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The only Willem that Todd and I have ever known of is the master actor, Willem Dafoe. After we brought little Willem home on July 22 we poked around on-line after talking with my sister, Judith, to discover who else shares his birthday... and surprise, surprise WILLEM DAFOE'S BIRTHDAY IS ALSO JULY 22!! Now people, we obviously could not have planned this. But how amazing, no? Is it a sign? Hmmm... what is in the stars for our little man?

Todd and I had a lot of fun picking out Willem's (Willem, pronounced almost like "William" but with the "em" versus "iam" at the end, with a "will" not a "vill"... heck... just like Willem Dafoe) name. We had a HUGE list of names we gathered. We spent many an hour knocking names around. Seeing what the initials ended up as, crossing out names that had possibilities for horrible name calling from meanies in school, and writing them out to see how they looked together. The manes were all of scando origin more or less... I mean the Vikings, Celts, etc. all really got around... why draw lines?

Willem Mikkel ended up striking both Todd and I very well. On March 16th we settled on it! And happily the name could accomodate a nickname that we both love... Wiley. And yes, we saw the name Wiley at the Wright Brother's museum on our honeymoon. Wiley Post was a pilot and inventor and led a pretty wild life all in all. http://www.acepilots.com/post.html

Willem is the Dutch version of William (From the Germanic name Wilhelm, which was composed of the elements wil "will, desire" and helm "helmet, protection". The name was introduced to Britain by the Normans. It has belonged to several rulers of England, Prussia, and Germany, including William the Conqueror, the first Norman king of England. Another famous bearer was William Tell, a legendary 14th-century hero from Switzerland. In the literary world it has been borne by dramatist William Shakespeare and poet William Blake, as well as contemporary authors William Faulkner and William S. Burroughs.)

Mikkel is the Scandinavian form of Michael (From the Hebrew name מִיכָאֵל (Mika'el) which meant "who is like God". This is the name of one of the seven archangels in Hebrew tradition and the only one identified as an archangel in the Bible. In the Book of Revelation in the New Testament he is portrayed as the leader of heaven's armies, and thus is considered the patron saint of soldiers. This was also the name of nine Byzantine emperors and a czar of Russia. Other more modern bearers of this name include the 19th-century chemist/physicist Michael Faraday and basketball player Michael Jordan.) The name can also be derived from the Scandinavian root mikill meaning "enormous".

Ekk... have to go! TIme for our two week check-up at the Birth Center. Look for news on how much weight he has gained... and I have lost!