The only birthdays that I have celebrated alone, took place in my first 3 years of life. The day after my third birthday, my sister came into our family and then the combined birthday parties started.
Fast forward 30 some years and I woke on my birthday, 4 days from my due date, and went to my scheduled OB/GYN appointment. I was sent right to the hospital and 4 hours later we welcomed Benjamin John into our family.
He has been and will always be the best birthday gift I've ever received. Now my
birthday was really one to share and interestingly enough, my sister gave birth to her daughter a year later on her birthday so now there are 4 birthdays to celebrate in 2 days!
Ben loves a celebration not only when it is his but for all those he loves. He always remembers others birthdays and special events and loves to send cards, balloons and gifts to make others feel special.
There were hard times growing up where Ben had so many others come and join him at his parties but then the invitations were not reciprocated and he experienced being excluded from the group. We have had many conversations about the difference between "friends" and "acquaintances" . It was hard to understand that the 800 "friends" he has on Facebook were not all true friendships but we will always be grateful for those who are true friends that poured into his life.
Ben has always had interesting hobbies, we talk about his love for roller coasters a lot, however one interest that slides under the radar from time to time is Ben's passion for CEO's. He has a wall in his room with signed photos of CEO's that he has met. He has gotten them year after year some coming on his Birthday. This year the CEO of T.G.I.Fridays, Ray Blanchette, after being on Ben's live show Razed Typical gave Ben a signed picture for his CEO wall.
Then we got a phone call that Don Smolenski and Nick Bertram wanted Ben to speak at a conference, gathering over 80 CEO's across the state were we live. Ben was so excited by the idea and we are actually there on the day this blog releases. AKA... Ben's birthday. I couldn't have planned a better birthday party if I tried!!! 80 CEO's, most of which Ben has never met. He has been jumping for joy each day saying he is so excited to work on his birthday !!! What a wonderful thing to hear.
So Ben, on our special day, I wish you another wonderful year filled with adventures, joy and love as you continue another journey around the sun.
Love you more,
Mom
PS. Happy birthday to you mom! You work hard every day to meet the needs of your whole family and we are endlessly thankful for all that you do, even if we don't express it every day. (love from your son and blog assistant Dan)
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