Dearest Hatchling,*
You are one month old today – and what a month it’s been! I can hardly believe it’s been a whole 30 days since I was in the hospital trying to push you out (sorry about that whole being stuck in the birth canal and having to do a c-section instead thing – both your daddy and I have plus-sized craniums so you got a double whammy, genetically speaking).
I can’t say I exactly enjoyed the birth process, but I was soooo happy to finally meet you when you came out. And you’re such a beautiful baby! Everyone says so, it’s not just your parents who are besotted. Your perfect little button nose, your yummy toes and hands that I like to nibble on, your precious round fat tummy and your downy hair – it’s all delectable. Even your baby acne (which your grandfather calls “the beezles”) is cute.
You’ve been interactive from the start – you were cooing at the doctors before they even got your whole body out of me. Right now your daddy and I enjoy what we call your “monster” or “frankenbaby” noises – the little grunts you make when you’re hungry, or gassy, or pooping. It’s a multipurpose noise, but it definitely communicates your strong intentions with regard to whatever it is you’re doing. (Daddy sometimes translates it as “Boob GOOOOD. Bottle BAAAAD. Aaaaah.”)
You’re definitely strong-minded (wherever could that have come from?), and we’ve already had our tussles over breastfeeding, wearing hats, sleeping in the crib, etc., etc. I love that you already have such personality, and while I’m a bit fearful of your adolescent years, I really can’t wait to watch your character blossom in the coming months and years. Before you came, I’d read other parents talking about the huge rush of love they felt for their children, how you never really know how much you can love a person until you have a child. I know not every parent feels that right away, but both your daddy and I have been head over heels with you from the very first moment we saw you. We waited a long time for you, little Hatchling, and worked and worried and hoped and prayed for many months while you were getting ready to come out. We know how very, very lucky we are to have you for our own. And while I promise we’ll do our best not to smother you with parental affection and anxiety, I also hope you always know we love you entirely, no matter what.
Love,
Mamala
*All props to dooce, the original and irreplaceable writer of monthly letters.
