To My Darling Luigi

To my Darling Luigi,

Luigi, you light up my life with your mischief and giggles. Your big blue eyes sparkle and your smile can melt my heart, even when I want to put you in time out for the rest of your life. Here are just a few of the reasons I love you so...

1. Every time we get in the car, the first thing you say is, "I want Beautiful!" Which means you want to listen to the song "You're Beautiful," by James Blunt for the 3,465,097th time this week. And I almost always give in because I love to hear you sing it.

2. Now that you wear underpants and use the big potty, you are kind of obsessed with poop. You follow everyone into the bathroom and insist on seeing their poop before they flush it down the toilet. Then you say, "That was so cool," as if it really is the coolest thing in the world. You also do this when I change your sister's diapers and you get very upset with me if I wrap it up and throw it away before you have a chance to check it out.

3. You dip everything in ketchup. EVERYTHING. I have watched you dip french fries, chicken nuggets, celery, macaroni and cheese, cantaloupe and frosting into ketchup. It grosses me out, but apparently you love it, so rock on with the ketchup little man. And to get you to eat pizza, I have to tell you the sauce is actually ketchup.

4. You love the kitties. You love the kitties so much that you actually hurt them a little with your affection. Literally. Koopa Troopa 1 is old and has learned to run and hide when you come running. But, KT 2 is still only a kitten and thinks you are her own personal play mate. You and KT 2 chase each other around and you laugh like crazy. Then you lay on top of her and tell her she is a nice kitty. It is very sweet.

5. You might actually have a worse gag reflex than I do. When I smell your ketchup, it kindof makes me gag. When you see me gag, you start gagging. When you look at the poop that is "so cool," you also gag a little bit. When Peach barfed in the bathtub, I thought you were going to hurl right there with her. For such a tough little guy, it is funny to see you get so grossed out!

6. You follow Mario around and mimic everything he does. When he sits a certain way on the couch, you do too. When he asks me for ice cream, you are right behind him asking in the same way. You are the happiest when he pays attention to you and includes you in his Mario games. You look up to him and practically worship the ground he walks on.

7. You seem to love to torture your baby sister. But, there are times, when you think I am not looking, that I will catch you playing, laughing and sharing with her. And Peach adores you the way you adore Mario. Then, when you realize I am watching, you don't want to lose your reputation, so you snatch her toy and knock her over again. But, I have seen those moments and I hold them in my heart.

8. Sometimes, when I am on my computer writing, you come over, rest your head on my lap and say, "My Mommy..." And it pulls on my heartstrings every time. Then you run off again to cause some mischief. But, in that moment I can see what a sweet little boy you are and what a caring man you will become.

Luigi, I am so proud and happy to be your Mommy. God knew what He was doing when He placed you with us. Whether you are causing trouble or just talking to your trains, you are my Luigi and I will always love you with all my heart. Happy 3rd Birthday, Baby!

Love,
Mommy