On this night a year ago, we were just finishing up dinner at the Lucky Lab, hashing out the plans for the morning and Jack’s big arrival. We laugh now about my plan to eat cinnamon rolls and drink mimosas as soon as the c-section was done. In and out! Lickity split! Ha! No one had the heart to tell me, ‘Girl! You’ll be lucky if you can sit up, let alone eat a cinnamon roll or have a cocktail!”
We came home from pizza, packed our bags and oh, how it felt
like Christmas Eve. That next morning,
up early and to the hospital before 6 and Jack Elliot in the world by 8 am,
December 18th. What a day!
And what a year it has been since! A year of so many firsts – both amazing and
trying at all once. A year that at one
time seemed so impossible to imagine, and one that now could never be
duplicated, never will be and seems to have passed too quickly.
Last year, we were blessed with a newborn baby.
At 9 lbs. 14 oz. he seemed delicate and fragile to us, but he was sturdy and
strong from the get-go. And this year,
we are blessed to have a toddler walking, albeit not very smoothly, up and
down the hall, across rooms and into places he probably shouldn’t be.
We are blessed with a sweet boy, who truly has strong
opinions – he knows what book he wants to ‘read’, he knows what book he wants
you to read, he knows what kitchen utensil he would like to play with, he knows
whose cell phone he would prefer to mess with.
This boy, he knows what he wants.
We are blessed with a babbler and a comedian. He has caught on to what makes us laugh and
we have caught on to what makes him laugh.
A peek around a corner, a sudden nonsense word, and an “I’m gonna get
yooouuuuu” are always certain to get a laugh from any and all of us.
We are also blessed (or rather Jack is blessed) with my good
sense of rhythm. A good song can produce
a head bob and leg stomp. In fact,
sometimes he looks just like Elvis.
Almost. When that right leg gets going…
We are blessed. If you know this little man at all, you know
exactly what I mean. Yes, we have never
lost more sleep than we have in this last year.
Yes, we have probably never worried as much as we have this last
year. Yes, we have never, or I have
never called my doctor as many times to ask about such seemingly ridiculous
things, such as ‘He has a cough, is it a cold?' Repeat again in two days, 'He has a cough, still just a cold?'
Yes, this year has been full of as many firsts for us as it
has for Jack. And as this first year
comes to a close, I feel more fortunate, more gratitude than I ever have. Jack Elliot is amazing. Every day, I feel so lucky to be his momma
and so glad he has such a wonderful dad in Brett. We truly are the lucky ones.
So at night, after we have exhausted the nighttime reading
list, have turned out the lights, we rock to sleep while I tell him this
story:
There once was a girl and a boy
who got married and decided that they wanted to have a baby. It wasn’t easy for them though and as much as
they hoped and prayed, a baby never came.
And then one day after many years, they found out that finally, a baby
was on his way. They couldn’t have been happier. So they planned and they prepared and they
waited as patiently as they could for their little man to arrive. After months of waiting, the day had finally
arrived and early in the morning on that cold December day just a week before
Christmas, he arrived. Never had the now
Momma and Daddy been so happy. Never had
they felt such joy and relief to have him in their arms. He is the apple of Momma’s eye and Daddy’s
special guy. Finally they were a
family. And this little baby is so
loved by his Momma and his Daddy and his grandmas and grandpa and aunties and
uncles and cousins and great grandmas and great grandpa. Boy, is this baby loved.
And so he is. Happy
1st Birthday Jack Elliot! We love you so
much! Thank you for blessing our lives
and giving us the opportunity to be your parents.
