you permission to have any more scary, life threatening experiences or you will give us a heart attack (especially your Daddy)!

Genesis Faith, I love you more than words can say, more than my letters will ever be able to express. I am so blessed to have you in my life. You are so loved and cherished and please do not ever forget that.

Our prayer for you our little one is this verse: Ecclesiastes 4:9-12

This was your Mommy and Daddy's wedding verse and has become a family verse for us now too. With God, there are endless possibilities and He will be the head of our family always!

Love always,
Mommy