Happy Birthday Sophie!

My Soapy is turning one today! I can't believe how quickly this year has passed and I feel so blessed that Sophie is part of our little family. Sophie was born right in the thick of a very hectic time, with the autism diagnosis looming, Franny's ABA therapy starting, and Bobby's starting the infamous 5th quarter of medical school. I remember being terrified of having to care for two kids before Sophie came, having felt a little stretched with just Franny. But I remember feeling after she was born that the timing of her birth was not another challenge to add to the list of things I needed to endure, but actually a blessing to help me cope with the trials I was facing. There were many times last fall where I felt pushed to my limits (poor Franny was having a typical reaction to a major change in diet and beginning an intensive behavior therapy program) and often feeling very frustrated, my eyes would fall to the tiny baby in my arms and she'd be waiting to meet my gaze and I would feel a wave of peace settle over me. This happened countless times. She is such a good sister to Franny and the two of them love to laugh and play together.

Some interesting facts about Sophie:
1.) Her roots are kind of blonde-ish and her ends are dark brown. She has A LOT of hair.
2.) When she was an infant, she would sometimes go 2 weeks between bowel movements. (gross, sorry).
3.) She sometimes laughs like a robot.
4.) She waves bye, signs for "more" and knows how to use hand sanitizer.
5.) She loves the theme music to The Office and she'll dance to it.
6.) Her favorite food is peas.
7.) She likes to pretend to talk on the phone, but when she does, I get the distinct impression that she's in a hurry and doesn't have a lot of time for small-talk.
8.) She can say grandpa (bampa) but not Dad. :)
9.) Her dad loves her anyway.
10.) So does her mom. But then again, she can say "mama." :)

I've been thinking a lot about when my Mom came to help me with Sophie last year. Originally she planned her trip for about 9 days, but when it was time for her to go she called my Dad and said she felt like I could use her help a little longer and she ended up staying for two weeks! I used to joke often that the only way I could get my family out here for a visit was by having a baby! (Thank goodness that's no longer true because my Dad and my sisters are coming for Thanksgiving!) With a time-consuming church calling, teenage kids at home, and many other responsibilities, it wasn't easy for her to get away. We had such a nice visit. She got to the hospital the night Sophie was born at about 9 pm. I was so excited to see her! We talked for about an hour until I couldn't keep my eyes open any longer, and she stayed in the room with me holding the baby until about midnight. When I came home from the hospital she had a big meal prepared and had stocked the kitchen with all kinds of treats and snacks for us to enjoy. Everytime Sophie needed a bath, my Mom did it. It was the same with Franny. I used to joke that I never get to bathe my babies until they're about 10 days old because my Mom insisted it was her job. My mom also took a huge interest in Franny's gluten-free casein-free diet that we were implementing. She read Karyn Seroussi's book cover-to-cover and made the 90 minute trip to the closest health food store in Columbia to pick up some much-needed ingredients, making a stop at baby Gap and Gymboree for some necessary grandchild-spoiling. She helped us buy a freezer so that I could prepare large amounts of food for Franny and freeze it for my convenience. Franny had her first dance class while she was here and my Mom bought her her first leotard, tutu, and tights. Franny had a blast dancing with all the other little kids and my Mom had a blast watching her. It was difficult to get her there because of the scheduling of Franny's behavior therapy, but my Mom encouraged me to make it work because she saw how happy it made Franny. We watched movies and the entire second season of the Office, which she had never seen before and loved, except for the sexual harrassment episode. We talked A LOT. It was perfect. I am so glad I had that time with her all to myself. Sophie, I have you to thank for that visit.

Here's some video of my Sophie who recently learned to walk (actually about a month ago she started talking steps. I really need to get better at recording my children's milestones.) Oh yeah, and at the end that's Sophie singing her favorite song.