From Doug

Here I am with my Playskool Guide for Expectant Fathers because, as you've heard, I'm now an expectant father. This has been an exciting time. Its been hard to imagine myself as a father--the vision of my 18-year old self in my mind's eye just gives me a confused look and says "huh?" As we've gotten more encouraging signs from the doctor that this pregnancy is going to take hold, the prospect of fatherhood has become very real. I've been both excited and terrified, and I can give you some examples of each.

I'll start with the excited part. The most powerful moment so far was during our last ultrasound when we could clearly see what is already the baby's heartbeat. I've also been so happy to see Jenny have some good news in this department after a doctor in Eugene told her that her prospects for pregnancy weren't good due to her fibroids. The idea of a little munchkin running around here is so exciting to us both, and I've been really amazed to see the changes it has brought about in us as we prepare for this little guy or girl.
Now we can deal with the worries. Just like with Jenny's descriptions of the several "hitches" that we've already run into as we've been dealing with doctor appointments and so on, I've had a few hitches of my own. As most of you have heard by now, the internship I took this summer, the one that was promised to turn into a job in the fall, didn't materialize. So, I'm now back to figuring out how I'll support this child, but I'm confident that whatever path I choose will work out. The job search has been difficult here. There are many opportunities, but there is also steep competition, and my resume looks great for music-related work, but we all know how much of that there is these days. I'm staying positive doing everything I can do make this work, and I'm confident that it will. I know that Jenny will make a wonderful mother, and that as long as we're together we'll work everything out.
So, those are most of my thoughts at this time. There will be more I'm sure, but for now we are just happy to see what happens, to get ready for the future, and to enjoy each other in the mean time. Until later!