TMI Tuesday: Oh, Nuts!

We have a, most of the time, happy little boy who is, mostly, health so there isn’t really anything that we can complain about there. So far, 2016 has been pretty good to us but there have also been many challenges this year and while we have gotten some answers there are other questions that remain. The biggest of which relates to our son’s possible allergies.

We learned rather quickly in the spring that Penicillin, for all the good that it can do, is not something that agrees with our son. The hives, rash, and bloating made us acutely aware of his allergy to this widely prescribed medication. It was one of the scariest few days of parenthood thus far with multiple trips to the emergency room and countless appointments with the pediatrician. Not knowing what was going on during those first couple of days is a feeling that I hope to never experience again.  

I guess the good and bad things about the situation is that we already had an allergist lined up for our son as there have been some minor reactions to peanut butter that we were hoping to get figured out. The appointments started in January or February but, because of the chaos that ensued since then, we are still in a state of flux. We simply don’t know if this is another allergen to add to his list.

The latest attempt brought us some hope as it was the final of three steps of testing. He had already passed the skin test and the blood work also came back negative. The final exam was to conduct a food challenge to see if anything happened while consuming peanut butter. Unfortunately, for whatever reason, our son wouldn’t eat more than the initial taste (three are required) and we are once again in limbo until the winter.

While nuts have been a part of our regular diet before this year, we haven’t had any in the house since winter and have consumed little outside of the house as well (never around our son). It is a change and sometimes a challenge, especially given the stock pile kept in the office kitchen, but it is completely manageable. Yes, we have to alter some things here and there but, beyond the aforementioned allergy and potential allergy, our son is a happy and growing boy. And, having survived last year, 2016 is pretty easy in comparison.

TMI Tuesday: Baby Doesn’t Need To Know Everything!

Over the past year, especially over the last couple of weeks, I have found that sometimes the best way to protect my son is to not share everything with him. Just over a week ago we didn’t have much choice when I was rear ended on my way home. He knew that I was supposed to be home to tuck him in and when I called that night to tell my wife what had happened and that I would be home in time, he knew something was wrong and he worried about me for most of the weekend. When the same thing happened to me this morning on my way to work I was able to let my wife know and we didn’t mention anything to our son… in fact, he was happy to see me home when my wife walked through the door after picking him up from daycare.

That’s right, the same thing happened. Well, almost the same thing. Either way, our son didn’t need to know what happened…

The incident occurred while on my way to work this morning. I was traveling in the left lane heading eastbound on the PA Turnpike in inconsistent traffic. Traffic was going about 40-50 mph but, soon after passing the Downingtown exit, traffic ceased to move. I came to a halt about 1.5-2 car lengths between myself and the car in front of me. When the car came to a complete stop I noticed in the rear view mirror, first in my peripheral vision and then with nearly instant focus, that the Gray Ford F250 behind me was not stopping. I did not hear any brakes.

When he impacted the rear of the rental card I was in at the time (a White 2016 Dodge Dart for those who need the reminder) I was forced approximately 2-2.5 car lengths forward. Thankfully, I avoiding the car in front of me by guiding the now super-compact car toward the median. After taking about 5 minutes to collect myself and after Turnpike personnel blocked all lanes of traffic I drove the car to the right shoulder of the road about 50-100 yards from impact.

Turnpike personnel, PA Troopers, EMT, and the towing company were on scene soon after the accident. The other driver admitted to me and to others on the scene that he had taken his eyes off the road. The Trooper collected our information and took statements for the incident report. I was taken to the hospital in an ambulance soon after since this was the second such accident in about ten days. Thankfully, they didn’t find anything in the slew of x-ray that I received and I was discharged shortly after noon.

Just when I was beginning to feel better from the previous accident and starting to catch up on everything, I was out of the office for another day and everything else was put on hold as the stiffness and soreness set in. By the time our son came home, I was able to hide the pain and discomfort so that our son would not worry again. I hate keeping things from him but I also hate seeing the worry on his face and the tossing and turning that it causes him at night. Hopefully, this is the last time I have to hide something like this from him… hopefully this meets my accident quota for a while… I don’t know how much more my body can take of this. At least now I am in a slightly bigger car as compared to the Dart… a fully loaded 2016 Chevy Suburban.  

West vs. East - South vs. North

Today was the day. After nine days on the road we returned home from our Virginia exploration. However, after Colonial Williamsburg we did make one last stopover in Richmond. Basically it granted us an opportunity to visit a city that we have never visited and it got us an hour closer to home.

We left the lodge in the early afternoon yesterday and almost immediately ran into traffic… the shift back to reality was already taking place. After unpacking one last time at our final hotel and taking a moment to breathe we walked across the parking lot for a quick, and early, dinner before getting back in the car and heading into the city. Now that we have been there once I am not sure that I will be visiting any time soon unless I need to get some family research done as it is the capital of the Commonwealth.

While most of the museums were closed we were still able to walk around a few minutes once we found an open spot in the hospital parking lot. It wasn’t much but at least now I can say that I have seen both White Houses as the Confederate White House is still standing in the middle of the city (in the middle of a hospital campus actually).

With limited space around the structure, there was still room for the preservation of a small garden in the back…

…and the front of the house looks to be well maintained.

Given recent events in this country I couldn’t help but think about the importance of these places still existing. Many of you may not like it but it is a part of our history. Many of us whose roots are in the south may even have ties to this era. I know for a fact that, given our genealogical geography, my family fought on both sides. It is a part of our past that needs to be remembered, the good and the bad, the victories and the defeats, the right and the wrong.

So that was basically the extent of our time in Richmond. From there we got back on the road and circled around a few detours before returning to the highway and the hotel where we put our feet up for the first time in over a week. And I am glad that we had the chance to do so because the drive back home today was one that I would rather forget. Just another reason why I prefer the Mountains in the west over the urban coast in the east. Back to reality and back to work tomorrow.

Where Did February Go?

I knew heading into the month that this was going to be a bit of a challenge both at work and at home. The shortened calendar provides a bit of a crunch with regard to billing and just making sure everything is accomplished within the confines of the calendar. Two days may not seem like a lot but that is about 2 hours of billable time per person that are lost. Thankfully, that all seemed to work out and I was still able to put in my usual 200 hours. Of course this also shortened my lodge timeline a bit and I am still trying to make up for time lost.

However, work and lodge are far down the list of things that colored the calendar. My wife and I began the month as a family of two and now we find ourselves bringing the last day to a close with a son nearly two weeks old. It was a month that also saw a tremendous loss to our family… thankfully it is a short month and the page on the calendar can be quickly turned. Two days makes a hug difference in this regard.

The month began interestingly enough with all the football fanatics going into warm weather hibernation, Phil declaring that we were screwed for at least six more weeks, and Brian Williams announcing that he was not a highlander and has not shaped the course of history since the big bang. That same week I witnessed quite the interesting lodge meeting followed by the raising of another brother the following week. It was a unique experience going from seeing boys transformed into men through scouting and a man transformed into a mason a few days after.

Things were also busy at the office as we waited for Rip Torn to tell us what was going to happen next. This compounded the whole billing situation mentioned above. Things were just beginning to calm a little when my wife and I reached the fateful weekend that brought us to Bryn Mawr Hospital two days in a row. Of course, since the arrival of our son my perspective has changed just a wee bit. All the chaos from the first half of February just seemed to go away, the subsequent scramble to catch up doesn’t seem to bother me like it used to, and the rest of the days in the month just evaporated leaving only the memories behind. I know it happened but at this point I really don’t know what happened to February.

An Unexpected Work Email

Soon after my son entered this world my wife and I were both on Facebook sending the first photos of his arrival and chatting with some family and friends about his early arrival. While on the social media site I also came across an interesting message from a company that I had not worked with for over three years. At my previous public relations firm I had led the account for this company and every now and again I would read the updates posted by the CEO and send a quick message here and there about where I was and what I was doing. However, this message was completely out of the blue.

The note was very simple requesting my email address so that he could have his head of PR get in touch with me. I didn’t give it a second thought and gladly sent him my work email. As day turned into night and other events clearly taking precedence in my mind, I had forgotten about the brief chat by the next morning. A couple of days later, having just woken up from a less than refreshing sleep in a hospital bed, I opened my work email and found a message which filled in a few of the missing pieces.

As it turns out, the company was once again looking to invest in public relation in the US and I was one whom the CEO thought of to get the process moving. Keep in mind that this was my favorite company and CEO to work with in the past but since that time I had little contact with him. It was flattering to say the least that he thought enough of me to circle back after such a long time.

When I first started working with this company they really were in the early stages of development and exposure. Over time we worked together to hit a number of milestones both in the size of the company and the funding that it had behind its continued development. Since I last worked with them they have increased in size by over 400% and all the things that we talked about in the past of wanting to do were now coming to fruition.

Since those email correspondences, I have spoken with the company over the phone and provided a little more background on what I am going now and the vast capabilities of my current company. We are moving forward in this exploratory process and I am hopeful that we will be able to work together as this is still a company that I am very excited about and I want to be a part of the growth and immense potential that it continues to possess. However, at the very least, I am happy that the CEO felt the same about me and that all the things that we discussed over three years ago are now a reality.

TMI Tuesday: Poo Rainbow

Not long after our son arrived and they brought him back to our room in the maternity ward we were warned of all the things that we would be encountering when we changed his diaper. “Oh, the things you’ll see” as Dr. Seuss would say. However, words can’t really express the interesting moments of discovery when we peeled back the tabs and saw the carnage laid upon Pooville.

It all started with the tar pit. This is the kind of nasty stuff that they find dinosaurs in and what they use to patch highways. It’s like trying to clean up a pile of black superglue. I was half tempted to call the EPA when his diaper seemed as though it was attached with Velcro and the wipes seemed to whimper in the corner of the bassinet.

Slowly but surely these emanations transformed into a consistency that we are all familiar with. “Pardon me, do you have any Grey Poopon?” Why yes, yes I do. That’s right, I was never a big fan of mustard to begin with but I am certainly avoiding it now that I have seen the “seedy Dejon” that our son had been producing. And that is exactly how the doctors and nurses describe the consistency… it is even found in the little take home poo packet.

Seeing all this is one thing but seeing it in action is another. Last weekend we found ourselves playing the part of Lepookans doing our best to avoid being caught at the end of the poo rainbow. Ever since we found out and told people that we were having a boy they all warned us to block the winkie but no one bothered to inform us of the other fountain that poses a threat to new parents.

We were nearly done changing his diaper and about to pull up his new Pampers when all of the sudden someone decided to squeeze the mustard bottle and my wife and I ducked for cover. Thankfully there weren’t any fans in the room that it could hit and really cause a mess. Safe to say we had a little extra laundry that had to be done that night and made be seriously consider putting up a splash guard at the end of the changing table.

However, even with the flurry of fierce feces, things have been going pretty smoothly and, most importantly, baby seems to be happy. He’s a bit of a gassy little baby but none of that matters when I pick him up and he smiles as he looks at me. Of course, there are those interesting times when he holds his hand out seemingly saying “Daddy, pull my finger!”

Coming Home

When we were given the option of leaving on Wednesday or Thursday we did take a few moments to think about it. However, being confined to our hospital room since we arrived, it really wasn’t a hard decision to make even with the linger fears of heading out on our own. So once the doctor came in for our morning visit, we let her know that we were ready to go and that we would be out and on the road by midafternoon.

The first part of the prep was making sure that the car seat was secured in the back of the car. I vaguely recall having done this in the past when my niece still used one (she’s 20 now) but that little piece of knowledge has long since shaken out of my head. It’s not a difficult process by any means but when you are trying to make sure that your child is safe every parent, no matter how laid back, gets incredibly OCD about these kinds of things.

We got the room backed up, secured our surprisingly quiet son in his car seat, and called for an escort to help us get down to the lobby and out front to our car which I had pulled up earlier. It was a surreal feeling knowing that we came to the hospital just a few days ago still as a married couple and now we were leaving as a family of three. We were about to enter the real world covered in a fresh coating of snow and a bitterly cold wind barreling down the street.

With all three of us secured in our seats and the pile of stuff crammed in the trunk, I slowly pulled around to the stop sign and started our drive home. I can’t recall any other point in my life being so careful and deliberate behind the wheel… not even during my driving test. Needless to say, with a new baby and my wife still recovering from major surgery, it took a little longer than expected to get to the house but we made it there safe and sound.

Walk in the door we knew things were completely different and that coming home meant so much more now than it did in the past. We were home and ready to start living our life as a family. However, starting off, just like with the car, I am sure that we are going to have plenty of OCD and overprotective moments. Such is the beginning of parenthood.

Quality Time Away From The Lodge

Already working on his degrees!

It should be no surprise that I wasn’t at the lodge last night. Instead we were still in the maternity ward with our son maintaining the annoying face mask boundary. While in the past I may have been annoyed that I wasn’t there to support my brothers in their education, I was much happier supporting my wife and son as they both recovered. And while I may not have been able to spend time with my lodge brothers last night, I was able to introduce my brother to his new nephew which proved to be one of the highlights of the day.

As soon as my wife woke me up early Sunday morning I knew that my schedule (in addition to our lives) would be just a little different this week so it didn’t take long before a sent a mass text to some of the usual attendees letting them know of my joyous absence. I wrote the following and sent it to about a dozen members of the lodge: “Due to the arrival of my future mason, I will be unable to attend lodge this week. Feel free to call if you need me for anything.”

Since sending that message I have received a flood of support from my fellow brothers. It was one congratulatory text after another to the point that my phone seems to be getting a little tired of having to chime and vibrate so often. Family comes first is not just something that we say because it sounds good, every brother in the lodge lives by that simple saying and supports those masons who also embrace that way of thinking and living.

These immediate gestures are what I hope to share with my son when he comes of age. It is a bond, a fellowship, and a true brotherly love that cannot be matched in any other civilian organization. It is something that I hope to share with my son as he gets older and now is the time that I am building the groundwork so that he can join the fraternity with a long standing connection with the brotherhood. After all, the next generation is reliant on the current generation especially when it comes to continuing a family legacy.

I may not have much to offer my son at this point but I am going to work hard each and every day so that he will look at me the same way that I see my own father. He will know from where he comes (both my family tree as well as my wife’s) and he will be able to build upon what has been achieved before him in every generation. This includes my duty as a mason and instilling in him the faith, character, and virtues that we all hold as brothers of the craft.

TMI Tuesday: Tinkle Tinkle Little Star

Well that's no fun!

That’s right, when a new baby enters your life you are sometimes guilty of too much information when talking about some of the daily (and not so daily) occurrences of living with a newborn. Well, even though I am risking the ire of my son when he gets a little older, this is the time when I will share some of those interesting moments. It may not be every week but it will certainly be on a regular basis and I am sure that there will be plenty of information, too much in fact, to share. Welcome to TMI Tuesday…

My wife and I have spent the last couple of days trying to get our heads around what has happened and all the changes in our lives. There have been times when our room seemed to have a revolving door and others when we were able to take a few breaths between the family and medical professionals walking in and out of the room. Of course there have also been a few entertaining moments in between as well.

One of the things that I am having to learn is how to change a diaper. My wife, with her previous work experience, is much more familiar with the process and a heck of a lot more efficient too. However, my skills at this point are virtually nonexistent. With that said, there have already been times when we both had to stand back and laugh at what had transpired.

A perfect example of this was earlier today when baby released a rather robust colonic announcement leaving us no alternative than to take him to his crib and see if I was improving at all in my changing abilities. While things seemed to be going much faster and I was upsetting him just a little less, it didn’t take long before baby let us know that we can’t expect each changing to go smoothly.

Shortly after we finished wiping everything off, with his rear high in the air, a steady rain began falling around our son. Yeah, we missed that part of the changing process. With a fresh sprinkle of tinkle across his chest and on his face, we grabbed a handful of wipes and cleaned him off again while trying our best to control the nearly crippling laughter that had resulted from the stream. Thankfully baby didn’t really think twice about it and we were soon getting some new clean clothes on him. We are sure that this is only the first of any and that it will probably stop being funny in the future but this time we really needed the laugh.

Making Our Last Words Count

Last Friday, for reasons that we cannot explain, my wife and I decided to tell one person, just one, the name that we had chosen for our son. My mother-in-law, having been diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer just before my wife's birthday in October, had not been well for some time was the only one that we wanted to tell. And while she didn’t give an acknowledgement of the news that we had shared, there is little doubt that she heard us.

Our son was the light of the day which was able to pierce the darkest of moments. Having joined the world at 9:14am we were quick to send a photo to family and friends to let us know of the joy that had just been bestowed upon us. Even my mother-in-law who had not been communicative for several days opened her eyes when she was told that a picture of her first grandchild was sent to her. For the first time in days she spoke a single word… wow!

Still in shock from the early arrival of our baby boy, my wife and I were slowly recovering from the day that had just transpired. With all visitors having left the maternity ward for the day we settled into our hospital beds and waited for our son to come back into the room for his next meal. It was at this point about 12 hours since our son entered the world that my wife made a request to the nurse… one that I am sure that they are not used to hearing.

It was a simple act but it was a moment that would immediately become part of family lore. My wife turned to the nurse and asked her to make our son cry while she had her mother’s caretaker on speakerphone next to her mom’s bed. The nurse didn’t question my wife and seconds later his cry was echoing in my mother-in-law’s great room. My wife followed by saying “I love you” and told the caretaker that she would call back in the morning. It was a call that she wouldn't have the opportunity to make. 

What we didn’t find out until later was that mere seconds after hearing the healthy cry of her grandson, my mother-in-law took her last breath. She held on just long enough, and our son arrived just early enough, that she was able to leave this world as a grandmother. The circle of life, in all its joy and pain, mystery and misery, beginning and ending was in full display. In a matter of half a day we were both overjoyed and heartbroken.

Since that moment, we have been experiencing the full range of emotions remembering both the good time and bad, the disagreements and the celebrations, the moments of happiness and sadness. I have been doing all that I can to try and comfort my wife knowing that there is no real comfort that can be given during this time. Only our son can bring solace and help to heal my wife’s heart and the knowledge that the last words that we both spoke to her were the most powerful and comforting things that we could ever say to her in her last moments in the physical world… our son’s name and “I love you”.

A Little Early

About 30 minutes after birth and a quick cleaning... he quietly squeezed my finger the entire time.  

When my wife woke me up in the middle of the night saying that she still wasn’t feeling well I did my best to comfort her even though I was still half asleep. Having just been to the hospital, her flu was something that needed to be watched but sometimes my wife can be a little more overzealous in her monitoring. However, even having been woken up a few times before and still suffering from a week long lack of sleep, there were a few words that my wife uttered that immediately got me up and out of bed… “I think my water just broke.” That will wake you up faster than the strongest cup of coffee the world has ever known.

After another call to the doctor to let them know that we were coming in, we packed everything up, jumped in the car, and made our way back to the hospital. We were still in shock by the quick turn of events but there was an odd calm in the car despite the bitterly cold winds blowing the snow all over the roads. By 5am we pulled up to the labor and delivery entrance to Bryn Mawr Hospital. Not surprisingly, the doctor confirmed what we had suspected, what my wife had surmised an hour prior and we knew that the by the time the day ended we would have a small addition to our family.

With family already beginning to arrive, we were escorted into the operating room where I was able to peek over the curtain and see my son being born. As many of you know, when your child is first born they look like a cross between an alien and a miniature member of the blue man group but that doesn’t make you think twice about wanting to reach over and hold him. At 9:14am our son, John Louis, was born and our priorities forever changed. If only the post office delivered packages this early we would never have a problem with the postal system again.

Unfortunately, since my wife was diagnosed with the flu less than 24 hours prior, we are confined to gowns and masks for the duration of our stay in the hospital. With that said, that hasn’t deterred us from holding him every chance that we have had today and just looking in awe at the beautiful boy that we have brought to this world. Now the real work and the real worry begins as I hope to be a good father in addition to being a good husband. However, the second that I saw him I knew in that instant that I would do anything for him.

Happy Birthday My Beautiful Baby Boy!

Hospital Perspectives

Having been to many different hospitals over the years for a variety of reasons I have really some to not enjoy the experience but have become unfazed by the environment and having to spend countless hours within their walls. While much of that calmness depends on the reasons for making the trip there, the majority of my experience has been of the non-life-threatening variety. Mostly those stays have involved pain and/or preventative measures… in some cases, like allergic reactions, it would have been a different scenario had we waited any longer.

Lately many of those brief visits to the medical compounds have been to check in on our son. These have been a welcomed change to the history that my wife and I both have with many of those medical buildings. It is here that we have been able to both see and hear our baby and really get lost in each and every moment. It is those times when the world melts away and any pain, discomfort, and stress disappears for a fleeting moment… it is better than any medication that any doctor could administer.

However, last week I was reminded of how much hospital trips can suck as I had to take a family member to the emergency room at 1:00am (it was not my wife so don’t freak out). It was a pain that I was all too familiar with having had a kidney stone in the past but this one seemed to be a lot worse. At least by what I could observe. And while we were able to quickly move through triage that is where the quick pace ended. 

This was the first time that I had been to the emergency room at this particular hospital in Chester County and I can’t say that I would rank it very high on the long list of hospitals and emergency rooms that I have visited during my life. The staff was slow and many of them didn’t seem like they knew what they were doing… while waiting in a "room" surrounded by curtains, I could actually hear a handful of staff members asking their colleagues where they were supposed to be. It really was a long cluster of a night/morning that dragged on for hours.

Once the pain was managed and the discharge papers signed, we headed back out into the cold and slalomed down the slightly icy roads. By the time I got back home I had about 15 minutes to sleep before my alarm would start going off. Needless to say I got to work a little later than usual last Friday.

And now with that experience fresh in my mind I am looking forward to what will hopefully be my next trip to the hospital. It won’t be much longer before I will welcome the trip to the hospital and anxiously pace around the room waiting for the birth of our child to happen. While all these other memories will remain, I am eagerly waiting for this new experience to be the prominent thought in my mind when I think about hospitals.

Birthing Class, Pizza, And A Hospital Visit

Having gotten up early the day before and out of the apartment all day, Sunday was not a fun experience getting out of bed. But we had good reason for an early rise as we were off to class yesterday! We had signed up for the birthing class about a month ago and opted for the one day variety instead of the multi-week long process that just doesn’t agree with either of our schedules at this point.

A little sluggish and having been held up by anything and everything along the way, we were the last ones to arrive but thankfully the class had only started a couple minutes prior to our arrival. Obviously, we jumped right in as soon as we were able to take our coats off and take a seat. Another new experience during this new adventure.

The class went well offering up a lot of information and answering numerous questions that everyone had. It was led by one of the nurses from Bryn Mawr Hospital whom you could tell was well verse in fielding all of the different questions that new parents have. While the class was interesting it was a little repetitive and the warm room did not mix well with the lack of sleep from the prior week. I did stay awake and pay attention but there were a few touch and go moments here and there.

Halfway through we all left to get some lunch with a time set to resume the educational portion of the day. I didn’t have to say much knowing that my wife would probably like to go to Peace of Pizza. Not surprisingly, we found the majority of the class at the counter ordering their meals when we walked in the door.

There were also a number of families there for lunch with gaggles of young kids circling them like hyper sharks. We didn’t think anything of it and smiled at the situation before taking another few bites. However, my wife and I were amused when we saw the looks of terror on the faces of our classmates. I guess they weren’t quite ready for the dose of reality.

We returned to the class and finished up the sitting portion of the day with a few games that brought a little perspective to the situation. After these we completed we got back in the car and we all met at the hospital for a tour of labor and delivery. While those terrified looks seemed to creep back onto many of their faces I could feel the two of us getting more and more excited (and more nervous). Time is going so fast and it won’t be very long before we return expecting to leave as a family of three.  

It’s A…

Samantha and I pulled into the parking lot of Paoli Hospital a little later than we were expecting. It wasn’t a matter of choice as traffic was particularly bad this past week. We were both particularly eager to get into the building and excited to start see our baby again. After all, this was the ultrasound appointment that everyone has been asking about in one way or another and we had been waiting for this appointment for some time. Of course, the day finally came and we both got held up before leaving for the hospital and slowed down on our way there. That seems to be the case for many of our appointments.

Thankfully, the office was very understanding when we called to let us know of our delay and they greeted us warmly upon seeing us walk up to the front desk. It wasn’t long before we were sitting in front of the ultrasound monitor seeing our child kicking and punching the crap out of Mommy. While it was a little odd for me to watch it was even stranger for my wife as she could both see and feel the baby hit her stomach.

We sat there in awe of our child as measurement after measurement was taken and they checked the development. We watched the screen as image after image was captured and they confirmed the health and development time and again. Everything was progressing as it should when we heard a little chuckle from behind the screen. This was quickly followed with the question of whether we wanted to know the sex.

As it turns out, our baby passed the winkie test.

Our little baby boy, my son, is happy and healthy. He is an active little baby a day ahead of schedule. While I would have been happy no matter the sex of our child, knowing that we are having a boy did bring me a sense of relief. I would have loved our child no matter what but I know what it is like to be a little boy and I am looking forward to every moment that I can share that experience with my son. I have a feeling that my wife would have felt the same way if we had found out it was a girl.

Everything suddenly became a little more real in that moment. We will soon have a son. I will soon have a little boy who will carry on the family name. I am more nervous than I ever thought I would be but I think I am now ready to be a father. As an added bonus, my sister now owes me five dollars!

Detour To The Hospital

This week started off a little more hectic than usual but, for some reason, went much faster than I could have ever expected. However, there were times when I couldn’t help but slow down and step outside of the chaos for a few moments. It is something that comes naturally when a brother, a friend, is in need in some way. Those are the times when we come together and realize the bond that we have with our fellow brothers.

Over the weekend I had gotten an email from the Worshipful Master that he had fallen ill and would require a couple of days to back on task. I didn’t think anything of it at the time as we all have those moments when it simply takes a little bit of time to recover. A couple of days passed without improvement. Finally, he was admitted to the hospital on Wednesday night with, what I would later discover, was a severe infection.

Strangely enough the office had cleared out on Thursday by 5:30pm and I found myself driving down the highway, past my usual exit, and into the hospital parking garage. I really don’t like hospitals and tend to avoid them but that fact didn’t creep into my mind that night. I wasn’t sure if he was taking visitors or if he would be happy to see me but I couldn’t just go about my usual days and nights without checking in on him. It was only then when I was made aware of how serious things had gotten and how much improvement was already being made.  

It was an interesting experience as this was truly the first time that I was able to feel the bond that I have with one of my fellow brothers beyond the usual tasks and projects of the lodge. I have had similar experiences but not like this, not with a brother I have been working closely throughout the year. And the thing is, I know he would have done the same exact thing had the roles been reversed.

It was actually a good visit, at least as good as could be expected, and after about two hours I was on my way back home for the night. On my way back home with a list of tasks that I am happy to help him complete. I don’t know how they are going to get done but we, as a lodge, will somehow find a way. We always do!

That’s My Child!

Helloooo Baby!

Early this morning I couldn’t help but quote the Big Bopper when I saw the picture come into focus. Before our eyes, we saw the profile of our baby slowly take shape as the woman moved the ultrasound around my wife’s stomach. What a drastic change from what we saw just five weeks ago!

We were still a little dumbfounded as they began measuring and checking all that they could in the image to make sure that the little one was progressing normally. Given their parents, this might be the only time in their life that they are considered normal. After these initial still shots, it was time for baby to have a little fun. Yes, it turns out that baby likes to mess with people just like their daddy.

Throughout the process, the baby was moving around and having fun in their little rent free dwelling. When it came time for some more pictures that required the baby to be in a certain position that is when it decided to do their own thing… we could hear the doctor talking, asking the baby to lay on its back followed by a slight nudge with the scanner.

Baby did exactly what you think it did, it rolled onto its belly. It took numerous attempts and a few minutes before the baby rolled all the way around. This is when we could really see the profile and see the face of our child. Five or six still frames later the doctor was almost done but baby had enough. Baby raised their arm, either to wave bye or make their first attempt at giving someone the finger, and rolled over again. That’s my child!

That was the end of our visit for today and I will say that this was the best reason to roll out of bed early. Even groggy, it was an exciting morning for the two of us and another day that we will never forget (at least until we are old and senile). Now we just have to wait for some blood work and come back for some more family photos in a couple months… I guess my wife knows what she is getting for her birthday this year!

Twelve weeks in, the baby is healthy and the reality is really starting to settle in. While I was never in denial, seeing a much more developed picture of our child really hit home and has me both a little concerned about our living and financial situation but also eager to meet him or her (I still think it is a boy). It has been quite an early morning and a really long day of thinking.

Eastern Star + Cracker Barrel = Two Applications

Monday evening, in the midst of the apartment CF (look it up if you don’t know), my wife and I went to a meeting at the local Cracker Barrel in Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania. I know the question that, most likely, immediately popped into your mind… who has a meeting at Cracker Barrel? Okay, so maybe some of the southern folk followin’ me may not be asking that. Now I don’t have anything against Cracker Barrel, I’ve been to various locations across about 8 states during my life. Somehow I’m still alive and I’ve never had a heart attack.

While my wife is not a fan of the establishment, I looked at this as a good sign. You know you are meeting some down to earth people when first impressions are going to be made at Cracker Barrel. So, as instructed we looked for a bright red handbag and, after locating the accessory, we introduced ourselves to three older women and an older gentleman. We were having dinner at 5:15 so this really wasn’t a surprise.

As is evident in the title, the purpose of the get together was for us to learn more about The Order of the Eastern Star (OES). My wife has noticed how much I have gotten out of being a Mason in such a short period of time and was interested in finding out a little more about joining Eastern Star (for those of you unfamiliar with the correlation, in Pennsylvania only Master Masons and “women with a specific Masonic Affiliation” can join this fraternity). Honestly, this threw me off a little bit.

I knew a little bit about the organization as my Mother and Grandmother were both members at one point and, as far as I knew, this was still an organization comprised of only women. Obviously, things have changed. What peaked my wife’s interest was their charitable contributions to, among others, Cancer Research, Arthritis Foundation, American Heart Association, National Multiple Sclerosis Society, and Shriner’s Hospitals for Children. All amazing causes and, frankly, I was unaware of many of these partnerships. That is where my interest started.

After we chatted for about ninety minutes and everyone had a chance to get to know one another we took a look at the petition for membership. My wife seemed eager to fill it out and, in a bit of a twist, I filled one out as well and I am looking forward to joining with my wife in the fall. While I can’t guarantee my level of involvement (my lodge and my Rotary club take precedent), it is nice to have something that the two of us can share moving forward.

So, add this to my schedule and to the list of topics that will be discussed on this blog. Somehow I will find the time. Now I just have to find my marbles. Have you seen them?