All day long (okay, let's be honest... and many days before...), I thought about that tiny face, little feet, and that bald head that I held for the first time ten years ago. Chris and I were still in our 20s, living in our condo, and had just been married for three years. I remember finding out that I was pregnant (after taking FOUR tests!). I remember the whole pregnancy, and the nesting that went along with it. I remember getting up that morning and finding an entire container of melted ice cream that one nervous daddy-to-be had left on TOP of the refrigerator. I remember the silent ride to the hospital, with two nervous parents not knowing what to expect, much less what to say. I remember minute by minute every.single.detail. of that day.
I guess it was after he actually got here, my memory and clarity disappeared, and everything since then is a blur. That's what happens when you don't sleep for FIFTEEN MONTHS!!! Yep, you read that right... Forrest didn't sleep all the way through the night for over a year. To this day, I don't know how I survived. Seriously, I'm the girl that requires a minimum of nine hours of sleep each night to even be functional the next day, let alone nice. It took me until he was two to decide if I thought I might possibly want to go through this all over again... But even with the lack of sleep, and complete void of any "me time," I wouldn't trade ANY of it and I'd do it all over again in a second (which I finally did a couple of years ago when Emma joined our crazy family...)!
God is the one that's ultimately responsible for all of this, and I'm so very thankful the he blessed us with these two beautiful, healthy children. I also have to smile and be thankful that He has guided us in raising them. Forrest is such an amazing blessing in our lives!! He has such a crazy, funny personality, and he is so enjoyable to be around. He succeeds at everything he does! He plays baseball, and does martial arts. He gets straight As in school, and is in the advanced reading and math group. We don't have to remind him to do his homework because he has learned to be responsible and he gets it done right after school. He helps me out with Emma, and he is so good and patient with her. She absolutely ADORES him! She copies everything he says and does. We couldn't be more lucky to have him in our lives!!
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| Halloween 2010 |
Even so, I'm still traumatized that he's turned ten. When I look back at where we were when he was born, I can't believe how much has changed! Last night, I started thinking about where we'll be ten years from now. Yeah, that was scary... Ten years from NOW, Emma will be a teenager, and Forrest will be halfway through COLLEGE! He will have been driving for four years, have graduated from high school, and could potentially be dating the woman that he will marry!!!! EEEKKKK! I have to stop it, and I mean NOW!!
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| Pitching for Thunder - spring 2011 |
But when it came time for bed, my birthday boy asked me to lay down with him for a while. As we lay there, completely squished in his twin-size bed, I couldn't help but remember that ten years ago, that very day, I was doing the same thing. Sure, it was a little different... Then, he was asleep on my chest in the hospital. Now, he's stretched out next to me, trying not to move since there is so little room in his bed. *sigh* I wouldn't trade those moments for anything, because I know that ten years from now, I won't be able to climb in bed with him until he falls asleep.
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