About a Boy

I'm finally getting around to writing about Luke's birth. I think it is pretty much your typical birth story. I tried to anticipate the questions people might have, for example:

Q: How long were you in labor?
A: I'm not sure. It depends on when the labor started and I can't be sure about when that happened. The night before, we made the long 2 hour trek to IKEA in Cincinnati to buy some furniture. Of course, it took us so long to decide what to buy that the store closed and the employees were trying to kick us out. I'm pretty sure that experience might have thrown me into labor. The next morning (Thursday, Aug. 28) I woke up with pains that I could only guess were contractions. By 9:30 pm I had checked into the hospital and Luke was born at 7:00 am the next morning (Friday, Aug. 29).

Q: How did Andrew respond when you told him it was time to go to the hospital?
A: Well, I had to text him because he was at an AA meeting. He had to walk out in the middle and missed the Lord's Prayer. That will be a fun little tidbit to tell future generations. Of course, Andrew isn't a recovering alcoholic, but he had to attend as part of a medical school assignment.

Q: Did you get an epidural?
A: Heavens yes! It was a public service to everyone at the hospital. After they broke my water, I asked my nurse why I was the only one screaming on the floor. Was I the only one in labor at the hospital that night? The answer was no. I guess I just have a low pain tolerance. I also must thank the two pregnant women who were scheduled ahead of me to get an epidural. They patiently waited because my nurse requested that I get the shot first. I will forever be grateful.

Q: What were the first moments with Luke like after he was born?
A: The doctor immediately laid Luke on my stomach while they were preparing to cut the umbilical cord. I couldn't get a good look because I was still laying down. But I did rub his cute little bloody head. Then he went to the bathroom all over me and I started throwing up. So tender. It's okay, we had some great bonding time shortly after that. Incidentally, going to the bathroom on me is still one of his favorite pastimes. It happens daily :)

Q: How's the recovery?
A: Not bad. They think I might have broken my tail bone, but I feel exponentially better each day. It feels good to have my ankles back and sleep on my stomach again.

My family has been asking for some more pictures of Luke. I will try not to turn our blog into an endless parade of baby pictures (although it's tempting). But today I can't help it and don't have any other interesting things to post about. He's pretty much our life right now (of course we take time outs to watch BYU football). Sorry if I go a little crazy with the pictures. We take about 100 a day.

The Sunday before Luke was born (I'm still not sure how he fit in there)

He's still not totally sure which hole to put the pacifier in.

He really likes to have that hand on his face at all times.

There's that hand again. I promise I fixed his head after I took this picture.

Luke likes his sleep.

Is it child abuse to make your baby wear a robe after his bath? He wasn't too happy with us, but he looked so cute!

Grandpa and Grandma McCann came out to visit for a week. I think Luke has them wrapped around his little finger.

Grandpa and Grandma Stacey also live close by and have been a huge help (sorry, you can't see Grandma Stacey in the picture).

His dirty blonde hair is beginning to look more and more red everyday. Sorry kiddo, you got that from me.

I go a little overboard when we go on our morning walks. I know, it's only September.

I have to admit, he really likes Mom.

He really likes Dad too.

You can't tell in this picture, but he's looking in the mirror. We find him staring at it often.

Already a deep thinker.

He's growing up so fast!

59-0

Hey Pat Forde, still "Flatly Lucky" ???






59-0
Absolute, complete, and total redemption.

Rise, all Loyal "Flatly Lucky" Cougars?

On the eve of one of the most significant Cougar football games in a long time, I--the junior editor of this blog--have decided to publicly defend the Blue and White and rebuke the Haters.

Last week, it wasn't enough for Cougar fans to have to suffer through an entire game of the most blatantly biased PAC-10 commentary that FSN could assemble. After the game, we had to put up with an entire nation of sportswriters accusing the Cougars of being "flatly lucky" (Pat Forde, ESPN). Having read myriads of ignorant words previously in the week, Forde's were the last straw. I wrote him a biting email, to which--obviously--I have received no response.

To call the Cougars 'flatly lucky' is to openly admit that you did not watch the game, had no intention of researching the game, and are only interested in writing a flashy headline. I think it is only fair that you, the reader, get an honest, unbiased, analysis of the end of that game. Unfortunately, I don't know where you can find that--but I will offer you my own biased analysis in its place

BYU vs UW
Dennis Pitta caught 10 passes for 148 yards on his way to defending his spot atop the receiving yards list for the entire NCAA. Harvey ran the ball 23 times for 136 yards for an average of 5.9 yards/carry. The BYU offense had 475 total yards to UW's 337, we held the ball longer than they did and could not be stopped all game long. Lucky? Please!

On the last play of UW's final drive, Jake Locker made a great run, weaving around both BYU's contain men and ending with 6 points and paydirt. Then the flag came: a correct call, a terrible rule. I hated the call as much as the next man, however, that is where my similarity to the country's beat writers ends.

The ball moved back 15 yards creating a 35 yard extra point. Problem? Shouldn't be. Pat Forde and countless other writers have credited UW's demise to the longer field goal. They should be embarrased for writing such things in public, this is why.

Exhibit A: Many have said that the trajectory of the kick was changed and lead to the block--writers should know better (well, they probably do). In case you fell victim to this idea, here is why it is a crock, from the mouth of the kicker himself, Perkins from UW


"A lot of people are saying when you back up it will be a lower trajectory, and that's not the case,'' he said. "The kick should be the same no matter what, and after looking at the form on my kick, everything looks the same as it did all day. I was fine. We did a 35-yard field goal against Oregon the week before and essentially it is straight down the middle, so that didn't bother me at all.''


Strike One.

Exhibit B: Did the entire country forget that we blocked the kick? It was blocked, the kicker didn't miss it, it was blocked. Did I mention that the kick was blocked? Forde and his compadrees state that the kick would not have been blocked if it were kicked from the 10 yard line. Really?


For novices, those four (4) white jerseys should NOT be where they are. Oh, and if you look close, the ball was blocked with Jorgensen's (84, in air) mid section. Even with altered trajectory (which we know is not the case) this ball is still blocked...by a lot. UW lost because BYU made the play to win the game. They blocked the kick.

Strike two.


"Flatly lucky"?
Please!
Exhibit C: Anyone who actually watched that game felt robbed because we knew that OT would have been a fun, hotly contested match. To call the Cougars 'flatly lucky' is to admit either you made no attempt to even read a box score or maybe you are admitting that you don't know how overtime works or maybe--the most probable option in my opinion--your company pays you to back those schools who you have television contracts with. That's low.

Strike three.


Go Cougars! Beat Norm and the Boys!

More pictures

I just wanted to post some more pics of Luke (to further convince you that he is, in fact, the cutest baby ever :)). He seems to change so much every day. I think he looks more and more like Andrew (thank goodness). I love his dirty blonde hair. We had a little scare yesterday and spent the night in Children's Hospital. However, it turned out to be a false alarm and he has been cleared as perfectly healthy. I'm pretty sure the nurses were more worried about Luke's hysterical Mom. All I can say is that we have a very brave little boy. We really appreciate everyone's support, well-wishes, service, prayers, etc. I'll try to write more about his delivery, etc., a little later. I'm holding him right now and only have one hand to type. P.S. For those who are wondering where we got his middle name from, Wynn is a combination of Andrew's two grandfather's names: William and Lynn.

Introducing.......

Luke Wynn Stacey

Born August 29, 2008 at 7:00am
Weighing 7 pounds 5 ounces
Measuring 20 inches.






Call me crazy, or maybe inherently biased, but I think Luke is the cutest kid around...and Lauren the cutest new mom.

Mom and Baby are doing well, we just spent our first night at home. More photos/stories/commentary when Mom feels up to it.