Another candle on the cake!

Today, NINE (yes, nine!) years ago, we welcomed Lance Tristan Markowski into the world.  It is humbling, as a parent, to look back on nearly a decade of life and realize that 1) we survived! and 2) there is still so much more to come! 

Lance, from the beginning, liked to be in control. In fact, I went in to the hospital on January 16th and spent an entire day on a Pitocin drip trying to induce labor that was already about 10 days overdue.  Well, we watched movies, listen to music, measured for progress, ate ice chips, played boggle, measured for progress.... you get the idea.  The Pitocin was working me over, but did not work it's magic.  So, the doctors called a knock-it-off for the day, and planned to start the next morning.

A nice warm bath that evening helped me release some frustration that the baby was still in my belly, and not in my arms. As the sun peaked over the horizon on the morning of the 17th, the nurses checked for progress (SHOCKING-- there was none!), and decided to bring back the Pitocin to hopefully induce some action.

Not 4 hours later, our beautiful baby boy made an appearance-- just when the moment felt right for him.  Nine years later, I feel like there are many moments when I have to back down from a battle, give him his space, and re-attack after we both have a chance to relax.

While his desire to be rocked, and his willingness to be swaddled these days has diminished, he is still so soft and tender at heart.  As the middle child, he has developed this tough-guy exterior that protects him as he gets buffeted by siblings above and below him. ( I think that is probably a necessity for someone in his position in life!) But, get him alone, as Joe and I did today when we took him out to lunch, and he is sincere, hilarious, and generous in spirit.  

 

He has a mischevious grin that puts my spidey senses up these days--as in 'what have you gotten up to?'-- but I'm sure that same quirky, lopsided grin will be wicked charming for the girls in a few years. (And while it sounds like I have completely accepted this fact, be assured that the very thought of Markowski boys charming girls increases the ratio of gray to brown atop my head!) 

He's a vanilla kind of guy-- and I mean that literally, as he has recently gone off chocolate, and only requests vanilla ice cream, cake, even steamed milk with vanilla instead of hot chocolate.  And while vanilla is usually used to describe the most plain, and sometimes boring, experiences, I can assure you that vanilla is quite the opposite.  Try to make cookies or muffins without vanilla extract, and they just aren't the same.  Vanilla is subtle.  Vanilla is constant.  Vanilla is reliable.  And, things just wouldn't be the same without vanilla.

So, yes, he is literally a vanilla kind of guy.  But, Lance is also the vanilla in my world. He's subtle, sometimes sneaky.  Reliable and helpful. Constant and steady. And, things just wouldn't be the same without him. Happy Birthday, Lance! We love you!