Mikey is TWENTY!

It was hard to believe when I woke on Feb 20, that my baby boy was twenty years old. It seems like such a short time ago that we were announcing to the Three Musketeers that a fourth was about to arrive. I distinctly remember the moment because Joey said "I always wanted a brother named Mikey....Can we name him Mikey, Dad?" I had no say in this one.

For months, we referred to this unborn child as "Mikey" and God was good to us, as we welcomed the real Mikey into our family. He was healthy and beautiful, he laughed loudly and often and made us all laugh with him. The older kids adored him and treated him like a pet. They taught him to walk with a trail of Cheerios, like Cat's pet rat. Karen taught him to drink from the hose and then turned it on full blast. They made him eat like a doggie off the floor, laying on his tummy. He would do anything for a laugh.

I can't help but remember the year he wanted to see his name on a sign along the road and Karen arranged for "Happy Birthday Mikey" to be put on a local sign. He was thrilled to pose for a photo. He couldn't believe HIS name was up there.

Now my college kid is twenty. He posed with his little nephew on his lap for the mandatory birthday photos, but he was laughing as usual. He let Daniel blow out the candles and my wish for him is that he always laugh quickly, loudly and often. That is the magic of Mikey.