Elliot's 2 month letter :)

My dear sweet Elliot Walter,

You are two months old! WOW! The time seems to be flying by and you are growing and learning more and more each day. Learning will be the theme of this second letter to you. And it's possible, I'll write more about learning in the future.

My biggest hope for you regarding learning is not only that you love it, but you do it with no penalty.

I want you to be able to learn and explore your curiousity. I want you to be confident in your abilities. To reach for the stars. To be the best you that you can be. I don't want anyone to ever interfere with your learning, including me!

It's probably going to be hard having a mom who is also a teacher. We'll probably have unique challenges. Just don't lose your drive and curiousity.

Now that you're a whopping 8.5 weeks old, you're starting to explore a bit more. It's so much fun for daddy and I to watch. You had your first Christmas, and you slept through it. You had your first New Years, and you slept through that as well. BUT your love and admiration for Christmas lights was/is truly memorable. You would stare for what seemed like hours at our mini fiber-optic Christmas tree. You also respond more obviously to sounds. And on one occassion, you had a run in with exploring touch by pulling the cats tail.

I want you to fall in love with learning. Treasure and value education. Make books your friend. Embrace learning but also embrace teaching. You have taught me so much already.

You have taught me that there is healing in a glance.

You have taught me that there is some sort of magic between us. You've taught me that there really is no wrong time for a good snuggle.

You have taught me that being a mom is the hardest and most rewarding job of my life.

You have taught me to enjoy the small moments. To enjoy the silly moments. One night you were incredibly fussy. I could NOT figure out what your problem was - ha! You were clean. You were dry. You weren't hungry. You didn't need to burp. You didn't need to poop. You didn't have anything in your eyes and I wasn't wearing a sweater. You were just wailing for no real reason. So I made a bunch of silly faces and noises and your eyes lit up and you made the funniest faces.

You taught me that sometimes, we don't need to be so analytical and serious. Sometimes we just need to let go and let loose.

You are teaching me to take joy in the simple moments.

You have taught me that it's important for you to fight for the things you desire. I fought for you and I have you now. And you fought your way into this world. You're my little fighter. You're my miracle. You're my love and my joy.

I may be a teacher as a profession, but you are teaching me much more than any class I've ever attended. I will always be proud of you, and I hope you'll be proud of me as well. I love you.

Love,

Mommy