ONE YEAR OLD!!

It's hard to believe that this day is finally here. Campbell's first birthday! It's hard for me to put into one post what this past year has meant. Let's start with what has surprised me. Campbell - not a surprise. We got a lot of funny looks when we told people we were expecting because the baby was coming so soon after the wedding! But Campbell was not a surprise - she was a very well-planned, welcome blessing. However, her arrival was a bit of a surprise. My blood pressure shot up three weeks before my due date, so Campbell came early. Travis' big thing with a January 1st due date was that he wanted the tax deduction. We got it! Also a surprise was how sick poor little Campbell was at birth...that we'd leave the hospital without her...and spend the first 12 days of her life going back and forth to the hospital...praying and waiting to bring our miracle home. Another obvious surprise - the red hair and blue eyes. The blue eyes were less of a surprise since Travis (and every other Justice!) has them. But if you'd told me I'd have a redhead with blue eyes, I'd have told you that you were crazy! I adore her fair skin, bright blue eyes, and light red hair, as well as that red head temper that is slowly surfacing... She is such a pretty baby, and I'm not biased at all!! Another surprise was how easy it has been to put her first. I would've described myself as pretty selfish before having the baby. But having a child just kind of wipes that away, and it's been easier than I thought it would be to make sacrifices for her. She's just so worth it, I just love my new life as her mommy. We were surprised yet again when Campbell was only ten months old and started walking!! Her doctor had even told us to not be disappointed if she was a little late just because she's so big. She showed him! Campbell is walking really well these days. Sometimes I'd even call it a slow (and sloppy) jog!

Those are all the surprises I can think of. On to a quick list of what she's been up to lately. She talks quite a bit. The problem is we don't always understand her language. We used to hear a constant ba-ba-ba-ba, but now her vocabulary has expanded to include quite a bit of da-da-da-da (you can imagine who loves that), a few ga-ga's, ka-ka, and a ma-ma on rare occasions (I'll take what I can get). In the past week, she's started trying to eat her oatmeal and applesauce with a spoon. It's a messy endeavor but she is so proud of herself when she gets it to her mouth successfully. That crazy red hair has a few curls in it and it is getting longer by the day. We rarely get an "oh, HE's so cute" anymore, for which I'm very grateful. She loves being around other children at church, at playgroups, with her cousins, and with our friends' kids. Her one true love is books. She has become quite the bookworm! Most of her playtime is spent carrying books from her playroom to the living room. We read the same four or five books over and over and over again. She used to cry, I mean really cry, each time we got to the last page. Now she understands when we tell her to go to the playroom and get another book, which is nice, and keeps the tears at bay. She is really starting to understand us - she will stick out her tongue on command (thanks to the frog in one of her favorite books), she gives us hugs and high fives (sort of).

I could go on for hours about all the cool tricks Campbell has figured out in this past year. But really, the most special thing about Campbell is the sheer joy she's brought to our lives in the past year. Our hearts are full and our days are happier because of her. We hear the pitter patter of her little feet stomping around and the sweet sound of her little giggle. I swear if we could bottle up her smile we could achieve world peace. Campbell, your Daddy and I love you so much and we are so proud of all you have become in this first year. You have such a sweet spirit! We look forward to each new day, week, month, and year we get to spend with you. Dream big, little girl! We know there is a lot waiting for you in this big world and we are just so thankful we get to help you chase your dreams.

Happy First Birthday, Campbell! Here is a stroll down memory lane, from the first picture ever taken of Campbell and through the first year.

This morning when Campbell woke up, we went in to get her singing Happy Birthday, with the video camera rolling. She looked at us like we were a little crazy. Then we brought her downstairs to see her new farm. She seems to love it!! Travis took today off to celebrate and get the house ready for the big party tomorrow. We decided to take Campbell to IHop for a special breakfast treat - her first pancake! We know pancakes have dairy in them, but the doctor said it's ok to give her dairy even though she generally has a mild reaction to dairy. We also ordered her scrambled egg substitutes. The pancakes would also have egg in them, something she has never eaten before because babies can't have eggs until they are one. Sure enough, about 5 bites into her breakfast, she broke out in mild hives, which is normal for us. We switched the eggs and pancake out for a banana. Things were sort of OK, but by the time we got home, it was not the reaction we were used to. It got SO much worse than the picture above. Terrible, red hives on her face, a very uncharacteristically lethargic baby, and then it spread to her eyes. Red bumps all around her eyes, cheeks, forehead, and she was really itchy. So we did what every parent longs to do on their child's first birthday - race them to the doctor's office! She is fine, sleeping like a rock now after being pumped full of Benadryl. The bad news is they wanted to draw blood, so we had to put her through that on her birthday. The good news is that for the first time, they found one of her tiny veins! When we go back on Tuesday for her one-year check-up, hopefully they'll have the results of the full allergy screen, and some answers!!! A few months ago, the allergist only did bloodwork for a dairy allergy. With a full vial of blood, they should be able to run a full screen and hopefully tell us what's going on. Poor thing, who wants to be stuck on their birthday?!??! She was very brave and patient, and I'm sure when she wakes up, will forget about the drama and enjoy her new farm. My next task is to find a recipe for an egg-free cake before tomorrow!!!!

Happy Birthday, sweet red-faced girl! ;)