Yesterday we went to the doctor for our 36-week checkup, and our Nugget is looking good! We had a sonogram for the first time since our 20-week appointment, so it was so good to see our boy again. My, how he has grown!
Hopefully the labels help you out a little bit, but this is his profile. He had his hand on his forehead, clearly a deep thinker already! He moved around quite a bit, and even stuck out his tongue at his Daddy!
My last day of work was last Tuesday. On Monday at work, I had a surprise lunch out and a surprise office party. I even embarrassed myself by crying a little bit! I enjoyed my time there so much, and I will miss the people I spent time with every day.
However, there are of course things I won't miss:
1. Driving 25 miles each way to work. I'm gaining almost 2 hours of my day back!
2. Having to run all my errands on the weekends because there was no time during the week.
3. Being so tired at my desk and not being able to take a nap! These last few weeks of pregnancy are exhausting! It will be very nice to get some rest before this little guy comes along.
One of Chad's reps gave us his Mavericks tickets for the night, and as we always do at the Mavs games, we had a great time! Random observation...people at Mavericks games are very nice to very pregnant women. No one seemed to mind one bit when I had to squeeze out of our row to go the bathroom!
Now on to Christmas. We had a wonderful time with both sides of our family, although I don't have one single picture to prove it! You are just going to have to trust me! Nugget even received some presents, which he will be able to enjoy in 28 short days (have I mentioned how soon he will be here?!?!).
Last week, Chad and I were blessed with 2 baby showers. We are so set for our little guy now!
They really went overboard!
And my favorite gift...this Radio Flyer car - complete with honking horn, radio stations & blinkers. I expect our little guy to enjoy cruising around the neighborhood in this sweet ride.
On Saturday we were blessed with our Prestoncrest shower. Chad and I love our church home, and we've been so loved and taken care of by so many people there. Everyone has been so generous, and I am so thankful!
Here I am with all of my fabulous hostesses (except Paige who was sick). These women are all so special to me, and they worked so hard to make our shower absolutely perfect. Thanks girls!
This is Alli...she had twins in August and looks this great! For some reason, some people think we are sisters, which I'll take as a compliment! Alli has also been one of my main sources of maternity clothes which has been such a big help! I'm sure Nugget will be good friends with her two sweeties, Jake & Mallory.
Here are all the gifts...if we need anything else for our little guy then he is much too high maintenance!
Mica and Kim are both such good friends, and it was so kind of them to work so hard for our little guy! We are all in the same Wednesday night small group. My my...Look at my belly!
Here I am with the Moms - or should I say Grandmas! Both Nonnie and Grammy are as eager for Nugget's arrival as I am!
And here are all the women in Nugget's life. This even includes Baby G. Smith, who should be making her appearance any day now! Mary Alice and Addy are going to be wonderful cousins, and I was so happy they were at the shower. They are also getting way too old, and I wish they would stop growing up right now!
We cannot thank all of our friends, family & co-workers enough for all of the love and support we've received throughout our pregnancy. It's so incredible to know that our little guy will be born into such a warm community. Thank you, thank you!
Praise God! Chad is completely healthy! It's been a long day (as you can tell by the time stamp on this post!), but the outcome is such a blessing. Chad still has both boys in tow, which he was very happy to discover during his recovery time!
I'll keep this short...mostly so I can go to bed and get some rest! As it turns out, the mass attached to Chad's spermatic cord was actually a swollen, scar-tissue filled vein that was the result of some past injury. This could have happened several months, or even a few years ago. The surgeons went in and removed the damaged portion and were able to reattach everything so that healthy blood is once again flowing. Apparently this vessel was 3-4 centimeters long and hard as a rock, so the doctors were glad it was removed. They were also very happy that the mass was completely benign, as we were as well!
Recovery from the anesthesia (wow that's a hard word to spell this late) took a little longer than after last week's surgery. When the nurse was trying to see if Chad could walk, she quickly found out he could not as he fell back into her arms. It's a good thing she was strong! After trying to get him walking a few more times with no success, she called the doctors, and the urologist returned to the hospital to check on Chad.
The doctor determined that the numbing agent they put on his spermatic cord during surgery had also been placed on a nerve, causing his left quadricep to be completely numb and essentially useless. The effects will wear off, but probably not until early morning. Therefore, the doctor decided it was best to admit Chad to the hospital over night, just to make sure everything was fine. Plus, I don't think he had much confidence that the 8-month pregnant wife would be able to hold Chad up should he continue to fall here at home!
So, Chad is at the hospital, happily drugged to sleep. He will be released in the morning after the doctor sees him.
Thank you all so much for your prayers! We felt them all day and know that they made all the difference. Now it is time for me to hit the sack as well...I have a baby shower in the morning!
DISCLAIMER: This is Chad posting. If you are in any way offended by words associated with the human anatomy, please discontinue reading. Or, much more likely, read with eager anticipation to see what I'm about to write. I really do have a very important and serious prayer request within.
I find it interesting how quickly one can become used to the usage of certain words. Not long ago certain words, mostly referring to body parts, immediately induced a smirk, smile, and often juvenile-like giggle. I'm a guy that has no shame or apology in finding humor in almost everything.
During the past 8 months, due to both our pregnancy and those of many close friends, I've become quite familiar and comfortable with the everday, bland usage of several words, the following of which are just a sampling: cervix, uterus, nipple, latching, lactating, breast pump, discharge, circumcision (I still wince a little!), birth canal, etc.
Not even a snicker any more. It makes me a little bit sad, like I might be losing my childlike tendencies to laugh and point at inappropriate times. We've even prayed out loud and often for God to strengthen and lengthen the cervix of two of our girlfriends. And rightly so... God created the cervix and knows how to provide for it. Still... I couldn't have brought myself to pray for that a year ago. I see this as a good thing... I find it fascinating how our walk continues and deepens in this life.
On to our newest adventure... Over the past few weeks I've added to my everday vocabulary completely boring, unarousing, snickerless words such as spermatic cord, testicle, prostate, orchiotomy, urologist, vas defrens, and unknown mass. This is where I start asking for your prayers...
A few months ago I noticed a pain in my groin, decided to get it checked out, and have undergone numerous doctors visits, tests, and other things that make you feel like E.T. when he turns all white and scary towards the end of the movie. This past Friday my general surgeon went in to remove what was thought to be an infected lymph node beside and separate from my spermatic cord. Unfortunately he made the incision and found the mysterious lump to be inside my cord. This condition requires a Urologist to conduct surgery (after all, my junk is his specialty!) so my incision was closed and more tests were undertaken this week.
Tomorrow, at 4 in the afternoon, I will have another surgery to remove the mass that now resides inside my spermatic cord. As soon as the mass is removed, a frozen pathology will be completed during the surgery to determine if the mass is benign or malignant. My doctors expect the mass to be benign, as most masses outside of the testicle are. However... if there is a chance of malignancy (interesting how this word seems better than the C-word!), they will remove my left testicle along with the spermatic cord and his attached friends. This is too bad... I happen to be very fond of my left testicle. Hopefully we can still hang out together after tomorrow.
My urologist has assured me that I would still be every bit as masculine with just one testicle. I would be every bit as fertile (as I've recently proved to be!), every bit athletic, every bit sexually able, every bit appealing (just ask Miranda!), and my voice won't go back to where it was before puberty. If this is what happens... I am completely okay with it. In fact I've already assembled a montage of unitesticular humor to share with my buddies. Fortunately my urologist expects the mass to prove benign and Lefty to stay in tow. As I mentioned earlier, I really like having him around!
I would like to ask you to pray for the following on my behalf:
1. That all would go well with this surgery
2. That this is the last surgery or time I have to face this obstacle
3. That Miranda, my family, and you friends would be able to relax in the faith of God's deliverance... He is Lord over all we see, experience, imagine, and more
4. That I get to keep my left testicle
Also, please pray for a close friend of mine that just this morning found out that he most likely DOES have a malignant tumor on his testicle. He is having surgery this coming Wednesday to have his right testicle removed. Please pray for his surgery, complete one-time resolution of his obstacle, and for his family. His newest adventure appears to be more severe than mine. Fortunately, he shares the same faith, outlook, and humor that I do... we've already talked about forming a club and are working on a t-shirt design.
We gain truly great perspective in times of trial in this life. Surely God molds us into more thankful servants, more aware of the temporary yet wonderful blessings of our short stay on this earth, and more cognizant and motivated to try to honor our Creator with each day of our life.
God gave me a peace about a month ago with the conviction that I cannot lose this battle, no matter what happens. God will either deliver me from this trial or bring me home. I'm a winner either way. Before you get misty eyed or decide I'm talking in extreme dramatics, realize that this is true every day... no matter who you are or what situation you're in. God brought me this comforting revelation in a time of uncertainty about a mysterious lump. But it doesn't matter if you might be facing cancer or if you are expecting to have a perfectly normal day of going to work and hitting the grocery store on the way home. Each and every day, in each and every circumstance, God will either deliver you in this life or he will bring you home. In Christ we have this promise, this victory, this assurance. This is how we should face our lives each day... Either God will deliver us, or God will bring us home.
Just as a reminder... we're still praying for deliverance for me and my friend!
On Sunday, a group of our close friends threw a shower for us. Chad went to ACU with this group of guys, and it just works out that all of the wives are friends as well! Jamie made a wonderful dinner, and, as always, we had such a good time together! Thanks Jamie and Jenny for such a great shower!
She even made a diaper holder...
And an organizer! You can also see the amazing quilt hanging off the side of the crib.
And here we are at 32 weeks! It's hard to believe that Nugget will be here in about 8 weeks. But then, I look at how far my belly sticks out, and I realize that he's getting more ready everyday to make his appearance. I won't have a sonogram until 36 weeks, but everything I am reading says he weighs about 4 pounds now!
