Dear Natalie,
The last time I wrote you a letter was in the first month of your life. How time flies – you’re over five months old now and appear to be getting ready to crawl.
You would have thought that the ‘romance’ of the first month would wear off after awhile for new parents because of the constant lack of sleep, dirty diapers, vomiting, and moments of extreme crying and fussiness.
But it doesn’t.
If anything, our love for you continues to grow even as your mommy and I see you hit new milestones everyday, and as your responses to us become more intentional and conscious.
After a good sleep, you always wake up in a good mood and I can’t express how I feel when I lean over your cot in the morning before I go to work because every day without fail, you will open your eyes, see me and give the biggest, most beautiful smile in the world.
And just last night, you finally learnt how to laugh and chuckle instead of your usual squeal of delight when you’re happy.
I could go down the list of all the milestones you’ve hit in the last four months but it would be too extensive to write. One thing I do know is that you’ve grown faster than the average baby, both in size and in achieving the estimated milestones.
You’re now 7kg when you started at 2.68kg. I hope you don’t end up like the Michelin baby.
You crawl from one end of the mattress to the other effortlessly in your squirming method.
You spin like a propeller, back to front, front to back with such force that you’ve got bruises on your head from the things you’ve bumped into (we have since bought padding for your entire cot).
Sometimes I wonder if you understand what you say when you call out ‘Papa’ and ‘Mama’ because of the way you call to me when Mommy walks past with you on her shoulder.
You love swimming and kick so hard in the water until it hurts when you kick my rib cage as I’m carrying you.
It’s been an amazing experience having you as our child. Unimaginably exhausting and draining, especially since I suspect you’re more active than most babies your age, but an incredible blessing from God. His greatest gift so far to your mommy and myself.
And we don’t regret a moment of it.
There are times even when I’m late to work where I’ll leave the apartment and then walk back in to pick you up and hold you for two minutes before rushing back out again.
I don’t think you can comprehend how much we love you but it doesn’t matter because we will regardless of whether you realise it or not. It gives me new perspective to how much our Father in heaven loves us where we’re unable to comprehend or even feel His love many times.
But He loves all of us anyway, more than I could ever love you. And I realise now how happy God would be during the moments we get glimpses of just how much He cares for us because I’d feel the same once you start comprehending that you mean the world to me and reciprocate.
I pray that you will grow up knowing His love, even as you know your earthly parents’ love for you as well.
Love,
Dad
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