Today I was going through photos looking for information for a blog entry I’m preparing for you and I got distracted by my daughter’s baby book.
I wrote down a lot because I couldn’t remember things very well. I have scraps of paper like an old grocery list on which my daughter wrote what she wanted. Among the groceries like flour, sugar, and oil was scrawled in orange felt pen: “A fish for a pet”.
I was driving and was playing a live worship song by Third Day called Angus Dei. She was in her car seat in the back, about 5 years old, and she said, “I like this song. It makes me feel like it’s easier to talk to God. Can we listen to it every day?”
I wrote down how she pronounced words, like “Lea’ fez” – leaves, and “refudge alayduh” – refrigerator. I had forgotten that her first tooth came in while we were visiting a friend in Spokane when my daughter was 8 months old.
She would pick up a purse, and put on my shoes and some sunglasses and stand by the door and say “Bye bye.”
One time we were sitting on my sister in law’s porch waiting for her and I kissed my daughter on the cheek. She pushed me away, and looked me square in the eye and said, “I wipe off your kisses.” and proceeded to wipe her face with her arm. I said “But I love to kiss you!” and she said, “Your kisses make me too sweet. I just like loving.” and she gave me a hug. I still wonder who taught her that one.
These little things are so meaningful to me. I’m so glad I wrote them down.
There was a section that had me write down the price of things like milk and bread, which for some reason I didn’t fill in, but I did fill in the ones for gasoline and the price of a stamp for a letter. The stamp was 34 cents. It was not so outrageously cheap, but still, it’s quite an increase since 2002. What floored me was the gasoline. Are you ready for this one? One dollar and forty nine cents a gallon. Even though the cheap gas is worth going back in time for, I wish sometimes I could go back and write down more things to the future me, to the future her, things I missed writing down before. I wish I could go back and hug that tiny little person longer and read to her more, and tell her all day long how much I love her.
Make sure you write notes and letters to your child, tell them what they do and what you hope for them. Enjoy these early days as much as you can because you can’t go back.
~Julie
