The Buddy Bee Makes Three: A Birthday Letter for a 2 Year Old.

My dearest little boy,

Happy 2^nd Birthday dear boy. You are growing up so fast. It feels like just yesterday that I held you for the first time, baby boy. I can’t quite hold you the same way as I did then but I still love your little snuggles. I will cherish that memory just like the first time you leaned in to give your Mama a slobbery kiss. You are full of little surprises that just melt my heart, little boy. The way you run up behind Mommy and Daddy and wrap your arms around us, the way you rest your little head on my shoulders, the way you cock your head when you are jabbering on in your toddler language, the way you say “peas” when you desperately desire something, the way you light up for things like Curious George, trucks, balls, and “blee”….I could go on and on about the little things you do that I find so sweet but I won’t embarrass you.

You truly are your father’s child. I can now imagine your Daddy as a little boy because I see so much of him in you. You are consistently are on the move little boy, even in your sleep you kick you legs. You are the friendliest child, waving and saying "hi" to everyone we pass. I love that about both of you. I hope you never lose that, Buddy Bee. I hope that you always hold on to your outgoingness. Like your Daddy, you love spending time outdoors. We have to drag you in at night kicking and screaming because coming in from playing outside just ruins your little world. You love watching Daddy fix things. You have become Daddy’s little helper. You absolutely love your Daddy but the puzzling thing about you, Buddy Bee is that when you are home with Mommy all you talk about is “Da” but once he is home your world has to revolve around Mommy.

You do the funniest little things, Buddy Bee. You undress yourself before you fall asleep. You don’t like wearing shoes or clothes for that matter. You cross your arms over your chest when you are thinking hard. Your favorite “Blee” has a special fringe that you hold in our hand while sucking your thumb. You get so excited when you see “rucks” and scream at the top of your lungs. The way you horde balls cracks us up. You call all animals by the sound they make besides cats and dogs. When coming down onto our road you yell, “WEEEE” every time! I love these little things, little boy and I can’t wait to see what you do next.

You are just 2 years old and you may not remember this next year very well but I will and it has brought me to tears many times. Our world is about to change, Buddy Bee. Daddy has a very important job to do, little boy, one that will take him very far away from us. This job Daddy has to do is something to be very proud of and I hope you will one day understand that. Daddy loves you with his whole heart and it is because of us that he must go. Buddy Bee, Daddy is a soldier in the Army and we are so proud of him. You see Daddy in his uniform a lot and I hope one day you will understand the value, strength, love, courage, and devotion that that uniform holds when Daddy wears it. Saying goodbye to Daddy will be one of the hardest things we will do, little boy and it brings tears to my eyes because you really don’t understand what saying goodbye truly means. I hope I can be enough for you during this next year. I will never be able to fill Daddy’s shoes but I will do my best to be both Mommy and Daddy for you. Always remember that Daddy loves you and even though he is far away he is thinking about you.

I love you Elijah.

All my love forever and forever,

Mommy