"Daddy, I want to be like you" - Noelle commentary

Hi guys,

Just had to tell you some funny things before I forgot...

Tonight during dinner, Bryson announced, "Daddy, I want to be like you when I get bigger." Isn't it sad to think that Bruce will be a hero like this for only so long? Before we know it, Bryson'll be a surly teenager with regular bouts of impulsive anger and moodiness. I imagine it as being not unlike the "terrible two's"--only he'll be bigger and the problems more dramafied... is that a word? They grow up so fast, don't they? I think I cleaned up at least five separate incidences of spit-up, throw-up and food spillage within a matter of just a few minutes tonight. As I type this, I have baby throw-up in numerous spots on my t-shirt and some of Luke's dinner on my left pant leg. I consistently have to remind myself that one day I will be saying, "Ah.... those were the days."

Luke is my affectionate baby. As I was rocking him tonight just before I put him in his bed, he wrapped his chubby arms around my neck and laid his head on my chest. At this age, Bryson was already arching his back to signal that he wanted his bed. Luke, on the other hand, loves to give slobbery kisses. He wraps his arms around my neck, grabs a hold of my hair and pulls my face close to his with his mouth wide open. At first I thought it was a teething symptom--you know, chomp down on anything he can get his gums on... mommy's chin, earrings, unsuspecting fingers. But he is so content to be squeezed and held super tight, almost to the point of breaking a few ribs. He's a cuddly one, this kid.

Well, that's all I wanted to share. Oh, one more thing that I love about having two kids now. Although, I probably said this already. But before I had Luke, I couldn't imagine loving another baby as much as I love Bryson. But I of course do. And the reason being, since I've had Luke, I just felt I've grown a new heart. You don't share the heart you began with. I think you just grow a new one with each additional child. And the love is different. Not more or less. Just different, because each child is different. I was also worried before Luke came along, because I thought, oh, this one won't get all the same attention. But instead, I think he is so lucky, because instead of just me and Bruce to love him, he also gets Bryson! Three people who love him and will play peek-a-boo with him every day. Three people with whom he has already developed a very significant and recognizable bond and relationship since he came into the world.

I look back and I think that was the fun part about coming from a big family. Lots of people to love who love you back. (Of course, along with that, you also have more people to get mad at and more people to get mad back at you and scar you for life perhaps--but my young family is still in the age of innocence right now, so I prefer to think in happy, theoretical rather than sardonic, realistic terms). So anyway, I didn't have just Mom and Papa and brothers and sisters to love, but aunts and uncles and cousins and grandparents that I had actually developed a relationship with. So how can we discount the importance of families? They're not just the fundamental units of our society, but they provide the foundation of our lives. They give us a sense of who we are. There's nothing like knowing you have a place to call home. Or really, people that you consider home. My kids are lucky because they have lots of people to love and call family.

We certainly love you guys. Thanks for all you do. You would be surprised at how closely we watch the examples you set. Bruce and I feel blessed to have such a great support system. How many people can truly say that? But we can! It's so great. Well, I'm off to change my clothes.

Love,

Noelle