Guest Post from Krista V. at Mother. Write. (Repeat.)

I'm excited to present our first guest post by Krista V. of Mother. Write. (Repeat.), who's been kind enough to share her own Letter to Baby:

Dear I-gots,

You probably don’t know this, but I started writing when I wasn’t much older than you are now. I loved creating characters and storylines, but most of all, I loved putting words on paper, writing and rewriting and rewriting every sentence until it absolutely shined. I finished my first full-length novel when I was twelve and my second when I was eighteen. (I started many, many others, but that’s beside the point.) Writing was my hobby, but more than that, it was my passion.

Then I went to college, and all my writing time dried up. Of course, even if I’d had the time, I doubt I would have had the brainpower. Proofs and prose don’t really mix. I never intended to stop writing; it just sort of happened. And when I finally graduated and started my first full-time job, I didn’t even think to pick it up again.

Not long after I started teaching, a miracle occurred: Your dad and I found out that I was pregnant. With you. We’d hoped and prayed for a baby for more than two long years, so we were thrilled to discover that you were on the way. You were born about a week after the school year ended. I promptly quit my full-time job so I could be your full-time mom.

Those first few months were rough, but then things settled down. You adjusted to this thing called life and turned into a sleeping champion. All of a sudden, I had more time than I knew what to do with—and I also had an idea for a new book.

I never intended to stop writing, and I never meant to start again. But I needed something to fill my afternoons and early mornings. Writing filled the bill. After my five-year hiatus, I was pretty rusty, but it didn’t take long for the words to trickle back into my brain and out through my fingertips. Now, four years and four manuscripts later, I can’t imagine life without them—or without you.

So thank you, my sweet boy, for giving me back my words. Thank you for sleeping when you probably should have been screaming. And thank you for giving me something to write about. I only hope that I can help you develop your talents someday as thoroughly as you’ve helped me develop mine.

With much love and affection,
Mom