I have a terrible memory. It has always been kind of a humorous thing with me – no big deal – I just would shrug, admit I am braindead, and move on. But all of that changed when Grace came. I want so badly to remember all of this. I want to soak it up. I know how blessed we are with this beautiful little person and I will just sit watching Grace in this amazing precious stage of her life and I just am overcome with desire that I would REMEMBER this stage. 

So I thought that I would begin writing about her. So in case my memory fails me and I lose any of this – there will be a record. Because she is captivating and it is worth recording.

She sings, in bed and in her carseat, anytime her little mind is at rest. She just sings in this perfect little voice. She dances to anything – including alarm clocks. ☺ She laughs in great bursts of laughter like she holds it in until the last moment. She brings me books but is too busy running around to listen to me read them. By the time I am on page two she is placing another book in my lap and running off to get me more. She gives big sweet kisses and hugs when you catch her unaware or when she’s sleepy. She grabs her doll and her stuffed animals and hugs them tight and kisses on them all of the time – she is so affectionate with her toys. She loves taking her medicine – she laughs when she tastes Motrin. She also loves having her teeth brushed – she tries to suck the toothpaste off and sits perfectly still.

When she sees me or Justin (or almost anyone else) she smiles this huge smile. And I’ll say “Hi Baby” and she always responds “Hi Dada!” Everyone is Dada at this point. Part of me wants her to say Momma, and part of me will mourn losing that little voice saying “Hi Dada!” when she sees me.

She walks everywhere in a hurry – especially if she is carrying “contraband” and running from mommy. She has this precious walk where she leads with her tummy. She kind of waddles… it is hilarious. She is fiercely independent – and I really do love that about her (although I’ll admit I fear it a little). She is so strong willed. I know that characteristic, as an adult, will make her a leader and not a follower – she will be a force to be reckoned with, and I love that. Women like that are the women I want to be around. I know we’ll have battles to fight – but her little spirit is so precious – I know the Lord has great plans for her. I can’t wait to see her enter into a relationship with Him. I can’t wait to see His spirit living in her.

I watch her and I frankly am amazed. She is so beautiful. And her little mind is constantly working – constantly figuring the world around her out. I am sometimes a little in awe of her. I am amazed that the Lord would create her inside of my tummy. She is so incredibly beautiful, so incredibly perfect, she has such a beautiful little heart.

She has these big perfect blue eyes that are totally the window into her soul. You can tell her mood – her thoughts – in her eyes. She can look thrilled, brokenhearted, mad, guilty, tender, sweet, rebellious, hungry – virtually every emotion and need is in those little eyes. And I love that Justin and I get to know this little person so well that we can read those little eyes.

She is smart, stubborn, and hilarious. She wrinkles up her nose, she imitates everything we do, she dances and talks and laughs to herself in mirrors, she throws these crazy fits where she stiffens up like a board or noodles and every bone in her body seems to be bending, she empties every drawer and cabinet, she gets food in her hair, she eats food off the floor, she looks at me with a sheepish look when she’s guilty of something, she gives the sweetest hugs with her pudgy little arms, she totally ignores me when I say no, she is a gift and I love the Lord more because she is my baby girl. I just want to remember every moment with her. She is a joy and a light and truly is a picture of grace for Justin and me.