Callie Grace Cummings

Deep down inside, I have always wanted a little girl.  Don't get me wrong, I am crazy about my little boy and the bond we have and absolutely love having a boy....but when we found out we were having a girl, I was so thrilled.  Cooper and Justin have such a special bond, they go off and do a lot of "boy" things together just the 2 of them, and I love it.  I was so looking forward to having some "girl" time with our Callie.  I was blessed with a wonderful pregnancy with Callie, no complications and fairly easy overall.  Then on December 17, 2014 we welcomed the most beautiful baby girl into the world.  Callie Grace was born at 3:46pm.  She was 7lb 13 oz, 20 in. Like a typical girl, her arrival came with some drama.  You can read more about the famous epidural (or lack thereof) and her birth story here.

Callie's trademark were her cheeks.  She had the cutest, sweetest, biggest cubby cheeks.  Every nurse, doctor, friend, or random person who came in our room would comment on her cheeks.  She was famous for them.  I love them.  Justin and I would joke that we couldn't see her chin.  Where was her chin??  Her cheeks just took over her face.

The cheeks did die down some over time, but thankfully not too much and they were just irresistible to kiss.  She had beautiful brown hair and big hazel eyes.  I kept thinking her eyes would change color, but they never did.  Some days they looked blue, some days they looked green or even brown.  They were so unique and beautiful.  She looked so different than Cooper.  Cooper is very white and got the Collier white gene as we say.  Callie didn't quite get her Daddy's olive completion, but she did get a good mix of Justin and I and she had beautiful skin.  To say we were smitten was an understatement.

We did have a difficult first 3 months with Callie.  She was colicky, had reflux and was pretty miserable, especially in the evening.  It was a hard season to go through, but sure enough right at 3 months of age, she turned into a different baby.  She was SO happy and easy going.  She loved life and she adored her big brother.  She loved being on her stomach and rolled over very early and kept rolling to get where she wanted to go.  She was honestly such an easy baby after those first 3 months. She was so independent from the earliest age and could really entertain herself.  When she started sitting up, I would place different toys around her and she would just play and play and I wouldn't hear a peep out of her.   She hardly cried unless she was tired. She was a great sleeper,  put herself to sleep on her own with zero training and started sleeping through the night at 6 months.  She ALWAYS woke up so happy and playful.

It was such a JOY to get her up every morning.  She slept with a lot of stuffed animals and especially loved her stuffed lamb that Mimi bought for her.  She would throw her stuffed animals out of her crib when she woke up from naps and in the morning.  Cooper always woke up earlier than Callie, and every morning he would BEG me to get Callie up.  I would always say no, we needed to wait until she woke up.  Once he heard the smallest peep out of her (she never cried, she would wake up "talking"), he would run in her room and say "good morning Callie" and they would both laugh and giggle.  Cooper also loved getting in her bed with her in the morning and they would just play and laugh.  They had a very special bond.  I could write a whole blog post about their special relationship.  They loved each other deeply.  Cooper, especially adored his sister.  He always wanted her around, he always wanted her to follow him, even though she was so independent and did her own thing.  They played really well together for the most part.  But when Callie had enough, she would let him know.  One time, they were both playing in Cooper's room and Cooper was tackling her (in his normal gentle way) as they were playing and she just had enough.  She went into her room and closed the door.  A couple minutes later I opened the door slightly to check on her and she was just sitting on the floor reading her books.  She just needed her space and her alone time :)

One of my big prayers for them that I prayed constantly was that they would be very close and best friends their entire lives.  It breaks my heart for Cooper that his best friend is no longer here.  It hurts to think that I will never see how close their relationship would be, how they would play together, fight together, and love on each other.  Cooper was VERY protective of his sister.  He looked out for her in public settings especially.  Just a few days before she died, a girl kept taking her cheerio cup away from Callie and put it in a place she couldn't reach.  Cooper would go get the cup and give it back to Callie.  After it continued to happen, Cooper got very upset and told her very sternly it was Callie's.  Another time, we were all at chicfila, and as we were about to leave, I went to throw some trash away before getting Callie and Cooper exclaimed "Mommy, CALLIE, CALLIE!!!"  Poor guy thought I would forget her.  I told him I would never forget his sister.   They would also hold hands often in the car.  He loved her, and he knew at a very young age his responsibility to be a big brother and what a privilege it was.

As Callie grew older, she became more feisty, fearless, independent and very opinionated. She knew exactly what she wanted and she had no problems letting you know.  She loved to shake her head no when she didn't want something, and she would clap when I would guess the right thing that she did want. We read to her before every nap and nighttime and she was very opinionated about what book she wanted to read.  I would pick out 2 or 3 (or 5 or 6...lol) books and she would push it away and shake her head no until I chose the one she wanted, and she then would sit quietly, listening to every word and help turn the pages.  She knew exactly what she wanted.  She also thought she was a big kid and wanted to keep up with her big brother.  She had no fear. She got very upset if she wasn't allowed to do some of the things he could do.  Our good friends went to the cemetery the day after the funeral with their kids who knew Callie.  They sang songs, drew pictures, and shared their favorite memory of Callie.  Their 4 year old son shared that he remembered Callie always wanting to play like a big girl at McDonalds.  I had to laugh because it's so true.  Callie did not want to miss out on all the fun the big kids were having.  I would find her halfway up climbing UP the tunnel slide and would have to crawl up the slide to get her out.  She definitely did not like me ruining her fun.

 The girl loved to eat and would pretty much eat anything we gave her.  Even from an early age, she never turned down food.  She was always heading to the fridge wanting a snack.  Before we ate a meal together she would fold her hands and say "pray, pray, pray" until we started praying.  She ate healthy and would eat well, but when she was done, she was DONE.  I was still working with her on not throwing food on the floor! Cooper never really did that, but this girl, she wanted to make a statement when she finished eating.  She also threw her water cup or milk sippy cup on the floor when she finished it.  Not just a little push on the floor...oh no, she would crank it back and literally throw it.  It was not funny at the time, but now we can look back and laugh...especially my parents who claim I did the exact same thing.

Callie was also very smart. She started saying words early on and knew a ton of words.  She "talked" and babbled a lot and understood everything we said.  She was observant, could read people, and always had the best facial expressions.  She can't hide her emotions and so many people told me that you knew exactly what Callie was thinking by her facial expressions.  She was shy at first, but would warm up pretty easily to new people and environments.  She was very adventurous and had no fear.  She would explore everywhere and wanted to go anywhere she wasn't "supposed" to go to.  I always said, when Callie is surrounded by 4 walls she is SO easy.  But get her in an open area with any type of exit and we would be chasing her around everywhere.  She wanted to explore the world.  She didn't care to stay close to mom or dad, but was so independent.  I had to watch her like a hawk especially compared to Cooper who will stay close by me.  Her first time at the beach, she wanted to go straight into the water and would if we would have let her.  She loved the water.  She found such joy playing in our water table outside, the baby pool, splash pads, water fountains...anything with water, she was there.  I changed her clothes often during the summer days since the kids wanted to go outside constantly to play in the water table and get soaking wet.

Callie was a very happy, joyful girl.  She had a zest for life and was friendly and sweet towards others. She made us smile everyday.  She laughed a lot and we called it her "hearty" laugh.  It was this deep, super cute laugh.  She would "dance" which would be her infamous twirl and would spin around in circles.  It was the cutest thing.  She also loved running up and down our long hallway from the front door to the back of the house.  I would comment "here comes Callie" and she would just run up and down "singing" in her little cute voice that moved up and down as she ran.  Cooper would sometimes join in with her as she would run.  She loved peppa pig like her big brother and it was the only show she would watch.  She would say "peppa, peppa" over and over again.  She also had a love for jungle book, which we still don't understand where it came from since she never watches movies.  The only thing I can think of is that it was Cooper's most favorite movie when I was pregnant with Callie and I wonder if she recognizes the sounds from the movie from the womb.  Whenever she was sick and needed a distraction, we would put on jungle book and it would calm her right down.  That movie will always hold a special place in our hearts.

Callie loved the outdoors and being outside like her brother.  She loved going for walks in the double stroller or the wagon and going to see the ducks.  She would always exclaim "duck, duck!!" when she would see the ducks.  She would go bring her shoes to me when she wanted to go outside to play.  There were times when she thought we were going in the garage to go for a walk, but we were actually getting in the car to go somewhere...well, she did NOT like that.  She wanted to get in her wagon or stroller, not get in the car.  I would have to tell Cooper to come in the car on her side so Callie would see that he is coming in the car with us.  She also loved the park and loved swinging.  We have a baby swing for her in our backyard and in the evenings I would push her in the swing while she watched her daddy and brother play baseball and football together.  She was so content just swinging and watching them.  She didn't want to get out when it was time to go in and take a bath.  She also loved her baths.  The kids would take a bath together every night and have a blast together splashing and playing with all the toys.

Callie loved her family.  She didn't really have a favorite person, as she loved each of us in her own way.  She did of course have a very special bond with her Daddy.  Everyday he would come home from work, I would announce "daddy's home!!" and Callie would squeal and laugh and run into his arms.  She wasn't as affectionate with us as Cooper is, but when she gave you hugs and kisses, it was special.  Justin texted me the day that she passed away before putting her down for a nap and said that she leaned in and gave him a kiss, which melted his heart.  She was a master of blowing kisses though.  Whenever we said goodnight to Callie she would blow kisses over and over again to everyone.  If we told her to tell someone bye bye, she would just blow them kisses instead.

Dancing with daddy

She loved wearing hats

I am so blessed to have known Callie for the 9 months I carried her, and the 18 months on this earth.  She is a special little girl, full of life and brought joy to everyone around her.   She is deeply loved and we miss her terribly.  I miss her laugh, her smile and hearing her call me "mama" over and over again.   Even on the day she passed away, she had such a fun day, smiling, laughing and spending time with her family.  We are grieving but we grieve with HOPE. We know we will see her again and she is with Jesus.  We love you sweet girl... a day does not go by that we won't think of you.  You are the most beautiful, loving, and sweetest little girl and it is a joy to call you daughter.  We will see you soon...