Belly Button Day

Some time ago, on Facebook, I started wishing people a "Happy Belly Button Day!" instead of a Happy Birthday. Why? It seems everyone says Happy Birthday, and it gets a little boring!

So today's blog is in honor of belly buttons.

You see, it seems that really it is one of those "life" questions. Perhaps I'm slightly inaccurate in wishing everyone a happy belly button day? After all, little Mark's belly button was only "visible" (i.e., the umbilical cord fell off) only after about 2 weeks (almost to the hour). Was the cord falling off the belly button day? Or the day the cord was cut? My mom calls the cord a "Belly Ribbon" - which I like as well. Although the word umbilical should have been in my post a ways back on cool words. I digress.

The issue reminds me of which came first, the chicken or the egg? Or when does life begin - at conception, or at birth? Not necessarily important questions, but things to ponder all the same.

In the meantime, I'll continue wishing friends a happy Belly Button Day. It's fun and different. Perhaps it will stand out against all the other Happy Birthday wishes!

Today is a big birthday - - 1 cousin (CSS), 3 Austin friends (JD, AH, EC), and 1 local coworker (RB) are all among my facebook friends celebrating their birthday today, the last day of the month of October! So Happy Halloween to all - - and Happy Belly Button Day to the 5 friends celebrating a birthday today!

Exploding Water Fountain

There are some things with a baby that I expect. One is the exploding water fountain. However, when it actually happened for the first time (after 2 weeks), it made me laugh. Out loud. I'm surprised I didn't wake the rest of the house.

What is an exploding water fountain? When you are changing a little boy's diaper - and the water fountain begins (peeing) and gets diapers on one side of the changing table, followed by an explosive poo that wipes out the changing table pad, the diaper genie, the blind, two diapers at once, and even the wall in the changing room.... That's what I call an exploding water fountain! It required a brief wash cloth bath, a change of clothes, and some additional clean-up work after baby was fed and back asleep. Now, I'm sure these "episodes" may get old after a while - - but I somehow managed to find great joy in the first episode. After all, it is my fault. I already posted that baby's many talents include pooping and peeing!

In other news, we managed dinner OUT last night with Grandma, as a thank you for helping! We went to one of our favorite local joints (Tyler's Tap Room - I got a beer!). It was a bit of a wait, but Mark slept through the entire event! It was also his first time in a noisy place - - and he didn't wake up once.

A confession...

I am stubborn. Not just a little - sometimes, a lot. And sometimes to my detriment. This has often come up in different areas of my life.

For example, when my mother was spending time with my (then boyfriend) and I in Austin, she was surprised at our argumentative-style of conversation. She asked me later if it bothered me, and I told her that I was glad I had met someone who was also a bit stubborn, because I didn't have to worry what he was thinking. It's worked out for us!

Also at work- I've had to learn to let go a little. My boss phrased this as "digging in" - - and suggested that I try not to dig my heels in as much sometimes. I think this is something I'll always have to deal with and struggle with, but at least if I can recognize it, I can make some small steps towards improvement.

So what does that have to do with today? Well, I put my pre-pregnancy (non-maternity) jeans on today. Yes, they are a little tight. But the button is buttoned. I also put my ring on my ring finger. I'm not sure that I could get it off if necessary - - but it is on. And there is definitely something rewarding about that!

Success!!

For those who have been following the last few days, I am happy to report success in the nursing-bra shopping! Although I got a handful of target brand for now, I feel like I'm desperate enough for SOMETHING to nurse in that those will get me past at least this first few weeks! Thanks to JD and MB for suggestions on finding something that fits well and is a little more permanent!

Unlike most of the days since baby was born, today has felt a lot more about ME. Of course, part of that is adjusting to the nursing (buying bras!) And another part was a spa appointment - manicure/pedicure. My first one in a while. I wanted to take my mom as a thank you for coming and staying with us for 2 weeks (although she preferred a massage). I like spoiling my mom - - Unlike most women I know, I'm not sure my mom has anyone else to do it for her. She's been the caregiver/nuturer her whole life! And she's spent countless hours the last couple of weeks making me dinner or lunch, bringing me something to drink, and keeping our kitchen clean and dishes done! (Not to mention laundry, diaper changes, and more...)

The target trip today felt like a success, since I knocked out my remaining "need" list. I had a receipt from when we purchased the remaining items on our registry (which I later received a 10% off coupon for) and brought in the receipt- they applied it for me retroactively! I was very thankful, since it wasn't insignificant (after our "major" shopping trip a few weeks ago)... After target, we stopped by starbucks, too!

Did I mention the weather today was absolutely gorgeous? Spent a bit of time on the back porch. I definitely am enjoying the beginning of fall- brisk air, and trees changing colors. The seasons in North Carolina sure are beautiful!

Tomorrow is scheduled to be a bit more low-key - - no exciting adventures planned. Later this week, baby may be going out to dinner with us for the first time! Stay tuned...

Adios!

Name?

What's in a name? We didn't study/learn this before we picked out little Mark's name. We literally just picked it because we liked it! Only later, did I learn the following:

Mark
Latin: Warlike, of Mars ( the god of war); The biblical Mark, sometimes called John Mark, was a missionary companion to Peter and Paul and writer of one of the four Gospel accounts of the life of Jesus.

Jacob
Hebrew: Supplanter or seizing by the heel; Jacob appears in the biblical book of Genesis as the youngest son of Isaac and Rebecca and twin to Esau. Jacob''s sons were the founders of the twelve tribes of Israel, and he received the name Israel from God later in life. James is a common variant of this name.

So, I guess we've got a fighter! And my husband's name isn't Isaac. I'm actually a little surprised at how biblical the name is - I knew that Mark was one of the apostles, but I hadn't though of Jacob in the same way. Anyhow... No changing it now! And no regrets.

In other news, today's big adventure took my mom and I to Kinkos, Walmart, and Sams while daddy got baby duty. We were out a bit, and I may have overdone it a bit. Did you know that Walmart does not sell Nursing Bras? Grr... Still a big item on the "need" list. Another day or two, maybe!

You'd think I hadn't been to Sams in MONTHS based on all the stuff we bought! Of course, it was our first "big" diaper purchase. We aren't totally out yet, but we did make the diapers from the diaper cake I received at work functional! We've now got changing stations upstairs and down. And tonight, for the first time, the diaper managed to explode on me while feeding - but didn't get the babie's onesie! Crazy.

As borrowed from a friend's blog... Peas out!

It's done!

Today was another day full of adventure. Daddy went back to work part time, even though it was an evening of little sleep. And for mom, the little sleep continued part of the way into the morning!

After a quick lunch, we met dad at the doc's office for baby's circumcision. Poor Mark. He handled it like a trooper. While we were there, a 10-year old boy named Nelson asked the staff why there was a baby crying. They said they couldn't say because of confidentiality, so I chided in and said I could tell him that the baby was being circumcized since I'm his mother. He asked, "What's that?" - - which in retrospect, perhaps I should have anticipated. Luckily the boy (Nelson) was there with his mother who chimed in and said "It's something that is done to boy's private parts." Nelson was really cute- he said, "Well by the sound of the screaming he sounds really cute." I got to introduce them as we were walking out - although we didn't let him get too close (I think he was there for flu like symptoms).

Anyhow - - so it made me think about sex education for a child as they grow, as well. I was offerred the opportunity to watch - - but politely declined, saying that was a daddy job. Dad got to see the procedure, and we got care instructions. Although I'm not 100% certain, I do believe it was a Jewish priest who did the procedure. Considering almost every pediatrician does it, and this person was one of only a small handful of recommendations, I am overall pleased. Trust me - I don't like many doctors (although admittedly, it is much easier to accept when I am not the patient!) - - but I thought this was a decent experience. Luckily, dad was around too.

After that incident, we made our way to the fire station and had our car seats inspected and installed. It's a free procedure, and it helps with my peace of mind. Now, I can confidently cart my kiddo around in my car!

A busy day - but a few more may also be ahead. I still haven't made it to get those nursing bras! Tomorrow is another day.

Thanks for reading!

Big Day!

Another big day at the Williams household!

This time, we had our appointment for photographs with Phreckles Photography! Planning to get out of the house at a certain time (with a newborn - for the first time) is not something to be taken lightly! We had to get baby fed and clean, as well as take showers (which included the oh-so-rare putting on a teensy bit of makeup for me, and drying my hair- luckily mom is in town, I thought I owned a hair dryer but somehow couldn't find it the one time I wanted to use it!) I suppose as parents we have many more years of this to look forward to - - and hopefully it gets easier with time!

I digress..

It was one of those nights with less-than-needed sleep, which meant mom, dad, and baby all made it to the photographer's studio (after mom "memorized" the address wrong..duh.. luckily we found it and weren't too late). Photo session went fairly well - we hope! Mark's eyes were open for at least a fairly decent portion of the pictures. A "sample" of pictures will be available soon (and posted on the blog kept by the photographer at www.phrecklesphotography.com). We'll see what she came up with! For some of the photos, I coordinated "matching" outfits. Brown shirts and jeans (although we didn't put jeans on the newborn for photos - a onesie was good enough!) Hopefully, we don't have the next photos to be uploaded onto one of my favorite funny photography websites (www.awkwardfamilyphotos.com).

We grabbed lunch on our way home - - and took a much needed nap. Driving through State Fair traffic on the last day of the fair was the most "direct" route, but probably also the most traffic of anywhere in the entire city on Sunday morning!

This evening, friends are bringing over dinner which is very nice. Mark looks forward to visitors (but generally naps through them). Hmm... I suppose I should come clean and say it's me that probably looks forward to visitors the most!

At least one more animal (see last post) that I call Mark frequently: Monkey! I think it's the loooong arms and legs... and such cute feet! Perhaps I'll scan in the midwife certificate one day and post it (it includes little baby foot prints).

In other news... I'm already down 25 pounds in just over a week (yay!!!) and feeling a little stronger (although still healing and still a little tender) every day. Breastfeeding still stinks - but I'm holding out for 2 weeks to see if it becomes better/more natural. Keep your fingers crossed for me!

More excitement coming this week. Hopefully to entail shopping (need nursing bras!), circumcision, and a visit to the fire station to check the car seat. Stay tuned to find out more!

Uncle Sam

Back to a blog that's a little bit all over the place... Staring with Uncle Sam.

Mark will have an Uncle Sam - - that is, an Uncle named Sam. I don't know if he'll call him Samh, or Sid (note: h on end of Samh is intentional) or just Uncle. But this one is unlike the "Uncle Sam" we dread paying around April 15th...

Did I mention this blog would be all over the place?

Today was Mark's first visit from a local friend. Mark's total "awake" time in a 24 hour period is only about 20 minutes or so (and at a different time every day), and she just missed the window! But it was nice to have company for a little while, anyway!

I was thinking about my brother because of the nicknames. So far, the nickname I like for Mark is "bug." I've called him several other animals recently, also - bunny, bear, cat - but the name "bug" is what I like best at this point. Who knows whether or not it will stick - but somehow, at least in my mind, it seems fitting. I could explain... but I think if I made the attempt, it would probably just get lost anyhow!

And now, on to another feeding!

Buggy Ride

Baby's first outing was this afternoon! Mommy, Daddy, Baby, and Granny loaded the car and headed out for some custard! Baby slept the whole time, of course, but I was glad to get out of the house. I'm not going as stir crazy as expected- but I was ready to do something other than SPEND (Sleep, Pee, Eat, Nurse, and Drink).


The next several days will be followed with several additional firsts! Be sure to stay posted..

In the meantime, I've been collecting a list of baby's many talents. Here's the list so far:

I can suck.
I can keep secrets.
I can pee.
I can poop.
I can sleep almost 4 hours at a time.
I can break out of a good swaddle.
I can scream - especially for diaper changes!

Babies, Marathons, and Yoga

As a new mommy, here's something I've learned and want to share.

I have now both had a baby and run a marathon (two actually). Some people will compare the two, as both are quite challenging. Another thought I'll throw into the mix for this blog is yoga. So what do babies, marathons, and yoga have in common?

In a word, I'll describe it as "respect." In each of these, I believe a person can learn a new way to respect the body, the mind, and the being.

Running a marathon is hard and requires training. It is both mentally and physically demanding. The tough part of running is that it takes a certain level of internal drive and devotion. The "I can do it" has to come from the mind - since it's easy to give in and make the "body" stop. Why not walk? Why not sit down?

Yoga is an experience where you learn your limits. How far you can stretch in different directions. It's also meditative, and helps you "cleanse" the soul and "quiet" the body. For me, it has always helped me to relax and be comfortable with who I am and the limitations that it brings. Yoga allows you to explore the boundaries of "control." You can choose to focus and collect.

Then there is the "having a baby" thing. I distinctly remember one of the midwives suggesting that it is "Primal and Earthy" - which I think is a great description. The thing about having a baby is that it is certain. One way or another, that baby is coming. The bodies physical aspect is tested. Unlike a marathon, however, there really is no choice to give in or give up. It's also not a mental activity, and instead a very physical - primal activity. In some ways, it is the complete "loss" of control. Another way of exploring the limits of the body.

So, in my world, the exploration of self comes from moments like these - moments involving babies, marathons, and yoga.


P.S. Another great thing about baby: It gives me unending inspiration and makes a daily blog lots of fun to write!

Slowly but Surely..

We are continuing to figure things out! As any new mom, of course, the early days are about eating, peeing, and sleeping. One of the acronyms I learned in a breastfeeding class was "SPEND" - Sleep, Pee, Eat, Nurse, and Drink.

Breastfeeding is going okay, still - but just OK. I'm holding out for 2 weeks to see if/how it improves. Milk is definitely in, and with baby sleeping 3 hours at a time it gives me a bit of a chance to swell. Cabbage in freezer? Check.

Today was the day for scheduling appointments. Spa for mom as thank you? Check. Circumcision (poor boy)? Check. Two month with pediatrician? Check.

Today was also the first day of daddy day care. I managed to get out of the house for an hour or so to take my mom to my favorite "splurge" grocery store (Trader Joe's). I'm in a bit of regret, as I am definitely cramping a little, but it felt good to be out.

Did I mention that the weather has been beautiful? Yesterday, Mark and I walked around a bit outside and he got his first "dose" of sunshine!

Midwives and babies

Do babies get cuter every day, or is it just me? :)

I thought I'd take just a few minutes to post about my experience with midwives. For anyone considering a midwife - I would definitely go that route! For me, it was a much higher degree of "care" than I think I would have gotten with a doctor. I felt like they were treating me like a person, not as a "patient." Even though there were many "clinical" aspects of my labor (with all the complications), I never felt less than a human being.

Anyhow - through the labor/delivery and time spent at the birthing center, I actually met/"used" 3 different midwives (and 5 nurses, I think). Maureen was "on call" when my water broke. She was around the longest for my "early" stages of labor. I think she must have been at the center for close to 30 hours with me. She is the owner/"director" of the clinic, and I think she took a personal interest in me (although perhaps she is that way with all her moms!) She had to do the nasty exams (checking dialation) and is a very "hands on" person. Even after she left, she continued to call regularly to get updates on the progress of the women currently in labor (which was me and another woman in the next room). She also did our "home visit" following the birth, which involved taking baby's blood for testing.

Here is her picture:


Towards the end, however, Leigh Ann took over and actually was the midwife that "caught" the baby. She had to do the lengthy repair of the tear, called this her "messiest birth ever," and did all the yucky stuff to me (putting me on antibiotic, IV fluid, catheter, etc). Overnight, Allison stayed and then in the morning, Leigh Ann was back. Of all of the people that helped during the birth, Leigh Ann sticks out to me the most. I really liked her demeanor and bedside manor. She made a difference in the experience for me, and played a very memorable part. The last thing she had to do was to put in a catheter (for the 2nd time). As we were leaving, I asked, "don't you have any additional torture devices up your sleeve?" Anyhow, here's a picture of us with Leigh Ann:

Another update - Oh my!

There are those mothers who are up all night with their infant. They can't get them to feed. They can't keep them happy. They can't sleep. They are - in short- miserable.

I am happy to report.... I am not one of "those" mothers. I have been counting my blessings as of late, and boy, are they numerous! I am very happy to have traded in the pregnancy for the baby!

So what are my blessings?
- Baby is sleeping 4 hours at a time (not just two or three), meaning less disrupted sleep for me, daddy, and grandma!
- Our midwife "home" visit provided both baby and I with a "clean" bill of health. The concerns over my anemia/blood loss/etc have been cleared for the most part (although I'm still on iron). Everything is relatively normal and happy! I am doing "better than expected." We'll know more about the baby tests by our next follow-up appointment in 2 weeks.
- I'm being treated like a queen! My hubby is running errands for me, my mom is cooking and cleaning for me, and all is going well as of today!
- Breastfeeding is not as miserable/painful as I expected. I assure you, I still have some soreness/tenderness and my milk has probably not fully arrived yet, but it's better than I anticipated.
- Did I mention this cute baby boy I have?
- Not as much fussing/crying as I would have expected. Maybe all that babysitting/childcare I did for so long is paying dividends.
- I'm not nearly as exhausted as I was while pregnant, and I at least have SOME of my body back - and had a "biggest loser" type of weight loss for this week!

Yep, all - in - all, I would say that motherhood and I are getting along well. I am sure, like anything, this will come with some ups and downs - - but for those down moments, I will at least have this "list" of blessings that I can look back on and refer to.

The attached picture was labeled, "love at first sight," by a local friend. I thought it was appropriate for this particular blog!

From parasite Incubator to parasite Host...

I've successfully moved from the incubator (pregnancy) of a parasite to it's host (breastfeeding). That's right, baby was born!

For those of you that don't like graphic detail, you may want to skip this blog. For those interested in the birth story, please read on!

My water broke while at work, in a meeting (conference call) with my manager and two other coworkers. It was a HUGE gush- but even more embarrassing!! Don't know if that conference room chair has now been condemned or not, but it was certainly something! I left my stuff on the table and headed down the elevator to my office to call DH (dear hubby) who was at work. My manager followed me, made sure I got ahold of him, and offerred at least twice to drive me home. It was around 11:20 on the 15th. I wasn't having any contractions or any other labor signs, so I felt comfortable to at least drive myself home.

I got home, and met Seth there (we both work almost exactly the same distance away, just in different directions.) I called the midwife on my way home (Maureen, owner of the clinic) and she told me to wait until I was actively having contractions 3 minutes apart - and to eat lunch. I ate lunch, Seth got gas in the car, and we called back. She said it didn't sound like time, so to take a bath. I sat in the bath for a while and called back.. She told us to wait another couple of hours just to see what happened. That gave Seth time to finish putting the crib together, and we rearranged the baby room so I liked it a little better.

Around 6:00 or so, we called and she said to go ahead and come in. So we got to the Birthing center in Chapel Hill around 6:30pm on the 15th.

The contractions from that point slowed down a bit, and were pretty irregular. By around 10:30, Maureen suggested that she give me some morphine and that we try to sleep, since circandian rythm would probably prevent "active" labor from starting anytime soon and we would need some energy. So, Seth and I slept. And I slept amazingly well most of the night.

In the morning, the contractions were nearly gone - - so I thought. They put me on a monitor to see what was happening, and I was actually having regular contractions - 8 minutes apart - but only felt them in my upper thighs. So, I stayed a while longer. The rule for "PROM" (Premature Rupture of Membranes) is that in a hospital setting, you would essentially be induced to make sure you have the baby within 24 hours. Since I was at the birthing center, they gave me the option of "expectant management".

By around 3:30 or 4:00, my contractions were still not too bad, and only about 5 minutes apart. So - I had a bit of a panic attack, and felt terribly defeated. The midwife came in to check dialation (for only the second time - I forgot to mention I was 3-4cm when I got there at 6:30pm) - and I was at 8cm. That to me meant that I was making progress, starting more active labor, and could wait it out. I stepped in the shower for a while, and then started getting contractions where the only relief was to flail out of bed and walk around (standing was the only thing that I felt like I could manage!)

More labor, more pain, some pushing... Finally the baby was born at 8:49pm. That is around 33 hours of labor - whew!

Baby came out okay - Apgar at 1 minute was 3, by 5 minutes was 9. Mom, however, began hemmoraging with the delivery of the placenta and lost a LOT of blood. Dad and midwives were VERY worried. Mom also had a 3rd degree tear (which required 30 minutes or more worth of stitches)... Mom was a much bigger concern than baby - and I think with 1 more clot, I would have been immediately transferred to the Hospital. So the labor/delivery was without an epidural and without any medication for pain. They did give me an enema before the baby came. Because it was over 24 hours, I was given an IV drip and antibiotic. After the baby, I got more IV, more antibiotic, and a catheter - lucky me (not!).

So, medical intervention was indeed necessary to a great degree- - but the baby was delivered naturally. After a night of sleep, the catheter finally came out (thank god!). More antibiotic, more checking of blood (I was fairly anemic from the loss of blood). We weren't released from the birthing center until about 2:30pm. Which is around 44 hours in the birthing center!

Within an hour of Mark's birth, another baby was born "next door" and named Charlie. I don't think they had quite as many complications with that one, though. The midwife also said that this was one of her "messiest" births. The midwife that delivered was probably my favorite of the bunch - Leigh Ann. She's coming by today for a check-up. The nurse that was there (and stayed and helped afterwards) was Holly. She was pretty good, too.

Whew - am I glad that part is over! I assure you, had I been transferred to the hospital, many more drugs would have been involved. Natural childbirth is no picnic - they call it labor for a reason!

Now on to more breast feeding and tenderness as we get the "breastfeeding" thing down....

Still Waiting..

alternate title: fleeting thoughts from a soon-to-be-mother

On both the baby, and the crib! Dear Hubby (DH) has run into several complications with the "hardware" package which has required multiple adjustments. He's frustrated- so am I. I want to make the silly bed!

Oh well, a few other interesting quotes and tidbits to blog about this time around.

This time, I'll start with Starbucks and Socks. :)

I use a drive-through Starbucks about once or week or so and usually get the same barrista- I think her name is Jessica. I didn't realize she could tell I was pregnant, but she asked me on Tuesday when I was due! I told her, and she asked me the name - - and she is the only one outside of DH and I to now know! Why did I tell her? Who knows. Probably because I wanted to tell someone... and if you really want to know, you can ask her! Of course, she probably doesn't remember. And she's a pretty safe bet for not sharing and/or spreading. So I'll give you another inkling just for being a blog follower! Initials will likely either be MJW or KMW. Right now, we haven't completely decided between the two!

As for socks? That's the first "gift" I got for baby for Christmas. I'm actually going to wait until Christmas to give them to him/let him wear them!

It's been an interesting week for quotes, so I thought I'd share a few.

In today's meeting, there were lots of donuts/pastries that nobody was eating. The presenter said, "You guys need to eat these. Otherwise, I'll have to share with Rebecca. She's got a weight loss strategy - but unfortunately, I don't."

Another guy I work with was asking about our "schedule" for a possible Friday meeting. I sent him a message that said I was free anytime, but baby may have other plans. He sent me back a note that said, "Well, you just tell baby . . .. Strike that. From our experience, you may as well forget telling baby anything right now. Baby is just going to do whatever baby wants for awhile. "

This week, my motto - particularly at work, has been "Here another day!" Which is also Pregnant another day, anxious another day, and living day to day - and sometimes even hour to hour or minute to minute.

My ankles have reached new sizes. They are very swollen. Today at work, I had the thought that at least there are no guys at work I'm trying to pick up. One look at my ankles, and they might bail!

And one last item I found humor in this week. A friend of mine had a baby on Monday. Her sister-in-law posted something that said, "Thanks for incubating the parasite!" One of my favorite quotes so far.

So.. From now on, I am no longer pregnant. I'm incubating a parasite! Maybe that will keep my spirits in good enough humor for enough to get me through this last stretch. At least, I hope to avoid the woes of the last week. I keep thinking it's not possible that I'll make it another week. I'm at least hoping at this point it's down to days... Only baby knows that, though. Stupid baby.

Thinking of you, Dad.

A friend of mine once described life as separate periods of "transition" and "stability." In my experience of life thus far, this has definitely been the case! Over the next few months, I hope to be moving from a period of "transition" (2006-2009) into a period of "stability" (2010-???). I look forward to slowing down a little, and life as a family. I look forward to my dream of being "mommy" finally becoming a reality.

At the same time, especially yesterday, I consider the loss of my father. With society living to older ages all the time, I find it very sad that daddy didn't make it to celebrate his 65th birthday (which would have been 10/7/09). My father never knew I was pregnant. My baby will never know his grandfather - my father. He'll never enjoy sharing a bowl of popcorn (extra butter, extra salt) with him. He'll never receive that special "nickname" like his cousins Pooh, Tre, and Haley.

Growing up, I was fortunate to know all 4 of my grandparents. We lived in the same city, and got to see each other often. I remember rubbing my Grandpa Pepper's back, and riding in Grandpa Seago's old-fashioned car.

My wish is that baby will learn, through me and my siblings, pieces of my dad. As his momma, I'll teach him stupid jokes and a quirky sense of humor. He'll learn about Egg Foo Yawn when you are sick. He'll learn about independence and being strong-willed.

Through my brother, Uncle Sid, I hope he'll join Maria Tortilla in being given a "family" nickname. He'll learn that wherever life takes you, it's most important that you are happy - and you can make it through just about anything.

Through my sister, Aunt Sarah, I hope he'll learn compassion and how to be influential. He'll learn that family is always there for you, and loves you no matter what.

Although our little guy will never know life with two grandpas, he will have plenty of family that will love and cherish him.