Angel Baby

Anyone that has known me for any length of time has heard me refer to my brother as "Angel Baby". For me, this is a term of endearment. I absolutely adore my brother Jason.

An extended family member jokingly said one time that all families have an angel baby. One child that is the sort of center of the family and who everyone sort of floats around and tends to. Now, Jason may debate this with me but after hearing this I immediately dubbed him the angel baby of our family. I still think today that he is our angel baby. Me, Mom & Dad love him so much--our world would just not be the same without him.

My daughter Ashleigh and I had a conversation tonight about how the term angel baby came about. When I asked her who was the angel baby in our little immediate family she and I both at the same time said, "Beau"!

Beau is my middle child, my oldest son. He was born very early in the morning on May 9, 1996. His name is Jason Beau. Of my three children Beau is the most complicated. He is very much like his name sake--my brother--in that he has a very tender heart. When Beau was a toddler and pretty much until he hit middle school he could only be described as a terror.

Alot of that had to do with his personality but much of it could also be laid on the fact that his father and I separated when Beau was very young. If you asked him today what he remembered about when his Dad and I were married he would tell you that he has not one single memory of our life then.

Today, Beau can still be a terror. But he is also one of the funniest and most exasperating people I have ever spent time with. I absolutely love to be in his company. One of his most favorite things of all time is to get me riled up and irritated.

Beau is currently 5'10" and wears a size 14 shoe. Yesterday when we were out shopping the size of shoe came up. I was assuring him that he would more than likely grow into his feet and he came back with, "Mom, do you know what they say about people with big feet?" This question was scarey, I thought, great, here we go, this is about to get R-rated. I just looked at him, I didn't even ask. He came back in a very dead pan monotone voice, "They have big socks." I laughed until I cried.

I am so thankful for both of the angel babies in my life. Every family needs an angel baby!