Happy Birthday

Dear Ayize,

Sitting here in my room, surrounded by strands of colorful Christmas lights, and listening to the gentle sound of your sleeping breaths, it's hard to believe that it's only been a year. In fact, it was EXACTLY one year ago, December 12th, 11:30 p.m., when I got into the passenger side of Grandma's car for the ride to the hospital.

I know I haven't "got" here yet in my retro blogging, but I just wanted to send a shout-out to you, Baby Boy, before I kiss your forehead and hit the sack. It was exactly one year ago tonight when the last leg of our long pregnant journey finally began. It was a wonderful night, early morning, and morning, filled with joy and hard work and laughter and sweat and anticipation and anxiety and excitement and exhaustion, and even -- at the tail end -- great fear, but after all that, there was triumph when I finally got to hold you in my arms, to touch see hear smell feel you, and you were here at last and real real real. And the best of my life, I knew at that moment, had just begun.

Happy Birthday, sweet prince! I care more for you than there are words to say.

All my love, always,

Mom