promise me...

Before we left to come back home to Colorado this past weekend, my sister had left a little something for Hudson. What I thought was just a folded piece of cardstock with a pretty blue ribbon wrapped around it, turned out to be something that Hudson will have forever, something that I will never forget, and something so much more than I ever would have expected...

Hudson James

I first saw you when you were only a few hours old and all I could think was how perfect you were. Ten tiny fingers, ten tiny toes, resting peacefully and quietly. You won't remember the day you were born, but you need to know that you changed a lot of lives that day. On that day, many people opened their hearts and found more love than they knew they ever had, and it was all for you.

You came here to bring great hope and happiness. You came here to be loved, and to give love in return. You came here to make the world a better place. And while you may not necessarily save the world, you have saved a fmaily and created a new one. You made me an aunt; you made a father, a mother and two extremely happy grandparents. From this day on you are our strength on the tough days; you are our light in the deepest darkness, and a wish for a better day.

The world we live in is not an easy one. You will experience a lot in your life. You will learn a lot, and it won't ever get easier. But you will always prevail and you will become strong throughout it all. I can't say that you won't ever have problems or experience adversity, because you will, but you will have the love, support and confidence to overcome it all. If there is one thing I have learned through my life, it is that life really is a beautiful thing. The world is changing all around you and changing very fast. You need to understand that the time you have here is precious and to never take a second for granted.

There will be times when you just feel like giving up, as if you have nothing else to live for and that life couldn't get any worse. We have all had moments like this, but let me tell you one thing; it isn't the mistakes or the trials that make you who you are; it's how you handle them that really matters. Never let anyone put you down or make you do things that you don't want to do. Never give up on any dream that you have, even if it seems impossible at the time...because dreams are never impossible if you just put your heart and soul into them. I hope you know that as you grow up and wonder about the world, I will always be there for you, no matter what. I love you baby boy.

Promise me you'll always remember; you're braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.

-Christopher Robin (Winnie the Pooh)

- Love Aunt Aly.

I still can't make it through this letter without crying. I'm overwhelmed with the amount of love that so many people have for this little boy and I think that I can safely say that Hudson has the best aunt.
e v e r.