To Calvin

Dear Calvin,
Hi. I am your mother. You will learn, and take for granted, that I am pretty bad about writing things down, remembering, keeping things, taking pictures. But when I think of Heaven I realize this is not so terrible; well, everything but the remembering. I should try to remember; not for Heaven, but for life. I should try to remember about these days when you are small and in my tummy and just starting to interact with me. I don't know how much you can hear me now but I know that when I sit down you move around and when I stand up or lay down you move again. So I interact with you by sitting down and you interact with me with thump-thump-thumps. Yesterday your dad felt you for the first time. He says you gave him a high-five! Did you do that? Did you try to touch him? Maybe you were just getting comfortable, but sometimes we like to make things up about you since you're such a mystery. I've made up that you will be kind of skinny and have light hair but all I really know is that you look like a Mattson to me. It's your mouth and your nose. I'll be very surprised if you come out looking like a Humphrey, a Patterson or a Steltenpohl after seeing your picture at the ultrasound.
Do you know what else happened yesterday? A pipe burst in our laundry room and sent water everywhere! It never gets this cold here usually but I am hoping you will have snow days like we had yesterday when you are a bigger boy. The snow came down all day and was dry and light and perfect. You could look down at your clothes as each flake landed and see the pattern clearly, which I'd only seen once before and which your dad had never seen. Your dad worked so hard yesterday! He had to do some work on the laundry room and research things and make calls and work on his motorcycle and change the tires on my car. He also cleaned up around the house and helped decorate for Christmas. If you had been a big boy yesterday you may have had a lot of fun playing in the playground across the street and running around with our dog, Max. He loves snowy days. You may also have had fun hanging ornaments on the tree and melting snow on the stove for water, which we did until the plumber came out. I was looking forward to you a lot yesterday. To the days of you being a boy, and not a baby. But today is a quiet day though and I am glad you are still a baby. I like carrying you around with me everywhere these days. I like that you come to work with me and that when I'm sitting at the computer you are there thumping me. I like getting ready for you to come, even though I get so tired! I hope I am not so tired when I need to follow you and play with you. I have a feeling you will give me energy though. I love you so much, Calvin. I love your little face and the possibilities of your personality. And now maybe I think you will have darker hair. But I am not so anxious to know as I am anxious to hold you and kiss your sweet mouth. God bless you, my love.
Mom