Now that my new neice Hadley is here, I feel the need to provide her with an appropriate nickname. Jeff proclaimed my daughter “Hallie Mac,” so I feel its only fair.

There could easily be some name confusion between Hadley and Hallie. After all, the two names would sound identical if not for the “d” in Hadley. Thus, her official Uncle Mark nickname will be “D.”

A few wise lines I’ve picked up over the past few days.

“You become what you think you are.”
– seen on a white board at work last week. I couldn’t agree more.

“Computers don’t give hugs.”
– on a Birmingham billboard ad for a children’s organization.

Keep these in mind as you start your week.

I dusted off my road bike this morning for the first time in probably a year and a half. It needs work, but the tires took air and it rode reasonably well. At least it was in better shape than I was!

I took a quick, 20-minute jaunt around the neighborhood. I really had no choice but to make it a short one, since Kelly had to leave soon for the baby shower she was attending. The ride felt good, even to my rusty legs. I hope to make it a habit – I just love to bike.
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My newest niece has made her arrival this morning. Hadley Elise Turner was born at Wakemed today at 9:03 AM. Hadley weighed in at six pounds, twelve ounces and measures 21 inches. Jeff tells me “she’s beautiful!”

Hadley, Suzie, and Jeff are doing fine and resting at Wakemed. They think they may be up for visitors tomorrow afternoon.

Glad you’re here, Hadley!

UPDATE at 11:55 AM: Here’s a picture of Hadley and the happy family.

Kelly, Hallie and I packed things up this morning for a daylong trip to the zoo. We were on our way down the road when I remembered we didn’t grab a large umbrella we meant to take. We went back to the house and a few minutes later, we were on way again.

Our trip hit a major snag when traffic ground to a halt on U.S. 1 near Cary Parkway. Mere minutes before, a van collided with a parked car in a fiery crash. Had I not turned the car around for the missing umbrella, we may have been in the exact spot where the crash occured.
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The cover of the new 2003 Florida Gators football guide has a picture of a crocodile, rather than the school’s mascot, the alligator.

This must be, to say the least, quite embarassing for them.

My first day here in Birmingham is done and it’s been a great one. The trip out was uneventful, in spite of the massive rainstorms all around the area. On the leg from Memphis to Birmingham, the plane bounced so much I temporarily felt airsick, something that this Navy vet has never had happen before.
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Here’s a story of some fascinating research that shows that bedwetting may actually be caused by breathing problems.

Mahony says that of the kids referred to him at the Prince of Wales Hospital in Sydney because of bed-wetting problems, eight out of 10 have a narrow palate. In these cases, orthodontic devices similar to a brace can be used to widen the palate.

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Blogging may be light as I head out of town on business. I’m finding it tough to leave Kelly and Hallie behind.

I wrote about it some on my Hallie page. For now, I’ll leave you with the lyrics to the song on my mind tonight, CCR’s Someday Never Comes. It sums up my mood this evening.