Shower the Love

So last weekend in Winston, we attended the best baby shower ever in the history of the world. Coincidentally, it was ours. :)

Unfortunately, unless you were there, you just can't fathom the level of awesome achieved by the hard work and creativity of Ansley's soon-to-be aunts and uncles. But maybe pictures will help. 

(No, really: we didn't plan that. We're just ... matchy. In general ;)

 "The six." As the boys like to point out, we have 

about 65 pictures in this same general configuration. 

Maybe they'd care to give us some 

"surprised face; hand gesture" posing lessons...

 Mama holding mama holding mamatini. Mmmm.

Bumping bellies with my bro (Uncle B)

Playing "don't break the water[balloon]" - coolest shower game of all time

(No, I'm not in labor. 

Just pelted my mom and Adam with a rogue water balloon. 

Maybe not so cool for them. 

Sorry!! That's my bad.)

Hey! Now that I see this hug, I'm a little suspicious that they may have been trying to squeeze Ansley out!!

My beautiful girls (and Jake!)

 The crew

And speaking of my peeps:

I just wanted to write you all a quick note to let you know how much Saturday night meant to me (and Jon ;) We had the best time surrounded by our favorite people in the world. I thoroughly enjoyed basking in the glow of such supportive and excited friends and family, and I'm not sure I've ever felt so loved and attended to. The food was awesome... the drinks were wonderful... the decorations were perfect... the games were so much fun. I don't know how you thought of everything and then went above and beyond to make it even more special. You are just amazing to have put together such an incredible night. I'm pretty sure if any of you decided to take on another career, it could be catering. Amongst the cheesecake bites, cupcake rattles, fruit "carriage," mini foods and specialty drinks, I can't pick a favorite. I could have drank 8 pina coladas and mamatinis - it's probably good I stopped at 2 of each(!). And I think I may start eating my burgers on Hawaiian buns because the size and sweetness just somehow made it better. I can't believe you did all of that for us, and I'm so thankful that I have such thoughtful and extraordinary friends. I am still in shock and awe of your generosity. And not only did you organize every last detail, but you took the time to be there (some of you from quite a distance and at quite an inconvenient time) and then gave even more.

I am going to try my best to let Ansley know how lucky and blessed she is to have this family of friends in her life (though I don't know how I'll do you justice!). Hopefully it'll be enough for now to tell you that I know how fortunate I am. I can't even convey how much I cherish your friendship. You make everything better when you're there. Life would be so much less without you in it, and I would be so much less without you. You are simply awesome. Stopping crying at my computer now... I love you all so flipping much!!

(Since this blog probably won't go public for a while, I'm sending that thanks via Facebook, too).

And I Quote

{pufferfish sans water: week 34} 

Some of my favorite baby quotes—just thought I'd share:  

"Making the decision to have a child--It's momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body." - Elizabeth Stone 

"I don't know why they say "you have a baby." The baby has you." - Gallagher

"Parenthood: The state of being better chaperoned than you were before marriage." - Marcelene Cox

"Raising kids is part joy and part guerilla warfare." - Ed Asner 

"If your baby's "beautiful and perfect, never cries or fusses, sleeps on schedule and burps on demand, an angel all the time," you're the grandma." - Theresa Bloomingdale

"People who say they sleep like babies usually don't have them." - Leo J. Burke 

"Human beings are the only creatures on Earth that allow their children to come back home." - Bill Cosby 

"There are only two things a child will share willingly - communicable diseases and his mother's age." - Dr. Benjamin Spock 

"Diaper backward spells repaid. Think about it." - Marshall McLuhan

"A father is someone who carries pictures where his money used to be." - Anon 

"The hardest job facing kids today is learning good manners without seeing any." - Fred Astaire

“The thing that impresses me most about America is the way parents obey their children.” - King Edward VIII  

"Parenthood: trading joy for sleep since [2009]" - Anon

Random Thought

{week 24}

If baby bop decided to come out now, she would be the same age and size as my little brother when he was born 24 years ago 16 weeks early. That is incredible. I can barely fathom it. The fact that Bronson, at 1 pound 9 ounces (and a boy nonetheless) was born when my mom was only as pregnant as I am now astounds me. 

It is and was quite definitely a miracle that after struggling in the hospital for weeks and weeks and enduring a myriad of difficulties (hernias, reflux, a lazy eye! asthma...), B turned out to be the robust,  ;) caring brother that gave me the shirt off his back today when I was feeling a chill. I know he's gone through a lot, but Bronson - you are literally awesome. Don't let anyone tell you differently.

Mac Daddy

{week 26 of pleasant plumpness}

Jon, last night: "I better get a mention in your blog about how awesome I am."

Despite my urge to immediately delete all indications of said awesomeness after that comment, he really does deserve a number of mentions. Plus I had already written most of what's below. 

It's not like I didn't already know Jon was excited about being a dad. I mean, anyone who speaks to us on a regular basis probably understands that he was ready for the job at least 5 years ago. But lately he has taken to what I call "man-nesting." Symptoms of which are, as I've noted:

1. Concern for me and baby at an all-time high. He about jumps out of his skin if a dog approaches my belly, will not allow me to lift or move anything over 7 lbs, rolls me over in my sleep if I happen to end up on my back, and will not eat my leftovers because I am apparently supposed to stuff them into my overly-full self "for the baby." When I disclosed that my back was hurting shortly after the move, he took to giving me little standing back-rubs and helping me up and down without my asking. And he's offered up his Prilosec and Rolaids on a number of occasions when I think I might have heartburn (though it is almost surely not as bad as his). He also quietly dodges my hormone-induced freakout sessions (the most recent of which involved a missing sweet & sour sauce in my [rather un]happy meal), and definitely does not jump at the chance to tell that embarrassing story to any and everyone we encounter ...

2. Banker-Jon in full effect. He goes in early, stays late, and has generally been working himself ragged trying to earn more money in preparation for baby time (and the 2 or so months that I'll be out of work for baby time). He even told me he felt this was his way of nesting, as it is the only thing he knows to do. This symptom should also include his tireless efforts to find us the perfect new home, rent out our old home and make sure our other properties are productive enough to help pay for daycare. Honestly, this is like IT for me. Being able to sleep at night knowing we should (fingers crossed!) have the means to pay for childcare and put a roof over our heads is huge. (Yes, Jon, that makes you awesome).

3. Above-average level of interest in certain things baby. After a long day at FLS scoping out beds and kid-related furniture, we crumpled into the car and before I lost consciousness I heard Jon say, "That was fun... I enjoyed that." He had a major hand in picking out the bedding, insisted that the nursery contain pink, and practically dragged me to register for the major items at Babies R Us (which I actually think he enjoys frequenting). We attended babyclass together, and he even endured the b-feeding seminar (where he at least kept the childish giggling to a minimum). He was quite amused with our "amazingly lifelike" stand-in, especially when we happened to pick her up separately in both classes:

(don't ask me what happened to her head; let's just call it an unfortunate birthmark)

He often peers at my belly and smiles or laughs at its fullness. He says it's just "so cute to see because it wasn't there before and now [I'm] growing our baby inside it."  

4. Taking over my tasks. Obviously, I'm not completely helpless. And most of the time, I'm fine to do all of the things I do on a normal, everyday basis even while pregnant. But I have recently noticed how Jon has taken to getting up early in the mornings to feed and let the dogs out. This blessedly allows me to sleep a little longer, and prevents me from having to stumble after Hannahbelle the wild animal while she does her business. In the first trimester, he would often make dinner and do the cleaning up because I was too tired. He was and is happy to carry all my bags (aside from the light groceries and pillows I insist on being able to carry myself). As I mentioned, he packed up most of our old house while I was gone and did a ton of the moving alone. And the first night we stayed in our new house, Jon called me upstairs to find him sprawled out in the tub with the jets on (this was just hilarious to me because he has never to my knowledge voluntarily taken a tub when not sick, and I just pictured myself coming home from work one night and discovering him in the bath with candles, music and bubbles - none of which were present this time I should state). So I guess he's gone ahead and started taking baths for me, too, since I'm not supposed to do so. Nice.

5. Enter Mr. Fix-It. Jon has also become my very own handyman. I'm not sure how he acquired these skills, but all of a sudden fans and fixtures are switched out, hardware is replaced and dimmer lights are going in like nobody's business. My bathroom sink was draining a little slowly when we first moved in, and Jon took it apart and unclogged it himself. He's painted the nursery, put up beadboard and assembled baby furniture (with help from the dads and Kay), and even put up shelving in the garage. There's a possibility this all started back when our toilet wouldn't stop running on Eagle and Heidi was the one who figured out how to fix it. I think he made a vow that very day to out-man her. But no matter what the impetus, I have to say I am loving HandyJon.

--

So sweetie, I hope I haven't left out too much (because I'm sure there's more, and I'm sure you'll remind me of it if and when you read this blog).

Of course I know you'll make the most amazing father I could ever hope for. But maybe I need to tell you more often. I am profoundly honored and grateful that you picked me to be the mother of your child(ren). It's pretty amazing to know you're in this with me 110%. Clearly, marrying you was one of the smartest things I've ever done (and I'm pretty smart ;)

In all seriousness, though, you are the first thing I thank God for when I pray. There would be no baby without you. I don't even know how I got so lucky to find you on pretty much the first try! Thank you for making me feel like I can do this (with a little help). I love you just as much.  

Aliens Among Us

{stork watch: week 25}

We've breached the threshold. Lying down the other night in MiniMac's favorite chair and in her favorite position, I looked down at my belly and actually saw her move. Jon and I were so captivated by the strange alien poking, we probably sat there for a good 30 minutes just staring. It's kind of like a little fishy disturbing the "water." She's still being rather sneaky, though. And only with certain people. She'll let the grandmothers feel her, but my dad has yet to catch her in action. She seems to be playing hide-and-seek with Aunt Heidi (and she's really good at the hiding). I'll feel her rolling around one minute, and the second they reach out a hand she converts to stealth mode. Unfortunately, shoving and verbal threats seem to have no effect at this point.

Pregalicious

Ok I'm seriously freaked out. Not only has my previously-inny belly button begun to protrude outward and become more shallow, but it has a hood. The other day, Jon and I got a kick out of pushing on it, because it feels sort of like a sliding cover. So weird. And even weirder, I know eventually it will poke out way more - to the point where it will then look to me like a third nip under my shirt... at which time, I may invent some preggy "bell-eez" (like "boob-eez") to cover up my obscene protuberance. Did I mention this pregnancy thing is really weird to me?

(Ewww!)

Welcome Home

Night 1

Captain's Log - 11:42 pm:
All is quiet in James Landing. Like, wow. No jammin' rap music thundering from an SUV across the street? No couples arguing at volumes well above normal level outside our window or strange popping noises that may or may not originate from a firearm??? Definitely no rhythmic shuddering of the door near the AC unit. Dogs are still - for the moment. I'm not sure I can sleep with all this quiet.   ;)  Sweet...

7:28 am: 

Woke up to a strange ticking sound, dogs barking spastically and Jon's frantic cry: (quote) MCKENZIE GET OUT OF THE HOUSE, NOW. GET OUT. Holy crap. As I can see all heck has broken loose (it was only a matter of time really), I grab my purse, throw on a sweatshirt and wrangle Hannah into a leash before stumbling outside to have a panic attack for 20 minutes. 

So I'm standing on our neighbors' wet grass in a fog thinking 'What the heck happened? Did our check bounce and they're taking the house back or something?' when Jon abruptly shouts an all-clear and ushers me back inside, where he proceeds to tell me that he had in fact woken up to that strange ticking noise, gone downstairs and found a water jug leaking onto one of the burners on our gas stove, causing it to flip out. Since the whole natural gas thing is new to us, he (justifiably) panicked that the gas was leaking and thought only of my safety. This is good because it means I can forgive the stern tone and angry-Jon voice he used to get me out of the house. 

While I contemplate the early hour and recover from the near-heart-attack I've just had, Hannah notices the open garage door and promptly bolts through it. Oops. Apparently, Jon had wisely seen the need for ventilation and opened all doors and windows during the commotion (which I didn't realize when unleashing the monster). 20 minutes later, Jon has managed to capture our escapee and we breathe a collective sigh of relief ...

... until I watch in slow-motion horror as Hannah looks out through our open dining room window, props her front feet up, turns back to me just long enough to smile mockingly and jumps through. 

Awesome.