A reflection of Lillian's first year of life.

I cannot believe a year ago today I was preparing her room with just a pack n play and some diapers, that we were living in Korea and about to have a baby there!  This year has brought a lot of changes; moving to another country, having a baby in another country, moving back to the states and watching our little girl grow! This little girl is quite a world traveler! At 3 weeks old she had her first professional photo for her passport.What other one year old do you know who has her own passport?! As with all passports you have to fill in her hair and eye color but at 3 weeks old her eyes hadn't changed and she was still bald.  I was told, "just guess".... I remember thinking how ridiculous that is, this passport is good until she is 5 years old. So really she could practically use anyone's passport since there is no way of telling if a 5 year old little girl is the same as the 3 week baby that is on her passport, even now she doesn't look like this at just a year.

Lillian had her second photo shoot for her Korean Visa.  The passport and visa used different sizes and they didn't bother to tell us that when we ordered the prints for her passport.  The second one was much more challenging; the first photo we managed to get her to lay down on a white background and the photographer took the photo from above her (also, they obviously did not get many requests for infant photos because the guy looked at us like we were nuts).  For the second photo I held her up and they photoshoped me out. The guy was trying to be all professional about it and Lillian had some awful bowel movements in the middle of the shoot.... Greg and I both had a very hard time keeping our composure with the noises coming out of her diaper. 

At a month old she had a Buddhist blessing in Korea.  My mom was able to join us for that special occasion.

At two months old she boarded her first plane (well not including the trip I made back to the U.S. pregnant) and we flew 12 hrs back to the states.  Luckily she was still small and slept a lot; even though that is the longest flight she has been on, I think it was the easiest. I had her in a moby wrap, she'd sleep against my chest, nurse when she needed and I would change her on my lap.  Once we landed she had to get used to a car seat.... something that took quite a while.  (Without a car in Korea she was used to be cuddled, patted and comforted whenever she woke up with her strapped to me)  We spent only a few days with family before embarking on our week long drive across country from California to Maryland.  The first couple days were rough on Lillian being in a car seat for close to 8 hrs a day. I know she won't remember all the places we visited but we do have proof she visited them! If you'd like to see our trip across country you can here.  We will make sure we take her back so she has her own memories of it.

She is absolutely the best baby, she slept through the night, was used to her routine, and didn't cry often. I have had the best job of staying home with our little ray of joy.  It is amazing how curious and inquisitive she is.  At 3 months she learned to sit up with a little support, by 4 months she was rolling over, at 5 months we enjoyed rice cereal and took our first swim, 6 months brought lots of new foods to try and lots of army crawling, 7 months we loved to sing, at 8 months we started crawling on all fours, 9 months we started clapping and learned how to pull up, at 10 months we learned how to say "mama" and "dada" and started learning how to walk and at 11 months we started walking on our own! She has also flown a total of 5 times this year!

 It has been a whirlwind of a year but I can't imagine being any other place than at home with my little girl seeing all the magnificent changes she makes everyday!  She makes us laugh everyday, shows us how smart she is and I can't wait to see the person she is going to become.  Of course I have moments where I miss my "baby", I think Greg and I both do.  Some nights we find ourselves getting her and bringing her into our bed for a little cuddle before we go to bed.  The other day at the doctor's office she looked so much more like a toddler than a baby as she sat in a chair by herself, eating a snack and drinking her milk from a cup with a straw.  Lillian has also begun walking on her own more.  Time after time you can see her pull herself up using the couch or chair, turning around and taking some steps.  I just can't believe how fast she is growing up.... and of course this is only the first year!