Dear Junior,
We had such a blast celebrating your birthday.
What a joy it was to spend the entire day with you again. Your enthusiasm made it clear that you were happy, too. Thanks, my little. Mommy needed that reassurance; it just about broke my heart when (after my first couple days at work) you didn't rush to greet Mommy, and you just looked at me and sucked your thumb when I came home. I keep reminding myself that I am in this job for a reason, and the part about missing you and you missing me may be our cross to bear -- and God will help us through it. We must trust Him.
For your birthday, we FaceTimed with both sets of your grandparents. And during your morning nap, Mommy snuck out to get birthday candles and five balloons -- pink, yellow, blue, green, and purple. (And I paid the extra 15 cents per balloon to get the special spray that makes them last longer...and indeed, they've lasted a couple extra days!) You had a lot of fun playing with the balloons and their ribbons, and I had a lot of fun watching you. It's so fun to watch you do a lot of things. :)
We played at the playground (and took your balloons along), and there were a lot of kids there to keep you company. Daddy helped you climb up (yes, up) the slide, and Mommy stayed at the top as "bait" since you always got really excited to crawl up to Mommy. You had a good time.
After dinner, Mommy upended a container of plain yogurt, surrounded it with frozen berries (your favorite!), and lit a candle. Voila! An unsweetened birthday cake. :) We sang to you and read you your cards. You loved it, and we had (yes, again) a lot of fun watching you go to town on that cake. By the end, it was everywhere: in your hair, ALL over your face, and even on your feet. How did you manage to accomplish that??
So there you have it. A simple birthday for my incredible girl. An entire year has passed since God sent you to us, and we love you so, so much.
In other news, Mommy is now two weeks into the job. Half a month! It's amazing how much Mommy loves her work. And everything is easier here... my roundtrip commute is usually 35-50 minutes total--which is less than some of my one-way commutes were back in the City. And I leave home late enough to go to the gym, shower, and eat breakfast with you...and I come home early enough to (sometimes cook and) eat dinner with you and play with you before bed (even though you go to bed a full hour earlier than you used to). After you go to bed, I catch up on things like email and blogging and yesterday, I even put up our Christmas tree. On a weekday! I'm very much enjoying this slower pace of life.
(Oh, and did I mention that the lunch hour actually exists here?? Apparently it's a thing--to actually take a lunch break. My mentor goes to the gym during that hour. My boss closes her door and reads the WSJ for an hour. A group of us go out to lunch some days--especially Fridays. On the off days, I get emails and other tasks done during that time. Another colleague picks up his kids and wife and has lunch with them at home during the hour. AMAZING!)
We are also making friends here, by God's grace. He has answered swiftly our pleas for community and fellowship here. I have my Thursday-morning women's breakfast prayer group with four other like-minded sisters. Daddy has his Wednesday-morning meetup with the husband of one of those sisters. We are making friends at church and at small group. We are making friends in the neighborhood at the playground and with our neighbors. Tomorrow we're even going to a dinner party at our neighbor's house! Such abundance could only have come by God working in ways we cannot see.
So we enter a season of joy and gratitude. Even as we continue to long for our loving and beloved friends and family back at home, we turn our faces to the light and embrace the richness that God has given us now. It is good. We are thankful.
Lots of love,
Mommy
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