Anniversary of sorts

Dear Ella,
It was 9 years ago today that your daddy asked me on our first date. It was a Saturday afternoon, and he took me to Zilker park for a picnic. We laughed and made googly eyes at each other, and we each had moments of embarrassment and awkwardness. Something started that day--something that led us to you. When I got home, your grandmother asked me what I thought, and I said, "I think I'm going to marry him."
4 years ago today, that hope became a reality. Under the same tree, in the same park, your daddy asked if we could spend a lifetime together. I could imagine then only a bit of what a lifetime could encompass, and I could never imagine the love we would both feel when we met you.
God has blessed our life together in so many ways over the last 9 years, but you are, without a doubt, the biggest blessing. My prayer for you is two-fold: that you grow up knowing what great love looks like and that you seek it with all your heart. I pray for you to find a man who has a heart for God and a huge love for you; a man who keeps you safe and lets you fly. I pray for you to find someone who will love you and want for you all the things we want for you. But for now, I am thankful for your tiny hands and enormous spirit, and I'm thankful that life comes one day at a time.

Love,
Mommy