#3 is a BOY or GIRL

Are going 3 for 3 in boys, or if we get to throw a little girl in the mix....but first, I have to say a few things about my 20th class reunion.  

It was great! Yes, more people needed to come - especially the nerds that were in town. I had so much fun catching up with old friends, and it was great to see the ones I didn’t know well too.  Everyone looked good, and going ten or twenty years between visits is much too long.  Class of 95’ has always gotten along well overall and is a good group of Hilanders. I encourage you to go to your reunions, whenever they may be.  Two quick things:

1. Cortney was a trooper hanging out with the “old” folks. She knows a few of my classmates (and likes them), but she set the bar pretty high for being a good sport.  She’ll have lofty expectations for me when I attend her 20th reunion in 2045.
2. Backhanded compliment of the reunion goes to my friend Lisa, who said this to Cortney, “I know Andy is a good enough looking guy.... but how did he get YOU?!”  Thanks Lisa....I think.  Great question though.  The best answer I can give is that if you ever find yourself having to get through a maze (i.e. corn maze, David Bowie Labyrinth, of just feel like slaying a Minotaur) all you need to do is keep a hand on the right (or left) wall and never lose touch.  You’ll eventually get through. Yes, you’ll go down some dead ends.  Yes, it might take a really long time.  Yes, there may be some faster ways.  But in the end, you’ll be guaranteed to get where you want.  The analogy here isn’t that Cortney is a perilous, tedious, or dangerous series of pitfalls and snares that I had to traverse to get her heart.  Nor is she a Minotaur.  I think she sees me for what I can be (which can be fair to middling) , and not, at times, what I am - which is a man who trips and stumbles around life’s obstacles, a man who sometimes insists on banging his head on a dead end instead of backing up and trying a new route, a man who needs help, and a man who needs Help.  So I guess I didn’t answer Lisa’s question at all.  There’s no logical reason why she’s with me.  I “got” her because God looked down and had mercy on me.  He saw that I needed help with my life so He sent me her.  And I am grateful.  (We all know she got the short end of this deal so my life’s goal is to lessen the gap between her awesomeness and my tom-foolery so that it’s not so bad for her.)

And that brings us to why we are here on this blog post.  We have a baby coming somewhere around January 18.  Those that know me know that I’ve always wanted a big family.  I was blessed to help raise Kaeden for 8-ish years and continue to love that young man.  Then Dashal came along and changed everything forever for better.  Then life changed a bit and I had reserved myself to thinking that Dash was going to be my only child - which was more than ok with me!  I mean, if you’re going to have one kid, it might as well be Dash right?  But now I get more! 

ZAIN!

And baby ________!

We don’t have a name yet.  And while we would love to hear your opinions on what to name it, we reserve the right to laugh if it’s ridiculous.  To be fair, I am good at ridiculous, as Cortney learns more and more...

Here’s why I wanted to have a boy:  I am one.  I have one.  Cortney has one.  We are familiar and semi-prepared for one.  It is the more convenient choice between the two, if that counts for anything.  Boys are awesome.  There are 3 boys in my family (2 of which turned out very well). I would love a third.

Here’s why I wanted to have a girl:  Well, to be honest, I always would have rather had a boy.  What I know vs what I don’t know.  And I don’t know crap about females.  I love my niece Lily to pieces though so that has softened some of my pre-conceived ideas of fathering a daughter.  I mean, I don’t think I’ve ever changed the diaper of a girl before.  I’ve never had to talk to a girl about getting her period (I laugh at the visual i get in my head).  I don’t know how to braid. Picking out an outfit for a boy is a non issue.  The colors often don’t even need to match.  But for a girl...?  Accessories!  Ugh.  I could go on...  But there is a considerable part of me that openly embraces the notion of a daughter.  I don’t back down from challenges.  A daddy’s girl sounds nice.  I have guns already.

When we found out at the ultra-sound, it was pretty quiet/business-as-usual. We hugged and kissed and left in separate cars.  Little did I know that she cried (happy tears) all the way home.  Little did she know that I cried all the way to Safeway.  Shoot.  Then I had to go in.  And to be honest, I wandered around the aisles a while just thinking about #3.

By the way, God willing, this is the last one.  WE are getting fixed.  I’ve had my Roy Hobbs moment (where the old guy comes back after being counted out and hits one last  ball out of the park. A home run in a couple of ways I suppose. The Natural.).  Three kids makes our hearts full.  Our house too. 

I doubt if it's still a surprise at this point, but we are, in fact, having a baby girl!  Little secret: it's what we both wanted!  January can't come fast enough!