On the eve of your 7th birthday you snuggled between your Poppa and I to look at your birth book. We reminisced about your arduous birth and the exhilaration of hearing, seeing and holding you for the very first time. With you, our parenting journey began- not just at the moment of your birth but when we realized you were on your way to joining us.

You came into our lives before our marriage was a year old. Your pregnancy tested our mettle in ways we didn’t expect- my sickness, fatigue, mood swings and overall discomfort the entire time. It all culminated with your birth, making it one of the most uplifting experiences we have had. And suddenly we were holding someone who would continue to change our lives forever. That was seven years ago! And now look at you!

When I first held you, I thought you would always fit in my arms; I would also be dressing you and helping you to walk; I would always be reading to you and scooping you up when you fell down. You would always need me to help you eat and reach things for you and put lids on your sippy cups. The sweetly naive thoughts of a brand new mom! Of course I knew you would grow up…one day…but not this fast!

Here you are! Your head comes to my arm. You’re able to do just about everything for yourself and you read like a pro! I rely on your muscles when Poppa isn’t home and you’re capable of doing almost any new task I suggest to you. You do everything you can to help me when you know I’m tired or hurting. It’s astounding to watch and I wonder when it all happened. But what amazes me the most about you is your inquisitive, insightful mind.

For you, thoughts, dreams, ideas and questions are constantly spinning through: “Mom, i would like to live underwater.” “Mom, what would happen if you stepped on to Mercury?” “What does iniquity mean?” “Poppa, how often do we need to repent?” “When I’m grown up I want to travel the world!” “I would like to grow all the vegetables!” “In my dreams, I always defeat the bad guys and I can fly too!” “I know everything about wolves because I read about them in a book.” “Mom, was this general a bad guy? I didn’t like what he said to Abraham Lincoln. That’s what I think he was a bad guy.” “Mom, I really need my oatmeal for breakfast today.”

Yes, you are very much a young man, but there are still adorable freckles all across your little face. You still have tooth gaps in your smile. You still want to hold my hand when we walk together and snuggle up close to me to read a book. You still fight dragons and bad guys in all of your explorations and anticipate what the tooth fairy will leave under your pillow. And you still need me to tuck you in at night. These precious moments take me back to when I first met you.

I like you just the way you are, respect who you are becoming, and love knowing you are my son,

With all my heart, Mama