DREW

Dear Drew,

It has recently hit me just how much you have grown and changed and turned into such a big boy! I am not sure why all of a sudden I am noticing this because clearly you aren't a tiny baby anymore. But, this past week after picking you up from pre-school, I realized how real it is that you are growing up so very quickly.

I can still remember the day I found out you were on your way. It really does seem like just yesterday that you were simply known as "Zippy the Zygote", a name we gave you within hours of finding out you were in your Mommy's tummy. I swear, there couldn't have been a more excited Aunt-to-be on the face of the earth. When I turned over the placecard at the dinner table that said "Aunt Brie", revealing the big surprise, I jumped up and started screaming in excitement! In fact, I was so excited that I couldn't even finish my dinner...my favorite meal, no less, Prime Rib (made by your very own Pappers, by the way!). For the next 8 months, we waited in anticipation of your arrival. The morning of your birth, I can remember waiting very impatiently for the news that you had come into the world. Then, my phone rang...It's a BOY! Drew Richard, 7lbs 5ozs, 19.5in! I thought that the news that you were finally here would be enough. But, then the very impatient waiting got even worse, because now all I wanted was to see a picture of this beautiful boy that was my first nephew! Technology wasn't quite where it is today, so a picture message from a cell phone wasn't possible. I had to wait for your Daddy to get home and upload some pictures. Boy did that wait seem like forever!

Then, the pictures just weren't enough! I needed to get my hands on you and cuddle with you. 3 weeks after you were born, your Uncle Randy and I drove up to Pittsburgh from NC to meet you for the first time. As we got closer, we fought about who would get to hold you first. When we arrived late that night, it was such a blessing that your Mommy let you stay up (well, really you slept, we watched you sleep) with us for a few hours while she and your Daddy got some much needed rest. You were quite the little snuggle bug, that is for sure! (as you can see below, your Uncle Randy won the argument over who would hold you first!)

A few months after you were born, we found out we would be having a little cousin for you. During our Easter trip to Charleson in 2007, you predicted that the baby in my belly would be a boy. Somehow, even though you were only 8 months old, we were convinced you knew right from the beginning that your cousin was indeed a boy. Everytime we asked you, "Drew, is the baby a boy or a girl?", your response was "ba ba ba ba ba", which we took to mean "Boy!" You knew all along that our little baby would be your bestfriend!
I have enjoyed watching you grow and watching you learn so many new things over the past 3.5 years! It is amazing to me that the little baby you once were has turned into such a smart big boy. Every time I am with you, you are always cracking me up with your silly comments and your funny jokes. I can't get over how inquisitive you are...always asking questions and always wanting to know how the world works. Your enthusiasm for learning and understanding everything around you is uncanny. When I picked you up from pre-school last week (on rainbow day) and I saw your bright shining face, so excited to share your day with me, it hit me just how quickly time has flown by. I wanted to bottle you up and freeze time, even if only for a few minutes. But, alas, the closest I could get to freezing time was to snap a picture.

I thank God that he has blessed me with the best nephew ever! And, I thank you, Drew, for loving me and for just being you. You always know how to brighten my day and bring a smile to my face. I love you to the moon and back!