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Friday, March 29, 2019

A Letter to August on his 3rd Birthday


Dear August,

You’re three whole years today. The minute I first saw you is forever etched into my brain, a still frame in my mind, and I swear I still see that same baby face in you every time I hold you or rock you, even though you hysterically giggle and tell me, “Mama, I’m a BIG BOY, not a baby” whenever I tell you that you’re my baby, always. 

You’re funny, smart, loving, and beyond adorable. You have the blondest hair (still) that’s thick and unruly, and the prettiest greenish-blueish eyes that remind me of the ocean. You’re slowly leaning out, turning into a boy, but when you smile, you say, “Cheeks!” instead of “Cheese!”, which is the best thing ever since your chubby cheeks are still very much there. You have a little gap in your two bottom teeth that I find so impossibly sweet, and your smiles are even better because of it. You’re your big brother’s shadow and the two of you are the best of friends (or, of course, the worst of enemies) and constantly fight and make up, even though you tell him, “I’m never playing with you for the rest of my life” just about every hour. Some of my happiest days have been watching you two run and chase and wrestle each other, pretending and imagining and growing together. 




You’re a performer and there’s nothing that you love more than to make those people closest to you laugh. You’re larger than life in personality AND in size (really, in the 90th percentiles for both height and weight), but at the same time, you’re my gentle giant. You’re really shy around new people, and cling or hide behind mama for a LONG time until you get your bearings. Strangers aren’t even allowed to look at you without you hiding away, which is hard to believe knowing how huge your personality really is. You’re very much a mama’s boy, my littlest love, and remind me of a fawn, running out just far enough into the world to explore and adventure, but then quickly turning back and running to hide in my legs. 


You shine in school and report back everything you do. You’re so good at independent play—slipping away, but still staying where we can see you—to lay on the ground to play superheroes, making them talk to each other to save the day. Your imagined-up dialogues are the very best, and I can’t jot them down fast enough in an attempt to try to remember them forever. Batman is still your idol and most of your play is revolved around him through figurines or LEGOs. The Batman theme is on repeat for your birthday again this year, and no other suggestions were even entertained by you. Your birthday wish is for LEGO mini-figures, and lots of them, to rip apart and reassemble, over and over again. This is one of your very favorite things, so much so that Oskar named your little table the “breaking table” because that’s where you pull all of your LEGOs apart. You also love Imaginext houses, Play-Doh, foam swords, building towers, playing catch, or riding your tricycle. Such classic little boy things. 




You’re still a good eater and love nothing more than olives and pickles, which makes us laugh every time. Other favorites are meatballs, muffins, string cheese, and apples, not peeled and served whole. You’ll still put down a plate of broccoli, but we’ll see if that continues this year. 

We recently moved you into a big boy bed and held our breath, but it was a total non-event, as smooth as can be. You haven’t quite figured out that you can leave your bed on your own and sit up and call for us when you wake up. You’re still on an 8:30pm-6am schedule, with a 1.5-2ish hour nap in the afternoons. You sleep with a puppy dog stuffed animal that wears a Batman costume that you named “Bat Pup”, and I dare you to find me something cuter than how hard you cuddle him when you’re asleep.

One of my favorite things about you is how easily and how hard you laugh. It’s so contagious and I can’t get enough. I think your personality is so magnetic because of this, and I hope you never lose it. You also love so hard and want to be close to us, always hugging, climbing into a lap, hand holding, or telling us, “I love my whooooooooole family.” There’s nothing better in this world than that.

You’ve been to Finland 3 times and to Denmark once in your little life, and we’re heading to Finland and the Netherlands again in a few months. It’s not always easy, but you’re undoubtedly the cutest little traveler. You’re a story teller, and your imagination comes up with the craziest things that you make sound so convincingly real—one of my favorite parts about this age. You talk a mile a minute, with words that are bigger and far beyond your years, telling me things like, “Did you know trees make air?”, or “Actually, I love you to Mars AND to Pluto.” 


August, you’re an absolute joy, a bright light, the most loving little boy. Laughing with you is the best kind of laughing there is, and nothing has made me happier than to be your mama. Happy, happy 3rd birthday. May all your Batman wishes come true.

Love,
Mama


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