To my son Tommy,
You have been in this world for a decade now (tomorrow). During the past ten years, things have changed, as most things do.
People have come and gone from our lives. We have grieved those losses, thankful for the blessed time we had with them. We have embraced those newcomers, such as your baby twin sisters and the joy they give. You have become a big brother and a great one at that!
You have grown so much. Physically, you have come so far from the baby I held to become the handsome young lad before me. You have learned so much, not just in school, but in life; Not just in your brain, but in your heart. Your interests have changed from Sesame Street and stuffed animals, to YouTube stars and nerf guns, with stops on a million different flights of fancy along the way.
Last night, after baking some cupcakes with your mom, you came upstairs to the nursery where I was half asleep on the couch watching your baby sisters. I pried open one eye and asked you how the baking went. You came over as you said "Good" and then proceeded to lay right on top of me and wrap your arms around me and snuggle. It has been a long time since you snuggled with me. I thought the changes in your world, the ten years of hard knocks, may have precluded a snuggle session with your daddy. Sure you snuggle with your mom all the time, but mommies are easier to snuggle with, as is evident by the picture of you and your mom snuggling this morning.
I smiled with my lips and deep in my heart and said, "I love you. And I am so proud of you. You are a good boy, a good son, a good brother, and a good person."
You replied, "Even when I forget things?"
You forget many things, as ten year old boys often do. I spend much of my parenting life reminding you of those things and I usually end my chastising with "Try to do better next time" as I whisper in my head to myself "Try to be patient and remember to praise when he does remember next time."
I responded, "I will always love you and you make me so proud, even when you forget. And no matter how big you get, you will always be my baby boy"
You snuggled tighter and said, "I know." My heart lifted even more. You see, my son, though they say "The only thing in life that is constant is change" and the years have brought us plenty of change, there is one more thing that is constant and only changes by becoming greater and greater beyond imagination. That, my dearest Tommy, is my love for you and your mother's love for her baby boy. Happy birthday. I hope tomorrow is a great one!
Sincerely with love from your dad,
Leo
