Hellos, Farewells, and The Videos No One Wants To See

This month we were excited to welcome our friends, Kat and Burton, back home to San Diego!  They spent a year in Japan leading ministries for the victims of the 2011 tsunami.  In addition to helping meet the peoples' physical and emotional needs, they also led creative arts activities for them. Kat is a talented hula dancer, and she choreographed and taught dances to Christian worship songs. Burton is a gifted artist and photographer, so he taught art classes for all age groups.  They have many stories of people professing faith in Christ, wanting to learn more about the Bible, and being blessed by the opportunity to express themselves and create something beautiful in the midst of a devastated area.

Almost simultaneously, we said farewell to our friends, Ray and Peggy, who moved to Zambia, Africa to work with African Christian University.  ACU's purpose is to educate and raise up strong Christian leaders who will make an impact for Christ throughout Africa.  Both Ray and Peggy have worked in Christian schools for many years, and they'll offer a wealth of wisdom as this brand-new ministry grows. From talking with them and Kat and Burton, we've learned that there is an extremely steep learning curve for U.S. missionaries who need to learn the language and culture of the people they're working with.  We know that God will use them in a powerful way, and we're praying for them as they transition to an entirely new life.

 

In other news, Dan and I have started attending childbirth classes once a week. They were pretty gentle on us the first week with get-to-know-you games and general information about the last trimester of pregnancy.  Then wham! They hit us between the eyes the second week with the nitty-gritty of labor and delivery, including The Videos No One Wants To See.  Dan took a strategic bathroom break right before they started one of the videos and then acted like it was just a coincidence. Heh. 

 

It makes sense that they get right to point, though, since out of the 20 couples in the class, you know a few of us will probably go into labor early.  At the end of Week 2, I was even more convinced that no one except the necessary medical professionals and Dan should witness this event in my life.  Dan on the other hand, is now ready to call in the troops in case the front line (I will not name names) passes out or panics.  My favorite quote from him is "I need to be able to divide my body in half, so my torso can stay with you giving you support while my legs pace non-stop around the room." I just reminded him that they have very strong, helpful drugs, and I'm sure they'll give him some. :)  I have no doubt at all he'll be incredible that day, since he's always been my most amazing, steady supporter.  I'm not going to lie, though, I'm pretty excited about those strong, helpful drugs myself.

 

Anyway, we decided that surviving The Videos called for a celebration at the Happiest Place on Earth. They still had decorations up for Valentine's Day, and the weather was in the high 80s that day, which was awesome!  I'm pretty much limited to riding the kiddie rides, but we always love going and soaking in the fun atmosphere.  We also walked to a nearby Cheesecake Factory for a belated Valentine's Day dinner before heading back to watch Disney's nighttime fireworks show.

 

A (dark) picture in front of the "True Love" heart on Main Street

 

Dan carrying his backpack pregnancy-style :)

 

And me carrying my belly pregnancy-style at 32 weeks!

Third Trimester!!

We've of course been so grateful to God all along for the blessing of this healthy pregnancy, but today we're extra excited and thankful to begin the third trimester!  It's hard to believe we'll get to meet our little girl in just 12 weeks or so!  According to our last ultrasound, she's about 2.5 pounds and 14 inches long.  I can tell she's growing by how far she can reach across my abdomen now! I'll get a solid punch-kick combo on my left and right sides simultaneously sometimes. She can't quite reach up to my rib cage yet, but I can tell she's working on it.  She probably thinks it's a jungle gym. :)

 

She'll add more height during the next few weeks, but mostly she'll be gaining that cute baby fat.  We're praying for a nice, chubby, full-term baby!  Our ultrasounds have shown that she has one dilated kidney, but otherwise she looks very healthy, and we're asking God to heal her kidney before she's even born.  They can't tell what's causing it to be dilated, so she'll most likely be seen by a pediatric urologist very shortly after birth.  We'd appreciate your prayers for her healing. 

 

I've continued to feel really well, although bending over to tie my shoes and getting up from our couch are becoming monumental tasks!  I'm definitely going to buy a non-slip mat for our tub as soon as possible since I'm a little worried about losing the battle with my shifting center of gravity.  Other than just feeling more awkward, I've thankfully had very few of the typical pregnancy complaints.  I have started to occasionally wake up around 3 a.m., unable to go back to sleep for a few hours - I hear that can become more common during the third trimester. My first line of defense for discomfort or sleeplessness at night is to support my body with yet another extra pillow, so poor Dan is probably going to be pushed to the floor by my mountain of pillows before our due date comes around. :)  But I've been exercising with our recumbent bike, elliptical machine, and prenatal yoga videos, and I really think it helps to keep me feeling good during the days and sleeping well at night. 

 

Within the next few weeks, we'll start taking childbirth classes - that should be an adventure.  I've been reading the Labor and Delivery chapter in "What to Expect When You're Expecting," to mentally prepare myself for the topics they'll cover.  In the midst of the exhausting and gory details, they have tips for the coach/spouse that make me laugh out loud.  I'm not sure if they meant those sections to be comic relief, but I find all the caveats hilarious.  There's a list of about two dozen ways Dan can help as a coach during labor, and they all say something like "Remind her to use her breathing techniques, unless she finds it annoying." "Rub her back or hold her hand, unless she tells you to stop touching her." I wonder if they'll have me act like a wounded and angry wild animal during childbirth class so Dan will be ready. I'll keep you posted. :)

 

Here's a picture of baby girl and I at 28 weeks!  I'm expecting to grow a ton during the last 12!

 

Birthday Celebration and Pregnancy Buddy

Dan sure knows how to treat a lady on her birthday!  He took me out the night before for an early celebration dinner at the Cheesecake Factory, and since my birthday was on a Friday, he surprised me with gorgeous roses and a special breakfast before I went to work.  It was so sweet that he adjusted his work schedule that morning just to make me feel special and loved.

That tall glass of healthy water is hiding a decidedly unhealthy, but amazing slice of Hershey Bar Cheesecake

One of the best ways to start my birthday!

We grabbed breakfast at The Broken Yolk before I went to work.  It's our favorite local breakfast place,  just a few blocks from our house.

Baby girl and I after a big French Toast breakfast. :)  My coworkers treated me to lunch that day, so Dan and I stayed home with a movie and a light dinner that night. I had to draw the line at three restaurant meals in a row, since I don't want this baby to weigh 12 pounds at birth!

That weekend, we did some registry list shopping at Babies R Us for a few things I wanted him to help me choose.  We got to park in the stork parking (it's the small things). :)

My friend, Lisa, has been my designated pregnancy buddy since we're due the same week in April. It's her first child, also, and she's having a boy.  It's so fun to have someone to talk to who's going through the same stages as me!  She was really sick during her first 20 weeks, though, and I felt very grateful (yet guilty) to have such a relatively easy pregnancy compared to her.  Thankfully, she's feeling much better now!  I went to her baby shower this weekend, and we took a couple of "belly photos" together.

Lisa's due April 26th and I'm due April 21st. I'm sure it'll be a toss up at the end to see who actually gives birth first, though!

Boy vs. Girl :)

Some lovely ladies who used to attend a home Bible study with me. Left to right: Judy, Holly, Lisa, and me. It was great to catch up with them!

Christmas & New Year's Eve

Happy New Year! It's amazing that it's already 2013, but we're of course so excited about the addition coming to our family in a few short months!  One of my cousins asked me if I was ready for the baby to be here already, and I said "No! I still have four more months!"  I probably need much more time than that to feel ready to be a mom, but I'll take what I can get. :)

We had a great time visiting both our families during Christmas week, starting in Fort Worth, TX where my parents and older brother Paul live.  My younger brother, Steve, was able to fly out for Christmas, too, and we loved spending the time together.  We even had a white Christmas, which was a fun surprise!  We stayed at my parents' house and enjoyed nice laid-back days for the most part.  We all needed the down time, especially Paul, who has continued to struggle with pain because of the tumor in his spine.  He normally has less pain when he can lie on his back most of the day, but on the days when he was feeling more energetic, we all went out to dinner and played games around the kitchen table.  He's receiving radiation treatments for his spinal tumor, and is taking chemotherapy pills to treat the cancer that more recently appeared in his brain. Despite the medications and pain, he's maintained his sweet and steady disposition.  He's such an amazing guy!

We met my mom's side of the family the Sunday before Christmas at a Mexican food restaurant.  It was great to see everyone who could make it!  We also loved meeting my cousin Emily's brand-new baby boy, Beckett, for the first time. Our family is growing by leaps and bounds with new spouses and children, and needless to say, my parents are beyond excited that they'll be grandparents soon. My mom included an introduction to my belly ("and this is my granddaughter") to the neighbors and church friends that Dan and I met. :)

Our picture at the extended family get-together: Dan, me, Mom, Paul, Dad, and Steve

Tim, Aunt Jane, and Tricia

(We missed seeing my cousin Kyle and Tricia's husband and three kids that night!)

Russell, Brad, Remy holding Tucker, Uncle Brian, Aunt Margaret, Kolby holding Beckett, and Emily

From TX, we flew straight to Williamsburg, VA to visit Dan's family for the remainder of Christmas week.  Our holiday was extra exciting because Dan's sister Robin got married on December 29th!  There were lots of last-minute tasks to accomplish, and half the family was battling colds or the flu (thankfully not the bride!), but we all pitched in and it was an absolutely beautiful wedding day. Robin looked gorgeous and she and her husband, Rob, had planned a ceremony that gave all glory to God.  It was a very full and fun visit, made even better by all the relatives and friends who traveled to Williamsburg to celebrate with Robin.

  

The rare (and slightly blurry) family photo: Dan, me, Dad J, Robin, Rob, Mom J, Tim, Dawn holding our youngest nephew Josiah, and our older nephews in front: Nathan, Aaron, and Benjamin

Dan, Tim, and their cousin Jon were part of the wedding band during the ceremony. They did a great job!

Our friends from Denver, Mike and Kate and their kids Charlotte and Cameron even made it to the ceremony!  They were visiting Mike's family in the area and took the opportunity to see Robin, Dan, and I.

The three of us all dressed up :)

Robin and Rob's reception was lots of fun with a live band, games, and dancing. The bride and groom looked very happy and in love!

The Father/Daughter dance

The Mother/Son dance

Instead of having their guests throw rice or rose petals, Robin and Rob had the awesome idea of launching lanterns as their send-off. They looked like large paper bags with a thin wire ring around the opening and a cardboard square in the center that you lit.  The heat from the fire lifted the lantern into the air and it flew away into the sky like a balloon.  Once you got past the logistics of lighting a bio-degradable lantern and flipping it over without burning the whole thing up, the effect was magical!

Watching Tim as he prepares to launch his lantern

The idea was inspired by the Disney movie "Tangled," which you should see if you haven't already.

A lovely send-off for the bride and groom!

We arrived back in San Diego at 10:00 pm on Sunday night, and the next morning we drove to Disneyland to celebrate New Year's Eve!  By the time we arrived at the park at noon, it was more crowded than we'd ever seen it before.  We managed to ride three rides and watch two shows during the afternoon, but by evening time, you could hardly walk anywhere because of the crowds. So we decided to find a good viewing spot on Main Street and wait for the fireworks.  They had an 8:30 pm holiday-themed fireworks show with "snow" falling down on the crowd at the end.  Then from 9:00-midnight, they played dance music and created a party atmosphere as they counted down to 2013.  At midnight, they had another huge fireworks show to ring in the New Year.  I'm glad we went, but I don't think we'd do it again.  On the plus side, Disneyland is a fun place to be, even if you don't get to ride a lot of rides.  They have great atmosphere, music, and live entertainment to enjoy - including all the Disney traffic-directors who were dancing in the middle of the street, having a good time.  Also, it's family-friendly, so we weren't surrounded by obnoxiously drunk or scantily-dressed people all night.  On the down side, it was so crowded that night it wasn't worth trying to walk anywhere in the park after a while.  I hate crowds, and I felt terrible for the parents with strollers and their small children who were trying to stick it out until midnight. 

In front of the castle with 5 hours to go until 2013!

Our view before the fireworks started

Happy New Year!

Christmastime in San Diego

We try to check out at least one of San Diego's many Christmas events each December, so on Sunday night we watched the San Diego Bay Parade of Lights for the first time.  It's a parade of decorated boats that proceeds along the entire harbor and bay area near downtown.  We got to our viewing spot on Harbor Island early, set up our camping chairs, and bundled up in winter gear and blankets.  Then we chatted with our neighbors and waited for the parade to reach us from its starting point on Shelter Island.  

 There were a ton of boats, so the parade took about an hour from start to finish.  They were all very creatively decorated, and some had theme music or Christmas music blaring from speakers.  One even had a live band onboard!  Here were just a few of our favorites:

 This group paddled an outrigger canoe the entire way!  Extra points for manual propulsion!

 A Top Gun theme.  They were blaring "Highway to the Danger Zone" as they passed by.

I don't know how they accomplished this, but they did an incredible job with the sleigh and reindeer.

The ultimate party boat.  Super loud music, people having a dance party on the bow, and strobe light effects. 

A pretty view of the parade continuing its journey towards downtown.

Later this week, we're also going to see "The Nutcracker" for the first time.  It's performed at the San Diego Civic Theater every year, and I got a great deal on center orchestra seats on Groupon. I think we'll really enjoy it. 

In other news, Dan has gotten some pretty fun "birthday presents" from his staff this year, and he's loving it!    

 One for you, one for baby. :)

These will ensure she doesn't look too much like a boy in all her Islanders gear. I see many father/daughter hockey games in our little girl's future!

Me & baby girl at 22 weeks - more than halfway to our delivery date!  I've felt great during the 2nd trimester, and I feel her kicking and moving around a ton now.  About a week ago, Dan was able to feel her kick for the first time, too! 

Dan's Birthday Celebration(s)

Birthdays only come once a year, so we make the most of them!  Dan's birthday was last Saturday, but we've been celebrating for at least the past week.  I signed us up for every restaurant e-mail list I can think of, so we're inundated with birthday offers each year.  It's a fun way to go out cheaply & more often that week without cooking or doing dishes afterwards. :)

One night, Dan wanted to skip dinner and go straight to Coldstone's to use his buy one get one free offer.  Ice cream for dinner and a walk on the beach. I think I heard angels singing. :)

On his actual birthday, we went to Disneyland! That night, they were beginning a Christmas concert they run from December 1-20, and we wanted to check it out.

 We stopped to pick up Dan's favorite Southern California food for lunch - the California Burrito

And when we got to Anaheim, we bought dessert at Joe's Italian Ice stand. You choose your ice flavor and they add frozen custard to the top & bottom, so it tastes like a Creamsicle.  So delicious!

Christmastime is in full swing at Disneyland. I love how festive everything looks!

And their Christmas concert was just amazing.  You had to be a VIP to get seats for the event, but they held it outdoors right on Main Street in front of the train station, so there was also standing room around the sides of the seating area.  We waited in the standing area for about an hour before the concert started so we could get a good view, and it was well worth it!  This picture doesn't really do it justice, since the stage was about twice this big and full of choirs. They hold auditions each year for local high school choirs to sing at the event, so we were surrounded by family members who had come to watch their kids sing.  They had a full orchestra and some soloists from the Disney Choir, and everything was done beautifully.

Each night, they have a celebrity narrator who reads the Christmas story from the Bible, and after he/she finishes reading each section, the choir & orchestra perform Christmas carols before the next section of the story is read.  The whole concert lasts about an hour.  Dennis Haysbert read that night, and this is as close as my camera could zoom.  He has such a great voice, it was wonderful to hear him read the best story ever.

 A much better picture. On other nights, Dick Van Dyke, Molly Ringwald, Kurt Russell, and others will be the narrators.

At 7:00, we happened to be walking in front of the castle, when they suddenly dimmed the street lights and turned everything into a winter wonderland scene.  A pleasant surprise!

 We stayed late for the fireworks show, even though it was drizzling rain the whole time.  They were supposed to have "snow" fall down on the crowds right after the fireworks were over, but it didn't work - I assume because of the rain.  We'll have to go back to see it again.  There's no other way to see snow this close to the beach! :)

On Sunday, we took advantage of a Phil's BBQ birthday offer for lunch, and then topped it off with Dan's favorite chocolate creme pie!

No cooking, hardly any dishes, and we both gained about 5 pounds.  I'd call that a successful birthday week! :)