Jeffrey Benjamin

When my dear friend Julie went into labor three years ago, I was sitting in a hotel room in Madison Wisconsin. I had been accepted there for grad school, and flew out to look at the program. It was freezing! And I had just returned to my room with some delicious Thai take out. I can still remember hearing Tom's voice, telling me all was going well. There was this tone of excitement in his voice, and I wished so much I wasn't that far away. Jeffrey was born while I was away, but I went to see him as soon as I got back. He was gorgeous immediately. So small and perfect, and Julie looked ecstatic! She is an amazing mother, and the best proof of this can be seen by simply spending time with them together. For the one night I was in San Diego last week, Ben and I went to dinner with Julie, Tom and Jeffrey. The last time I saw him was December 2003, and I posted some photos of a very happy baby. We arrived at the restaurant first, and when they walked to meet us, I saw Jeffrey running towards me. He literally ran into my knees and gave them a hug. Generous love without any expectation! My heart almost exploded. He was the same way the last time I saw him -- all smiles and affection.

I had potential heart explosions all through the dinner. He sat next to me, and drew on the paper table cloth with crayons for ages. At one point, I asked if he would draw me something. "Don't tell me what it is, I want to guess when you're done," I said. He grabbed a green crayon and started to draw. looking from the paper up to my face. Staring at me so intently. A portrait! I nearly died. He was so thoughtful and quiet. When I guessed at the end, he seemed thrilled that I knew what it was. I had him sign it with a pen, and I tore it off, and placed it in my sketchbook when we left. If I have kids that cute, I am screwed. They will be able to do and say as they please.

Another amazing quality, is his vocabulary. For someone who literally turned three a few weeks ago, he was able to converse with us during dinner, formulating whole sentences. At one point Julie explained that he likes to have a word of the week, and suggested he share his most recent choice with me. "Rambunctious!" he explained and burst out laughing. I will need a spell check just to insert that into this post. His favorite word the night we had dinner, "Appetite!" I had to control myself from taking a bit out of his arm.

We joked when he was born that I would marry him the day he turned 18. This was before he could even speak. And now, Julie explained, Max is in even more danger because Jeffrey has taken to cooking things in the kitchen. I believe the gauntlet has been thrown.

To see more photos of that gorgeous face, click here.