Caedmon.

The story behind the name "Caedmon" (as told by my sister, Sam... she did such a good job paraphrasing the folktale, that I've simply reposted here)...

In 7th century Northumbria (modern day Northern England and Southeast Scotland), there lived a quiet man named Caedmon who cared for the animals at the monastery Streonaeshalch. He didn't know much about music, so when the monks would play instruments and sing, he'd shamefully leave the festivities to just be alone with the animals and go to sleep early.

Gaelic legends say that the Lord came to him in a dream and asked him to sing. At first, he refused because of his lack of knowledge and insecurity. But he eventually obeyed, and music came out! When he awoke, he remembered the words and tune he sang and wrote down the song that God put on his heart.

He went on to pen many more songs and poems with his newfound boldness. English writers of sacred verse tried to imitate Caedmon for centuries, but none managed to parallel his words' descriptive beauty.

Wayne and I also hope and pray that our Caedmon will grow up to know and listen to the Lord and His calling.  Welcome to the world, little guy! 
 

an owl-themed nursery

Here's our owl-themed nursery!  You can't see it, but the bookshelf in the corner contains owl bookends that I just adore!  (Thank you, FHS staff!)  I wasn't able to find a motorized mobile with owls on it, so I took one with jungle animals on it (thank you, Colleen!) and changed them out with owl stroller toys (and thanks, Aunt Sam!). 

I hope our son likes owls!  :)

39 weeks

That's me and Baby--39 weeks (and a day) along.  I'm feeling great, though.  Surprisingly, no backache, no heartburn, no swollen ankles... I never even had morning sickness.  But for all my mom friends who are narrowing your eyes with envy, may I console you by telling you that I DID have (and still have remnants of) a HORRENDOUS rash, not once but twice in my pregnancy.  The second time was so horrific that my doctor called in two other physicians to look at me.  Apparently, I had an infection stemming from my navel that manifested itself in a nasty rash all over my belly that spread to my back, arms, legs, and a little on my face.  See, I've had my own pregnancy woes.

But I'm almost there!  No signs of contractions yet (or at least I'm not feeling them), but his head is really low, and I feel his arrival is imminent. 

I'm trying to convince Baby to wait just a little bit longer, though.  I still have Amsterdam and London to finish in my Europe album, I wanted to clean our home from top to bottom, and I have many odds and ends errands to run... Please, Baby, Mamma just needs a little more time.

A friend whose due date was just a day before mine had her baby last night!  (Congrats, Steph and Tony!)  Yup... he's coming, whether I'm ready or not.  I suppose I had better get used to living by a schedule that isn't entirely mine anymore, anyway...