Dear Sawyer,
Even though you are only one and a half years old, you have an incredible amount of empathy toward others. When other people are feeling sad, you immediately pick up on this and try to comfort them, which is truly amazing to see. JieJie was sick this afternoon and feeling so miserable that she sat down at the bottom of the staircase and just started sobbing. You ran right over to her, patted her arm and embraced her so tightly for several minutes. Every once in awhile, you let go of the hug to look lovingly into her face before wrapping your arms around her again. At one point, you even cupped her chin in the most heartwarming way.
And one of my most cherished memories is of you the last time you saw Uncle Tony. It was the day before he passed away and we were visiting him in the hospice wing of the hospital. Uncle Tony was laying in bed and GuhGaw and JieJie were scared to get too close to him but when I sat next to Uncle Tony and pulled you into my lap, you leaned right over to him and patted his arm several times. The way that you knew something was wrong and how you wanted to make it better--it made my heart swell.
May you always be the kind, caring soul you are now.
Love,
Mom
Wednesday, March 29, 2017
Wednesday, March 1, 2017
Messy Bath
Dear Sawyer,
This is how your bath time went tonight:
-I undressed you and put you in your tub.
-GuhGaw and JieJie were fighting over something (as they ALWAYS are) and yelling at each other.
-I ran out into the hallway to tell them to stop fighting. While out in the hallway, I realized I'd forgotten to get a diaper to put on you after your bath, so I grabbed one from your room.
-When I came back into the bathroom, you were playing with a BALL OF POOP! Oh my god, you had pooped in the tub and there were several balls of poop floating in the water.
-I spent several seconds trying to decide what to clean first: you or the tub. I went with the tub.
-I carried you out of the tub and put you inside my glass shower stall and shut the door.
-I threw out the poop (ew) and started scrubbing and rinsing the tub. Meanwhile, you were completely naked and pacing back and forth in the shower like a funny little zoo animal. You had never been in my shower stall before and I could tell that you did not know what to make of it. You knocked on the door a few times and called out, "MaMAAAA! MaMAAAAA!" I knew you were probably thinking, "Um, Mom? What am I doing in here?" After a few minutes, the novelty started to wear off and you started to panic and knock on the glass harder, wanting to be let out.
-I started cleaning faster and knelt there, amazed that this is my life now. Oh man!
Love,
Mom
This is how your bath time went tonight:
-I undressed you and put you in your tub.
-GuhGaw and JieJie were fighting over something (as they ALWAYS are) and yelling at each other.
-I ran out into the hallway to tell them to stop fighting. While out in the hallway, I realized I'd forgotten to get a diaper to put on you after your bath, so I grabbed one from your room.
-When I came back into the bathroom, you were playing with a BALL OF POOP! Oh my god, you had pooped in the tub and there were several balls of poop floating in the water.
-I spent several seconds trying to decide what to clean first: you or the tub. I went with the tub.
-I carried you out of the tub and put you inside my glass shower stall and shut the door.
-I threw out the poop (ew) and started scrubbing and rinsing the tub. Meanwhile, you were completely naked and pacing back and forth in the shower like a funny little zoo animal. You had never been in my shower stall before and I could tell that you did not know what to make of it. You knocked on the door a few times and called out, "MaMAAAA! MaMAAAAA!" I knew you were probably thinking, "Um, Mom? What am I doing in here?" After a few minutes, the novelty started to wear off and you started to panic and knock on the glass harder, wanting to be let out.
-I started cleaning faster and knelt there, amazed that this is my life now. Oh man!
Love,
Mom
Sunday, February 19, 2017
MaMAAAAAA!
Dear Sawyer,
This month's new behaviors:
-You nod as I read to you.
-You can point to your head, ears, mouth and feet when asked to and you stick out your tongue when I ask you where your tongue is. One time, I asked you where your belly button is and you tried to take off your shirt to show it to me!
-You can now say: peas (please), tanks (thanks), sock, book, fish, moo, cheers, ewww, ow, uh-oh, whoa whoa (when you imitate a dog barking), fa fa (Chinese for flower) and your favorite Paw Patrol member's name, Chay (Chase)
-You still looooove buses and when you see one, you go, "Whoooooooa!"
-When you want me to give you something I'm holding, you tap your hand and say, "Peas!"
-When you want my attention, you shout in this kind of nasally way, "MaMAAAAAA! MaMAAAAAAA!" :-P
Love,
MaMAAAAAA!
This month's new behaviors:
-You nod as I read to you.
-You can point to your head, ears, mouth and feet when asked to and you stick out your tongue when I ask you where your tongue is. One time, I asked you where your belly button is and you tried to take off your shirt to show it to me!
-You can now say: peas (please), tanks (thanks), sock, book, fish, moo, cheers, ewww, ow, uh-oh, whoa whoa (when you imitate a dog barking), fa fa (Chinese for flower) and your favorite Paw Patrol member's name, Chay (Chase)
-You still looooove buses and when you see one, you go, "Whoooooooa!"
-When you want me to give you something I'm holding, you tap your hand and say, "Peas!"
-When you want my attention, you shout in this kind of nasally way, "MaMAAAAAA! MaMAAAAAAA!" :-P
Love,
MaMAAAAAA!
Sunday, February 12, 2017
Chocoholics
Dear Sawyer,
We had lunch at a restaurant today and ordered a slice of turtle pie for you kids to share for dessert. And watching you, JieJie and GuhGaw hungrily devour it and practically fight each other for every bite was one of the most entertaining things I have ever seen. My kids do not mess around when there's chocolate!
Love,
Mom
We had lunch at a restaurant today and ordered a slice of turtle pie for you kids to share for dessert. And watching you, JieJie and GuhGaw hungrily devour it and practically fight each other for every bite was one of the most entertaining things I have ever seen. My kids do not mess around when there's chocolate!
Love,
Mom
Wednesday, February 1, 2017
My Favorite Baby
Dear Sawyer,
You have been busy doing so many new things!
-You now say: aaa-pul (apple), nana (banana), uh-oh, ow, yeeeeeeah (when you get excited for food) and PoiPoi (I call her every day so now you say PoiPoi every time you see me pick up my phone).
-You can climb onto chairs. It's funny watching you do it because you kind of fling your upper body onto the seat and then wiggle until you get your legs up, too.
-You blow kisses to your siblings at bedtime and when you say goodbye to someone.
-You can make the "come here" gesture with your hand.
-You have always loved being tickled and now you try to tickle me back. You look so cute when you do it, too, because you get this mischievous smile on your face, wiggle your fingers at me and say, "Gee go gee go gee."
-You were playing in your room with GuhGaw and JieJie one day when I heard you cry out really loudly. When I ran to your room, I saw that you had crawled under your crib (having gone in after a runaway toy car) and gotten stuck there. Oye.
-You now pick out books, bring them over to me and plop yourself into my lap so that I can read them to you.
-You imitate me when I sneeze (and actually mirror a lot of other actions you see other people doing).
-You like to jump out and shout "buh!" (boo!) to scare people (you learned this from GuhGaw, sigh).
-When I ask you who is my favorite baby, you smile and proudly put your hand on your chest.
Love,
Mom
You have been busy doing so many new things!
-You now say: aaa-pul (apple), nana (banana), uh-oh, ow, yeeeeeeah (when you get excited for food) and PoiPoi (I call her every day so now you say PoiPoi every time you see me pick up my phone).
-You can climb onto chairs. It's funny watching you do it because you kind of fling your upper body onto the seat and then wiggle until you get your legs up, too.
-You blow kisses to your siblings at bedtime and when you say goodbye to someone.
-You can make the "come here" gesture with your hand.
-You have always loved being tickled and now you try to tickle me back. You look so cute when you do it, too, because you get this mischievous smile on your face, wiggle your fingers at me and say, "Gee go gee go gee."
-You were playing in your room with GuhGaw and JieJie one day when I heard you cry out really loudly. When I ran to your room, I saw that you had crawled under your crib (having gone in after a runaway toy car) and gotten stuck there. Oye.
-You now pick out books, bring them over to me and plop yourself into my lap so that I can read them to you.
-You imitate me when I sneeze (and actually mirror a lot of other actions you see other people doing).
-You like to jump out and shout "buh!" (boo!) to scare people (you learned this from GuhGaw, sigh).
-When I ask you who is my favorite baby, you smile and proudly put your hand on your chest.
Love,
Mom
Wednesday, January 18, 2017
Uncle Tony
Dear Sawyer,
Your Uncle Tony always loved the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. What's not to love? They are superheroes who fight crime, make wisecracks all of the time and crave pizza. And they aren't so different from Uncle Tony, who grew up on Pizza Hut, was always ready with a funny comment for everything and was a real-life superhero who made so many people's lives better just by being a part of them.
I met many of Uncle Tony's friends last week and all of them said the same thing: Tony made the world a better place. Whether he was joking around to cheer up a sad friend, encouraging another friend to pursue her dream job or just holding a girl's purse so she wouldn't lose it at a bar, he always looked out for others and lit up any room with his humor and positive attitude.
Uncle Tony was truly a superhero because he was strong enough to maintain that humor and positive attitude even when he was diagnosed with brain cancer not just once, but twice. When GongGong, PoiPoi and I wanted to crumple into a heap onto the floor, Uncle Tony was the one who made us laugh and lifted our spirits when we were the ones who should have been doing that for him. His strength never wavered during his countless treatments and surgeries and even when his entire body was literally failing him and he couldn't even speak, he still found the power to give the doctors an optimistic thumbs-up sign and playfully stick out his tongue at us.
I will never be able to process this loss, the fact that I will never hug my brother again or text him about our favorite shows or have lengthy conversations with him about how crazy our parents are. It is unreal and unfair that he was taken at such a young age when he had so much more to accomplish. And it truly breaks my heart that you won't remember him and that he will not be here to see you grow up. Uncle Tony was my baby brother and I do not know how I will make it through the rest of my life without him. I wish that you didn't have to go through the rest of your life without knowing him. But if anything, Uncle Tony taught us all how to stay strong even in the darkest hours.
I miss Uncle Tony so unbearably much, but he will stay alive in everyone's memories and I will talk about him all of the time so that you, JieJie and GuhGaw will always remember what an amazing, special and undeniably super uncle you guys had.
Love,
Mom
Your Uncle Tony always loved the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. What's not to love? They are superheroes who fight crime, make wisecracks all of the time and crave pizza. And they aren't so different from Uncle Tony, who grew up on Pizza Hut, was always ready with a funny comment for everything and was a real-life superhero who made so many people's lives better just by being a part of them.
I met many of Uncle Tony's friends last week and all of them said the same thing: Tony made the world a better place. Whether he was joking around to cheer up a sad friend, encouraging another friend to pursue her dream job or just holding a girl's purse so she wouldn't lose it at a bar, he always looked out for others and lit up any room with his humor and positive attitude.
Uncle Tony was truly a superhero because he was strong enough to maintain that humor and positive attitude even when he was diagnosed with brain cancer not just once, but twice. When GongGong, PoiPoi and I wanted to crumple into a heap onto the floor, Uncle Tony was the one who made us laugh and lifted our spirits when we were the ones who should have been doing that for him. His strength never wavered during his countless treatments and surgeries and even when his entire body was literally failing him and he couldn't even speak, he still found the power to give the doctors an optimistic thumbs-up sign and playfully stick out his tongue at us.
I will never be able to process this loss, the fact that I will never hug my brother again or text him about our favorite shows or have lengthy conversations with him about how crazy our parents are. It is unreal and unfair that he was taken at such a young age when he had so much more to accomplish. And it truly breaks my heart that you won't remember him and that he will not be here to see you grow up. Uncle Tony was my baby brother and I do not know how I will make it through the rest of my life without him. I wish that you didn't have to go through the rest of your life without knowing him. But if anything, Uncle Tony taught us all how to stay strong even in the darkest hours.
I miss Uncle Tony so unbearably much, but he will stay alive in everyone's memories and I will talk about him all of the time so that you, JieJie and GuhGaw will always remember what an amazing, special and undeniably super uncle you guys had.
Love,
Mom
Friday, January 13, 2017
Nursing Nostalgia
Dear Sawyer,
So many cute behaviors to document!
-I went to Pittsburgh for a few days to see Uncle Tony and when I came back, you were in the backseat when Daddy picked up me up at the airport. It had been my first time being away from you for so long and when you saw me through the car window, you immediately started waving at me and blowing me kisses!
(Not-so-cute aside: That same day I came back, GuhGaw later accidentally hit you really hard in the face with some Legos. And not too shortly after that, JieJie accidentally smacked you in the face with your bead maze. It's rough being the smallest sometimes.)
-One afternoon, I found you laying on your belly in your room, eagerly blowing a piece of lint across the floor. So glad we bought you all those new toys for Christmas.
-After picking up one of your books and putting it on the coffee table like I asked you to do, you clapped for yourself and held up your hand toward me to indicate that I should give you a congratulatory high five.
-You picked up JieJie's Belle doll and said, "Baby."
-We were playing in your room today when you picked up your old nursing pillow, laid it down on my lap and then laid yourself down on top of it. I stopped breastfeeding you at the beginning of last November but I guess you still remember nursing . . . and miss it maybe? I know I miss nursing you.
Love,
Mom
So many cute behaviors to document!
-I went to Pittsburgh for a few days to see Uncle Tony and when I came back, you were in the backseat when Daddy picked up me up at the airport. It had been my first time being away from you for so long and when you saw me through the car window, you immediately started waving at me and blowing me kisses!
(Not-so-cute aside: That same day I came back, GuhGaw later accidentally hit you really hard in the face with some Legos. And not too shortly after that, JieJie accidentally smacked you in the face with your bead maze. It's rough being the smallest sometimes.)
-One afternoon, I found you laying on your belly in your room, eagerly blowing a piece of lint across the floor. So glad we bought you all those new toys for Christmas.
-After picking up one of your books and putting it on the coffee table like I asked you to do, you clapped for yourself and held up your hand toward me to indicate that I should give you a congratulatory high five.
-You picked up JieJie's Belle doll and said, "Baby."
-We were playing in your room today when you picked up your old nursing pillow, laid it down on my lap and then laid yourself down on top of it. I stopped breastfeeding you at the beginning of last November but I guess you still remember nursing . . . and miss it maybe? I know I miss nursing you.
Love,
Mom
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