1 year already?

So Princess Zuri is 1.  I cannot believe it.  It literally seems like yesterday that Brent and I were preparing to go to the hospital for my c-section.  This year has flown by.  I remember my first two weeks at home and how anxious/nervous I was.  I was freaked out about bringing a baby into this world and having to be completely and totally 100% responsible for her.  Zuri has truly made parenthood seem easy.  She is such a good baby.  She started sleeping through the night shortly after I went back to work (about 11-12 weeks).  I think she knew mommy needs her sleep.  :o)  She has always been a pretty mild mannered baby and very happy.  She cut her first 6 teeth with pretty much no problem.  I really can't say enough good things about her.  She is perfect! 
Here's a recap of some of her achievements this past year:

• Rolled over at about 3 months.
• Said "dada" at 5 months.
• First two teeth at 5 months
• Sat up at 5 1/2 months.
• Waved bye-bye at 7 months
• Army crawling at 7 1/2 months; crawling at about 9 months.

And, here are some things she is doing right now:

• She isn't walking, but she walks behind her push toy all the time, along EVERYTHING, and she walks with our assistance.
• She stood by herself for close to a minute last night!
• She has 7 teeth now.
• She says "mama", "dada", and her newest words, "all done".
• To go along with the previous bullet point, she signs "all done" very well.  She will sign "more" sometimes and it is usually more like a clap. 
• She loves on her stuffed animals ALL.THE.TIME!  It's the most adorable thing ever.
• She would prefer to headbutt over kisses.  In fact, when I say "Can I have a kiss?" she headbutts me 2-3 times instead and then wants to headbutt Daddy.  HA!

A friend of mine writes a note to her daughter each month.  I thought I'd do that for Z's 1 year post...

Zuri Lane,

You are more than Daddy and I could have ever hoped for or dreamed of.  You have filled our lives with more love and laughter than we could ask for.  I cannot even begin to tell you what life was like before you arrived.  It is almost as if time did not begin until 8:48 a.m. on March 7, 2011.  You are a very lovable baby.  There are times, however, that you don't want anyone to hold you and that is okay.  You are such a smart girl.  You amaze us every day with the things you do.  Just last night in the tub, you took your rubber ducky and filled it with water and then squeezed it out!  You are loved by so many people.  We had to rent a room at the Community Center for your birthday to accommodate our family and close friends that came!  I think we probably had about 60 people show up. 

If this first year is any indication, you will be 16 in no time and that scares us!  We treasure each and every day with you, but no matter how much time we spend with you, it never seems like enough.  You just grow up so fast, it's unbelievable.  We blink and another day has passed.

We love you with all our hearts and are happy to have been chosen to be your parents.

Love,
Mommy and Daddy