Just a year ago. . .

On the occasion of documenting Lila's birthday, I'm going to try not to gush. After all, she can be what we like to call the "devil baby." She has a piercing, high-pitched scream that she likes to use frequently, sometimes for no reason at all. She's a pretty awful traveler, and helped make our flight home from SLC a couple of weeks ago our worst flight ever. And she goes through this house like a tornado, creating a path of destruction from which we spend all day trying to recover.

But today, while watching Elmo's world, she hopped off her baby easy-chair, walked over to the cupboard, opened it, pulled out the box of Fruit Loops, walked back to her chair, hopped back up, and proceeded to finish her show eating some sugar cereal straight from the box. This demonstrates her most dangerous trait. Her ability to make me smile amidst all of her calculated naughtiness.

But I can try all day to make her sound less than perfect. The truth is, I'm madly in love with this child. As a mother, I find myself imagining God's intention when he sends you a particular child at a particular time. With Jonah, I know he was sent to me to challenge me. He makes me think, and he makes me work hard. I find myself constantly figuring out ways to keep this brilliant, imaginative, energetic boy motivated, engaged and busy. Noel was sent to me to teach me tolerance, sensitivity and patience. He's taught me how both to give and receive huge amounts of unconditional love. Lila, I believe, was sent to me simply because God loves me. She is my reminder that, whether I think I deserve it or not, God loves me enough to send me an enormous hug. . .a huge ball of sunshine in human form.

On May 18th, my sunshine turned 1. Let's be honest: unless you're Tori Spelling, you'd have to be crazy to spend any significant amount of time, energy or money on a child's 1st birthday. It's really for the parents, right? So here's Lila's anti-climactic 1st birthday synopsis.

Josh made her some ice cream cone cupcakes. It was a brilliant idea, actually. Sure, she loves ice cream cones, but that strange yet compulsory tradition of allowing a 1 year old to gorge herself on her own birthday cake was so much easier and cleaner! Here she is doing it two-handed. She's nothing if not efficient!

And she enjoyed opening some presents, even if this picture doesn't make it look like it. She got all of the one year old requisites: an activity table, a baby stoller, a stuffed Elmo, some books, etc. The boys got her a ball and hammer toy that they've always wanted! They would've been thrilled that she enjoyed their gift so much, if they wouldn't have been so busy fighting over it.

That was it. Big whoop, right? But here are some fun and interesting facts about Lila on her 1st birthday.

1) She's such a daddy's girl. Since my boys were so attached to their dad, I thought I'd get the girl. Wrong. She literally won't let me hold her if her dad's in the room. He doesn't even try to pretend like he doesn't love it.

2) She's a thrill-seeker. She's a billion times more adventurous than the boys which, let's be honest, isn't saying much. She loves speed. She loves noise. She loves anything you want to throw at her. It's led to more than a few problems. Like the time she was screaming from the top of the McDonald's playland.

Here she is on a ride with her (probably more nervous than her) brother:

3) She's determined. She just wants to get it done, so please don't get in her way. Like when she was learning to walk and insisted on pushing the stoller. . .

. . .with her super-relaxed (a wee bit lazy) 4 year old brother inside.

4) She loves meerkats! No really. . .she does really, really love animals, but isn't this picture hysterical?!? (Other than the being stuck in a 30 minute torrential rainstorm on the other end of the zoo?)

5) She's OBSESSED with Elmo. And I mean obsessed. She has a certain sound she makes when she sees him or wants to see him. I don't get what it is with kids and Elmo.

6) Thanks to the Internet vote, her name is perfect for her. It allows us to call her anything with Lls and a vowel. Mostly Lulu. Sometimes Lu. Lala. Occasionally Lila. And while we love her middle name (Adele), I can count on one hand the times we've used it. We usually call her Lila Jean, or Lila Louise, both of which are pretty heinous, but just roll off of the tongue so well!

7) She's a ham. She loves to make people laugh, especially her brothers. I'll admit, we are a bit of an easy audience. She basically has to look at us and we laugh. The boys think she's adorable and we have to agree.

We love you, Lila! Thanks for bringing us so much joy for 1 whole year! Please don't become evil when you're 13!

Love,

Mom and Dad