Simon,



Welcome to the world! I know your mom fed you lots of tasty fresh 
vegetables and daily lattes, but I'm so glad you decided to leave that
 warm comfy womb and come out to greet us! 

We've now known each other
for 137.5 hours to be exact. Many of which you've been sleeping, or
eating, but many you've spent hanging out with me! Your two 
grandmothers are here, so I only get so much time with you. But over
 the years, we will share many hours hanging out. I'm so excited to
 play in the dirt with you. Take you to the snow capped mountains, fish-filled oceans, and into the desert. Show you how to work and
 enjoy all aspects of life. But for now your mom and I have to change
 your diaper every day. Repeatedly! When the midwife told me how often
 we have to change it I thought geez... I'm going to have to get back at
 you someday! Not sure what I'll do yet but I'll think of something.
 Maybe make you change MY diaper or something. Hopefully that won't be
 the case.



I planned on making a video for you to change it up a little from all
 these letters you're reading. If you're anything like me, you will be 
ready for a new distraction after the first 10 minutes of reading (not because the letters aren't worthy of your time but because you
 can't stay focused for that long!) But I decided to be boring and write a
 letter in case we make a book of these letters. In our day it's not
 so easy to embed a video into a coffee table paper book. But I do have an 
electronic book reader... See - we aren't THAT old!



Anyway. I wasn't planning on writing a letter, because I try and focus 
on doing things I'm really good at and letting other people do things
 I'm not so good at. Hopefully you will too. But with all these family
 members and friends writing, I decided to get in on the action!



You are going to be, and already are, awesome. Seriously great. A
 quality man. I'm excited.



Love,
 Dad

Little Si,

I’m smitten with you.

When your mom told us she was pregnant, I couldn’t quite wrap my head around it.

When I saw your mom at Christmas and her belly was starting to poke out a bit, I couldn’t quite wrap my head around it. And even when your Aunt Marion sent me pictures of the growing belly, the birthing tub, the midwives and at 5:55p on June 6^th, you laying on your mom’s belly, I still couldn’t quite wrap my head around it.

I shed tears of excitement, joy (and OK, some of nervousness!) at various points over the past 9 months, but how could I ever imagined you?? How could I ever imagine how much I would love you?

Your Uncle Faris & I have plenty of friends with children we love, but you… You are this tiny, precious, red, flustered and unbelievably amazing bundle of joy. You smell delicious, your coos are quite possibly the cutest sounds I’ve ever heard and your skin… there’s some truth to that whole “soft as a baby’s bottom” saying ;)

And in case you haven’t figured it out yet, you are loved. You are so incredibly loved. Not just by me, but by our whole family.

I arrived in Seattle on Thursday, June 7^th , the night after you were born. I flew from NYC and your Aunt Marion picked me up at the airport. The moment we arrived at 908 Cushman, I immediately stole you away from your Grandmother Juju. If it wasn’t love at first sight, it was love at first hold. You were meant to be cradled and cuddled. You were meant to be sniffed and tickle-scratched. And that baby voice that adults use that used to be so annoying? You were definitely meant to be spoken to in that voice.

And that’s what we’ve done for the past three days. You’re quite boob-obsessed at the moment – I’ve heard that part sticks with you for life ;) – but whenever I could get you away from your mom’s boobs (or your grandmothers or Aunt Marion), we had our moments. But I didn’t get enough!

Now I’m on a plane back to New York City and I’m already trying to figure out when I can come back and see you next! I can’t wait for your Uncle Faris to meet you! I didn’t know it was possible to be so head-over-heels smitten with you.

I know you’ll get bigger and bigger, but don’t worry – it’s not just your tiny-ness that I love. I can’t wait to see the guy you become. [We’re both Geminis and while horoscopes seem a bit hokey, I can’t help thinking that this means we’re going to get along especially well.] I can’t wait to hear about your favorite toys, your favorite color, your favorite class in school, your favorite bands, where you’re going to college, what you want to do with your life, who you’re dating, who you’re voting for… There’s so much of the world for you to discover! I promise to always love you and only to tease you when you need it ;)

‘Til next time, little guy. Don’t get too big just yet. And let your mom sleep a little bit, OK? She worked pretty freakin’ hard to bring you into the world!

Your ever-loving aunt,

rosie

PS – Your Aunt Marion and I were changing your diaper the other day while your mom was sleeping and you decided it would be the perfect time to pee. Yup, on us. We’re gonna hold that over your head for a long, long time. We’ll get you back someday ;)

Simon,

Howdy from the hills of Tennessee. Nashville to be more precise. It's your grandfather on your mom's side here.  A bit about me.  I was born to Si and Rosie (Sprague) Siman in the hills of the Ozarks. Springfield, Missouri.  Queen City of the Ozarks.  A hillbilly by birth.  Two older sisters, Susan Elizabeth and Jayne Louise.  Si was a music guy and my mother a beautiful loving woman who took care of the kids and the household.  With Indian blood I'm told.  So there's a little bit of Indian blood in you too.  Cherokee we think.  A brave tribe indeed.  I followed in my father's footsteps (pretty big ones I might add) for my career and I'm a music man too.  You probably have a little of that in your blood too.  Your dad's got some of that too!  And your Mom, well ask her some day to play you a song she wrote and recorded.  And if she won't, I will play it for you! I digress.

SoI don't know your name yet, and of course you don't know mine.  And odds are you won't be calling me by my name (heck, you won't even be talking for a while!).  And odds are I won't be calling you by your name to start out.  You will be known by lots of nicknames until you get old enough to declare how you would like to beknown.  Many of the nicknames will be cute and somewhat embarrassing but hey, ya gotta roll with it.  I promise you when you get older I will go with your choice. Your aunt Rosie was Rosanne until one day she wasn't!  Till then, sweet cheeks, munchkin, cutie pie, probably something that rhymes like "buddywuddy" will be your moniker (fancy word for name!) Your personality will help dictate these nicknames but sometimes it's just circumstances beyond anyone's control.  Especially yours. So try and behave as an infant least you end up with a funky nickname.  I'm sure you will have a special toy or comfort itemto help on this point – your Mom's was a piece of string – ormore specifically a piece of fuzzy yarn.  It started from apiece of yarn off a blanket.  Who needs the blanket, give me the yarn!  Your Mom never actually said that but that's how she felt.  Where was I?  Oh yes, names.

On my end, I could simply hope for the best when it comes to my Grandpappy name.  Rosie's dad died before I was born so I just knew him as George in pictures.  He was a large man who workedon the Frisco Railroad.  Her mom (Ruth) was the classic Granny. I called Si's dad (Ely Earl) Bump or Bumpa.  He could fix anything.  I loved him dearly.  We played with trains and went to junkyards together.  Hope we get to do some cool stuff like that one day.  I spent the night a lot with Bump and his wife (Lillian) who we called Nanna. Pronounced "Naw Naw." But back to my name.  There's a chance that you will come up with something clever to call me but I'm not one to leave things to chance.  Especially since you are the first and will be showing the other grandkids that follow the path! Kids notoriously have trouble pronouncing certain letters and then I'm liable to end up with something that is a cute name.  Not good for a hip old man. I have a reputation to uphold!  And then the cute namesticks.  Ugh!  So, to help, I've done a little research ona thing called "Wikipedia." You type in several words on athing called a "keypad" into a "search engine" ona thing called the "world wide web" on your "MacBookPro" and it shows you all types of information.  Like magic!  We used to do this through printed books called "encyclopedias." One year my Mother bought a set of "WorldBooks."  I just can't tell you how cool those were.  But I digress.

Inregard to Grandfather, Wikipedia says: Inwriting, Grandfather and Grandmother aremost common, but very rare when referring to a grandparent in person.In speech, Grandpa and Grandma aresometimesused in the UnitedStates and Canada.In Britain, Ireland, States,Australia, NewZealand and Newfoundlandand Labrador, Nan, Nana, Nanna, Nada,Nanny, Gran and Granny andother variations are often used for grandmother in both writingand speech. Numerous other variants exist, suchas Gramp, Grandpap, Grampy, Granddad,Granddaddy,  Grandpappy, Pop,and Pappy forgrandfather; Grandmom,Grandmama,"Granny" and Grammy/Grammie for grandmother and Gogo foreither, etc.

So as relates to the variant for you and me, I am going to recommend you call me "Scooter!"  Or perhaps "Grandpa Scooter." I had that as a nickname as a kid.  You have to admit, it kinda rolls off the tongue.  "Scooter, Scoooooter, Scoooooooter!!!!"  "What time is it Scoooooter???" "Are we there yet Scooooter????"  "Can I have some ice cream Scoooooooottttteeerrr???" and that's where I say "Yes!  Chocolate or Vanilla? Or both?!" "Strawberry is fine too!"  "We can share a banana split if you like and get all three flavors!!!! Don't tell your mom!" That's a famous grandparent saying, by the way – sometimes a dad saying too – like when my dad hit me with his car while I was riding a bicycle around our horseshoe shaped driveway at Rosie Acres. And he uttered those fateful words, "Let's not tell your mom about this."  To which I wholeheartedly agreed in fear of losing substantial bike riding privileges.  Hey, accident happens.  And I wasn't hurt anyway.  But I did fly over the handle bars, landed on the hood, and was face to face with my Dad through the glass windshield.  Fair to say we were both a bit surprised! But still I digress.

Now that we have the formalities aside, and we know how we will greet each other - "Hey Kiddo!"  (Note: you will always be a"Kiddo" or a "Buddy") "Hey Grandpa Scooter!"- we can get on to some important things in life.  Always listen to your parents.  They really are smarter than you think.  They might make some mistakes but their hearts will be in the right place. And you will make some mistakes too, but I pray your heart willbe in the right place.  Eat your veggies.  They're good foryou.  Hated them as a kid, love them as an adult.  That'strue for a lot of things.  Don't watch too much TV.  TV wasbasically invented when I was born.  Talk about a game changer. Exercise.  It's amazing what that can do for you!  I play golf – it barely qualifies as exercise but my doctor told me it did and I'm rolling with it.  "A round of golf counts asa workout," he said.  Now that's a good doctor.  Read. Every year I went to school was better than the last andreading was the key.  Your Mom and Aunts were amazing readers. Couldn't keep enough books around.  Berenstain Bears wasvery popular.  Goodnight Moon was a winner.  Have you found the mouse yet?  I read Bugs Bunny as a kid.  Rascally Rabbit.  We would go to the public library and check books out to take home.  With a small paper card called a "librarycard" that had a piece of metal in it with a number so they knew who had the book.  Which they copied on to a piece of paper withink!  Crazy, I know!!! And if you were late bringing it back you paid a fine.  Go figure!  But I completely digress.

You are coming at a monumental time in my life.  They say things come in three's.  Teresa (my adoring second wife who based on her Spanish heritage would like to be known as Abuela) and I just signed a contract to sell our house on Nichol Lane, I launched a record company (yesterday as a matter of fact) and YOU.  You are the third!  As to the contract for the house, your Mom and her sisters have pretty much moved away and they ain't coming back. We raised three independent minded strong willed smart women. Independence is a good thing.  We have a huge house with a pooland a golf green. Between you and me, I'm not gonna miss the house so much.  Way to many light bulbs.  But that golf green, can't begin to tell you how much that's helped my game!  I will miss that.  My golfing buddies hope my new place won't have one. Now I'm totally digressed to the point of rambling.  Oh, yes,back to the record company.  It's called rpm and our first act is Maggie Rose.  I hope when you're readingthis you're like, "Wow, Maggie Rose.  She was huge!" Then again you may just turn up your nose at our music.  Most kids do until they go through the retro stage.   That'swhen you will discover the Beatles, the Stones, Zeppelin, Scott Joplin, Gary Stewart, Tim McGraw, Brenda Lee, and whatever elsestrikes your fancy.  And you will discover the music Sipublished and learn how he got Chet Atkins arecord deal. We listen to songs on an iPod or iPhone.  No telling how you will listen to music.  Makes my business scary! In my early days we played songs on a turntable and they were in a "groove" on a piece of plastic called a "record."  Quite quaint!  There I go again, rambling.

OK, back to you.  Welcome!  You will be born in Tacoma but you have roots in Tennessee and Missouri and Spain and gosh know whereelse.  We have a house in Isla Mujeres, Mexico and perhaps oneday you will go there!  We may not still own the house when you get old enough to go but you can look at it and say my grandparentsused to own that.  They say we are 99.9% similar in DNA; it'sthe .1% that makes us different.  Embrace your difference andembrace the difference in others.  Say please and thank you. Never hit a girl.  Never.  And I will leave you with these words of wisdom I used to tell your aunt Rosie, your Mom Lillian andyour aunt Marion when they would get out of hand:  No biting, no fighting, no hitting, no spitting and no fussing.  And your mom is not a chair.  The kids would climb on your Grandmother Judy (who was and is a great mom).  Relentlessly.  So I made up a song about it but can't quite remember how it goes.  Which happens when you get older.  You forget!  I also made upstories about the Ice Princess and the a little dinosaur that gotcaught up in storm and whisked away to a cloud only to be rescued by a bird.  All because he didn't come home when his Mom told him too. Come home when your Mom and Dad tell you to.  Rather than hoping I remember everything, it's part of my motivation for writingthis letter.  I'm 57 years old.  When you hit your teenage years I will hit the big 70.  Egad.  There's a lot ofthings you need to know as a teenager and instead of imparting years of wisdom and life experience, I will be trying to figure out where I put my car keys.  Best to write some of this down. Speaking of writing, your Mom is a fine writer.  Her Mom is a fine writer too (you need only see her letter dated April 30 to know what I'm talking about).  I write in choppy little funny sentences that spellcheck says are "fragments" but it's best read aloud. In a group.  Where people can clap when you're done!  Must be the "show business" in me.

I will see you shortly, hug the snot out of you, hold you like a football, rock you in a rocking chair, make funny faces to you, talk baby talk, change your poopydiaper, wipe your bottom and hand you back to yourparents and enjoy a nice glass of wine.  Hey, I think I'm gonna enjoy being a grandparent.

Hugs and kisses,

Grandpa Scooter

Christened Scott Foster Siman 

Grandpa Scooter, Aunt Marion, Mom, Abuela

Grandpa Scooter, Aunt Marion, Aunt Rosie, Mom

Grandpa Scooter and Mom

 your Mom, Judith Lillian Siman at the Grotto

41 weeks

Dear baby,

Yesterday, the day you hit 41 weeks, was the longest day of my life.

I'm afraid your delayed arrival has reduced me to superstition, little one. A blue balloon spontaneously flew past our house earlier this week and I got a little too excited about the prospect of imminent labor.

Needless to say, you're still holding out on us... but I'm believing that I'll be too busy in the throws of labor to attend my ultrasound appointment on Thursday.

Is that too much to ask?

I love you.

From your mama

P.S. We planted you a birthday tree in the front yard. It's an apple tree with 3 kinds of apples grafted together and just like you, it's going to grow and grow and bear fruit. It's a little bitty tree now, but it's going to be 20 ft high by the time you're having babies of your own...

39-40 weeks

Hey there little guy,

It is with great excitement and pride that I get to wish you a happy due date! Part of me is still in shock that this highly anticipated (though also a bit arbitrary) date has finally arrived. Woohoo!!

This week everyone keeps asking us if we are ready for you. I usually say no, but only because I feel like overconfidence is bad form... the truth is that I do feel ready. Your dad and I are both content to wait until you're ready, but there are lots of sideways smiles and secret hand squeezes. We are so close to meeting you!

We've set up the birth tub in the living room, but we're waiting on a cue from you that it's time to fill it. The tub is bright blue, and the shell of it is covered in signatures notating the names and weights of all the babies born in there. It will be a triumphant moment when we get to pick up a Sharpie and add you to the roster!

In your 39th week, your aunt Marion came over to check out the tub, and we baked a sweet potato cake and made some lovely new curtains. I unleashed my nesting instincts on the office at work and got it perfectly organized before my leave of absence. Your grandmother arrived from TN just in time for my 40-week visit with the midwife. We talked contingency plans for post date, though hopefully they won't be necessary... and fortunately this morning I was informed by a car salesman that you will be arriving on Friday at 3pm. How kind of him to let me know! :-)

Sweet T and Pop sent us this little gem of your dad at one day old -

If the photo is any indicator, you've definitely got the adorable gene! 

We love you.

From Mom 

Hey Buddy.....



While I'm unsure what age you'll be reading these letters, let me just say that there have been tons of hormones flying around during the 9 months of your development.  Hormones? That's an entire life lesson in itself, of which I'm happy to sharewith you at the appropriate time, but suffice to say that we're allexcited for your arrival!  I would have written sooner, but I had so many thoughts it was hard to distill them.  

That said, I can also tend to quickly drop to the bottom line.  I was there when your dad was born, I was there while he grew up and becamethe incredible guy he is.  I was there when your dad fell in love with your mom. At this point, I've only gotten to know her over a few years, but wow.  What a wonderful person! I was there when they married, and was (virtually) there when they shared the greatnews you were coming.  

Even better yet, I've gotten to know your aunts and other grandparents. They all have SO much to share with you!

Growing up isn't easy.  Hasn't been for any of us, but that's part ofwhat makes it all worth while.  We grow, we learn, and weanticipate all that God has destined each of us to become.  Therewill be great, wonderful (and sometimes painful) lessons along theway.  There are really only three things that make me incredibly confident in who you will become........ your dad, your mom and the Lord!  All of them so love you.  We, do too, but your parents will be the ones to raise, nurture and teach you.  I'm so confident (and proud) in both of their abilities, that I could cry about it at the drop of a hat (not normal for me).  

Just know, we're here when you need us (me and Sweet T), but I'm sure itwill only be for 'additional' support cause your parents are SO awesome!!  As you grow into your teens, you'll start to think your folks don't understand and are a bit 'out there'.  Just know, that's a normal feeling at this age, and as long as you respect them as your parents, you'll eventually find they know a lot more, and love you a lot more than you thought possible.  It's happened to all of us, so my advice is to try to roll with it :)  In the meantime, just know we love you already. We're excited to meet you in person.  And we're excited to do life together with you. See you soon pal.........

Dear baby,

I'm getting anxious for you to get here. This whole time I have imagined you in some embryonic state, moving around slowly in an alternate world, a world distinct and distant, wholly apart from us for 9 long months. And suddenly 8 and a half months flew by, a blur of Seattle rain, and then sun, and then more rain. I learned things, and played things, and thought about you as some intangible, although pleasant, being. And suddenly, today, I realized that you are REAL. You will exist! And I can't wait to hold you and play with you and watch you grow. You will have so many people kissing your cheeks that you might be overwhelmed. But don't worry. Later on, when you are grown up, you will be glad. And someday you will be eight, and then twelve, and then twenty-one, like me.

This is what is happening in my life right now: I was elected to be co-director of the UW Student Food Cooperative for next year. I am working in a cooking school, and my boss loves to yell at me. I live in a sorority, I sleep until noon, and I am studying backyard chickens while working on getting a college degree. I go to coffee shops in the morning, and bars at night, and people amaze me. When you know me later, will you think it strange that I did these things? Will I be old and weird? Will you find the music I like incredibly old and strange? Probably so. Either way, I can't wait until I can hang out with you.

There is so much to tell you, and lots of time to tell, although it feels so urgent to teach you all the things I have learned in my (somewhat short) life. The thing I want to tell you today is: life passes quickly, little one. Don't let it pass you by too quickly! Embrace the day! Do things! But you will learn this lesson later.

Endless love,
Marion

38 weeks

Dear baby,

Back in the fall when we first discovered you existed, I started to make space for you in my mind and in my body. This week I started to make space for you in our house.

I put your clothes in our dresser, your bottles in our kitchen, your nail clippers in our medicine cabinet, your sleeper in our bed, your carseat in our car. I thought I had gotten used to the idea of you, but when I see these baby things scattered among our stuff, I am not so sure. I wonder how I will ever make enough space for you in my life that is already so full. I think about how sad I am to have to share my drawers and shrink my space, shrink my job and my disposable income and my alone time with your dad. I worry that I will have just shrink into your shadow to make it all fit, but the parents I know tell me it doesn't work like that. They assure me that the rest of life just grows and grows to make room for babies. It must be true, because I can feel the heart expansion starting already...

Here's some of what happened in your 38th week:
Gibson's opened a new store in Westgate, and we secured a new tenant for the downstairs. We worked and ate happy hour pizza and went to our first downtown farmer's market of the season. I also had my last prenatal appointment with Nurse Brenda, though she'll be back soon to check on you!
This week we made four trips to Lowe's (oh the joys of new homeownership!), and during one of them an employee pointed at your bump and said, "Didn't your parents warn you not to swallow watermelon seeds?" Hehe.
Today your dad accidentally watered our coffee plant with my Gentle Birth herbal tonic. I'm afraid the jokes about plant fertility will never end...
And of course, we waited for you, hoping for an arrival despite our overall lack of preparedness and the statistical improbability of early delivery for first-time moms. What can I say? We are looking forward to meeting you!

Love, Mom

Hi Little Man, 

O what a special day, October 10, 2011, when we learned of you (you were the size of an olive!).  From that moment since, I’ve been in love!  Sounds just a little bit silly doesn’t it? I know, I know…but it’s true!  Your dad and mom called, sharing the good news and my heart leapt with joy.  Aunt Shelly and I did a happy dance right there in the kitchen!  

Pop was out picking up a pizza but I couldn’t wait to tell him so I grabbed my phone to call him right away.  He didn’t believe me at first but Aunt Shelly quickly convinced him it was no joke…you would be arriving in late May or early June of 2012.  Little man, we have been celebrating you ever since!  

After that call, I went straightaway to our bedroom, bent down before the Lord and thanked Him again and again for expanding our family with you.  I thanked God for the perfect way He would knit you inside your mama’s belly.  I thank Him for all the ways in which you will be a world changer.  I thanked Him for the friendship you would have with Him one day and on and on we talked about you that night!  God and I have talked many times about you since little man.   O the future ahead for you!

When I think about my son (your daddy) having a son I start to tear up.  I remember the day he was born like it was yesterday.  How could I ever forget the blessing of my Jason Michael?  He was a gift then and continues to be so. I smile just saying his name. Little man, listen to him.  He’s an honest and loving man.  He’ll take great care and thought in raising you. He’ll teach you in the way you should go, paying special attention to your gifts, talents and strengths and nurturing them.  He’ll show you how to be a light in a dark world.  Trust him to always be for you…cause he is. 

And little man, I’ve only known your mama for a few years but it didn’t take very long to discover the treasure that she is. Let me tell you some of what you can expect from her.  She will call out greatness in you.  She’ll believe in you all the days of your life.  She’ll declare the goodness of God over you and will guard and defend you when the world is unjust.  No matter how big you get, she’ll wrap you in her arms and pour out all her love on you.  Yes, she’ll teach you how to love, how to serve others and how to choose wisely even when you don’t want to.  Don’t forget it, she’s hand picked by God to be your mom and she’s a gift to you.  You see, little man, your mama is not just carrying you for 9 months.  She will carry you for life.  

Pop and I, well…we can’t wait to teach you some of what we know too.  We’ve learned so many things about life the hard way and we hope to help you avoid some of our pitfalls and mistakes.  We like to laugh big, play lots of loud music and we enjoy great conversation over ice cream and chocolate cake now and then.  We’re far from perfect people but we know how to love and we can’t wait to love on you! 

Your arrival day is so very close and I’ve got my dancing shoes on for another happy dance!  

Much love little one,

Sweet T

37 weeks

Dear boy,

It's Mother's Day today, and this is my first year to be on the receiving end of the day's requisite thanks and well wishes. The compliments are making me squirm a little - although intellectually I do consider myself a mother, so far I feel more like your house than your mom! (Of course that didn't stop me from eating one of the moms-only cupcakes at church this morning, haha!)

It's been a peaceful week - quiet mornings cutting strawberries in the yogurt shop, a visit to the midwife, a business mixer, a scripture study with our Life Group, a neighborhood barbecue, a rainbow of brand new diapers, sweet tea on the front porch while your dad plants flowers, a stroll along the waterfront followed by fish and chips from our favorite seafood shack. We are heeding all the warnings to "sleep while we can" and getting out of bed slowly in the mornings.

I am trying to memorize all these details of our daily life before you come along and make a big beautiful mess of things. We are thrilled to meet you, but I'll admit to feeling a little sentimental about leaving behind our relatively serene existence as a family of two. Tomorrow you are 38 weeks young, and in many ways it feels like the calm before the storm.

Our little baby boy! I am trying to imagine your smallness, your wrinkly skin and your tiny starfish hands. I wish my belly was a fishbowl so we could see you swimming! You're not so wiggly any more, which I hope means you're locked in position, resting up for your big debut...

We love you, kiddo.
From your mama

36 weeks

Dear baby,

For months I've been hard at work house hunting, baby growing, and career ladder climbing... and now, in May, all of my efforts are paying off simultaneously. In a strange twist of fate, I got a promotion at work effective today - the exact day my pregnancy with you is full term. After such a long season of waiting, it is strange to be entering the season of arrival: arrival at a professional goal, arrival in our new house, arrival to the more hands-on part of motherhood.

We had our home visit with the midwife this week and got to hear your whirling heartbeat inside the walls of new house. Our midwife said it would be a great space in which to give birth - though she did recommend we put some window coverings before delivery day, haha! We had already ordered custom blinds online... hopefully they arrive before you do!

I've been trying to get your clothes washed and your things in order, but I've discovered that it is very difficult to nest in a construction zone. Things around here are altogether too wonderful to be perturbed about the dust and the noise, but I am taking notes in case you're ever lucky enough to get a sibling - no construction projects in the third trimester, period.

Although you're unlikely to come this early, it is strange to think that this could be the last letter I write before you are born. I'm attempting to enjoy what could be the last few weeks of pregnancy - slowly writing myself off the schedule at work and spending this afternoon on the deck drinking virgin margaritas leftover from last night's Cinco de Mayo bash.

I am ready for you to be in my arms instead of my belly, but there won't be Pitocin or Castor oil for this pregnant lady... I'll just leave the birthday timing up to you and Jesus.
See you soon?
Love, your mama

34-35 weeks

Dear sweet little wiggly baby of mine,

I come from a family of all girls, and so well-wishers are sometimes concerned about my lack of experience with boys. They wonder aloud how, with a family history so dominantly feminine, I will handle the task of raising a little man like yourself.

But all their fears are unfounded, little one, because you really hit the jackpot when it comes to male role modeling. Of course the man I'm thinking of is your dad, and tomorrow he turns 26!

If you're even remotely conscious in there, you already have his hands and his voice memorized. You know how attentive he is to your needs and how he adores you. What you don't know yet is how rare guys like your dad are. Ambitious yet playful, unfazed by negativity, self-assured and resourceful, talented but humble; patient, curious, inclusive, kind - altogether a stellar combination that we'd be blessed to even begin to replicate in you.

Your dad and I met on camping trip in the summer of 2008. Of course we nearly missed each other entirely - I was home for a few short weeks between summer camp and traveling to India. Jason had flown home from a backpacking jaunt around Mexico the night before we met, and almost cancelled on the trip due to a bad case of traveler's diarrhea. But my very persuasive friend implored him to come anyway, and so he threw his gear in pack and put the rest of us to shame carrying both his pack and another girl's, hopping off the trail to relieve himself as often as needed, and altogether hiking like the champion he is.

Later, on one our first dates, I got a blowout on the interstate. Jason was in the passenger seat talking on the phone and mouthed the words "pull over" to me. He got out of the car, opened the truck, and changed the flat tire in less than five minutes, never even hanging up the phone. I was duly impressed by his competence and composure, and although it would make a nice story to say that that's the moment I knew he was the man I'd marry... I don't remember it like that. I remember hundreds of moments of growing clarity, moments of joy and nervousness and two whole years of that dizzying intoxication of infatuation... and to tell you the truth, I still feel a little drunk when I look at him.

There you have it - your mama at her sappiest, and a bit of the love story from which you got your beginnings.

We're taking the weekend off to celebrate your dad, so don't even think about an early entrance. No shared birthdays in this family, okay?
Love, Mom

P.S. Sorry there's no letter from last week. It was a little chaotic around here with your baby shower and the move. That's right, your dad I became homeowners! We have so much to be thankful for.

Dear Sweet Baby Keil,

I am awash in emotion! My friends who have grandchildren are excited for me, and most of them have drawn me aside to tell me how much I will love being a grandmother and to tell me I will be amazed at how much I will love you. The first time that happened, and every time since, I laughed to myself and thought, "They haven't a clue how much I'll love you! I will love you exponentially more than they have ever loved any of their grandchildren!" You see, I am already unabashedly smitten. I can't read your Mom's blog update, see her picture, or write you a letter without my joy tears causing me to sniffle and laugh.

I already have a big concern about you, though. How will I convince myself that you are not MY baby? Loving you the way I do, I'm going to have to be really careful not to overstep my bounds. I'm sure, when you're old enough, you'll tell your parents when I mis-step, and then I'll make sure you understand about forgiveness. If I'm anything like your Aunt Marion, I'll tell on myself before the sun goes down!

Your Mommy was an extraordinary baby, an extraordinary person, from the day she was born. Her older sister, your Aunt Rosie, was 2 1/2 years old when your Mommy was born. Rosie was used to commanding my full attention, so your Mommy could have been dramatic to seize her share of the spotlight. That wasn't your Mommy's way, though. She was a good baby, and she put up with her sister's constant interruptions without a fuss. I think she was taking notes, memorizing everything her big sister did and how we parents reacted to each action. One of your Mommy's early nicknames was Speedy Feets, which seems prophetic now. She waved her feet around when she was having her diaper changed. She was good at directing music, too, or so we imagined, as she used her hands to dance before she could stand upright.

Although your Mommy adored her big sister, she never seemed to be in her shadow. She was always as independent and self-sufficient as a child could be, at every age. When her younger sister, your Aunt Marion, was born, your Mommy was just 1 1/2 years old. Much of the time, we were still giving her age in months - almost 18 months old, she was. Your grandfather and I were a bit concerned about moving our sweet little Lillian (your Mommy) to the other end of the house from our bedroom (and from her sisters' rooms), but it made sense that she should have her own room, and the only one available was at the other end of the house. With some trepidation, we bought a used baby bed and some affordable Minnie Mouse sheets for her, put a monitor in her new room, and moved her to the other end of the house. Your Mommy quickly proved that she could handle being farther away. Then she showed she could be as patient with her little sister as she had been with her big sister. In fact, she was helpful with her little sister, and she was quick to claim her. Your Aunt Marion had 2 powerful sister advocates!

As you grow up, you will hear plenty of stories about bacon people (Aunt Jaynie has the video!) and the times your Mom got in trouble. We'll be sure to embarrass her and make her seem a little less intimidating to you, but not as a service to you. Rather, we want to recall how much we have loved her these past 23 years (which includes those months she spent in the womb!) Loving your Mommy has been a privilege and a sheer delight, with bits of frustration mixed in, but none that could ever detract from the pure love for her that has expanded our hearts, just like you are expanding them now, all from the comfort of her womb! Soon you will be hearing her voice, unmuffled by amniotic fluid, and you will be transfixed by her beautiful face and the love that emanates through her smiles and her tears. (Later you'll hear us blame hormones for some of those tears, but she'll have tears of joy, too. Hormones can't claim those!) Your Daddy will finally get his hands on you without Mommy's skin getting in the way! He is the best Daddy you could ever have, so watch him like a hawk!

You are being born into a family who loves you beyond anything you can conceive of, until you help a loved one conceive. (Aunt Marion will be exclaiming "Mooooom!" when she reads this.) We will love you through your shining triumphs and through your trials and tribulations. We will tell endless stories about you, about how clever you are, how sweet you are, how much like your Mom and your Dad you are, and we'll exclaim that you have all the best genes of the Keil/Siman/Andrews clans. We'll find ways that you resemble each of us so we can stake our claims even more forcefully.

Your Mom and your Dad will make sure you know that God made you perfect, that you are exactly who He meant you to be. They will hold you accountable when you push the boundaries, and if you are anything like your Mom, you'll push hard, when you push! You'll learn loving discipline is just that. And your aunts will call you to task, too, especially when you disrespect your incredible parents. In return, you will get to teach your aunts and me about boyhood. (Aunt Shelly has the inside track on that, being your Dad's little sister.)

Your Mommy and Daddy are getting to know God even better, thanks to you. They will realize every day that their love for you grows and grows, and they will better comprehend how deep and wide and long and high God's love is for us, His beloved sons and daughters. Your Mommy and Daddy will also appreciate their own parents more and more! Thank YOU, Baby Keil!

Your Mommy and Daddy are the official expectant parents, but your whole extended family is expectant. We are expecting joy upon joy, blessings upon blessings, and some fearful moments, too. (If you are as active as your parents, we will have several of those!) We are praying that your entry into our lives will be dramatic enough to entertain you with stories later, but not dramatic enough to have us rushing to the hospital.

A small favor, please, Baby Keil, could you cooperate a bit with your Mom's muscles and delay your entry until I am on the scene?

Loving you always,
JuJu (or whatever name you bestow on me with love!)

33 weeks

Hi there, baby-

These letters get later and later every week. Your 33rd week is over now, and I feel a bit behind. I'm afraid I'm not doing a very good job taking care of us, little one. The prenatal vitamins got lost in the shuffle of the move, I haven't set foot in a gym in well over a month, and the free refill policy at the Mandolin has put my caffeine intake over the requisite amounts more times than is probably acceptable... I think about these things and wonder if I ought to try harder or be more gentle with myself. Pregnancy is a little like walking a tightrope.

News from the ex-utero world is that our house papers are signed (finished!) but delayed by a neighbor filing a poorly timed boundary dispute. This morning I indulged in a long fantasy about marching my pregnant self up to her front door and giving her a piece of my mind. In this daydream, I can't decide whether a basket of warm muffins and sympathy or cursing and finger pointing is a more effective strategy, but I'm leaning toward the latter. I wonder if she realizes that her old beef with a long gone property investor is forcing a very pregnant lady to sleep on an air mattress for the third week in a row? 

While I was engaged in this imaginary conversation with our neighbor, I neglected to notice the nozzle on the kettle was open and all the water had boiled out, evaporating and accumulating in droplets on the built in microwave above the oven. Attempting to mop up this mess I dropped the paper towel, which turned made that whispery burning paper noise and turned charcoal black on the hot stove. Through the smoke, I shook my head at the sky and told Jesus to please, please stop messing with me.

I know that there are nuggets of wisdom to be found in all this waiting, but I am too anxious to look for them. We have to be out of our temporary place soon, so the words "indefinite hold" have got me more afraid of homelessness than overlooked opportunities for spiritual insight. Pray, child, if you do that kind of thing yet. You may be comfortable enough in there now, but I can guarantee sleeping bags in Tacoma alleys are not so cozy as the womb! 

….On a brighter note, you dad made a smashing debut on the drums (no pun intended) at church this week, and Ruthy is throwing you a party in just a few days. Ruthy is not only busy crafting little treasures to help welcome you into the world - she's also doing the difficult work of being 19 weeks pregnant with a little boy or girl who is bound to be one of your friends! You can thank her later.

Here's your portrait for the week. You continue to get compliments everywhere we go. Your dad and I like to laugh about how popular you've made us. Only 6 more weeks until you come along and steal the show completely. We promise to take it well! 

Love, Mom

Dear my sweet little nephew,

Knowing I'm about to be an aunt is overwhelmingly wonderful. People always say you will never understand how much a parent loves their child until you have a baby yourself. Well although I'm not the one having a baby, I'm getting a glimpse of that feeling because of the incredible amount of love I feel for you already. I've watched my mom spoil her nieces and nephews and I've developed great relationships with my own aunts and uncles and I can't tell you enough how excited I am to have that bonding experience with you.

I do really wish your parents still lived in Nashville. Sometimes I tear up a little thinking about how much I miss them and how sad I am to not be watching you grow up every week in person. But thankfully I will see lots of pictures and we will Skype and Facetime as much as possible. But by the time you can read this you may not know what Skype and Facetime are because technology moves so fast it's hard to imagine what it will be like when you're older. I have a feeling you are going to be so smart.

I keep brainstorming about the cute little outfits I want to put you in and the bow-ties I want to make you and I'm trying to think of other things I could make since my specialty is aprons and ruffles, but I don't think you would appreciate it very much if I put you in ruffles. We'll save that for your sister.

Well since you're going to have lots of letters to read, i'll try to keep this fairly short. I am three weeks away from graduating college and should really be writing my very last paper that is due tomorrow but you are WAY more important :) I love you so so much little man. I can't wait to watch you grow and walk out the destiny God has for you. Praying for you and sending lots of snuggly hugs and kisses.

Love your Aunt Shelly
(or Aunt Michelle or whatever your precious little heart desires to call me... I was trying to think of a cute drink name to go with the Pop and Sweet Tea theme your grandparents (my parents) are hoping to be called, but Aunt Lemonade or Aunt Latte just don't sound right do they :) ... i can hear you giggling just thinking about it)

32 weeks

Your 32nd week was a beautiful one. Sunshine and resurrection celebration, big round bellies doing laps around the lake. The theme for Easter Sunday at church was newness, which of course made me think of you. As believers we are in a constant state of spiritual newness, always being transformed and perfected by Jesus... But you will be new in all senses of the word. The new sights and sounds and smells of this place will continue to baffle you for years to come. Your life as a newborn will be part exhilaration and part trauma, and your dad and I have been chosen to guide you through both. It is a humbling task.

The closing date for our house came and went with no keys to show for it. Our temporary place on Washington St feels different filled with the warmth and light of early spring, and we spent the afternoon spray painting Goodwill canvases to hang in our new house and eating pizza on the deck.

Spring is a fun time to be pregnant. I love telling well-wishers we have less than 2 months to go and watching their smiles spread. Everyone is excited about you - especially Becca, who squeals every time you wiggle and calls you her "little peanut butter and jelly sandwich."

You look bigger every time I blink, and watching you grow makes the discomfort of carrying you more bearable. Would you like to see your progress?

This time next year, we'll be arriving at church on Easter Sunday as a family of three and you will perhaps be old enough to appreciate the petting zoo they set up for the kiddos. Or maybe we'll take you to Nashville for the annual Keil family egg hunt and find a way to pin those goofy green ears on your baby head? Makes me giggle just to think about it.

Happy Easter, baby boy!
From your loving mother.

31 weeks

Dear boy,

Back in those first weeks of pregnancy, before I even knew I was carrying you, I was plagued with a fatigue so intense that I once left work and fell asleep on a city bench on Tacoma Ave. That old tiredness came back this week, your 31st. The timing couldn't have been worse with us in the process of moving out of our apartment. As adorable as your bump is, you do complicate the task of carrying boxes. We managed to devise a system wherein I could still be helpful... suffice to say it involved a stolen grocery store cart! :-)

All week I kept telling people I wasn't the least bit sentimental about leaving the Broadmoor. I wasn't lying, or at least I thought I wasn't... but when we left that empty flat late on the night of the 31st I felt surprisingly heavy, sad. I kept thinking, someday we won't even remember this place! We'll argue about exactly what it looked like - was that old bathroom pink or orange? - and forget how the closet shelf was held up by wires and the shape of those little white doors in front of the trash nook.

That's how it goes, right? One day you pack up all your stuff and leave the place you've lived the longest in your entire adult life and poof! - the whole year just evaporates into the haze of early marriage lore, into that growing volume of stories from the pre-baby days. Someday we will tell you about the Broadmoor and you will roll your eyes because we are your parents, and it is inconceivable to you that we were ever cool - that we ever lived downtown in an old hotel with a view of the port, hosting Tacoma's finest on folding chairs late into the night.

How are you in there, little one? Can you tell that we're living in a new place? I like to think you are immune to the discomforts of moving, that inside the womb you don't even notice that our temporary housing has no heat and the air mattress is constantly deflating. Your dad and I are not so comfortable ourselves, but we have always loved adventures and living this little house on Washington Street definitely fits the bill.

The chill on our faces while we sleep inevitably reminds us of camping, and we last night we got to laughing about the time that we decided to test a Ray Jardine-esque raw food diet and took 12 lbs of fresh produce on the Wonderland Trail only to wake up in the middle of the night surrounded on all sides by enterprising mice gnawing through the corn husks and orange peels. Freezing and foodless, we hitch-hiked back to Olympia a few days later.

Your dad is already talking about taking you camping this summer, but between you and me I think raising you will be adventure enough!

Love, Mom

29 weeks

                                                        29 week baby bump. My winter coat no longer zips!

Baby boy,

How sentimental you've made me! Hardly does the ink dry on the last thank you note before another gift arrives at our doorstep. And the words I write in the cards - about feeling overwhelmingly blessed by support and kindness - are so, so true. Never in my 23 years have I been so weepy about a Christmas or birthday present. Now I see the blankets and toys for what they are - investments in our future, investments in you! - and I am undone with gratitude.

The thing about it is that we need these gifts. We need the car seat and the bath tub and the carrier and the quilt. It is new to me to be so needy, and our need seems to be bringing us more fully into society. The traditions around marriage and child rearing, which often seemed silly to my teenage self, make more sense to me now.

Arguably you are the still fastest growing little person in the family, but your dad and I are also doing our fair share of growth over here. Carrying a child is an important job that neither one of us takes lightly. Our conversations about how we will raise you are enthusiastic but careful. We are learning about trust, about loss, about patience...

Waiting for you is the neatest experience. All week I've been having these tiny little contractions. My stomach tightens all over and I start to imagine that timeless, cinematic moment when I get to look at Jason and smile shyly and say, "It's time now..."

My mom (your grandmother!) arrived in Tacoma last night. I am so excited to show her your bump! Sorry about all the noise and light in there last night; we were trying to make you move for Aunt Marion to see. Earlier that day I tried to record a video of you moving on my phone but you weren't very cooperative, and I gave up when I started to worry that the cancer rays from my cell phone might hurt you.
No big news from your 29th week of existence. We are occupied with trying to find tenants for the house, compiling a baby registry, and of course, marveling at you. And you, little guy, are marvelous indeed!

We love you.
From your mama.

30 weeks

Hi son,

After 7.5 months, I've discovered a way to really make pregnancy fly by... 1) Convince your mom and sister to visit your city for a week, 2) spend those days in the lap of luxury, swimming in the hotel pool and dining in the some of the best restaurants in the northwest, and 3) talk incessantly about the little boy for whom we are all waiting! This is how your 30th week came and went.

The whole family came to the midwife visit on Thursday. Twelve hands on my belly trying to guess where you are in there! You are endlessly entertaining.

Last night over dinner at Dahlia Lounge in Seattle, the conversation turned to food and ethics, as it often does with your aunt Marion studying food anthropology and flirting with vegetarianism. In a way, having you adds some urgency to the task of becoming the people we want to be. Now, with a set of teeny tiny eyes about to watch us for the next two decades, is when we have to start actually living by our principles.
I feel this way not just about coconut oil and locally sourced dairy, but about everything. Having a newborn is one of those rare seasons when all of your existing habits are severely interrupted - the end of life as we know it! - and in this, there is both real danger and incredible possibility. As we establish a new routine as a family, I want to do things well - for our sakes and for yours.

Your dad and I got you a little something at the flea market in Olympia this week. Other than the prenatal vitamins, this is our first baby purchase: a high backed, red wood antique glider chair. Sitting there this week, I try imagine rocking you, although since I've never rocked a baby before I may well be envisioning it all wrong! Perhaps my utter lack of experience with babies should unnerve me, but there is something sort of beautiful in that you'll be the first baby either one of your parents diapers or feeds.
We may well be diapering and feeding you soon, since your due date is just two short months away! But I have hunch you'll hang around a bit longer and be a June baby.

Whenever you come and whatever you do and whoever you become, we sure do love you...
From your very pregnant mama (see photo for evidence)

letter from Joy

Dear baby Keil,

This is your Great Aunt Joy!  I live in Spring Hill, Tennessee with your Great Uncle Bob and two cousins Hannah (age 11) and Nicholas (age 9).  Your Sweet T is my sister!!!  Can I just say we can't wait to meet you.  Our hearts have been filled with love since the day your mom and dad told us they were going to have a baby.  You have two very special parents and a HUGE family to support you and love you always unconditionally as Jesus Christ loves us.  I will be patient and wait my turn to meet you, but know that it will be hard and I will live on the pictures and stories of you until its my turn to hold you and meet you face to face.  I love you. - Aunt Joy

28 weeks

                                                                                        your mama @ 28 weeks, self portrait at work ;-)
Dear baby,

After so many weeks of bragging about how great I feel, I'll admit that I'm starting to be a little uncomfortable. I try not to complain, but I am oh-so tired and a bit overwhelmed, what with the job and the house and the body that is just plain awkward. I keep having anxiety dreams about breastfeeding in which I forget to feed you and everything just dries up. My entire pregnancy has been full of very vivid dreams, and they are only getting stranger in this home stretch.

Hopefully you're comfortable even when I'm not. You move every morning about 3 minutes after I have my first sip of coffee, as far as I can determine these are happy wiggles. At night, we can SEE you moving... You are fast and furious with those drum rolls on my abs. At work I rest my hands on the giant shelf that is your bump. Thanks for the arm rest, kiddo!

We spent a while looking through the baby name book this morning. I made your dad practice using all the options to see what sounded right:  introducing his son "___", telling stories about his son "___" and yelling sternly to "take that thing out of your mouth, ___!"

Nurse Brenda tells me it's time to start singing to you now that your hearing is fully developed. As a newborn you will probably recognize melodies and voices from the womb. What a great responsibility it is to have such profound influence over your music tastes!

Your grandparents and aunts are buying their plane tickets for your birth. Brace yourself, little guy - only three short months until you arrive and get completely smothered in coos and kisses by your doting family! Don't worry, I think you'll like them. :-)

Love from your mom.

letter from Rosie

It’s says Great-Grandmother but that means that I’m really GREAT as a grandmother and I need to see you a lot as you grow up. You are just a darling, darling child and we need to see you. You will be fun and sweet and good and sometimes you’ll be hard to handle but we don’t care, we’ll love you anyway . I want to see you as much as I can. Remember I really love you and can’t wait to start holding you and loving you. Actually I already love you. I just need to see you and play with you.

Love, love, lots,

Great-Grandma Rosie

letter from Jaynie

Dear, sweet baby! I’m another excited family member that can’t wait to see your little toes, fingers, snuggle into your little neck and smell your sweet baby scent. I won’t get to see you as much as I want to because I live so far away from your home, but I will be thinking about you constantly and treasure any time that I do get to spend with you. I can tell you funny stories about your Mama and her sisters and about your grandparents and other family members. I enjoy that kind of thing and maybe you will too. You are already lucky in the parent department. Your mama and daddy are going to love you to itsy, bitsy pieces!

Love,

Aunt Jaynie

To Baby,

It is March 1, 2012, and I am sitting in a coffee shop in Seattle, Washington. I am 21 years old, and yesterday was Leap Day. I just finished writing a journal entry for a class I’m taking about animals and the ethics of eating meat. I talked about you, and figured I should be talking to you, too.

I think about you a lot. Your mom writes about you in her blog, and every time I read it, I can’t help but cry. I live in a sorority, and it’s hard to cry in a sorority. People always see you, and question your red eyes. Sometimes my friends read it with me, and they cry too. Because life is so precious. I show everyone the pictures I have of you (really, they are of your mom, because you are still a baby bump). I am proud of you, growing so quickly! Lillian says you are in the 60^th percentile for your growth.

One day you will be old enough to read this. But today, you are not even old enough to see this. You are 26 weeks young. You are viable! Congrats! I can’t wait for all the milestones, and all the things you’ll do. I better be your favorite aunt. If I am not, or if you think I am crazy, I promise you that I’m not, and that I love you, even if I seem mean. I can’t imagine why I’d be mean though.

Miles, there are so many things I want to tell you, so many lessons I want to teach you! I want to tell you that life is full of beauty, and that it’s all around you, even when you don’t see it. I want to tell you that, usually, it doesn’t matter what people think. I want to tell you that the future isn’t bleak. I want to tell you that the future is waiting for you with open arms! It can’t wait for you to arrive! It can’t wait for you to start. I want to tell you that you probably can’t be the President, the Prime Minister of England, or a Prince, but that you can be pretty much anything else if you want to be. I want to tell you that you probably shouldn’t eat meat, because animals are cool and humans aren’t always superior. And cherries are delicious.

There is so much more, but I know you will figure it out. Lillian always had it figured out before me, and I’m pretty sure Jason had it figured out before both of us. So with their genes, you can’t go wrong. Hopefully you’ll get my attractive-ness and awesome-ness somewhere in your DNA.

I love you, Miles, or whatever your name is, and I’m always here if you ever need me.

Marion