This boy had a strong personality. From the first ultrasound, we could see it. Not only was he "showing off"...he was nestled all snug in a comfortable position, with no intentions of moving. Unfortunately, we didn't know that last part until it was too late.
Patrick was due on April 7th or 9th, depending on which chart you used. I was fine with either, just as long as it wasn't April 1st. I (like all mothers, I'm sure) was already considering any disadvantage at which I could possibly place this child (including name selection, medication ingestion, and consuming adequate levels of folic acid) and I did NOT want my child forever suffering the pain and heartache of being known as an April Fool.
So, considering my first labor was about eight hours long, when I went into labor on the morning of March 31st, I thought I was in the clear. I was admitted, my contractions were productive and I proceeded to walk around the floor to keep things going. More than twenty hours later, I still hadn't made enough progress...just enough to have been exhausted and in pain all night. The doctor finally took pity on me and broke my water, at which time things really got moving.
When he was not emerging quickly enough, the Dr. determined that Patrick was in a frank breech presentation....which "frankly", REALLY ticked me off, as I had JUST been in his office the day before and told him I didn't think this baby had moved since the ultrasound. The Dr. said I was wrong, that he was indeed head first. Turns out, I was RIGHT, and he was in the exact position he appeared in months earlier, as I suspected.
Anyhoo, after I screamed and nearly jumped across the table at the Dr., he calmed me down, got me back in "the zone" and told me I could do this...that women do it every day. I took him at his word, and with the images of this baby getting his head trapped and suffocating repeatedly running through my mind, pushed with everything I had. He emerged literally folded in half. When they laid him on the table to clean and examine him...he couldn't stay on his back. His legs had been in the same position so long (above his head) that he couldn't straighten them, and just pathetically rolled from side to side with his legs sticking out.
As I reflect upon the past 16 years, it is so appropriate that this child was born mooning the world, on April Fool's Day...requiring a great deal of drugs and surgery (and I mean this with the most appreciation and love you can infer here).
I love Patrick SO much. I wouldn't change anything about him. Life with Patrick is never dull. Whatever he is passionate about, he does 110%. If you want him to do something, tell him he can't, and he'll do it, just to prove you wrong.
Following the formula I used on Coree's birthday, Here are 16 of my favorite memories of Patrick, in no particular order:
(1) At less than age two, while watching Troy (age 3 1/2) get carried to his room for throwing a bedtime temper-tantrum, Patrick was muttering something under his breath repeatedly. As I got closer, I realized he was saying, "Shut up, Troy, shut up Troy." We never used that expression and it was so bizarre to hear from a one year old, but it was like he was reading my mind.
(2) At age 5, Patrick was outside talking to some older boys from the neighborhood. One of them hit him in the face with something he was holding (not very hard, but clearly trying to intimidate him). I walked out and asked the boy if it made him feel big and cool to pick on a Kindergartener. The boys took off, while Patrick (AKA..."The Chicken Hawk") puffed out his chest, scrunched up his face and said, "Good thing they left. I was gonna have to show 'em some of my moves!"
(3) The first day of preschool, while we were lined up waiting for the doors to open, Patrick turned to the sweet looking, nonthreatening kid next to him, looked him up and down and said, "I bet I could beat you up."
(4) When Patrick was two, we were on a road trip to visit family. Loading up the van one morning outside of a motel, we heard a jubilant Patrick behind us, saying, "Oh! Whoa!" We turned to find him standing on the seat of a Harley Davidson, which was parked in a domino-stacked line of other Harleys. (Cliff can move FAST when he needs to!)
(5) Patrick has always LOVED costumes. Whether it's putting on my pantyhose or using a floursack dishtowel (and only a floursack dishtowel) to dress as an Indian...from the time he was old enough to dress himself, he's been inventing the most imaginative costumes.
(6) A ladies' man from day one, Patrick has always had a love interest. When he was in Kindergarten, I walked into the livingroom, where he was watching Pokemon with friend, Megan. They were laying on the floor, cuddled in the spoon position, like it was totally cool.
(7) If you shared a room with your brother, and you were both ordered to clean it, and you suspected your brother was faking being asleep to get out of cleaning...how would you prove it? Shake him? Clap your hands or scream "wake up!"? Those would be too pedestrian for Patrick. He looked around for something to stick in his brother's ear. A Naboo Star Fighter should do the trick...
One trip to the ER on a holiday weekend for a ruptured-ear-drum-diagnosis later...Patrick had TOTALLY proven his point (and lost one of his favorite toys to the local landfill). And yes, of course, Dad was deployed at the time.
(8) From a very young age, Patrick was known for his "potions" thanks be to Harry Potter. It would usually happen while he brushed his teeth. He'd mix anything he could find in the bathroom in one of those little paper bathroom cups (water, toothpaste, mouth rinse, soap, lotion, etc.) and leave it, where (predictably) the cup would dissolve and the contents would end up all over the counter. Ahh...good times!
(9) Patrick has always been a whiz with Legos. For Teacher Appreciation Day in 3rd grade, he made his teacher a heart of Lego bricks (that she had to give back when the day was up). One Mothers' Day (while Cliff was again, deployed) he asked a friend of mine to take him shopping for Lego candy...which he made into a heart (only I got to eat mine). At Christmas time, Patrick makes me a nativity out of Legos to go with my collection. I used to wish Lego would create a real nativity, but now I think I'd miss the Joseph-Wan-Kenobi and the Chewbacca cattle.
(10) Clear back in nursery (age 2-3), Patrick had an eye for beautiful things. He would compliment the girls, "That's a beautiful dress you have on today." He would go through my jewelry and find earrings for me, saying, "Put these on, Mommy...they'll make you look beautiful". We used to joke, "He'll either grow up to be a really great husband...or a cross-dresser."
(11) Right around Patrick's 3rd birthday, I walked down the hall to check on him and found him kneeling on the lid of the toilet, gazing at himself in the mirror. He tried out several angles and expressions, before saying in a sing-song voice, "I'm so very handsome." About a year later, he said to me, "You know I'm going to be famous one day." Let's just hope he didn't mean infamous.
(12) When Patrick was in 1st grade, our neighbors had a portable basketball goal. He had been caught climbing on it and told not too, since it could easily tip. One day, Patrick came in the house limping. He was wearing shorts, so several cuts on the insides of his thighs were visible. He went into this dramatic story about mean kids with knives. As I ran for the phone to dial 911, Cliff bolted out the door to find them himself. As Patrick listened to me speaking to the MP's on the phone, I'm sure the gravity of the situation sunk in. When I hung up, he came clean that there were no bad kids...he had been climbing the basketball goal and had fallen and cut himself on the way down. I sat with him on the curb, awaiting the arrival of the MP's so that Patrick could come clean to the officers and get the stern lecture (about lying, crying wolf, wasting their time, etc.) that I was sure he had coming. He told the MP what he had done, and the man doubled over with laughter...which I did NOT appreciate!
(13) Have you seen the movie "Castaway" with Tom Hanks? Patrick was a 3rd grader when our family watched it. During the scene where Chuck gets off the island, but loses his beloved "Wilson", Patrick was inconsolable. When we asked him what was wrong, through sobs he said, "He was his best friend!" He felt the relationship so deeply...even though to the rest of us, it was just a volleyball.
(14) I've already mentioned the costumes, but Patrick is quite the character actor, too. Whether it's getting into character for a class presentation on Harry Houdini, or playing the part of Harry Potter on book character day...he has always shined "on stage". He took classes through San Diego Jr. Theater, and reached the level of "King" in Shakespeare Conquest through United Scholar Academy (including playing the part of Don Jon in "Much Ado About Nothing") and has always blown us away with his performances. We're excited to see him in Treasure Island later this month.
(15) From the time Patrick was in 1st grade, he has maintained he wants to be a Marine. Well, there was that brief time a couple years ago when he wanted to be a Navy SEAL...until he learned about Marine Recon, then it was back on. Well, that is until last year, when he learned about US Marshals. I don't remember who he was talking to about it, but in one of our 'one on one' conversations while driving, he said, "I don't know, I'm just worried that Marine Recon won't give me the consistent access to killing bad guys that I'm looking for." At any rate, I think we're back to the Marines...this month, anyway.
(16) We are huge Star Wars and Lord of the Rings geeks in our family. Before our boys could even talk, they knew Star Wars (and how to operate the VCR remote to get more of it). The older two read the LOTR trilogy in grades 4 and 2, respectively. Anyway, this means we have many family memories related to these things. One of my favorites, hands down, is a light saber duel Patrick had with Cliff. Patrick was two. They were in the heat of battle, and Patrick blurts out, "Powers WEAK, old man....should NOT have come back!" at which point Cliff fell over from shock and laughter. It was an effective strategy.
Happy Birthday, Patrick. You have blessed this family from day one. We love your passion for life, your sense of fairness, your friendship to your siblings...and your clever humor that makes us feel lucky you are ours 24/7!
(Please always use your powers for good...)
Patrick was due on April 7th or 9th, depending on which chart you used. I was fine with either, just as long as it wasn't April 1st. I (like all mothers, I'm sure) was already considering any disadvantage at which I could possibly place this child (including name selection, medication ingestion, and consuming adequate levels of folic acid) and I did NOT want my child forever suffering the pain and heartache of being known as an April Fool.
So, considering my first labor was about eight hours long, when I went into labor on the morning of March 31st, I thought I was in the clear. I was admitted, my contractions were productive and I proceeded to walk around the floor to keep things going. More than twenty hours later, I still hadn't made enough progress...just enough to have been exhausted and in pain all night. The doctor finally took pity on me and broke my water, at which time things really got moving.
When he was not emerging quickly enough, the Dr. determined that Patrick was in a frank breech presentation....which "frankly", REALLY ticked me off, as I had JUST been in his office the day before and told him I didn't think this baby had moved since the ultrasound. The Dr. said I was wrong, that he was indeed head first. Turns out, I was RIGHT, and he was in the exact position he appeared in months earlier, as I suspected.
Anyhoo, after I screamed and nearly jumped across the table at the Dr., he calmed me down, got me back in "the zone" and told me I could do this...that women do it every day. I took him at his word, and with the images of this baby getting his head trapped and suffocating repeatedly running through my mind, pushed with everything I had. He emerged literally folded in half. When they laid him on the table to clean and examine him...he couldn't stay on his back. His legs had been in the same position so long (above his head) that he couldn't straighten them, and just pathetically rolled from side to side with his legs sticking out.
As I reflect upon the past 16 years, it is so appropriate that this child was born mooning the world, on April Fool's Day...requiring a great deal of drugs and surgery (and I mean this with the most appreciation and love you can infer here).
I love Patrick SO much. I wouldn't change anything about him. Life with Patrick is never dull. Whatever he is passionate about, he does 110%. If you want him to do something, tell him he can't, and he'll do it, just to prove you wrong.
Following the formula I used on Coree's birthday, Here are 16 of my favorite memories of Patrick, in no particular order:
(1) At less than age two, while watching Troy (age 3 1/2) get carried to his room for throwing a bedtime temper-tantrum, Patrick was muttering something under his breath repeatedly. As I got closer, I realized he was saying, "Shut up, Troy, shut up Troy." We never used that expression and it was so bizarre to hear from a one year old, but it was like he was reading my mind.
(2) At age 5, Patrick was outside talking to some older boys from the neighborhood. One of them hit him in the face with something he was holding (not very hard, but clearly trying to intimidate him). I walked out and asked the boy if it made him feel big and cool to pick on a Kindergartener. The boys took off, while Patrick (AKA..."The Chicken Hawk") puffed out his chest, scrunched up his face and said, "Good thing they left. I was gonna have to show 'em some of my moves!"
(3) The first day of preschool, while we were lined up waiting for the doors to open, Patrick turned to the sweet looking, nonthreatening kid next to him, looked him up and down and said, "I bet I could beat you up."
(4) When Patrick was two, we were on a road trip to visit family. Loading up the van one morning outside of a motel, we heard a jubilant Patrick behind us, saying, "Oh! Whoa!" We turned to find him standing on the seat of a Harley Davidson, which was parked in a domino-stacked line of other Harleys. (Cliff can move FAST when he needs to!)
(5) Patrick has always LOVED costumes. Whether it's putting on my pantyhose or using a floursack dishtowel (and only a floursack dishtowel) to dress as an Indian...from the time he was old enough to dress himself, he's been inventing the most imaginative costumes.
(6) A ladies' man from day one, Patrick has always had a love interest. When he was in Kindergarten, I walked into the livingroom, where he was watching Pokemon with friend, Megan. They were laying on the floor, cuddled in the spoon position, like it was totally cool.
(7) If you shared a room with your brother, and you were both ordered to clean it, and you suspected your brother was faking being asleep to get out of cleaning...how would you prove it? Shake him? Clap your hands or scream "wake up!"? Those would be too pedestrian for Patrick. He looked around for something to stick in his brother's ear. A Naboo Star Fighter should do the trick...
One trip to the ER on a holiday weekend for a ruptured-ear-drum-diagnosis later...Patrick had TOTALLY proven his point (and lost one of his favorite toys to the local landfill). And yes, of course, Dad was deployed at the time.
(8) From a very young age, Patrick was known for his "potions" thanks be to Harry Potter. It would usually happen while he brushed his teeth. He'd mix anything he could find in the bathroom in one of those little paper bathroom cups (water, toothpaste, mouth rinse, soap, lotion, etc.) and leave it, where (predictably) the cup would dissolve and the contents would end up all over the counter. Ahh...good times!
(9) Patrick has always been a whiz with Legos. For Teacher Appreciation Day in 3rd grade, he made his teacher a heart of Lego bricks (that she had to give back when the day was up). One Mothers' Day (while Cliff was again, deployed) he asked a friend of mine to take him shopping for Lego candy...which he made into a heart (only I got to eat mine). At Christmas time, Patrick makes me a nativity out of Legos to go with my collection. I used to wish Lego would create a real nativity, but now I think I'd miss the Joseph-Wan-Kenobi and the Chewbacca cattle.
(10) Clear back in nursery (age 2-3), Patrick had an eye for beautiful things. He would compliment the girls, "That's a beautiful dress you have on today." He would go through my jewelry and find earrings for me, saying, "Put these on, Mommy...they'll make you look beautiful". We used to joke, "He'll either grow up to be a really great husband...or a cross-dresser."
(11) Right around Patrick's 3rd birthday, I walked down the hall to check on him and found him kneeling on the lid of the toilet, gazing at himself in the mirror. He tried out several angles and expressions, before saying in a sing-song voice, "I'm so very handsome." About a year later, he said to me, "You know I'm going to be famous one day." Let's just hope he didn't mean infamous.
(12) When Patrick was in 1st grade, our neighbors had a portable basketball goal. He had been caught climbing on it and told not too, since it could easily tip. One day, Patrick came in the house limping. He was wearing shorts, so several cuts on the insides of his thighs were visible. He went into this dramatic story about mean kids with knives. As I ran for the phone to dial 911, Cliff bolted out the door to find them himself. As Patrick listened to me speaking to the MP's on the phone, I'm sure the gravity of the situation sunk in. When I hung up, he came clean that there were no bad kids...he had been climbing the basketball goal and had fallen and cut himself on the way down. I sat with him on the curb, awaiting the arrival of the MP's so that Patrick could come clean to the officers and get the stern lecture (about lying, crying wolf, wasting their time, etc.) that I was sure he had coming. He told the MP what he had done, and the man doubled over with laughter...which I did NOT appreciate!
(13) Have you seen the movie "Castaway" with Tom Hanks? Patrick was a 3rd grader when our family watched it. During the scene where Chuck gets off the island, but loses his beloved "Wilson", Patrick was inconsolable. When we asked him what was wrong, through sobs he said, "He was his best friend!" He felt the relationship so deeply...even though to the rest of us, it was just a volleyball.
(14) I've already mentioned the costumes, but Patrick is quite the character actor, too. Whether it's getting into character for a class presentation on Harry Houdini, or playing the part of Harry Potter on book character day...he has always shined "on stage". He took classes through San Diego Jr. Theater, and reached the level of "King" in Shakespeare Conquest through United Scholar Academy (including playing the part of Don Jon in "Much Ado About Nothing") and has always blown us away with his performances. We're excited to see him in Treasure Island later this month.
(15) From the time Patrick was in 1st grade, he has maintained he wants to be a Marine. Well, there was that brief time a couple years ago when he wanted to be a Navy SEAL...until he learned about Marine Recon, then it was back on. Well, that is until last year, when he learned about US Marshals. I don't remember who he was talking to about it, but in one of our 'one on one' conversations while driving, he said, "I don't know, I'm just worried that Marine Recon won't give me the consistent access to killing bad guys that I'm looking for." At any rate, I think we're back to the Marines...this month, anyway.
(16) We are huge Star Wars and Lord of the Rings geeks in our family. Before our boys could even talk, they knew Star Wars (and how to operate the VCR remote to get more of it). The older two read the LOTR trilogy in grades 4 and 2, respectively. Anyway, this means we have many family memories related to these things. One of my favorites, hands down, is a light saber duel Patrick had with Cliff. Patrick was two. They were in the heat of battle, and Patrick blurts out, "Powers WEAK, old man....should NOT have come back!" at which point Cliff fell over from shock and laughter. It was an effective strategy.
Happy Birthday, Patrick. You have blessed this family from day one. We love your passion for life, your sense of fairness, your friendship to your siblings...and your clever humor that makes us feel lucky you are ours 24/7!
(Please always use your powers for good...)
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