Noelle is one year old and I'm a one year old mother. We have both hit many milestones. Truthfully, I haven't posted closer to her actual birth date because I've been really sitting with the idea that I am the mother of a one year old that consistently teaches me what life is all about. It's so strange to think that I ever thought that I would be the professor. That it was my job to show her the way. It's almost as silly as the idea that someone else deliver's your baby when it's always been the woman's accomplishment alone. I simply facilitate her growth, but she is the one who teaches.
Since she was born I've overcome many things. I thought that 2014 would be a year of doing but we're only 14 days in and already I see that 2014 is a year of being. While I am of course "trying" in a sense that I'm not just laying in bed each day, the result of these lessons is a consciousness that is engrained within me. I don't have to try to do many things these days- they seem natural to me, like breathing. She has taught me about these instincts that have always been in me, even while dormant.
She has taught me the true meaning of patience. Not while interacting with her, mind you, but while interacting with myself. The things I say to myself in my head (my thoughts), throughout any given day were things that I would never say to her. Her kind, careful face is a reminder constantly of how important it is to be kind and careful not only with her, but with myself. I hug myself like she hugs me, I let myself feel my feelings through to completion like she does. Happiness, joy, silliness, sadness, frustration- she feels all of this as long as she needs to and reminds me of how important it is not suppress these very real, living organisms that find their way through our skin, through our mouths, out of our eyes. She embraces them, without trying and lets them run their course. Noelle has no need for perfection- her food lands where it lands. Her blocks strewn about the house- her quest for experience and practice is constant. I yearn to be like her and she shows me what it is to be. And what contentedness looks like this this state.
She now weighs 21.2 lbs, she's 31" long, she's a bean pole who loves to climb everything. She loves to practice walking and she gracefully goes up and down the stairs hoping for someone below her to catch her so she can fly for a minute. She likes to sit with her food and watch the television. She sings when she hears a song she likes. She has 8 teeth and she uses them to chew on fruits and veggies, cheeses and grains. Her favorite foods are green beans and avocados. She moves even in her sleep and she has a face more beautiful than Cupid's. She is a cherub how she flies from moment to moment making mischief and spreading love everywhere she goes. She has a blue blanket that she loves to feel while she falls asleep. Her favorite people are her daddy, her mama and her grandma (my mom). She has yet to meet a lot of her other family but I know its all for a reason.
We had a birthday party for her on her birth day. We invited some great friends we've met here, in Nashville to coffee where we reserved a room and some cupcakes. My darling friend took photos and another wonderful mama offered to make Noelle a "smash" cake. We were so happy to celebrate Noelle's year with them. I made her a beautiful banner (that I hope to give to her) and a poster board all about her favorite things. The party was wonderful. My husband and I felt very proud of her birth, of who she is, of what we've accomplished and how she's changed our lives. Noelle Snow is one year old. We can't wait to see what else she shows us in year two. We are so proud, so excited to learn, so happy she's ours to love.
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