Monday, January 5, 2015

A Letter to Noah @ 3


Dear Noah,

Today you turn three, my precious boy.

Like most moms out there, I'm kind of in shock that you're not so little anymore. 

I think...three? Already? You're growing up so fast, baby bear. 

Last Friday, I was at the post office mailing an envelope to your birth mother when it hit me.

The USPS clerk entered your birth mother's address into the system, but for some reason, it didn't recognize it. I was surprised and said, "Wow, really?  I've been sending envelopes to that address for three years."

Turns out, he spelled the street name incorrectly, but when I heard myself utter those three words, for three years, it really sunk in that it's been that long since I laid eyes on you for the first time.  That long since I fed you a bottle for the first time. That long since your birth mother lovingly placed you in my arms.

It's true I became your mama that day, but it wasn't until a year later that you started saying my favorite word in the English language: mama.

And you've said it countless times since. It's music to my ears, I tell you. 

Your birth--and the courageous, loving, and selfless decision your birth mother made to place you with our family--made me a mama.

And man, am I grateful for that.

Oh, how I adore you, Noey.  

Oh, how I cherish you.

Oh, how I love you. 

About a week ago, in anticipation of your birthday, I started jotting down as many things as I could think of that I love about you right now. 

I love that you...
  • Love helping with the dishes. We push a dining chair up to the sink and you climb up and stand on it, so you can reach the faucet. Inevitably, tons of water ends up on the floor, but the dishes get very clean and you have so much fun in the process.
  • Love the ocean, love the beach, love the sand, love the sunsets.  (I snapped the photo above on a beach in Del Mar.)
  • Adore singing. You sing at home, at Music Together classes, in the car--even at Target. (In fact, we were shopping at Target last week and a customer complimented your singing voice. I said, "Thank you," and you just kept right on singing.)
  • Have so much energy and enthusiasm and zest for life. 
  • Have curly hair. (We got your hair cut a few weeks after the photo above was taken. It was a 25-minute, two-lollipop kind of haircut. It was tough on you, and it was tough on me. Since then, several people have commented, "Oh, you got your hair cut, Noah!"  To which you quickly reply with a frown, "I didn't like it.")   
  • Love taking the back roads. When I give you the option, and I try to as often as I can, you always choose the back roads over the freeway. Reminds me of that Rodney Atkins' song, Take a Back Road--a tune your daddy loves.
  • Are playing independently more, and for longer periods of time. Right now, you play with your Jake pirate ship, your trains, and your fire truck most often.
  • Ask me to "Talk Mickey?" which in Noah-speak means "Would you please talk for Mickey?"
  • Ask me for a granola bar by saying, "Can I please have a handlebar?"
  • Are obsessed with the Disney show, Jake and the Neverland Pirates. The other day, you were playing in the family room when I said, "Okay Noah, in 5 minutes, I'm going to get you dressed and then we're going to get in the car and go see Nonni and Pop." You looked up at me and said, "Aye, aye, Captain Mommy!"
  • Love persimmons.  See, we have a persimmon tree in our  yard, but neither Daddy nor I particularly like the taste of them.  So, for years, we've been giving them away to friends. But not anymore. As long as we remove the skin, you will eat and eat and eat some more.
  • Think of Zoey, even though she no longer lives with us. When we're in a restaurant, you'll say, "We need to get a highchair for Zoey" or when we're in the car, you'll ask, "Can we pick up Zoey and go to the park?"
  • Came out of your room last week wearing your orange Home Depot apron, your safety goggles, and your fire helmet, and you said, "I have to go to work, Mommy!" I asked, "Where do you work?" and you replied, "Grass Valley." 
  • Carry your chainsaw up on your shoulder--just like the loggers do. (Last week, there was a crew of 10 loggers working up the street from us and you were fascinated by their chainsaws and ropes and chaps and helmets.)
  • Love animals. We were driving in the car one morning, on a windy country road, just you and me. The temperature outside was about 30 degrees.  I saw two horses in a pasture off to the right and I said, "Gosh, those horses must be cold." Your reply? "They need a sweatshirt, Mommy."
  • Placed my iPhone, Pandora music playing from the speaker, under Lucy's head so she could listen to some instrumental music. You turned to me and said, "It makes her happy, Mama." Oh, be still my heart, sweet boy.  
You, dear Noah, make me happy. 

I can't wait to watch you grow and learn and play this coming year.

Love,

Mama

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