The world is changing, I feel it in the earth...

So I started working from home in November 2003, and the entire time I've had one family member or another in the house with me pretty regularly. The exception being the first part of 2008 when Mom took ill and passed away. Well today, Shasta started back to work and Mac went to Aunt Sue and Uncle Steve's and it seems as though it'll be just me and the dogs during the day from here on out. I've gotten several calls and texts about how I'm doing and it's actually not bad. I do notice the lack of sound from outside my office. Particularly Mac crawling up to my closed door and yelling "Dadadadadada" while I'm talking to a customer. And I can actually leave my door open without having to worry about him crawling into the most unchildproof place on the planet. It's an adjustment but a necessary one and one that I think our family will be better for. I am extremely grateful to have been able to work and be home with Mac during the first months of his life and the time spent as a family has been great for all of us. The change is gonna be interesting, a good change I think but none the less interesting.

Here's a pic of Mac when I dropped him off this morning. Aunt Sue and Uncle Steve are already spoiling him, notice the new bouncie they got for him. Which he loves by the way!!!

9 Months, How It Flies

Slideshow: 9 months with McKinley - Slideshow

Is this thing on???

I was reminded the other day that even though I haven't posted here in forever, at least one person still checks my blog pretty regularly. In all honestly, I guess the world of facebook and twitter pulled me away and I've let short 2 or 3 sentence updates suffice. That and the fact that I'm keeping up with an almost 9 month baby boy who is growing waaayyyyy faster than he should have kept me from doing Randomish Stuph justice. The day after Mac was born a good friend told me "time flies now." And it's looking like he's right, I was browsing through some pics of the day we brought him home and was blown away at how tiny he was then and how much bigger he is now!

I do promise to make more of an effort to post more frequently in the future. I know some of you are saying "after 9 months that's all you got D?" Well for right now yes and you're just gonna have to wait for more :D

Hello Baby Boy

The last time I posted my heart was full because I had lost something precious to me. Well the Giver of All Good Things has taken me full circle and filled my heart with the joy of something so precious that I don't know if words will do it justice. There are so many things I remember from the past 2 days. Shasta asking me "are you gonna wear pajama pants?" as her way of telling me she needed to go to the hospital. The rock steady presence of our friend Pamela in the labor room. Her knowledge and gentleness were a blessing that everyone who goes through child birth should have. The incredible strength my wife showed through labor and delivery. I'll remember all the updates to friends and family and feeling the strength of their love and prayers throughout the day. But even as I right this the words don't do it justice, if you have ever had a child you know what I'm talking about. My heart is so incredibly full and I know that as of 9:23 last night my life has completely changed.

I know a lot of you have waited patiently for pictures and I won't keep you waiting much longer. The reason we waited was to be sure that McKinley's great grandma Baker got to be one of the first people to see him. She has seen him and so for the rest of you here he is:

McKinley David Douglas
9:23 pm 11/5/2009
6 lbs 5 oz 20 3/4 inches

So Long, Babygirl

When I first met you, you were 4 months old and weighed probably 3 lbs which was small even for a Cavalier pup. You were the result of an accidental breeding and by all accounts shouldn't have survived at all. You mother was too young to breed, and as a result her milk dried up and the rest of your litter died. Thanks to an angel named Melissa who bottle fed you for 12 weeks you survived. You were a fighter even then who had her own way of doing things. When Melissa ask us to house sit for her, we met you and your "brother" Aslan and immediately fell in love with you both. 2 weeks later we picked the two of you up and brought you home. You fit right into the house and soon every one who met you was falling in love with you. Yesterday morning you couldn't even stand up and I took you see Dr. A. Dr. A called me with worry in her voice and said you weren't good, they tried some steroids and took some blood with the hopes that when we got the results this morning we'd know what was wrong and how to treat it. When we prayed last night we placed your life in the hands of the God that created you and allowed us to have you, knowing that in all things His ways are best. Dr. A called this morning and said you didn't make it through the night and now my heart is heavy but I am so grateful for the time I had with you. There are so many things I will miss. I'll miss the fact that at 8 lbs you were still "puppy" size. The way you hardly ever barked, I think in the 2 years we had you I recall you barking maybe 5 times. The way you would always take your food out of the bowl and put it on the floor, making sure Aslan got some too. The way you immediately cuddled up with Muffin or myself when a strange person or animal came near. How right after we found out Muffin was expecting your changed your habit of sleeping on the foot rest between her legs to sleeping on her tummy as if you knew there was a little life growing inside her. And I'm really sorry you won't be around to meet McKinley, because I know you would have had a special relationship. I'll miss your "seal fights" with Aslan and how you used to chase him to the point where he would just lay down in the floor and give up. I'll miss watching you snuggle up with Grandma Flo. I'll miss how our godson Paulie named you "nutter one." But I think most of all I'll miss the "kisses" that you so rarely gave to anyone. The fact is I just miss you, a ton, already. Say hi to Mom, Dad and Guilo for me babygirl. And don't be snooty, give them a kiss :D

Urgent Prayers Need

This prayer requests comes by way of old friend. Please be in prayer for Stellan, Stellan is 8 months old and has a heart condition that has taken a major turn for the worse over the past several days. You can get more detail on his Mom's blog, but please pray.

Ughh!!!! Beat down 18-2. Next game at noon.

Gonna try mobile blogging for the first time. We have a softball tourney today and I figure I'll post updates throughout the day.

Are You Sure?

I'm still trying to get my head around this whole being a dad thing. Thursday we found out that the baby we've been calling "CinnaBun" is a boy and since that's the case it looks like his name will be McKinley David. So my head has been filled with thoughts of watching football and baseball together, reading any number of books together, rocking out in the car (check the video below for a glimpse) and all the things that I'm sure every dad wants to do with their son. Don't get me wrong, I had a lot of these same thoughts before we knew the sex and I even pictured doing them with a little red headed girl. My mind also drifts some times to thoughts of failing or being completely inept at being a dad. Everyone I know seems pretty confident that I'm gonna do fine, but there are times when I don't share that same confidence. Like any dad I want the absolute best for my child and that includes the best dad. I have no doubts that before He created the earth my Heavenly Father planned to entrust this child to to Shasta and I for this time and this place. I just find myself wondering why and asking "Are you sure about this. God?" I am totally in awe of the fact that the Creator of this universe, whose desire is that everyone know him as the perfect father, has chosen me to be a picture of a father to McKinley and while there is some trepidation there is decidedly more joy and nervous anticipation. But it's the kind of anticipation you have as the roller coaster is chugging up the hill before that first big drop. Hands up y'all HERE....WE....GOOOOOOOOOooooooo!!!!!

What a Bargain

If you know me you know I love C.S. Lewis. Well last week Shasta and I headed to the outlets in Hagerstown and of course we went by Book Warehouse. As I was browsing I found a complete unabridged Chronicles of Narnia box set. The set includes all 7 books in one volume as well as unabridged CD recordings of all the books. The CD versions are read by folks like Kenneth Branagh, Michael York, Lynn Redgrave, Patrick Stewart, etc. The retail price on the box set is $99.99, but I got it at Book Warehouse for $29.99. Shasta and I both love to read and it's something we definitely hope to pass on to CinnaBun. Growing up we didn't have TV in our house until I was in 4th grade so my entertainment was pretty much anything legible that I could lose myself in. I still love to read but now I have to make time for it and most of my reading is done before I go to bed. This usually means I get 2-3 pages read, start to doze off and after several futile attempts to recover, Muffin says "babe take your glasses off you're falling asleep." We also picked up several books that I'm excited to share with my child. A Hans Christian Andersen treasury, a family faith treasury, and of course The Curse of the Bambino (the child will know Yankee history :D). Suffice to say, I think this will be one of the parts of being a dad I'm gonna like.