Remember this time

My little girl,

Our world is about to change. You know that… but not really. And don’t worry. I don’t really either.

For almost three years, it’s been just us three. And oh, my love, I have relished that time. Beautiful and simple. Perfect.

And none of this is to say that I feel anything but joy and excitement when I think about the arrival of your baby brother. My son. I eagerly await the day he comes into our world and changes it forever. I long to watch you be a big sister to him and I promise to do everything within my power to help you both develop the strongest of sibling friendships. We are going to have a blast, our family of four.

But when I think about this special time coming to an end, I feel a twinge of sadness in my heart.

These days, we walk across the field to the park, hand-in-hand, just us two.

These days, we bake cupcakes together and giggle as we lick the batter off of the beaters and you’re amazed that loving cake batter is another thing that we have in common.

These days we cuddle on the couch or in your big girl bed, reading book after book, and you fit so perfectly with my arm wrapped around you, your head on my shoulder.

These days, I savor every bit of ‘just us’ as I try to fill your memory bank with these moments.

Because there will be days ahead when you will crave these times and I cannot deliver them. Or, at least, not like I do now.

This week, we made so many memories. We spent hours in the pool, just us, living in our own little world. Me keeping you afloat and teaching you the few basics of swimming that I remember from long-ago swimming lessons. You relying on me and teaching me the magic of pure, imaginative play. We swam and splashed. Just me and you. Those are the moments that I want to look back on long after you’ve shown the world that you are an amazing big sister.

I sometimes wonder if we’re doing the right thing. Rocking your world like this. Ending this special time, taking away ‘just us’ when we could have gone on like this forever.

But then I see the way you stare at the baby sitting one table over when we’re out for dinner. I see the way you love on your friend’s little sister and smother her with hugs and kisses. I watch how you play nicely with other kids and share so easily and nurture everyone around you. And I know. You were meant to have a little.

So we’ll live it up these next few weeks. We’ll curl up in these moments and savor every hug, kiss, and giggle. We’ll relax as this phase of our lives comes to a close.

And we will remember this time.

Love,

Mommy