Good Friday

Am I the only one that thinks Frank sounds better on a Friday? There's just something about Sinatra's swingin', devil-may-care style that just goes well with the day before Saturday. It's the perfect release from the cares and woes of the past week. Then again maybe hearing Frank come crooning through my headphones was simply the catalyst I needed to help me remember all the good things about this particualar Friday.

Last night I got to meet my new nephew, Levi. I know it sounds cynical, but I really didn't expect it to be that big of a deal. What I mean is, I thought I'd gotten through the totally-getting-sucked-in-by-a-newborn thing because I'd gone through it with all the girls. And I think I was, right until the second they put him in my arms. Then the same old thing happened. Everything and everybody else around you seems to fade into a kind of low background hum and you get totally lost in this tiny little face.

I must've just sat and stared for what seemed like an eternity. Ocassionally he'd open his eyes a tiny bit and they'd widen just a little when he seemed to notice my massive face in his. He did a lot of blinking. I think even the dimmed environs of the maternity ward were still probably as bright as the sun compared to where he'd been for the last 9 mos. But he still made an effort to try and get a look at me.

He'd just eaten and Mandy asked if I wanted to burp him. So I shifted him from the cradle postion to over my shoulder. They're so wobbly. The whole maneuver took what seemed like a long time. You just don't want to break anything, ya' know? When I finally got his tiny frame resting on my shoulder I started lightly patting him on the back. So light I didn't think I was really doing any good till he let out this huge belch. Granted it was a baby belch and sounded more like a little cough, but mommy and daddy were impressed and said it was his best one yet. Score one for ole' uncle Lar.

What really got me though was right after he burped his whole body just kind of melted into my shoulder. I guess it takes a lot of energy to burp when you're only a few hours old. But that feeling of complete relaxation was so peaceful. Soon he was snoozing. All in all not a bad first outing for Uncle Lar and Levi. The only thing that would've been better is if I hadn't completely brain farted and left my camera at home. I know, I'm an idiot. But now that I think about it, I'm kind of glad there were no pictures. It's always better in your memory anyway.

I'll have a pic soon. Hang tight.