A Sweet Moment

Today on the way home from church we had to stop at a store. Dana went in and me and the kiddos were hanging out in the car waiting.

As would be expected, Elias got a bit fussy and started squawking. What happened next was totally unexpected, but so sweet that it almost made me tear up.

Instead of getting irritated or, even worse, joining in the cry-fest, Elsie leaned over to him as far as the straps of her car-seat would allow and tells him, "it's ok baby-brother... it's ok - mama will be right back. Don't worry baby brother, mama misses you very much."

With a Bang

We decided to have a bunch of friends over for the 4th. It seemed like a good idea. As it turns out, it was a great idea.

Here's the scene - I'm out on the back deck manning the grill with a houseful of people. I look over towards the front door and see Dana come in. She's just returning from a trip to the Ballard Locks with our neighbors.

Dana does a little come here motion. I make my way to the door with spatula in hand.

Dana: "I think my water broke."
Fred: Blank stare.

It was actually pretty funny.. even if it was "go time," we were both hoping that it could be delayed by a few hours so we could enjoy the BBQ with our friends, but that wasn't happening.

We spent the next few minutes throwing together the essentials and going over the bedtime routine for Elsie knowing that someone else would be putting her to bed on this particular night. Having a houseful of friends that sprung into action like a F-1 pit-crew was sweet. Everything was taken care of.

One of the benefits of arriving to triage on a holiday - we had the joint to ourselves. It was awesome. We also had a pretty nice view of a fireworks display.

After 10 hours or so, little Elias came into the world or air-breathers.

Lucky for him he made it to July 5th, or we would have been forced to name him something like "Freedom," or "William Wallace."

A Boy Makes 2

Wow... if I ever wondered whether I'm a slacker, this blog is proof-positive. It has only been..... over TWO YEARS since I've posted anything in this. To say that much has happened is an understatement, but some of the biggest news is that Elsie is going to have a baby brother in 3 short months.

Are we ready?

Ha. No.

I'm a Slacker

Well - I'm a little behind on posting. There is MUCH to report, but I'm just going to take it one step at a time.

We have a beautiful baby girl. Simply saying that I'm happy is a gross understatement. There are few words that could adequately convey how happy I really am.

For my first little installments as a new parent, I would like to share a recent discovery.

***A New Biological Species***

Name: Friendandfamilius Photographius

Primary Diet: Images of newborn infants

I have become acutely familiar with the distinct sound it makes......

"MORE PICTURES!! SEND MORE PICTURES!!!!!"

The Secret Club?

It hasn’t been a lack of material that has kept me from posting for the last 2 months. To the contrary - my mind has been spinning at 400mph with no slow-down in sight.

I am very anxious about having our baby. I am SOOO excited to meet our new little one that I can barely contain myself. I go from task-mode (get this done, get that done) to just pondering the ways in which life is going to change.

The typical reaction I get from people who don’t know we’re expecting is so consistent that it’s frightening. Let me preface this by saying that the reaction is shared by 100% of people I’ve talked to with kids.

“Yeah, we’re having a baby in x months.”

“Really? Congratulations! (The next few sentences differ on an individual basis, but wind their way to the same place). Yeah… life is going to change.”

This last statement is ALWAYS followed by a period of laughter ranging from a slight devious chuckle to an outright fit of gut-wrenching laughter.

I feel like I’m being indoctrinated into some secret society filled with special handshakes and secret meeting places.

So now the waiting period continues and grows in intensity. We are within 3 weeks of the delivery date and I couldn’t be happier. Well, I could be, but I don’t want to get ahead of things.

I can’t wait to meet my little girl.

It Moved

6/26/06 - this is actually the date that inspired me to get off my duff and jot down some of my thoughts and - dare I say it - FEELINGS for recollection at a later date.

This day started out like so many... 2 bottles of cough syrup and some chocolate covered espresso beans. Kidding.

On this particular Monday, not only was it my brother's Birthday, but it was also our first visit to the doctor's office for our first baby checkup.

General mood: nervous anticipation.

Arriving at the hospital, hanging out in the waiting room, and even waiting in the examination room was relatively uneventful. Make no mistake, I was not nonchelant or indifferent at this point but the ton of bricks that was still circling at about 20,000' had only begun to make it's descent on my unsuspecting dome.

We sat through a few "what to expect" talks and customary deluge of information, but to be perfectly honest, it felt akin to sitting at the car dealership and having the salesman explain the powertrain warranty in great detail to a first-time driver.

After some time, the doctor told us that it was ultrasound time. Ultrasound? We were under the impression that it was too early for that and there really wouldn't be anything to see. Well, after a few short moments, the doctor came out with this big "ET" finger replica - less the glowing end.

Side note: Here is another clear case of why mankind would be doomed if men were responsible for childbirth. Even the sight of that "thing" had me scanning the room for exits. That, along with the prospect of being separated from beer for 9 months would be certain doom.

So the procedure starts... staring into a little sepia-toned screen, fully expecting to smile politely as we stare at a blob-like gummy-somethingerother. I don't know about you, but half the times, when someone excitedly shows me an early-term ultrasound, I'm really not sure I know what I'm looking at, and I don't think they do either.

The probe continues until the picture focuses in on it/him/her (to be edited at a later date).

Wow.

Head. Arms. Legs. Spine... and the most beautiful little beating heart. It's going a mile a minute... slightly slower than mine is at this point.

Even now though, my joy was slightly muted. Maybe because it still just looked like a picture. I wasn't connecting the dots somewhere. Then it/he/she kicked and started squirming around.

[Bugs Bunny voice]

"Pilot to bombardier, pilot to bombardier, open bomb-bay doors."

"Bombs away. Direct hit."

The mute button was off. We were hearing high-fidelity now.

Up to this time, I think I had only embraced the "concept" of parenthood. Yeah, I realize that I've only begun to see the tip of the iceberg, but I have to tell you, seeing the movement and LIFE made it more real and beautiful than I ever thought possible. The only way I can really describe it is that, at that moment I dropped all cognizant thought and emotionally embraced our unborn child. The tears would attest to that.

It was and continues to be the most joyous and equally fearful place to be.

I'm so thankful that I've been given the blessing of starting to really understand the love of a father.