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| 31 DEC 2000, Sunday We went to my dad's house for a gift exchange. He and Linda had spent Christmas in Puerto Rico, and didn't get back until the 28th. We stayed until 930pm, and then went to Church to bring in the New Year. 01 JAN, Monday Ruth and I and the kids went to Church for the New Years celebration. We sang, had snacks, and played a game (Outburst). Then held hands as we prayed in the New Year. Later in the day, after a few hours of sleep, Ruth, Crystal, and I went to Target to register for the baby shower. There were so many do-dads, and varieties of clothes to choose from. It was fun going through the items with a scanner - like shopping for free. 02 JAN, Tuesday Ruth and I went to our first Lamaze class today. Classes meet every Tuesday, and go on until 6 Feb. Since the baby's due on the 1st of Feb, we will probably miss the last class. The first class was about how extremely painful labor is, and how important a coach can be. We also went over some exercises to strengthen the muscles used in labor. Just in the first class alone I could see that we would be learning a lot. 03 JAN, Wednesday We had a bit of a scare last night. Ruth thought her water broke, and called me at work to tell me she was going to the hospital. They checked here in, and hooked her up to a baby monitor. Because one of the cars was in the shop, Crystal had to pick me up at work and take me to the hospital. However, by the time we got there, Ruth was ready to be released - false alarm. I guess that maybe this was God's wakeup call because I realized we weren't ready for this. I spent the night packing a bag, washing the baby clothes, and getting the infant car seat ready. 05 JAN, Friday David's pet gerbil Dilly died. He lived far longer than the expected lifespan of two years - he was almost 3 years old. I felt bad for David because I had to tell him no when he asked to bury him in the vegetable garden. I imagined that I could hear David's screams when he saw me fire up the tiller in the spring. When your favorite pet gerbil dies you don't think about things like that. I finally agreed to his 3rd choice for burial site - next to the shed where we keep the mowing equipment. They say that when a pet that you love dies you should immediately find another. Ruth will try to get another one as soon as possible. David already has a name picked out: Dilly. 08 JAN, Monday Today Crystal headed back for college. Ruth took her to the Greyhound station in St Louis this morning. We had a great time with her while she was here; we'll miss her. Her next break will be sometime in June I think. 16 JAN, Tuesday This past 3 day weekend I spent getting the nursery ready. I helped David move into Crystals old room upstairs, and cleaned up Davids old room for Sean-Daniel, and moved in the crib. Only 15 more days to go! Ruth and I are getting anxious. Still no Dilly replacement. All the stores in the area are out. They keep saying that they're expecting a shipment of gerbil's anytime. I sense that David's getting desperate, and he may take the first one that comes around. 18 JAN Last night David got a new gerbil. It's a little gray baby. I think this is his 3rd Dilly. David, who is famous for never missing a day of school for at least the last 6 years, for the first time was too sick to go today. He's been coughing for about a week and has had a fever the last 3 days. Ruth told me that the teacher was so shocked that he missed a day that he said a prayer for him during the school's morning worship service. Ruth got a surprise Baby Shower at work. All the gifts were wonderful, and on top of it all they gave here a little homemade album with pictures of Ruth's students and a short message from each. 21 JAN Last night our church held a Potluck/Baby shower. The food was great; Scott Renth gave a message; and of course we played a game. This one was quick but so much fun. Everyone was given a pen and a paper plate. Then, at the word GO, everyone put the plate on the top of their head and tried to draw a picture of a baby as best as they could. The results were tacked up on the wall and judged. Some were pretty good , but some resembled catapillers, and some resembled nothing even close. The gifts were all wonderful and I think we are definetly setup for sleepers, bibs, onsies, t-shirts, and blankets, etc. |
| Dan's Journal for 2001 |
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