Dearest Raffie - You Are SIX!

Dearest Raffie – You Are Six!

Dearest Raffie,

You are six years old and yet again I’m sat here in bewilderment that another year is passed. Six years ago you didn’t so much as burst into, but took your very long time, arriving into the world but that’s you all over. It took 11 months to find you were growing inside me, which was so unusual as with your big brother and sister it had been far quicker. The same with your little sister later on but you just took your time. It was frustrating waiting that long to fall pregnant with you but boy was it worth the wait and when labour didn’t go exactly to plan, after days of waiting, to find out you were well and truly stuck and my body hadn’t done what it should have, an emergency C-Section brought you into the world and I saw your beautiful face, the face I’d been waiting for for a very long time. I’d seen you in a dream long before I’d had any babies at all and recognised you right away. That very vivid dream showed me you so clearly that I couldn’t be mistaken as to it being you as soon as I saw you for real. And it’s funny now because one of the things you talk about a lot is that you were always in my tummy as an egg, always waiting to be born and when we talk about things which happened before you came along, you say “I was there, in my egg, in your tummy!”

You were the most glorious baby and because I was so poorly after that C-Section, needing blood transfusions and lots of rest, I got to sit and stare at you for weeks, to breathe you in almost, in a way I didn’t before, or after, because you never have time to just sit and be. It was a gift that I got that with you and I can still smell that very unmistakable baby Raffie scent which you still have, and which still makes me want to hug you so close you might never get away. As you’ve grown, luckily, you are still the biggest cuddler, the most loving and loyal and sweet boy. And now you’re six, which feels impossible in terms of time, but also so grown up, yet you are still a baby really. A little big boy perhaps!

You remind me of my Grandpa to look at, you have his hands and your hair is so similar in the way it falls which is a lovely thing, I adore that you have some of my lovely Grandpa in you, you’re pretty lovely too. You have the biggest energy, are super bright and intelligent, you have lots of friends and you love to play football, and to dance, both things running back to back with classes on a Saturday. You adore Florence and have a special bond with her which makes me feel so happy to see, Jimmy is both your best friend and biggest argument pal but you are behind each other all the way and with Posie, you are a brilliant big brother, she cannot get enough of you and the highlight of her day is always picking you up from school, which I think, right now, is your highlight too.

You’re not actually quite yourself at the moment which is making us all a little sad. You have gone from loving school to being so unhappy about going and we cannot put our finger on what exactly has gone wrong. But we will get to the bottom of it and make it right soon, you loved reception but without a pin point yet, it doesn’t feel right in year one. My mission to to make it 100% better for you and I will get there but for now, you can have the day off for your birthday as you need that for a healthy, happy mind, and we will have lots of fun together to make today the very best day to tun six that ever there could be.

You have already had a fun birthday party at home yesterday, and now we have a day all things Raffie with Pensthorpe and chips, Roarr and a Chinese take away. And lots, and lots of presents to say HAPPY BIRTHDAY SUNSHINE boy, the boy who came out smiling, full of sun beams and bringing joy. I love you darling six year old of mine!