Archive | Visits RSS feed for this section

Mama’s Back!

22 May

Liam Hudson, I love you more than anything in the whole wide world.

I’ve been much too busy lately and I haven’t written you in ages, at first because of finals, then because I was actually with you at the beach, and then because I moved to New York City for the summer. But now I’m finally set up in my tiny NYC “apartment” (okay…it’s a dorm room) and I have pictures of you everywhere and I wanted to write you another one of my letters to tell you that you are still – and always will be – the best part of my life. I miss you like crazy and I wish I could be with you every minute of every day. The best I can do right now is to try to make you proud of me with my summer internship and (hopefully!) the success that comes from it.

I can’t wait to tell you beach stories and show you pictures. Have no doubt that I definitely will over the next few weeks ;)

This picture is my absolute favorite from our beach trip. It’s right beside my desk in my apartment and later this week, I’m going to print out another copy to take to work to have at my desk over there. So that way, not only are you on my mind and in my heart, but you’re also everywhere I look. I love you, handsome boy. I’ll be seeing you this summer, internship or not. I can’t wait!

I fall madly in love with you all over again every time I see this photo :)

Tags: , , , , , ,

Mi Hijo, Te Quiero

30 Apr

At the end of last week, I had a final in my Spanish class. Now I have always loved Spanish. Loved it. I took it for years in elementary school and then a few semesters in high school. At one point I actually considered minoring in it once I got to college.

Until this semester.

The spanish class that I took this semester (as an elective…I didn’t even need it) has been the most difficult, frustrating class I’ve ever taken in my life. It is the one and only time that hard work has never paid off for me. Actually, the harder I studied, the worse I seemed to do, especially when it came to tests. With every bad grade, I would study more or study harder or longer and the grade that came back as a result was always worse. See? Frustrating. I know hate is a strong word and you will be taught not to use it, so I just want to say that I strongly, strongly disliked this class.

Anyhow, I took the final on Friday. It was horrible. My heart sank with every question I answered, knowing that I was probably getting at least every other one wrong somehow. What’s worse is that it was an online test – with written tests, at least professors can give you partial credit if you miss an accent mark or something. Not online. Miss a letter or an accent and the whole question is wrong. I have never left a test feeling worse that I did leaving this one on Friday. Needless to say, I will never, ever take another Spanish class. All of my Spanish from here on out will be self-taught (because I still love the language and professor with his frustrating class will NOT ruin it for me).

I posted on Facebook about how horribly bad I felt after that test, and J happened to see it. Next thing I know, I get this on my phone:

I laughed so hard. The glasses killed me! J captioned it with a whole bunch of spanish (most of which I understood, so at least I’m not a total loss) that basically said, “Hello, I’m Professor Liam and I would have given you an A!” That picture is the new background to my phone now. I smile every time I look at it. I think that is a special power you will never lose – the ability to make me happy no matter what is going wrong. You make my life better in the smallest of ways but they make the biggest difference. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate you to that, or even for silly things like this. You can truly make my day.

I have no idea what I got on that final. I’ll find out later this week, but I won’t look until Saturday or Sunday because this week, I’m going to the beach with my beautiful extended family and my amazing son whom I love more than anything else in the whole wide world. I get to see you tomorrow and I don’t have to let go for four whole days. I hope you’re ready to be smothered with love, because I’m definitely bringing it.

Thank you for being you. That’s all it really takes to make me happy. See you tomorrow, mi hijo. Te quiero (my son, I love you) :)

Tags: , , , , , ,

Sibling Rivalry

25 Apr

This picture makes me laugh every time I see it. It was an accidental photo – I was trying to get one of you and Sports Man smiling at each other but I snapped a photo just a little too late and I ended up with this. I call it The Face Off.

The two of you get along great. Hopefully you’ll be the kind of siblings that end up being each other’s best friend. I know there will be fights and arguments and rough-housing and what not, but other than the normal, occasional sibling rivalry, I feel like the two of you are going to be wonderful friends.

But during the times you’re not, I think this picture is a hilarious way to sum it up. I mean, really…these faces are too perfect.

Love you, Little Man :) And your big brother too!

Tags: , , , , ,

First Fair, Last Visit

19 Apr

Five days before you were born, The B’s came into town. This was the third time we had gotten together, including the first time I met them. They asked if they could come down and we could all do something together. They had met my parents – Pop-pop 3 and Grandma M – during their last visit, so this one was just purely for fun and to continue to get to know each other.

We started out this visit by getting pizza at a local (and very eclectic) pizza joint downtown, and then we continued to an indoor craft fair. My hometown is very artsy so anytime there is an art or craft fair of any kind, you are bound to come across some very beautiful and unique things. You know how creative J is – looking back, this was probably the perfect outing for her!

We all walked around the indoor fair for a couple of hours. I kept getting comments on my stomach – people asking me how far along I was, enduring multiple “you look like you’re about to ‘pop!’” comments, etc. Of course, I had no idea on that Saturday that you would be here by Thursday – I kept telling people I had over a week to go (you were 11 days early from the due date the doctors gave me. I’d say they got that one wrong).

I remember walking around and looking at the crafts with J and E. We pointed out the things we liked and the things we didn’t; J and I looked at a lot of jewelry, E was impressed by some creative woodwork and cabinetry, and Grandma M looked at a little bit of everything. As we went J talked about ideas she had for the nursery, crafts she liked to make, and things she thought I could make to decorate your bedroom with. That was they day I learned how crafty she was – she had some really cute ideas, knew of at least half a dozen great craft websites and we actually liked a lot of the same things. I took that as a good sign.

By the time we got to the downstairs of the exhibit, I had to sit down at least every ten minutes. You were a perfectly average sized baby when you were born (7 lbs, 6 oz), but my lower back just wasn’t having it by that last week. Luckily the downstairs was where a lot of the woodwork was done so I found a lot of benches to sit on. I remember that the handmade musical instruments were downstairs too. E knew quite a bit about them and that was when I learned about his avid love for music.

After the art fair, we went back to Grandma M and Pop-pop 3’s house. When we got there, we ate a little bit and then J took our first family photo (minus Sports Man – you were a surprise for him, so he didn’t know about me OR you then)! The photo was followed by E showing me the first videos I ever saw of Sports Man. It reminds me of what I do with you now – showing off pictures, incredibly proud of videos, bragging as much as I can because I love you so much. There were videos of him reading (he’s the original child prodigy), playing basketball, receiving trophies, and a couple more. I think that when I made my most important realization of the day: I saw how much The B’s loved him and I realized that that was how much they would love you. I saw how much love they had to give and would give to my Little Man. And I was not wrong – they do love you more than words can say. They have from day one.

It was a wonderful visit. I love pizza and art fairs in my hometown all the time, but this day was particularly special. I had met The B’s twice and learned more and more about them every time, but I realized that I could truly love them like family that day, because that was when I discovered just how much love they had to give. Or more aptly, how much love they wanted to give. You are part of one of the most loving families I’ve ever met, and I wouldn’t have it any other way, partly because I get to share it too.

I’ve been to at least one craft fair with J since then. She actually makes and sells her own crafts now, and I love them. And since I’m family, I tend to get free samples :) But with every art fair I go to – with The B’s or with someone else – I’m reminded of that first one. And when J and I talk about it, we always mention how cool it is to see how much we’ve grown as a family, and how much we know and share now versus the uncertainty of “then.”

And personally, I have to say, I’m loving the “now.”

Our first family photo. I had gained water weight. We will never mention it.

Tags: , , ,

A Letter from Dad

12 Apr

Yesterday, I got an e-mail from C. He had written me a letter – he told me that he’d been reading the letters I write to you. He reread the ones he’d already looked at, and read the new ones he missed, and they moved him, and he wanted me to know that he loved me for it. It was a nice surprise! Then, he wrote a letter to you.

Funny thing is, I was thinking about C the day before he e-mailed me. I was wondering what he was up to, where he’d been, how he was. I almost called him, but I got caught up in school work and forgot. Then I woke up yesterday morning, and I had e-mail from him. I thought to myself how it interesting it was that we were linked like that. Like I somehow thought of him strongly enough for him to feel it and respond – a cosmic connection of sorts. Then I realized our “link” isn’t so strange – it’s you. I get to keep the first love of my life in my life forever because of you. Not in the same way, but in a way that’s just as good. My first love is now my family. Not many girls get that lucky.

So, Little Man, this is a letter from your dad :)

—-

Dear Little Man…

I have so many things to say to you, so much love to give and so little space to do it all. But first I want to take a second and tell you that if you are close to Renee while reading this, hug her and give her a great big kiss on the cheek. If she’s away, doing whatever amazing things it is she does nowadays, call her and tell her you love her. She loves you more than life itself, as I’m sure you can tell from these letters. And while I know for a fact that you love her, I also know that a hug from you can make any day amazing, and who knows, she may need it today.

With that said I want to tell you I love you, more than I can show. I’m the kind of guy that might have the occasional difficulty with letting the most important people in his life know how important they are, but I never, ever, ever, ever want you to doubt the fact that I love you and am so proud of everything you are and will be.

About three months from the time I’m writing this, you will be two years old. That amazes and blesses me. It blows my mind how much you’ve grown since the first time I saw you when I visited The B’s at their home about a month after you were born. It also amazes me that as little bitty as you were, that’s the first time I remember noticing that you reminded of my Grandaddy, your Great-Grandaddy. And still there is something I see in your eyes every time that makes me think of him. Maybe it’s the way your hair grows out all curly like his, or the fact that I know how much he would love to know you and so loves you now, even though he’s gone. Sometimes I like to think that when he got to heaven, he might have seen you getting ready to come down here and smiled, knowing that you would be an answered prayer and blessing to The B’s, and a blessing in disguise to me and Renee and our families as well. We were both so scared when we found out you were on your way, but through all the tears and mountains of fear, I would never trade the life I get to have watching you grow into the man you will be for anything.

I’ve always had this crazy little dream of being a musician, and until you, that dream was all about me. But when I met you and fell in love with you, it became about you too. I wanted to achieve my dreams more than I ever had before. Maybe because I want you to be as proud that I am a part of your life as I am that you’re a part of mine, or maybe because I want the whole world to hear about you in a song someday. But I want you to know that through all the guitars I play, all the songs I write and all the shows I perform, you are always on my mind. My dream has kind of changed from being a big successful musician to one day hearing that you were riding in the car, on your way to school and you asked J or E (who both have amazing musical tastes by the way) what song that is on the radio, and they were able to say, “That’s C playing for you.” That to me would be more success than any amount of money could ever buy.

About two months ago Renee gave me a Hope Box that she painted and filled with little things. It was supposed to be a present she made for me after she found out about you, but she held on to it until this year :) Well when I got it, it was filled of things that reminded me of my dreams: guitars, big cities and great songs, but it was also filled with things that reminded me of you. I immediately added to it your little hand print from your first Christmas. About a month later you and The B’s came for a visit, and I had this pair of sunglasses that I bought in Nashville and loved. Well as soon as I picked you up to hug you that day what did you reach for? My glasses. They were bent up before anyone could even try to get them away from you, and I have never been happier. You kept giving them to me and getting me to hold them on your face because they were too big for you, and every time they fell off you would laugh that famous laugh you have. I didn’t care about the glasses – you were so happy and having so much fun with them, and so was I :) As soon as I got home that night they went in my box as a little reminder of how amazing it is to see you smile.

Well, it’s late and I have to work in the morning so I believe I’ve rambled long enough. My little “note” has turned into a book I’m afraid. I love you Little Man, more than I love myself, even more than I love music, and nothing in the universe can change that. Ever. Hug and kiss The B’s for me!

With Love Forever and Always,

C

The first time C ever saw you :)

Tags: , , , , ,

A Weekend at the Orchard

11 Apr

When you were almost two months old, The B’s came to my hometown and we all went apple picking together. The orchard we went to was actually on a mountaintop and it was a beautiful September afternoon.  I’d never been to an orchard before, and – quite obviously – neither had you. The fact that it was on a mountaintop only added to the beauty of it. It was a first for both of us.

I had so much fun. When The B’s got there, they immediately handed you over to me and I got to carry you around in your little Baby Bjorn the whole day. You slept most of the time and we had a little hat to cover your head, but your little chubby legs stuck out the bottom of it. I played with your feet a lot.

Aunt S came with us and she helped Sports Man pick out his favorite apples. The orchard was laid out so that trees with the same kind of apples were lined up in rows, so you knew where to look for your favorites. If I had to pick one, I’d probably sad Red Delicious were my favorite, but quite honestly, I still can’t tell a whole lot of difference between different apple types, even though I love them. I’m pretty sure I ate more apple doughnuts that day than I did actual apples anyway (I’ll bring you back one day because you have to try those doughnuts. They’re incredible).

There was a part of the orchard where they kept animals, too. We walked through the woods to a lake and you could buy a handful of food to feed them. Sports Man got a kick out of that part. Towards the end of our orchard trip, we all curled up under the shade of a giant tree and ate some of our goodies (doughnuts!). J and I laid you out on a blanket and just looked at you and played with you and talked some. Back then, we were still getting to know each other. Every now and then we reminisce on those times and it’s so funny to us how far we’ve come since then. Comparing how close we are now to how little we knew then…it certainly has been a journey. A very, very fun one.

After the orchard, we met up at the restaurant where I work, and we all ate there. It was the first time anyone at work had gotten to meet you – you were a hit. Everyone loved you; they still do (quite a few of your Aunts work there). It was the first time I ever really got to show you off, and you know how I love to do that. You got a little fussy during dinner, so I took you outside and bounced you around until you fell asleep. I didn’t even need food – I would have walked around outside with you all night. People who walked by kept complimenting me on you, saying how cute you were, how sweet you were. I smiled and said thank you, enjoying my little, stolen moment of parenthood. I danced around with you as I rocked you. I sang a little bit (it’s not really anything you want to hear). Mostly I just whispered that I loved you over and over again.

I was a great weekend. The next morning before you left, C and I got together with The B’s really early and had breakfast at your hotel. Every visit, especially those early ones, are such wonderful memories of spending time with you and getting to know The B’s. We learned so much about each other and with every visit we had, the more we wanted another one. We almost never left one visit without planning the next. As they left that September, I knew I would down visiting you three weeks later for Sports Man’s birthday party. That was one of the many things The B’s did to try to make the adoption process as easy on me as possible – planning out the next visits, so I always knew when I would see you again. And it really did help. I think that’s what helped me heal as fast as I did. I never had to feel as though I “lost” you. They never let that happen.

You always give me something to look forward to. And now, I rarely have to wait. We’re all so in love with each other, I hear from The B’s at least a few times a week. I love them. I love the memories I have of the trips we’ve taken and the visits we’ve made. I still have my Liam-sized apple (as we deemed the itty, bitty apples) to remind me of that trip. It’s held up really well – just like everything else.

Tags: , , , ,

Babies and Beaches

6 Apr

I officially get to go to the beach with you this summer!

One of E’s uncles has a house in Charleston and The B’s rented it out for the week after my last week of finals. Grandma M, Pop-pop 3 and even Aunt S are all coming down for the week. I couldn’t be more excited. Aside from the hospital after you were born and your birthday weekend, this will be the longest time I’ve gotten to spend with you. That may sound surprising, but considering how often I get to see you, and all of the pictures and videos I get when I don’t see you, I never feel like we’re apart for too long.

You’ve been to the beach before. Actually, that’s where you went immediately after your adoption was finalized. The B’s were in the middle of a beach trip with family when all of that happened, so they came down and stayed with me for a day and then drove right back out to the water. They took you back down to the beach again in October later that same year, and I know you’ve been at least once since then. You were obviously meant to be a beach boy.

I love the beach. I always have. It’s the picture of relaxation I visualize when I’m stressed. It’s the place I try to go at least twice a year. It’s the place I dream about when I’m not there. I love the sound of the crashing waves, and I absolutely love the smell – there’s nothing else like it. I like swimming in the ocean or reading a book on the beach or sitting out on a porch or balcony at night as the sun goes down. And now I get to share all of that with you :)

That’s what I’m most excited about for this beach trip: spending time with you and The B’s. Of course, I’m going to love the water and the sand and the smell, but it’s going to be a hundred times better with all of you there. Hopefully, I’ll get up with E and we’ll have coffee like we always do when I visit. J and I will talk and laugh and cook together (a.k.a I’ll stir or chop something…that’s safest for all of us). I’m definitely planning on burying Sports Man in the sand with only his head showing – your Aunt S and I going to give him the body of a mermaid. Shh!

But I also can’t wait to see you in your little bathing suit, running around the beach house or playing in the pool. I want to see what you think of the sand or if you like swimming. I love it when I get to learn new things about you, and being with you at the beach will be one of those chances for me. But mostly, it’s just the time I’ll get to spend with you. I’ll get to love on your for four days straight. It’s the best end-of-the-semester present I could have ever gotten.

Not to mention all of the video footage I’m going to record and all of the photos J is going to take. If there’s anything I love more than spending time with you, it’s committing that time to memory forever. Then again…I don’t think there is anything I love more than spending time with you. You are the best thing in the whole world. I can’t wait to be a beach bum with you, baby boy.

Tags: , , , , ,

Little Man Takes a Sick Day

2 Apr

You were so sick this day. I got a text from J on my way down to visit you that weekend – April 2, 2011 actually – that you were not feeling well. When we got there you had a fever, a runny nose and every time you coughed, it sounded like your lungs were going to come up. Anywhere you went that day, the humidifier followed (as you can see). Both J and E alternated being on the phone with the doctor’s office and the pharmacy until they finally got something called in for you and E went to pick it up. This picture is one of the many times you passed out that day.

What I remember most from this particular sick day was that I got to rock you to sleep. You would get fussy and we’d know it was a sign you were tired – thanks to being really sick, you hadn’t slept much through the night. So a couple of times when that happened, I took you into your room, wrapped you in a blanket and sat in the rocking chair in the corner of the room and just rocked you until you zonked out. You didn’t stay asleep too long – maybe 30 minutes each time. You’d get really hot and start sweating your fever out and wake yourself up. And even though I hated that you were sick, I was glad I got to be of some comfort to you.

I never got the “rocking you to sleep in the middle of the night” experience. Of course, that particular experience is accompanied by being woken up in the middle of the night in the first place which I’m sure isn’t so pleasant, but I still wanted to do it. Pop-pop 3 always told me that he loved getting up with me in the middle of the night when I was a baby. Alone time, just the two of us. Making me feel comfortable and safe and loved enough that I would be lulled back into sleep. It always seemed like such a beautiful bonding time and I’d always wanted to have it with you. Any time I stayed the weekend, The B’s would always let me put you to bed or do your late night feeding, and I loved it. I never got to use the rocking chair until this day though. The sickness was no fun, but I’ll take any opportunity I can to hold you while you’re still small enough. That certainly hasn’t changed.

Actually, you were quite the trouper that day. A couple of naps, a dose of medicine and you were ready to play! This was right after you’d gotten the hang of crawling, so you were all over the place. You did what I like to call “the army crawl” – you used your elbows and your feet to push yourself forward, no knee action whatsoever. Though I found out later that the “army crawl” is actually rather popular amongst babies learning to crawl, it was the first time I’d ever seen any baby do that. I thought it was hilarious. I got on the floor and army crawled with you. We played your toys. Aside from the bright red nose and the horrible coughs, you couldn’t even tell you were sick.

Of course, you’ve gotten sick since then. I’ve seen you on occasion with a cold or a runny nose, and when you’re sick and I’m not there, J will text me with updates on how you’re doing. I always tell her to give you kisses from me and I have no doubt that she does it. But that day was my first Little Man Sick Day experience. I can’t say I’m a huge fan. Well, aside from getting to take care of you, of course. But I know you’d rather get better, and I want what you want. Because I love you, in sickness and in health.

But for future reference, I’ll rock you to sleep any day you want me to, no matter how big you get.

Tags: , , ,

The Best Five Percent

27 Mar

I talked about you in class today. We were talking about teenage pregnancy and I was floored when it was revealed to me that only 5% of pregnant teenagers choose adoption. Of course, I of all people know how incredibly difficult it is to go through with it, but the small number was still surprising to me.

I piped in with my experience. How I discovered I was pregnant at 18 years old. How I had you when I was 19. How I chose open adoption and it was one of the best decisions I ever made, for the both of us. It was tough, yes. Beyond words. Even knowing how great The B’s were, it still took enormous effort not to make a mad dash to the adoption agency and demand to have you back during those 10 days that it was possible. But by the strength of what could only have been God, I was able to keep our lives – yours and mine – in perspective. To know that yours would be better off in family that could solidly provide for you in every way possible, and that mine wouldn’t end if I let you go to them. I’m still searching for the words to describe the chaos that overtook my mind and heart during those days.

It is for this reason, that I refuse to judge the other 95% of pregnant teenagers. No one can describe how unbelievably in love a mother is with her child – what it feels like to know that another life will exist because you do, what it is like to feel you kick, what it is like to see your face for the first time, to hold you for the first time, to be blissfully content just to watch you sleep. Mothers have a unique experience with their children, different from any other person who is close to them during their pregnancy. They have unique perspective and therefore a very unique love for their children. We’ve been as close to you as humanly possible – you were a part of us.

So sometimes, it just takes another mother to understand exactly what feelings of love and devotion I’m talking about. They may be teenagers, but despite whether or not they should be, they are moms, and I would like to assume that they are just as madly in love with their babies as I was – and am – with you. I would say that it’s impossible for anyone to love you as much as I do because I just love you so much, but The B’s do. I am sure of it. I can’t deny that, nor would I ever, ever want to. My love for you is simply unique. You were a part of me.

I came to the conclusion that maybe the low percentage is just because open adoption just isn’t that well-known yet. People don’t know how lucky they can get, or how happy they can be, and if they did – if it was possible to find a way to measure or encompass how blissfully happy I am to have you and The B’s in my life – that percentage would skyrocket. Open adoption is a beautiful thing, and J and I are doing what we can to get the word out about it. We have all gotten so lucky in having you and finding each other through you, and happiness like that is a thing you want to share. I want pregnant teenage girls to know that there are options. I want potential adoptive parents to have a child to give all of their love to, because they truly have so much of it to give. I want people to know that they can create extended families like ours; that one tiny, perfect person can create an entire network of love. And you are my inspiration for all of that. You are my inspiration for everything.

Just about the time that we are discussing the low adoption rate in class and all of this is running through my head, I get a notification that J has posted pictures of me. They are pictures of you and I during your last visit. Since they are pictures taken by J, they are beautiful, stunning. And since you are the subject, they seem almost ethereal. I’ve been looking through them ever since, unable to get enough of them because I love seeing myself with you. And as I look at these pictures, I remember running around and playing with you as she took them, and I’m so happy I could burst.

I believe those teenage mothers who raise their children no matter what their situation have a unique and beautiful kind of strength. But your mommy dearest is in the minority – I am one person out of the many that make up 5% of teenage girls who felt as though they could give their children something better, something more than themselves. Five percent of us who were strong enough and trusting enough to follow through. And that is what I did. But in following through, I got something more and something better out of it. I got my B’s, and we all got you. And that right there makes this the best 5% of anything I’ve ever been a part of :)

Photos by J

Tags: , , , , , ,

The Little Man Language

20 Mar

Being the expert that I am at language development (a.k.a. there was a chapter on it my developmental psychology textbook), I know that you are currently in the “babbling stage.” Babbling starts around four months old, but once word comprehension kicks in (around nine months), the desire to converse with others gets really strong. Toddlers want to talk to other people and they want to be understood, which is partly how and why language develops at all. Well you have been talking for ages and you are definitely ready to be understood.

 Quite honestly, I don’t understand half of what you say (sorry, I’m working on it!), but even so I love listening to you. Every now and then I catch a real word or something that sounds something like a real word and I’ll try to find the meaning in the things you say, but you don’t seem to be too concerned with whether or not I “get it.” If it’s really important to you that I understand, you gesture or motion for it – you’ll point at something you want or you’ll run to the door when you want to go outside or you’ll hold your arms up and you want me to pick you up.

 One of my favorite gestures that you do is actually one you do when you’re upset. I know that sounds horrible and I truly do hate it when you’re upset, but you do this thing where when you’re just frustrated or mad, you’ll hit yourself in the forehead with your hand. Sometimes, you’ll throw your head back and cover your face with both of your hands, like you’re just so fed up. Nothing like a little flair for the dramatic, right?

 Although you do gesture a lot when trying to get your point across, there are a couple of words I never have to guess on. “Doggy” is one. “Up” is another. You’ve also got names down pretty well. “Mama” and “Daddy” are always clear. You even say C’s name with pretty good clarity, which I learned this weekend and was highly impressed by. You are good with nicknames too – Nay-Nay for me, Bubby for Sports Man, Pop-Pop for my dad…the list goes on. That’s not the only way in which you are impressive: My psychology book actually says that toddlers don’t start putting together two-word sentences until they’re two, but I have heard from J that you have been putting sentences together for ages now. Not that that’s surprising – you are incredibly smart after all. Not that I’m biased.

 My favorite thing about your little language? Your translators. J and E understand you like no one else. Every time you’d just talk and I would be smiling and listening and not at all comprehending, J would turn to us and say, “Oh, he wants to go outside,”  or “He wants to play with the video camera.” It must be an acquired skill (one that I’m working on, I promise) to understand the Little Man Language. Eventually, when you would be adorable and just babbling on and on, I would turn to J and she would tell me that you were talking about your cousin or I’d shrug my shoulders at E and he would silently get up and get you your bouncy ball because he understood that’s what you had asked for. It’s a talent. You should probably take them everywhere, just for purposes of clarity.

 I started getting pretty good at it by the end of your trip this past weekend. I’m better at understanding your body language, but I’m picking up on the words. J helps me cheat – every now and then she’ll send me a text or E will send me a video of a new word you’ve learned and how you say it. That’s how I learned that “at-too” was “tractor” and “pickoo” was “pickle.” Either way, I still love listening to you. One day, you’ll have a little boy voice and then a man voice and I’ll reminisce on the days when your babbly baby voice would just go on and on and on. I promise to listen to you forever, no matter what you have to say or how you say it. I’ve loved listening to you since your very first word (which I think was “da-da”). That will never change.

 But I’m glad to see that you’ve gotten something from me other than your eyes. I have the uncanny ability to talk and talk and talk, sometimes without realizing that no one understands me either :)

Tags: , , , , ,

Newer Entries →