To my son,
Something caught my attention the other day. I suddenly realized that you are not a baby anymore. You are a toddler, and you are becoming a little boy right before my eyes.
It excites me to see you learning new things and saying new words.
Every day is a new adventure with you, and I’m so thankful we are on this journey together. I can’t wait to see what you will do today, tomorrow, and every other day after that.
Thank you for being patient with me, my son.
Sometimes I make mistakes, but you never stop loving me and I am so grateful for that. I am continually learning how to be a better mom to you and your sister. Together I know we can do anything.
You bring me so much joy.
Every day you inspire me with your loving and fun spirit. To you, the world is full of new and fascinating things, and I love watching you take it all in for the first time. Just the other day, you learned how to jump and you found out that you love doing it! I’m so thankful to share these special moments with you.
When I see you playing with your big sister it makes my heart soar. You both love each other so much and I’m so thankful for the relationship you two have. You both genuinely enjoy being in each other’s company and I pray that bond stays strong as you get older.
I’ll never forget one of the most special days we shared together.
For one 24 hour period, when you were around three weeks old, you exclusively nursed from me and it was the greatest feeling I have ever had. The miracle of my body being able to feed you was beautiful. Our other days of breastfeeding were filled with me desperately trying to pump every single drop I could get for you, and that was harder to do. We also had to give you formula sometimes, and those times made me work even harder at producing milk for you. Nothing gave me more joy than when my son was able to nurse directly from me. Thank you for sharing that special day with me.
Now that you’re a toddler, you’re showing us more and more of your personality.
You love food and you’re very good at telling us when you’re hungry. The way you run into the kitchen and point at the pantry shows me just how smart you are getting. When someone else opens a candy, you are quick to let them know that you want some, too. Now you even get to enjoy small lollipops as a special treat! I have also learned you don’t like swings very much. You will usually swing for just a minute and then want to get down and run around. I love getting to know your likes and dislikes. Your favorite foods right now are applesauce, yogurt, little crunchies, yogurt raisins, and strawberries. You don’t like bread, pasta, pancakes, eggs, or vegetables (yet!).
When you were first born, you needed me for everything.
I changed your diapers, fed you, bathed you, played with you, and even slept with you. I even got to nurse you for a little bit, and I love that we had that special bond together. These moments will be some of my favorites for the rest of my life.
Now that you’re a little boy, you don’t need me as much anymore. You can feed yourself, walk by yourself, sleep by yourself, and even play by yourself sometimes. While I’m thankful for your independence I am also very sentimental about your first year of life. Those days have passed, and you have such a bright future ahead of you.
I love you forever, my son.
-Mom