Bluegrass, Ice Cream, BBQ...and a little sunburn

This weekend we decided to celebrate Ethan's 1 month birthday by taking in a little bluegrass music at the Forest Fest in Jefferson Memorial Forest here in Louisville. For those of you who are bluegrass fans the headliner was Ralph Stanley & His Clinch Mountain Boys. By the time they were on stage we were pretty wiped out so we headed out before they were done, but we did manage to hear Ralph Stanley sing "O' Death" before we left, which was quite a treat. While we were there we also enjoyed some heaping scoops of Ehrler's Ice Cream -- a local favorite -- and then stopped by the Pitt Academy BBQ Festival to pick up some chopped pork for dinner. The bbq was amazing and made for a nice treat to end the day.







In the midst of all of this there was 1 important lesson we learned...be sure to keep Ethan well shaded from the sun. We did our best to stay in the shade, but he still managed to get a little sunburn as you can see in the picture below. Thankfully, it wasn't too bad and he continues to be incredibly patient with us as we settle into parenthood.

Clean Baby

Ethan had his first bath a couple of days ago. We recorded it for posterity sake and we got some great footage. The funniest clip was of the stream of pee he let loose shortly after entering the water. He seemed pretty satisfied and content in the water after that, but we made a mental note to cover "that thing" up next time. It was fun and we found him to be -- yet again -- continually patient with us as we learn our role as new parents.

Here are some pictures of him just after his bath and a short video clip of him getting lathered up with lotion. He takes after his dad and shares his displeasure with the whole lotion experience. No matter what though, he's still so cute!

Loved by Lots of Folks

Ethan has had a number of people come to visit him over the past couple of weeks. Here he is with his grandparents, aunts and great grandma.

Aunt Allie & Grandma Nahm

Grandpa Nahm

Great Grandma McCracken

Aunt Jenny & Grandma Sink

Grandpa Veeck

In addition to family there's been a number of friends stopping by as well. Here's Ethan with his new friends...

Wanda

Woo

Ray

Cory

Troya

Meme

Big Mama

There have been several others who have come by to meet Ethan whom we forgot to take pictures of. To all of you, thanks for expressing your love and care for us.

Infant Tai Chi

Given his attire, it seems Ethan may be considering a future as a Jedi Master or a Shaolin monk. In the meantime as he considers his options, he is conducting a daily regimen of tai chi. Check him out:

Good Report

Yesterday was Ethan's first doctor appointment and he was given a good report. He only lost 2 ounces since he was born and all signs are that he is progressing well. The doctor gave us some suggestions for helping him get used to sleeping in his crib at night. Last night, for the first time since we've been home, he slept in his crib twice for one hour. That made it easier for both of us to grab some sleep at the same time, but we also learned our first lesson in parenthood of coping with our child's independence.

After we got over the initial concerns of whether he was ok and whether he was still breathing, we were able to drift off to sleep, but as we did the thought was already there...children grow up so fast.

New Life Abounds

Today we discovered that we are blessed to have another new mother at our home.

This mother robin is faithfully guarding her nest which is right under the eave of our side door. While she's keeping her nest, here's what Ethan is up to inside.

Lots of sleeping...

We're Home!

We returned home from the hospital yesterday afternoon. Ethan is doing well and we're getting adjusted to our new life at home with him. We love him so much!!!

Here is a link to a slideshow from our first two days with him:
http://tntcommunity.winkflash.com/

Once the page comes up click on the icon that says "Baby". When the page with the picture comes up click the green play button. You can set the speed of the slideshow and if you'd like to make prints of any of the pictures you can easily create an account and have the pictures mailed to you within a few days.

Ethan Matthew Veeck has entered our world!!!

Ethan was born on Wednesday, April 16 at 6:11 pm. He weighed 7 lbs. 7oz. and was 19 1/2 inches long. We love him so much and can't wait to introduce him to all of you!

Getting Closer

Today was Terre's due date so we weren't quite sure what the day would bring given that during the middle of the night she started having brief contractions. This morning we went to her doctor and found out that things are progressing. Terre is now 2 cm dilated, Ethan's head is very low and she is 85% effaced. The doctor is hopeful that she will go into labor in the next few days. If she hasn't given birth by Friday then we have another appointment. At this appointment they will take an ultrasound to check on him and if everything looks good then we'll schedule a follow up time at the beginning of next week for Terre to be induced. Our hope, of course, is that Terre will have delivered by then.

Hopeful Words

http://blog.beliefnet.com/godspolitics/2008/03/from-prophetic-anger-to-apocal.html

Given the context of our neighborhood and our experience here, we know the truth of the reality spoken to in this article and we also hope for a new way to live that reveals another way is possible.

Queen of Sheba

In an effort to naturally induce Ethan to join our world we thought we'd give him a little ethnic kick with an Ethiopian dinner last night. We went to our favorite (and the only) Ethiopian restaurant in Louisville last night -- Queen of Sheba (http://www.queenofshebalouisville.com/index.html). If you've never had Ethiopian we highly recommend it. You get to eat with your hands, the food is full of flavor and the atmosphere is wonderful. Plus if you're a coffee fan, Ethiopia is where it originated!

As far as our attempt to naturally nudge Ethan out, it seems to have been to no avail...but the dinner sure was good!!

And Here's the Lovely Lady!!

For those of you who were wondering what prego Terre looks like here she is with her dad about a month ago.

And here she is today.

Ethan

Just in case you haven't seen him yet...here's the little guy we're waiting on!

Trying Again ... 4 1/2 Years Later

Believe it or not, given the name of this blog and the soon to be new addition to our family, I created this 4 1/2 years ago. At the time, my hope was to use it as a space to journal my thoughts on life -- particularly from the vantage point of my daily life here in my neighborhood. My intentions were to share what I was learning, experiencing and reflecting upon and how, in turn, I was being transformed in the process. Well, as all good intentions go...that didn't happen. I've spent the last 4 1/2 years incredibly active in neighborhood life and have no doubt been positively transformed in a number of ways, but one regret I have is not taking the necessary time to adequately record my reflections.

So, with that little confession out of the way, I'd like to set out from this point to utilize this blog to not only share my reflections, but also to regularly update everyone on our family life with pictures, stories, etc.

Perhaps in the larger scheme of things, the timing of this is apropos as I'm sure that with the new life soon to join Terre and me that we will learn and know more fully than ever before what it truly means to become human as our Creator intends.

Statement of Intent

The motivation for this web log is born of my desire to communicate in written word my experiences and observations of life. Much of what will appear here will be influenced by the context of the Portland neighborhood of inner city Louisville, though there are likely to be additional musings included on a variety of topics.

It is my conviction that it is our Creator's intention for us to become fully human as exemplified in the life of Jesus. The insights, thoughts and questions included in this web log will chart my journey of wrestling with and moving toward this Divine intention. I welcome you to travel with me.