The Grace of God

Well, I think that most everyone knows that we have now finally decided on Sophie's middle name. It will be Janina (pronounced Yanina...there is a "J" in the Polish alphabet, it is just said like a "Y") after my maternal grandmother.

Jon and I were at the doctor's office on Tuesday afternoon for our regular check-up. Dr. Swamy decided that she wanted to have a non-stress test (NST) done and was able to arrange for us to be worked in. Basically, I was hooked up with dopplers on my tummy to monitor the twins' heatbeats for a continuous 20-minute time period.

They had a baby name book there, so we were looking through it to look for "A" names for my sister and Mike. They don't know what they are having (i.e., boy or girl), but the Jewish tradition is to name the first baby born in the family after the last person who passed away in the family. The interesting part of the tradition is that you don't use the exact name, just the letter. The last person who passed away in the family was Mike's father, Alan...hence, they need an "A" name. Well, they are hard customers, and it is not as easy as you would think!!! They don't like any of the obvious, common ones (i.e., Andrew, Ashley, etc.); Aaron is Mike's middle name; we all liked Ariel, but Tara and Mike said that it reminded them of The Little Mermaid; likewise, we liked Aayden, but their good friends just named their son that; I thought that I had a flash of brillance and suggested Adrienne, but that got nixed since they live in Philly (too many "Yo, Adrienne, jokes"), etc. The conversation then degraded into silliness...how 'bout Atlas, Adonis, Aphrodite, etc., etc.

Anyway, I digress. We started out looking to help Tara and Mike and were quite impressed with this book. We couldn't resist looking up the girls' names and seeing if this book said something different than that which we had already found out. Not at all for Jacqueline, Carol, or Sophie. But, for the first time ever, we were able to find Janina. It turns out that it means "God has been gracious." Well, of course, I almost started to cry...

Now that I know this, I feel that Sophie is destined to be named Janina. Not only do I have such fond memories of my Babcia and am sometimes very sad that she passed away so early in my life (when I was a young teen), but I also believe that God has been gracious to us. Despite everything that has happened to us and how long things took and everything we had to endure to get to this point, we feel so incredibly blessed to have TWO beautiful, healthy girls coming into our lives soon. Although we knew we would be parents one way or another, we feel even more blessed to be able to go through pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, etc. ourselves. We know all too well that things could have turned out quite differently and not everyone is so blessed.

We pray that God will continue to be gracious to us and our little family. We pray that the Grace of God will shine down on all of our friends and family who continue to struggle with their journey to parenthood.

My New Favorite Drink

Since we don't have any beer or wine (at least the kind I can drink w/o Shannon...have to save the good stuff) in the house, I was forced to rummage thru the cupboard and American Bartender to see what I could make to quaff my thirst. Cleaning up the yard and hauling mulch is hard work!

Nothing like a cold, crisp Mint Julep to enjoy while sitting on the front porch. Potent drink, too, that helps soothe the pain of very sore muscles. I had bourbon, mint, sugar cubes, and ice. A mortar-pestle would have been nice, but an ice cream scoop is a decent substitute.

Speaking of mint juleps, here is a true story from a Civil War trivia website. I also heard this story a couple years ago on NPR (where else?). I think I have become a true Southern gentleman.



The following is a copy of a letter from Lieutenant General Simon Bolivar Buckner, Jr., USA killed on Okinawa June 18, 1945] to Major General William D. Connor, Superintendent of the United States Military Academy at West Point, dated March 30, 1937. Buckner Jr. was the son of General Simon Bolivar Buckner of the Confederate army who surrendered Fort Donelson to General Grant, thus giving Grant his nickname of "Unconditional Surrender" Grant. This letter clearly demonstrates the esteem in which a "Mint Julep" is held.

My Dear General Connor:

Your letter requesting my formula for mixing mint juleps leaves me in the same position in which Captain Barber found himself when asked how he was able to carve the image of an elephant from a block of wood. He said that it was a simple process consisting merely of whittling off the part that didn't look like an elephant.

The preparation of the quintessence of gentlemanly beverages can be described only in like terms. A mint julep is not a product of a formula. It is a ceremony and must be performed by a gentleman possessing a true sense of the artistic, a deep reverence for the ingredients and a proper appreciation of the occasion. It is a rite that must not be entrusted to a novice, a statistician nor a Yankee. It is a heritage of the Old South, and emblem of hospitality, and a vehicle in which noble minds can travel together upon the flower-strewn paths of a happy and congenial thought.

So far as the mere mechanics of the operation are concerned, the procedure, stripped of its ceremonial embellishments, can be described as follows:

Go to a spring where cool, crystal-clear water bubbles from under a bank of dew-washed ferns. In a consecrated vessel, dip up a little water at the source. Follow the stream thru its banks of green moss and wild flowers until it broadens and trickles thru beds of mint growing in aromatic profusion and waving softly in the summer breeze. Gather the sweetest and tenderest shoots and gently carry them home. Go to the sideboard and select a decanter of Kentucky Bourbon distilled by a master hand, mellowed with age, yet still vigorous and inspiring. An ancestral sugar bowl, a row of silver goblets, some spoons and some ice and you are ready to start.

Into a canvas bag pound twice as much ice as you think you will need. Make it fine as snow, keep it dry and do not allow it to degenerate into slush. Into each goblet, put a slightly heaping teaspoonful of granulated sugar, barely cover this with spring water and slightly bruise one mint leaf into this, leaving the spoon in the goblet. Then pour elixir from the decanter until the goblets are about one-fourth full. Fill the goblets with snowy ice, sprinkling in a small amount of sugar as you fill. Wipe the outside of the goblets dry, and embellish copiously with mint.

Then comes the delicate and important operation of frosting. By proper manipulation of the spoon, the ingredients are circulated and blended until nature, wishing to take a further hand and add another of its beautiful phenomena, encrusts the whole in a glistening coat of white frost. Thus harmoniously blended by the deft touches of a skilled hand, you have a beverage eminently appropriate for honorable men and beautiful women. When all is ready, assemble your guests on the porch or in the garden where the aroma of the juleps will rise heavenward and make the birds sing. Propose a worthy toast, raise the goblets to your lips, bury your nose in the mint, inhale a deep breath of its fragrance and sip the nectar of the gods. Being overcome with thirst, I can write no further.


Sincerely,

Lt. Gen. S.B. Buckner, Jr. VMI Class of 1906

Beer Review #1

Shannon and I have blogged frequently about Sophie & Jacqueline. It's about time this blog lives up to the first word in the title! Jon hasn't had much time to taste many beers...wonder why! Shannon hasn't had any booze (obviously) in 9 months; although she thought about sipping one of my beers last weekend. Alas, she is still revolted by the smell.

So this is the first (of many, hopefully) beer reviews and other alcoholic beverage ramblings I will post.

Beer: Insanity Barely Wine from Weyerbacher Brewery, Easton PA

Available at Sam's Quik Shop (where else?).

Occasion: Sitting on front porch with Shannon on a beautiful Friday evening waiting for Sophie and Jacqueline to come.

First Impression: Gorgeous, intense burnt copper color with vanilla creme head. A very pretty beer to gaze at.

Aroma: Caramel & roasted nuts. Hint of dried fruit (apples?)

Body: Surprisingly smooth & light on the palate

Taste: Intensely smooth & rapid transition of flavors on the tongue. Starts with light, crisp malt then flavor gains a roasted feel before the toasted caramel dominates. Finishes with a crisp flavor of dried fruit with slight alcoholic bite.

Overall Impression: ABSOLUTELY SUPERB!!! One of the best beers I have had in a long time. I love how the flavors rocked my palate. It must be the aging in oak barrels (mentioned on the label).

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars.

Finished!

So long Boss, knock 'em dead, don't worry 'bout a thing
Wish that we could come along, we'd love to see your two girls
The limo's here, your bags are packed, the list is by the phone,
Me and Snake will watch your place and treat it like our own


NOTHING LEFT TO DO BUT WAIT FOR THE GIRLS TO COME!

So what if the furniture is still the wrong color. That is someone else's problem!

April Books

Only read 2 books in April while I was traveling. Another slow month because of nursery preparations. I suppose I should get used to it. Maybe I'll start posting baby books and nursery rhymes when the time comes.

Both books this month were by the duo Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child.

Book of the Dead turned out to be the last of a series of books set in the New York Museum of Natural History. Although the authors intend all their books to stand-alone, they did acknowledge this book was the last of a loosely linked series. I agree that you did not need to read the previous books first. However, there were some character development details that were glossed over because they probably were covered in previous books. I'd give the book 2 out of 5 stars. The story was ho-hum with made for Hollywood, unbelievable twists at the end.

Thunderhead was one of the loosely related books that I read. The lead character in this novel had a small role in Book of the Dead. This novel, set in the America Southwest, was a fun, entertaining book. I would recommend reading it. Interesting characters and an imaginative plot. Interestingly, though, the personality of the lead character changed substantially between Thunderhead and Book of the Dead. I don't think such a dramatic change would occur in real-life.