An Open Letter

Dear Obnoxious Offspring,

How many times must I tell you to be quiet while we are in a waiting room? Is it really necessary to loudly dump all the blocks out on the floor? Even when I told you to listen and be good before we even walked in! Must you really keep talking loudly when I am ssshhhh-ing you for over one minute? Do you really need to talk so loudly to each other and run around like wild lions? I don't care if we are friends with the doctor and you know him personally. That does not make it okay. What don't you understand?

I know I have not raised monkeys. I know you have manners because I pound them into your super-absorbent mind. What happens? Do they go into one ear and out the other? You behave great at school but I think sometimes you two have a quiet contest between yourselves about who can make mom more irate. Seriously.

Your mother needs a wife who will do everything so I can enjoy the evenings. I need a mom that successfully teaches you how to behave like little girls. I need one day of silence. I need you to be perfect angels for one entire day. Anything from just getting up in the morning, to putting your shoes away without complaing to going to bed when told to do so. I would greatly appreciate it. I just need a glimpse of hope that it is possible. I need a husband who does not love sports so dang much and wants nothing more than to be home with his constantly-on-the-edge wife. Why doesn't he?! Hmmmmm.

Don't think next time we go to that office you won't be apologizing. No missy. You will say your sorry to the nice girls at the desk and LIKE IT! If not, your mom could become a bitter ole' lady. And I know neither of you don't want that.

I really do love you. And I want people to see what great little girls you are. So, for Christmas, mommy wants you to just listen. Really.

I got nothin' but love for ya,
Your Basket-Case of a Mom

Fine Print:
(I really do love my girls. Please don't criticize this letter and call me a bad mom for writing this. If you have lived this week in my shoes, you would be proud I am writing instead taking it out on anyone. And girls,I know when you become a mom you will understand these feelings all too well. Why? Because I remember my mom saying things similar to this to me and I never really understood. I still love you and your dad more than you can ever begin to fathom. )

Happy Birthday Macie!

Dear Macie,

Oh Macie! How do I even begin this letter? You are our firstborn, our 'guinea pig', our oldest. From day one, you have always had to have attention. Maybe it was because you were Momma Donna and Papa Dave's first grand baby, or Ninny and Pop's first grand baby in about 10 years. Either way, you loved and ate up everything!

Once I found out you were on your way, I was so scared. Your dad and I were just kids ourselves. Once you came, we all three grew together. You taught us responsibility like nothing we have ever experienced. You had your moments as a baby, most do. You had colic and kept us up all hours of the night. If it was any other child, I am not sure I could continue with it. But since you were mine, I wanted nothing more than to continue to be your mother.

You taught us what unconditional love for your children feels like. You tested and still test us daily. But even in those moments, through the hardest of struggles with you, I can feel nothing but love for you.


You are definitely a talker. As a phrase goes, you get it honest from your dad. While at the Magic House, I read the average four year old ask an average of 437 questions a day. I don't doubt it! There are moments I would just like silence, but then I try to remember that some people would love to have a little girl asking questions instead of silence. Nothing gets by you, Macie. You listen to everything and always ask questions. Continue to do that, it is the only way you will learn.

This year may have been the hardest for me. You started kindergarten, which is great! As your mom though, I worry. You are so sensitive and get your feelings hurt easily and I know how school can be. However, like always, you shocked me. You have handled everything that is put in front of you like a little girl should. You make me so proud!

So many things you do remind me of myself now. You cry at movies, like when Simba's dad dies in The Lion King. You are constantly on the go, but you can blame you? Your parent's are too. You have to be involved in everything, from cooking to talking to whomever I am talking to on the phone. I can't say that every day is easy, but I cannot look back on way day of your life and not think of a good memory shared with you.

I pray you grow up happy and healthy. Continue acting like a little girl. I pray you also continue to want to learn, whether it be general school things or deeper meaning things, such as God. You have helped your daddy and I grow in ways you will never be able to understand. I love you with all my heart.



Love,
Mommy

Happy Birthday Zoa!

Dear Zoa,

Today you turn 3. Three! What a fun three years it has been! Ever since you surprised your daddy and I, it has been nothing but fun! You are such a bundle of joy! When you smile, your eyes sparkle. And I really mean sparkle. We have had strangers stop and tell us we should put you in a magazine because of those eyes. I hope you realize one day that you have brought so much happiness into our lives. Macie is so proud to have you as a little sister. And you brought your daddy and I together in ways nobody will ever know.

I remember when we brought you home from the hospital. Your daddy and I looked at each other and thought, "What are we going to do now? We have two. We were scared with one...and now there is two!". I know God must have heard us because you were the best baby. You slept through the night after 2 weeks! Just like we did with Macie, we popped out of bed that first night you slept until morning. We were terrified thinking what we would find. There you were, sleeping safe and sound. You have always liked your sleep. You are our night owl. You like to stay up late and watch movies and sleep until 10:00. Mommy loves that on the weekends!

You helped us realize that health should not be taken for granted. I took you to the doctor and Dr. Connie wanted us to get an X-Ray of your head to make sure nothing was in there that shouldn't be. The results came back and I got a phone call at work. They told me fluid was in between your scull and brain. I melted. I left work. I could not focus. It was one of the most terrifying things we have ever heard. Just as your doctor said it might do, your body absorbed the fluid and nothing ever came of it. I still get tears in my eyes thinking back to that day.

To this day, you still have problems with your head. You're motto should be "Life Hard, Wear a Helmet!". You have had more bumps, bruises, black eyes, a concussion, followed by a hematoma, scrapes, and scratches than any 2 3 year old I know. You must be physically stubborn as well!

I have tried to be extra patient with you. I realized that you may be our last baby and I tried to capture all the memories with you I could when you were oh-so-tiny. Now that you are a big girl, you like to do your own thing. You are such a independent little toddler. You do not care what anyone else is doing. You will do what you want. You love movies and Macie cannot sit still long enough to watch one. It is somewhat comical to watch you two play. Regardless of age, you make the rules.

You have a distinct personality - you know what you want and you want it that exact moment. I hope this trait will be used for your benefit throughout your life. I, myself, has that very same trait. I guess that is something a younger or middle child might have. If there is one trait of mine that I could have passed down, I would have chose this one. It can take you so far in life. Perseverance.

I pray that we have many years together but in this world, nothing is promised. This is why I chose to write these letters to you and Macie. Each year, on your birthday, you will get a letter. Maybe, just maybe, when I am old and gray, we can sit and read them and laugh.

I Love You!

Mommy