Dear sweet Micah,
For one and a half years, we have known TRUE joy.
For 18 months, you have loved US unconditionally.
For 78 weeks, we have looked into your deep brown eyes.
For 546 days, we have held you like nothing else mattered.
For 13,104 hours, you have been the center of our family.
For 786, 240 minutes, we have seen the face of God.
Today is your 18 month birthday and it both PAINS and PLEASES us to think about where the time has gone.
PAINS us because we cannot believe how incredibly fast it went.
It seems like it was just yesterday that we held you in our arms for the very first time, our hearts so full of a bundle of emotions that we just about burst. I remember looking down at you, amazed at how handsome you were (and still are) and humbled by the idea that God had hand-picked us to be your parents. You looked like a tiny, little old man! We marveled at how "perfect" you were and we looked forward to many days, months, and years of memories and times together.
There are moments I miss...such as when I could hold you in my arms without you trying to crawl out...or when you fit in your infant seat...or feedings that didn't involve food in your hair...or bathtime that didn't include flooding my house...or not having to install baby gates because you just weren't mobile yet.....or when you fit in your infant seat...or those tiny little clothes that inexplicably used to fit you....or when you sat/laid quietly in church....or when I could make dinner without stepping on you.....or when you used to fit in your infant seat.
PLEASES me because of the millions of memories you and Daddy and I have been blessed to have together.
And here we are, already looking back. Looking back over the past 18 months of your life and remembering all the things you've done and accomplished. With pride. With joy. Still humbled. Yet, so much more in love with you than we were even 18 months ago - if that is even possible.
There are moments I smile back on....such as the first day you crawled, back in March of 2009.....or watching your excitement anytime you heard people clapping because you were just SO CONVINCED they were clapping for you....or when you started sleeping longer and longer at night...or participating in Swim Baby classes with you and seeing the pure joy you felt at being in the water.....or the day you started walking on October 24, 2009 and everything within reach became YOURS, or so you thought.....or when you discovered all my "mommy products" in the bathroom and made a chain of them all around the house....or when we discovered how much you loved pizza....or watching you play chase with Daddy.....or taking notice of how much of a ham you are and how you have NO social anxiety.....or most recently, watching you fold your hands one day at church when we prayed together? That moment was one of the proudest of my young mommy life - it brought tears to my eyes.
Celebrating this milestone with you, small as it might be to others, means that we have been blessed to have you as part of our family for 18 entire months. Not everybody can say that, so we feel like some of the richest people in the world.
There isn't a brag book in the world big enough to share all your accomplishments, but here are a few of the things you are up to these days....
*eating with a fork in your right hand and using your left hand to pick up the food - or vice versa (sometimes we think it's just a prop, though)
*you love to push the button on the garage wall to close the door and you jump up and down and squeal with excitement when it starts moving
*you love to use brooms, swiffers, and rakes on the carpet....the deck....the garage floor....it's one of your favorite things to do
*now that it's warmer outside, you love to play outside so much that when it's time to go in, tantrums and meltdowns happen
*your favorite foods are pizza, chicken nuggets, peaches, strawberry applesauce, and macaroni and cheese
*you hate to eat beef, pineapple, fishsticks, and anything you can't examine thoroughly before eating
*you love, love, love......did I mention LOVE?......to reach back and play with mommy's hair
*you seem to understand the words "bath", "fold your hands", "kiss", and "say bye-bye"
*your special time with Daddy includes playing chase around the couch, but you usually stop running as soon as he gets close to you and just watch him
*peek-a-boo is one of your favorite games
*you have an unnatural addiction to Daddy's PS3 controller
*words you can say include "mama, dada, kitty, hiya, uh-oh, uckies, goggie, no, yeah, huh-huh-huh (hot), top (stop), ow"
*playing with anything that has buttons - remotes, cameras, car keys, the dishwasher, the water dispenser on the fridge (you'll never do THAT again! well, actually you probably will....)
*there is nothing you enjoy more than reading books with us - over and over and over again - never more than a few pages at a time
*bathtime is a blast in your world, and you've learned how to dump cupfuls of water over the edge of the tub - you've also learned to "fall" in and out of the tub
*you help us flush your "uckies" down the toilet when we change your diaper
*you can sing "E-I-E-I-" but not "O"
*you are getting good at brushing your teeth
*you love anything Elmo
*you're sleeping 11-12 hours at night, and you're happiest with a pillow in your bed and your teddy nearby
*you are trying to switch from 2 naps a day to 1
*if you had your way, diapers would be optional (good thing you're not in charge yet!)
*you "help" with laundry by pulling it out of the basket after it's been folded
*you like to help Daddy unload the dishwasher together
*you like to put groceries away, but you think EVERYTHING goes in the meat drawer in the fridge
*you remind us to pray before dinner by folding your hands and looking expectantly at us - but then you fold them after EVERY SINGLE BITE (yes, Daddy and Jesus and I are very proud)
*you are absolutely terrified of dogs - but when you see one walking by on our street, you run down the driveway after it, calling "goggie NO" and shaking your finger at it
*you tend to run faster than your little feet can go - but hopefully never faster than your little angels can fly
And why do we love you so much and so deeply? Simply because you are Micah David. There is nobody on earth that has been created to be like you. You have your own little personality, your own little quirks that make you who you are. Because you have brought us so much indescribable joy that at times, it feels like there's nothing in this world that could make us happier than to have you in our lives forever.
You have grown up from a tiny baby to a toddler, and you have changed in so many ways. I don't wish for the times we've already shared to come back, because those times were special in that season of your life. These times that we have together now, that is what Daddy and I cherish. We love watching you learn. Watching you play. Watching you change.
Our family is more complete because of you. Our days are full of joy because of you. We are better parents because of you. Because of you, we know now what it truly means to love deeply and unconditionally, speak kindly, and show mercy.
Thank you, baby boy.
All our love,
Mommy and Daddy
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