Operation Christmas Child

In common-day America we hear and say things like, "I'm broke" or "I'm just trying to make ends meet."  What we don't realize is that we are SO blessed! Do you have running water in your house?  Do you own a car?  A house?  A tv?  If you answered "yes," then you are one of the richest people in the world.  Francis Chan points it out so well in his book Crazy Love (a book that I highly recommend):

"Because we don’t usually have to depend on God for food, money to buy our next meal, or shelter, we don’t feel needy. In fact, we generally think of ourselves as fairly independent and capable. Even if we aren’t rich, we are “doing just fine.”
If one hundred people represented the world’s population, fifty-three of those would live on less than $2 a day. Do you realize that if you make $4,000 a month, you automatically make one hundred times the average person on this planet? Simply by purchasing this book, you spent what a majority of people in the world will make in a week’s time.
Which is more messed up—that we have so much compared to everyone else, or that we don’t think we are rich? That on any given day we might flippantly call ourselves “broke” or “poor”? We are neither of those things. We are rich. Filthy rich."

By no means am I trying to say that you aren't having a hard time right now.  Each of us is guaranteed struggles in this life.  What I am suggesting is that if each of us can think of others above ourselves (Romans 12:10), we will want to help those in need just like Christ did.  God cares for you and the burdens you are carrying.  He wants to carry them for you if you will only trust Him:

Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.  Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.  - 1 Peter 5:6-7

I have a huge desire to create traditions for our family and want to teach Lucas what it means to serve others.  We decided that we are going to get involved with Operation Christmas Child.  It's such a great opportunity to bless a child that doesn't know what it means to receive a ton of toys at Christmas.  It's so easy too:  You simply take a shoe box, designate it for a boy or girl, fill it with gifts (they even give you recommendations), include a note letting them know you are praying for them and $7 for shipping and then drop it off at a location near you.  This is a tangible way to show a child around the world the love of God!  They even have a cool way to track where your box goes!  What a great opportunity to remember the many ways God has blessed you and share those blessings with a child in need!

There's only 1 week left to pack a shoe box for a child around the world, so let's get moving!

Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.  Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves.  Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.  Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.  Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.    -Romans 12:9-13

It's the little things

So we made a purchase that I had to share with you.  You may roll your eyes when I tell you what it is, but we think it rocks!  Drum roll, please....we bought a water cooler.  Michael is sure that drinking tap water is going to give us cancer (ok, he simply brought up the fact that tap water has a lot of icky stuff in it) and Graham has a Twice the Ice machine that has UV filtered water that tastes oh-so-good, so we decided to bite the bullet and buy a water cooler. 

We found one at our local Wal-Mart that was inexpensive (and when I say inexpensive, I mean in the water-cooler world).  It fit nicely next to our washer and dryer in the laundry room, right off the kitchen. 

Oh, and did I mention that it dispenses super cold OR hot water?!?  Suddenly, making a cup of hot Constant Comment tea is so quick.  No longer do I have to wait that 90 seconds to heat tap water in the microwave.  :)  You may be thinking, couldn't you make hot tea in Michael's Keurig?  Yes, I could.  But then it would taste like coffee tea and that's not a flavor that I'm a fan of. 

We are all drinking more water (which is a great thing).  In fact, in one week we've already gone through a 5 gallon bottle.  Lucas is a big fan of the water cooler.  He likes to take his cup and set it under the dispenser and say, "I do it, Mommy."  Mr. Independent.  And dont' worry, the hot water button has a lock so that he can't use it.  We can even disable the hot water altogether with the switch of a button. 

We really like our recent purchase.  Are there any items in your home that you are enjoying or just make life easier?  It really is the little things...

Carter & Hudsy

After much excitement, precious Carter & Hudson (who Lucas calls Hudsy) made their 6-week early debut!  Christen found out she had pre-eclampsia, so the doctors decided it was time for those babies to come into the world.  God was so gracious to allow everything to go well.  Hudsy was 5 pounds, 10 ounces and Carter was 5 pounds, 2 ounces.  Not bad for 6 weeks early, huh?  They both stayed in the NICU for a couple weeks and Christen had to return to the hospital too.  It has been a dramatic time, but I'm glad to report that everyone is at home together now.  I had the pleasure to go stay with them last weekend and I have to tell you, these are some handsome boys!  Sweet babies too.  I'm a very proud aunt, but there's none prouder than Chase & Christen (ok...maybe Grammy & P-Daddy)...

Precious brothers!

Nap time

Carter Bear

Hudsy

Beautiful Mommy with her boys

Fun times with Grandpa, Gigi & Aunt Stephie

Grandpa, Gigi and Aunt Stephie came to visit from Houston for Lucas' 2nd birthday! He had so much fun with them!!!  He especially liked getting a new T-ball set, bas-eht-ball hoot, and books. 

Playing with the stuffed Ty toys Memaw sent

Lucas really likes to read!

Reading Chica Chica Boom Boom with Aunt Stephie.  This book was only upstaged by the book, Where's the Poop?

Gigi was chasing Lucas but...



Grandpa saved him!

Riding the horsey Gigi brought

Where's Lucas?

Lucas loves his Grandpa!

And Grandpa loves him!

Fun with Gigi

Sharing sweet kisses with his Gigi!

Bear with me...

Hello few faithful and patient followers!  First things first...yes, I broke my New Year's Resolution to create one blog each month but let's be honest...who actually keeps New Year's Resolutions? 

I love blogs.  I enjoy reading them anyway.  I don't know if it's a lifelong case of writer's block or the fact that everytime I sit down to compile something, I feel like what I have to say isn't that important.  But then I realize that many of you are simply friends wanting to hear about life, see photos of our adorable (sorry, I'm a bit biased) son and share everyday moments.

One of the blogs I enjoy reading offered advice on creating a great blog.  She said to write like you are talking to your sister.  Well, both of my sisters are tons of fun so we talk about all sorts of things.  I think I can totally do this...so here goes:

Our Lucas turned 2 at the end of July and we partied hard!  Grandpa, Gigi and Aunt Steph came to see me as well as our very-pregnant-with-twins Aunt Chrissy.  We had a Toy Story party at the park with several highlights:  balloons, great friends, bubbles, rock-angels and (save the best for last) CUPCAKES! 

Making Rock-Angels

Lucas has really started talking and repeating most of what he hears.  Recently, we were watching a Bible video about Moses and Lucas said, "Gog ket baby Mosek sate in baskek."  Translation: God kept baby Moses safe in the basket.  It warms my heart to hear Lucas learning about God and Jesus.  He has such a sweet spirit and we are so thankful that the Lord would bless us with this precious gift! 

Lucas has really started to sing a lot!  Some of his favorite songs are If You're Happy and You Know It, Jesus Loves Me, ABCs, This Is the Day, Jesus Loves the Little Children and My God is SO Big.  He also likes sports A LOT.  He and his daddy have enjoyed great bonding over the return of college football, the Rangers and the Dallas Cowboys (although it's difficult to enjoy the Cowboys here lately).  Whatever his daddy yells, he repeats:  "Touchdown," "touchdown!" "Backwards," "backwards!" "Home Run," "home run!"  Lucas loves his daddy and likes doing what daddy does.  Golf is still #1 in Lucas' mind though.  His Grammy and P-Daddy gave him a set of clubs for his birthday and he has gotten great use out of them already.  Anything with the word "ball" in the name is a hit with my boy. 

In my new hat Uncle Skeegs & Aunt Lindsey gave me.

Lucas is starting to spell a little too.  He can spell his name, "stop," and "exit."  He likes the ABCs a lot and came name all the letters with their sounds and counts to 11.  He loves to learn!

My favorite thing, however, are the sweet hugs and kisses Lucas shares.  He is such a love.  Oh, and I really love when he laughs real hard, scrunches his nose and covers his mouth with his hands.  Too. Precious.  My heart couldn't be more full.

Ok...so now some random things I would share with my sisters:

• Lucas and I went to a special reading time at the library this week which ends with a craft.  At our table was a mom and her two kiddos (both with beautiful blond hair).  The older child worked meticulously on their craft and I encouraged, "Great job!"and asked, "How old are you?" to which the child responds, "Four."  I replied, "Wow!  You're a big girl!"  Mom chimes in, "No, he's a boy."  Gulp...wow.  He had some of the prettiest blond hair with ringlets I have ever seen.  And, cut me some slack, it was down to his mid-back.  After apologizing and complimenting her son's lovely hair, I justified myself on the ride home by thinking, "that hair WAS really long..."
• I guess I'm growing in wisdom because I found 4 white hairs on my head last night!  I tweezed them out and thought, "Ugh!  There's another!"  After violently trying to pull the 5th one out, I realized it was actually one of the previously mentioned white hairs that had simply fallen from the tweezers back in my hair.  Now not only do I have white hairs, but my eyes are getting bad...

Wow, after writing such a lengthy blog, I guess I can do this.  Thanks for sticking with me!  Until next time (very soon, I promise). 

I made it!

So wow...looks like it's been a year since my last post. After many of you "encouraged" me to start blogging again, I decided to make it my New Year's resolution. I resolve to blog at least once each month. I'm telling you that so that you don't get crazy and expect a new blog every week. Geez, it's been a year. You know I've got to take baby steps getting back into this whole blog thing. It's January 31st, so I'm proud that I made it!

We have been so blessed this past year. Lucas will be 18 months next week and it feels like I was just pregnant with him. He is full of life and laughter. Some of his favorite things to do are:
- Spin in circles and get very dizzy
- Read books
- Run
- Laugh with Mommy and Daddy while jumping on the bed (just Lucas jumping, not us) ;)
- Sing songs
- Drum
- Play basketball or spike his football (although any ball will do)
- Loves giving hugs and kisses
- Clap for himself but will turn to make sure you join in with him
- Likes to identify animals and then make their sounds (especially the lion and elephant)

We are so grateful for God's grace and love and the joy that He gives us through this little gift. Michael is starting up with golf season and will travel with the teams most of the spring. We sure miss Daddy when he's gone, but it makes our times together even more precious!

Here are a few photos from the past year...I know, I'm rolling my eyes at myself too...

Some More Firsts

Lucas has experienced some more "firsts" over the past week. Some good and some not so much. First the bad. On wednesday Lucas received his 4 month shots. Let's just say that lots of soreness and crying ensued. But I am happy to report that we are all doing much better this morning. Last night he experienced rice cereal for the first time. It was a success in that he really liked it, but he couldn't quite figure out how to eat it. There was a lot of lapping and licking going on. And today I (Dad) am happy to report that Lucas is getting ready for his first Big 12 Championship game. And wouldn't you know the Horns are playing! This is a good start if you ask me. And don't think I'm just brainwashing the boy. He's currently glued to College Gameday on ESPN in anticipation of the big one tonight. "If stinkin Mom would just leave me be! You can clip my nails later, woman!"

Our Little Pumpkin

Check out this cute boy. We're kind of partial though.

So, can you believe it? Two posts in two days! Michael and I are loving our new little blessing. Everyday is full of new adventures! Here are a few of Lucas' newest accomplishments:

- Laughing out loud
- Rolling over
- Saying "Ooh, oh, hey, hi, and boo" (not in this order) :)
- Trying to sing with Momma and Daddy
- Standing up (with a little balance help from us)

Lucas is a happy baby and smiles all of the time! He loves to watch people and is very alert. He can hold his toys and now take his pacifier out of his mouth (and sometimes puts it back in). It's pretty funny when we're driving down the road and he takes it out and leaves it on his shoulder...he knows it's there and leans his head over to get it, but can't quite reach it. It makes him really mad.

So yesterday Lucas started coughing to which Momma responded, "Goodness gracious!" He loves hearing those words, so he spent the next 5 minutes fake coughing so that I would keep saying, "Goodness gracious, Little One." It was hysterical! The fake coughs are pretty pathetic and adorable.

One of Lucas' favorite things it to stand on the countertop in front of the mirror before bath time. Lucas just stands there and dances around. He's pretty impressed with himself. I'll have to get Michael to help me post a video of this on the blog.

Here are a few pix of our favorite little baby:

Where Have the Todds Gone?

No new posts since April? We stink! I vow to honor our 5 followers with in-depth coverage of the Todds from now on, whether you want it or not. Lucas is getting big and he's so stinkin' cute. He must be shared with the world. More posts to follow. I promise.

6 Months and Counting

Well, we're 27 weeks now and have decided on a name for our sweet baby boy. He'll be named Lucas Michael Todd. Lucas means 'light' and Michael means 'who is like God? or gift from God.' I love that! We're so excited and enjoying watching him grow! Lucas probably weighs about 2.5 pounds and will gain half a pound each week for the next 10 weeks. He has doubled in weight from a mere 4 weeks ago!!! Lucas is most likely about 15 inches long already! Lucas can now hear both Mommy & Daddy's voices (although Daddy has to get close to my belly). Lucas can even taste the foods I'm eating, so now's the time to eat extra healthy.

Most nights around bedtime, Lucas starts his Tae Bo routine. :) He's a big kicker and it's been fun for Michael to get to feel him kick too! Lucas' eyes have now started opening too! I can't wait to see what color they are.

We're so excited to go for our 4D ultrasound this Thursday! This ultrasound is supposed to show a LOT of detail, so we're anxious to get a sneak peak at Lucas! We're just hoping that he's in the best position so that we can see a lot. We'll certainly post a picture once we get one.

I've been feeling wonderfully too! I think I'm one of THOSE moms...I just LOVE being pregnant. We're about to enter our 3rd trimester, so it's nice to feel like there's still time to enjoy the pregnancy before Lucas arrives. We're continuously asking our Father for wisdom to be loving parents to Lucas. It's CRAZY to think that we'll be welcoming this little boy in just 3 months! How wonderfully different our lives will be! I'll post more at the end of the week after our ultrasound.

The Wisdom of...Classrooms?

The day before we found out we had a young stud in the oven I polled all of my students to see what they predicted we would have. I made the game a little more relevant to them as I offered five bonus points on our next test to those that correctly predicted the sex. And wouldn't you know, they completely nailed it. 70 predicted boy and only 31 won't be receiving extra credit. I only got one complaint from one of the girl pickers, btw. She said, "Well, that's not fair!" To which I replied, "Well, at least you got SOMETHING right!" Anyway, it was pretty neat when we found out because I had told the doc about the bonus point experiment. The way he told us was, "Well, Michael, it looks like you're going to be giving out a lot of extra credit...." It took a second to sink in, and then he confirmed with a smile, "you're having a boy." Pretty cool.

In district golf news....

One round of district 2-3A is in the books and all I can say is the view is good from the top! The boys opened up on the beautiful, majestic, awesome (can you tell this sarcastic yet?), amazing track...not to be mistaken for Augusta National...Sweetwater Country Club. They shot a respectable 299 (72, 73, 73, 81, 84) and hold a 14 shot lead over Snyder and 22 over Graham JV. Yep, our JV boys stepped up (okay they careered it..321..) but they are definitely scaring some people. We'll look to pad the lead Monday as we play round 2 in Graham.

The girls are sitting in 2nd place, but only by three shots. They will have to play well to get out of this district, but it is very doable (The top two teams go to the regional tournament in Lubbock). We go from round 1 at Breckenridge Country Club to Fairway Oaks in Abilene for the next round. That's basically like going from a bologna sandwich to a medium-rare 12 ounce ribeye at Ruth's Chris. Here's to hoping that the appetite for steaks, birdies, and pars is quite large come Tuesday. Wish us luck.

It's a Boy!

The long wait is over! We're having a boy! So, blogging is about sharing your feelings with friends and family and being honest, right? Well, a couple of weeks ago I had a dream that we were having the sonogram done and the Dr. announced, "It's a boy!" I immediately started bawling and asked him to double-check. When I shared my dream with Michael he asked, "So, you don't want a boy?" It wasn't that at all. It's just that I am a girl's girl. You know me...I love pink and frills and all-things girly. I'm just nervous that I won't be a good boy-mom. But you know what? As we were having the sonogram done yesterday afternoon, I heard the Dr. tell us that we were indeed having a boy and I did cry...but not for the reason in my dream. My heart was so filled with gratitude that our Father would entrust me to be a mom to this baby boy. I know that I will have to trust the Lord in a new way to learn how to be a mom after His heart. Needless to say, Michael is thrilled!

So, now to the next question...No, we haven't decided on a name. We have one strong contender, but are waiting a while to make sure it's the one.

Let's Talk About Sex, Baby (I'm sorry...this is the title Michael insisted on)

So we're 19 weeks prego and finding out next week what the sex of Baby Todd is. We are SO excited! You have until March 12th at 5pm to cast your vote and let it be known what you think we're having. Michael thinks it's a girl and I think it's a boy, so I guess we're covered either way. :) It's pretty crazy...we're about to transition from labeling our baby "it" to giving it a name. Well, we're still debating names. We really don't have a preference, but feel so grateful that the Lord is knitting this baby together in my stomach. It's truly amazing!

Baby Todd is now about the length of a banana and can hear Mama's voice. I like to sing to him/her and some studies even show that babies can recognize songs that were sung or played while they were in the womb! Daddy has a few weeks before Baby Todd can hear him. Baby Todd can even detect light through his/her closed eyelids. God really is building a miracle!

And I think I'm at that point where my pre-pregnancy jeans are just going to have to be put away for a while. I can still button them, but they're definitely getting snug each time I put them on. Sounds like I need a little shopping trip for some maternity wear!



Well, it's that time again...time to move! Our landlords were kind enough to let us move from our duplex into a more spacious house. We'll still be renting from them, but now have more room for our expanding family. We are so blessed! Although moving is not my favorite thing to do, I am a bit limited this go round. I have been busy organizing and packing boxes, but won't be able to lift anything. Sad, huh. ;) Guess I'll have to leave that to the men. I'll post pix once we get unpacked.

Until then, don't forget to vote!

Jumbo Shrimp

So...first of all, an apology to my adoring husband. I couldn't resist updating the blog with a lovely, spring-like background (which might be interpreted as "girly"). There was a lot of sports talk on our blog, so I figure we need a little balance here. :) After a wonderful Christmas holiday, we got back into the swing of real life. We celebrated the marriage of our dear friends Skeegs and Lindsey this past weekend in Fort Worth. What an incredible couple! They truly love the Lord with all that they are and it was such a sweet time! I love weddings because they take me back to that beautiful December day when Michael took me as his bride. It warms my heart. It really has been the best 4 years and I'm so grateful that God blessed me with such a loving husband.

Baby Todd is now almost 14 weeks old! From what I've read, he/she is the size of a jumbo shrimp and weighs almost 1 ounce! We are now entering our 2nd trimester and I can't believe how quickly it's gone! This week, Baby Todd's eyes have moved from the outer-region of the head to the middle of the face and the ears are in place too! It's pretty amazing! Just another month or so before we'll know what Baby Todd is!

I've been feeling absolutely wonderful and I'm so thankful! We will soon be moving from our duplex to another rent house (which will give us more room), so we'll have to start packing soon. Seems like we move every year... :) Thanks for all of your prayers for us and Baby Todd! We appreciate them and are asking the Lord for wisdom to be loving parents that teach His child to love Christ!

PS - Due to popular demand, we'll be posting pix soon!

10 Weeks!

Well, first of all, let us apologize for keeping our fans at bay the last few weeks. My excuse (Mike) is that finals were very busy and then I was enjoying the break so much that the blog kept slipping my mind. We had some great ideas for blog entries too. There was the attempt to go to a Dallas Mavericks game only to turn around in Bridgeport because of icy road conditions (baby Todd's safety comes first :) ) During that same trip we had the most unbelievable Subway experience. We've brought back a new catch phrase around the house: "Boo-Yaa!" It usually rears its head whenever someone's football team wins in college bowl mania. That leads to another story. Val is dominating our college bowl pool. Her team name? "Val and Nut's Hot Picks." The nut referring to our little one who at 9 weeks was, according to the doctor, "the size of a nut." Which brings us to our latest dilemma. Val is officially ten weeks today. At what point do we refrain from referring to baby todd as nut? I mean, if it's bigger than a nut we can't keep calling it that. Sister suggested "fetus", but that just sounds awkward. What is a little bigger than a nut? A frito? A McDonald's pickle? A pen cap? None of these seems to work either. We'll keep you posted.

Quick Coaches Poll Observations

Coaches that voted Texas #1 Overall:

Gene Chizik, Iowa St.
Todd Dodge, UNT
Rick Neuheisel, UCLA
Mike Price, UTEP


Coaches that voted Texas #5 Overall (Are you kidding me?)

Art Briles, Baylor
Mike Leach, Texas Tech
Greg Schiano, Rutgers


Side note: Mack Brown had it Florida #1, Texas #2, and OU #3

First Gift and Other Ramblings

We received our first baby gift tonight from my Aunt Cheryl, a lovely baby blanket. Thanks! It's quite soft, and looks pretty warm. I'm thinking about testing it out in the deer blind tomorrow morning.

You know how you sometimes hear of refs making "make-up" calls? It's when a referee completely blows a call, realizes it, but by then it's too late to reverse it so he calls a cheap foul/penalty on the opposing team to "make-up" for it. Happens in high school basketball at least 47 times a quarter. Well, am I out of line by saying that the recent O.J. sentencing was the ultimate make-up call?

The Big XII Commissioner made an interesting point tonight that I've never really thought of concerning the whole playoffs vs bowls controversy. He said something to the effect that the players enjoy the bowl experience much more than a playoff experience (he apparently was commissioner of one of the sub bowl divisions that uses a playoff system). That got me thinking. Let's say you're the 80th player on Utah's football's team. With the bowl system in place you get to spend two weeks in Miami during December "preparing" for the Orange Bowl. You receive all kinds of gifts, including extra dough to spend on your vacation, I mean road game. (Believe me they have ways around the system, i.e. the school buys the players first class tickets, they trade them in for coach and keep the change). Anyways, you have a wonderful experience that you will never forget and your team has absolutely nothing to lose. A win is great, but a loss is no big deal. They aren't even in a major conference. Now, let's compare that to a playoff experience. A first round road game at OU, Florida, or Texas. One and done, no gifts, no fun. I'm not saying that this alone justifies that a playoff system is bad, but score one for the BCS.

Can I be the first to make the claim that the head of NFL scheduling has got to be some deranged, neurotic former Buffalo Bill that has never gotten over four straight Super Bowl loses, the last two at the hands of our Cowboys? Perhaps Scott Norwood went absolutely crazy after "wide right," joined the NFL scheduling committee and is doing everything he can to take it out on the single team that could of made everyone forget about that infamous kick. (I picture this happening just like Ray Finkle joining the Miami Police Department as Lt. Einhorn to ultimately sabotage Dan Marino for his "laces in" hold in the first Ace Venture movie). Anyways, does Schedule Chairman Norwood not realize how many days its been since the Cowboys have won a playoff game? (Click on Bob's Blog to get the updated running count). Does he not know that it's always December that kills us? Just when the Boys have seemingly pulled it all together and are poised for a prolific playoff run, ol "Wide Right" gives us this December schedule: @ Pittsbugh, NY Giants, Baltimore, @ The Dreaded and Feared (Philly). Good grief. Just give us the 19th pick of the draft now and let's get it over with.

Morning Sickness: A Complete Misnomer

Sometime around mid-morning yesterday I went and checked on my lovely bride.  You see, she had awoken that morning with the predictable sensation of nausea and dizziness.  My first reaction was a bittersweet one.  Kind of sweet on one hand because it provided one more indication from the Lord that yes, we are indeed pregnant. But quite bitter on the other hand (very, very bitter) since I had to hold Lanie's ears while Val conjured up curse after curse on Eve for eating the freakin apple and brining down this awful curse upon women.  

Anyway, there I was being a good husband as I checked on her status.  Let's just say she was not doing well.  I comforted her with all the comfort I could muster, though, and reassured her that there was good news.  "I need some good news," she exclaimed.  "Well, the morning's just about over.  You should be feeling yourself in about an hour and ten minutes."  She kind of chuckled, secretly hoping I had read something on the internet or something because at this point Valerie had lost a lot of weight.

Well, not only did she not begin to feel better at the stroke of noon, but she got progressively worse.  In fact, it got a little scary there for a while.  I'm happy to report tonight, though, that she is back to her jovial self.  But, I must protest at this point.  Morning sickness? Come on.  I vote we officially change the name of this phenomenon to Nasty Throw Up Your Guts Sickness.  I think that pretty much covers our (okay, Val's) experience thus far.  She began the strategy this morning of munching on cold cheerios before she got out of bed.  This seems to have worked well for one day.  We'll keep you posted.

(Val just looked over my shoulder as I was typing this post and said, "make sure our fans know that I really didn't say actual cuss words toward Eve and/or the fall of man."  Done and done.)

What a Funny Gal!

I told Val that the pregnancy book says no drinking  (yes, we're having a baby, but I figured that  since we started a blog today that a baby on the way was just assumed).   Anyway, I did give blood today and did witness projectile vomiting twice!  The good news was that none of it got on me and the inevitable vomit chain reaction never occurred (even though the nurse that cleaned it up was visibly gagging).

I guess we should go ahead and discuss what you, our fans, can expect from this great blog.  The idea is to use it as a forum to update the progression of being with child, and then of being first-time parents.  We are pretty dang excited, by the way.  However, my enthusiasm waned a tad when I heard a quote yesterday from Eddy Ball, a four-day year old daddy himself.  After baby Isabella (the Linebacker) would not stop crying he allegedly quipped, "being a parent is hard."  

Please forgive me (Michael) if I slip in the occasional HSO (hot sports opinion) into our family blog.  Val suggested that I start my own sports blog, but I reasoned that a divided fandom would not be in the best interest of Baby Todd.  So take your seat, buckle up, and get ready for the ride of your life.