Mommy+Daddy Letters to Our Daughter Claire

My Sweet Claire McKenna,

I can hardly believe that today you are 1 year old. This year has gone by too quickly; I remember when the nurse placed you in my arms and how tiny you were. You fit just perfectly in my arms and I knew that you were always meant to be mine.

For the last year, I have watched you learn and grow every day. At 1 year old, you are still my little Claire Bear. You're just a tiny little thing; I wish I could keep you little forever.  I love how you sit so snuggly in my lap and how you like to observe every little thing going on around you. 

You are so loving and sweet. You flash the biggest smiles at mommy and daddy that truly melt my heart.  We give you about ten million kisses a day, I love how your hair is perfectly baby soft and I can’t help but kiss the top of your head over and over. You adore your big sister Annie and she adores you right back. It’s so special watching you both bond with each other.  At just 1 year old, you've learned so much, it has been fun watching all your firsts in life. You get so excited every time you do something new; I love how joyful you are when you discover something new in life.

We love how you are a little more laid back than your sister but yet you stand your ground and have your own little opinions too and make them known. You are the perfect yin and yang to our family. You love nothing more than to sit on our laps, which I’m treasuring as much as I can as I’m sure it won’t be long before you’ll want to be more independent. 

I am so thankful to be your Mommy. I am truly blessed beyond words. God knew exactly what He was doing when He gave you to me. He knew our family needed you. I love you, my sweet 1 year old. Grow up strong knowing that I will always be here for you. Let God direct your paths, and you'll really go far.

Thank you, my sweet Claire, for every smile, every giggle, and every sparkle in your eye.

Love always,

Your Mommy

To my Beautiful Claire Bear,

As I type this and look out the window at this cold rainy day, one year ago today you were born, you were the sunshine on that cold & dreary day. It’s hard to put into words what you mean to me. The last year has been a whirlwind. Many say the days are slow but years fly by. This is true but I have made every effort I can to slow down and appreciate every moment of being with you.

Prior to your birth your mother and I worried and prayed so much that you would be in good health. We knew that regardless of what happened it was God’s plan. When you born happy and healthy we were ecstatic.

I had no idea what to expect as I was becoming a Dad for the second time to another little girl. It is an amazing blessing. It’s been fun seeing your little personality develop as you have grown. I’m glad that your only one. Sometimes as a Parent when you deal with the day-to-day challenges it’s easy to wish away time to an older aged child. As challenging as life is I want to appreciate all your growth and triumphs. I will be your cheerleader, friend but most importantly your Dad.

I love holding you and your sister close and squeezing you tight. Watching you learn and experiencing life is amazing. I love your little baby giggles. I love your little baby gaze when you’re learning. I love how you respond to me with little baby grunts. 

You’ve taught me to appreciate the little things and to not take time or people for granted.

Now you’re almost one. It makes me smile just thinking about it. Life will bring you victories and challenges, good days and bad ones. I will always be your Dad and always be here for you, loving you and cheering you on.

Love,

Dad

Claire's 1st Steps on 3/20/17

I'm way late on this... but the day after Annie's birthday weekend, Claire took her first true steps.  It's almost like Claire couldn't handle Annie's 3 day birthday celebration and was like she was saying "I'll show them... I'll just start walking, that'll get the attention back on me!"  HA.

It was funny because actually just the day prior, a friend commented to us that they think she will be walking soon and I was like no way, not even close.  She was still more focused on crawling and really couldn't keep her balance for too long so I really was very surprised when she started walking that very next day.

And of course, once she did it, we basically spent a good hour of her walking back and forth between Aaron and I while I took a million videos of it.  If I would've known she was going to put on a performance that night, I wouldn't have chosen her Christmas pajamas for the big event.  Nothing like a little Christmas spirit still lingering into Spring.

Now that she is walking, I'm having some issues finding her shoes with grip on the bottom.  She has the tiniest feet and really can't fit into Annie's old shoes and really Annie is hard on her shoes and there won't be much for hand-me downs in this area.  Claire is still in 0-6 month Robeez shoes and they are really getting tight.  But 6-12 months is too huge on her so we need some in-between like 6-9 months but they are hard to find that size or even find a good shoe that will have grip to them on a hard surface.  Plus we will be getting outside soon so I'm on the hunt for some hard soles that she won't trip on.  So many soles are bulky.  In the meantime, barefoot and grippy socks are getting us by.

It's also very cute how she gets very excited when she walks, she knows exactly what she is doing and she has a huge grin and gets really excited right before she takes that first step forward.  It never gets old!  That initial excitement doesn't last long, so we are loving it while it's still there!

And leave it to Annie to be screaming and crying in the background of these videos, you aren't even getting the half of her tantrums she was having...