I say verily, tis been awhile

Hello interweb peoples, tis I, your Inspired Viking. It has been 5 long months since i last posted, and what stories are to be told.

Jaxson turned 10 months on the 7th of October. Everyday is an adventure with him. The way he is learning things so quickly is mindblowing. He went ftom scooting on his asscheeks to fullblown speed crawling in what seemed like minutes. I give him till the middle of next month and he will be walking around instead of wearing the knees in his pants out.

3 teeth as well. And the fourth on the way. No fussier than normal, but i think he watches to much NatGeo…..hes turning into a beaver. Hes finally starting to sleep through the night. Most of the time. But thats a baby for ya.

Hes not the greatest napper through the day, which puts a crimp in my sleep schedule since i work nights, but i wouldnt give up my time with him through the day for anything.

Well. I believe thats it for now. Cant give all the good stuff away in one posting.

I hope you have your own Jaxson to inspire you.

Im glad i do.:)

Of hearth and harvest

New Years Eve.

A sign of time passed, and future forthcoming.

I know I am about 3 weeks late with this posting, but it all came to me this evening on what to write and rant about. As you all know, I became a father for the first time on December 7th at 110pm, to Jaxson Thor Gillespie. He weighed in at 8 lbs 11 oz, and was 20 1/2″ long.

This one simple act of a life that my wife and I created, being brought into this world has been a truly humbling experience. Now don’t get me wrong, I am still an asshole of the highest caliber, but now I have a new purpose in life besides just being the best husband I can be to the greatest woman I have ever known besides my mom.

I can sit and just look at him for hours and be the most content human alive. The way he looks at everything in that awesome newborn wonder, makes me think of the future and what he can become and achieve. He amazes me with the things he is trying to do already. He is trying to hold his head up already, and keeps his hands open and fingers moving all the time. “Milestones” that aren’t supposed to happen for quite a few weeks.

This new year will hold many things for my son, and my family in general. A whole world is open and waiting for all of us, and I hope that each and everyone of us takes full advantage of every opprotunity and situation that is presented to us.

I wish you all the best, and know that I love each and everyone of you.

Stay inspired.

I will.

Turkeys done!!!……almost

40 weeks today.
Technically due to make his appearance, BUT…. Like his father, he is stubborn and doesn’t want to be strapped to the timelines his doctor has set into writing. For the past 4 weeks, every visit has ended with the comment from Dr MacKenzie or Dr Courtney, “I wouldn’t be surprised to see you have him tonite.”

But he has proven them all wrong

The last visit this past Tuesday was the same as the ones before. Dr checks Leighas’ stage of dilation, probes a little more, and then conversates a bit before ending it with a statement like the one listed above. We asked the doc about inducing, and she informs us that Leighas’ insurancd provider allows for induction at like 39 weeks. Why didnt we do this sooner?!?! So she set us up for this upcoming Wednsday, December 8th. She has an appointment tomorrow, on what will technically be her due date. Be pretty much more of the same.

But anyways.

Babyboy is set-up already. His room is awaiting him. He already has a starter collection of stuffed buddies waiting for him. I finished up doing his laundry last night so he is ready for a fresh wardrobe change whenever the need should arise. His bag is packed and in the trunk, as is the stroller section of his travel system. His carseat is locked in the back seat. Leighas’ bag is ready to be loaded Wednsday morning. Our call list has been ready for a while. But I don’t believe that he is gonna make an early arrival.

This will more than likely be my last posting as an “expectant” father. Unless he does decide to shock us and show up sometime between now and 6am on this upcoming Wednsday morning, I won’t be posting until he is gracing my arms. Exciting times family. Until then.

I remain…….hopeful.

And inspired.

A Viking Prayer….

“Lo, there do I see my Father..
Lo, there do I see my Mother
And my Sisters and my Brothers..
Lo, there do I see the line
Of my people back to the beginning..
Thay do bid me to take my place among them..
In the Halls of Valhalla,
Where the Brave may live forever.”

37 weeks today. Totally full term, and we are ready for him to be here with us. Everything is going great with The pregnancy on Leighas’ end, barring the discomfort of having a small living being the size of a watermelon growing inside of her stretched out womb, pushing every organ into an uncomfortable place just as nature intended. Our home is ready for his arrival. His room is together, his closet still needs a bit of size organization but that will come in time. His bag is packed and in the trunk of the car, as is his stroller. Carseat base is strapped in, and seat mounted. Still need to make a visit to the local firehouse to have them check off on it and make sure it is installed correctly so we don’t have any problems when we go to bring him home.

Leighas’ bag is ready to go, minus some fresh undies’, and ready to be snatched up at a seconds notice. All the baby bottles have been cleaned and sterilized, and stashed away in the kitchen.

Time has really flown by since the day we found out that we were going to be parents. So much has changed that it’s quite hard to keep track. The house has changed. The demeanor of those around us and in our lives has changed. Not in a bad way, but in an excited way that is greatly appreciated.

As everyone knows, I am NOT a religious person. There are 9 Noble Virtues that I firmly believe in, and that is how I base my “Faith”. It is in these ideals that I am going to be sucessful as a father to my child, and hopefully be able to pass on to him.

It is within these virtues that will carry my son through his days.

-Courage- To be brave, and hold his head high, no matter what this life throws at him.

-Truth- To be honest in every way with all those he comes into contact with. No matter how brutal that truth may be.

-Honor- Not only to himself and what he stands for, but to honor the name of his family and the future.

-Fidelity- Purity to those important to him, and to those that he loves and holds close.

-Discipline- To be tried and true in all that he sets his mind too. To know that discipline is not doled out to those who do not put forth the effort to acquire it.

-Hospitality- To give freely when it comes to guests in his home, but not shell out more than is given the guests expectations.

-Self reliance- May he understand the fact that those that are given items freely, and take no true pride in those things, will never hold that pride in earning or building something himself.

-Industrialousness- Never let it be said that his hardwork will never pay off. If it is something he desires, whether position in life or a material thing, if he works for it then it is worth having.

-Perserverance- Never under any circumstance shall he give up in his fight for desire, nor shall he let any man hold him down. Blood might be spilt and scars earned, but those are the maplines of destiny.

My hopes are those of a proud and expectant father, and I believe that these virtues will serve him well throughout his life.

Enough for tonite my extended family.

I remain hopeful.

And inspired.

….technically ready to be in our arms…..

9 months along as of yesterday.
4 weeks till his scheduled arrival.
Time has flown by in this pregnancy, and everything is ready for his arrival. Room is done. His bag is packed. Her bag is packed. We have one shower left to go to, and I hope it is filled with diapers and the disposable essentials.

The only thing bothering me now is my upcoming work schedule. I accepted a position at Amazon.com in the shipping department, and it is the midnite shift(630pm to 630am), so as not to conflict with Leighas’ dayshift schedule. I don’t start until the 17th of this month, but it keeps runnin through my head that she will go into labor a couple hours into my shift. Now normally this wouldn’t be a problem except for the fact that I cannot have my iPhone inside the facility, and I don’t believe there is a number that can reach a live person. When I worked collections, we had a few customers that worked there and we could not reach them. I have my safety orientation tomorrow, and I am going to let it be known that I have a bay coming within the next couple weeks, and I need a way to be reached.

We do have a backup plan in line just in case. Leighas’ bestie Crystal works days, and has accepted the challenge to grab’n’go if I am at work, and to be her pain reciever until I can get there. But needless to say……this is what sucks about living three hours away from each our respected family members. But this is also a blessing in many ways. There isn’t anything in Point Pleasant to do, and you have to drive at least an hour to reach anything resembling a city. LOL. Pike county is even worse. They are a dry county, and have NO AT&T service. But they do have a Wal-Mart. There is no real way we would move back to either unless it was absolutley necessary.

But that being said, Lexington is where he will be born and raised. To many things for him to do and places for him to experience here. So many more opprotunities here available to him. That is what matters to me. He will get to visit his family every chance we can get him there. Plus, we know that he will recieve plenty of company here in his home.

But alas…..’tis enough musings for one night.
Let the excitement build.

Until next time,

I stay inspired.

“Whosoever holds this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of Thor.”

Well kids…..It’s getting close now.

Can you feel it?

It’s waiting. It’s almost that time…..

34 weeks today folks. that’s just a miniscule 6 weeks left to go on this leg of our wonderful journey.  6 weeks can be a long time. But…..I don’t believe its going to be in this case.  I dont think my little bundle of Nordic goodness is going to go straight through to 40 weeks.  I believe he will be here a “little” bit early.  Which will be fine and dandy with both Leigha and myself.

Which bring’s me to another point.

I can’t remember if I talked about our crib ordeal on Facebook or not, but we have had two cribs thus far, even without mommys’ little monster being here yet. We found the first crib on Craigslist around the beginning of summer. We go to the ladies’ house, and it was perfect for what we were wanting at the time….light walnutty finish, and together so we could eyeball it before we handed over the cash. We get the crib home, and it was together for quite a few weeks…….until we went to Wal-Mart….and I meandered my vision into the pages of the recall list in the baby department. I seen a picture of our crib in the safety recall list, took down the model and serial #’s that were listed, and when we got home, sure enough….ours was recalled.

 Now Leighas’ bestie Crystal had her little bundle adorable girly cuteness in March, and has NEVER slept in her crib. Which by the way has NEVER been put together in Crystals house…..but that is neither here nor there. So to make a longer story shorter, we take the crib to Wal-Mart, and get our cash back(I love Safety recalls…..$50 to Craigslist lady,$150 from WalMart)and we don’t see anything we like in WalMarts’ selection.

So we head over to Crystals after leaving Wal-Mart, and we buy her crib from her. She gives me all the hardware that the girl she got it off of gave her(Craigslist)and loaded it up in the car and took it home. This is where the fun begins. I get the crib into some bright light, and what should have been white……was the pale yellow of a chain-smoked household…..totally discoloring the crib. Now this wasnt from Crystals’ house, as everyone there are non-smokers. This was from the original owners’. AND…….around 20% of the hardware she gave Crystal…was the wrong hardware. WELL FUCK ME RUNNING!….

Now keep in mind that none of this is to be blamed on Crystal, but i cursed the piece of shit that sold it to her in the state it was in. So i vented over FB a little bit, it there was even mention of using duct-tape to fix it*winkwink*, to which my darling bride abruptly put an end too…..lol. I decided that sanding the whole thing down and recoating it, would be the only way to fix the problem of the color. The missing hardware would be dealt with at a later time.

9 cans of premium Valspar Brilliant White Semi-Gloss in the garage later,it was painted. Which brought on two more unforeseen problems. #1-The finish was rough to the touch. #2-The babies’ room now smells like a paintbooth. Now…being the handy bastard that I am, i have a fine sanding block, that I ran over every inch of the crib, which not only left it glassy smooth, but gave it a very nice, antiquey and worn in appearance. And one of those fancy Febreeze odor-eating pop-ups took care of the smell. Now the missing hardware is still a problem….until my wife finds a website that deals with nothing but crib replacement parts. I LOVE THIS WOMAN!!!!! So after a few emails, and phone calls, I get a call back and place an order for what I need. It arrived on Friday, after I placed the order on Monday, and guess what……not all of the parts are correct. More frustration on my end, and loads of grumbling and cussing later, I decide to be a do-it yourselfer in the truest sense of the term.

The bolts I had ordered were standard, when they should have been Metric threaded, and the upper holes for the mattress spring mount….had NO inserts in them to thread bolts into. Now at this point I am around 10 1/2 ft tall, and as green as grass in the spring, steps away from throwing cars around outside. then it dawns’ on me…..why couldnt I use an anchor…like the kind you put in a wall. I mean….the anchor spreads as you tighten the bolt/screw into it…..so the anchor would expand, and fill the void where the insert should have been….right?????

Well….if you answered yes my friends’, you are correct……from the Incredible Hulk to Reed Richards’ in a matter of seconds’, my dilemma has been solved….the final puzzle piece in place. Sheets, bumpers, and blankets’ in the wash, crib together……mind at ease. So as Leigha was watching a movie, I decided that I could’nt wait, any longer, so I put his bed together….

And since I was in the process of getting everything else in somewhat of an order, and none of you in my extended FB family get’s to peek inside my life, I went ahead and took some other piccies’ of the various newness that has been happening around here in preparation of his arrival. ENJOY!

First up is the wall with all the hand painted stars which almost gave me carpal tunnel, mow complete with blinds, and a sheer curtain with, YES, more stars

and since I couldn’t resist sharing in the coolness of the thing  which is the Jack Black of piggie banks…..I give you…. ROCKPIG!!!!!!!!!!!!  complete with money in his gut already!!!!!!!

And then we move on to the shelving that is in the process of going up…..(notice strategically placed Thor/Enchantress 2-pack, and New Thor and Black Adam figures on said shelving;))

Well fam’……I do believe I am going to leave it at that for this week…. I’m glad that I can share with all of you everything that I am experiencing in this journey. And also know, that if I didn’t care about each and every one of you, you wouldn’t be on my list anyways……….;)

Feedback is always appreciated.

Until next time my family….

I remain as always,

An Inspired Viking.

7 Weeks……..

….7 weeks.

…..33 down.

The time is drawing near for our upcoming viking to be set forth into this wasteland. it has been a big weekend for my bride and I. Friday morning, Leigha had her OB appointment/Labwork done for her glucose check. It all came back good….we were a week late on her actual appointment though(we both got the date wrong ;p !) From there, I dropped Leigha off at work, then came back for her babyshower there. Many gifts were given in offering of support from the ladies she works with, and they are all greatly appreciated!

After the shower, I loaded all the gifts into the car and headed home to unload them and spend some quality time with my two favorite fuzzy children before we made the trek back to Leighas’ dads’ in Pike County. My longhaired hippie brother from another mother ImmortalCasus came over to dog/housesit for the weekend, and we hung out till time to go get the wife from work so we could start the journey.

After a lonnnnnng 3 hour drive, we made it to her brothers’, where we hung out till around midnite, then drove back to her dads’ and went to bed. Leigha and her freshly turned 18 year-old, barely legal sister(LOL) left for the shower that our sister-in-law Jessica was throwing her around 330pm that afternoon, so mosied up to her oldest brothers’ house to hangout till time to go get her. Her other brother came by with his 2 boys, and while Chris’ boys and Garys’ girls ran around like heathens’, we played disc golf on the PS3.

Picked Leigha up around 830-ish that evening, loaded everything in the car, and after hanging out till about 10, we drove to her dads’ and crawled straight into the bed. Got up early the next morning, and after her dad and stepmom left for church, we packed up the rest of our stuff and headed back to the homestead. We got to the house a little after 2, and sat around till around 5-ish, and went to Georgetown to pick up a baby bouncy Leigha had found on Craigslist. We get to the ladies house, and she asks Leigha if she would be interested in the swing she was selling…..so Leigha says “SURE!”. Ten after the swing comes out, she asks if we had a mobile…to which Leigha says”nope.” So….heres’ the running tally for the evening….keep in mind that all three items were used only once, since their 6 month old son was WAY too big to use them…….$90 for a Carters’ bouncy($60 new), Fisher Price My Little Lamb Swing($150 new), and a motorized/light up/musical mobile($50 new)……that is a whopping $260.00……..and we only paid her $90….THEN she asks Leigha if she needs any maternity pants….and tells her that she can have them if she wants them……. so all in all, it was worth the drive to G-Town. We then decide to make a run to Target to get a few other little odds’ and ends’ for the babies room(Thor figures’), then dinner. My wife can smell a deal, and in her success, I took her to Cheddars’ afterwards.

We finally make it home, unload everything into the house, and after changing into some comfy lounge gear, sit around the babies’ room, and put away everything we have accumulated the last few days. Ares was going crazy sniffing around on everything, investigating all the new things that have been brought into his domain. Bruno just wanted to lay on the new baby blankets. It is going to take some adjusting for the two fuzzy kids’ once their baby brother is brought home. But we are going to try to make the transition as easy as possible for them. We have decided that we are gonna wrap him in one his own blankets from home, then bring that blanket home early so they can get a good whiff of him. And on the day we get to bring him home, we already know there are going to be family members’ there, so we are going to ask that everybody go grab dinner….see a movie…..do anything but come by the house for a few hours(3), that way we can introduce him to his furry brothers. we don’t foresee any problems out of either of them, but we know that Ares is already starved for attention….LOL, so it will just take a little bit of time.

Now I know this doesn’t fit my normal scheme of musings’ for my weekly bloggings’, but, just a recap of the weekend…….Our boy might wanna read about the lead-up to his arrival one day. And ya never know….might make a good story to actually read through sometime.

All for now…..

Got painting to do at work…..

….stay inspired

…..The end draws near for our Hero….

32…….32 weeks in to the beginning of this journey…….8 weeks to go ’till our lives will be permanently changed forever. It seems like only yesterday that Leigha told me on April Fools’ Day that she was  pregnant. I know that seems like a shitty day to tell someone, but it was a worthwhile plan that paid out well. But anyways, back to todays’ musings’……..

32 weeks pregnant today. And the little guy is doing a whole lot of rolling and turning inside my bride. Its a cool thing to know that there is something that Leigha and I have created together growing inside of her, waiting to introduce himself to us. I do, in some way, wish that i could take the burden off of Leigha, even if just for a while, because I know that it has worn her out carrying around our precious little viking. But as a Husband, all i can do is support her. As a Friend, I can be there for her. And as her Love, I can do whatever it takes to make this journey a great one.

8 weeks away is the tentative date, and there is so much and so little left to do. We get closer every day to being prepared, and yet, it seems like there is so much left we need to get, or to make everything ready. I don’t foresee him making it all the way to 40 weeks, but when he comes….he comes. We will greet him with open arms, and show him proudly to the world, for he is our son, and he will do great things!(Remember that quote…..might be famous itself one day;)

I have spent a few nights while my bride is immersed in the wonders of slumber, with my head on her stomach, talking to our son. Letting him know what he can expect in this world; what he can achieve; and what he is going to find. I know it sounds a little crazy, to be talking to Leighas’ belly, but I have found solace and a comforting truth, in the fact that these conversations’ with our soon-born have helped me come to terms with the world being completely changed upon the day of his arrival.

I talk to him of his 2 furry brothers that are awaiting him with curious and cold noses, wanting to sniff every part of him. And of the sloppy kisses(stinky in Brunos’ case!)that will come to him at a frantic pace. That he will never have to worry, for there will be a fuzzy, white babysitting boxer-brother, checking on his every sound, and movement. And the extended family ready to shower him with affection and attention.

And I tell him stories’ of his Grandma Wimpy. How she would have loved him like no other. The blessings that she bestowed upon me, I came to realize later in life, she will never get to share with him. But I have told him countless times that he will know his Grandma Wimpy, through myself and his Aunt Dawn, who will love him like her own. I cant help but tear up at the fact that he will never get to meet her, but I know she will be there with him in spirit. Watching over him and helping him along throughout his future days.

32 weeks have flown by our lives. 32 weeks of nervous indecision. 32 weeks of the musings of a name, and the dignity, virtue, and strength that will come from that name. We have narrowed it down to a few. and the rest of you will know it the day we introduce him to you all.

8 weeks to go.

….this should be fun;)

9 weeks and counting……

here it is Sunday, and we have 9 more weeks until our little bundle of testosterone arrives to change our lives forever.  Leigha is still doing great with the pregnancy, has to take her glucose test Friday after next, and then doc visits every two weeks until he gets here.  Leigha has been in some misery with our little guy playing blast beats on her insides like he was drumming in a death metal band, and since he is getting bigger, he is starting to crowd into her chest cavity, making it rough on her to breathe fully.  She isnt liking the fact that he is causing her to wake up so early in the mornings, but she is dealing pretty good with it. Still trying to narrow down the choices of names for the little fella, and I think we have them just about ready.  My sister is excited.  She will be an awesome aunt indeed. I think Leighas’ side of the family is excited, I know Leighas’ mom is.  She will be here after the birth to spend her vacation, and will stay with us until she leaves around the beginning of December.  Our friends our getting excited as well. Leighas’ best friend Crystal had her little girl in March, and is turning into quite the cutie!  Crystal gets giddy like a school girl every time she talks about it. Its pretty funny. We still have some things we need to get ready for his arrival, but its nothing major. Finish getting his room together, and cleaning the closet out(ie.stashing the junk in another room.), and finishing up the crib rebuild.  I believe we have plenty of clothes to get him started in this world, we found a bunch on Craigslist, and made a damn good trade. We still need to find a glider for his room, and one for the living room, but those will come in time. He is going to be a winter baby, so I worry about him getting sick with all the different bugs floating around now, and I worry about Leigha and myself catching something and then him catching it.  I know its one of those trivial “first-time dad” worries, but it still bugs the shit out of me. I feel like Gene Wilder in Willy Wonka when he says, “The suspense is KILLING me….I cant wait!” sometimes, but then there are other moments when I can close my eyes, and sit back and smile thinking about what kind of child he is going to be. What kind of child IS he going to be?  Will he be a happy, smily baby?  Will he be a fussy/wontbequiet kind of child?  There are so many others that run laps through my mind, but all in all, he will be my/our child.  And that will be enough.  He will have his quirks like the rest of us, and that will be fine.  Giving the nature of his parents personalities, and those he will be surrounded by with all the friends in family…….I have a feeling he will be just perfect. My worries will be at ease the moment I lay my eyes on him, and hold him in my hands.

Till next time world.

I remain,

an inspired viking.

Leaving a Legacy….

So. As the days tick by till our son takes his first breath in this world that we all share, I have been thinking on quite a regular basis about “Legacy”. As in, “What Legacy am I going to leave my son?”. It seems as though in todays’ fucked up version of what is acceptable in common society, very few people care about the ramifications of their own personal actions have on their child(ren). And what they, as parents/role models, leave imparted within their children. This thought has wandered in and out of my inner mindscape these past few weeks, and it makes me think of my Dad. My Dad is a great man. And was/is still to this day a great father. My Dad turned 82 on August 2nd of this year, and his mind is starting to weaken. He still does a lot of things that he has always done, and he is very independent, but it is finally starting to slip, and that itself, on a deeper level, depresses me.

I can remember being younger and thinking, like all kids of that age, that my parents didn’t know anything. It wasnt until I got much older that I realized that my Dad was probably the smartest man I knew. Not in an Albert Einstein or Stephen Hawking kind of way. But in the fact of he was worldly and had experienced a lot of everything in his days on this planet. I can honestly say that my Dads’ legacy he left inside me. The love of working with my hands, and that will and spirit of mind that says”If I want to create it, I CAN. And I WILL”. My Dad could/can fix/build anything he put his mind too. And that is something I take great pride in sharing with him. And with that bit of shared knowledge, I built a front porch swing from scratch for my wife, which I know she was proud of, and I know my Dad would be as well. Which brings me back to where we started this topic this morning of “Legacy”.

I have a set of goals and dreams that I am going to set into stone, and hopefully given time, will watch bloom into some sort of fruition. I love working with my hands, and with wood itself, and that love is what I want to leave to my son, and hopefully embed that pride into him as well. I also have a love for music that realms onto the obscene, and I have a love for the bass guitar that is over two decades in the making. Which is what I have been leading up to at this point. I am going to start luthiering in the near future, not only for myself and my own piece of mind, but for the sanctity that is my wife and family, and for the love of the child as well. I love playing bass guitar, and how it makes me feel, and I would take great pride in playing an instrument that I crafted myself with my own two hands. And maybe. Just maybe, one day my instruments will make their mark in the music world and be worked over by my musical heroes, or be made masterful by hands of strangers who take pride in what I/we have created. And with that the legacy spreads into the world, whether it be by my hands or those of my child/children. I will take great comfort in the legacy I will have left for my son, and my future children that they can be proud of. To me, that’s what Legacy is about.