Happy Birthday, Ryan!

 

He’s 22 today!  Totally cool person (you’ll have to take my word for it if you have never met him), and fairly handsome, don’t you think? He celebrated by sleeping in, being “king for a day” (which means he doesn’t get asked to pitch in unless it’s a dire emergency), and having pound cake with strawberries and whipped cream for dessert.  We got him a cute little digital camera so that he can take some pictures while he’s in Russia this summer, and his sibs chipped in for a huge memory card and a case to keep it all in.

 

Interesting Facts About Ryan:

• He was the cutest baby in the whole wide world, barring only Sean, Allie, Molly, and Danny.  And, okay, a number of nieces and nephews.
• From 18 months to about the age of 3, he threw the most horrible tantrums you can possibly imagine, such that we consulted our pediatrician to see if our child was somehow abnormal.  He then proceeded to grow out of it and now rarely raises his voice under any circumstances.  Total iron control over his temper.
• He saved enough money to buy himself a $184 Lego set when he was 7 years old.  And we paid him only a modest allowance at the time.
• He skipped 2d grade.
• He plays the clarinet beautifully.  It’s one of my favorite things to listen to.
• He’s taken (I think I’m counting correctly) 7 years of Latin.  My mom is so impressed by this.
• He is an excellent big brother.  We used to use him as our personal pacifier for any baby who cried excessively.  As soon as Ryan touched Allie, Molly, or Danny, for example, they went right to sleep.  I hope he retains this skill when he has kids of his own, because it really comes in handy.
• He has known how to work The Secret all of his life, although he probably doesn’t even know what that is.
• He is fairly selfless.  I don’t know many people who put others’ needs in front of their own as well as Ryan does.  As a child, it was actually almost funny to watch him operate to get what he wanted.  But by about 4th grade, he grew out of it.  He just doesn’t complain.  He goes with the flow.  He is definitely my teacher in this!
• I am happy to be able to say I could go on listing things I admire and find interesting about my son.  He’s turned out to be a man of good character

Love ya, Ryan!