Danny Issues

Ask me anything.

That's what AMA stands for. A few weeks ago Ken Jennings (that guy who won $3 million on Jeopardy) did an AMA on Reddit. He answered questions about Jeopardy, his religion (Mormon), his car (1998 Corolla), and the TV show Perfect Strangers, amongst other random things.

A day later I couldn't deny my throbbing man crush on the 74-time Jeopardy winner. I couldn't get him out of my mind. If there was a Ken Jennings equivalent of Tiger Beat, I would have bought it. I caught myself thinking, "I want to have Ken Jennings baby". No wait....what I meant was:

"I hope my kid grows up to be like that guy".

And with those words still hanging in my brain, I realized my barometer of cool had changed. I might as well start shopping for Bermuda shorts, black socks and Birkenstocks.

If I had been introduced to smart and sassy Ken 6 months ago, instead of thinking "WE MUST BUILD A FILIPINO GIRL VERSION OF KEN JENNINGS", I would have thought, "I'd like to have a beer with that guy" (and yes i realize that he doesn't drink alcohol). Everyone has their internal cool barometer. Carrie's version is what I call "best friends". For example, least year she said, "If Penelope Cruz lived in Stockton, we would totally be best friends".

When I was a kid my barometer of cool was "I wanna grow up to be like him"; from 18 to 30 it was the beer thing; and now when I meet a cool person for the first time, or I'm stalking old friends on facebook, my barometer of cool is undeniably, "I hope my kid grows up to be like that guy/gal".

I guess it just points to my eagerness to meet my daughter and figure out what the little chick is all about. The anticipation is definitely changing the way I view the world. When I hear a feel good story on the news about a teenager I think, "way to go parents!". Six months ago I would have thought, "so when does she turn 18?". Even when I gawk at women, my outlook has changed. Instead of starting at their huge books and senses of humor, I now think things like "whoa, I hope my kid has her complexion". It's like playing this huge game of "Mystery Date" but instead of appropriate outfits to pick out for a possible "Smart" date, "Jock" date, or "the Dud" date; I'm trying to pick out human traits and parenting techniques for my "Mystery" daughter.

I'm constantly trying to figure out what she'll look like and what type of person she'll be. I've combed Wikipedia's list of famous Half Filipinos for images of what she'll look like. I frequently think things like: Will she have Carrie's nose? Will she have my winning personality? Will she have Ken Jennings's wit and trivia knowledge? Carrie has even gotten in on the act. The other day she forced my to shop with her at the Asian supermarket to hunt for mixed raced babies in the hopes of finding one that looks like our future daughter.

But you know what? That's the fun part.

The hard part is trying to find out how to raise a kid. There are so many different opinions. Have you ever considered a co-sleeper? How long you gonna breast feed? Disposable diapers or cloth? Are you gonna eat the placenta? People say it will come naturally, but I'm scared as heck about messing up on the parenting thing. Cause lets face it, the father is the root cause of all women's problems. It sure as shit ain't called "Mommy Issues". I'm just afraid that one well intentioned but misinformed decision will adversely affect her for the rest of her life. "Just keep her off the pole", Chris Rock says. That joke was a whole lot funnier before my wife got knocked up.

One decision that will affect her for the rest of her life, that we need to make soon, is what to name her. With girls it's hard. Do you want something cute and spunky? Or do you want something dignified and strong. Originally I was pulling for the latter. When Carrie suggests a name, i automatically put the word "President" in front. If it sounds intuitive, it makes it to the next round. Think about it, what sounds more natural: "Please rise for President Vanilla Natividad" or "Hey guys get your dollars out cause coming next on the stage, put your hands together for Vanilla Natividad"? Needless to say, "Vanilla" is not on our list of baby names.

When Carrie suggested "Daphne" I decided to google "President Daphne".

First link: "Vice President Daphne named President-Elect" +1 point

Second link: "President Obama appoints Daphne to Advisory Commission on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders" + 3 points

Third link: "Health care consulting firm names Dahpne to some cool position" +2 points

With such a good google record, I decided to take my chance on Daphne and roll the dice. I then proceeded to google "Stripper Daphne". I closed my eyes and pressed "Search".

Google said "do you mean president Daphne"

My eyes widened.

+100 points

Congratulations the name "Daphne", you've moved on to the next round.

Traits I hope Carrie passes on to the baby #1

Her awesome power of observation.

"All this time I thought the lead character was named 'Neal'.
That changes the whole movie for me."

- Carrie's actual words after I spend an hour explaining why I like the movie "the Matrix".

Baby's first restraining order

Wanna see what has been giving me nightmares the past three nights?

My bachelor buddy, Mr. Harrison Parker gave our yet to be born little girl this present. I'm using "mister" because it'll just look more official when I go to the courthouse and apply for an "in utero" restraining order.

As a public service, I'm releasing his picture to make sure your children stay as far away as possible from "the dude who gives bikinis to infants".

Beware of this smiling asshole:

He's constantly drinking, he doesn't even have a job, and he still lives with his parents. There's no way he's dating my daughter.

"awesome.....just what I wanted"

Sonogram says.....

HAMBURGER

(During the "potty shot" instead of a "turtle head" they found a "hamburger")

In other words, we're having a girl!

So it's settled: Carrie will be the disciplinarian and I'll be the push over. Although I'm preparing myself to resist our little girl's charms and lay down the law. I periodically whisper "you're grounded" into Carrie's belly. So far she's listening.

Upper Deck or Topps

My brother tried to convince me to wait until after the kid was born to find out the gender. He said It would be the "greatest surprise of my life". And he's right. It would have been. But to be honest, I need to find out as soon as possible whether our kid's turkey timer pops up or stays in forever.

You see I have a horrible poker face.

And I'll let you in on a little secret: 9 times out to 10 if you tell me something and in response I raise my eyebrows and softly yell "awesome", whatever you're talking about is in fact "not awesome". You'll know cause I'll have the same look on my face as a 4 year when told to smile for the camera.

I'm generally a nice guy, but if I'm the slightest bit disappointed, you'll know it. I can't hide it. When I was eleven I begged my Mom for a 1989 "Upper Deck" Complete Baseball Card Set. Anyways, a few days before Christmas, I noticed a present underneath the tree that looked eerily like a baseball card set and my excitement grew. So you can imagine my disappointment when I tear open the wrapping paper and f-ing Jose Canseco is staring straight into my face. And he's mocking me from the box of a 1989 "Topps" Baseball Card Set. Muther F-ing TOPPS? Not Donruss. Not Fleer. Certainly not Upper Deck. But Muther F-ing Topps? For a split second I thought there were only two logical explanations for this: 1) my Mom has no idea who the f-ck she gave birth to in 1977; or 2) my Mom knowingly wanted to break my little heart, she in fact knows me better than I know myself, so she hatches a plan using the ol' Upper Deck Trojan Horse and releases the Topps soldiers in order to break my spirits forever. Which is funny cause my Mom's super nice. Anyways, eventually I realize that my Mom made an honest mistake out of love, and that my spoiled ass should be happy regardless (at least she got "baseball card complete set" right), so I tried to play down my displeasure. I raised my eyebrows and fake yelled, "awesome.....baseball cards.....just what I wanted". Unfortunately, my poker face said "Dad's my favorite parent now, lady". What's worse is I could actually see the air deflate from my Mom's face. At the time, that was the worst I had ever felt in my whole life.

But there's a silver lining: after a few months of saving and doing extra chores, I was able to purchase the magical 1989 Upper Deck set. Hoorraayyy!

Its funny cause when Carrie and I first started dating in college, I was so broke but I wanted to impress her by taking her out to a fancy weekend getaway. I saved up some money from my job but I needed a little extra to make sure I could cover the cost of the "jacket required" restaurant that I booked. Looking for some fast cash I went to a baseball card convention and sold the magical 1989 Upper Deck set as well as the rest of my childhood baseball cards and sets I brought that day.

So why am I telling you about my inability to hide my 1989 Christmas disappointment from my Mom?

Because I know (if I don't know the sex of our kid going in) when the baby pops out and the Doc asks me to announce the gender, I'm going to raise my eyebrows and I'm going to fake yell, "awesome.....a girl.....just what I wanted", while the rest of my poker face shows absolute terror. And everyone will know at that moment that my wife gave birth to a bubbly, bouncing 1989 Topps Baseball Card Set.

I know I'm a horrible person for thinking that. But it's true.

While I'm scared shitless about having a baby, I'm more scared shitless about the possibility of raising a girl. Now don't get me wrong, whatever gender our kid turns out to be I'll be happy. It's just yelling "it's a boy" feels more natural to me then yelling "it's a girl".

First of all, if we have a girl, that little chick is going to have me wrapped around her chubby little fingers.

Carrie already jokes that she's going to have to be the disciplinarian if she pops out a chick. Cause let's face it, if we have a girl, she's going to be pretty darn cute. I can say "no" to a little boy. I don't know if I have the willpower to say "no" to a cute little girl.

If we have a girl, I know that I'll be a walking ATM for the next 30 years. Her ATM code will be a voice activated "I love you Dad". What's horrible is that I know it's going to happen, but there is nothing I can do to stop it. I already see it with my friends who have little girls. Those little rugrats are so manipulative. They'll purposely walk around their mothers to get a hug from their fathers. They'll say shit like "daddy....will you marry me?" How can you resist that?

And it's not because I think boys are better or some sexist BS. Its just that for my whole life when I imagined playing with my kid, it always involved doing dude stuff. Not just playing catch and lighting shit on fire, but things like prepping the kid for their first dance or helping the kid get over their first real heartbreak. Cause let's face it, for girls, that's Mommy Territory. If we have a girl, Carrie will be the one who shops with her for her prom dress. Carrie will be the one who helps her plan her wedding. I guess I'd be jealous that our kid and Carrie will have this natural secret society that I can't (and probably shouldn't) be a part of.

Like the first time our kid "reboots her ovarian operating system", Carrie will be the one who takes her to Gunne Sax in San Francisco on a school day to talk about cute boys, traveling pants, and monthly visits from Aunt Flo. I'll be the dude eating top ramen in front of my laptop as my two girls bond over the wonders of woman hood while sharing an ice cream. Let's face it, shit would get real awkward when "Dad" butts in to a conversation about panty shields and tampons with the phrase, "so I hear its game time for the Crimson Tide".

So long story short, I want to learn the gender of our kid early so I can process everything in my own time, boy or girl. This whole post might be about girls but believe me, I could write a whole post dedicated to being scared shitless about having a boy. Cause I do like having nice things. And boys are definitely nature's wrecking ball for nice things. Regardless of gender, at least I know what I'm giving the kid for their eleventh birthday: my most cherished childhood possession, my 1989 Topps Baseball Card Set.

Disclaimer: I started writing this post before we went in for Carrie's ultrasound. I finished this post knowing the gender of out kid. Wanna know what we're having? What type or "scared shitless" am I right now? Stay tuned.

Swings

The other night I slept on the couch. Carrie and I got into a fight and she couldn’t stand to be in the same room as me.

I really don’t blame her. You see, I did the most messed up thing a husband can do.

I kissed another woman.

In Las Vegas.

At Richie’s Bachelor Party.

Which is interesting because the bachelor party is three months in the future.

If you’re doing the math that means I slept on the sofa the other night for something she IMAGINED might happen in three months. And for the record I actually traveled to the future to make sure Future Dan didn’t make a mistake and to warn him of the consequences that his actions will have on his past (I know, it didn’t make sense to him either). Anyways, he just spent the whole weekend playing blackjack and drunkenly repeating, “Roads, Marty? Where we’re going we don’t need roads”.

So I’m slowly learning that to a pregnant woman on the downslope of a mood swing, the “guy who gave her morning sickness” should be held accountable for shit he does in her imagination, for shit he does in her dreams, and for shit that his friends do both real and imagined. And frankly, after what I’ve been through, I’m in no position to disagree.

Now, I’ve been through the swings before. We’ve been together for 10 years and I’ve never slept on the sofa. So this was no premenstrual swing. This was a different breed. It was wearing a cape, had a trusty side kick, and when it wasn’t kicking my ass, it had a secret identity.

But you know, they call them mood swings for a reason.

On the good side of the swings Carrie is like super gay for me.

She’s way clingy and it’s kinda scary. I’ll be on the laptop and get startled cause I suddenly notice that she’s one foot away just staring at me. And she’s smiling. Or I’ll be taking a shower and notice she’s waving “hi” to me from the other side of the glass door.

She’ll constantly call me on the phone to ask how I’m doing or when I’m coming home. And it’s not the, “I want to keep track of your whereabouts” type of call, but rather it’s the, “I genuinely miss you” type of call. That’s pretty scary. If we’re driving in the car she’ll randomly say stuff like “I love you so much”. What’s funny is it sounds like she REALLY means it. Again, scary. She’s a love struck thirteen year old without the self-conscious filter that comes with being thirteen.

But at the end of the day I know not to take anything too personally. Commander Carrie’s forced me to read enough prenatal books for me to realize that. I have to admit that being borderline stalked by your wife is pretty nice. As such, I’ve learned to keep my Clingy Carrie memories in my Swing-bank for retrieval in case she gets upset at me for “sweeping the floor wrong”. However I have to be careful. Having a smile on my face while she’s yelling at me will most likely piss her off.

Bang, Zoom.....Straight to the Moon

“This is probably our last chance for romance”

These were the words Carrie used when she tried to convince me to have a “babymoon”. I use the quotation marks on “babymoon” to emphasize how lame it is. For the uninformed, a “babymoon” is an excuse for pregnant ladies to bother their husbands to spend money on a vacation before popping out the miracle. Basically you’re saying “this little bundle of joy is going be more expensive on a per pound basis then Jay-Z. Let’s spend some of our precious savings on a trip to the Maldives”. Some say that the “babymoon” is when the soft spot is formed.

Originally I thought this was just the travel industry’s way to exploit the guilt of fathers to be. I’m surprised there aren’t advertisements at the doc’s office with somber headlines that read “this chick’s demolishing her lady parts for you. The least you can do is buy a plane ticket and a few non-alcoholic mai tais. It’s uterUS not uterYOU, jackass”. Maybe it’s just the name that makes me think it’s all a marketing gimmick. You can’t just add the word “moon” to something and make it a legit excuse to take a vacation. Although “Opening Round of the NCAA Tournament….Moon” has a nice ring to it.

But then I really started thinking about it. Maybe she’s right. She’s not gonna wanna have “romance” after the baby’s born. We can’t go out for dinner and a movie just the two of us until the kid’s at least twelve. I know for a fact that the baby bjorn isn’t part of the dress code at The AVE on the Mile. Can you take an infant to rock concerts?

Holy shit! This COULD be our last chance for (not only romance but) “EVERYTHING-mance”?

I mean, the closest I’ve ever been to raising a kid is creating a player named Haywood Jablowme on Madden 2010 and that took up a shit-ton of time. I’m assuming raising a kid is at least twice as hard as guiding the Stockton Seaman to the Madden Bowl. But a kid, man? You can’t pause the game on his or her development to play in a beer pong tourney.

But to be honest, I did kinda tear up watching little Haywood lift up the Madden Bowl trophy for the first time. And you know, I did turn down a few opportunities to represent my Beer Pong team, “2 Guys, 1 Cup”, in order to take part in Haywood’s ups and downs. After the little dude’s fourth NFL MVP I caught myself thinking, “They grow up so fast”. I even remember beaming with pride when reciting his stats.

I guess having a kid won’t be that bad. I’ll just have different Bowls to win, other MVP awards to gather, new warp zones to explore, and different achievements to unlock. The adventures Carrie and I had before the kid will just be replaced with new and uncharted adventures. Only this time I won’t be the one vomiting and talking incoherently. And even though I wouldn’t be able to step foot in a movie theater for the next three years, I’ll finally have a subject worthy enough to make home movies about.

So I guess in a roundabout way I’m saying I’m warming up to the whole babymoon idea, but not because it’s going to be “our last chance for romance”. I’m willing to admit that our definition of “romance” will change (shoot, our definition of “life” will change). But I’m hoping the actual presence of romance won’t. Going off on a week-long romantic vacation most likely will not be in our vernacular for the next two years. However, that doesn’t mean that we can’t have a little bit of “romance” while the baby’s napping. And instead of wine glasses we’ll just be drinking out of juice boxes.

The price of unconditional love

I talked to friends and family about the cost of daycare, feedings, clothes, etc. After extensive research I have come to the conclusion that, pound for pound, the most expensive human beings are new born babies and hip hop moguls. Below is a summary of my findings so far. I used the assumption that the average weight of a newborn is 7lbs while the weight of your average hip hop mogul is 185lbs.

So far its close. However with my luck, I'll probably raise a kid who wants to "make it rain" in Disneyland.

New Name for the Blog

We're still keeping danpluscarrie.blogspot.com

but we have a new address because of a new addition:
danpluscarrieplusbaby.blogspot.com

Danger Natividad

If we have a boy, I'm seriously thinking of naming him "Danger". We'd call him "Dan" for short or "Danny Boy" when he's little. It started out as a joke between Carrie and I, but its starting to grow on me. Danger Natividad. Think about it.

It's a girl!

Or a boy! We don't know. Carrie and I are actually debating whether or not we should find out during our next ultrasound.

After the first ultrasound, I could have cared less about the gender of the baby. I just want a healthy, happy child. Although, that was the thought until Richie called to congratulate. He says, "Awesome, now Ashton will have a hot filipino/chinese/white girlfriend in high school".

A cold sweat came over my body.

My kid isn't even born yet. We don't even know the gender, but the thought of my baby daughter dating anyone scared the shit out of me. Cause lets face it, when you have a boy, you worry about one penis. With a girl, you worry about all the penises in the world. I didn't sleep that night.I checked and double checked the online Chinese baby gender predictor charts. I tried to remember what position we were in when we conceived. I woke Carrie up in the middle of the night and asked her "are you craving salty or sweet foods?"

My only consolation is the ultrasound is several months before the due date. That should give me enough time to apply for a gun license.

Baby's first OB appointment

The day before our prenatal appointment Carrie says "you know they stick this thing in my thing, right?".

Unfortunately, not much can prepare a man for his first Ob/Gyn appointment.

I was expecting to have my arm around my wife's shoulder, being the supportive husband as the doc scans her belly. Both of us nodding attentively as the doc explains how this cute little gray speck on the screen is our kids fingers and how this cute little speck is his little button nose. Both of us in awe of and inspired by the wonders of baby making. In truth there isn't much inspiring about the Ob office. I guess I'm expecting everyone to be just as psyched as we are: giving us huge smiles, knowing nods and high fives. What we got was a bunch of people in pajamas waiting for their lunch break.

You have to admit that the husband is definitely the forgotten party at the OB/Gyn office. When you're in the waiting room and they call your wife's name, they're just calling for your wife, not you. That's right, fake stretch as you sit back down buddy. The whole appointment is like this. When instructions were given by the doc or nurse, they looked at Carrie and never me. The fact that I'm half the reason why we were there is treated with the same sterility as a lab test. For our next kid i'm charging Carrie a co-pay for successful implantation.

At least the reading material was interesting. Brochure after brochure of why you shouldn't smoke crack when you're pregnant, or shoot heroin when you're pregnant, or do some other drug when you're pregnant. The marketer in me began to think "what demographic am I in?" and who at the brochure shop visualized a mom-to-be saying "I know I can't have lunch meat, sushi, hot dogs, and.....wait a minute....I can't smoke crack? Good thing I ran into this brochure at my prenatal visit". I think the medical community's biggest crutch is the tri-fold brochure. Have 5 health problems? Walk out with 5 brochures. But I digress. When you finally get to the exam room, the only place to sit is on your wife's neatly folded clothes next to the metal ducks. Then you think, "she doesn't fold clothes this neatly at home".

The exam rooms are roughly the size of an office cubicle. Add in a doc, nurse, mother to be, sperm donor and a stack of nicely folded clothes, and the new guy is left to struggle to find an appropriate viewing spot let alone try to be all supportive and shit by holding hands with the wife.

After the breast exam (awkward), the doc puts a "thing" on the "thing" that they're going to stick in Carrie's "thing".

Then the doc makes it disappear.

Almost immediately you hear a sound I can only describe as a window shutter slowly hitting an underwater house repeatedly. And all that shit you had to get through to hear it doesn't matter anymore. Even though you're sitting on the other side of the room on your wife's nicely folded clothes, there is nothing more clear or astonishing then the first time you hear your kid's heartbeat. It hits you that you and your wife are in for a wonderful adventure together. And you hope the doctor has a brochure for this.

update:I have to clarify that since the first appointment, our doc and the nurses have been nothing short of spectacular. Eye contact with the husband, warming of the hands (you know what I'm talking about), and overall being attentive, assertive, flexible, humorous and awesome.

The waiting game

I downloaded an app to chart my wife's ovulation.

Its on my work phone so the IT dept knows when my wife's last period was. They also know when she's most fertile.

Scary thought.

Clue #4

The traditional gift have you guessed
But my gift is not like the rest
It’s a modern take
On the paper keepsake
To you I'll give at your request

First Round of Wedding Pics

First Round of Wedding Pics..
Stay Tuned.
pictures by Red Carpet Studios

In case you were wondering where Joan and Justin were during the Wedding..

She's super late but here's our fifth flower girl: 

Ellie Rey Natividad Arthur!

Born 9/27/09

Almost 9 pounds!!!

Ellie is Joan and Justin's second child. If she's anything like her mom I feel sorry for her big brother Tyler. (BTW: Joan's my little sister who couldn't make the wedding cause she had "better things to do")

Sidenote: Of the peeps we invited to the wedding, (off the top of my head) 8 babies were born within a few weeks of the wedding. In other words, my friends don't ski or snowboard much in November, December, or January.

FAQs for YOUs

Where do I stay? Click here
How do I request Karaoke song? Click here
Do you have a Gift registry? Click here
Where do I Park and what is a RECEPTION QUEST? Click here

How do I get to the wedding?
Directions:
Getting to Morris Chapel from I-5 heading North (from Bay Area) : Click here

North on i-5

Exit Pershing Ave

Right on Harding Way

Left as Pacific Ave

Left on Knoles Way

Right at deadend

Getting to Morris Chapel from I-5 heading South (from Sacramento) : Click here

South on I-5

Take exit 476 for March Lane

Left at W. March Lane

Right at Pacific Ave

Right at Knoles Way

Take Right at deadend

Where to Park and the RECEPTION QUEST!

Info on Parking:

Once you get on campus you will see directional signs for "Morris Chapel Parking". We highly encourage you to follow these signs. The signs will lead you to a parking lot in between the Chapel and the reception site. When you get to Morris Chapel, you will notice that there's a parking lot smack dab right next to the chapel. Resist the urge to park in these spots. Keep your eyes on the signs. We strongly urge you to not park next to the Chapel for a few reasons.

1. Distance-wise the reception site (DeRosa University Center) is 2 blocks from the Chapel but you have to walk through campus. During the day its a beautiful walk from the Center to the Chapel and vice versa. At night (after the reception) the walk is similar to the maze at the end of "The Shining". Unless you have "the shine" I wouldn't risk it. Plus you'll be drinking. For this reason it makes more sense to park in the lot between the chapel and the reception site. This lot is much easier to find after a night of Bud Lights and complaining about Franks ability to receive telepathic messages from Scatman Crothers.
2. For those who require assistance from the Chapel to the reception site, we're providing a golf cart.
3. You do not want to miss out on the "reception quest", do you?

Oh, what's that? I'm sorry, I can't hear you over the sound of how awesome our "reception quest" is going to be. You'll have to speak louder.

Wait....you don't know what a "reception quest" is? Well OK, we'll explain it to you.

A reception quest is a series of clues and puzzles aimed to test your intelligence and endurance while guiding you to the reception site. During a reception quest only the pure of heart will survive. Its a quest designed to maximize action, adventure, and camaraderie on your way to the reception. Its....well the quest is basically a scavenger hunt designed to stall Justin and Brian on their b-line to the open bar.

Seriously though, the "real purpose" of the quest is to share Pacific's beautiful campus and to give our guest something fun to do on the walk to the reception. Carrie has put in so much work in the quest and we want everyone to enjoy it. Originally we were going to make it a surprise (a mini-DaVinci Code in our wedding program). But since I hang out with guys like Gabe and Richie, we realized that everyone might not get to the first clue. So we decided to include the map with the program and give our guest a heads up beforehand. The quest should only take about 10 minutes (30 mins for Gabe and Richie). The map will look something like this:

We would like as many of our guest to take part in the "Reception Quest" so please spread the word before, during and immediately after the wedding about the large amounts of fun you will be having on your way to the reception.

This isn't my first rodeo

With blogs that is.

My nephew and ring bearer, Tyler, left his Lightnening McQueen Car at our house a few months ago. This was the result. Clink on the link if you dare: The Save McQueen Blog

I highly suggest reading the note at the beginning and then read the rest backwards (bottom post first) since the posts go in reverse chronological order. And yes, I made this as a joke for his parents and not for Tyler to read himself.

Registry Info

Carrie was really excited to have the opportunity to register for her own gifts.

Maybe too excited.

Visit our honeymoon registry.

Where Should We Honeymoon?

Carrie and I can't decide. Could this be our first fight? how cute.

Where Should We Honeymoon?

The Good Life

A few years ago in a hotel room in Arizona, I ordered a hamburger and fries from room service. Normally when I'd eat a meal, Huckelberry would be at my feet persuading me to share. But that night I was on a business trip, so I would have the pleasure of watching ESPN and actually having a whole burger to myself for a change.

When I was finished eating, I stretched back with my arms behind my head. I glanced down by my my feet. Little bits of my burger and half of my fries were sitting there on the floor. They were in a nice little pile waiting to be eaten by Huck. As I was cleaning the mess I made, I began to appreciate what an integral part of my life that little fucker had become.

It wasn't always that way, but eventually he would become my best friend. He truly was our best friend. Carrie and I used to get off work early so the three of us could have the dog park all to ourselves. There was a hill at the dog park where you could see everything. We'd let Huck loose and he would slowly roam around sniffing. Periodically he'd look back at me on the hill with an expression on his face that said "this is the good life". And it was. In part because of him I finally came to the realization that my own life, the life I was sharing with my fiancee and our dog, was in fact, "the good life". THIS is the good life.

As I write this I know that a month or a week from now I'll be on the couch, eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. When I'm done, I'll look down and I'll find all the crust of that sandwich on the floor. And he won't be there to eat it.

Huckelberry the Dog
1993 - 2009

Bachelor Party Evite Mad Libs

Gabe sent out an Evite for a weekend getaway him and Frank are throwing for our friends in tahoe. In case you've never used Evite, one cool feature is that when folks rsvp, they also get to comment to the whole group. For stuff and giggles, I thought it would be fun to make a cute little mad libs quiz out of a few of the comments. It also will give you an idea of the type of fine, upstanding men I fraternize with. The actual missing words are found at the end of the quiz. See how many you can guess!!! Come on, it will be fun.

1. "anyone know where i can get a ______?"
2. "since we won't be in vegas, _____ are optional, well maybe not!
3. "______ yeah"
4. "I'll get the _______, guys!"
5. "I'm in for the ______ but not in for the _____. I'm going to stay away from the ______ ____ if Rob K will be ____ing his ________. See you then _____"
6. " ____ on!"
7. "I like the switch to Tahoe, I will be there. I look forward to _____ you all"
8. "In - and not ___ing the ____ _____ that weekend"
9. "I'm going to put my _____ in the _____ _____"
10. "The ______ and ______ ______ make me uneasy"

Answers:

1. Josh Groban CD
2. Shopping at the outlets
3. Oh, my gosh
4. Curlers and nail polish for the make over night
5. sangria, cosmos, sweets for a week, baking, famous texas cake, amigos
6. It is so totally
7. tickling
8. eating, buffet food
9. faith, Lord Jesus Christ
10. advanced math, book club

On second thought, taking out the words in the beginning, probably wasn't a good idea. Can you top the mad libs?

Are you brave enough to stay a night in Stockton?

If you plan on staying in the lovely City of Stockton after the wedding, Carrie has reserved a block of rooms at the Courtyard Marriott.

When making a reservations tell them it's for the Leou-Natividad wedding

Courthyard Marriott

3252 West March Lane

Stockton, CA 95219

(209) 472-9700

Website

Room Block Rates:

One King Bed = $99.00 per room per night plus 10% tax

or

Two Double Beds = $99.00 per room per night plus 10% tax

Directions from Hotel to Wedding:

Marriot to Morris

View Larger Map

OTHER HOTELS IN OUR FINE CITY INCLUDE

Lexington Plaza Waterfront

Hotel

110 W Fremont St

Stockton, CA 95202

(209) 944-1140

http://www.waterfronthotelstockton.com/

Directions from Hotel to Wedding:

Lex to Morris

Hilton Stockton

2323 Grand Canal Blvd

Stockton, CA 95207

(209) 957-9090

Hilton Stockton

Directions from Hotel to Wedding:

Hilton to Morris

Wine and Roses Country Inn

2505 W Turner Rd

Lodi, CA 95242

(209) 334-6988

Wine and Rose Website

Directions from Hotel to Wedding:

Wine and Roses to Morris Chapel

La Quinta Inn - Stockton

2710 W March Ln

Stockton, CA 95219

(209) 952-7800

La Quinta Website

Directions from Hotel to Wedding:

La Q to Morris

Karaoke and the Song List

Ok, here’s the deal. The boss said we can have Karaoke at the wedding reception. Now, before you touch your fingertips together and slowly say “excellent”, there are some ground rules. Because lets face it, there’s a fine line between having Karaoke at your wedding reception and having a “Karaoke wedding reception”. If we don't adhere to the guidelines, our reception will consist of 5 straight hours of ex-sorority girls singing “I Will Survive” intermingled with Richie singing the f-bomb version of “Total Eclipse of the Heart”. 

Now that just can’t happen. Not on Greg's watch.

Sensi Murphy says here are some guidelines:

1. You have to call dibs. To prevent dunk Gabe fighting with drunk Richie for the right to sing “Let Her Cry” by Hootie and the Blowfish, requests to sing can be made before the wedding date. It will also make it easier for our DJ. To call dibs, type your name and song in the comments section or email me or Carrie. First come, first serve. So if you wait till Sept 26th to tell the DJ your tune, most likely he’ll say, “I’m sorry, but “It’s Raining Men’ by the Weathergirls is reserved for Justin Arthur”. But don’t worry; towards the tail end of the night we will open up the singing to everyone who didn’t make a request.
2. Karaoke must be sandwiched between at least three non-karaoke songs.   Otherwise, our first dance will be to Steve rapping “Freaks of the Industry”.
3. What the DJ says, goes. Please don’t fight with him. He has our deposit.
4. Unfortunately, we need to limit the slow songs. We want people to dance while you sing, not make out.

Also, we want your input for the DJ's song list,  so if you want to get down to the “Cha Cha Slide” speak now or forever hold your peace. Again, please use the comments section for your requests. Thanks!