It seems like only yesterday that I was holding all of you cradled in my arms.

That was 11 years ago today.  Where does time go?

I don’t know.

What I do know is that my love for you is beyond words.  If and when one day you too will be a father, you will understand what I mean.

Until then, know that I am not perfect but I try to do the best that I can – for you – always.

The first 11 years have gone by in a whirlwind of memories and emotions.  Only a couple more years to go and you will be a teenager.  That scares me.  Mostly because it means that a couple more years after that you will be off on your own, whether to college or somewhere else forging your own path into adulthood.

And the scariest part is that I won’t have you around always, like I do now, to share in the everyday moments of life.  I don’t think I’m ready for that.  But time waits for no one and so while I look back with a full heart and ahead with trepidation, it is the now that I want to focus on.

Making every day count.  Without making excuses.  There is always time if we choose to find it.  Time to play, time to talk, time to read, time to travel, and time to just be.

Time to make new memories.  Together.

— Happy Birthday Bubba.  Papa loves you too much.