Still Reminiscing: Little Brother Chronicles Part 2

It really wasn't fair to begin my Little Brother Chronicles with a story painting Ben in such a "less than glamorous" light. He deserves better. I have the best brother in the whole universe....despite the Moon Boot incident. : )

I can't wait for my girls to experience the fun of having their own little brother. My big sister heart still fills with love and pride when I think about my little brother. It's always been that way.

I was 2 and 1/2 years old when Mom and Dad brought Baby Benjamin Michael home from the hospital. I was in love from the beginning. So in love, in fact, that my mom had to buy a play pen just to keep him safe from my love. For some reason she didn't like it when I walked out of the bedroom carrying my baby brother like a rag doll, his head held securely in the crook of my elbow.

In the beginning we shared a bedroom in our tiny 1920's bungalow, but when I was in elementary school, Dad remodeled the basement, adding a Master Bedroom. Ben and I were given our own rooms. It was a sad day. We were just across the hall from each other but it felt like miles apart. We kept our bedroom doors opened so we could talk before we fell asleep. Many mornings, I'd wake up with a visitor in my bed. He missed his big sissy.

I'm not just biased when I say my little brother was cute! Completely towheaded with green eyes and a contagious giggle, he was easy to love. He had his very own sense of style, too. Ben's haircut of choice was a crew cut and his outfit was usually a pair of cutoffs, no shirt, and his beloved cowboy boots.

He was a constant source of entertainment for our little family. One summer day, he pulled a disappearing act (one of many) that we still laugh about today.

(Side note: Before I tell the story, I HAVE TO ASK, does this photo bring back memories for anyone else? My Wonder Woman underoos were one of my childhood treasures)

Superman Disappears

On this particular summer day, Ben's outfit of choice was the red briefs from his Superman underoos and his red rubber Paddington Bear galoshes. That's it. What can I say? He was a minimalist. : )

Mom washed dishes in the kitchen, watching him through the kitchen window while he played in the backyard. I can imagine how she must of felt watching her baby boy, lost in imagination, playing in the backyard in that ridiculous outfit. It must have melted her heart.

For a few minutes, she got distracted from her dishes, looked back out into the yard and realized that Ben was gone. I'm sure she didn't panic at first, but as she continued to call and call and search, Ben was nowhere to be found, and she did start to panic a little.

I had a friend over for the afternoon, so she and I hopped on her banana seat bike and went searching for Ben.

We called and called and searched the neighborhood. How far could he have gone?

We rounded the corner, and at the base of a steep hill we could hear music in the distance. We looked up at the top of the hill as the music came closer and closer. It was the high school marching band practicing again.

As the band crested the hill, we fell off her bike, gasping for air, suddenly struck by uncontrollable laughter.

Marching down the middle of the street to the beat of the drums, proudly leading the way for a bunch of laughing highschoolers, was a towheaded toddler wearing nothing but red Superman briefs and his spiffy Paddington Bear galoshes!

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