Camila - 17 Months

Dear Cami,

You are 17 months young! How can that be my little sweet pea?! I still remember waddling around with my swollen ankles at 38 weeks, unable to sleep, unable to do much...and look at you now. My goodness, where do I begin? Well, I'll start by saying that we experienced the scariest moment since our parenting years began with you on Easter Sunday. Of all the days. You had been fighting a cold for some time already but you weren't feeling very well that afternoon so we went home after the family festivities so you could get some rest. I won't get into the details since I've been struggling to get those moments out of my head and it's not something I want to remember. But you had a febrile seizure. Oh Camila, it was honestly the most horrifying experience ever. To see your tiny little body turn purple and blue, to see you laboring to breathe, to see your eyes roll  back, to hear you moaning...it's something I have prayed to God every day since then that we never have to witness again in either of our babies. After a call to 911, an ambulance ride to the hospital, some tests, tears, a follow up with your pediatrician, a trip to CHOC's ER, SIX DAYS of fevers to follow, more tears (from you and me), lukewarm baths and cold wash cloths, you finally started feeling better. They diagnosed it a viral infection. It was awful. Just awful. We thank God every single day that you are ok. I tried to look at the positive and kept telling myself that you would get through this. You would get better. So many parents are not so lucky. So even though we spent Mommy's birthday at the ER that evening, I was reminding myself that someone always has it worse. So even when it seems that things are tough and won't get better, we always need to count our blessings in life.

Since then, we have noticed no effects from the seizure and you are back to being your tough and feisty self. You are as clingy as ever with Mommy, which I'm sure will pass soon. You are my crybaby who is passionate about everything. You started drinking from a cup! Hallelujah! You are talking more. You get into EVERYTHING. You destroy everything you get your hands on. You are incredibly spoiled by Mom and Abuelo. You are happiest when you are outside. You are adorable. You just want to be held and loved. You love to eat. You LOVE books and love to be read to. You love to antagonize your sister. You love running from daddy. You love to giggle with your sister and play with her toys. You are just a ball of fun. We adore you to pieces.

Daddy and I are incredibly blessed to call you both our daughters. We are honored that we have been given the precious gift of your lives. We can't wait to see what other shenanigans you get yourself into. Until then, we continue to watch  you grow and explore in amazement. We love you sweetheart.