The One That Completes Our Family

Ryan is four going on ten. He is 5.5 years younger than Colin which is exactly the same difference between my oldest sister and me. That gives me hope that one day they will finally get along.

It is shocking to me how two kids from the same gene pool can be so different. Ryan is outgoing and funny. He has never met a stranger, and never has a bad day. He is strong in both mind and body. He is smart as a whip and constantly shocks me with the way he thinks. He is big for his age and most people don't believe me when I say he is only four. It might also be confusing when he is using words that some adults don't understand.

Ryan will use his charm on anybody at any time to get his way. I am finally immune to it, but it still gets me every once in a while. When he had tubes put into his ears at 14 months the nurses were so charmed they did not want to do anything to hurt him, even though it was necessary for us to go home.

Ryan is also loud. That might not be enough to describe him. He is like listening to a jackhammer all day. He never stops talking and if he has nothing to say he will just sing whatever song is on his mind. None of this ever takes place at a conversation level or tone, it is done at earth-shaking levels. Yesterday he was screaming at Colin and my neighbor across the street thought it was one of her cats screaming and went to investigate. It was just another day at our house with Ryan.

In every way imaginable, Ryan completes us. He looks like Dave's dad and has his temperment, but he is as stubborn as me and that is saying something. He is the final spoke on our wheel and holds us all together. He was definately worth the wait.