As you get older, you will see that mama does not sweat a lot of the details: mismatch socks, letting Baba dress you guys stripes on stripes, and dinners that are Chinese, Mexican, and Mediterranean all at the same time. But my babies, sometimes...sometimes it actually IS all about the details and the small things. I am terrified of forgetting our experiences together, especially the tiny subtle things about each of you. What if I forget what our home looked like and felt like? Evie's bear bear, Boris abandoned in the sun room, heaps and piles of toys thrown all around - the most ordinary, most constant details of our lives that seem to be the least photographed and appreciated. These are the tidbits, the mess that makes me crazy on a daily basis but are the exact things that remind me how thankful I am that this is our constant because you two, my most precious babes, are with me.
Kids - we had a wonderful Christmas at home. We picked up our perfectly shaped Christmas tree with your Aunt Jen just two weeks ago. It took us a while to get it up and decorated and it was a bit of a mess since we could only hang ornaments on the top half of the tree. Max hasn't quite learned the 2-finger ornament touch rule, instead choosing to tippy toe and yanking ornaments and lights off, so now our tree really matches our family's messy, low key style.
Evie - without having talked about Santa with you, you somehow knew everything there was to know about Santa Claus and his reindeers. For Christmas, you asked Santa for water, juice, milk, a peppa pig cup, candy, strawberries, and blueberries. You were excited that you got the peppa pig cup but told me that he must not have gotten your note (which was hand drawn btw) because he forgot your milk. You and Max both loved the giant Peppa Pig doll that Nonnie got you and you have been such a wonderful sister sharing as much as you can. E, you keep getting wittier and funnier and it seems overnight you've become such a big girl. How did that happen? You are a sensitive girl who seem to really love one on one time with us and your teachers at school. Sometimes it is hard for Mama to relate to you because I am not the most sensitive person on earth but I'm trying! The two weeks after our vacation was rough on you - there was a lot of crying at home and at school and it was challenging to deal with. You said that you just want to be home with us and I understand. I wish we could just hang out all day and not go to work/school too, trust me!
Max - you are a riot and you are so funny. You LOVE cars, making silly faces, dancing and listening to music. We love watching you dance...gosh, I hope I never forget the way you bend your legs to the beats, it might be one of the cutest things I will ever see. As exhausting and aggravating it is nursing and co-sleeping with you at this age, after venting and consuming caffeine, I would not give up all the snuggles and the giggles we share while singing Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star. You certainly can make your Baba and I crazy these days throwing food on the floor, breaking plates(!), and hitting! You're also giving your sister a run for her money, often standing your ground when she takes your favorite toys and sometimes being a giant butt taking her things and pulling her hair. We are definitely all learning to work together! I love that you are such an open book (like your mama!), straightforward, and uninhibited. Stay that way, my boy.
This year flew by so quickly. It is weird to think that Max was crawling this time last year and he is now running around kicking a soccer ball. It also hurts my heart a little to watch my little chubby toddler transform into a tall little girl. Gosh guys, I feel so so so fortunate that this is what we have together. I will never take it for granted.
I love you, my little bears.
-Mama
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Po Chi Fung is a Ventura County Lifestyle Family and Newborn Photographer, also serving Ojai, Santa Barbara, Santa Monica, Thousand Oaks, Oxnard, and other surrounding areas. She captures real-life moments with a documentary approach on film to tell your family's story.
