Baby Davis is on the way!

Since I started working with WordPress, I've gotten to know Chris fairly well, and I consider him to be a friend. My emotions are running pretty high right now, as this is my first friend to have a baby since Aiden was born. I wish him and his wife the best. As he says... if you're they praying type, please do. If not, any positive thoughts you can send are just as good in my book.

From Aiden's Page (comments enabled there)

Governor Rod Blagojevich signed Senate Bill 568 into law today. This was not the bill that we had been watching, but does the same thing. The only difference is that this bill allows 9 months to request the birth certificate. The bill passed unanimously in both houses. Thank you to everyone who supported this law and thank you to the legislature of Illinois for this.

Introduced in the Illinois Senate today, is a bill to amend the Vital Records act:

Amends the Vital Records Act. Provides that when the death of a child occurs within 90 days of that child's live birth, the mother listed on the birth certificate of that child may request the issuance of a copy of a certificate of live birth from the State Registrar. Provides that the request shall comply with specific requirements, shall indicate the requestor's relationship to the child, and shall be made not later than 6 months from the date of the death of the child.

Right now the law states that anyone requesting a birth certificate of a deceased person, that certificate must be stamped prominently with the word "DECEASED". For parents in our position, this means that the only birth certificate we will ever be able to have will have the word DECEASED across it. Sen. John J. Cullerton has introduced a bill to amend the law so that parents can request a birth certificate within the time frame listed, and with identification, which would not be stamped DECEASED.
If you are an Illinois resident, please contact your legislators to let them know you support this bill. Write, call, e-mail, and spread the word. Believe me when I say that the parents of children who have passed away will treasure this birth certificate.
If you are not an Illinois resident, your voice can still be heard, both in Illinois, and in your own state. Protecting against identity theft is very important, but everyone should have one birth certificate that is a reminder of life, rather than death.

There will be a Memorial Service for Aiden Thomas on Wednesday, December 22nd at 6:15pm. The service will be held at Fourth Presbyterian Church in Downtown Chicago. If you feel that you would like to do something in Aiden's honor, we are asking that any donations be made to the Greater Chicago Chapter of the Arthritis Foundation.
We have also posted some more pictures on the photos page.

From The Morning News - Roundtable: New Fathers, Round II

Even zoo monkeys are smart enough to hurl their fresh feces to the other side of the cage, but somehow new parents think their child's poop will keep just fine until garbage day in a porous bucket next to his crib. Honestly, your college degree is worthless.

A group of fathers discuss their little ones and how their lives are. I'm looking forward to it.

Are there any resources with information, resources, forums, or even ideas about infants on public transit?
I don't drive unless I absolutely have to, and when The Pickle gets here, I don't expect to change that. However, I'm concerned, mostly, about protecting his hearing. Those trains can be loud (busses too) and I don't want to screw up his hearing. We'll let him do that on his own when he gets into his teenage-rock-n-roll years. Also I have questions like, is the train better than the bus? If he lets go with the full-diaper special, do I get off and change it right away, or ride it out to our destination.
It's complicated. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Commenting Available on [the baby] page: Public Transit