A History Of A Name

Éamonn; meaning Protector. Many friends and family are asking about the name that I bear, well, it came about by much discussion between my mom and dad. Dad was hoping Seamus Sweeney Douglas or Padraig Sweeney Douglas, but mom said "No" to Seamus, "Hell No" and Padraig just did not win any favors with her. However, both mom and dad loved Éamonn which has a long history or Irish rebels carrying the torch. They also like the Engish form of the name, which is Edmund but did not care for the nickname Ed or Eddie. So Éamonn it was. Sure there are a few different ways to spell it, but we have Francophone proof it otherwise all the Quebequers would call me Eeeeman; that just was not going to fly. So Éamonn with the accent stuck; plus it was true to its Old Irish roots.

Notable Éamonn's in history include Eamonn Campbell of The Dubliners and who was the driving force behind the The Dubliners and The Pogues collaboration and the classic The Irish Rover.



Another one is Éamonn Ceant; In 1913 he joined the Irish Republican Brotherhood, and later was one of the founding members of the Irish Volunteers. As such he was important in the planning of the Easter Rising of 1916, being one of the original members of the Military Committee and thus one of the seven signatories of the Proclamation of the Irish Republic. He was made commandant of the 4th Battalion of the Volunteers, and during the Rising was stationed at the South Dublin Union and the Marrowbone Lane Distillery , with more than 100 men under his command, notably his second-in-command Cathal Brugha, and W. T. Cosgrave. His unit saw intense fighting at times during the week, but surrendered when ordered to do so by his superior officer Padraig Pearse. Ceannt's position was one of only two that was not taken in the rising, along with Éamon de Valera's at Boland's Mill. Ceannt was held in Kilmainham Jail until his execution by firing squad on 8 May 1916, aged 34.



Probably the most notable is Éamon de Valera, the first Tsaoich of the Republic of Ireland. De Valera was a leader of Ireland's struggle for independence from Britain, and the anti-Treaty opposition in the ensuing Irish Civil War (1922–1923), in which he opposed Michael Collins, but was defeated. In 1926, he founded Fianna Fáil, and became prime minister (1932–48, 1951–54, and 1957–58). His political creed evolved from militant republicanism to social and cultural conservatism. De Valera used military tribunals and the newly created Army Volunteer Reserve to thwart efforts of both the Irish Republican Army and the Army Comrades Association during the 1930s.

Which Way To The Gun Show?

Can anyone tell me which way to the gun show? Look at those guns, the right hand is sudden death and the left is six months in the hospital, what'ya like, huh? We need to get down to the beach.



Alright, so yesterday was a monumental day for me. First I turned 7 days, yep fully cooked and cured! To celebrate, my Mutti flew in from Montreal to help celebrate. My mamma-and-dems took me to Eamonn's Dublin Chipper for a little Cod and chips. James Jimmy Nolan joined us and had a Guinness in my honor.




Enough messing around, we have work to do. Dad had to kick it over to Frager's Hardware for some tools and stuff so he got me this 90th Anniversary Frager's t-shirt. All the cool kids in Capitol Hill East are sporting the Frager's t-shirts, but very few will have the limited edition 90th Anniversary t-shirt. Pops figured it would be a good idea to purchase one since my original due date was actually the same date that Frager's opened up 90 years ago. The back has a nice outline of the historic store fronts, we love the vintage style. Today we are going up to Bethesda to look in all the swang baby shops and Mutti said I can have anything I want because Opa Walter is paying for it, oh yeah!

Eamonn's First Doctors Appointment

Today was my first doctors appointment, another good excuse to get out of the house. We are very familiar with this building as it is where one of mom's doctors is located, just across the street from the Hospital where I was born, across the other side of the street from the GW OB/GYN offices where we spent a lot of time at during in utero, in the same building as the Breast Feeding Center, and equally important less than 50 feet from a Starbucks. Dad needed a strong coffee this morning, he was dragging.

The next series of photos will illustrate the very mundane but rambling of our morning. In an effort to document every possible moment of my life, mom is very trigger happy with the camera. The bad part is if I end up having a brother or a sister, I doubt mom and dad will have the same amount of joyous energy that they are wasting on me. That could lead to a major inferiority complex for additional siblings, but I guess that will be their problem. Here to being the first born.


WEIGHING IN AT: 7LBS 13OZ, on my weight back to the heavy 8s.


That is Doctor Sepe and he is checking my hips, you see if I am going to be the Under-23 National Cyclocross Champ in 2028 we need to be sure to have the hips and knees in good working order to ensure an efficient power transfer from the cranks to the rear wheel. Also, going over barriers is a little tough if you have hitch in your hip.


All that doctor business made me hungry so we scooted up to Dumbarton Oaks Park, one of Truman's favorite for second breakfast and some running time for Truman. It was a pretty fall day and we met this really nice lady named Claudine who spoke French with mom, which I did not understand a word. Dad did some translating and she basically said she thought I was super cute and probably the best baby in the world.

Big Weekend Out

Today we did a test run with the new ATV Stroller B.O.B. The weather so was nice that Momma-an-dems just could not stay inside all day so we thought we would grab the dog and stroll on up to Eastern Market and see what was kicking. As you can tell by the picture, my job was pretty easy, just sit back and enjoy the ride. With this new B.O.B. stroller it was very easy to do just that. It has shocks, big rubber tires, and a handbrake in case pops gets a little crazy on the singletrack. All and all it was pretty nice out, in the 70s actually. Mom was still moving a little slow, but no problems there we had no schedule. Even Truman decided to chill out a little and stay with us rather than ahead of us. Then on the way home we saw this very scary house with big spiders on it, I think we will revisit this house on Halloween.

Eamonn Andersen Douglas Is ALIVE!

Wow, nobody can ever truly explain the experience that is childbirth even as a father. The flood of emotions was overwhelming and all the fears you have vanish with that first burst of noise coming from their mouth. Deep breaths, taking it all in; lovely living being. The miracle of it all still playing with my emotions and comprehension. I finally know what addiction is.