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.
