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Ron Brounes
2319A
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FOR WHAT
IT’S WORTH
| “Dear Emmy” |
Issue 79 |
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| By: Ron Brounes |
October 2006 |
Words cannot even begin to express the joy and
happiness that Mommy and Daddy felt the day you arrived into our lives and
every day thereafter. (Though “look at all
that hair” was among the initial sentiments.)
You see, Emmy, it took us over 40 years (early 40s that is) to find each
other and then our “miracle baby” came along a short time later to make our
family complete (for now). Needless to
say, you have been an absolutely perfect baby in every way. For one, you gave Mommy almost no problems
during her pregnancy; throughout the entire term, she only suffered occasional
tiredness and one bout of morning sickness in the midst of a yoga class (those
down dogs can be so challenging).
Your timing was impeccable as you accommodated
everyone’s schedule by coming on September 27.
Daddy had been fighting a cold (or probably just nerves) and you waited
until his meds kicked in. Mommy had some
last minute work to finish and you held off with those contractions until that
final memo was almost completely dictated.
(Hopefully, her assistant didn’t include the words “wow, that was a big one” when she typed the letter.) Your due date was originally scheduled for
October 2 which happened to coincide with Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish religion.
Your poor Mamaw (Brounes) was torn between spending
that day in synagogue or in the hospital waiting room. You made the decision easy for her by
arriving five days early. I was even able
to fast on Yom Kippur as well (though watching you eat made me hungry about
FRIENDS
AND FAMILY
Emmy, you must never doubt how truly loved you
are. Aunt Tootie
and Mamaw visit virtually every day and fight over
who gets to hold you, swaddle you, and change your diaper (no argument from us
on that one). Grandma Libby (Hachenburg)
talks to Mommy and Mamaw to catch up on developments
and has already made plans to visit with the whole
As with all babies, everyone who meets you debates
who you look like. Because of your full
head of dark hair, many people think you look exactly like me. (Thankfully, you don’t have that dark hair on
your back, chest, and inside your ears.)
Others think your nose and mouth are the spitting image of Mommy as a
baby. And, of course, those jokesters in
the bunch make cracks about the milkman.
(Luckily, our milkman is a 75 year old woman.)
A
FEW OF YOUR FAVORITE THINGS
You’ve been exposed to much
culture in your short life and we are trying to identify your likes and
dislikes. You seem to enjoy watching the
Bachelor with Mommy on Monday nights
(though Daddy doesn’t think those girls are very good role models). Of course, I needed equal time so you had the
pleasure of taking in your first Texas/OU football game from the luxury of our
couch. (Next year, you can partake in
your first corn dog and funnel cake from the State Fair.) Your Longhorn attire was just the team spirit
UT needed as the Horns are now 1-0 against OU in the Emmy era. (I have to credit “Uncle” Rock for that
one.) We also watch an occasional SportsCenter, though Mommy doesn’t think Terrell Owens is
much of a role model either. (Payback
for my Bachelor comment, no doubt.)
While you enjoy all the nursery rhymes and other
traditional baby jingles, you seem to really get a bigger kick out of the
personal songs that we have made up for you.
Each morning we start with “Open Your Eyes Baby Emmy” and “How Emmy Starts
Her Day.” Throughout the day, we are
constantly singing my personal favorite, “The Emmy Bear” song. I can hardly imagine what my buddies must be
thinking now as they try to picture their very “macho” friend engaged in such
activities. I am not embarrassed in the
least because I suspect that each one of them participated in similar songs for
their newborn kids as well. (And, if you didn’t, shame on you.)
TIME
FLIES
I’m sure you have already learned that I am the
“Nervous Nellie” of the family and Mommy stays so calm and cool about
everything. I am particularly worried
about that swing you enjoy so much (because I assembled it myself and there
seemed to be numerous extra parts that were not needed). When you are sleeping in the bassinet next to
our bed, I am constantly waking up to look at you, make sure you are breathing,
and count your “10 and 10” (fingers and toes).
Mainly, I am worried that I will fall asleep one night, that alarm will go off the next morning, and you will
already be six months old and crawling all over the house. (When do we need to start
baby-proofing?) Then I will hit the
snooze a few times and you will be ready for your first day in nursery
school. (How much is Beth Yeshurun tuition these days?) After another quick doze, I will wake up to
find you practicing for your Bat Mitzvah.
(How early do we send out those “save the dates” for
2019?) I will roll over one more
time and you will be of dating age and a pack of teenage boys will be hanging
around the house. (Will I still be as
intimidating as I am now when I am 60 years old?) Finally, I will turn off the alarm for good
and we will be filling out those college applications (Ivy League, of course,
with UT and Tulane as the safety schools).
I know all of these milestones are coming and can’t
wait to share each and every one of them with you and Mommy. It’s just, I am not
ready for things to change that quickly.
We both waited so long for you and want to relish every moment
together. (Why, just a few days ago your
umbilical cord fell off and I almost didn’t recognize you.) For now, I want to feel your little hand
grasp my finger for comfort, have you lay your head on my shoulder when you are
tired, and smile at me when I do something silly (though everyone tells me your
smiles are really just gas at this point).
I want to stare at you when you fall asleep in the crib and come to your
rescue at the first signs of tears when you are ready to get up. I know that things will get challenging,
sleep will be rare, and frustrations will set in. (Our friends with 2.3 kids warn us every
day.) While our patience will
undoubtedly wear thin occasionally, we will never forget that it remains a
virtue. We welcome the challenges and
look forward to each and every day with our little Emmy Bear. Just remember, Mommy and Daddy love you very much.
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