Butterfly Forest

Dear Connor,

When we went for a walk today, we saw a couple of beautiful black and orange butterflies flitting about in the air. As we walked further, we saw about a handful of butterflies, then more than a dozen and then we walked by what must have been a butterfly habitat because we were suddenly surrounded by about 50 butterflies! I had never seen so many butterflies at once in our neighborhood and it felt as if we'd stepped into a dream! One little butterfly even landed on your nose, which you found incredibly amusing. I wish I'd been able to take a picture. That once-in-a-lifetime image of your eyes lighting up--and crossing slightly--when the butterfly touched down on your nose and flapped its delicate wings was pretty awesome.

Love,
Mom

Boy In Trouble

Dear Connor,

When you've done something bad and I tell you to apologize, you hang your head, look down at the floor and morosely say, "Sooorrr." You look like such a sad little puppy dog that I can't even get mad at you!

And when you've done something so bad that I do yell at you, you have this habit of instantly avoiding eye contact. Sometimes you turn away from me and sit or stand perfectly still, as if I'm a bear and you're trying to ward me off. Other times, you do this weird thing where you close your eyes but repeatedly flutter your eyelids ever so slightly. Nice try, little guy. You may not see me, but I see you and you are in trouble! 

Love,

Mom

Refined Palate

Dear Connor,

Over the weekend, we went to a food event where you tried oxtail consomme for the first time and you loved it! Tonight, I tried feeding you spaghetti and meatballs for dinner and you wouldn't even take one bite. Are spaghetti and meatballs too ordinary for you now, Mr. Fancy Pants? :P

Love,
Mom

We All Look Alike

Dear Connor,

I have been meeting a lot of other moms in our neighborhood and you recently became friends with two little girls named Hailey and Chelsea. Both of them are two months older than you, both of them are super cute (which you seem to think, too, because you're always trying to hug and kiss them!) and both of them are Asian. We've had several playdates with each of them but last week, we went to the Brooklyn Children's Museum with Hailey and her mom and you kept calling Hailey Chelsea. And today, Chelsea's mom told me that Chelsea recently pointed at an Asian boy and called him Connor. I guess all Asians do look alike--even to toddlers!

Love,

Mom

Grandparents

Dear Connor,

I wanted to become a mom for many reasons. I love kids. I love your dad and wanted to start a family with him. I wanted an excuse to buy adorable, teeny, tiny onesies and adorable, teeny, tiny hats and adorable, teeny, tiny socks (Ha, kidding! Sort of . . .). I also wanted to become a mom so that I could make my mom and dad grandparents. PoiPoi and GongGong have told me that I've done many things that have made them happy but I knew that nothing could make them happier than having a grandchild to love, hug and spoil! And after you were born, I could see that that was absolutely true. 

PoiPoi and GongGong live in Pittsburgh (and have yet to figure out how Skype works) so they don't get to see you that often but they couldn't love you more. They print out the photos I email to them and paste them all over their walls. GongGong takes your photos to his office and shows them to everyone and anyone who will look at them (the one of you wearing the Santa Claus suit on your first Christmas is an especially popular one!). I post videos of you online and they watch them every single day. And when PoiPoi and GongGong do get to see you in person, their faces "shine so bright that the sun cries with envy" (I paraphrased that last bit from one of my favorite shows, Glee, which I am going to have you watch when you get older because it is awesome). 

It's amazing to see my parents with my child, to see how happy you make each other. PoiPoi and GongGong love you so much and even though you only see them a few times a year, you love them, too. They came to visit this past weekend and you initially broke their hearts when you first saw them and shied away from them. It had been awhile since you'd seen them and you didn't recognize them right away. But after awhile, you warmed up and were playing and giggling with them as if you saw them all the time. You kept running up to GongGong and hugging his leg, showing him your toys and asking him to play with you. And yesterday, PoiPoi was holding you in her lap when you pulled her face toward yours and gave her a sweet little kiss on her lips. That was the first time you had ever kissed PoiPoi and we almost had to wipe her up because she had practically melted into a puddle on the floor. 

Love,

Mom

Bird Man

Dear Connor,

We went to the park today and you had a blast running through the grass, watching another mom blow bubbles and playing with other kids' scooters, doll strollers and figurines (Um, yeah, can you please stop taking other kids' toys? It's not nice.). You also loved chasing after the birds and became really excited every time you saw them fly away. And I mean, REALLY excited. Please see your reaction below:

Whenever a bird took off, you screamed at the top of your lungs, "Oh WOW! Oh WOW!" It was hilarious and adorable and made everyone in the park laugh because EVERYONE could hear you! I hope you can always find such joy and amazement in life. 

Love,

Mom

Oh Wow

Dear Connor,

You just learned how to say "wow" yesterday. When I held you up in front of the dining room window so that you could look outside, you said, "Wow." When you opened up the kitchen cabinet and saw all of the spice jars inside, you said, "Wow." And when I was feeding you dinner, you pulled on my collar, looked down my shirt and said, "Wow." Um, thank you?

Love,
Mom