Strawberry Ruffles & Sunshine Smiles: Ariella in Her Berry Baby Bonnet

  

There's something about a bonnet that feels like a whisper from a sweeter, slower time. And when Ariella wore hers for the first time today, it was literally storybook magic straight from my daughters heart. 

She was bundled up in her honeybee onesie with her red berried bonnet ruffled just so, dotted with the tiniest strawberries like nature's own confetti. The delicate colors framed her cherub cheeks, while her blue eyes sparkled with the familiar mix of mischief and wonder just like her daddy. And that smile—the kind that makes your heart forget how to beat for a second—peeked out from beneath those strawberry ruffles like sunshine through petals. 

She didn't know, but Ariel was stealing the show. Snug in her cozy car seat, wrapped in a soft new blanket like a bouquet of baby dreams, she was simply being: warm, curious and perfectly content. 

There's a reason bonnets feel sacred. It's not just the nostalgia. It's because of moments like this—when my baby looks like joy incarnate, tucked into soft fabrics and surrounded by the kind of beauty that doesn't ask for attention, it just is. 

And one day, when this bonnet is tucked away in a keepsake box, I'll pull it out and remember this exact moment. The strawberry ruffles. The twinkle in her eyes. The way her little nose scrunched up with adorable freckles just showing up, we think. 

Today was a bonnet day.
A simple, sacred kind of beautiful.
And I'll never forget it.