Guys' Night

Before I begin my post for today, I'm going to make three announcements:

1. Tonight I've been busy with babysitting and homework, so I'm pushing back my third installment of my Serial Novel until Sunday night.

2. April 17 marks the three-month anniversary of this blog. It has far surpassed my expectations, so I will be making a special post on Tuesday night where I will answer some questions about me. They can be about who I am, the blog, my writing...anything, really. The only condition is that I need you to post some questions in the comments of this post and I will answer them all on Tuesday. Don't feel like asking a question? Leave a writing prompt instead and I will hit that sometime in the next week or two (time permitting).

3. I am considering making a transition from Blogger to WordPress in the near future. At some point, once I have things in a format I like over there, I will provide a link to the future site and post on both for 2-3 weeks before I make the move for good. Any tips about WordPress are welcome!

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Almost a week ago my fiancee and I decided to bring a child into our home. Her cousin has been rehabilitating from a surgery and there is no telling how soon she'll be able to take care of her three children. Prior to Saturday the extent of our help in all of this was praying for them and visiting a few times during the week. We agreed to watch her six-month old boy, Michael, for a night. It is almost a week later and he is still here.

He is such a happy, smiling boy. It is impossible not to fall in love with him almost immediately. He is a lot of fun to have around in spite of our busy (and unusual) schedules. We've found ways to juggle things adequately enough to continue our activities like normal. But I have to confess that it is tough going from no baby to having one around without much notice or time to mentally (and emotionally) prepare for the task.

A few weeks ago my fiancee signed up to attend a women's function at our church with one of her friends. That meant she would be away all evening, leaving me alone with Michael at home. It has been years since I've watched a baby for any amount of time. Being alone with him for hours tonight was, on some level, a scary thought. But I mustered enough courage to encourage her to go anyway.

So we've enjoyed guys' night tonight. We played on the floor and in his walker. We had Avatar: The Last Airbender playing in the background, which is a fitting cartoon for the guys' night. We've danced and sang and tickled. We've pet the cats (one of them finally warmed up to him enough tonight to let him pet her. She did good, even when he grabbed a handful of fur) and had raspberries blown on his tummy. He had a bath and got ready for bed. He got his nightly dose of Albuterol with the respiration machine. Many nights he screams and fights that. Not tonight.

Tonight he fell asleep during it. He was so tired that he stayed asleep when I set him down in the car seat long enough to make his bottle. He has been sleeping sound for almost two hours no. This was, by far, the easiest night for getting him to sleep.

Maybe we just played too hard and had too much fun for him to stay awake and fight his sleep. We enjoyed getting to bond tonight. I love this baby and now I can't wait for us to have some of our own filling up our house.

Maybe we should have guys' night more often. I think he'd like that. What do you think?

Entering this post in Yeah Write #53 this week. Stop by and check out all the awesome blogs. I'm sure you'll find at least one you like.

The Princess and the Poet

Today I celebrate the birth of my better half, Nicole. Words can't do justice to how much I love her and how blessed my life has become since she became a part of it. In celebration of this great day I thought I would share the story of my proposal to her last year.

It started by me asking her parents to eat lunch with me once I purchased the ring. We ate at a sushi place in West Des Moines and I asked their permission to marry their daughter. They gave me permission, and that night I came home and we were both doing homework. The whole time I was mulling over how to propose. I knew one thing was certain:

She didn't want any sort of public proposal. She had mentioned that before in passing.

I kept coming up with all these grand, elaborate ideas like proposing after going skydiving. But the more I thought about it the more I realized I didn't want to wait any longer. I wanted to ask her that night.

And then it hit me: I should propose in a story.

And so I wrote a short story and, when she was done with her homework I asked her if she would let me read her a story and tell me what she thought about it.

And here is how it goes:

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            Once upon a time there was a beautiful young princess who was the envy of the kingdom. She had long brown hair and a smile that could melt any man’s heart. Her brown eyes sparkled brighter than any star in the sky. Her skin was smooth and fair in complexion and as soft as silk. When she sang it left men enchanted by her angelic voice. She had a great many suitors during the prime years of her youth, but she never met a prince in the four corners of the earth that could win her heart.

            One day a young poet was in the courtyard when he heard the young princess singing. It filled him with such rapture that words flowed freely from his quill onto the parchment, filling it with such perfect lines of poetry that he became convinced that he must meet the source of such a sweet melody. Every day he came back to the same courtyard, hoping to hear that sweet voice. Nearly a week passed until he once again heard the wonderful singing, and although his urge to write inspired poetry was great, he instead followed the sound of the voice until he came across its source.

            When he first laid eyes on the young princess he instantly believed that she was an angel sent from heaven, so great was her beauty to match her voice. He admired her from behind a bush, and watched as several men tried in vain to get her attention. She ignored them all and continued singing, and the poet had an idea and began to write a new poem. When the singing ceased, and the men all dispersed, he walked over toward the window where she had stood and began to recite his poem.

            The young princess had never heard words filled with such fire and emotion, so she came to the window to see what manner of prince was making these claims. When she saw the poor poet, she took an instant liking to him because he was nothing like all the boring princes she had rejected. For over a year the two continued to meet in secret, since it was forbidden for the young princess to take an interest in anyone but a prince. Yet her heart sang every time she was with the poet, and the poet’s soul was filled with such sweet verse that neither one wanted things to come to an end.

            One warm spring day the poet professed his undying love to the young princess, saying he wanted her to run away with him and live down by the sea in his hut. While she loved the poet, she could not bear to leave her family and her castle behind. She ached to do as he asked, but before she could give up her life she decided to test the poet to determine his commitment.

            The next day, when the poet came and proclaimed his love for the princess and once more asked her to run away with him, she presented her challenge to him. He had thirty days to prove to her his love and, if he could do this, she would run away with him. If he could not do this, she would have no choice but to accept he did not love her and they would never speak to each other again.

            Over the next twenty-nine days the poor poet tried everything he could think of. He wrote her songs and poems about his love for her, but that could not move the princess to be convinced of his commitment. He brought her jewels and flowers, but she was still not convinced. He begged and pleaded for her to change her mind, or to give him a hint, but she stood firm by her decision. On the final day of the test, the princess woke up feeling sick with despair, knowing that this might be the day she would have to say good bye to the poet forever. While her heart ached to consider the idea, she knew she could never leave her life behind. She put on her best dress and went to her window, and there was the poor poet waiting for her.

            He looked up into her eyes and smiled, certain he had finally figured out what he needed to do. He reached into his jacket and pulled out a small box and opened it up, dropping to one knee as he spoke to her, saying:

            “You are a wonderful woman and I am so happy to be with you. I am so happy you are a part of my life and I want you to be part of my life forever. I love you so much. Would you do me the absolute honor of marrying me?”

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At this point I was on one knee with the ring in my hand as I said that last paragraph. She cried and said yes. And then we tried taking a good picture of the ring for about half an hour. It was dark and the flash wasn't cooperating. Then we watched her favorite movie: Twilight.

Ten months later we're still happily engaged and celebrating her birthday today. I love her so much and can't wait to find out where our lives will take us as we journey together. Forever.

 Happy Birthday Nicole. I love you. :)

Poem - Drifting Peacefully

Twitter has an interesting trend that I discovered only last week: Follow Friday I'm relatively new to Twitter, having really only used it the past few months as a requirement for class. I realize that puts me about 15 light years behind the trend. Which is slightly closer that the 16 light years from just now really making headway on a blog.  But I love the idea of tagging people you feel are worthy of your friends and followers' attention, and so I hope to do the same here on Fridays with my blog.

And if you want to just skip right over this and get to my writing, then that is certainly your choice. But before I include my poem for the day, I want to make mention to my three blogs of the day.

The first blog I will mention is Chicken Noodle Gravy. I discovered this particular blog through the Yeah Write contest, which is an awesome community of bloggers who take the time each week to read 50 blog posts, comment on them, and then vote for their favorites. Two weeks in a row now this blog has gotten one of my votes. She is a talented writer and I'm glad I found another writer who I can model my own blog after.

The second blog is I Can't Brain Today; I Have the Dumb. I actually came across and began to follow this blog near the end of February when I read his post about how his father, through Dungeons and Dragons, was his greatest influence as a writer. It was extremely well-written. Then a little over a week ago I discovered Yeah Write through my interest in one of his posts where he answered 33 questions and was going to tag everyone who entered into Yeah Write that week. Unfortunately he was unable to participate due to time constraints, therefore was unable to tag people, but I gained something even better as a result.

The third one is For the Love of Writing. This is another gem I've begun following thanks to Yeah Write (notice a trend here. Seriously check it out and read some of these blogs each week. They are filled with awesome blogs and bloggers). She has a sense of humor in her writing that I enjoy, and I believe you would too if you take the time to read her blog.

So now that you've clicked all those links to those other blogs and have them open in new windows or tabs, I'll let you read my poem. You did click those, didn't you?

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Drifting Peacefully

You lay next to me, drifting off

Into a peaceful slumber while

I remain awake, reading. The warmth

Radiating from you comforts me,

Putting me at ease. Your breathing

Becomes heavy, growing slower with

Each moment that passes by. My

Book fails to maintain my interest,

Instead I find myself listening closely,

Laying still as a stone.

Every breath you take makes my

Smile grow. Every time I feel your

Body shift, snuggling closer, it makes

Me love you more. You must feel secure

To be with me, so close together, wanting

To touch at all times as you fall into

The realm of dreams. I hear the gentle

Rhythm of your snoring begin to emerge

And I turn to hold you close.

I whisper softly in your ear

The thoughts that cross my mind

As I listen to your sweet

Slumber. You are so beautiful,

So soft, so warm and gentle.

I want to hold you in my

Arms every night. I can’t believe

How lucky I am to have a

Woman as wonderful as you

In my life.

Sleep soon catches up with me

As though it were a contagious

Infection spreading. My eyes grow

Heavy as I think of you and

Smile, knowing I will dream

Of you and soon enough will be

Waking next to you. This last thought

Makes me smile as I begin my

Drifting peacefully, happily, with you here

Sleeping next to me.

Thoughts Upon a Valentine

Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day. The day that people celebrate the love they share for each other by purchasing cards, flowers, chocolates, and waiting three hours to get a table for dinner. The day that some single people lovingly refer to as a “Hallmark Holiday”. There was a time when I was alone and bitter and felt that way about this holiday. Maybe I was alone because I was bitter.

I am blessed to have such a wonderful woman to share this holiday with. I am a better person today because she has been a part of my life, and I look forward to many great memories that we’ll share together in the year 2012. She is my valentine every day for the rest of my life. I can’t wait to marry her this summer.

Writing can be a very solitary craft. Even when you have the support of someone else, it can still feel that way when you only hear “I love it!” about everything you write. I do hear my share of positive feedback from her, but she also is not afraid to let me know when something isn’t quite right. If she can’t understand something, I usually wording things poorly or assumed that people would know certain tidbits of information. She keeps my words concise and my focus grounded. She is the best support system I could ask for.

She understands me in a way that no one else has. She might not understand why I get excited about the next installment in the Zelda series, or why I absolutely have to get a 4.0 GPA every semester, but she understands that these things are important to me. This weekend she gave me my valentine/birthday present: a Playstation 3 and Final Fantasy XIII-2. I didn’t even have to hint at a game; she knew the right one to get me.

She encourages me to get homework done even though I know she’d prefer to have me sitting by her side on the couch, watching Twilight for the hundredth time. She tells me to play my games on our only television and that she wants to watch me play, even though I know that it can’t be that interesting to watch another person playing a RPG. She encourages me to write and to submit things even when I feel like I can’t write or that my writing will never get published.

For the record, I’ve only seen rejection letters; however, I’ve only submitted a handful of things over the years. I’m sure I’d be published by now if I submitted more often.

She makes me feel special because she supports the little things that are important to me. I know she doesn’t really want to see Star Wars in 3D, especially after hearing that the 3D is nearly non-existent. But she still declared we are going to see it anyway.

These are a few of the reasons why I love her. The list could go on forever. She is probably the best care provider for children that I’ll ever meet. She will be an incredible mother, and I can’t wait to start our branch of a family together. She wants to make life better for everyone.

She has made my life better.

I’ve finally found who I am through her guidance. I’m not as overweight as I used to be. I don’t play video games for hours every day and spend my days off glued to the games. I have found faith in God for the first time because of her, and can see His blessings in my life that led me on the path to her and the blessings that have come since I’ve found her.

I could never fully express how much I love her. It would never be enough. She has changed my life and who I am, and given me more joy than I knew could be possible.  That is why I help with things around the house. That is why I randomly surprise her with flowers on days that do not fall on February 14. That is why I will remain devoted to her for eternity. For richer or poorer. In sickness and in health. For better or for worse.

But no matter what happens, things will always be better than they were before she came into my life.

Tell me about your valentine. What makes them special for you?

This post submitted to Yeah Write #44. Check out the great community of bloggers taking place in this weekly contest every Tuesday.

Poem - Thoughts Upon Two

Today I have decided to show my softer side and share a love poem with you. I am lucky to say that I finally met the woman I was created to spend eternity with, and she has helped make me a stronger, more complete person. She has pushed me to limits that I never imagined possible within myself, and I have become happier and healthier in the two years that we have been together.

I am counting down the days until July 14, when we will be married and begin the next stage of our journey together through life. I think back upon the person I was before she came along, and I am blessed to have the path of my life intertwined with hers.

I can never thank her enough, nor ever express the love I have for her with words. There is no word to describe the magnitude of affection that I possess. She has been the object of many poems over the two years, and will continue to be for the rest of my life.

I dedicate this poem to my future wife, Nicole Tyler Millard:

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Thoughts Upon Two

Two people, together two years

Filled with far too many joyous

Memories the two have shared.

The power of two, it’s symmetrical

Applications evident in so many things.

People adorned with a multitude of twos:

Two eyes, two ears, two arms and legs;

Two hands, two feet, two lungs, two hemispheres.

Small wonder the number two is so vital

To measure as a landmark. Two people

In love, born from two parents, stemming

From two chromosomes; a joining of

Two families while two hearts beat

Uncontrollably in the presence of each other.

Shall I love her for too long? If it

Be two days I should consider myself lucky

For the two rotations of the Earth we

Shared. If it be two months I should

Deem them the best spent weeks in recent

Memory. If it be two years I should

Consider myself blessed to have known

The joys found in her presence. If it

Should be for two lifetimes that, too,

Would be such a wonderful life to have

Spent, as two people united by love.