Dear Eric,
I feel like you have come so far in this past year. In the beginning, life was not so kind to you. You had a horrible case of acid reflux when you were born, which made it difficult for you to eat. As a result, you were often pretty unhappy. It hurt you to eat, so you would cry, but it was also uncomfortable to be so hungry, so you would cry. I spent a lot of time feeling so sad because I couldn't help you no matter how hard I tried. We put you on medication, I cut out all dairy from my diet, and you were still in pain. I can't imagine what that must have felt like, and I am so sorry that you had to go through that. Because you were in pain, you looked to me for comfort a lot, and you quickly became a Mama's boy. That habit of needing me still continues today, and I'll admit, there is a part of me that loves it!
When you turned four months old, it was like you were a different kid. Suddenly you were happier. The doctor says it's because your digestive system was maturing and you were able to process food better. Whatever the reason, I was so happy! You liked being around Daddy more and more. As the months went on, you got more used to being around others, and eventually, you came to love attention from others. When you were about 10 1/2 months old, we went on vacation to Disney World, and you saw how wonderful it was to get attention from other people. Suddenly our shy little Eric became outgoing. From this moment on, you smiled at everyone in an effort to get them to smile back at you (they always did). I love to see your face light up every time you see a new person, and it is fun to see how much people love you. I can't take you anywhere without hearing what a cute little boy I have!
And smart! At your first birthday, you had said 12 words (you are currently up to 16). You could say hi, bye-bye, Mama, Dada, boom, oops, fish, Nemo, no-no, bird, up, and go. You now also know poop, bubbles, puppy, and clap. You can tell us that a kitty says meow and puppy says "aarf aarf aarf." You let me know when you are done eating by waving your hands. You tell me you are thirsty by pointing to a drink that I have or going to the cabinet to get out a cup. Sometimes, you even know exactly which cup you want, and you will keep trying until you get that one. You learned to drink from a straw immediately. I was shocked! I gave you the straw cup, and before I could even squeeze it up into the straw, you started to suck on it. I couldn't believe you figured it out on your own! Right now, you are working on figuring out how to use a fork. You try to put the food on top of the fork and eat it, or you will wave the fork around and hope that the food gets on it (but it always ends up on the floor). We're working on learning how to stab the food. When I help you with this, you get so excited to use the fork to eat!
You adore your sister! You watch everything she does, and you do your best to keep up with her. You laugh at a lot of the things she does, and she is always happy to make you laugh again and again. You like to watch movies together, sing, dance, and play. Your favorite thing to do together is "chase." She pushes her scooter and you push your walker, and the two of you do laps around the center of our house. Adriana will yell, "we are chasing!" and you will laugh so hard. Whenever someone says, "chase," you know what to do. You will run to get your walker and take off! I hope you and Adriana are always great friends, like you are right now.
This summer, I enrolled Adriana in a music/dance class. At first, I thought I would just take Adriana and you would stay with Hermie. One week, Hermie couldn't watch you, and it turns out that was the best thing that could have happened to you. You absolutely LOVE this class! You love to play with the instruments and dance along to the songs. Your favorite song is "No, No, No." You recently started making the sign for "no, no, no" as you say the words. This is my cue to start singing the song. I love seeing your adorable smile when I start to sing. I think you ask me to sing this song about 20 times each day.
You also love to play basketball. This is a favorite game to play with Daddy. You like to chase after the ball, and you know how to throw or roll it to someone. You have so much fun watching Daddy, Adriana, and me throw the basketball in the hoop.
You are also SO, SO sweet. You will give me kisses if I ask (occasionally, I don't have to ask). You love to give hugs. I love it when I pick you up and you put your arms around me and lay your head on my shoulder. You also know how to say you're sorry. If you hurt Adriana, I will have you tell her you're sorry. You will walk over to her and give her a kiss. You also show affection by head-butting. This started as a game with Daddy, but you now do it with Adriana and me, too. When you want to be friendly, you will lean your head into someone's forehead and push.
You have loved playing at the park this summer. You absolutely LOVE to slide! You also like swinging. You will say, "go," when you want to go down a slide or be pushed in a swing.
Nemo is, by far, your favorite character. You recognize him whenever you see him (or any other clown fish), and you love to look at fish because of him. Your face lights up whenever you get a glimpse of him. I don't think I've ever seen someone your age become so attached to a character. It's so cute to see you developing your own interests at such an early age.
I hope that as you grow, you will continue to enjoy life and care about other people. I know that you didn't really enjoy life for the first four months, and I hope that you are able spend the rest of your life making up for that. Anyone who meets you today would never know that you were so unhappy at the beginning of your life. You are the most fun-loving kid! You are a wonderful little boy, and I want you to be happy. I hope that you find little ways to be happy and enjoy life every day, whether it's watching Nemo, chasing Adriana, or some other fun activity you find.
I also want you to be a caring boy, and someday, I want you to turn into a caring man. You need to always show respect to other people, especially girls and/or women. You are so caring and sweet in the way you give kisses, hugs, and even head-butts. I hope you always stay as sweet. I feel like men get such a bad rap because of things that a few jerks have done. I hope that you are one of the men, like your dad, who shows women what a good man is like.
I can't tell you how proud I am to be your Mommy. You are sweet, smart, funny, personable, and loving. I love how much time I've been able to spend with you during the first year of your life. It's fun to see what new things you learn each day, and I love how much you love to be around me. It makes my day to see how important I am to you because you and Adriana are everything to me. I feel so lucky that I have been blessed with two wonderful children! I only hope that I will continue to raise you to be as loving and happy as you are today.
I love you, Eric Anthony Herman!
Love, Mommy