By Nina F.
Love You Forever
“I’ll love you forever
I’ll like you for always
As long as I’m living
My baby you’ll be.
These words meant a great deal to me as a child, but last year they took on new meaning for me. Robert Munsch’s picture book Love You Forever was a familiar favorite in our house growing up. I remember giggling at the bright blue cover and the little boy on the toilet. I remember listening to my mom reading this book over and over again to my brother and me. I remember feeling both sad and happy when we got to the end of the book and the once-little boy now rocked his own child to sleep.
As an older sister, I have many memories of my mom reading this book to my brother and also to me. I watched her love my brother and me unconditionally. She may not have often uttered the whole phrase out loud, but I knew that she would love me forever and like me for always. Through the preteen, teen, young adult, and adult years, my mom continued to love both my brother and me diligently. Even and especially through the hard times.
Last year, I gave birth to my very own son. The joy and fear and love I felt the first time I met my son outside of the womb brought this dear book back to mind. After watching how well my mom had loved my brother, I knew what a special bond there could be between mother and son. The first time I fed him, minutes after giving birth, I looked down at his tiny fingers and slightly smushed face and knew I would love him forever and like him for always.
Over the past several months, my son continues to grow up too fast. I find myself in the quiet moments, typically nursing, repeating this phrase over and over again to my son. It is often in those moments when his bright beautiful eyes wander up to mine–holding our gaze while his plump cheeks continue sucking and swallowing. There’s not much that would distract him from this special time of being with Mama. I think about how different he is than even just the week before. I contemplate what next week will bring. I ask for time to slow down.
I knew before even getting pregnant that I planned to breastfeed. I knew it was the best choice for my baby, for me, and for my family. What I didn’t know was how much joy it would bring me. I didn’t know how much work it could be. I didn’t know how much time I would get to spend just staring into my baby’s eyes.
It will be a while before my son truly understands what it means for me to love him forever and like him for always. It may be a while still before I fully understand what that means.
As the words of this book come to mind daily, so do the pictures. It starts with a young woman and her fresh baby. Each time you flip the page, the boy and his mom have aged and are learning how to navigate a new life stage. The son grows up, moves out, and starts a family of his own. But he continues to come back to his mother and sing the lullaby to her, rocking her in her old age. I was privileged to watch my mom love my baby brother through many of these stages as well. He played outside until forced to come in. He listened to strange music turned all the way up. He moved into his own apartment. Then last year, just weeks before giving birth to my son, my brother died. My mom won’t get to watch him start his own family. He won’t come back to rock her to sleep. Their story ended abruptly and unfairly.
As a new mom, I find myself hurting intensely for my own mother. And I miss my brother. And I cry both tears of grief and tears of joy–often at the same time. Most of all, I thank God for each precious day I get with my son.
Some days, it is hard to want to pause to feed my son. Breastfeeding is hard–it takes more time and energy than most people know. But each time he looks up at me with eyes that look more like mine every day, I am overwhelmed by the love I feel for him.
It won’t be long before we flip the page on our own story, and I’m begging him to come inside or turn the music down. So for now, my baby he’ll be. And as often as I can, I’ll remind him how I’ll love him forever and I’ll like him for always.
Submit your own stories about breastfeeding, parenting, and more to [email protected]
Munsch, Robert N., and Sheila McGraw. Love You Forever. Firefly Books, 1986.
Supporting Breastfeeding Families–Today, Tomorrow, Always
Please consider donating to La Leche League USA.
Your gift helps support this blog and the website!
Donations of any amount are gratefully accepted. Thank you!
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Last Updated: April 8, 2025 by Yael Breimer
Reflections: Motherhood, Love, Grief, Forever
By Nina F.
Love You Forever
“I’ll love you forever
I’ll like you for always
As long as I’m living
My baby you’ll be.
These words meant a great deal to me as a child, but last year they took on new meaning for me. Robert Munsch’s picture book Love You Forever was a familiar favorite in our house growing up. I remember giggling at the bright blue cover and the little boy on the toilet. I remember listening to my mom reading this book over and over again to my brother and me. I remember feeling both sad and happy when we got to the end of the book and the once-little boy now rocked his own child to sleep.
As an older sister, I have many memories of my mom reading this book to my brother and also to me. I watched her love my brother and me unconditionally. She may not have often uttered the whole phrase out loud, but I knew that she would love me forever and like me for always. Through the preteen, teen, young adult, and adult years, my mom continued to love both my brother and me diligently. Even and especially through the hard times.
Over the past several months, my son continues to grow up too fast. I find myself in the quiet moments, typically nursing, repeating this phrase over and over again to my son. It is often in those moments when his bright beautiful eyes wander up to mine–holding our gaze while his plump cheeks continue sucking and swallowing. There’s not much that would distract him from this special time of being with Mama. I think about how different he is than even just the week before. I contemplate what next week will bring. I ask for time to slow down.
I knew before even getting pregnant that I planned to breastfeed. I knew it was the best choice for my baby, for me, and for my family. What I didn’t know was how much joy it would bring me. I didn’t know how much work it could be. I didn’t know how much time I would get to spend just staring into my baby’s eyes.
It will be a while before my son truly understands what it means for me to love him forever and like him for always. It may be a while still before I fully understand what that means.
As the words of this book come to mind daily, so do the pictures. It starts with a young woman and her fresh baby. Each time you flip the page, the boy and his mom have aged and are learning how to navigate a new life stage. The son grows up, moves out, and starts a family of his own. But he continues to come back to his mother and sing the lullaby to her, rocking her in her old age. I was privileged to watch my mom love my baby brother through many of these stages as well. He played outside until forced to come in. He listened to strange music turned all the way up. He moved into his own apartment. Then last year, just weeks before giving birth to my son, my brother died. My mom won’t get to watch him start his own family. He won’t come back to rock her to sleep. Their story ended abruptly and unfairly.
As a new mom, I find myself hurting intensely for my own mother. And I miss my brother. And I cry both tears of grief and tears of joy–often at the same time. Most of all, I thank God for each precious day I get with my son.
Some days, it is hard to want to pause to feed my son. Breastfeeding is hard–it takes more time and energy than most people know. But each time he looks up at me with eyes that look more like mine every day, I am overwhelmed by the love I feel for him.
It won’t be long before we flip the page on our own story, and I’m begging him to come inside or turn the music down. So for now, my baby he’ll be. And as often as I can, I’ll remind him how I’ll love him forever and I’ll like him for always.
Submit your own stories about breastfeeding, parenting, and more to [email protected]
Munsch, Robert N., and Sheila McGraw. Love You Forever. Firefly Books, 1986.
Supporting Breastfeeding Families–Today, Tomorrow, Always
Please consider donating to La Leche League USA.
Your gift helps support this blog and the website!
Donations of any amount are gratefully accepted. Thank you!
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Category: Grandparents, Grieving, Parenting, Poems
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