hula bula

Star in Your Own JibJab! It's Free!

Come Thou Long Expected Blogger...

Wow! Life has really been passing me by in a hurry these days. Seems like only a day ago Lori and I were just coming home from the hospital with our little bundle of Ava Joy. Needless to say we are quickly becoming pros at the whole parenting thing. Right! I wouldn't say we are doing a horrible job though. The little girl is still alive. She is getting bigger each and every day though. I had to adjust the straps on her car seat just yesterday and take out her little head rest shield because she is getting taller. She is all cheeks also. I love to smunch(smooch and munch s'more) all over them. It is quite possible that we have the cutest most beautiful little girl on the whole planet. But I guess I'm supposed to think that whether it's true or not. :)

One of these days I am actually planning on getting all the video off the camera and mailed to people, it is just seeming to take a while to get in to any kind of normal groove and find time to do extraneous things that don't involve basic survival. You'd be surprised at the amount of effort it takes on BOTH our parts for Lori to be able to simply eat and take a shower. Ava is getting much better at entertaining herself however. She loves to smile and look at her mobiles, play in her jumper, or lay on her little einstein mat. She absolutely LOVES taking a bath, or rather enjoys splashing in the bath and making a mess for daddy to clean up. Lori and I can't wait until she's just a little bit older so we'll be able to hear her laugh and giggle. I can't wait until she's tickleable (not sure that's a word, but I don't mean ticklish). All in all, despite the unkempt house and the overall feeling of fatigue and being overwhelmed by life, we are loving spending this cherished time with our little girl.

On a side note, things are finally picking up on the church building project scene. They came out and cleared all the trees last week and are starting to fill and level out the whole project site this week, so we could see some concrete and physical building parts very soon. It's really exciting, because I have been looking forward to this part of the project for the last two years now. Basically ever since I started. I am looking forward to putting together a wonderful music space and fill it with awesome music. So, we'll see if that happens. :) Oh yeah, Mom & Dad, can you send me my Donkey Kong construction helmet?

Anyway, life is crazy, life is busy, life is good, life is beautiful. You just have to remember to take the time and enjoy the little things and not use your brain so much. Life is not measured by the breaths we take, but rather by the moments that take our breath away. So don't miss them!

Peace to all,
Adam (A.K.A Big Papa)

Daddy, I want a pony!

Well, it has begun! I am officially a dad. Crazy crazy, but also good times. Needless to say I have been busier than a one legged man in a butt kicking contest, so my blog is looking a little sad and pathetically rejected.

For that matter I will quickly post my musings on the state of the WC. Safe to say, my World Cup predicting ability is a pile of poo. Every single team I have wanted to follow has suddenly been met by a severe bout of losing! USA sucks, Poland sucks, Netherlands did okay then sucked. Then I went to my back up teams, Spain, England, and Portugal. All losers!!!

Anyway, I should probably write something nice and mushy about being a new dad, but I don't have it in me for now. Just needed to get something back up on the 'ol blog sheet so it didn't fade into obscurity like some of my other siblings. :)

Peace out.

Polska traci. Jaka szkoda!

Translation: Poland loses. What a pity!

Man! I can't believe how Poland got whooped by Ecuador. I haven't seen any match footage yet, but the Yahoo online match tracker paints a pretty ugly picture. I guess this was Ecuadorian revenge, since Poland smeared them 3-nil back in November. Still, the boys in red and white need to kick it into gear!

Anyway, World Cup madness is now upon me, so watch out world! My three teams to watch this year are USA, Poland, and Netherlands. I think my Bronco heritage leads me to my appreciation of the Dutch jersey color, which is probably one of the reasons I like them so much. I am hoping they get some good action since they failed to qualify for the last World Cup.

Still no little baby. So much going on in my life right now with a baby on the way AND the World Cup. This has got to be the best ever timed paternity leave in the history of mankind. I get to sit at home playing with a newborn and watch world class futbol matches! What a great life! Until my next rant...

Sick and still waiting...

Well as if things weren't stressed enough getting ready for little Ava to be born, I have to go and get some strange throat virus that normally only kids get. Yes folks, I have Herpangina. Have fun Googling that one. Basically I have a stupid viral infection in my throat that causes lovely little lesions and ulcers in your mouth. So I have an ulceration on my uvula. Try saying that ten times fast. It is getting much better though. It started out as a sore throat on Friday, then I set up a doctors appointment for Tuesday just to check it out as Monday night I stuck a flashlight in my mouth and noticed that my uvula(a.k.a. throat dangly thingy) looked a little red and engorged. Needless to say on Tuesday the doctor told me "Congratulations, you have an ulceration on your uvula! This is due to the fact that you have somehow contracted Herpangina caused by the Coxsackie A virus. And by the way, you're highly contagious, so you should not hold your darling newborn daughter if it's not gone or go anywhere near your 9 month pregnant wife." Homey don't play that. I was definitely not thrilled about that one.

Needless to say I have been holed up in the studio room for the last couple days, just taking it easy and not doing a whole lot of talking, and definitely no singing so as not to aggravate my throat any further, because since it's a virus, there is nothing they can prescribe to treat it. It just has to go away on it's own. The only thing I can really do is enjoy lots of cold dairy items to keep it soothed. Yeah, milkshakes! :) I think it is about gone though. It really isn't as noticeable today. Monday was definitely the worst. I'm just praying that Lori doesn't catch it somehow. So thankfully I am just about back to perfect health so I can help my wife through labor without being in a vinyl nuclear holocaust suit. Thank you God!

Anyway, still waiting on Ava. It seems weird to be so antsy about her coming. Especially since her due date is still not until the 13th. I guess I am still shaken up from our first dilation and effacement prognosis from last week. Before that, I was pretty confident about getting plenty of things done before the due date. There goes my perfect husbandly support award. I guess it would be funny if she came exactly on the due date. I would be able to joke forever about how much Lori plans things...uh, I mean I love you honey! :)

Ready to pop! OR, A working lunch...

Well, today I needed to get some time away from the real world so I hopped on over the bridge to the fantasy life that is Destin. Needless to say, tourism is in full swing and places are packed. So I lugged my techno ruck sack into Panera in the hopes of enjoying a nice caramel latte and a little bit of distraction from impending babyhood. If you havn't heard the news allready, then it is very likely that our little Ava will be coming much sooner rather than later. At the doc's office on Tuesday, Lori was 3cm and 80% thinned out, so for all you nurses and mothers out there, you know what that means. Of course, it could also mean nothing as she could walk around for two weeks like that without ever feeling a contraction. Oy ve!

I think the anticipation is starting to get to me. I don't think I am mentally ready for the possibility of the baby being more than a week early. I've kind of been coasting along with happy baby thoughts and not thinking about the events surrounding little Ava's journey into this world. The doctor's visit shook up my buffer zone a little. Don't get me wrong, I am totally excited to have this baby and am ready to do whatever I have to to ensure the safety and well being of my wife and child, I just don't think I'm ready to kick it into super dad gear yet. We're definitely trying to hold out until after next Tuesday to have her. That would not be the best birth day in the world to have. :) Of course, it's just a day, and we'll deal with it if it is, but come on, give me a break. And as long as we're waiting, after wednesday would be nice also. I have a children's choir pool party scheduled for that day, and I would hate to have to cancel on the kids. Needless to say, I am waiting until the LAST minute to go out and buy all the food and supplies for it.

Anyway, I suppose I should get back to doing some "work" on my working lunch. Planning liturgy can be so tedious when your mind is not in it. :) Oh well, Ava needs a new pair of shoes. (Enter the breadwinner metaphor)

Hope all are happy and healthy on this first glorious day of June.
Sunshine

Blog hiatus over...

Well, I did not officially mean to take a whole month leave of absence from the world of blogging, but apparently I did anyway. Needless to say May has been a busy month. I think probably even busier than April almost if you can believe it.

The month started off great with coming back from the Christ Music retreat, and got immediately busy from there. Mom came in that week to visit the baby bump and attend not only one shower, but also a surprise shower/party for myself that my choir threw together with the help of my mischievous deceiving bride. :) It was really nice to have her out here as I always miss my family and relish any time that I get to spend with them.

Things continued to scoot along as both Lori and I had confirmation masses to prepare for and pull off. Not to mention in between all this stuff I had been painting like a madman and putting furniture together until my fingers were worked to the bone to prep our house for a Holy Name youth band end of year/baby room showcase party. I was seeing pink and green leaves for about a day and a half after I finally finished that stupid tree. You'll see what I mean.

Next thing on my list was to pull of a music appreciation dinner at the church with a long list of procrastinated tasks. Just little things like booking a caterer two weeks in advance, party favors, decorations, etc. The dinner was last night, and apparently it went well and everyone felt appreciated. Since that was the goal, I guess I can write that one off as a success and settle back into everything baby.

From here on out, things are pretty much just getting the house as ready as possible for little Ava. Her room is ready to go if nothing else. The trim & closet and entry doors still need to be painted, but that is settling farther and farther to the bottom of the to be accomplished list. We finished up our birthing classes this week, yeah, and pretty much know nothing more about giving birth than when we went into it. I guess it was nice to talk about some of things and hear them, rather than just read them all, but I don't feel like it was extremely helpful. Lori may feel a little different, but I am definitely going to be hitting the books this week and studying up on the whole delivery process.

Other than that, it's just getting everything ready so we can sit around and wait for Ava. Hopefully, from a readiness standpoint, Ava will give us as much time as possible. It's hard to say right now whether or not Lori would appreciate her coming as soon as possible. She is getting more uncomfortable and restless with each passing day. At least we have just about made it through the week where our doctor is out of town. So from here on out, anything is a go.

Well, that's probably enough for now to make up for the lack of this months blogging. There will definitely be more in the weeks to come!

BWI boredom...

Well here I am sitting in the airport. Baltimore Washington International airport to be more precise. Been here since about 3 pm Eastern time and my flight does not leave until 6:30. Thankfully the airport actually has a working FREE wireless access. That totally made my day. It would have really blown to sit here for three hours without anything to do. At least this way I could check up on some emails and other mindless things that can manipulate your time on the internet. :) I was actually up here in Columbia, PA for a Christ Music retreat. It was a good time. It would have been a lot better if Lori had been able to come with, but unfortunately she is too pregnant! Little Tummy Puncher is getting bigger every day. I really missed the little bump over the weekend. I can't wait until Lori and I can hold her in our arms and stare at her for hours on end. If nothing else, it was nice to get away for a weekend of somewhat rest and some spiritual renewal. Easter really took a lot out of me this year, so I am glad of the time away from everything. It's a long day of traveling today though. Once I get to Atlanta, I have another 2 hour plus layover before I can catch a flight back to Ft. Walton. And then I don't even land until 11:00 pm tonight. I can't wait to be home though. I finally get to go home and cuddle with my wife if I can find her amidst all the pillows she has piled around her. :)

That's really all for now, as I am about to get on a plane here. So hope all is well with everyone, and we'll see some of you soon! God Bless!

Alleluia, I'm Alive!

Well, Easter Sunday has come and passed and Lori and I are still in one piece to live and tell about it. We spent a very nice couple of days in a complete comatose state devoid of any thinking or productive activity whatsoever. It was nice to recuperate a little bit, but now life presses ever onward, and the baby seems all that much closer. For the last couple months we have been just concentrating on making it through Easter, and now the extreme realization is starting to sink in. I don't know how in the world we're going to get everything we need to get accomplished in the next couple of months. Lord willing however, we will accomplish as much as possible and whatever is necessary. We should be able to start working on the Baby Room this weekend. We ordered some of the bedding which should arrive tomorrow so that we can get the paint colors picked out for sure and begin project Extreme Makeover: Baby Room Edition. :) The paint is really the only big project that we have left as far as constructing the room is concerned. Of course, cleaning it out would help also. We already rearranged the closet space and there's no furniture to put together yet, so it's time to break out the rollers and scrub clothes and have some good times. Ah, yes...

On another note, I finally got my mountain bike. I was able to ride it for the first time Easter Sunday and I like it a lot! Hopefully I can keep my butt in gear and slim up a touch. Not much else really exciting going on. Just got a call from our pal Tony and seems like he will be in the area this weekend so will probably get to spend some quality time with him. Seems like I'll be having a few manly last hurrahs before I delve into the depths of tutus and dirty diapers. Sigh...man I want to play some golf. Anybody want to fly to FL and go with me? Seems to be the only time I ever get to play is when I go somewhere else. It would be nice to use my own clubs once in a while.

Hope all is going well in the wide wide world for all you non Floridians. We'll keep you updated on Operation Ava, codename: Tummy Puncher, as days progress.

Cosmic Thursdays...

Well for whatever insane reason, it seems that Thursday has become my official blog day. It is actually kind of annoying since I whole heartedly intend to be blogging on at least a bi-weekly basis. It's not like life is boring at the moment or anything and there is a lack of anything to blog about. There just must be some cosmic manifestation of the stars that irrevocably draws me to the blogging point every Thursday afternoon. Personally, I think it could have to do with the fact that I am usually transitioning between jobs at that point and find myself with a little bit of free cerebral space to meander around in before extreme tunnel vision like focus sets in again. But hey, cosmic intervention sounds a whole lot more interesting, so we'll go with that for the sake of argument. :)

Anyhoo, not a whole lot new going on in the Florida household. Oh yeah, did you hear we're having a baby? Just wondering. Ahhhhh! It's getting closer every day. We think little Ava had another growth spurt this last weekend because Lori's ribs are really feeling the expansion this week. Lori is definitely protruding in a different fashion, so we think she moved around a little in there also. She is much more bulbous this week. :) We'll have to get a monthly picture up on the baby blog.

Needless to say things are crazy hectic at work. We're smack in the middle of crunch time for Holy Week starting this weekend. So, next Thursdays cosmic blog may or may not come about. I'm excited though. I have a really full sounding choir for the most part this year so I think the Triduum is going to go very well. Normally I would take off a whole lot of time afterwards, but I think I will try to not take off so much since I want to be able to save my time for company this summer.

On a slightly different note. I almost got my bike, BUT the retard company sent the dealer some weird model and not what he ordered at all. I could possibly get it by tomorrow, but most likely it will be Tuesday, and then I won't be able to touch it for a week anyway. Things that make me go Grrr!

Miss you all and hope your Easter season continues to bless you with joy and happiness!
Adam