Benjamin Bunny

These colorful Easter eggs, with their pretty pink toppers are just for Ben, who celebrates his 27th birthday today.

On Easter Sunday, April 11, 1982, Hunter and Brent got us up early, anxious to see what the Easter Bunny had brought. The Easter Bunny had made an early visit to our house, so the boys hunted eggs in the back yard, and we were dressed in time to make it to early church, a good thing as you will see.

Back home, I had just gotten Easter dinner on the table when my water broke. Nothing to eat for me. We were off to the hospital to see what else the Easter Bunny would be bringing. Ben finally arrived a little after 9 p.m. LBeau was right there with me, and then suddenly he wasn’t. Always a little squeamish at the sight of blood, LBeau was on the floor.

Here is Ben in my grandmother’s cradle with his two proud older brothers ready to rock him to sleep.

As a child he loved to dress up like a wrestler. Encouraged by Hunter, he and Brent would spend hours practicing their take downs and holds on the bed in Hunter’s room, eventually breaking the slats. LBeau said that he was just like a little terrorist and nicknamed him Benjadam Bossain.

Ben was always accident prone. In kindergarten he fell off the jungle gym on the playground and messed up his face so badly that his teacher didn’t even recognize him when she picked him up off the ground.

He did grow up, however, and we are so proud of him. In November he married Claire in Little Rock, and they have given us our first grand dog, Jeff. Last year he was named by Arkansas Business as one of their Top 40 Under 40. Click the link to read all about him. Just last month Arkansas Business honored him again by naming him one of 25 for the Future.

So Happy Birthday to my “baby.” I think this picture says it all.