Every Mom Will Relate To The Joy Rica Felt Celebrating Son's Bday

In a heartwarming post, Smart Parenting Editor-at-Large Rica Peralejo shared the sweetest birthday message for her second-born son, Manu. Her words are a beautiful testament to joys of motherhood.

Manu turns 5

Rica began with a sentiment that would make any parent sigh "aww": "I was ready to love you with all I’ve got, but what I wasn’t prepared for was how you’d love me back.” The mom of two went on to express, “You came to us bringing healing—to my body, my heart, our marriage, our family life. Emmanuel Raphael, God is with us, and God heals. Five years of this, amen.” Rica's message is a powerful reminder of the transformative impact children can have on their parents' lives.

But one of the most touching moments in Rica's message was her recounting of a conversation with Manu. “I asked out loud what I did to deserve you, and you had the best answer: ‘You prayed for me, remember?’” she reminisced.

Rica continues to share how her bunso’s arrival to their family was a gift. “After so many heartbreaks, you came along. You are my greatest reminder that we should never stop praying for good and worthy things. You are my greatest reminder that we should never stop praying for good and worthy things."

For any parent reading Rica’s words, it’s a heartfelt reminder to cherish every moment. The post became even more touching with the series of videos that accompanied it, showing Manu as the sweetest and most adorable kid. In the videos, Manu tells his mom how much he loves her, saying, “Love you, Mama. I’m your baby forever.” Whose heart wouldn’t melt hearing that?

Rica Opens Up About the Challenges and Joys of Raising Manu

Rica has been open about the unique challenges she faces with Manu compared to her firstborn, Philip. Contrary to her experience with Philip, Rica shared that taking care of Manu has been “more challenging, but in a good way.” Despite these challenges, Rica chooses to look at the bright side of things and sees the strength and will in Manu as gifts that will help him as he grows up. (Read related article here.)

“M, nauubos ang creative juices ko sayo pero you are worth it. One day I want you to know Mama did everything to give you the best because you’ll need all of that for the man that God is calling you to be,” Rica previously shared.

Raising a child comes with its challenges, but watching them grow and sharing all those precious moments makes it incredibly fulfilling. Rica's sweet birthday post for Manu is a beautiful testament to this.