Whenever I Say Your Name

Great song by Sting and Mary J. Blidge from the album, "Sacred Love."

Today was our 20 week ultrasound and everything was fantastic. I was great to see Jennifer's ovaries shrinking from softball to about raquetball after the many shots during the IVF process. We also got to see the baby once again and he has gotten much bigger in the past 5 weeks.

We also got complete confirmation that "he" is in fact, a "he." Previously, Jennifer had done extensive research and came to the conclusion that it is very difficult to determine the sex of a child at week 15. I rebutted her discovery by using the evidence of the Week 15 unltrasound and the experience and expertise of the technician. She is a 15-year veteran of the ultrasound machine, so I believe that she knows what she is looking at despite any limited development up to Week 15....

Here is the picture of the day:


Case Closed.

As stated in a previous blog, I stated that I would cover the names sent in to me over the past several weeks. Sadly, only my own mother and her friends gave us ideas. And here they are:

Jacob Scott- pretty good start, but denied...
Jacob Wade- Boggs = Red Sox. Nope.
Jacob Tyler- Not bad...
Jacob Shawn- Missing the flow.
Jacob Stone- Umm... No comment. Check that- horrible.
Jacob Connor- Jennifer's friend's son is named Connor. Out.
Jacob Ryan- Jennifer's ex-boyfriend's name. Out.
Jacob Lee- Not digging the Lee...
Jacob Dillon- I like (spelled Dylan- like the singer of The Wallflowers)- vetoed by Jen.

So it's decided- Jacob Alex, right? Wrong. Out of nowhere, Jacob Matthew. Jennifer came across this combo recently and really liked the way it flowed. She also liked that it was similar to Michael (Like Gabriel Michael), and it had BOTH of our initials in the name (JMR). All really great reasons for Jacob Matthew, but what about the New York Yankees reference? I have scoured the record books looking for a Matt or Matthew to lend itself to the name and came up with nothing...

I had to turn to another passion of mine: music. Easily, I can come up with a couple of favorites from my iPod- Matt Nathanson and Mat Kearney. Both of these guys have a great sound and moreover, Jennifer likes them both as well.

Just like that old horse racing phrase, "out of the clouds, from last to first," Jacob Matthew wins... We welcome you with open arms and will be monograming pillows and photo frames for you soon as we await your arrival. See you soon, Jacob Matthew!

Sing A Song

A little Earth, Wind & Fire for you for this post...

Jennifer is pushing the 20th week of her pregnancy this week. How fast this summer has flown! We just read that this week the baby can actually hear sound, which is the the start of the best part of the pregnancy. I believe that despite the inability to hear earlier over the past several weeks, the baby can feel the vibrations of my voice when I get close to Jen's belly. I have been chatting it up with Jacob here and there, mostly late in the evening prior to Jen going to bed. Giving him a primer of becoming a Rogerson: believe in the Yankees, love football, and being kind to his mother. This week, we have added a new part to the mix: music.

Over the past few days, we have been playing Jacob music from my iPod via headphones strategically placed on Jen's belly. It started out by playing something with a strong beat so he could feel the vibrating rhythms of the Gap Band, Earth, Wind, & Fire, and Michael Jackson. No response from Jacob. I am guessing that he was a little freaked out by the cacophony of new sound.

Tonight, I tried a different mix. We started with The Beatles' "Yesterday," Emerson Hart's "Green Hills Race for California," and Billy Joel's "New York State of Mind." I think that Jacob enjoyed this more than yesterday. We finished with another Beatles tune, "Goodnight," from the White Album. I thought it appropriate finale for the evening of his education through music. My goal is that he hears the Beatles and is instantly soothed when he cries in the middle of the night. Gabe turned out great- he loves my musical tastes. He is becoming an avid fan of The Beatles and AC/DC, which is alright with me...

If you haven't seen them before, they now make an album series entitled, "Rock-A-Bye Baby" which are famous artists set in the form of a music box for babies. It is quite possibly the cooles thing I have heard in quite a while. They have music box versions of AC/DC, Metallica, The Beatles, U2, The Cure, Pink Floyd, and several others. It sound bizarre, but they are quite captivating. Seriously- a baby-friendly version of "Master Of Puppets" sounds ridiculous, but its quite enchaniting. Far better than listening to the other garbage that is out there, for sure. Jen and I plan on getting most of these albums for Jacob to enjoy in the crib and car. Rock on, little Jacob!

Playing this music for Jacob has me itching to pick up the guitar and learn some new material. I haven't played too much lately- life has been too busy and I end up doing other things to keep myself occupied. I really want to learn some material so that I can sing and play for him while in the crib. It is also something constructive that has forces the brain to fire the synapses on the creative side of the brain, which doesn't happen all to often throughout the day.

I began learning the chord progression for "Yesterday" and "Something" tonight. Let me just say that the brilliance of John, Paul, George, Ringo, and Sir George Martin will never be exaggerated. The chord progressions and melodies are quite eloquent....

Over the next few months, I'll be trying to build a repertoire of tunes in preparation for the February birth of Jacob. Let me know of tunes you think I should learn...

Birthday!

In honor of The Beatles launch of Rock Band and my birthday the day prior, I figured I would toss them the title of this post...

I had my 35th birthday on Tuesday. My day was my own: I was able to have lunch with Gabriel at school, take a ride on the motorcycle, pick Gabriel up from school, have some father-son time, and have dinner with Jen's family. Some great gifts were received: Seasons 1-3 of The Office, a shirt from AE, and the crown jewel- a new pair of Nike Free 5.0 shoes in navy and grey (NY Yankee colors). Tremendously comfortable.

On an internal note, it was definitely a day for reflection and looking to the future. Internal retrospection only lasted for a few minutes. This year, there have been tears of happiness and sadness. I have had some tremendous highs within my immediate family and my career, while rough low points recently in a loss of a great friend and struggles within my career as well. It has been a complete whirlwind and both ends of the spectrum assure me that I am still alive inside.

That said, it is too easy reviewing the decisions made in the past that have made me the man I am today. What is far more difficult is looking to the future to determine who I will become. This is something that I have not been able to work through just yet. I must develop the ability to be content with my life despite the external forces at play in my life. I have to figure out a way not to allow my job define me or determine my worth. As a man, I believe that is one of the most difficult things to do as a man in this society.

All this to say that I have decided to make an conscious effort to continue discovering who I am as a person. I enjoy listening to lectures that expand my ability to think on a higher level. Philosophy has always interested me because I like to ask questions that seem simple, but are quite complex when digested. I call it mental gymnastics. I have download some incredible material in iTunesU that I purpose to be recommended listening: Oxford University's Philosophy for Beginners. If you have not checked out iTunesU, please do so. There is an incredible amount of material available that is free to download and provides opportunities for you to stimulate your mind. If you find something in iTunesU that you really like, please let me know and I'll check it out too!

Exercise your mind!