30th Birthday

Well today was my thirtieth birthday and I have to say it turned out great. It didn't start out so well, because I was up late working last night, so I got to see May 11th arrive. However, after sleeping for a bit the day started off on a much higher note. Jennifer got me a new Apple Airport Extreme router, so we will have a faster network at home, will be able to print from anywhere in the house and also be able to hook a hard drive up to it so we can ease the strain on the laptop itself. Kaleb also gave me some presents, two books that I can read to him when he is more appreciative of books. After opening my presents I got to lay with Kaleb while Jennifer showered and got ready for the big home inspection. It was really nice just sitting in bed with my son on my birthday and thinking that 30 years ago I was smaller than him.

Unfortunately, Jennifer and Kaleb had to take off relatively early so I was left at home alone. Since we were having a party in the evening I decided to do some cleaning and two hours later the house was in great shape and ready for guests. I rolled off to work for and had a relatively uneventful day, which I have no complaints about.

After work I went to the store in search of a nunchuk controller for the Wii in case somebody wanted to do some two player boxing. I finally returned home, only to turn around and head back out to the store to get ice cream for the party. I came back home, stuck the ice cream in the freezer and got ready for the big party.

The guests slowly arrived and before long we had a smorgasboard of food and everybody was having a grand time. After eating a while we turned on the Wii and several games of tennis, bowling and golf were had before the main event of two player boxing. All was going well except, Kaleb was super fussy, partly because he was hot, but mostly because he was tired from his long day, long week for that matter. Besides the fact that Jennifer wasn't able to enjoy the party everything went really well. It was so nice to have my friends over just hanging out and having a good time. It wasn't the craziest party ever and it didn't involve a lot of bells and whistles, but I enjoyed it all the same.

So now here I sit in a house that is nearly returned to its original state, recounting one of those major birthday milestones. Of course it really hasn't sunk in that I am now thirty years old, it is hard to believe that ten years have passed since I returned home from my sophomore year of college and celebrated my 20th birthday. Actually what is harder for me to believe is just how much my life has changed and how many experiences, good and bad, I have had over the last ten years. I have learned so much about myself and really became my true self.

The last five years though were probably where most of the change occurred. I went through small changes like making new friends and going out in the city and traveled by plan for the first time in fifteen years. Next I began a quest to climb all of the 4000 footers in New England, then I got a ski house and finally started dating again. I then bought my first new car, went on my first online date (which was complete disaster), and went for my first ski trip out west. I slowly began to expand my horizons more and more with each passing month, finally I passed one major milestone and moved out of my mom's house and lived by myself. It was tough living alone way out in Salem, but it taught me how to live alone and helped me experience a bit more of the real world. Next up was my first trip to New York City to attend the largest Dave Matthews Band concert ever in the middle of Central Park (just plain amazing). The next winter was spent skiing again and strengthening friendships that I had made over the previous two years.

Once spring began, I bailed on the annual ski trip in favor of a once in a lifetime trip to Europe. It was truly a sign that I had made great progress, because when I was 25 if you had asked me if I would ever go to Europe you would have recieved a resounding "No way". I did go and I grew up a whole bunch on the trip, I learned to be even more independent and learned about the beauty and uniqueness that existed elsewhere in the world.

Once I was back in the good ol' US of A I returned to the online dating scene and while I went on many dates, I wasn't exactly successful, but it did help me learn what I was looking for and also helped make me much more comfortable while on dates. I also decided it was time for me to move in closer to the city, because I really enjoyed city life and all the things it had to offer. Within minutes of signing my lease to live in Somerville, I met Jennifer for our first date. My life was once again changed forever after meeting her and starting a relationship with her. She helped me continue my personal growth spurt and helped to show me what true love was all about. We had so many wonderful experiences and my life was forever changed for the better.

Things progressed very well and before long we moved in together, another huge step and proof that my growing had not stopped. By the time fall came around again we started to talk about marriage and right before winter started I had popped the question. At the time I remember thinking how crazy the year had been and how I didn't know how I would possibly top it, little did I know what I was in store for over the next 17 months. 2005 ended quietly and 2006 began without much fanfare. We started the somewhat stressful process of planning a wedding, but given our relatively quick decision making, we didn't have much trouble.

Last May I turned 29 and began what looks to possibly be the craziest most amazing year of my life. We had the perfect wedding in front of friends and family in July, spent an unforgettable two weeks in some of the most beautiful country I have ever seen in all my life and upon returning home learned that we were going to have a baby. It was insane in a matter of a few weeks I went from being a plain old fiance to a husband to an expecting father. It was all a bit overwhelming at first, but I didn't think I could be any happier (boy was I wrong). The pregnancy went along quickly and every week we would read about Three's development learning what body parts had been created and a comparison of its size versus various household items.

The new year came and went and Jennifer's belly continued to grow. Then once we got to February the two most stressful weeks of my life began, when Jennifer showed signs of pre-term labor. It was really hard not knowing what was going to happen and wondering if the baby would be okay. Finally, the single greatest moment of my existence happened on February 17th, when Kaleb was born healthy, small, but healthy. It was just an unbelievable experience that I will never forget, although I might remember it better if I had brought my camera with me. Unfortunately we weren't out of the woods yet, we had a healthy baby, but he needed to stay in the hospital and we visited him everyday. I think this was probably the most difficult experience I have ever had, going in to the hospital everyday to see Kaleb all hooked up to machines and with beeping all around and then having to leave to return home every night. Well eventually he got bigger and we were able to take him home.

Which brings us to today the first day of my 30th year. I can safely say that I think it is safe to say I am happier right now than I ever have been or at least that I can remember. I have the most amazing wife in the entire world, who understands me, supports me, makes me laugh, is truly the greatest mother in the world and most importantly loves me with all of her heart. I have a son who is just the cutest litlte thing in the whole world, a teeny person who makes me smile constantly despite the fact that he can barely control his own smiles, a boy who has been through so much difficulty, but passed through it all to become a normal healthy baby. I don't think I could have wished for my life to turn out better than it is right at this moment. I certainly didn't think at 25 that I would ever get here, but somehow through all the odd twists of fate, and random occurrences I seemed to have done very well.

As you can tell from the long drawn out ramblings above I am getting tired, not to mention the fact that I am in my thirties and just can't stay up as late as I used to back in my twenties. I just want to thank all of you out there who have helped me grow so much and have helped me to the state of sheer bliss I am in today starting my third decade on this wonderful planet. Here's to many happy returns of the day!!

Keegan

New House: Merrimac