avablog

We spent the weekend in Madison, shoveling snow and eating tasty food, the latter as part of my dear wife’s birthday celebration. Now we’re back to the banal I.C. day-to-day routine (which is actually kind of nice). By this time next year, she’ll be a mother of two.

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Octuplet Mom: A Huge Family Was ‘Always a Dream’ “That was always a dream of mine, to have a large family, a huge family.” Gosh, I have some dreams I’d like to have come true, also, but my sense of right and wrong keeps me from fleecing the government to make them come true. “I […]

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It’s been a long day. Fourteen hours ago I was standing on a dock on Isla Mujeres, Mexico, waiting for a ferry to take me to Cancun to catch a plane. I spent the last three hours driving home from Chicago, much of it through a blinding snow squall. Life can be so unfair. Pictures […]

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when you’re busy living in the world as you want it to exist. You lose sight of all those people out there who’re living in their own world(s). I had one or 25 good spine-rattling shudders while reading this piece in the NYT: “Every human being, no matter the age, should be allowed to have […]

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Nobody likes a showoff.

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Our excuse for being in Decorah the last couple days was to celebrate Rachel’s birthday. Out of deference, I’ll not reveal her age, saying instead that she doesn’t resemble even a fraction of her years. Leah (and I, I guess) got her a new sweater, which was on Rachel’s list. Naturally, it looks great on […]

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My new favorite, courtesy of the brain trust that is Pete Wentz and Ashley Simpson: Bronx Mowgli Wentz Say “Bronx Wentz” five times fast. Seriously. I dare ya.

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Leah and I had an ultrasound appoint this morning as part of the genetic screening they do now. Our technician was very bubbly and friendly, which, as those of you who know Leah understand, perfectly suits my wife’s personality. We marveled at all the detail we could see on the little baby growing in Leah’s […]

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Fetus Cookie Cutter The need inside you I see it showin’ Whoa, the seed inside ya Baby, do you feel it growin’ Are you happy you know it That you’re Havin’ my baby –P. Anka

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They tell me this is an image of the foetus inside Leah. Sorta looks like a little ghost to me. I gotta get another blog set up…maybe after next week; we have a couple appointments coming up.

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…how difficult it would be just to know all the time that everything’s going to be all right? I mean, we can put a man on the moon and recreate the Big Bang underground in Switzerland, but I can’t rest easy in the knowledge that the little baby growing in my wife’s belly is going […]

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I was unloading groceries in the driveway the other day when the neighbor across the street yelled me down. He’d seen the Obama sign in my front yard and wondered if I’d have any interest in taking a look at the t-shirts he was selling out of the back of his car. I’ve always been […]

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This is what my darling Ava told me yesterday when I realized she’d been quiet in the bathroom for too long. She had said she needed to go in the bathroom and “have some privacy.” Very well, dear. No problem. Except, of course, when I come in a few minutes later to find that you’ve […]

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Today there is a memorial service for my dear friend Melinda in Chicago. I won’t be able to attend, but I’ve spent the last few weeks thinking about her and reminiscing about our college days. She’s been dead for a year now; the anniversary of her death was last week. It’s hard to believe that’s […]

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Men have biological clock too, claim researchers Scientists said men who wait until their 40s before starting a family face a greater chance of their partner having a miscarriage, because of the poorer quality of their sperm. “Drops in fertility from the age of 35 have been traditionally thought of as a fact-of-life for women […]

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But really, if this doesn’t get your blood boiling, I don’t know what will. You can even divorce the whole notion of politics from this video, and it’s still astounding. My favorite comment on it comes from Digg: I wish no ill on people like her- but I do think it is time to turn […]

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Playing the Presidential Election Dozens (aka yo mama political fights on Twitter) # Yo mama so fat, she authorized a $700 billion bailout of Dairy Queen. # yo mama so fat, she thinks the G8 is a Value Meal. # Yo mama so fat, her other biography is called “The Audacity of Hardee’s. # Yo […]

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I really don’t want to turn this into a political blog (again); no one needs another political blog. But I read something this morning that angered me more than usual. It’s here. Excerpt: WALLACE: But Senator back, if I may, back in 2000 when you were the target of robo calls, you called these hate […]

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We’re not, but I came across this book today at BoingBoing and found the discussion around it interesting.

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We’re off to Madison for the weekend. Weather looks to be fantastic for pumpkin patching and brewery touring. We’re really looking forward to it.

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