To my "Baby":

My dear sweet child, you must slow down this growing up thing of yours. Your babyhood is going by entirely too quickly for me. I feel like you've turned into this fiery little toddler before I've even had a chance to blink.

I absolutely love the sweet new little sound you make when you give kisses now, but oh I do miss the open mouth slobbery ones. And when I hold you chest to chest in your rocking chair to relax or spend some quiet time with you, your legs are almost too long to sit like that comfortably for more than a few minutes. Your newfound independence is wonderful and it's amazing to watch you venture out in to your world without me, but I wonder what happened to the timid toddler that would cling to me for a while to check things out before inching away to find things on his own. Your vocabulary is growing by the day, and while we always talk correctly with you, there's a big part of me that doesn't want the day to come that you start saying all your words correctly. I enjoy too much the cute little way you have of saying things.

It's interesting and bittersweet to me how I can be so excited and so happy to watch you grow and flourish and thrive in our family and at the same time be so sad to know that the those sweet cuddly moments of babyhood have slipped through my fingers, like time always does. So slow down, Sweet One, so I can take in this moment in your life, right now. Things often get rushed in this crazy life of ours, but I never want to rush you....I never want to wish away this time. Take your time. I'm here and watching and enjoying every minute of you.

Love,
Your mama