A little update

These little creatures really can be quite frail. Not long after I signed off last night my lu3 picked up some ailment. It was serious enough that he was taken to the Child Care unit and put in the little kiddy sauna. It's amazing (again) how quickly little beings can turn. It was a matter of ninety minutes or so. Similarly amazing, though, is how quickly they can bounce back. He looked a lot better this morning when his crib photo was taken and better again this afternoon when I dropped down to the unit again.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=73001&id=593779477&saved

Hopefully he won't be in there too soon but I trust you'll agree he isn't the ugliest little infant you've seen ;)

So James-in-a-box. Keep plugging away, my littlest man. We'll have you in arms soon enough. It's where you belong.

The power of a woman (a child is born)

Tonight, we welcomed into the world our beautiful son James. He's here, he's safe, and right now, he sleeping. It won't be that way for long so Libby's also making the most of it. She's out cold, too.

That leaves me.

I'm sitting here in Room 9 at Calvary Private. It's a huge room, and apart from the gentle heaving of Libby's breath as she sleeps, and the even gentler version that is James', it's silent. And that gives me time to sit on the couch and reflect on what happened today.

What happened to today was noting short of amazing. When my wife said to me, not fifteen minutes ago, "Thank you for being there today", I had to return by saying "Thank you for spending ten months of your life bringing me a son".

There is nothing pleasant about bearing a child. Nothing at all. Every book you read about birth wraps it in some beautiful, life changing experience. It's all bullshit.

It's long, incredibly painful and in some cases can be a compromise to your dignity. It amazes me how a person could rationally answer in the positive this question:

Would you like spend nine months of your life getting ever fatter, giving up pretty much everything you like to eat, see or do, then spend half a day compacting your insides into the size a tennis ball and back 30 times an hour, only to finally punch a watermelon through a hole the size of a lemon?

For us, I think I worked it out. It's love. Love brought us here. Love sometimes throws reason to the wind and makes rational the irrational. I have love to thank for the journey I have taken so far with Lib. And I will have love to thank for the journey that will continue now with James.

I hope I make the most of that journey. Not only for me but for those I love most: my wife Libby, my beautiful son Thomas, and our brand new traveller, James.

A new course starts today. G'day little fella.

Dinner

As Libby comes to the end of her pregnancy, she's tired. My dear friend Rebecca (Thomas: "Love Bec... Love BEC") was nice enough to visit on the way through to Melbourne on Friday. We (all three or us) were pretty confident that the day was coming, if not that day. Well, it didn't, but it is close.

Today I spent the morning taking Thomas and the dog for walk. It took twenty minutes to get to the end of the cul-de-sac and I was beginning to think this was a very bad idea, but everything suddenly became warmer and Thomas, Banshee and me had a great time at McDonald then off to the big park, then the little park before we came back home.

Tonight we went to Dinner - Libby, Thomas, and me - and had a great time at Zefirelli's which has recently reopened after fire damage. We're now having a short break from the movie we hired to settle Tom to sleep. We hired "Hancock" and so far it's been really good.

So not much really to report on the LU3. It's coming, it's starting to make it's moves, but it's not quite there yet.

We'll keep you posted.

Maternity Leave

Libby gave up on work. Went there on Friday and just packed it up. So that must mean that the time will soon come where we welcome this little person into our lives. The obstetrician says everything is fine and if it turns up anytime now everything should be just grand.

I've given work the heads up that I'll be taking time off soon to bond - it's pretty busy right now despite all the upheaval going on there.

I feel a little bit guilty - the Thomas blog was far more involved and intricate. I hope this next one doesn't feel unloved because of it.

Perspective

Tonight I have bunked down with my little man Thomas. Libby is tired and she needs a bit of a break from the nocturnal behaviour of 'the first'.

As I surf the net and read the news of the world and wonder if there's an end in sight, I realise that my son's foot fits neatly in my hand and I am comforted that there is a little person in the world that depends on me. This little person knows nothing of world-at-large: his entire world view is framed through Libby and me. A human touch pulls everything into perspective.

Pretty soon I'll have four feet to choose from. I can't wait for that. We've already worked out names for a girl or a boy.

It's been a while since I've made a post here. I have been hyper focused on external things and I need to honour the notion that in a few short weeks there will be another member of this wonderful family.

That moment cannot come soon enough.

Back from Holiday

Sadly, I'm back from my holiday to Brisbane to visit my darling sister Bams, V her boyfriend, and Mel, Kris and Hudson.

Libby and Thomas shot off to Townsville for further R&R whilst I am back at the office trying to make sense of Application Development frameworks I am meant to be evaluating.

I had such a good time in Brisbane. Little Thomas and I had an awesome time at Southbank swimming in the toddler's pool and the fake beach thing they have there. It's such an 'American' thing, a fake beach, but I couldn't help but enjoy it. Thomas really got a kick out of making his little feet disappear in the sand underwater.

It was great to catch up with K who has segued fantastically into the parenting role. Little M is keen to get back into shape after the birth of little Hudson (who is a puke machine from my observations!) but both seem pretty relaxed. They're dong well.

It's a about fifty days to go now but work's ordered a shutdown over the Christmas break which has changed my plans for the birth of the LU3. I'll take the day off and then the final fortnight over Christmas in December.

It will be a great chance to reflect on how fortunate I feel to have a loving wife, a nutbag son, a slightly neurotic dog and a roof over my head. Interesting times certainly are in front of us, but life is much less the dollars you make than the way you touch the lives of the people you meet. Money can be remade but relationships are not so mechanical.

When the wife and child return I will post a couple of photos from the time away.

Little Banshee & Other things

Little Banshee the Sheltie has moved in and life trundles along much as it does in suburbia. She has a very short attention span and I'm trying to get her to listen. It's a little frustrating, I must say!

Thomas is being taught very quickly not to leave his dummies on the ground. Banshee seems to like these a lot despite the two toys we bought to divert her attention.

Libby tells me there's 61 days to go. It's starting to get to the business end...

Another Addition

Lib* and me have been talking about getting a dog for some time now. I've been fond of whippets, and Lib*'s had a soft spot for Collies (particularly the Lassie type). We had planned on getting two and I was close to securing a brother and sister (desexed of course - eww) so that they'd have companionship when we weren't around, although honestly, it isn't that often.

We lost the opportunity to get two, but I was able to build a relationship with a lovely lady who will let me have one of her puppies. So tomorrow, I go to Old Junee to meet the first Sherlock-Hemming fur kid, and turbo number 2 1/2.

Our little Sheltie will come home to join the Happy Happy Sherlock-Hemming Land of Candy Canes, Fairly Floss and Underpaid Taxes in one tiny little sleep!

We're so excited!

Life is a whirlwind

It's been nearly eight months since little Gabriel moved on. He touched us in ways that we will never be able to comprehend, even though outwardly he was never anything more than a screenful of scattered dots, defying the odds, fighting hard as hell, and breaking our hearts.

It was not long after that, my good friend KB had showered me with the wonderful news that he too was was about to enter the mystery of fatherhood (I don't think you ever emerge...) I got the great news on Thursday:

O M G _ I T _ A R R I V E D !

I had no idea his middle name would be Lea ;)

Something has stopped me from recording my life so far as we expect baby number 3. There's something bittersweet about the whole experience, but everything so far seems to be fine. Life's good, Little Unit is good, Lover Libby is getting better (LU3 is quite active apparently).

I think it's only now I've got the courage to be honest with myself and accept what has happened to us. Hopefully, we have emerged as stronger and better people (but still completely hopeless at catching up with anyone).

Right now though, we've a got another little bub coming along and I hope that he or she will be half as cool as the Little Unit. Being the product of Libby and myself it's almost a given!

Little Unit 3 will be available for inspection before Christmas, but not yet for sale... I am taking offers on Thomas tonight, though...