Dear Kid,

Today is Absolutely Incredible Kids Day. Which makes no sense, because I think you’re absolutely incredible every day.

Absolutely Incredible Kids Day (or AIK, pronounced “ache” if your kids are not behaving) was created in 1997 by Camp Fire USA to (and I quote) “honor our nation’s youth by asking adults to write letters of encouragement and inspiration to the incredible kids in their lives.” Which makes absolutely no sense because I write to you every day (well, almost every day).

Although I don’t know how many of these letters are of encouragement and inspiration.

Absolutely Incredible Kids Day (Kinda Like Most Days) #AIKD DearKidLoveMom.comHaving now found out about this thing called Absolutely Incredible Kids Day (#AIKD—yes, it has a hashtag so it must be important), I immediately leapt into investigative mode (by which I mean I read one page of a website and started making things up. And by “making things up” I mean decided to state my own opinions.).

Five Reasons to Write a Letter to Your Kid

  1. No child is ever too young or too old to get a letter from someone else. Ever. #AIKD seems to be aimed at having parents write to younger children. I say everyone needs to take out a pen and jot down some love. Just because your children are no longer in single digits doesn’t mean they don’t need parental love.
  2. Kids can’t interrupt a letter. I know. You’ve tried. You’ve rolled your eyes. You’ve written back. You’ve offered guidance and commentary. You may even—although I choose not to believe it—have stopped reading partway through one of my letters. But you’ve never managed to interrupt one.
  3. Letters are longer than a text. Texts are a short-hand written conversation. Sort of. Letters take more thought, more…words. Letters can be saved and treasured. No one is ever going to take out a smudged and much read text.
  4. Letters are more formal. Not necessarily tuxedo formal. (Have you read any of my letters? It’s pretty much a tuxedo-free zone, here. No one is ever going to confuse my writing with Shakespeare or Milton.) But they are more formal, more weighty, than your average teenager’s grunt.
  5. Kids need to be reminded that they are loved and cared for. Often. Shouldn’t they already know? Probably. Possibly. But it’s important to remind them. Because it’s too easy to get caught up in the drama of the day and forget the important stuff.

We love you, kiddo. Now and always.

Love, Mom