Upon celebrating Bella's 12th birthday I have been thinking back on her life. It's truly amazing that it's been 12 years since her birth. She was born on a snowy night(18 inches of snow fell while we were at the hospital). From the start she was a joy; a happy, content baby who slept 5 hours the first night in the hospital and in 5 weeks time was sleeping through the night. She was by far the easiest baby I had - happy to play, happy to go, happy to sleep - just very happy. Mike and I joke that God lulled us into a false sense of security, thinking that having another baby would be no problem.
As she grew her beautiful personality become evident. She was a giving, sharing, obedient toddler who adjusted quickly to a new baby brother at the young age of 20 months. Her papa thought she was a little too obedient to be born to one of his strong-willed children. She always wanted to be mama's little helper and continues to this day. She has always been an outgoing child and easily fits in with different groups of people.
We see in her an amazing heart for people. She often puts me to shame with her selfless acts in our family. She truly has a heart to put the needs of others before her own. She also has a heart to teach and help others. Since we began therapy with her brothers when they were very young she has watched, learned and joined in teaching her brothers. She also loves helping others students at school and has a special affinity for young children. We see a great potential in her to be an amazing teacher or therapist when she grows up.
In the past couple years we have begun to see the amazing heart she has for the Lord. She spends time each morning in quiet times with no daily prompting from her parents and often talks about God's Word and what she is learning about God. She repeatedly amazes us, and other adults in her life with the maturity of her insights. She is truly wise beyond her years. We praise the Lord for the way she desires to grow in her relationship with Him.
We are blessed beyond measure to have Bella in our family and praise the Lord for her!!
