Three

Dear Eli,

Today you turn three years old! Today I will tiptoe into your room at 5:04am and kiss your sweet, soft cheek, and I will remember so vividly the very first time I kissed you three years ago. I can't believe that my tiny baby is now a boy!

And what a boy you are! You are so full of life, Eli. You love to play outside, to have a catch, to go camping and fishing, and to play hide-and-seek. You love tractors and trains, ice cream and cheetos, bugs and snakes. You are sweet and tenderhearted, the first one to offer help and compassion, good-natured and fun. You love your cousins and your grandparents, and you still love to be cuddled by your mommy. But you are your Daddy's boy through and through! You are a joy to us, sweetheart, sunshine in our lives.

I am so proud of who you are, Eli. Daddy and I look at you and just smile with thanks to the Lord, remembering just how far you've come from a tiny little preemie in the NICU. What a fighter you are! And you've come through with such light and life and joy!

We pray daily for you, that you will become a man of God strong and faithful and fully of kindness and integrity. Already we are seeing your love for Jesus develop, and we rejoice in your tender heart. We pray that this gentle and pure love for Christ will remain for the rest of your life.

Today we celebrate YOU, Eli Dane! We celebrate all you are and all you do, a wonderful and special creation of the Lord. Daddy and I love you more than anything else in this world, and we always, always will.

Happy birthday, my sweet boy! I am so thankful and proud to be your mom.

Always,
Mommy.