Dear Matthew at age 10

Dear Matthew,
You are ten years old! Ten! I still remember when we saw that tiny,miraculous heartbeat that beat all the odds at five weeks.  You grew into our first born son, rambunctious toddler, challenging preschooler and have now become a mostly joyous school aged kid! I sometimes have to take a moment and truly think about all the things that "could have" happened when it comes to you. Not only were we told that you weren't a viable pregnancy, but your delivery was anything but smooth! I am grateful that I was not a medical social worker at the time or I would have freaked out even more than I did. We are lucky your cerebral palsy is mild. In fact many people don't even know that you have it! I know when you are playing sports that you are starting to realize where the cerebral palsy causes you to struggle some. But, I love that you have fun out there, doing whatever it is, hockey, baseball or football. You love sports and you love being on a team. You want to be the best you can be and son, that determination and drive will serve you well in so many ways other than how well you can play any sport!
You are a nice boy. That is a simple statement but really it encompasses so much more. You are thoughtful and  considerate. You can move easily through different groups of kids. I hope you always stay true to who you are. I often think of some advice Papa Lenny gave Uncle Mike,  "If you hang around garbage, you start to stink." Remember this as you decide who you want to hang out with. You have picked some awesome buddies so far. Take it from your dear old mom, your friends will help to make or break you in life. Choose wisely. You have a great conscience, follow that, it will never lead you astray.
I love how much you love your dad. You are so lucky to have such an awesome role model. I love that you have been able to ask dad and me questions about what you should do or when things don't quite feel right. You can always come to us. You know that we value honesty and integrity above all. We know that you are just a kid and you will mess up. Let us continue to help you figure out ways to help you navigate the messy parts of life.
You are not a huge fan of school but you are a good student. You seem to love reading and social studies and can take or leave math! You don't like to do homework and if that's one area where we get into yelling matches, homework is one! Life can't always be fun and games and you are learning sometimes that isn't very fun!
Happy Birthday sweet boy! Daddy and I love you more than I could ever write about. We can't wait to see what the next decade brings for you!
Love, Mom