Dear H, Sometimes I think back to how we almost didn't have you. We were worried about having the bandwidth to get through another pregnancy with hyperemesis gravidarum - the vomiting, the IVs, the constant nausea, the endless fatigue, the march of days with so much sickness. Thankfully, we pushed our fear outside and locked […]
Dear A, At 9 months old, you were an athletic wonder. We called you a "speed crawler," but you could also stand and climb up and down steps. Before you turned one, you were running. Before two, you were climbing up the highest playgrounds as far as you could go. Now, at age 9, it […]
Dear O, Twelve is a year of change. Once a child, you now study the world around you from a young woman's perspective. You are a beauty, although you certainly don't realize it. Sammy Kershaw's country song comes to mind, "she don't know she's beautiful..." With your glossy blonde hair, piercing eyes, and ready smile, […]
Dear H, The nursery rhyme is wrong. Boys are made up of "everything nice" too. Sure, they love frogs and snails and puppy dog tails as much as little girls, but they are also sweet beyond measure. If we hadn't had you, I wouldn't have known that three-year-old boys are pure delight. Joy in fullness. […]
Dear A, Teachers and other adults typically comment on three things when they describe you. First, people say that you are "super sweet," "kind," and "caring." I concur. These attributes are evident in the ways that you treat others. You are selfless, choosing quietly to let others go first or to select the biggest scoop […]
Dear H, It may be a fourth kid phenomenon, but these past three years have been a blur. You were a chubby, smiling baby in my arms and - blink - you are now a blonde-haired, long-limbed little boy. Sometimes I think back to when we were trying to decide about having a fourth baby […]