happy birthday, baby girl.

dear ada,

i remember when your mommy and daddy called your aunts and uncle in auburn to tell us they were pregnant. i started loving you at that very second. that night i started praying for you. i prayed that God would knit you together perfectly and that he would keep you safe. all of the family went to atlanta to find out that you were a girl. as soon as i saw the sonogram i started to cry [your aunt caitlin is pretty emotional, but you will have plenty of time to learn this]. we got to see your little heartbeat and your little brain. even though you were so tiny, God's handiwork was so evident in your little body.

on october 13, 2010 at 6:45pm God gave you your first breath. you were 7lbs. 5oz. of nothing but love, and you were absolutely perfect.

i talk about you all the time. some people make fun of me for how much i talk about you, but it doesn't bother me at all. sometimes i think my heart might completely burst from all the love. but it grows just enough to fill my heart to the tippy top.

it so hard to believe that you are one. you are growing so fast. the more you grow, the more your personality shines through. although i love how curious, mobile, and verbal you are becoming...i pray the days of wanting to wear pink, teenage boys and college are a million miles away.

i love you, and i feel so blessed to be your aunt.

love you to the moon and back, baby girl.

-aunt cate.

amblyopia.

in fourth grade i had a life-changing experience. in my past four school pictures, my glasses showed the glare of the camera flash. pretty embarrassing don't you think? when i got to fourth grade, i realized that i was now mature and was capable of making the right decision. this decision was obvious: get my picture made without my glasses on. brilliant. genius. why hadn't i thought of this before? needless to say i was super pumped to get this school picture back. when my teacher passed mine out one thought ran through my mind, lazy eye!! how was i just now figuring this out? you see, i'm blind and have been wearing glasses since i was eleven months old and never saw myself without my glasses...until that fateful day in fourth grade. i asked my mom, "why didn't you ever tell me i had a lazy eye?" her reply, "oh honey, it was never really that obvious." mom, i love you but here is a little proof...

my lazy eye has since settled down. however, she sometimes decides to act up, and i have to put her in her place. i'm serious, i blink my eyes, shake my head back and forth, and give a little tap to my right eye. works like a charm.

"i praise you, for i am fearfully and wonderfully made. wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well." psalm 139:14

and yes, that cookie monster cupcake was the bomb.