Dearest Raffie, Now You Are Eight!

Dearest Raffie,

Our most wonderfully gorgeous and smiley eight year old, wow! How did that happen?! It feels like not so long ago we were battling to get you into the world with days of labour, forceps and then, finally, a C-Section delivery which saw me only hold you for a few seconds before they whisked you away and I asked Daddy to go and be with you. I remember seeing your face and knowing it was the face of the baby I’d dreamed of long before daddy and I had even begun to start a family. When your big sister was born I knew she didn’t have this face that had been so vivid in my dream, and then your big brother came and he didn’t either so I started to wonder if it was all a dream and if I’d never really see this face and then… There you were! I don’t remember much more from that moment of you being born, the recognition that you are you, a brief hold with you on my chest and then I think there was a lot of panic but I was out for the count. You, most importantly, were fine and daddy looked after you while I was being made better and then, when I woke up, there you were bringing all the sunshine into the room!

And from then on in you became my gorgeous sunshine boy!

Raffie, at eight you are more superb than ever and this is really saying something! You are a top goal scorer for your football team coached by Daddy and your bestie’s Daddy too! You work so hard at all the things you love, are a brilliant dancer with Legacy and a super strong ballet boy who shows me so much talent every time he comes home from class and displays what he’s learned that day! You have fun at school, like year 3 much more than years 1 and 2 (but maybe not as much as you loved reception and Treetops as you always remind me)! You chat, chat, chat, sing in the car, love to play on your iPad, adore board games, have just started rugby (because we didn’t play enough football) and you swim beautifully which makes me very proud! You are confident and kind and when you giggle and smile it makes everyone else giggle and smile too!

The bestest little brother, a brilliant big brother, and my most favourite eight year old in the whole world! Always one of “the babies” and not the “big kids”, even though you are now older than Jimmy and nearly the same age as Florence was when you were born, and they became the big ones, while you, and then Posie, became the babies, and forever my baby as you all are, no matter how old you get!

We love you so much Raffie Rocco Cricket, happy, happy eighth birthday baby boy!

Love Mummy. Xxxx

Here’s all the birthday fun pictures from the joint football party, to the big day, to the family celebrations!