Rookie Card

There comes a time in every young players life when he becomes marketable.  At that point he is asked to take time out from his training schedule to participate in the production of his trading card.  These have been an essential part of all great sporting careers.  Levi's rookie season has proven to be no different.  Here are some of the pictures that have made the final cut:

BYE week

Sorry for the lack o' updates, we have seemed to have had a busy go of it lately. Levi recently had his first halloween and therefore his inaugural costume. Seeing as how he has not stated any preferences or objections, we (and by we i mean my wife) decided his costume for him. So without further ado. . .

We were also lucky enough to have an out-of-town visitor that same weekend. Carin came to see us (and by us i mean Laura and Levi). We all had a great time together and were sad to see her go. So I thought I would include a picture that captured Levi's initial reaction to our old friend.

Interleague Play

This past weekend we had our first away game.  This was Levi's first real road trip.  Levi spent most of the trip, to the Big-D, asleep (this is how he mentally prepares for the big game).  We had a great time and Levi got to meet a lot of new people.  He was the youngest person in attendance (excluding Michelle's unborn child that she has promised to name after me).

Levi did well and never showed any signs of fatigue.  He performed well for not being at his home field.  We look forward to hosting the competition in a Thanksgiving Day game out here in west Texas. 

Preseason

At this point life is feeling like the preseason.  We have endured the training camp days and nights of frequent feedings and awakenings.  Now, two months into this new adventure, Levi has become much more interactive and happy.  He is always smiling and laughing.  He is also sleeping all the way through the night on a consistent basis.  I almost feel that this is the calm before the storm though.  He still takes long naps through the day and is not yet mobile.  I have a feeling that once he becomes ambulatory, that life could become a little busier.  But, for now, we have it made.  He has done well during his first week of day care (probably better then his mother has done). 

Speaking of mothers: I find it interesting that so much attention is paid the his uniform (I refuse to call it an outfit).  Our focus as parents does not always coincide.  My focus is more on the play book and her focus is more on the appearance.  I have tried to explain to her that he is a Turner. . . he will just 

naturally look good without intentional effort.  Either way, this preseason has been an exciting one.  One with much promise for a successful rookie year.  We are looking forward to our first away game that will be coming up in two weeks.  We are hoping that he does well on the road.  We will be traveling to his cousins' home field.  This will be a well deserved relief from the intrasquad scrimmaging and the daily grind.

"D Day"

The day that has been haunting my bride for sometime now.  The day that, no matter how optimistic I tried to be, I knew would bring tears.  While -logically- this should not be unlike any other day away from our son, it soon became apparent that something was in fact different.  Final preparations had been made the night before.  An overwhelming sense of the somber mood overshadowed Dallas' victory over Green Bay.  Although I had attempted to achieve normalcy in our Sunday night routine, it was obvious that "normalcy" would not be tolerated.  A quiet goodnight led to a purposeful sleep.  The morning would bring an additional process to our already busy routine.  And then it happened.  The time had arrived.  The walk to the front entrance that can only be likened to a funeral procession. . . the longer goodbye. . . the obvious need of a grieving mother to be comforted. . .the tears that needed to fall.  While -logically- this should not be unlike any other day, logic is not always consulted in such situations.  Instead, the natural order of things would take over.  

It became clear that logic would give way to emotion and that this mother's current struggle would be much the same as those that preceded her.  The struggle to reconcile the desire for time to stand still with the wish for her son to grow into what God has created him to be.  The struggle that would consume her workday, turning it into what would feel like an eternity.  The sort of struggle that would re-write history and make one forget the original D-day of June 6th 1944.  Instead, D-day has become September 22nd 2008.  That most terrible "D" that could only stand for Day Care.

Meet The Cousins

Already in his short life, Levi has met many people. People who we love dearly and
are blessed by knowing. Not long ago he got to meet his cousins (Ben & Lindley). I don't think that he will remember this first meeting, but it was still special to us. We look forward to the havoc that these three will cause together.

Too Fast

Three weeks and one day ahead of schedule, thats how he came to be  (already taking after dad much more than mom).  Only able to fit into premie clothes (okay, maybe not all like dad).  The world's smallest diapers loose and baggy.  We spent those first few days in wonder of that perfect tiny gift.  Then, all at once it seems, he has outgrown his premie and newborn clothes and is in "big boy clothes".  He has gone from staring into space to focusing on your face.  Now just starting to make his own smiles in response to people.  Getting so big, but all too fast.