Mike Jr's original due date was September 22nd. When he still hadn't arrived by Mike Sr's birthday, (September 27th), Daddy decided he was going to try and get him to come ON his birthday. He drove me downtown to Washington DC over all the bumps and cracks in the road, he made me walk, (or more like waddle), around Brookside Gardens uphill and down for over two hours and did everything he could possibly think of to get Mike Jr here so they could share a birthday. I can't tell you how deflating it is for a pregnant woman to go in to a WHOLE other month before delivering her baby, but this kid was a stubborn little guy and didn't come until HE was ready... October 1st, 1996. The little snot is still as stubborn as a mule to this day, but I love him so much.
One of the hardest things for a parent is watching people pass judgement on your child. This kid has such a funny, sweet personality. He may have a potty mouth sometimes, (which I'm constantly calling him out on), but he is a genuinely good person with a heart of gold. When he was in high school, many kids could not believe that he was Dee's brother. The comments she got sometimes were almost funny to us, but a sad reflection on society. "That's your brother? I thought he was a drug addict!" Nope, this kid has never done drugs or drank alcohol his entire life. He has prided himself in living a "Straight Edge" lifestyle for as long as I can remember. But the long hair and tattoo's bring such harsh stereotypes sometimes. I have to say though, be careful how you judge people. My baby may have long hair and tattoo's and not go to church, but my daughter drove home a lot of "good church going youth" who had partied too much to drive themselves and hid a lot more than that from their parents.
I love this boy so much, and anyone who truly knows him loves him too. He has taught me that you literally can not judge a book by it's cover. That lesson has helped me in many area's of my life... from simply talking to people around me, to actually hiring people, to just being able to love people for who they are. My goodness, this world needs more love in it right now. We need to be the kind of people who smile at others and are kind to everyone, even if they don't look, act or believe the same things as we do. Life is too short to pass judgment and unless you have walked in someone's shoes, you have no idea what they are going through, or what battles they are fighting. Things are not always what they seem. (After all, there are plenty of people that know me pretty well who have no idea I'm battling MS, even now.)
Happy Birthday sweet Mikey. How are you 21?!?!?! I truly love you with every fiber of my being.
I love this post and I LOVE JR!!!!! I’ve always said I hope Ripken grows up to be like him and that he and I are as close as you two. I’ve loved watching your sweet relationship for over a decade. JR is the sweetest kindest funniest boy (I can still call him a boy right?) You’re right you can’t judge a book by its cover, but if you could, it’d be an awesome book!!
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