Black Friday Special (Pop Pop Update)

Pop Pop Doesn't Even Have to Wait in Line

Pop Pop is doing really well - his Wednesday heart cath showed no recent heart damage, which means that the heart attack was most likely caused by low potassium levels and not by blockage (which would have required surgery). Pop Pop will be getting some new hardware on Friday though. About mid-day, he'll have a combo Pacemaker/Defibrillator installed - a pretty nice upgrade.

He should be back home on Saturday, just in time for Mom's birthday. What a great reminder of all the things we are thankful for - especially Pop Pop!

Pop Pop

On Vacation with Gramma and Pop Pop

We have had an unexpectedly eventful week and I wanted to bring everyone up to date. This past Friday, my stepdad had a heart attack while visiting the local VA clinic to pick up a prescription. Because he was at the clinic, he was able to get immediate attention. The security guard started CPR and the defibrillator was used seven times to get his heart going again. He was then taken to the emergency room of the nearest hospital.

He had a bit of a rough time at first, but is doing much better now. He has been moved to a special vascular unit where he is waiting for his kidney function to stabilize so that a catheterization can be performed to determine if there is a problem that can be identified and corrected. (He has already had an echo and a catscan, which were inconclusive.) He has a bit of pneumonia related to the removal of his breathing tube and a bump on his head, but is in good spirits - teasing his nurses and such. The cathererization is tentatively planned for Wednesday.

Thank you so much to all who have called, visited and sent prayers his way. I know Mom would appreciate emails sending your thoughts but please keep calls to a minimum as it's still hectic with visits to the hospital each day. I'll post again when there is more news.

Love and good night -

J

Let It Snow!

Woof!

One of the best parts about being a parent is getting to see all your child's firsts through his eyes. So, you can imagine our excitement when Corbin's first snow came this week. Lee popped outside and let him touch some snow. He also brought some in, which Corbin played with (even though he seemed surprised at its coldness!). Now that fall is officially over, we popped over to BabiesRUs (which gets all our disposable income) and bought this hat - the mittens (little "paws") are just as cute as the hat.

Corbin's First Snow

Here's another picture of Corbin. It's hard to tell, but his eyes are changing just a bit. They are a little darker, although it's hard to tell if they will just be a darker blue or hazel like ours (genetics favors the second option).

Hello!

'Night

I'd Like a Bike, and a Puppy, and a Soccer Ball...

Corbin Meets Santa

Corbin was shopping today at the T.W.I.G. craft show, checking everybody off on his list and surprise! Santa was there!

Gramma and PopPop W waited in line with Corbin, who thought the whole visit was just swell, thank you, although he wished he got to keep the candy cane.

Evanston - Then and Now

The summer between my junior and senior year in high school I attended a journalism program at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. It was one of the defining times of my life - a great learning experience formally (though not a journalist, I do write for a living) and informally (for example, I learned yellow is not my color).

In the spring of 2007, Lee and I traveled to Chicago to watch our brother-in-law graduate from law school. Since we were staying in Evanston, we spent the morning touring my old stomping grounds. On these types of adventures, it is always interesting to see what has changed and what has not. Lee indulged me by taking quite a few pictures like this. My NU roomie and I thought this Greek gentleman was quite the hottie. We passed him each day on the way to class. 2007 finds him still in great shape and - nice surprise - his finish is looking quite spiffy!


More changes..

Journalism Lockdown

We spend five hours each weekday in this room, writing away. I was pleased to see the MANUAL typewriters (goodness sakes it was 1987 - surely there were PCs somewhere!) had been replaced. Comfier chairs too.

Of course, many things were the same...

The "Beach"

Every weekend night found us here - cooking hotdogs on the firepit, partaking of beverages and swimming (ick) in the Lake.

Fisk Hall

The stairs in the lecture hall were exactly as I remembered.

Chapel

And best of all, the tiny chapel I discovered on my second-to-last day of the summer program. I dragged Lee around for an hour until we rediscovered it.

Inside

There are several very impressive churches on and around NU's campus, but I love this one best of all - with only ten pews, standing alone inside it is like being sheltered in the hand of God.

'Night

Quiet Week

At Least Someone Gets Sleep

Just rolling along, living our lives this week. Work. Baby. A little play. A little (and I mean little) sleep. For Corbin fans worldwide, here are some pictures - I can't believe he's been here with us for five months already!

Baby Funland!

Spiffy!

See you next week!

Why I Voted For Obama

Hope

As last week's election approached, quite a few people asked me why I was voting for Obama. The answer: I believe passionate and energetic (and yes, naive) young people have the greatest ability to create change for the better. They don't know what they can't do - and so they strive, and more often than not, succeed.

I want to live in the America represented by our ideals - a place of freedom, responsibility and equality. I have felt for some time that our country has lost sight of those ideals and needs to find it's way back. Which takes change. Change enough to jolt us out of the place we have been for years now. What impressed me about Obama was his ability to mobilize young people to work for his campaign, care deeply about political change and vote for the first time.

I'm too jaded to believe that my efforts individually can impact the world I live in, but I remember enough of my youth to remember I used to feel differently. So my vote for Obama was a vote for the man himself but also a vote for the energy and ability of the young and for the person I used to be.

Of course, now that we are on the other side of the election, I hope we can all remember what it was like to have hope in our ability to live the promise of America, to believe we can each make a difference every day in a small way and that by coming together, make a difference in a big way.

November 2nd Obama Rally
Columbus, Ohio

Hall'o'ween

Us!

Corbin enjoyed a week-long Halloween celebration, starting Sunday, October 26 with the Huntington Hills parade. Unlike the entire City of Columbus and Pickerington itself, our subdivision conducts Trick or Treat on a Sunday afternoon (that's right folks, broad daylight). Until this year, we mocked the Huntington Hills celebration and refused to participate - what fun is Trick or Treating unless it happens in the dark? This year however, with a little one to show off, we decided to join in the fun. Gramma W helped us suit up and we all paraded through the subdivision to the community park, where we snagged cider and donuts.

Gramma W and Corbin

Fire Truck Leads HH Parade

Then Corbin Trick or Treated to a few houses. I must say, most people happily gave Corbin goodies knowing that Mommy and Daddy would be munching on them, some tried to find something to offer suitable for a 4-month-old ("How about Sweet Tarts - there isn't any chocolate in them?" !!!) and only one or two looked at us like, "Really, are you kidding me, are you that desperate for a Snickers?"

First Stop: Grandma C's House

Now of course, we had to get some night time Trick or Treating in, so on Friday, October 31 we headed over to Grandma C's house, suited up and started out with Lee's sister, brother-in-law and their 9-month-old.

Corbin's Cousin as a Little Devil

Much fun was had and the people of Olde Gahanna were very generous. Corbin took it all in stride - next year he'll be an old pro. But for now, he's off to bed!

'Night

Another Busy Weekend

Happy Halloween! We had a busy weekend (again) so I'll be posting more on Monday. 'Night