>>>Merry Christmas to all.
>>>During this busy time remember that we celebrate the greatest gift of all, the birth of Jesus Christ who gives us eternal life.
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>>Einar, Merry Christmas back at you.
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>>We've actually already got the best Christmas gift of all, as we recently found out my wife is pregnant. We had our 12 week appointment yesterday, heard the heartbeat, and everything is good as gold. It's a great time to be alive.
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>I am really, really happy for you. It has been clear for a while that you want this and are ready for it. And I know you are going to be a great dad.
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>Do you want a boy or a girl? (You don't have to answer that).
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>Congratulations!!!!
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>UPDATE: My mind just went back to when Allie was born. She's almost 19 now but it seems like yesterday. Everything you've heard about how fast they grow up is true. The day she was born was the best day of my life. Back then I was still an OK basketball player and went to play pickup ball at an open gym not far away. When I got home Tricia was standing in the living room with her suitcase next to her and her coat on. "My water broke," she said. We went to the hospital and Allie was born at 3:00 the next morning. (That must be why she loves 3 a.m. so much, LOL). I was there the whole time, an experience I recommend. The first time I looked at her was one of those moments when you know your life just changed. She was covered with slime and her face looked like someone hit it with a shovel. She was beautiful. It was really her, not just a kicking bulge in Tricia's stomach or even a heartbeat on a monitor. (Which was VERY cool -- I bet that's when it started seeming real for you, too). Sometimes I joke with her that I've been in love with her since the day we met. And I have. I have messed up a lot of things but one thing I can still say is I am a good dad.
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>When we left the hospital with her I had the oddest feeling. Tricia said she felt the same thing. They're going to let us just walk out of here with this baby? We don't know how to take care of a baby! But we found out we did.

I think if/when we have a girl, I am going to absolutely melt. I am kind of hoping for a boy first, because I view being a father to a boy different than a girl, and I think I would rather have the boy first. I really don't care though. I just want a happy and healthy baby. We have been to the doctor a few times and gotten all the information about all the tests and birth defects and stuff like that, and that is the first time I came down from cloud nine. We heard the heartbeat on Monday and that was the first actual concrete proof that there was something in there. It was unreal. Twins run on both sides of her family....