“So…” (long pause…hesitation) “…is your baby a boy or girl? Insert inquisitive, awkward smile on the asking individual.

It’s not a question that bothers Chelsea or I at all and I absolutely love that our little GIRL (just so there’s no ambiguity) has a “gender neutral name”. I have always thought that girls with a neutral name were so cool – shout out to all the Ryan’s, Charlie’s, & Skylar’s in the house! 

Getting to the heart of the matter lies within the answer to this question:

Where does the name Davy come from? 

As I state in my “about page”, yes, I am from Texas and maybe a little to obnoxiously proud of that fact. However, much to the dismay of my fellow “come and take it” flag flyin’, cowboy boot wearin’, Blue Bell eatin’ Texans – we did not name our daughter after the famed Davy Crockett. 

Her name had its genesis birthed within the framework of two specific personal narratives in Chelsea and my life.

A Severe Mercy 

Our first encounter with the name “Davy” came while reading an obscure book titled A Severe Mercy by Sheldon Vanauken. A Severe Mercy, is subtitled as a book of faith, tragedy and triumph. Sheldon, the author, describes his adventurous love story as “the spiritual autobiography of a love rather than of the lovers.” The story recounts his journey with wife, Jean Davis – or – “Davy” as she was affectionately known.

This autobiographical account weaves through Sheldon and Davy’s lives beginning with their infantile love and follows it as is develops into a robust, “pagan” love. On their journey they find themselves studying at Oxford where they develop a friendship with C.S. Lewis. Under Lewis’ influence they struggle with the larger existential questions of life and faith.

The rest of the book chronicles their journey of faith, loss and discovery. I won’t expose anymore about this beautiful story so that you’ll want to read it yourself, but I will leave you with a few reviews from the time to whet your appetite. The Washington Post said that, “No brief review can do justice to the human depth of this book.” and the Los Angeles Times called it, “[A] deep, uncompromising story about human and divine love.” All of that to say – you should read it!

The name Davy piqued our interest as a cute name, yet it wasn’t on our radar for what we would name our child.

David (“Dave”) Wayne Schuchard 

David Wayne Schuchard (pronounced shoe – hard), simply  “Dave” to most of his friends, was Chelsea’s dad. Mr. Schuchard was a gregarious man, jokester and a die hard Texas Tech Red Raider. He loved Taco Villa (you only get that reference if you are from Lubbock!), Dr. Pepper, thought he made a mean taco salad and never met a stranger.

In our first year of marriage, Chelsea and I got a phone call that no one ever wants to receive, yet unfortunately many do. Mr. Schuchard called us to let us know that he had been diagnosed with stage 4 Pancreatic Cancer and they were aggressively going to start treating it. We were at a loss with this devastating news.

We did the only thing we knew how to do and traveled to Lubbock every chance that we got to spend time with him. We shared Dr. Peppers, told jokes, ate Taco Villa often and watched his beloved Red Raiders. Yet, after fighting the good fight for 6 months Mr. Schuchard went to be with Jesus March 6, 2011.

Davy Girl 

Once Chelsea and I learned that we were pregnant we did what every pregnant couple does…debate over names! As we were brainstorming girl names we recalled the name Davy from A Severe Mercy. Then, the idea came to us that we could name our little girl Davy in honor of Chels’ dad because it’s the closest feminine version of David we could find.

Once we learned we were having a little girl there was no hesitation over what we would call her – Davy.

Hopefully this gives a some insight into our precious little girl’s name. Her middle name, Elizabeth, also has quite the anecdote, but that will have to wait for another time.

Update & Prayer Requests

Davy has been doing ok. We had a HUGE answer to prayer when the nurses were able to get the PICC line in! Thank you all so much for praying for that specifically! Overall, she had a decent morning, but then unfortunately her upper lobe of her of her right lung collapsed. They are having her to transfer her back to the “high frequency ventilator”, but they were able to stabilize her and get her comfortable for most of the day.

• Right Lung – Pray that her right lung would pop open and not remain collapsed.
• Infection – keep praying against any potential infection.
• Doctors – Please be praying for the wisdom of our doctors. They have had a challenge finding what works for Davy and are working hard to figure out a solution. Ask for God to give them supernatural insight.