Bryson turns 10!

Ten years ago I was young, nervous, excited, and scared. I was having a baby boy 6 weeks too early. I went from a routine doctor visit, to bed rest, to the hospital, to induction in a matter of 24 hours. Then the 43 hour standoff for my first son to come into the world began.

At 7:20 on 8/20 Bryson Riley Trimmier Mills was born. He weighed a whopping 4lbs 9ozs. He was delivered and taken immediately to the NICU and thus began the hardest 2 weeks of my life. He was sweet and gentle from the beginning. A little mischievous and a lot cuddly. I remember going to see him for the first time and being overwhelmed by all the gadgets attached to his little body. He was under what looked like a cake lid that provided him oxygen and there were many cords attached with all kinds of irritating bells and whistles. Looking back his NICU stay was a virtual cake walk compared to what we could do 7 years later when his baby brother was born but at the time it was hard. I remember going home without my first born and crying the whole way there. I went home with just enough time to put stuff down and wanted to immediately go back.

Now he is turning 10, and three days later will start his last year of elementary school. The other night when I thought about writing this post I started to look for the pictures from his birth. I couldn't locate the photo album and that started an hour long meltdown of tears. I wanted to see the pictures, I wanted to remember that tiny little boy. I found them and stared and ooooed and ahhhed. Then was a little sad because I no longer had a baby.

Bryson is still the same boy. Sweet, sensitive, a little mischievous,and still cuddly. Honestly that is how I want him to stay. He is also smart, funny,and the best big brother ever. It is hard to watch your kids grow up. You want them to be little forever. But now my goals for him must change. I want him to be a kind and grateful man one day. So I will tell my baby happy birthday and let him grow up and hope that we can be the example of what we want him to become. I love you Bryson!