March Madness: Big Hearts and Big Kicks

We've had some crazy few weeks in the Stanbery household.  March was a big month for us- both up and down.

In our last post you learned that BabyBery is a baby BOY and we are thrilled with the news.  Matt's super excited because I think he may have shut down our gender party if it happened to be a girl.  Now that baby boy Stanbery is on his way into this world in the next few months, Matt's mentioned that having a girl next wouldn't be so bad.  He needs an accomplice, he says... for all the boys that would come by to try and date his future daughter.

We've decided on a name (one that's been decided for quite some time) and we are naming our son, Abishai-- meaning "Gift from the Father".  Abishai was one of King David's mighty men-- a determined warrior and one known in the Bible for slaying 300 men in one battle with his sword to protect King David.  Think the Greek king Leonidus.  Abishai was fierce!  We're hoping for the same strength and might in our son, but hopefully with less of a temper.  :)

The end of March was a hectic time for us.  My dad was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and after 12+ hours of surgery, his very skilled doctors were able to remove all of the cancer from his pancreas.  He is now left with only 25% of his pancreas and he no longer has a spleen, but we thank God every day that he is alive.  God has plans for my dad and we're pretty certain that one of those plans is meeting his grandson this August.   My dad is doing well now, learning each day to deal with diabetes, but recovering quite quickly-- much to the surprise of his doctors.  We all have something to be thankful for and it makes us remember how precious each day of life is.

Although my dad's days in the hospital were not comfortable or fun for any of us, I was very excited to greet my dad on the day of his discharge with the first few kicks from our little boy.  Seeing my dad's smile and hearing him laugh for the first time in a long time as he held his palm to my belly was such a blessing.  Almost like Abishai knew Grandpa Lalo needed a pick-me-up.

Since then, Abishai has been kicking up a storm.  It's so strange to feel him.  I've likened the feeling to him doing the spider-pig on my belly.  I've been told it will only get stronger and possibly uncomfortable.  I'm preparing myself for his soccer player kicks if he's going to follow in his father's footsteps.

Then there's this.  I'm only posting this because I vowed to keep track of my pregnancy brain moments-- this will probably be the closest to comic relief you'll find on the blog.  Enjoy!



Pregnancy Brain Moment (another to add to the list): So as I was lying there during our 20 week ultrasound, watching our tech click through all of the boxes to confirm that our baby boy has all of his organs and limbs.  Legs - check,  arms - check, liver - check, kidneys - check.... 4 chambered heart - check!  It was a great appointment and Matt and I were so excited to hear that the baby was doing well.  We get in the car and this conversation ensues:

Me: Our son has a 4 chambered heart!!
Matt: Yup
Me: Now he only has to grow one more chamber...
Matt: (confused look on face) Uh... no.  He just gets 4.  Are you serious?
Me: (also with a confused look on my face)  Oh.  Really?  Just 4?  I could've sworn there were 5.
Matt: Nope, honey.  He only has 4. You also only have 4.  We only have four. 
Me: Oh...

To make me feel better, Matt has now said that I must've thought there were five chambers and that Jesus goes in the 5th chamber.  Gotta make room for Jesus, right?

Gender Reveal

When we first found out we were pregnant, Matt surprised me with his knowledge of something called a "Gender Reveal Party".  Instead of having the ultrasound tech tell us what gender our baby was, we would ask her to write the gender down on a piece of paper and seal the answer in an envelope.  Then we give the envelope to a baker who would die the cake either pink or blue depending on the sex of the baby and then cover it in white frosting.

So...with the help of some very awesome girlfriends, mine and Matt's vision was brought to life.  Hours of gluey mess later we had my dream decor-- handmade yarn balls-- which will later decorate BabyBery's bedroom.  I created a photobooth area that helped our guests cast their "vote" on the baby's gender by snapping a photo with a mustache or lips.  Then there was the food, we had an awesome spread of goodies and even pink and blue drinks to match the theme.

In the end we found out that BabyBery is a BOY!  Here are some photos of the party and a video recap. :)

Tons of thanks to Shayna, the Lipscomb Ladies, Shannon, Natalie, & Courtney for all the hardwork they put in to making this party perfect!

 

 

 

 

 

And the list goes on

One month and 4 days ago we moved from our cozy little home in San Pedro to our now, much larger, almost cozy, soon-to-feel-like-home in fancy pants Carson.  I'm using the term "fancy-pants" sarcastically for those of you not familiar with the outskirts of the Harbor Cities.  We still have boxes strewn about the place and a good number of items that still don't have a permanent hiding spot, but it's getting there... slowly.  My goal (and I haven't had too many goals since getting pregnant-- pregnancy makes me too tired for goals) is to have our place all gussied up by the second week of March.  We'll see how that goes.

In the last month, though, I have managed to accomplish the following:

• Expand my diet beyond pizza, fried chicken, & french fries
• Go grocery shopping without vomiting at the smell of rotisserie chicken
• Become a pancake cooking master
• Wash multiple loads of dishes without flinching at the site of partially eaten food
• Cook a meal that's main protein was not battered and fried
• Fully alphabetize and shelve 740+ DVDS (we could open up our own rental business)

I'm pretty proud of that list.  It's the little things that keep me going these days.

One thing that I am desperately trying to cross off is how to kick a cold without taking any medication while pregnant.  It's been a month that I've been festering nastiness in my body that manifests itself in some form of congestion, cough, or increased mucous production.  Yeah, I know... it's gross.  I took for granted all those times that I was able to easily shoot back 2 full teaspoons of some menthol-flavored elixir, pass out for a full-night's rest, and wake up with the slightest glimmer of a sniffle.  Nowadays, I find myself barely remembering what it felt like to have two working nostrils and a voice that didn't sound like I was speaking to everyone with my face submerged in water. 

The entrepreneurial nature in me wants to take advantage of this affliction and come up with some miracle drug that cures the common cold in pregnant women.  There's a million dollar business in this somewhere.  Having a cold while you're pregnant is the worst! In my desperation yesterday I even called my doctor's office pleading for some relief and she okay'd the use of regular strength Tylenol Cold.  I practically ran to the Target pharmacy to get my hands on it only to find the shelves empty.  I put on my best sick as a dog face and went to ask the pharmacist if she could recommend anything comparable in my pregnant state.  I ruined it for myself.  She refused to tell me anything and kept repeating that since I'm pregnant there is nothing I can do but go home, rest, and use a saline sinus rinse.

Now, I won't go into the ugly details that were my last experience with sinus rinsing, but let's just say it didn't end well.  I never had any problems with it until about 3 weeks ago when I proved to myself that sinus rinsing can rinse out not just your nasal passage but your last meal.  *shiver*  Needless to say, I won't be sinus rinsing for a long time.

Today, I discovered Puffs Plus tissues with Vicks! You can smell these fluffy, white rags from a mile away, but they do give me some form of relief.  The relief lasts only minutes, but boy do I cherish those minutes.  Do I care that I smell like a retirement home's gathering hall?  No siree.  I will proudly be toting these menthol-potent babies with me until I kick this cold to the curb.  I may even sneak some into my pockets while I lead worship tomorrow morning.  I'm sure God will love my Vicks Vapo smellin' voice.

Lastly, here's the first of many BabyBery Bump Shots.  It looks like I'm pushing my belly out, but I assure you I'm not.  I have a tiny, compact torso and that baby belly is bumpin'.  I'm still getting used to the fact that it's not hard, jiggles, and just looks like I had a HUGE lunch (which, maybe I did. It was probably delicious).  I'll be 15 weeks on Monday, but I'm just too lazy to take photos each week.  Here's 13 weeks for those curious about my progress to fat penguin status.

13 weeks

A Serious Case of Pregnancy Brain

I've heard many women talk about "pregnancy brain" but it just sounds like an excuse for just plain dumb.  I was wrong... as usual, since I've recently discovered that I've come down with an enormous case of pregnancy brain.  Sure, I'd make dumb comments or ask a lame question here and there, but I just attributed that to my unbelievable exhaustion.  Making a baby is tiring and my brain just doesn't think... as hard as it used to, that is.

Then it happened; the moment I realized that all my logic and coherence had taken a vacation.  I was tired and headed home from the usual stressful day at work.  I pulled into the garage, grabbed my purse, got out of the car, and headed inside.  I was about 4 steps into the house when I realized that the water heater sounded like it was working overtime.  Man, that water heater is loud!  So, I turn around to look back into the garage.  Nope-- not the water heater.  Sure enough, my car was still running.  Yeah, that's right.  I left my car running in the garage.  Stunned, I hurry back to my car, turn off the ignition, and in absolute humiliation run inside to tell Matt what an idiot I am. 

Okay, so I admit it.  I have pregnancy brain.  Never in my right mind would I have left my car running.  Now, you'd think I'd learn my lesson.  I've successfully repeated that instance a total of three times now.  THREE!  Proceeded into my home with my car still running.  Each time, I've caught it upon entering the house, but still!  I anticipated all the other side effects to pregnancy: nausea, food aversions, exhaustion, and emotional instability, but I did not prepare for the random fits of ineptitude.

I'm hoping I'm done with the car-left-running streak, but I'll keep a tally on the blog just in case. 

Keeping A Breast of Baby Fashion Trends

It's wintertime and it's getting a bit chilly-- well not really-- in Southern California chilly just means anything below 65 degrees.   Regardless, I get cold easily.  I love bundling up in the wintertime and I can't wait to start bundling up my little bundle of joy.  See what I did there?

Well, on two completely separate occasions I received a nifty link to a product that is apparently taking the infant beanie industry by storm! Twice in one week someone thought it was important enough to share with me... and one of those someones happens to be my baby daddy.  Awkward.

I'll let you figure out for yourself what these handmade wonders resemble.  Even Yahoo!'s fashion columnists couldn't let this one slide without an article (granted the article's title started with "Fashion that Makes Us Sad..."). 

When I originally started this post these anatomically humorous head warmers were only $5 a piece, but apparently due to all the media and popularity, the price is up to $20 including shipping.  Jump on these suckers now, mommas, because it looks like the price of knitted milk is rising.

Boobie Beanies

In other baby fashion news,  these en mode hoodies are also for sale.  Seriously, I'm so amazed at all the choices that are available to me as a mother-to-be.  Please, no one buy this for me.  I'd make a terrible kangaroo.

The Peekaru!

Backflips for Crunch Bars

Let's reminisce for a few moments.  Remember being a kid and going to someone's birthday party and they had a pinata that was in the shape of some character or animal that matched the theme of their party? You and all 30 of the other kids would scream and shout till you ripped the head off of that character, its candy guts spilled onto the ground, and then all of you elementary aged looters would storm the ground for sugar.  Then, came the sugar rush.  Kids running around as if they were drunk, kicking balloons, climbing walls, and going bonkers.

So... we did that to BabyBery today.  Officially 12 weeks today and our good lil munchkin was not in the mood for moving at all.  Nothing some ice cold water and Nestle Crunch Bars couldn't turn around. Two chocolate bars later and BabyBery was doing backflips.  Swimming around like there was a party only they had the secret code for.

No longer a little berry... we've got a real human in there!  The best news is that I'm officially out of my first trimester.  Here's to hoping my meat aversion subsides and I can finally go grocery shopping without amping myself up to to scream "CLEAN UP ON AISLE 5" every time they start cooking rotisserie chicken.  

My 12 week letter to BabyBery

Dear BabyBery,
Mind growing a taste for veggies or maybe even a hamburger patty?  I'd really like to start eating something other than french fries, pizza, and battered & deep fried chicken.  Also, I know you love soda, but I can't drink gallons of it, so the little sips here and there will have to do.  Just for the record, you really are your father's child... already.  That's all for now.  I love you and can't wait to meet you.

Love, Mom

Growing on the Vine

It had been a little over 4 weeks since the night that I received my "not-less" pregnancy test results and now we were sitting patiently in a pale pink walled waiting room filled with some obviously pregnant women.   Me... not so much.  If anything, the nauseous look on my face, giant thermos of water, and the packets of crackers in my hands would have been a dead giveaway.


The anxiety we both felt while waiting in the doctor's waiting room was overwhelming. Other than "you hope you hear a heartbeat", we really had no idea what we were in for.  An hour later, we got called back to the ultrasound room.  Our not-so-warm ultrasound tech looks at us and dismissively says "this will only take one minute.  We're just trying to find a heartbeat".  In our heads we're thinking: Yeah, go ahead and take as many minutes as you need lady-- we want to hear that heart thumpin.  She didn't look like the type that wanted to waste any time though.

Two minutes later, a loud, fast thumping noise started echoing in our little room.  It sounded like Thumper doing a dance on a log.  Yet, our ultrasound tech said nothing.  She was completely silent the whole time and didn't guide us through anything she was doing.  We watched as she snapped a few photos and finally typed "BABY" on the screen next to this little lima bean looking blob.  Printed the photo and handed it to us.  "Congratulations," she said with a stale look on her face, "you're exactly 8 weeks and 4 days along."  Then she sent us on our way without any real fanfare.

We thanked her and the moment Matt shut the door to the room, I turned to him, shook the photo and let out a not-so-silent squeal then whispered "We're having a baby!"

We've got a BabyBery growing on our vine... evidence below.

Photo courtesy of the brilliant Thomas Whiteside at Wish For Color