Raising our son - the Chance of a lifetime!

At the baby shower in Charleston, Britton and I announced the name that we chose for our son. The winner of a memory game, Lynn Crymes Weeks, was given the "prize" of announcing the name.

Britton and I had talked about baby names since before we were married. Mostly, we joked about using odd medical terms and conditions as babies names... who wouldn't love Sputum Criger? After we got married, we began to think about it more seriously and by the time we knew we were pregnant we had a systematic process for assessing names: what does it mean? does Britton like it? do I like it? does it sound good with Crigler? is it too common? is it easy enough to pronounce? etc.

After the 8 week ultrasound of my little bean with a heartbeat, I thought it was going to be a boy for some reason. So we talked about boy names, looked at names in books and online and, yes, even downloaded an iphone app. We came across the name "Chance" in a book and we both really liked it. This was a miracle because we didn't fully agree on any names previously. So, like the throughout people that we are, we read about it and found out that it wasn't quite as unique as we thought. It's actually has been around for a long time.

Here is what Wikipedia has to say, based on it's references:

Chance is a masculine given name and a surname. The given name is of Middle English origin, meaning "good fortune." The oldest public record of the surname dates to 1310 in Essex.^[2]

People with the given name Chance:

• Chance Cruickshank (born 1991), currently holds the world record for the longest hand-stand
• Chance (MuzikMafia), artist formerly in the MuzikMafia
• Chance Bateman (born 1981), Australian rules football player
• Chance Browne (born 1948), American cartoonist
• Chance Fry (born 1964), American soccer player
• Chance Mock (born 1981), American football player
• Chance Myers (born 1987), American soccer player
• Chance Phelps (1984-2004), United States Marine
• Chance Sanford (born 1972), American baseball player
• Chance Thomas, American music composer
• Chance M. Vought (1890-1930), American businessman and aerospace engineer
• Chance Jett American fiction author. Author of The Kingship of Victor Regalis VI, Reuniting The Blessed, and others.
• Chance Landon Walker, American rock singer/songwriter
• Chance Waters, Australian hip hop artist
• Chance Kophamer, an American tennis player

When we saw the "candlestick" picture at 13 weeks, we immediately started calling him Chance and it just fit. A month or so later, I suggested that we make Britton his middle name and my husband could not argue with that! By the time we announced the name at the shower, we had already been calling him Chance for 3 1/2 months and this was simply his name to us, very separate from the word.

In the dictionary, chance (the word) means luck or fortune, probability, a favorable or opportune time, and also the unpredictable portion of an event or happening. To some, this may seem negative, but not at all in our eyes! Isn't the unpredictable part of life what makes it interesting... otherwise why not just stay home? I certainly hope Chance will adopt our attitudes!

If you are one of our loved ones who fears that the name Chance will created images of risk and hazard in people's minds. Fear not. I hate bills, but I am fond of a few people named Bill. John is slang for a toilet and for one who patronizes prostitutes, but I do not think of these meanings when I think about my grandfather or my good friend John Sayer. And Dick...well, if a kid can get through life with a name that I would get fired for saying as a word at work...you get my point.

If you are on the short list of people who know the address to this private blog, then you are among our favorite people. We are confident that you will love our son, Chance Britton Crigler, for who he is and who he becomes, whether that is a doctor, hip hop artist, cartoonist, or professional athlete. Chances are ....he is gonna be greeeaaaat!!!

Road Trip

Last week Britton and I loaded up the car and went on a road trip. We spent Friday night in Gainesville, FL - my old stomping ground. We had dinner at Leonardo's pizza (it was as good as I remembered!) and I took Britton on a jogging tour of campus the next morning.

Saturday afternoon, we arrived in Atlanta and hung out with Andy and Shelley (our gracious hosts) and were later joined by Janna, John, Oliver and Evan. Andy is a fabulous cook and I highly recommend stopping by their house for a meal if you are in Atlanta, whether you know them or not. ;-)

Sunday morning, we went out to brunch with a group of friends, which was actually a surprise shower - sneaky! We got to sample Shelley's cake making and decorating skills, delicious! Thanks ladies!!! We feel so loved! After brunch, we headed to the park and eventually wound down with dinner and Wii's Rockband!

Monday, we drove to Columbia and hung out with Kelley and her son Noah at her new pool and I got to sport my preggo lady bathing suit! That night we had dinner with Britton's dad, Pat and her son Jonathan.

Tuesday, Britton took me on a jogging tour of his old neighborhood and we went by his old house. Then we cleaned up and headed over to campus to see my friends and former professors. We had lunch at my favorite sandwich place next to campus and then headed over to see the kids that I used to babysit all the time when we lived in Columbia (see video for proof that Britton will be a great dad!). That evening we headed over to Top Spin, a tennis club where Britton played tennis and worked as a lifeguard when he was in high school. With lots of nostalgia under our belts...

Wednesday, we drove to Charleston to see Britton's mom and family. We were soon joined by Julieann, Caleb and Elijah. We had dinner with Elizabeth, Joe, Carter, Foster and Leslie; trips to the beach and the pool with Julieann and her sons; and of course time at Grandmama's house, a.k.a. the greatest place on earth.

My mom joined us on Friday and stayed for the weekend. Britton's sisters and aunts threw us a shower on Saturday and it was also very nostalgic. Weren't we just here 2 1/2 years ago adding a fantastic man to my life? And now I get to have another man?! Cool. You couldn't be surrounded by a more loving group of women! Britton's family is very impressive in the way that everyone will gather to cheer you on in life, it means so much to us. Thank you so much!!!

A special thanks to Kathy Rodwell for taking all these pictures (and many more) and being so sweet that she burned them on a CD and mailed them to me! Thank you, Kathy!

Will Work For Rest

Two weekends ago, I spent 3 days in Jacksonville at an advanced pelvic floor physical therapy course. I can now expand the way I practice physical therapy to include many more patient pathologies and treatment options. I'm excited that my career is going in a direction that I find rewarding.

My boss came back to me with another offer this week but it still was not right for me and came with strings attached that would not be best for me, or Baby Crigler, or even Tampa General. So... I'm continuing to work the same job as a PRN employee, with which I am very happy. Meanwhile, I'm making myself indispensable (I hope) by advancing my knowledge and getting to know the area urologists, urogynecologists, and colorectal surgeons.

Britton and I have both been working for the past 3 weekends including this one. We are ready for some time off and a fun road trip to see friends and family!!! The house is clean, I pulled out our suitcases and Samantha even got a bath (don't tell her... :-( she's staying behind). Wheels will be rolling after work on Friday!!!

We are now entering the third trimester and Baby Boy Crigler is kicking all the time! Britton is getting to play with his son for the first time as he taps on my belly and the baby taps back. Is it too soon to teach Morse code?