Happy First Birthday!

Little c,

One year ago right now, I was just waking up from a nap and feeling a twinge of pain in my belly. Labor was beginning. It wasn't easy, but it was the most beautiful, amazing, sacred night because at 4:15 a.m we got to welcome you into the world. You were finally ours to hold and kiss and love and raise. How can I put into words the joy that comes from being your mom? I love watching you grow. I love watching your personality develop. Nothing compares to when you smile, reach for my hand, or rest your head on my shoulder. A part of me wants to keep you little forever but another part of me is so excited to see you grow and develop. (Mostly I want to keep you little and all mine!)

Your dad and I have decided to get you a special gift for your first birthday. You won't appreciate it now but I hope that you will someday. Just today, daddy opened a special account for your college savings and we put as much as we could into it. We believe that an education is one of the greatest gifts we can give you and also one of the greatest gifts you can give yourself. It's your ticket to do what you want in life. My mom always said to me, "Once you have an education, no one can take it away from you."

I hope that you will get a solid, formal education. That is important. But then, I hope that you will add to that by educating yourself in other ways. I hope you will learn about the world around you. It's smaller than we think. I hope you will learn about different cultures with an open mind and heart. We're all more a like than we are different. I hope that you will educate yourself spiritually and in turn develop your faith. We can teach you what we believe but ultimately faith is something you have to figure out on your own. I hope that you will volunteer your time and talents. When you give, what comes back to you is ten-fold. For me, some of the greatest life lessons have come out of volunteer experiences.

There are no words to describe how much we love you and how extraordinary this year has been.

Happy Birthday Little Man