Funny, cute, amazing, annoying, wonderful things you do and say my dearest Nina:
1. Instead of saying download you say "load down." "Moooommmmyyyyyy... can you load down a new game for me on your phone please?" Unbelievably adorable.
2. You yell from the bathroom every time you poop, "MOOOMMMMYY!!! CAN YOU COME WIPE MY BUTT BECAUSE I JUST POOPIED AND I NEED YOU TO WIPE MY BUTT!!!"
3. You growl. I mean legitimately growl. You sound scary and I want to run away and hide in the closet. I wish you would stop. I feel like you're possessed every time you look at me and GROWL!
4. You have the most vivid imagination. Listening to you go back and forth with your stuffed animals is priceless. You're always so sweet and loving to them. You act like a mediator between your arguing teddy bears saying, "Don't fight. Just kiss and love each other and everything will be all better!" God, you melt me like a stick of butter.
5. You put stickers on my "booboos" and then you kiss them.
6. You point to an invisible sign in your bedroom and follow the wall with your finger and say, "See this sign Mom? It says no Mommies allowed in my bedroom." It's beyond hysterical, but I can definitely wait for the coming years that will be filled with insane amounts of attitude!
7. You tell me I'm your best friend. You asked me to go over the little bridge with you in the toddler play area of the Freehold mall. I said I'm too big for that bridge. You said, "but Mommy... you're my best friends and this is what best friends do." You bet your little tushy I got up and went over that bridge with you more times than I can count on both fingers and toes. That's it Nina. Manipulate me with your cuteness!
8. You ask me to sing every night. Sometimes you fall asleep to it and sometimes you get a third, fourth, and fifth wind and stay up until midnight. Ha. The other night you were so scared. You said you were afraid of the dark. So I laid in bed with you and sang the song I sang to you when you were inside of me. Smile when your heart is aching, smile even though it's breaking. When there are clouds in the sky you'll get by. If you just smile through your fears and sorrows, smile... and maybe tomorrow, you'll see that life's worthwhile..... if you just smile. You fell asleep in my arms like you used to. I cherish the few and far between times where you actually fall asleep in my arms. I know you won't do that forever my love. I wonder what that must feel like as a Mother. To let your child go like that because they don't need to hold on to you anymore. Does it hurt? I hope not. I could never imagine not holding you. You're like a little piece of heaven. I hope you always let me hold you.
9. You say FUNNY FUNNY things. Like, "Mommy... I have to tell you a secret...... Ryan poops in trees." Just out of the blue, silly little things that make me laugh so hard it hurts. Or you'll tell me how beautiful I am but say I need to change my shoes or my shirt because you don't like that. Or my personal favorite, "Mommy... you have BOOOOOOOBIES," while you poke them. Then I tell you that I do, in fact, have boobies and I tell you that you DON'T have boobies and you lift up your shirt and say, "Yes I do, they're just really little."
10. When you find something really funny, you laugh so hard that you get the hiccups. This has been happening since you were born. It's amazing.
11. You like the music you like now. You love Foster the People. They're a great band and we've gotten over listening to the Pumped up Kicks 597,000 times. You actually like the rest of the album and you know the words! It's amazing to look at you in my rear view mirror and watch you bob your head and sing along. Can I say adorable again? ADORABLE.
12. Sometimes you take your little hand and touch my face and tell me I'm beautiful. I'm only beautiful because of you my darling.
13. If you hear me say shut up or anything along those lines, you always say, "Mom, that's a bad word!" The way you talk and the expression on your face is etched in my memory forever. When you go with Daddy, I relive all of these moments inside and I smile. You always ask me if I miss you when you go away. The answer is always yes. I miss you every minute that you aren't with me.
There are things that I will add to this list over time. I never want to forget. I want to take every moment and store them all away so that one day I can open up that door and relive them with you. I imagine us drinking a bottle of wine and laughing watching all the videos from when you were a child. I imagine your little girl playing at our feet while we reminisce. I told you this before but I will never stop saying it: I love you more than anything in this world. You have made me who I am today. Who knows what state or country I would be living in or what I would be doing if you didn't come in to this world. You'll forever have my heart my little mini me.
Love,
Mum
