Genevieve's First Birthday!

I cannot believe our baby is ONE!  It has been the fastest year of my life (which is so strange considering the weeks worth of sleep I've lost during the past year).  My mom surprised us with a visit, well, surprised ME.  Brandon knew all along and helped her plan it.  I think she was hoping for a lot of screaming and jumping up and down, but I was too emotional to do any of that so I just hugged her repeatedly and cried (it had been a very challenging couple of weeks recovering from the hurricane).  I love my mom.  It was amazing to spend time with her.

She was very skeptical of the beignet at first...

but it only took one taste to decide she loved it!

Yum...powdered sugar (we actually shook most of it off before giving it to her).

That's my girl!

We kept her birthday low-key.  We invited a few friends for cake and ice cream and had a great time. 

We practiced with a candle and she did eventually figure out how to blow it out, but maybe with the crowd of people watching, she couldn't remember and decided it would be more fun to play with.  So I had to blow it out for her.

She wasn't thrilled about the cupcake at first (she's a very picky eater), but once she tasted that frosting, she got a little more excited about it.

Her friends helped her open her presents, because she wasn't all that interested in them.  Really, she would have been just as happy to have her $2 balloon and a bag of tissue paper...now I know for next year.

She loves baby Sofia!  Her mom, Natalia, and I work out together, so she gets to play with Isabelle and Sofia in the childcare. 

And now for a little comparison:

Anyone else get a little teary eyed?  No, just me?

 Like I said, I can't believe our little girl is growing so fast.  I miss that little baby, but love the amazing person she is becoming.  Towards the end of her little party, she was way overdue for a nap and I was ready for some alone time with my baby.  As I was nursing her in her room, I realized that it was exactly a year before (3:20 in the afternoon) that I had given birth.  I thought back on that amazing moment when we saw each other for the first time and the happiness she has brought into our home since her arrival.  We are so lucky.