hiding

well my guess was correct: the baby didnt reveal his/her gender! it wasnt for lack of trying, as the lady tried from various angles and such. so we're a little bummed, but they said we could come back next month to look again.

of course this is secondary to the real news: everything looked great and the baby seems to be quite healthy. I just love seeing the heart chambers move, and the alien-like skull shot is always cool, as well as the spine and stomach and hands and feet. wow we're really having another baby!! seems like this kid isnt quite as active, and is certainly not interested in opening its legs much at all. I guess s/he's just modest.

now to finish up some work stuff, pack the car, attempt to sleep a little, and we're outta here.

boy, girl, or hiding?

tomorrow we'll take our first peek at the new baby. I have this fear that s/he'll be hiding. but I'm guessing that it's a boy, as the pregnancy has gone a lot like Caleb's. we're both excited about the possibility of a girl, but having 2 boys of similar age would be really cool (if not completely insane for a while). so I'm going a little crazy with anticipation.

goodbye, dix

so our st. elmo winn-dixie is going to close. bummer. I remember when they were building it, when I visted Covenant for the first time. all the students were quite excited.

we got tired of their high prices and terrible produce a long time ago, but there's still a place in our hearts for the old "dix." for me, it started with the Big 60 cookies. they were an institution for us back in college, and I still love them, especially if they're ever-so-slightly soft from being a little stale. perhaps I'll have to stock up.

but now that we shop at wally, we only stop in at the dix for milk or perhaps PBR or some other item we've just run out of or need for the latest craving. I guess that makes us somewhat culpable for the demise of the dix, but then again, I cant be blamed for their absurd prices or nasty veggies. and on our budget, the bottom line reigns when it comes to variable expenses like food.

nearly every time we go to the dix, we see at least one person we know. usually it's 2 or 3, not counting the tall cashier guy who goes to New City (I think)...not that I know him, but I've seen him all the time for years now. if the store isnt bought up by Publix or Bi-Lo or something, that is what I'll miss the most...the community feel of it. and if CVS goes down with it, that will be truly sad, for there was never a pharmacist like Steve. I wouldnt mind if rent-a-center died, but that's another story.

so hopefully they'll get bought up and fixed up, and the new place will have good produce and killer prices and all the same faces. or at least a place to buy yogurt without having to go all the way to wally.

staring at the son

I love to play with my boy. I also love to just sit and watch him play on his own. he's a ways from being self-conscious, so he'll happily do his thing while I study his moves. it really is amazing to see him discover his little world.

like playing with a box: moving the flaps back and forth, back and forth, checking on the contents of the box (a package of diapers), moving the flaps again. folding down the flap as far as it will go, watching it pop back up again. smiling at this new game. fold the flap. watch it come back. smile. look at daddy to see what he thinks (he smiles and says he thinks it's pretty cool). big grin. check on the contents. move the flaps again. this goes on for at least 5 minutes. amazing, considering nothing would console him 10 minutes ago.

I didnt take time to do much reflection on father's day, but just watching my boy grow and discover things fills me with thanksgiving and awe. I never realized how much I would love my kids. and here's a life that has been entrusted to my care. amazing.

yet I've realized I can fall into the trap of raising my kids to be just like me, especially since Caleb is a dead ringer for me (and everyone is always reminding us of that). sometimes I do feel like I'm looking at a tiny version of myself. but no, he's HIMself, as besides, he's made of just as much of his mama as me. JQ recently pointed out a good article on this topic. it's good to be reminded that Caleb and the new baby are NOT my own, but belong unto my faithful Savior Jesus Christ, as the old catechism says.

need baby roadtrip advice

we're going on a long road trip soon (~13 hours BB (before baby)), and we're a little nervous about how Caleb will do.

we went to Cloudland Canyon yesterday, about a 30 minute drive away. it was 4:30, which is a rough time of day for the bambino, and he really didnt like the journey. of course there's lots of twists and turns and altitude changes on that trek, but it's made me nervous about the long haul.

so any tips or tricks out there? here's what we're planning so far: borrowing a DVD player, turned car seat to face forward, got a few new books and toys, stocked up on baby benadryl. we thought about leaving at bedtime, but recovering from that would be more than its worth. plus I'm likely to fall asleep at the wheel when it's super late, so that wouldnt be very good. in the past, we get so excited about the trip that we cant sleep the night before, so maybe we'll leave at 4am or something?

if nothing else, please say a little prayer for us.

more new sites!

we've been quite busy at work for a while, but it seems like we've had little to show for it. for various reasons, a lot of the sites I've been building have been delayed for quite a while. sometimes it's bureaucracy on their end. sometimes they're just too busy to return our calls or send us that last bit of text for the site. sometimes there's too many chefs in the virtual kitchen, or sometimes the head chef takes off for another job, leaving the kitchen in disarray. and yes, even sometimes it's a problem on our end.

but suddenly everyone is into launching their sites. like the one for "amplified telephones, notification systems, assistive listening devices" (full ecommerce coming as soon as a few more ducks get in the row) and a simple site for a local "independent investment management firm." (yes, these links are to help google a bit).

two long-outstanding sites launched in one day! and we have (count em) 6 more on the cusp (which of course could be delayed for who-knows-how-long for who-knows-what, but at least my part is done). this definitely calls for a beer. or two.

welcome, Ellis

congrats to Jeannette and Chris, whose son arrived a bit early yesterday. apparently everyone is doing well. woohoo for babies!

we'll get out first peek at our new baby next week. here's about where our baby is now. hopefully we'll find out the boy/girlness, so stay tuned for scans of the ultrasound. I'd love to have a daughter, but it would be fun to have 2 boys close in age. any guesses or feelings out there? maybe we'll run the "guess the name and such" survey again.

GA blog

JQ and crew have set up a blog for General Assembly, which is here in chatty this year. so this is pretty much a bookmark for me.

Michelle's dad is here in town for the festivities, as he was recently ordained as a church planter to Champaign-Urbana, IL. we're so excited for her parents as they take this next step in their ministry. check out their little site here for more (slightly outdated) info on them, and do pray for them too. and send them money. lots of it. the sooner they get the funds they need, the sooner they can start planting the church there near the U of I campus.

in Caleb news, Auntie Sarah taught him how to clap the other day, so he's been having fun with that. here's a little video and some pics too.

we're getting excited about our upcoming travels, but a little nervous about how the baby will do on such a long journey. please say a little prayer for him and us when you read this.

new site

it's been far too long, but we've finally got a new site up for work. this is easily the best site we've had, with actual content and such. and as a bonus, we beat the other guys. hehe.

chicken

one weird and cool thing about having a baby is that he's doing brand new things all the time. things that he may be doing for the rest of his life, things that we do all the time. of course it would get old to celebrate each of these little moments, but it's just cool that he has those moments almost every day.

yesterday it was eating chicken for the first time. he didnt last long on the baby food stage, so we give him bits and pieces of things. he really enjoys feeding himself, and it's a little easier for us too. and the dog's a big fan as well.

so he's been loving his pears, peaches, bananas, pancakes, eggs, pasta, peas, carrots, sweet potatos and whatnot (like pretzels, graham "crackers" and animal "crackers"). so we figured introducing some kind of meat was in order. mama made some funky meatballs with a recipe she found in her baby meals book, but they were pretty gross. none of us liked them. yuck.

but yesterday I brought home some fried chicken, and we like it spicy. I figured if I got some closer to the bone for him, the spice wouldnt be down that far. so I peeled some off, did the blowing it off game (which he loves) and put it on his tray. down it went without a second thought, and he was looking for more. he was loving the stuff, so we figured the spice was no big deal.

awaking to his wails at 4am, we figured otherwise. it may have been because he hasnt been feeling all that good lately, but he was rather unhappy at such an unhappy hour. thankfully he took a bottle and we all slept in, but I think next time we'll do a crock pot chicken with NO spice.

gifts

my parents were in town this weekend, and as usual they gave us a multitude of gifts. for being here less than 48 hours, they sure can pack in the giving.

first is always (and evermore shall be?) the case of Newcastle. my dad likes good beer, and knows that I love it yet dont get it for myself much, so he consistantly spoils me with 24 wonderful bottles of the good stuff. there really couldnt be a better food or drink gift for me.

then there's something for the kid. usually nice little clothes that we need and maybe a toy or two they picked up at the church yardsale or something. this time we even sent back the annoying toys, so they can be "grandma's house" toys.

on Saturday morning they hit the ground running with the gifts of service. grandma tackled the mountain of dishes (which took her pretty much all day, on and off) while grandpa installed the new roof rack for our car. their presence also freed me up to make a big grocery store run, while mama started her little family photo project. I cant express how wonderful it is to have a clean kitchen after such a mess for too long. I'd get oh-so-close, but never quite done. between sick baby and busy work stuff, we just couldnt kill the beast, but grandma to the rescue. we pledge to keep it clean until vacation.

oh yeah and I shouldnt forget to mention that I didnt change a diaper all weekend, which is a little strange. nice, but strange.

in the afternoon I was also freed up to do some gardening. this year I've adopted the Bush Doctrine and are hitting the bugs with a pre-emptive strike. no more sissy "insecticidal soap." I've busted out the real bug killer, and hopefully the harvest will do better and last longer this year. the tomato plants are looking great, as is the main cuke. we'll see about the squash plants and other cukes. the snow peas were about done after a bountiful harvest, so I tore them down, turned the soil, and planted more tomatos. yum. I think we're done planting new stuff this year, except for some marigolds maybe.

on Saturday evening they happily babysat while we went out for a nice dinner at Bonefish Grill. even better, my workplace picked up the bill as a thank you for staying late lately. the whole experience there was great and Michelle was just giddy to be out at a nice place together. good atmosphere, servers, beer, food and desert. if you go, you must get the "bang bang shrimp" appetizer. simply amazing.

when we got home, grandpa had mowed the lawn. even better, he mowed it with a new mower he bought for us! woohoo! no more mooching off the neighbors (thanks dave for all the mower use, by the way). maybe I can whip this lawn into shape so the kids can have something to play in besides a clover patch. I've wanted to buy a mower this season, but the roof rack took priority. grandpa to the rescue.

on Sunday morning we went to church while they stayed home with the baby, who isnt quite fully recovered from his week of sickness. we had a nice lunch and some last moments of cuteness together. it's so cool to see them love him so much, and he does quite well with them too.

now it's just us again, still enjoying the many gifts and blessings that they brought, looking forward to our next meeting in Vermont.

and this picture cracks me up.

104.2°

I'm generally not one to worry, usually taking stances like "it'll all work out" or at most "let's keep an eye on it and see what happens." when my kid's fever is at a relatively normal (in my mind at least) 101-102 range, it's easy for me to let things run their course.

but when he's positively radiating heat, and the new thermometer says 104.2 after a day's worth of fever-reducers, the worry wheels start to turn. just one tick away from nasty stuff like "possible bacterial infection" and only a few more till such things as "organ shutdown."

the first worry that sets in is quite practical: crap, what if we have to take him to the emergency room? I really dislike emergency rooms, as it seems you have to wait at least 8 hours while all the heart attacks and gunshot wounds get taken care of first. plus I dont even know where the kids hospital is, or if they even have an ER?

and lingering in the back of my mind are all the unthinkable thoughts. what if he doesnt get better? what if I've heard his laugh for the last time? it's no wonder Jesus commanded us not to worry, because this stuff could eat away my soul in short order.

so we pray and call the nurse and grandma (who is also a nurse) and are thankful for the little signs of health. he was especially into snuggling and books and TV. he was trying so hard to be himself. even when he was burning up and utterly exhausted, he still would wave his fingers at me in the mirror (while his thumb was in his mouth). when the tylenol would kick in, he'd sit up and play in my lap a little, even giggling at the silly games we play.

it's now a couple days after the worst and he's definitely feeling better, just in time for a short visit with grandma and grandpa. we'll see if the pox do in fact show up. while we're in the middle of all this, it can sometimes seem overwhelming, but then we get reminders that we still lead a simple life. right now I have a hard time imagining what 2 will be like, much less all the craziness with five.