11 Months.

Okay, my post is one day early, but better early than late, right? We have now known Meron for 11 months. That is astonishing to me. 11 MONTHS! How can that be all? I can't even imagine what I used to do without this girl in my life. On the other hand, how can 11 months have gone by so fast? It literally breaks my heart every time I look at these pictures, because she looks so grown up. I swear, some of them look like she was posing for senior pictures. She doesn't look like a baby any more... not even a little bit. I can see what she is going to look like when I walk her to kindergarten the first day of school. I can't see what she'll look like as a teenager yet, but I think that is only because my poor brain couldn't handle it.

I was going to say that I have enjoyed every minute of it, but that is absolutely not true. There have been many poop-splosions that I have decidedly not enjoyed, along with many many tantrums, fights for sleep and just plain butting of heads that have not been in any way pleasant. Mer and I both have rather strong opinions on many things, and sometimes that makes things hard. There have also been such scary things- medical worries, a fall off a chair, first open wound and more heart aches than I can count. None of these things were pleasurable. I can say, however, absolutely without a doubt, that I am so very very grateful for every second of time that I have gotten to spend with my daughter. She brings light to everything and everyone around her, and I can't believe I couldn't see how shadowy the world was before I knew her.