Dear Henry,
The way you look at me… It makes me feel like the most special person in this world.
To know that I am the one person you need… To know that I am the one person you depend on… To know that you only have unconditional love for me… It is the greatest gift in the world. You are a Momma’s boy!
I love this stage. The stage where you are still very portable and easy to take anywhere, but now you are able to communicate the important small things to me. I know your hungry sounds, your sleepy sounds, your love me sounds. I love your happy coos and giggles that seem the light up even the darkest days. I can’t believe that I forgot how amazing this stage was. As Olive grew, I found that I loved each new stage better than the last. Slowly I forgot the joys of babies as we entered into toddlerhood. You are a breath of fresh air. To me, you are perfect in every little way. You make me feel like I was meant to me a Momma. I want you to stay this size forever. I can only hope that in 10 years you will still look at me with the same amount of magic love in your eyes.
I am enjoying re-reading Olive’s letters as you grow. It fascinates me to see how similar, yet different you both are developing. It is nice to have these little reminders of the things we used to do with her when she was your age. Just as I proclaimed this month “Oh, I can hold on to this? Lets put it in my mouth” for Olive, it is very much the same for you. You still prefer your fingers over a soother, however you have now discovered how your hands work. You reach for everything. As soon as you grab hold, no matter what it is, it is immediately covered in slobber. It makes you so happy, almost proud. I can almost hear you saying “Look Ma! Look what I can do!”
You have found your toes. That magic moment when your legs curl up and you reach your arms with all your might has happened. You haven’t yet put them in your mouth, but more often I am finding you lying there grabbing hold of at least one set of piggies! Words cant describe how joyous it is watching you discover new things.
You are starting to sit in your chair a lot more often now. As we eat dinner, you sit on the tabletop, playing with your grey and white giraffe. You are getting stronger and stronger each day. Your exersaucer has been set up for a while now. With Olive, we didn’t even buy the exersaucer until she was 8 months, but you have been in it for a little over a month – mind you, not for very long each time. Your legs have found the floor and you are now able to slowly turn yourself around to check out all the toys and noise makers. I can tell that jumps are coming soon. This is where I think you will differ from Olive! You already seem so strong and wanting to move more and more!
You love music. I’m the kind of person who sings all the time. I sang a lot in the car when you were in my tummy. I like to think that is where your love of music started. I’m not sure what it is about song that you like so much. You can be screaming at the top of your lungs (your sleepy cry), I quietly start singing and your tears disappear. Just like that, you are calmed down and staring at me in amazement. Just like magic you are happy again and listening to my words so intently. Music runs in our bones. Your Great Grandma Murray was an amazing singer. When I sing, I think of her. I feel her with me when music calms you down. I feel her holding you tightly and telling you everything will be okay. I feel her with us every day.
I received a call from Rideau Centennial Public School earlier this month asking if you would like to participate in their Roots of Empathy program. I jumped at the chance. It is such a great opportunity both for us and for the little children in the school. Once a month we will make visits to the school. Once there, the children will have the chance to play with your toes and learn all about your development. Our first visit was so much fun. The children were so awestruck by you. They made predictions before our visit – some were dead on, while others (like running!) were not so close! We sang, and watched you try to play with toys. They measured you with blocks and asked us questions. You will forever be their baby, even when you are 15 years old!
Other notable things this month:
- At your 4 month check up you were 15 lbs and 26 inches long!
- You are talking more and more. Hearing your voice is so magical. I wonder what your first word will be. I wonder what your voice will sound like when you are Olive’s age.
- The weather this year has been unseasonably warm. This fall I found myself dreading the snow. I didn’t want to feel trapped inside for a long 5 months. Here we are at December 12 with no snow in sight and temperatures above 10 degrees. We are still getting out for daily walks and enjoying the sunshine. I think we are going to have a green Christmas – which for me, this year is okay!
- I decided to sell Christmas Pies this year. I have been wanting to sell my pies for a few years now. I decided that now is the time! I set up a table at the Westport Christmas Farmers Market on December 5. I baked 12 pies and brought along 8 frozen. I packed you into the car along with ‘G’, and off we went! To my surprise, my pies sold like hot cakes. You were so good all day long as you snuggled with G!
To describe you in a word, you are pure joy. If I could bottle up all the worlds love, that is the only way I can describe how I feel about you. So quickly I forgot what having a baby in our home was like, but you have reminded me of all the thrills, all the delights, all the joys. There is something so special about our bond. You have shown me how lovely it is to be a mom of a baby boy. I can only hope that in 20 years from now you look at me the same way you to do now. I can only hope that our bond lasts forever. Thank you, Henry, for filling my life with so much greatness.
Xoxoxo
-Momma
