Sunday, April 21, 2024

Happy Birthday Ben!


It's been a whirlwind year with little to no let-up and today we joyously celebrate our youngest son Ben's 14th birthday.  He made his debut last season in cross country and he was fearless again this season as his times got better and better.  Before I get to how great a piano player he's becoming, I'd like to speak now about his tennis game too.  He regularly had his opponents seeing red, and sometimes watching him play is like watching Boris Becker or Steffi Graf in their primes, circa 1989.  He's always had a reputation as a smart kid, and he's a lover of all things creative.  One of my favorite things is listening to him practice piano as he works on a song until it sounds fantastic.

Ben is developing his own folklore, creating blogs of his own, playing video games with his friends and demonstrating an amazing imagination.  His creativity is something his mom and me watch with amazement and it will likely serve him evermore as he tackles high school next year.  Speaking of high school . . . it's crazy to think our Ben will be entering his freshman year not many midnights from now.

I don't want to sound too much like a tortured poet, but it's hard to put into words how proud we are of Ben and he's clearly in his own department.  Happy birthday Ben, and may your 14th year be one of the best eras ever!

Memory Lane
2010 - Welcome Ben!
2010 - Ben is born, Roy Halladay wins, all is right with the world
2011 - Ben turns one as Roy Oswalt pitches the Phillies past the Padres
2012 - Happy 2nd Birthday Ben!
2013 - Happy 3rd Birthday Ben!
2014 - Ben is Four!
2015 - Ben is Five!
2016 - Ben and Chewbacca
2017 - Ben is Seven!
2018 - Ben is Eight!
2019 - Ben at the Grand Canyon
2020 - Ben is Ten! (Social distancing version)
2021 - Ben, accomplished piano player, amazing kid, turns 11
2022 - This kid, with unlimited potential and an unrivaled imagination, is 12.
2023 - Ben enters teen years. (What?)
2024 - The 14 Era begins.

No comments: