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Once a year I write each my boys letters on their birthday. I place the letter in a card and then place the card in their memory box. My hope is one day they will sit down and actually read a birthday card for a change and be able to understand how proud I am to be their father.
I thought you might like to take a break from the all out nonsense which is usually on this site and share in a letter I wrote to my youngest son (who is now 6) on his second birthday....
To My Son:
As you lie sleeping with your eyes closed tight and your baby blue blanket wrapped even tighter around you I find myself thinking about you and your life. In my heart I know you will be an amazing man and dedicated and loving brother. My heart pounds my love for you, but my throat is clogged with pain. My chest is swelled with pride for you, but my eyes are filled with tears. Parenthood is as confusing as it is challenging and at the same time it is rewarding and frightening all at once. I am so very thankful you are in my life and I feel blessed that our time together has only just begun.
It has been two years to this day since you entered my life and I want to thank you for the honor you have bestowed upon me. My mother once told me that before all children are born they sit in the lap of God, look down upon the earth and with his guidance search for the parents they wish to be their own. I believe this to be true and I want you to know that I will always be grateful to you for choosing me. By doing so you have given me the greatest gift I could ever imagine. You have made me your father. On the day you were born the moment I saw your face and held you in my arms I knew there could never be a man more proud of anything in his life. I will never forget the first day we met as you squeezed my finger as if you were letting me know it was all going to be ok. It was as if you could sense how nervous I was. That day you changed my life forever.
Your presence in my life constantly fills me with joy. Every movement you make, every sound that leaves your lips and every diaper you fill for me to change causes me to swell with pride and brings tears to my eyes. You are my life’s blood and my greatest accomplishment. I will forever love you with every ounce of my being. Watching you grow this past year has been like watching a miracle right before my eyes. You are the reaffirmation of life’s beauty and innocence. For you the world is a vast new playground that you must explore with a passion. Every button in the house, every hole you can climb into, every staircase you look up, every park we venture to and every person you meet is a new adventure for you. That is an innocence and joy I hope you never lose. Too many times as people grow they lose sight of the things that matter most and they slowly lose the innocence they once held.
You have brought many emotions into my life, and of those, the largest is my own realization of the man I hope to be. Becoming the father of three beautiful boys has brought my relationship with my mother, your Nana, into a new light. I have realized what it means to be a parent and what that responsibility and love feels like. I now know what it means to put your own wants and desires aside and live only for the safety, well being and happiness of the child who depends so much upon you. You see, children often look at their parents and wonder why they act the way they do or say the things parents say. Those children then swear to themselves they will never be like their parents. But, as those children grow and find themselves as parents they then find themselves becoming the people they never wanted to. At times I find it funny, but most often I find it pretty frightening. All in all I know my mother was the best parent she could be and she gave your Aunt and I everything she could. In the end her best present has been her unconditional love. That is something I will always give to you, not matter what path you choose or what actions you take.
I swear to you that as your father I will always bandage your wounds, scare away your monsters, drive you to practice, make you brush your teeth, force you to eat green vegetables, make you clean your room, help you with your homework, probably hate your music, despise your clothes, take pictures of you that you will hate forever, be your Cub Scout den leader, shoot baskets until dark, teach you dirty jokes that make your mom nuts, let you be the car in Monopoly, let you win at video games, pester you, tease you about girls, be the chaperon at school functions, try to act cool around your friends, embarrass you over and over again and tons of other things you will most likely hate, but most of all I swear I will always be here to listen to you and I want you to know that no matter what, you will always have my support and my love for you will always be undying and unconditional. All I ask is that if one day we are at the mall and I happen to brag about you to another parent who just happens to be the father of the girl you like, please don’t hold it against me. After all, at that time in my life I will most likely be old and out of touch and I am merely a father who loves his son.
I love you with all of my heart and I thank you for allowing me to be a part of your life.
Happy 2nd Birthday.
Love,
Your Father
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What a great site! I'm a single father of a 2yr old looking for ways to make his life complet he's my life you keep up the good work and if you have any input send it to me. stay U!