love letters

Dear Em,

"I guess it simply goes to show that stuff will come and stuff will go. But do we cry? Goodness, No! We keep on singing."

- Pete the Cat and His four Groovy Buttons by Eric Litwin

You came home from school one day in December raving about Pete the Cat saving Christmas on a bus, & we've been Pete the Cat groupies ever since. His books are our favorites. He's such a groovy little dude. The books are fun, & also have such great messages. Plus, you can go online & download a free reading of the books. I had the pleasure of watching a circle of preschoolers sing & dance to one. Hands down, one of the most adorable things I've ever seen. Of all the books, Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons seems to be our favorite.

I used to kind of freak out when my things would get ruined. When we were younger, my sister broke my dear snow globe. I certainly cried, & I complained about it for years (& years). I chalked it up to learning from my parents to appreciate the things I had, to take care of them. And we should appreciate & take care of what we have. But in the end, stuff is just stuff.

I don't feel like that really set in for me until there was you. On the one hand, I learned to get less upset about things getting ruined because that's just the reality of having a child.  Our duvet cover that I had fallen in love with & spent much more on than I should have, became nothing more than a puke rag for more than six months after the day we brought you home. The silky, chic shirt I purchased for work had oily stains all over it after I applied sunscreen to your skin. Plus, nothing is safe from your touchy fingers...nothing.

On the other hand, having a child has taught me more so than ever before that stuff doesn't matter. Days after you were born, our laptop went crashing to the floor. We lost everything (no, we didn't back everything up, thank you for asking). We lost some of the papers we had written in college, letters we had written to each other, music, our resumes, photos...not to mention a really expensive laptop. Pre-Mommy me would have been crushed. Pre-Mommy me would have sat down & made a puddle of tears. I think your daddy looked at me & was expecting it. I think even I was expecting it. But the tears never came. I thought about how that sucked, but you were safe...our family was safe. It was going to be OK.

I see my Pre-Mommy self in you. You get upset when things get ruined, very upset. It's almost comical because you so easily ruin things...except for the unconsolable, crying three year old that runs to my lap. Things rip & things break & things get lost, & I watch you fall apart. That's just life for a dramatic three year old who has a hard time being careful. But I hope that Pete the Cat helps you to see that "stuff will come and stuff will go." I hope when stuff goes, you'll get up & "keep singing your song."

I love you so,
Mommy