A letter to the baby on her first birthday

Well, Funky B, you’re a year old. I don’t know how this happened, but here we are. You’re no longer a baby (although, like it or not, you’ll always be the baby). I thought we had agreed that you’d stay tiny forever, but apparently that’s not how this works and you’re going to grow up no matter what I think about it. Fine. Be that way. But if you could stop kicking me when I change your diaper, that would be super. 

You love your brother and sisters so much. You’re already desperate to keep up with them.  You love to be around them and they do a pretty good job of looking out for you. They were all so excited to sing “Happy Birthday” to you and for you to get your very first cupcake. I love seeing you all cheer for one another. I hope you always do.

The other day your biggest sister was playing in the pretend kitchen with you. She dragged two little chairs over, and you each sat on one. She sat with you, and you guys “cooked” for a good long while. And, you didn’t topple off the chair you were sitting on, so it was really an overall win! As you get older, the bigger kids like to include you in what they’re doing. It’s like you’re not a little lump anymore, and they see you as one of them more and more—which is really fun to watch. Sometimes they’re rough with you or they’ll take something out of your hands because they think they can. But you already have an opinion, and you aren’t afraid to let it be known. I’ve seen you growl and swipe at them when they’re treating you in a way you don’t like. Obviously we’ll work on the fact that we can’t hit people, but I’m glad to know you will stand up for yourself. Because that’s a solid life skill, especially being the youngest of four.

You started walking right around the 11-month mark. Every day you grow more steady and sure of yourself. This morning you were “running” away from me and laughing as I chased you. It won’t be long now before you’re really able to keep up with the big kids. The dogs still knock you over pretty frequently, which you don’t find amusing at all.

We just had your one-year checkup. You’re 30.5 inches long (95th percentile) and weigh 20 pounds, 8 ounces (75th percentile).

It took a little while, but we now have a pretty good arsenal of nicknames for you. They include: Funky B, Funqua B, Chunqua B, Funks, and Funk-ska-doodle-do (Kid No. 3 came up with this one all on her own). At school your littlest big sister often asks to “Go see Funks,” and the teachers finally stopped me one afternoon and admitted that they were confused as to why she refers to you as Funks. My explanation didn’t make them any less confused (there isn’t really a good reason as to why we call you that), but at least they know who Kid No. 3 is talking about when she requests to “see her Funks.”

You hate your car seat. You arch your back and try desperately to avoid getting strapped in. There are times when you wail for the entirety of a car ride because you dislike being in your seat so much. Because we’re always on the go, this can make things challenging. I often remind you that you’re the fourth, child and that means you’re supposed to be easy going. You’re not having any of it when it comes to the car seat, though.

I love your brown hair. You’re the only one of the kids without blonde hair. One of my good friends refers you to as “aggressively non-blonde.” Your hair has lightened a little bit since you were born, but it’s nowhere near blonde. And you have way more hair than your brother or sisters did at your age. In fact, it’s so long that we often pull it into a little ponytail to keep it out of your eyes. I like that although you look like your siblings, you took it upon yourself to have brown hair so you’d always stand out. Way to be an individual, little one!

You are the sweetest little girl. You give hugs. You love to be held. You only like to sleep in your crib. You love bananas and those little pouches of pureed food. You have the bluest eyes and the sweetest five-toothed smile. You make the most wonderful baby noises, and your laugh melts my heart. You’re my tiniest baby girl. You made our family complete, and I love you more than you’ll ever know.