dear little prince

dear little prince,

well, operation nursery is in full swing. we bought a smattering of fabrics for your grandmum to use for your special quilt, and i am so excited! we were going to do a cool quilt design and limit the fabrics to about five but once i entered the fabric store, things got a little wild. i am a fabric junkie and i kept adding more and more to the cart. so, change of design plans. but, it is going to be oh-so-fabulous. a mix of pinstripes and old school newspaper print and european blueprints and paris maps and music and tie-looking prints and stripes and sketches. it is going to be so amazing. sophisticated and dapper. a mix of old-school cool and history and geography and professional polish. like a fancy suit and tie in quilt form.

we have ordered some decorative bits for your room that should arrive very soon and next up, drapes and a rug and some sheets and such. your special space is shaping up to be a refined little room suited for a little prince. very noble indeed. i can't wait to snuggle with you in our special chair and nurse and sing and pray and read. the hours we will spend in there together. talking and getting acquainted. i can't wait to meet your little face. i so wonder what you will look like! your hair and eyes and mouth. your feet and little form. maybe you will have a full head of dark hair like your mama. or perhaps you will be a little blonde like your papa. will you have those serious whitehouse shoulders and calves? will you have that amazing bobble-head like your sister? oh, we are so excited.

i feel like i am so spoiled to get all these months with you just to myself. and i am hoping it gives me a little mama advantage...that we have something super special that is just for us. our own little connection that we can share. how i hope that you are my little buddy. elinor was a mama's girl for a solid stretch but i am pretty sure that she is all about her papa now. those two, they gang up on me big time with their antics. you and me, ridley. we can take them.

i may not know what you look like yet, but it seems like i know a lot about your personality already. you are quite intuitive and aware. you sense when it is time to rest and be calm and you go with it. and when i am active or exercising or talking or out and about, you move right along with me. you get super excited when i eat or drink (something that will serve you well in our family). and when i am still or quiet, you will sweetly roll and swirl and move, just to say hello and let me know that you are there. you little flirt.

you like your space and get pretty darn annoyed with people mess with you. you kick the doppler when it tries to listen your heartbeat. you punch when pressure is applied to my belly (ahem, your home). you are bold and tough when you need to be...but you are such a little darling. what a splendid mix.

i pray that you will always have a balance of tender-attentive-caring and fierce-independent-strong. the world needs more gentlemen. and i pray that we can raise you up into a fine young man who loves the Lord and loves his family and loves others. may you know how to work a finely-tailored suit and bowtie and sport a team uniform and rock some shorts and a mud-stained t-shirt and bare feet. may you realize that manhood isn't measured in stature or status or achievement or money, but in who you are in Christ. the intensity of your devotion and dedication, the depths of your knowledge of the scriptures, the heights of your generosity, the breadth of your love.

and let me tell you...we sure do love you, deep and wide.

mama + papa + elinor