Birthday, baptism, band-aids, barf, and the blessings of God

Sorry for the crass title, but it fit with the alliteration. Here's what I mean.

On Saturday, I celebrated my 32nd birthday. It's amazing how old that used to sound, but I'm comfortable with that now... Anyway, my wonderful wife who is still recovering from child birth started my day off right--she let me sleep in! What a day I thought as I got out of bed around 9 am. We had scheduled a Chi Alpha baptism for noon, so I spent some time preparing for that and headed out the door around 11.

It was raining and I had flip-flops on. Those details are significant, because it explains that the onset of clumsiness was not due to old-age. I was in a rush, as usual, and as soon the light turned on Nebraska Avenue I was in motion. I set my flip-flop shod foot down on a manhole cover and then found myself on the pavement with a bleeding big right toe. Thankfully, I could disinfect it later in the chlorine water of the AU pool. (Actually I did try to wrap it up, but as with most band-aids these weren't waterproof. They were just a temporary fix.)

The baptism was incredible! We baptized 4 students, one who was an atheist only a year before. This is the 6th year in a row we did a public ceremony in the pool and every year I get an opportunity to share Jesus with someone watching. As I was thanking the lifeguards, they asked me questions about what we were doing. I was able to share the gospel there on the poolside. I think we'll do this again!

When I got home, Sam, who had been running a fever that morning, was getting worse. I took him into the clinic expecting a long Saturday wait, but it was surprisingly speedy. We were in and out in a 1/2 hour with the assurance that Sam just had a cold. Time for the birthday party!

I picked up Jen and Levi and we had a family outing to one of my favorite places, Five Guys. Not much for atmosphere, but incredible burgers and fries and even though I've never had one, the hot dogs must be pretty good because Sam tasted his 2 times (the barf part). Needless to say, our outing was cut a bit short. We made a quick exit from the restaurant and shuffled quickly (remember the cut toe) three blocks to our car in the rain. I was feeling pretty sorry for myself.

As I was relating my sad story to my dad he said, "If that's all that's wrong, you're doing pretty good." I needed to hear that. I was feeling a lot of pity for my throbbing toe and sick son and was forgetting the 32 years of blessings in my life. I have a wonderful wife, 2 sons who bring endless joy and a job that fills me with purpose. So thanks Dad. You helped me to change my perspective. I went to bed that night with a smile on my face and joy in my heart.

Oh, the Dutch apple pie and Yankees tickets that Jen got for me helped with that smile a bit too. Thanks babe, you're the best!

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I like to call it Sam unplugged. It's just Sam sitting with his guitar singing your worship favorites...Yesa be ya Name! (Watch for the fancy guitar work.)

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Meanwhile back on campus...

Crowd shot 3,
originally uploaded by auchialpha.

While I've been spending time getting to know Levi, our students have been participating in Passion Week a gathering of the AU Christian Community to focus on Jesus' sacrifice. Chi Alpha birthed the idea and helped to organize the event.

Tonight, assured that Jen had plenty of help I slipped away and participated in an Open Worship service held in the campus amphitheater. It was an amazing time. The ampitheater was full of from all backgrounds students singing, praying and meditating on sin, sacrifice and redemption. The songs and prayers reverberated on the three dorms surrounding it.

It was a special moment for me personally. When Jen and I first walked on campus @ AU seven years ago, we prayed in the amphitheater. I imagined the Spirit of God rising up from the stage of the amphitheater and flooding the campus. That's where we felt God was calling us to AU. I smiled as before my eyes that dream came true.

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Uncle Dave, we'll miss you

With the joy and excitement of the birth of our son Levi, this week also brings some sadness. My uncle, David Regan, after suffering with pancreatic cancer, passed away the day before Levi was born. Uncle Dave was always quick to crack a joke, passionate about politics (the conservative type) and a joy to be around. He introduced me to C-Span and the Klondike Bar and while I never got into following the latest legislation make it's way through the halls of government, I've been known to indulge in an ice cream bar or two.

Today is Uncle Dave's funeral. I so wish I could be there, but for obvious reasons, I can't. Even still, I want to honor him in a small way. I think that I'll stop by the grocery store, grab a pack of Klondikes and eat one with my son Sam (sorry Levi, you'll have to wait). It's my way of passing on the sweetness that Uncle Dave brought to me.

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Day 2 & 3

Big stuff happening these days!

• Levi keeps his eyes open for more than 5 minutes!
• first smile (ok, maybe that was gas)
• first embarrasing moment--Levi poops on nurse practitioner!
• Nana arrives--very big for the whole family! I slept in until 8 am. Is this heaven?

I'm experimenting with a new photo posting service. To see a buch of Levi day 2 and 3 click the pic above. Tell me what you think of it.

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Sam meets Levi for the first time. Yes it's a sappy slow moving 3 minutes, but if you're connected to either Sam or Levi in any way, you'll love it!

I have to say a BIG THANK YOU to Franklyn, Anita, and Symon Cater who took care of Sam all day on Saturday and brought over a great meal. You guys are the best! Elizabeth, thanks for coming over and staying the night at a moment's notice and finally thanks to Mark our neighbor down the hall who ran over and stayed until Elizabeth could make it. It was a finely choreographed ballet. We couldn't have done it without you!

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Levi's first day

Motivated by our new arrival, I'm experimenting with a web photo gallery. Click on the photo above for pictures of Levi's first day.

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Here it is! Levi's birth story told by the one who had the most intimate experience.

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He's Here!

At 11:53 pm last night, Levi Christopher Godzwa was born! He is 9 lbs, 1 oz, 21 inches long and one of the cutest newborns I've ever seen (click on picture above for a photo gallery of Levi's first day). Both Levi and Jen are resting from an eventful night and are doing great.

It was a pretty crazy day. I finished filing our taxes around 5:30 pm and Jen said, "I guess we can have a baby now!" I think Levi was listening. At 7:30 pm, Jen's contractions, which had been weak and infrequent, started getting closer together. As we put Sam to bed, we were able to explain what might happen that night. Sam was excited (we could tell because he started bouncing on the bed exclaiming "I'm so excited!"). Jen's water broke 5 minutes after we put Sam to bed.

Things started to happen fast! Jen's contractions were coming 2-3 minutes apart. We were hoping to make it to the Maternity Center in time. A quick phone call got our neighbor Mark to wait with Sam until one of our students, Elizabeth could get here to spend the night. We collected our stuff and headed to Bethesda, Md. I have to admit I did drive a bit above the speed limit.

When we arrived @ the Maternity Center, Jen's contractions were one right on top of another. After 2 hours of labor and 30 minutes of pushing, Levi was born! He arrived with a thick head of black hair and barely making a sound (very different from Sam who screamed for about 20 minutes). Jen was amazing, handling the pain of having an above average size, posterior facing baby without drugs! I was able to help deliver Levi and cut the cord. It was an incredible experience. Even though Levi was over 9 lbs, he was the smallest of the 3 babies delivered at the Maternity Center last night. There was a 10 lb, 6 oz baby delivered down the hall!

After the rountine tests and resting up overnight, we made our way home @ 11 am. We've both been able to rest up a bit and regain our strength from our crazy day. Sam has been spending the day with our friends Franklyn and Anita and will meet his litte brother tonight.

I want to say a big thank you to everyone who was praying and who pitched in to make it all go smoothly. We sensed God's presence with us and we're extremely grateful for His blessing us with our healthy and happy little Levi.

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I Hate Waiting...

You may have guessed from the title, Baby Godzwa decided not to come out today. Maybe he saw his shadow. Could it be 6 more weeks of winter? I don't think so, but it does mean waiting.

I'm not a fan of waiting. When I want something, I want it now. If I need to talk to someone, I don't want to leave a message. I'll call their cell phone, send them a text message...you get the idea. It would be very convenient if Jen's due date (which is today) were set in stone. The most important week on the Christian calendar is coming up! I need to get my taxes done! I've got things to do, places to go! Funny how our new baby doesn't quite understand my busy schedule.

Patience has become a lost virtue in our world. Stress and anxiety is everywhere. I wonder if there is a connection. Practice patience this week. How? Push aside the to-do list for a half hour, go to a quiet place and let God speak to you. I guarantee you'll receive more than just stress relief.

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