Ok Sweet Buddy…. Eight is Enough.
Anytime you want to stop growing and remain just as sweet, innocent, and full of joy as you are right now, I’m game.
Your reply to this is usually, “but mama, I don’t know how to stop growing?”
Or
“But mama, I want to be 12 so I can get my own phone”
Little do you know that your dad might push that age limit by another 5 years 😉
I’ve now known you for 8 years and I love you more each morning and each evening. I am excited every day to pick you up from school and listen to all you have to tell me each day. Even if it is, “I’m sorry mama, I lost my jacket again”.
That’s right! This was the third jacket in 3 days. But oh well! At least you were sorry 😉
Taking a moment to share this picture (I grab any opportunity to bring this one up).
After 17 hours of labour, at 5:17 PM, my perfect 8.1 pound gorgeous baby boy graced this planet with his presence. The world’s been a better and brighter place since then.
With your eyes wide open, clean as if you’d just had a bath, and a head full of hair neatly pulled to one side, you were ready for a photoshoot since day 1.
Ansh, you are such a kind and a smart kid. But what truly stands out about you is your high emotional quotient. You’re so empathetic and always aware of your surroundings. Making sure everyone feels loved, you are very generous with your hugs and kisses too.
However, this also means that you have such a big heart, that it gets deeply impacted by things. Like, yesterday when I explained to you how paper was made, you came back home, went to your room, cried in a corner, and felt sorry for using all the paper in school. It took me a whole of 2 minutes to distract you with your birthday present 😉
You can sense when Dia and Arth are seconds apart from pulling out each other’s hair, and you deflect them immediately. A perfect big brother. Dia and Arth are blessed to have you.
You try to always say kind things.
However, you are a bit of a smart mouth. Oh well, you get that from your dad.
Like, the other day when I was mad at you for losing your new toy, and asked you,
“where do you think we get the money from?”, your answer in a split second was, “a machine?”
You’re witty, and your laugh is so infectious.
You love playing chess and want to be a ‘famous’ chess player when you grow up. If not that, an ice cream man! But atleast, you have your options clear in your head 😉
You also have a very strong mind of your own. There’s no winning an argument with you. Because everything ends with, “Mom, I don’t have to be perfect”
“It’s okay to not like doing homework. I don’t have to be perfect”
“It’s okay if my coloring is bad. I don’t have to be perfect”
“It’s okay if my teeth get bad because I eat sugar after brushing my teeth. I don’t have to be perfect”
How did you get so big so fast Ansh? I want to cuddle and squeeze you forever.
Even though this morning, when you lay on me and said that you will always be my ‘baby’, I can see the baby slipping away by the day, being replaced by a boy with a heart and mind of his own. I am raising you for these moments, but I confess to knowing I will miss the ‘little’ you.
If there’s one thing I emphasize to you every day, it is, to love. You’ve asked me a few times what your religion is, and I have told you, it’s love. Give hugs, love with all your heart, express gratitude and treat everyone with kindness! It’s your superpower!
It’s been an absolute pleasure to see you and Dia grow such a beautiful bond together. Dia is your biggest fan, and you make sure you live upto her expectations. You were once told that your number 1 job is to love and protect your sister and you take that job pretty seriously.
Favorite part of my day is when you’re trying to make her laugh. Both of your laughs are so infectious that we all end up in splits.
You are extraordinary Ansh. My heart melts when I watch you do the things you love, when you hug your sister, say thank you to a stranger, call your dad your hero or tell me you need a hug or if I can scratch your back 😉
It is my honor to be your mom and to help shape you from this sweet boy into the young man you are becoming.
I love you, my Buddy.
Love, Mommy
