O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together. I sought the LORD, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears. (Psalm 34:3-4)
As we approach Angeline's first birthday, this little bundle of joy rules our lives. It is hard to believe that Angie will be one (1) year old on June 22. A year ago I was full of fear, waiting for Angie's birth not knowing either what to expect or how to handle it. Today I give thanks to the Lord for giving us Angie and I can't imagine our lives without her. She is truly a blessing in our lives and in the lives of all those she comes in contact with.
Angeline is now crawling all over the place and tries to pull to stand. Her latest accomplishment was to go from the living room to her bedroom. Not small potatoes when you consider that her bedroom is on the second floor. Yes, Angeline is going up the stairs! Now we have to get a gate for the bottom of the stairs in case she decides to have her workout without supervision. Her spirit is commendable. As I tell my wife Emily, Angie doesn't know she has spina bifida. I guess she thinks that her weak legs and unstable ankles are part of the "standard equipment" for all babies. She just looks for a way to do things differently.
Angie loves to play pee-ka-boo with mom and dad, as well as tug-o-war with an old sock with Toya (our dog), and loves to chase her big red ball around the house. She says a lot of words, but all in baby language, incomprehensible to us adults, even though I could swear that she has called me daddy a couple of times (one of these days she will). Emily and Angeline came out recently in our local newspaper. The article could take a long time to load if you have a slow connection, but you can click here to see it if you wish.
I will surely enjoy my first Father's Day, as much as Emily enjoyed her first Mother's Day last month. I want to thank all of those who have been instrumental in allowing Angeline to make such a difference in so many lives. And we want to thank God for our beautiful baby girl.
In her last e-mail update to our family and friends, Emily describes Angeline better than I could ever do. I am quoting her word by word, so please forgive any overlaps in content between her update and mine. Emily writes:
Angeline will be 1 year old this Friday. It's great to see her change from day to day.
She is such a character. There are already things that she likes and dislike in her short life. She loves her daddy but hates when he leaves in the morning to work. She starts crying when he walks out the door. She loves the books Pat the bunny, Los Patos al Agua and Goodnight Moon. She LOVES legos and blocks. She loves music and dances the minute I turn the music on. By dancing I mean moving her arms up and down.
She throws kisses and raspberries. She loves to do the fake cough and loves to look at my concerned reaction when she does it. She loves to play peekaboo and hide and seek. I hide underneath a blanket and she finds me. She loves to share her pacifier with Toya, but hates it when Toya licks her face. She hates lying down to have her diaper change. I must confess I hate that part too!!!
She loves to eat vegetables and is not to crazy about fruits. She picks up her pacifier and puts it on when she's had enough food. She loves cheerios and milk. She loves to crawl and get things on her own. She hates hats and takes them off. She's getting back at me for making her wear all those hats early on. She loves people especially when they talk sweet and lovely to her. She hates the swing, crib and the playpen. Leaving me frustrated at times!!!
She loves playing with mommy's hair and being rocked to sleep at night. She hates being left in the playpen at night even if it's for just one minute. She loves chatting in her own language that only she understands.
But her most recent accomplishments up to now are climbing up the stairs and pulling to stand. She climbs up all by herself and takes pride when she goes up each step.
That's Angeline in a nut shell.