Happy 4th Birthday Nick! (his birthday is tomorrow -- but I know we will be too busy for me to write a sappy, gooey, mushy birthday post...)
When Nick turned one, I wrote him a letter... it sums up all my emotions today as well. I am so happy to see him growing up into a big strong boy - but wow. I still wish I could hold him on my lap and snuggle him like I did when he was a little baby!
Anyway - we have a great day planned tomorrow... Nick's "friend" party is tomorrow along with a special lunch out and lots of other fun surprises. I will be sure to post those pictures along with the birthday boy's wishes this weekend.
Love,
Nostalgic Mommy
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
5-16-2006
Dear Nicholas,
It’s me, your mom! Or as you like to say “ma-ma-ma-ma-ma-mom”. (nothing makes me smile bigger!)
I wanted to write you a letter in celebration of your first birthday. Happy birthday, punky!
This past year,(well really year and a half if we count pregnancy), has been pretty amazing. I didn’t know what being a mom would feel like, and I was pretty scared to say the least. All I knew was that I loved this little being inside my tummy more than words could describe. Your dad and I would sit and watch you move across my belly, laughing our heads off. I feel pretty lucky because we were able to spend so much time together even before you were born. I will tell you all about that when you are bigger – but for now all you need to know is that I got out of work earlier than I thought I would – and doc’s orders were to REST REST REST… so you and I hung out, watched DVD’s, did crossword puzzles, took naps and ate lots of good food that your Gramie Patty prepared for us. I was a lady of leisure for 6 whole weeks!!
The day you were born is and will always be the single most important day of my life. At 1:09 PM on Monday May 16, 2005 – my heart grew. I was so full of emotion. Because you were a bit earlier than planned, you and your proud daddy went right over to Children’s Hospital. But, not before they placed you in my arms for just a brief and awesome moment. Looking at you in that moment, tears streaming down my face, I knew my life would never be the same. Thankfully, your dad took a picture of my first glimpse of you! I still cant believe he had the camera ready. Wow! I cherish that picture. You were so small, just over 6 pounds. I was wheeled back to my hospital room – where Gramie and Gampa were waiting for the news of your arrival. I bragged that I only had to push for 20 minutes, and there you were – perfect.
The first few days of your life, you proved to be full of strength and character. You had some trouble breathing, so your doctors put you on a ventilator to make you more comfortable. You showed us you were ready to breathe on your own just after 36 hours on the vent. Again, you amazed us. You had many visitors during the 10 days that you stayed in the hospital. Both sides of grandparents, your Aunt Heather and cousins, Kevin and Justin came when you were only 3 days old! Your Uncle John and Aunt Jill came and visited you when you were only 4 days old! And every day that you were there you dad and I would come up and talk to you, cuddle you, change your diaper, take your temperature, feed you. Those were some of the most bittersweet moments we have ever felt… we were so happy you were doing so well, but so sad that we couldn’t take you home with us. We learned a lot during your stay at the hospital. Daddy and I joke that we had a “Newborns 101” crash course. We learned how to bathe you, (oh did you hate it! You would rant and rave, and wiggle around!!) we learned how to swaddle you nice and cozy, we learned how to take your temperature and convert it from Celsius into Fahrenheit, (still a joke for us…) and we learned how to change a diaper!! Thank goodness for that!
Then, on May 25th you were discharged from the Special Care Nursery at Abbott. We were able to take you home! The real deal! We bundled you up and put you in your car seat and off we went. I sat in the back seat with you, as daddy drove us home – it felt surreal.
So, in a nut shell that is your birth story. Which brings us to the present – and the meaning of this letter.
I wanted to tell you that over the last 12 months, I have grown more as a person than I ever thought possible. Being your mom is the best, most rewarding experience I could ever have the privilege of knowing. Seeing you grow and develop has been truly a gift. You are a gift. The first time you… smiled at me, laughed, rolled over, “swam”, “Shook your Booty”, enjoyed playing in the bathtub, raised your arms up to be picked up, said your first word – “dada”, crawled, stood up in your crib, waved hi and bye-bye, played patty cake, did “so big”, danced, and said “mama” have all been moments I will treasure my whole life. I feel so much joy because you are in my life. Being a mother is the best thing that has ever happened to me.
When I first found out we were expecting you, I immediately thought about your future, what will you do when you grow up, what kind of person will you be? It’s ironic, because as soon as you were in my arms, all I could think about was that I wanted you to be a good person. I didn’t care if you were going to be a pro hockey player anymore! Haha! But, seriously what I want most for you is happiness. I want you to find love and to love what you do (no matter what it is) and to be joyful. I hope for you to treat people with kindness and to give the benefit of the doubt, to embrace forgiveness. Laugh. A lot. Don’t be afraid to take chances – or admit when you are wrong. Be yourself at all times. Let people love you. Be gracious and humble. And most importantly, speak YOUR truth.
I know it seems so big – and of course “motherly” but what can I say? I am a mother, with a whole year of practice. Advice just seems to roll off my tongue these days!
I have been wanting to write you a letter for a while now, and it felt like the right time now. I want you to know how wanted you were, are and always will be. You are the best part of me, and I feel lucky to be your “ma-ma-ma-ma-ma-mom.” And… those cheeks! I could honestly kiss them all day long! When we go out, we get stopped constantly by admirers… “Oh, his big brown eyes!!” You do have your dad’s eyes… you are handsome just like him! What a lucky gal I am to have 2 wonderful guys in my life! I just love my boys!
Here’s to another year of “firsts” and to health, happiness and family.
Happy 1st Birthday Nicholas!
I love you,
Mommy
"the" picture...When Nick turned one, I wrote him a letter... it sums up all my emotions today as well. I am so happy to see him growing up into a big strong boy - but wow. I still wish I could hold him on my lap and snuggle him like I did when he was a little baby!
Anyway - we have a great day planned tomorrow... Nick's "friend" party is tomorrow along with a special lunch out and lots of other fun surprises. I will be sure to post those pictures along with the birthday boy's wishes this weekend.
Love,
Nostalgic Mommy
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
5-16-2006
Dear Nicholas,
It’s me, your mom! Or as you like to say “ma-ma-ma-ma-ma-mom”. (nothing makes me smile bigger!)
I wanted to write you a letter in celebration of your first birthday. Happy birthday, punky!
This past year,(well really year and a half if we count pregnancy), has been pretty amazing. I didn’t know what being a mom would feel like, and I was pretty scared to say the least. All I knew was that I loved this little being inside my tummy more than words could describe. Your dad and I would sit and watch you move across my belly, laughing our heads off. I feel pretty lucky because we were able to spend so much time together even before you were born. I will tell you all about that when you are bigger – but for now all you need to know is that I got out of work earlier than I thought I would – and doc’s orders were to REST REST REST… so you and I hung out, watched DVD’s, did crossword puzzles, took naps and ate lots of good food that your Gramie Patty prepared for us. I was a lady of leisure for 6 whole weeks!!
The day you were born is and will always be the single most important day of my life. At 1:09 PM on Monday May 16, 2005 – my heart grew. I was so full of emotion. Because you were a bit earlier than planned, you and your proud daddy went right over to Children’s Hospital. But, not before they placed you in my arms for just a brief and awesome moment. Looking at you in that moment, tears streaming down my face, I knew my life would never be the same. Thankfully, your dad took a picture of my first glimpse of you! I still cant believe he had the camera ready. Wow! I cherish that picture. You were so small, just over 6 pounds. I was wheeled back to my hospital room – where Gramie and Gampa were waiting for the news of your arrival. I bragged that I only had to push for 20 minutes, and there you were – perfect.
The first few days of your life, you proved to be full of strength and character. You had some trouble breathing, so your doctors put you on a ventilator to make you more comfortable. You showed us you were ready to breathe on your own just after 36 hours on the vent. Again, you amazed us. You had many visitors during the 10 days that you stayed in the hospital. Both sides of grandparents, your Aunt Heather and cousins, Kevin and Justin came when you were only 3 days old! Your Uncle John and Aunt Jill came and visited you when you were only 4 days old! And every day that you were there you dad and I would come up and talk to you, cuddle you, change your diaper, take your temperature, feed you. Those were some of the most bittersweet moments we have ever felt… we were so happy you were doing so well, but so sad that we couldn’t take you home with us. We learned a lot during your stay at the hospital. Daddy and I joke that we had a “Newborns 101” crash course. We learned how to bathe you, (oh did you hate it! You would rant and rave, and wiggle around!!) we learned how to swaddle you nice and cozy, we learned how to take your temperature and convert it from Celsius into Fahrenheit, (still a joke for us…) and we learned how to change a diaper!! Thank goodness for that!
Then, on May 25th you were discharged from the Special Care Nursery at Abbott. We were able to take you home! The real deal! We bundled you up and put you in your car seat and off we went. I sat in the back seat with you, as daddy drove us home – it felt surreal.
So, in a nut shell that is your birth story. Which brings us to the present – and the meaning of this letter.
I wanted to tell you that over the last 12 months, I have grown more as a person than I ever thought possible. Being your mom is the best, most rewarding experience I could ever have the privilege of knowing. Seeing you grow and develop has been truly a gift. You are a gift. The first time you… smiled at me, laughed, rolled over, “swam”, “Shook your Booty”, enjoyed playing in the bathtub, raised your arms up to be picked up, said your first word – “dada”, crawled, stood up in your crib, waved hi and bye-bye, played patty cake, did “so big”, danced, and said “mama” have all been moments I will treasure my whole life. I feel so much joy because you are in my life. Being a mother is the best thing that has ever happened to me.
When I first found out we were expecting you, I immediately thought about your future, what will you do when you grow up, what kind of person will you be? It’s ironic, because as soon as you were in my arms, all I could think about was that I wanted you to be a good person. I didn’t care if you were going to be a pro hockey player anymore! Haha! But, seriously what I want most for you is happiness. I want you to find love and to love what you do (no matter what it is) and to be joyful. I hope for you to treat people with kindness and to give the benefit of the doubt, to embrace forgiveness. Laugh. A lot. Don’t be afraid to take chances – or admit when you are wrong. Be yourself at all times. Let people love you. Be gracious and humble. And most importantly, speak YOUR truth.
I know it seems so big – and of course “motherly” but what can I say? I am a mother, with a whole year of practice. Advice just seems to roll off my tongue these days!
I have been wanting to write you a letter for a while now, and it felt like the right time now. I want you to know how wanted you were, are and always will be. You are the best part of me, and I feel lucky to be your “ma-ma-ma-ma-ma-mom.” And… those cheeks! I could honestly kiss them all day long! When we go out, we get stopped constantly by admirers… “Oh, his big brown eyes!!” You do have your dad’s eyes… you are handsome just like him! What a lucky gal I am to have 2 wonderful guys in my life! I just love my boys!
Here’s to another year of “firsts” and to health, happiness and family.
Happy 1st Birthday Nicholas!
I love you,
Mommy
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1 comment:
What a handsome little guy! Wow! That letter was beautiful!
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