84 months ago at 5:10 a.m. Benjamin Davis joined our family after a record long labor. All along I believed (and was told) that each subsequent birth a woman has will be even quicker than the previous one. Being that my middle child's delivery took a whopping 5 hours I worried that I might not make it to the hospital in time with this one. Ha!! Wrong!! Twenty--that's right 2-0-- hours of hard labor is what I endured to see this precious babe. Add that one to the long list of old wives' tales. Maybe that's why they're called that: The women are too old when they tell the stories and so their memories are selective.
I have a theory about childbirth: A baby's personality is extremely similar to the way in which he or she came into this world. This holds true for all of my children (and most of my friends' children) and especially applies to my youngest. I had a false alarm 2 days before the due date and did a mild induction (no pitocin just prostaglandin gel--don't ever do it) I left the hospital an hour after the procedure and was dilated to 2 cm. Twelve hours later I returned, only to be told I had progressed to a............3!! The nurse told me they'd give me a shot to help me sleep and when I woke up in the morning I'd be in full labor. As soon as they took me off the monitor and I waited for the shot, it all broke loose and I went from 3 to 5 in 5 minutes. Once I had the epidural at 11:00 p.m. , I didn't progress for three hours. Then a couple hours laterI had a baby boy in my arms.
All these details prove my point. This simply sums up Ben's personality: "I'm ready. Now I'm not. I might want that. No, I decided that I really don't. You think you have me figured out and then I'll throw a monkey wrench in your plans to see if you're paying attention." It's really quite comical.
So in honor of Ben's 7th birthday celebration allow me to share those seven attributes I love about that little boy who is rapidly becoming a big boy.
- Joyful-he came out of the womb smiling and hasn't stopped. His grin is from ear to ear and lights up his face. Even when he's frowning it doesn't last long. He just can't help but smiling and when you look at him, you just can't help but return the grin.
- Tenacious-when he wants to do something that his big brothers are doing or try a new activity, he doesn't let up. He'll stick with it until he's mastered the game or skill.
- Resilient-as the youngest of three boys, he has endured more bumps, bruises and scrapes than most. Even when he appears to be down for the count, it doesn't last long. The tears rarely continue more than 60 seconds before he's out there going for it again. If he catches a virus and the common course of symptoms is a week, he'll be over it in 48 hours--or less.
- Affectionate-as a newborn, he would nuzzle under your neck and stay there forever. He is still the best cuddler and gives hugs and kisses morning, noon and night.
- Hard working-he loves to learn and embraces every new subject whether in school or life. When he can't figure something out we often find him alone giving himself a pep talk on how to accomplish the task.
- Energetic-he wakes up and hits the ground running every day. "Walk" is not a word in his vocabulary. Slowing down only happens during REM. One of his nicknames is "Benny the Jet".
- Loving-he has the most tender heart. Recently, when I was under the weather, he called me from a playdate to see how I was feeling. It was the sweetest gesture ever!
Happy Birthday to you, Benjamin! You'll always be my baby! Love you forever, Mom
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