Delia and Stuart

For those of you who know our dog, this is an amazing photo. We love Stu with all our hearts, but he's a bit of a mess. All heart and no brains, as Alan says. If Stuart had a vocabulary, 'gentle' would not be in it, but somehow he knows to be gentle with Delia. And Delia loves her puppy. She laughs and shrieks when he walks in the room. She feeds him cheerios, pokes him in the eyes and chews on his ears.

What's in a name?

So, a few years ago when Alan asked me to marry him, I sent out a mass email to my medical school classmates. I knew there would be speculation about whether or not I would change my name. I announced that we would be known as the van Eaglegiessens and the response I got was, well, tepid. One chum suggested some sort of intervention to let me know this was a stupid idea. C'mon people, it's a joke. To set the record straight, Lego and I are Eaglesons; Delia, Stuart and Alan are van Giessens. One family, two names.

Welcome to the first post

So, inspired by the blogging of various friends and frustrated by my inability to keep up with loved ones, I have decided to try my hand at this. I apologize ahead of time if we are not as timely as we should be about these things. Please check back soon and we'll try to have some recent pictures and family updates.