Dear Mommy....

Dear Mommy,

      Did you know that we love you so much?  You are the person that we spend most of our time with every day, and we don't know what we would do without you.

      We know that sometimes you get frustrated when Big Brother is grouchy and doesn't listen.  But, Mommy, this world is so overwhelming.  Every day, he's learning something new...  How to speak in sentences, how to interact, how to behave.  Sometimes it's just so much for his little brain to handle.  Big Brother tries so hard, Mommy, and he loves it when you tell him you are proud of him for being such a smart boy.  Try not to get upset at him when he is being a little too adventurous and touching things he shouldn't be.  That's how he learns what he can and can't do.  It will get easier one day, Mommy.  We promise.

      We know that sometimes Little Brother fusses.  A lot.  But it's so hard when you want to crawl and run and play with Big Brother and your body just doesn't know how yet.  He loves it when you help him sit on the floor safely and play blocks or cars with Big Brother.  One of the best times of the day to him is when you move the coffee table and let him roll and spin all over the place.  Keep doing this even when he's grumpy, Mommy.  We promise that he will learn to move better soon and then you will have to keep up with two boys!

      We're sorry that you feel like you are always at the doctor's office between the two of us.  But we are so happy that you are just trying your best to make sure we are perfectly healthy.  Sometimes scary things come up in appointments and they make you worry, but don't let it get to you too much, Mommy.  We don't like it when you are sad and worried.  God is always taking care of us, even when it's hard to remember.

      Mommy, why do you always say you don't like the way you look?  We think you are so beautiful!  You are our favorite lady in the whole wide world!  We know that you say you don't like the way your belly looks in your jeans, or the way you have wavy purple lines on your tummy that Big Brother likes to outline with his finger when he sees them.  But Mommy, don't forget...  That belly grew us and carried us each for over nine months!  You had two miracles in that belly so far, and it was one of our favorite places to be.  It kept us warm and cozy, and protected us, too!  We learned to breathe in that belly.  We learned to suck our thumbs in that belly.  You felt us move before anyone else could even see us.  Never forget that, even though it doesn't look the same, it's still part of you and we love it because of that.

      We know that you don't look like you did when you were twenty, and that parts of you aren't as firm and perky anymore.  But when your arms feel jiggly, and you think your thighs touch a little too much, don't be too hard on yourself.  Your body went through so much the last three years just so that we could be here!  Your breasts may be saggy and veiny, but they nourished us and kept us alive and growing for a long time!  We are here because of you and because you fed us and cared for us!

      When you feel like you are "just Mommy" all day long, remember that it's because we need you so much.  One day, we will be grown up and won't call you "Mommy" anymore, and you will long for the days that we were grouchy because we just both wanted to cuddle in your lap a while.  The nights that you wake up three and four times will be long gone, but the memory of cuddling our tiny bodies and smelling that sweet baby smell of our heads will stay with you forever.

      We don't care that there are dishes in the sink, or that the floor needs vacuumed.  (Little Brother hates the vacuum anyway.  That's why he screams every time you  use it!)  It doesn't matter to us that the furniture doesn't match or that you stay in PJs a lot because Little Brother likes to spit his food back up on you.  We won't remember that stuff.  We will remember when you played tag in the house even though the downstairs neighbors don't like it when we run.  And when you made cookies with us and let Big Brother sit on the table and sneak finger-fulls of icing when you pretended not to be looking.  We will remember when you taught us our ABCs, and how to count to twelve.  And when you snuck in our bedrooms to give us little kisses in our sleep or to be sure we were breathing because we were sleeping so soundly.  And our special dates that we go on sometimes, especially to Dunkin Donuts.  Those are our favorites, and our wives will thank you later for teaching us how to be such sweet gentlemen.

      But don't be too sad when you think about us growing up, Mommy.  We will always need you!  When we need girl advice, we will come to you with questions.  When that math problem is just too hard to figure out, we will ask you for help.  When we feel like God is just too far away, we will come to you for prayer.  You are one of our biggest role models and we are thankful that we get to learn from you every day.

      Be patient with us, Mommy.  We are trying our best to grow up for you.  But don't make us grow up too fast, because one day, you will miss this time when we needed you so much.

We love you, Mommy!

Big Brother and Little Brother