A Year In Memory

In a blink of eyes, a year of time slips through the fingers just like running water does.

It wasn't long ago, little Ashley barely fitted in her car seat that we had to use 3 extra towels as padding, nowadays her legs just dangling from the car seat. It wasn't long ago, she couldn't do much besides laying there spending her time looking around, and then she was able to lay on her tummy, to pull herself up from lying position, to roll around, to sit up, to crawl around, and then to cruise around. It wasn't long ago, it was safe to just lay her down on the sofa, and walked away to do your own stuff, and nowadays she is so active that you have to keep your eyes on her constantly and changing diapers becoming fighting a battle.

What strikes me the most about Ashley is that she is so calm, happy, joyful, and sweet. She is a baby born with a smile imprinted on her face.

In the first week after she was born, Mommy and PoPo swore that she could already smile while we held her. Although Daddy insisted that was involuntary muscle movements, yet Mommy believed that her little angel was just as happy to be surrounded and held by her loved ones.

She puts on the brightest sunshine smile every time you go to pick her up from her crib after she wakes up as if she hasn't seen you for ages. She had this most satisfied smile every time after she was breastfed; Mommy knew she was content with a full happy stomach.

The very first time she burst out laughing, swinging her arms and kicking her legs, was at the silly chicken and duck sounds Mommy and Daddy made. From that moment on, we knew she loves to laugh and whether she realizes or not she has brought so many laughter and joys to Mommy and Daddy.

As she grows bigger and bigger, she laughs and smiles at everything. She laughs when you play peek-a-boo with her; she laughs when you tickle her underarms and her body; she laughs when you kiss her; she laughs when you put her on the swing and push her up and down; she laughs when you toss her high in the air; she laughs when she crawls so fast that you can't keep up with her; she laughs when she gets to splash water in her bath, in the swimming pool and on her tray.

She smiles at you when she gets anything she isn't supposed to; she sometimes smiles after she is fed; she smiles and waves at strangers although that depends on her mood; she smiles and shakes her body automatically every time her toys play music; she smiles when you give her the teddy bears and her blanket; she smiles after she fetches her ball, finds the cat and the dog hidden beyond the doors on her toy; she smiles after you let her bang on the computer keyboard; she smiles when she kisses her teddy bears, her blanket, her ball; she smiles every time she sees herself at mirror.

Often, Ashley he is just as happy to play by herself on the playmat, in the exersaucer, on the bouncy chair, in her stroller. She is content to just sit and lay there and observes all those new things and new people. She never fuzzes every time we go out. She waves and smiles at the cashier, at the waiters, at the doctors and nurses, and at some random people sometime. She loves little babies and kids, and smiles at them whenever she sees them. She instantly spreads the happiness to everyone and captures everyone's heart.

Ashley's heart is filled with bountiful happiness and joy. To her, everything is brushed with honey and smelled like a bright red rose. Every person is like her dearest friend although she might have stranger anxiety at the beginning, just give her 10 minutes and she will love you as if she has known you for a long time. Every action she does, or you do with/to her is like shooting to the moon; it makes her so happy and excited that she often screams in joy, swings her arms and kicks her legs.

What is Ashley to Mommy then?

She is a ray of sunshine through the darkest thickest cloud.
She is a cup of hot chocolate in the chilly rainy day.
She is the purest morning dew on a blooming flower petal.
She is the first bud of spring leaf after a long cold winter season.
She is a breath of fresh air in the hot humid summer heat.
She is the fire in the freezing snowy winter night.
She is the wind beneath my wings.

She truly has brought 365 days each filled with happiness and joy to Mommy, and there are many many more to come.

With that said, my little sweet angel turns 1 year old today. She is no longer an infant, she is now a big toddler.






Ashley at birth.




















Ashley at 1 year old




















Happy Birthday to my little angel!