New experiences

I spent my first significant amount of time away from Abigail on the archery elk hunt last weekend. A boys weekend out in the high country of Central Utah. The trip entailed lots of sober jack assery by police officers blowing off steam, shooting sharpened sticks at targets (no elk), and walking many miles at or above timberline (10,500'). We saw and stalked a few elk; but, getting within archery distance of an elk is not an easy task. A task that none of us accomplished.

Being in the beautiful back country of Utah was well worth the sore knees and restless nights. One of my friends did fill his deer tag with a small buck. The flowers were still in full bloom on the high ridge lines. I experienced walking into an isolated grove of trees on a high ridge that had no less than 10 great owls perched on the branches. When they took flight it was truly magical to watch. I was too in awe to reach for my camera.

While I was away on the elk hunt, Abi had a new experience with her sister and mom. Alex's five day college orientation began Saturday at Westminister College. Abi spent the entire weekend walking around campus with mom and Alex. The dichotomy of paying for college and diapers at the same time had not escaped us; but, following your first born around a college campus while carrying your two week old, certainly drives home that fact.

Alex is completely moved into her dorm room and in full college mode. She woke up early this morning for Army PT at 0600 hrs at the U of U Hyper building. She is hoping to make the ROTC Ranger Team, an athletic competition team that competes against other ROTC programs. She also would like to be part of the shooting team; she figures having a dad that 's a police sniper might be an advantage.

Abigail's brother started school last week. He had to trim his hair, which was traumatic; since, like Samson, he views his hair as the source of his strength. Does that make Cristal Delilah?

This morning Abigail's bobble head bobbled less. So we tried a new toy; a seat that allows her to sit up. She loved it. She got an upright perspective of the world. I wanted to try her first header with a soccer ball, but, Cristal was the voice of reason, so I refrained.

Life in the VanDongen house hold is different; no Alex, new baby. Cristal and I are embracing the change and are certainly blessed. We closed a chapter in our lives. But every new chapter has a beginning, and this story is getting good.

 

Laugh???

Two days ago we saw Abigail's first smile. Yesterday she most definitely laughed...at her sister no less. Alex was holding her at the breakfast table and Abi laughed while Alex was making faces. I was also there; I'm pretty sure it was a laugh, and pretty sure it was at Alex.

Like the day before, we tried and tried to get her to repeat it for the camera. All I got was angry eyes from her.

Today was my first day away from Abigail; I went back to work. To celebrate my return, some of my work colleagues thought it would be a fun challenge to run 16 miles up a mountain before work. So at 6:30 AM I started running up Blacks Peak from Terrace Hills Drive. We summited in an hour and 25 minutes. We descended the back side of the mountain (Smugglers Gap Trail) to City Creek Canyon, then ran City Creek Canyon to the police station and finished 3 hours 45 minutes after we started - 16 miles and more vertical feet than I can count.

The challenge was one of the hardest physical activities I've ever done. I used a secret weapon energy source recommended to me from Doctor Rob...thanks Rob...it worked great. To top the day off, we had SWAT training for work after the run...ouch!

Many years ago, Cristal and I passed up career opportunities on the east coast in order to keep our children close to their family and immersed in the beauty of Utah. When I run, ride, or ski on Utah trails, and I'm lost in mother nature's glory (I never run, ride, or ski with an ipod), I ponder the wonderful times our children will have in the mountains, red rocks, deserts, rivers, and lakes of Utah. And, now that I have three children, I have to run even further to think about them all.

I like to think Abigail missed me today; the thought of her kept my legs moving during the teen miles. But, when I picked her up this evening, the first thing she did was try to eat from from nipple...so apparently it's not me...it's my nipples.

First Smile

Today was Abigail's first smile. It was early Sunday morning on the deck. I had just returned from a jog and was doing PT on the deck. Cristal was drinking coffee, reading the daily news, and holding Abigail.

While I was in the middle of a flutter kick set, Cristal proclaimed that Abigail just smiled. Of course I thought, 'what ever...it's gas'. So I continued with the exercise. When I finished I walked over to Cristal and Abigail; I gave Abigail a little tickle on her cheek and a coochicoochicoo. And then she smiled; twice. There was no doubt it was in response to us and not in response to 'gas'.

So I glued a camera to my hand and tried to get her to repeat the smile all day; right up until this writing at 2300 hrs...no luck. So no pictures for this entry of smiles.

Alex, Ariel, and Sam did artwork on the deck. It started out as artwork for Abigail's room, and ended up being artwork on themselves. Mustaches...I have no idea???

Cristal was able to get some yard work done through the day. Abigail got her bath. And I got badly needed 'man time' visiting with a friend, Brandon Hansen, about the upcoming archery elk hunt. Although, Brandon's family accompanied him on the 'man' visit. And after an evening with Abigail, I'm pretty sure his wife and daughter left with plans of having a baby in the near future.

The Never Ending Birthday

Sam's Birthday celebration seems to be in a state of perpetual motion. Another celebration today; with family members - Opa and Abuela, Grandpa Dave and Grandma Paulette, Uncle T and Aunt Niki, Sam and Ally Chacon, Alex and Ariel, Sam and James.

The house was bustling with activity. Cristal made fire house enchiladas and I decorated a soccer ball cake and cupcakes. Although we all came together for Sam's birthday, Abigail stole the show. She was cuddled and oogled by all; and slept through all the attention.

The boys and girls had nerf gun wars on the trail. From the sound of it, the Marine won...as expected. However, boys will be boys, they didn't go down without a fight; the Marine took a wack in the nose.

The night was full of good conversation. The most notable being talk of Cristal and I having twins next???

Hiccup or 911

Brother Sam is a great example to his sister. He started the day with dad and morning PT on the trails above our house. He out ran dad and did daring rock work under the radar towers. Later in the day we submitted to the heat and spent 3 hours climbing at a local climbing gym. Sam wowed the other patrons with his perseverance to finish climbs. Dad got a cramped neck from belaying so much.

Abigail had the hiccups today. In and of itself, not note worthy. However, for Cristal and I, it sparked neurons from a hiccup incident 18 years ago.

Alex was an infant and the first baby in the family. We all were getting acclimated to caring for an infant. Grandma Becky and Grandpa Max were watching Alex for us one evening. Alex began to hiccup. Unsure how to address 'baby hiccups', grandma and grandpa considered calling 911. Thankfully they opted for 'Ask a Nurse'; and the hiccups, of course, went away without any intervention. Good outcome for Cristal and I; a '911' call for hiccups from a VanDongen family in SLC could have had disastrous effects on our futures in the emergency services.

Hiccups and all, at one week old, little Abi is doing wonderful. She is still sleeping well at night. She rolls on to her side and lifts her head; both early developments. I'm predicting walking by 6 months and soccer by 18 months...not really :-)

The Road Begins???

Is it a coincidence that Abigail was born during the 2012 Summer Olympics in London? That Cristal went into labor while watching the Olympic games? The games that brought redemption to the US Women's National soccer team; they won Japan (the team that beat them in the 2011 World Cup final) to take the gold. Is it coincidence that the US Women's National team played their final friendly prior to the Olympics in Utah, with the VanDongen family in the stands (Abigail in the womb)? What about 'Abby' being a derivative of 'Abigail'?

These are questions that only a soccer obsessed father ponders. A father that sees soccer as a 'way to explain to the world'. There are few things in this world that bring us together as a global community like athletics; and more specifically, like soccer. From the concrete jungles of the United States, to the real jungles of Africa; the cobblestone streets of old Europe to the rain forests of South America. Soccer inspires the mind, invigorates the body, and brings peace to the soul. And the beauty of soccer; only two things are necessary to play - a ball and gravity.

At one week old, Abigail attended her first soccer match. A Sparta Cup tournament that Sam played in. It was a 100 degree day. She was introduced to our family friend's new son, William Skorut, who is 6 weeks old. William's brother is one of Sam's good friends and teammates.

The little siblings brought smile's to their brother's faces; even after a tough loss in the tournament. The babies soaked in the fresh air at the pitch. At one point, I think I saw Abigail attempt to mimic a header from a cross.

The activity certainly benefited mom. Mom got her first shot of fresh air since Abigail was born. She visited with other soccer families on the sideline and soaked in the joy that soccer brings to the fans.

The best benefit came later that night. Abigail slept 7 hours after the excitement of the soccer game. Yet, another reason to be completely obsessed with soccer.

Brother Sam

Today Abigail is proud of her older brother. He turned 10 years old today. He played two soccer games in the Sparta Tournament and scored the game winning goal in his second game. His birthday dinner was at the China Platter with his dad and good friend and teammate, Matthew Skorut, after a long day of soccer. Sam proclaimed his best birthday gift was the goal that gave his team the win...but, promptly amended it by saying it wasn't his goal, but, the team's goal.

Abigail's day consisted of sleeping, eating, and pooping. Although, she did stay awake for more consecutive time through the day; and as I sit here writing, she is wide eyed in her crib checking out three blue owls that resemble Mel Brooks in Young Frankenstein. It's all good as long as they don't start grave robbing and stealing 'Abby Normal's' brain.

Abigail also had another set of grandparents visit. Sam's birthday seemed to overshadow Abigail for a short time. But, Abi has a way of sneaking back to the attention fore front...like clamping down on Cristal's nipple.

News and Visitors

Little Abigail received ‘news’ today. It was wonderfully sad news. Abi’s sister, Alex, is moving out to live in college dorms at Westminister College. The move is part of Alex’s ROTC nursing scholarship; Westminister dorm life, Army leadership courses, and 0600 PT…what could be better for a feisty 18 year old.

Alex’s good friend, Ariel, returned from Marine Corp basic training at Parris Island S.C. She was introduced to Abigail in uniform. She returned as the top recruit for her class.

Abigail had many visitors today; grandparents, neighbors, and maintenance men. The most interesting of which was the lawn treatment guy. After educating me about the differences between organic and non-organic chickens in California and how they relate to the crab grass in my front yard, he introduced himself to my wife while she was breast feeding…and just stood there continuing to educate me (school and a show) – this time about how vulnerable humans are with their Achilles tendon; apparently which is why my Blue Healer can ‘take down a man’. Through all this, I never really learned how to get rid of the crabgrass in my yard.

Opa and Abuela Vandongen visited with gifts. They brought dinner and birthday gifts for Samuel. Abigail wasn’t impressed by Sam’s 10^th birthday; but what sister is. It was a beautiful night on the deck with Pele showing off his photogenic stature. Abigail wowed the grandparents with her cooing, kicking, and bobble head.

Abigail is excited to meet all the friends and family still in the queue; we are blessed to have many.

Have I mentioned that life is great.

Day Five of Life

Today it was evident that Abigail developed in the womb of a rabid soccer fan. The entire family and neighbor (James) watched the USA Women's National Team play Canada in the 2012 Olympic semi-final match. Alex Morgan scored the game winning goal in the 123rd minute of play (30 seconds left in the game). The family absolutely erupted; pandamonia in our TV room - jumped so high I hit my hand on our ceiling fan. Abi was right there and slept through it.

Day five brought lots of new activity. Abi was awake for much of the day. Mom and Sam sang songs for 30 minutes to her. She was intrigued by the duo.

Uncle T and cousin Pierce visited this evening. They attended a soccer game for Sam and sat down for a meal with the newest VanDongen. The only hiccup was that the newest VanDongen required a nipple - which obviously took Cristal out of our dinner plans.

Abigail is an eater. We've nick named Cristal 'The Cow' because that's how Abi sees her...a milk machine.

The last five days have been nothing short of pure joy. My heart and soul are filled with love and happiness. It's funny what a new life brings to the old ones...Priority. From when I wake up in the morning to when I've gone to bed in the evening, my thoughts have been consumed with the miracle of life. She truly is a blessing. Life is better with Alex. Life is better with Sam. Life is better with Abigail.

New home - new chapter

We came home from the hospital the Friday after Abigail was born. The wonder of new life surrounds our household; even with the non-stop changing of diapers.

On Saturday, Abigail turned to her side. I'm not sure if that's normal for a baby so young, but it was fun to watch. She did it again Sunday.

Cristal is breast feeding about every 3 hours. Except at night. So far Abigail has slept 5 hours at a time every night...knock on wood.

Little Abigail has done to our lives, what Sam did 10 years ago, and Alex did 18 years ago, enhance it. Life is better now. Within a short time of having her in our home, it was hard to imagine life without her.

Hospital room

The stay in the hospital room was pretty routine. Visitors of all shapes and sizes came by; almost non-stop Thursday during the day. We felt very blessed by the support.

The most non-routine part was the fact that the baby still had no name. The few days prior to the delivery, Cristal and I had resorted to what we called the 'NAME GAME'. Cristal had a list of preferred names on her iphone. She would display the list, close her eyes, and move the phone up and down. I would close my eyes with my finger pointed at the iphone, also moving up and down. On the count of three we would both stop and I'd point to what ever name we stopped on. The first time we played the 'NAME GAME' was sitting in our seats Sunday afternoon at 'Wicked' at Capitol Theater; Abigail was chosen two out of three times.

We continued with the name game with Alex and Sam the next couple of days. It became insignificant, other than the fact that I had not remembered about the 'Wicked' results until I sat down to write this.

The other names that were in strong contention were; Sam's favorite, Chelsea (after the soccer team) and Alex's favorite Rhea. We also considered Leah and Caroline. All with Grace as the middle name.

Alex finally said to me, 'Dad make a decision'. I had been relatively quiet with my opinion up to that point. However, if a decision was needed, I wasn't scared. So I said my preferrence was 'MERLIN'...then I amended it to Abigail Grace. Cristal wrote down different spellings on the back of the feed and poop log in the room and ABIGAIL GRACE VANDONGEN was complete.

Sam and I passed the time by dribbling and passing a soccer ball down the hall. The nurses loved it.

Sam also became inately familiar with every position the hospital bed could be molded into...and it became a non-stop game of re-adjusting the bed.

We stayed in the hospital Thursday just as a fail safe if anything came up within the first 24 hrs. We all crammed into the room and slept anywhere we could get horizontal.