Hannah Faith is Cute as a Bug...Please Come and Give Her a Birthday Hug!

(Hannah with her tree that Josh planted for her last year when I was pregnant.)

What a weekend! Hannah turned one! I felt a mixture of excitement and sentiment as we celebrated her big day. This has definitely been the fastest (and maybe the best) year of my life. On Saturday, we invited all of our family over for a big birthday bash. We set up tents and tables and chairs in the backyard knowing that there wouldn't be nearly enough room for everyone inside. This worked out perfectly. We could not have asked for better weather, especially for late August. It's possible that Hannah will never have such a cool day again for her birthday! It was high 60s/low 70s all day long. The breeze was nice, and there was no humidity! We thought that people may be inside and out, just in order to stay cool, but it turns out that it was cooler outside than inside! We had a big cookout with lots of yummy food. My dad volunteered to grill the meat, and my mom did all of the serving so Josh and I could just enjoy Hannah. We really appreciated that. After dinner, it was time for cake! I made all of the cakes myself, and I was really happy with how they turned out. They were pink and brown ladybugs to match the invitations that I made. Hannah had her own little ladybug. I also made lots of cupcakes to match so everyone could have the kind of cake they like. I'm sure the cake scene was very typical of a first birthday, but it was hilarious nonetheless. A huge semi-circle of people formed around Hannah in anticipation of that first bite. Everyone was snapping pictures like crazy and talking to Hannah. My dad said something like, "How is your first press conference Hannah?" That was the perfect description of the scene. Hannah stuck her hand right in the icing and licked away. I finally broke the cake up a little with a fork, and she put a few hunks in her mouth. It was so much fun to watch her enjoy! Once she had enough (and before she got sick), I took her inside to get cleaned up. What a mess! Then, Hannah and I dug into the mountain of presents. I was impressed that she sat on my lap to open all of them! She got all kinds of nice things, including a beautiful Amish toy box from Grandpa & Grandma Gurtler, a homemade Cinderalla dress for DisneyWorld (and probably Halloween) from Grandpa & Grandma Sudlow, a ladybug riding toy from Grandpa Downing, a tricycle from Great Aunt Beth and Great Uncle John, a Cinderella doll and baby doll that burps from Great Uncle Art and Great Aunt Linda, and all kinds of clothes, toys, and books from everyone else. She loves all of her presents and we are having fun starting to use them all. She also has some super cute clothes for fall now too!!!

(Hannah took off with her birthday money :)

The next day was Sunday, her actual birthday. She wore her Birthday Girl shirt to church (I washed it after the party on Saturday). She stayed with Josh & I in children's church instead of going to the nursery. We went to my parents after church and had spaghetti. Hannah loved it. I also let her have a birthday cupcake which she devoured. It didn't take long for that to catch on. She also got her first cup of whole milk which she basically chugged. Poor girl must have been starving... :) Josh and I spent the afternoon and evening at home with her. She rode her new ladybug toy outside and we looked at all of her presents. Then, we watched all of the footage that we had taken of Hannah over the last year. This was the first time we had watched any of it. It was amazing to see her before she could hold her head up. We watched the first day she could roll over, crawl, walk, eat from a spoon, etc. We had exactly an hour worth of tape. It was a perfect recap of her first year. I am so thankful for such a healthy, happy, beautiful baby girl. I cherish every day with her. She brings us so much joy. Happy Birthday Baby Girl. Your dad and I love you sooo much!