Genetically she’s 50% him and 50% me. 
But there’s so much more that I hope she adopts from us both. 

Of course there are the physical things, like Ben’s piercing blue eyes, striking high cheek bones, incredibly tiny ears and the ability to tan (ever so slightly better than me) but more than that I hope she gets the following from him. 

His extroverted ways. 
I hope she has his ability to make fast friends and confidently enter new rooms with faces she doesn’t know and still find a way to make herself known (in the most humble way). 

His generosity and giving heart. 
One word a lot of people have used to describe Ben over the years is generous. He’s always the first to pick up the tab (even when I sometimes with he wouldn’t), offer a place to stay or help in any kind of way.

I hope she has my ability to form deep relationships and finds friends that feel more like family. I hope she knows that a smaller circle often means a deeper one and that those special connections far outweigh a large friend group. 

I hope she has the perfect balance of my extreme empathy and Bens realistic tendencies. I hope she loves deeply but also knows when to let things go when they’re no longer serving her in ways that they should. 

I hope she finds a sport she loves as much as Ben loves playing football. And I hope she also loves getting lost in a good book like her mom. 

I hope she finds the joy and wonder in traveling to new places and exploring various cultures and cuisines. 

I hope she loves food and learns to cook like her dad but finds joy in baking like her mom. 

I hope maths and sciences come easily to her like they do Ben, and that she has a way with words like me. 

I hope over the years she has the courage to pick up and start something new ( this one comes from both of us because once upon a time, I did that too.) 

Above all I hope she knows that whoever she may be, she is already so loved and her future opportunities are endless.