Happy Birthday Baby Girl!

Wow! Montanna is a year old today! I seriously can't believe how fast this year has gone by. I love the fact that she is getting older and smarter and sweeter, but I also look back at pictures from earlier this year and get tears in my eyes at how fast she is growing up. I really never, ever knew how much she would mean to me and how much Adam and I could love her. She is beautiful, charming, funny, and I see more personality coming from her each day. Happy Birthday Baby Girl! Here are some of the things that I love to remember about this past year:

I LOVE........

1. I love how you were able to fall asleep on your Daddy's tummy when you were so little. He would lay with you and you would snuggle right into him and fall asleep. I several pictures of this since I thought it was adorable. Your Daddy loves to snuggle with you.

2. I love how you tried to start talking as soon as possible. You were cooing and babbling and trying to tell us things at about 9 weeks old. To this day you try to let us know about everything that is going on around you and have started to communicate quite effectively and have learned to say Bir - "bird", Du - "Duck", Tuttle - "turtle", Ba Bye - "Bye Bye", Bah - "ball", Dat - "Everything that you point to that you either want or want to know what it is", Uh Uh - "Uh Oh", Baby - "your baby doll or any stuffed animal."

3.I love how for the first couple months of your life you would sleep flat on your back with your hands up by your face. Now, I go in to check on you and each time you are on a different side of your crib in a different position every time.

4. I love how you can raise one eyebrow and look at us when you are seeing something interesting for the first time. It makes us laugh every time.

5. I love to watch your Daddy take care of you. He has helped with you from the very beginning, not shying away from anything. He is a very involved Daddy.

6. I love your smiles! I loved that you smiled for me for the very first time on my birthday, that was such a wonderful present!

7. I love that you are welcoming of all family members that want to get to know you and play with you. You go right to almost anyone who wants to hold you. I love how much you love seeing your cousin Darby and your excited squeals when you do see her.

8. I love that you will eat almost anything and everything with very few exceptions. You have done this since you began eating food. Everyone that sees you eat is amazed at the variety and quantity that you are able to consume. You have never spit anything out that you don't like. If you don't like something, you cry a little bit, but keep chewing and swallowing your food. If you really don't like it, you chew it, swallow it, and then throw it and everything else up. Oh well :)

9. I love how right now you think that everyone is chasing you and you get half excited and half scared that they are going to get you. It is so fun to watch you try to get away.

10. I love how you race up stairs, but are a little too nervous to come back down. All in good time....

11. I love how you turn to us and say "Ba Bye" and wave your little hand when you are headed somewhere you know you aren't supposed to go. Like.... up on the stand in Sacrament Meeting, or into the bathrooms, or up the stairs when you see the gate is not in place.

12. I love how you like to give kisses. You hum and say "Ahhh" while you put your mouth to our cheeks or noses.

13. I love how you love dogs. We laugh and laugh at how excited you get when you see a little puppy or a big dog like Uncle Jason's dogs. You love to pet them and feel their fur and you love when they look at you. I need to try to get a video to show you what you were like.

14. I love how happy you are. You almost always have a smile on your face.

15. I love how proud you are of yourself when you accomplish something new, like, sitting up, standing, climbing stairs, and taking a few steps. Well, that last one you are still a little scared of, you take a few steps and then decide it was a little scary. But don't worry, you'll love walking in no time.

16. I love how easy it has been for you to get rid of your bottle. You are getting so big! I keep saying that you have been the perfect child so far. There are very few things that have been hard for you to do. Now, when we go into your room and rock in the chair and sing, I am a Child of God, or Whenever I hear the song of a bird.... or other primary songs, you know that it is almost time for bed. When you lay down in your crib, you roll over and put your arm up so I can tuck the blanket around you and lay there and listen to music as you fall asleep. Seriously, you are amazing when it comes to going to sleep in your own bed.

17. I love how you love to get your picture taken and will pose almost every time so I can get a good shot. You are a good sport because I like to take lots of pictures.

18. I love how you loved spending time in Montana and seeing all of the birds and spending time outside. Both Daddy and Mommy grew up there and I hope you are able to spend a lot of time there. It is one of our favorite places.

19. I love how you love to pound on the piano and make as much noise as possible. It makes me so happy and hopeful that you will enjoy learning how to play in a few years. You love music and love to dance and maybe that is because you had so much of it while you were in my tummy. I taught music and so you heard it every day. I also love how you will lead the music with me in Sacrament meeting and now every time you hear music you lift your arms up like you are leading a song.

20. I love how you like to play peek a boo and think no one can see you if your eyes are closed. You are such a fun, beautiful, adorable, lively, spunky, good natured little girl and your Daddy and I love you so much!

Love,

Mommy and Daddy