Baby, School, and Wedding News!

So first things first, we had "the big ultrasound" on Monday, December 14th. And we have a healthy baby: good heart beat, kidneys and brain look great. And oh yeah, it's a BOY!!!Rachel told me that if we were having a boy, we'd have no doubt. And she was right! Brian and I saw between the legs and looked at each other. The ultrasound tech said, "I think you know already." Yup!

We also got some good profile shots. It's hard to know what he's going to look like, since the ultrasound takes slices at who knows what angle. But I think one thing is for certain, he has Brian's nose! And so far, some pretty voluptuous lips. (;

I kind of passed over it, but when we went to the ultrasound, I was 19 weeks and 6 days (ultrasound says 19 weeks 4 days, not sure why). I'm in my 20th week now. Halfway already, very crazy! And I've been feeling very good. If I'm more tired than normal, I think it's because of finals, and not because of the baby.

I've been feeling the little guy kick and move around for a week or two now, but Brian just got to feel him a couple days ago. Late on December 17th, we were lying in bed, and the baby was moving a bit. So I had Brian put his hand on my belly, and he felt a good kick! For a few days prior, Brian had thought maybe he'd felt him, but the 17th was a sure thing. We're looking forward to a time when his kicks are strong enough for Brian to feel more often.


Here's a picture of me right before the ultrasound. I'm definitely showing! I mean, if I'm wearing a sweater, strangers won't notice that I'm pregnant. But my friends and family can definitely see the bump.

So on to other exciting news . . .

I graduated from San Jose State University!!!

Well, I haven't received my diploma. But I've finished all my classes, and my graduation checklist, the thing that the school sends you to say what you still need to complete, was very straightforward. There were no surprises. Everything on the list was what I had taken this semester.

I don't know if I have a feeling of accomplishment, because I never had any doubt that I had the ability to graduate from college. I mostly have a feeling of relief. I'm just happy that I'm done, that I stuck with it. And I'm happy I got a degree in two subjects that I have a passion for: art history and painting. It took me a long time to decide what I wanted to study, and life interfered several times, but I'm done with school, and I'm oh so happy.

We're also getting ready for our big wedding party on December 27th! Phil and Gion have been working non-stop for the last few months to get ready to host our closest family and friends at their home. Brian and I got to Atascadero today, and our plan for the next week is to help prepare for the party.

I think we're all nervous but excited. This party had to be planned in an extremely short period, but it should be very fun!!

That will be a good blog!

New York Trip!

Well, you've all heard me complaining about how much school work I have, and how I have no time to do anything else. That's so true!! But I have yet to blog about our New York trip, and if I don't do it now, it may not get done until after school's over, and then I'll be distracted by our wedding celebration . . . so I'm blogging!!

We'd been promising Laurel, Mike, Peter, and Mia a visit for months if not years. I kept pushing the visit back because of finances. Then we'd decided, "we have to get out to visit, because our friends have mentioned that they may not be able to weather another NY winter!!" Then I got pregnant. "Well, I'm not going to travel now! I'm tried, and I could get H1N1 from the flights!" Then it started to dawn on me that after having a baby, we might not be traveling too much. No excuses could top that argument. And, thanks to a VERY generous wedding gift, we were able to afford the trip.

So November 5th, Brian and Darby and I got on a plane to New York. We left San Francisco Thursday morning and arrived in Brooklyn in time for a lovely Italian dinner.

I'd been to New York two times before, once in high school and once on our trip across the country. This time was so different for me because we had friends to host. They let us stay in their awesome Williamsburg apartment, they helped us build our itinerary, and we never ate a meal without their input. Every restaurant had been thoroughly vetted for quality.

Our first full day we woke up late (hey! We were on California time!). We ate lunch at a cute restaurant by Mike and Laurel's that looked like a market but served some gourmet stuff! We took the subway to Manhattan and found our way to the Frick (art museum). I loved it! But Brian was a little put-off by the Rococo rooms. After coffee, we walked through Central Park to The Museum of Modern Art's free Friday night. It was a crazy experience. Besides seeing some of the most famous art of the 19th and 20th centuries, there were so many people! And so many Europeans! It was quite exciting, actually. Next time we're there, I'll need to spend much more time there, but it was fun just to see some of the paintings I've written about (extensively) over the last few years.

After The MOMA, we took the subway back to Mike and Laruel's place, then left again for a restaurant I believe was called Frankie's (yummm!). We met Mia there and waited in the cold as a large group inside finished their dessert and wine (we tried not to give them too many evil looks).


Saturday morning, we woke up late again. Ok, I think we were just lazy at this point. We finally got out the door and walked down to Brooklyn Bowl, which I can't say enough about! When we got there, we had a lunch of fried chicken and beer (everyone else had beer. Have I mentioned yet that I nearly overdosed on cranberry and seltzer water in NY?) with fries and veggie sticks. We then went bowling. The bowling pins are on strings, like little marionette pins! We sat on comfy couches, and waiters and waitresses brought out more beverages. Plus, their bathrooms were super cool. If you're ever in Brooklyn, go here! It's super hipster, but that's cool by us.

And, oh yes! By this time, Peter was able to join us. And everything is more fun with Peter! (;


From Brooklyn Bowl, we got on the subway to Manhattan again. This time, we were going to another free museum night: at the Guggenheim! The featured work was Kandinsky, who I don't find especially challenging, but it was beautiful. And it was fun to experience the building.

After the Guggenheim, we caught some cars to a German restaurant: Lederhosen! There we met Peter's mom Heike and aunt Karen. Lederhosen is a bustling place with murals of Bavaria painted on the walls.


After the restaurant, we walked to a fun bar. I tried many virgin cocktails, seeing how many types of juice they had to mix with seltzer water. Mike was very excited to introduce Brian to the joys of Campari.

The next morning, we took band fotos:

Not really. We actually met my cousin FireCrow for brunch. This was a huge deal since we hadn't seen each other since we were 13 or 14. We had chocolate french toast.

After brunch, we prepared to go home. It was a whirlwind of a trip, and it really felt too early to leave. We'll have to go back soon.

I think you can kind of see my "baby bump" in this picture. If you're curious, I felt great during our trip! I think I was too busy to pay attention to any sickness I may normally have felt. When I was there, I thought I was finally over feeling yucky. Unfortunately, I felt bad for at least another week after we got back. I'm feeling really good now: at 16 weeks!

14 Week Ultrasound

I'm busy with school and work, and we just got back from a trip to New York, but I thought I should keep the baby posts coming, even if they're short.

We've decided to go along with the series of genetic tests, and last week we did a blood draw and ultrasound. The tests show we have a very very low risk of Down Syndrome and Trisomy 18, which is good. And we got to see our baby again!!


The ultrasound tech was not a very good photographer, for our purposes at least. We saw images that were better, but you get the idea. The body and head are more "baby proportion". We also saw the little legs kicking around and the arms moving and stretching. He/she may have even been sucking his/her thumb.

It's so amazing to be able to see the little one, but he/she does not seem to like the ultrasound experience, so we're content to limit the use in the future.

I've been feeling a lot better. We spend 3 days in New York, and I had as much energy as a would have as a pre-pregnant person. I've only rarely felt nauseated, and it hasn't lasted too long.

I only have a month of school left! I'm getting so excited!! (;

Ultrasound!

We've been so busy lately with doctors' appointments and wedding planning (invitations, registries, wedsite), that I haven't had time to blog or do homework (just kidding . . . sort of).

But I know that some of you are anxious to see the ultrasound photo.

Here it is!

The due date is May 5th, just what I calculated. That means I'm almost to 12 weeks. Yay!!

Brian pointed out that the white spot on the head is the right hand and the nose. See the little arm reaching up to cover the face, and the nose peeking out underneath? That means the dot above the body is the left hand! (;

We found an Ob/Gyn that I think we'll really like. Her office is in a converted house. I don't know what era, 40s or 50s? And there's a bunch of great original abstract art on the walls, pretty cool. She works with two midwives, and we'll be seeing the midwives normally. We'll only see the Ob for ultrasounds and if there are complications. Then we'll have a midwife there for the labor, I think.

Apparently I've had a wonderful first trimester. I'm exhausted all the time, have even less motivation that I normally do (how is that possible!?!), and feel sort of nauseated all throughout the day. But I can control that will snacking. And I haven't thrown up once! Even though I felt like it a few times last night. I'm almost done with the first trimester, and now I'm getting sick, great! But I'm sure I'll feel better. It may not even be baby related. Who knows.

I'm sure you're not surprised, but Brian has been AMAZING! Cooking, cleaning, motivating. He's going to be a great daddy!

If you want to know anything else, just ask!

News and More News

Well, you've probably noticed that I've been really quiet lately, no posts about the wedding, the scar, and (if you're on Facebook) fewer status updates.

I've struggled to decide how to disperse all the information that people need. Most of you know that I'm not a phone person. The idea of calling all my family and friends, especially to relate such complicated and sensitive news, makes me anxious to no end. So this blog is my way of explaining what's going on at length and to everyone who is interested.

After all that . . . I'm pregnant! As I type, I'm at 9.5 weeks. We found out on September 6th, when I was at 5.5 weeks (they measure the weeks in an interesting way, it's not from conception).

We are very excited about the prospect of having a baby (It's exactly what we wanted, just a little earlier than we expected), but I have been quite overwhelmed with the idea of being pregnant while planning a wedding (not to mention while working and schooling). It seems that the only thing people ask me about lately is the wedding, "how are the wedding plans coming?", "when is the wedding again?"

Well, the wedding's gonna change a bit.

Although I really wanted to wait until the end of the first trimester to tell people the news, we really couldn't postpone telling the people closest to us, the people so invested in planning for a wedding on May 29th.

We told our parents the weekend of September 19th (separately, not together like the engagement news). All of our parents are very happy and excited for us. Could you imagine it any other way? They acknowledge that, although it came earlier than anyone expected, the most important thing is that we're in a good, stable relationship. And we nearly have our shit together! (oh wait, those are our sentiments)

So immediately, plans started to shift. Our May 29th wedding won't work. We'll have a 3 week old baby, and, although I'll be very happy, I have no intention of looking stunning. We still want several key players to be present at the event, notably Brian's sister Katie who is in Law School in Chicago. With this in mind, and considering my physical symptoms and size, we've been exploring the idea of having a big party shortly after Christmas this year.

We were rethinking the wedding, "ok, December could work. This could be even better!"

Then the baby needs intervened.

Insurance has been a minor disaster for me for the last 5+ years. Only within the last year plus have I been eligible for insurance, because of a pre-existing condition (no one would insure me until I'd been thyroid-cancer-free for 5 years). Then, when I finally could get insurance, it was more expensive than it should have been (again, pre-existing condition). I ended up with the best insurance I could afford as a student $180/mo. It's really bad insurance. High deductible. It's a PPO, so I can go anywhere I want, but nothing is covered in total. And there is absolutely, positively no prenatal/delivery care.

Brian's work insurance, which seemed entirely too expensive to me a few months ago, now seemed like a great deal. Full prenatal/delivery care, ob/gyn visits, acupuncture!

We decided that the easiest way to get me covered was to get married. Yes, I'm sure we could have done the paperwork to become domestic partners, but it probably would have been even more complicated. And truthfully, (before baby) we were thinking of getting secretly hitched in December for the tax benefits . . . awww . . . how romantic.

So on Wednesday September 30th (still in Sept., so I could get on Brian's insurance in Oct.), Brian and I, my parents (George and Kathie Asdel), Brian's parents (Phil and Gion Cisneros), and our best friends Rachel Hunter and Darby Edelen, drove over to the Santa Clara County Clerk's Office for the wedding.

We rented out the chapel for a more intimate/cheesy feeling. The chapel is through a door in the cafeteria . . . especially helpful for the many pregnant brides that must come through the doors.

The chapel is a little room with a few chairs, a podium, and an arch with fake flowers on it. Cheesy, but we like cheesy!

The ceremony was really nice, thoughtful, and poignant without being religious. The officiant was great. She was serious but kind, and she let us and our families/friends be the center of attention. I'd love to get a copy of the vows. They were sweet.

After the ceremony, we regrouped at the apartment for a bit. We then went to the lounge of the Crowne Plaza (the hotel at which Gion and Phil stayed) for drinks and appetizers (I had a Shirley Temple. So sweet!!).

At 6:00 we made our way over to Nazca, a Peruvian restaurant we enjoy. There we met Kamryn, and had a lovely dinner to the sounds of Disney music preformed on pan pipe.



Brian and I fed each other cream puffs.

Me and my two best girlfriends!

To wrap things up. Brian and I love each other very much. We wanted to get married and start a family. It's happening sooner than we imagined, but we can't help but laugh and take joy in the way life works sometimes. We're so lucky to have wonderful family and friends who have supported us through everything, and who we know will continue to be excited about what our lives have in store for the future.

Love,

Expectant husband and wife: Christina Elizabeth Asdel Cisneros and Brian Phillip Asdel Cisneros

P.S. We're still planning for a big party in December, so we can celebrate our love with a bigger group. Christmas in Atascadero?!?

Wedding Planning Update

Well, first of all, I'm feeling really good. I haven't seen my scar yet, I'm all bandaged up, but I'm in no pain. And I get my stitches out on Tuesday! (;

I was thinking that some of you might want to hear what we've been doing in the way of wedding planning . . .

Big news! I bought my wedding dress!

We'd been trying to organize a time for all of us ladies (except Katie, of course, who lives in Chicago) to go dress shopping and had settled on August 16th in Union Square, San Francisco. Then, on Saturday the 1st of August, the stars aligned and we were all available to get together and shop in San Jose. We thought it would just be fun, a good chance to spend time together and see what's out there.

We'd been to every store in the Valley Fair mall that sells dresses, even Barcelino. Holy cow! That place is odd! Then, as a fun, end of the day adventure, we stopped into Betsey Johnson. And I found my dress!!


It's a very simple cotton dress, but it is strapless and white. As I've told anyone who will listen, I think it's a great compromise between formal and casual, modern and retro, traditional and nontraditional. And I'll be able to wear it again! I won't be posting a picture here. I don't know why, it just doesn't seem right. But I can e-mail you a photo if you would like to see it.

I'm planning now to find some vintage fabric and have a bolero/awesome-retro-vest-thing made to add some color and flare to my wedding ensemble.

When I had my dress on and was looking in the mirror, I loved the dress, and I could totally imagine wearing it in Templeton Park on our day. But I didn't want to give up shopping in Union Square!!!

So my ladies promised to continue to save the date, and we would shop then for their dresses and my wedding accessories.

This is the biggest deal for Rachel who lives three hours away from me and four hours away from San Francisco. But she's a trooper, and an awesome friend, and apparently doesn't mind driving.

I'll stop now and thank Rachel's mom Ann who has loaned Rachel her Accord (?) the last two times Rachel has come up. Thanks Ann! This means Rachel can leave the baby-equipped car at home (with the babies), and Ann's car is much more fuel efficient (which I love!).

I digress.

So on August 15th, Rachel arrived in San Jose at around 10:00 p.m.. She, Brian, and I stayed up talking a little too late. The next morning, Rachel and I drove over to Kam and Mike's (just down the street. We live oh so close!). Kamryn gave Rachel a little pre-shopping/anti-soccer mom/totally adorable haircut before we left for the city.

Rachel drove the three of us to Grace's neighborhood, and after a quick tour of her new, absolutely awesome apartment, we walked down to catch the Muni to Union Square.

We checked out the sales racks in every possible department store: Bloomingdale's, Sax Fifth Avenue, Macy's, and a few other great places like Anthropologie and H&M. We didn't actually find anything for them (or any accessories/shoes for me), but we have a better idea of what we're looking for and what we're not . . . and that however fun Union Square may be to visit, it's not necessarily a smart place to spend money. (;

This picture fits into the "what we're not looking for" category. The colors are a little bright, but the ladies look beautiful, and it does show the kind of variety we're looking for in what they choose to wear.


So besides wardrobe, we've been looking into caterers a bit. We have two awesome prospects already, but we've been told we should taste test three, so we'll end up having three amazing businesses to choose from, great! (;

I'm looking forward to working with Darby, our friend who's artistically and graphically inclined, on the save the date cards.

We've been working on a list of things to put on the registry. We don't want to go into the stores blind, so we're trying to really think about that we need.

I don't know if much more is going on on the wedding front. School starting will inevitably slow wedding planning down a bit . . . or things could intensify because I'll need something to distract me from school. (;

Oregon Trips (Plural)

Well, Oregon has been "the place to be" lately.

I have several family members who have resided in the northern state for years, and recently a good number of our friends moved up there to take seasonal summer jobs at a resort called Lake of the Woods. Brian and I were on summer break from school, and eventually Brian had a break from work, so we decided to take a trip to visit our friends and family. We wanted to drive to Lake of the Woods (exactly in between Ashland and Klamath Falls), see the guys (Sam and Henry Bonifas, Ben Blair, and Eric Peterson), then drive to Portland to visit my cousin Gary, his wife Adina, their daughter Brigit, and my Uncle Bill, and maybe see the guys again on our way back.

When we took out the calender and the map, we realized that, first of all, I couldn't be away from San Jose for more than four days because of a summer school swimming class I was taking (2 units of P.E. are required to graduate from SJSU. I know, it's ridiculous!). And second of all, Portland is pretty far from Lake of the Woods, almost five hours! Coming from California, we tend to think that Oregon is teeny tiny, turns out it's not.
So we decided just to visit the guys. They'd moved up there recently, wouldn't be there longer than the summer, and we were worried those city kids (especially Sam) would be having trouble adapting to the great outdoors.

We got to the guys' place late Thursday night, June 25th (after wandering around Klamath Falls by order of Tom Tom). We slept on the fold-out couch the first night, and the rest of the time we stayed in our tent. I know what you're thinking, "the guys have a fold out couch?" When I heard that Sam and Ben would be staying in a mobile home, I imagined a fifth wheel with barely enough room for two twin beds and a mini fridge. But they're living in an actual home: living room/kitchen, bathroom, and two surprisingly large bedrooms. Their oven is as big as ours! I mean, that's not saying much, but it's great for them.


We had so much fun! We hiked through the paradise they call home/work. We dined at the restaurant where the guys work. We zoomed around the Lake of the Woods in a little motorboat. One day we even took a trip to the lovely little town of Ashland (hippies + Shakespeare Festival + liberal arts college + nice parks = our kind of place).


To our great surprise and delight, the guys ran into Peter Stewart one night on a trip to Ashland (he's been living and working there), and Peter was able to come to Lake of the Woods while we were visiting. Brian and Peter have been great friends for many years, and this serendipitous visit was oh so very Peter. (;


I'm really frustrated that I don't have any photos of Ben. But, I guess, even more frustrated that he wasn't on the boat. I think he had to work.

So we got back to San Jose and I updated my Facebook status to, "Christina Asdel just got back from Oregon. Wonderful to see the guys!"

And of course I got some "light" grief from Adina about not visiting she, Gary, and Brigit. I explained our situation and she fully understood, but intending to visit them before got me so determined to accomplish the goal of seeing them that, when Brian had more time off and I was no longer in swimming, we decided to go up again (August 8th through 13th).

The first time, we took I-5 both ways. Boring!! So this time I insisted we drive the 101, and it was worth it! Yes, it took longer, and the Oregon coast looks a lot like the coast of northern California, but there's a bit of variation.

We decided to split the drive up and camp overnight in Newport, Oregon. That was a long drive, over 11 hours. We left San Jose super early and got to Newport before sunset. We wanted to be spontaneous and find a camping spot when we got there, not realizing that it's popular to camp on the Oregon coast on a Saturday in the summer. But the folks at South Beach State Park were lovely and let us camp on a grassy field near the group site (the closest possible spot next to the beach!).

After we set up the tent, we drove to the wharf and ate at a delightful little place called Local Ocean. We then bought a bottle of wine, drove back to the camp site, walked to the beach (warm and calm, no wind), and sipped wine while watching our fellow campers light things on fire and shoot things into the air.

The next day we set out for Portland. On the way we stopped at Shari's, home of the cheese and sour cream stuffed hashbrown and bold Arösta coffee (go bold!).

We got to Gary and Adina's just as Gary and Brigit were returning from visiting Adina at the Sock Summit (a very exciting thing for knitters).

We so enjoyed our stay with the North-Franz gang.We share a sense of humor and many interests with Gary and Adina, and we delighted in playing with three-and-a-half-year-old Brigit. Turns out, Brian and I like playing with toys probably more than most adults. Puzzles and dolls and markers etc. etc. etc. We also loved speaking with her and listening to her play with and learn language. She was really a joy to spend time with, and she was excited for us to be there the entire time. That was cool!


One day we were there, we got to wander around Portland on our own. We went downtown and spend way too much time and money at Powell's, the awesome bookstore. We then stumbled upon the Deschutes Brewery and had a pint. Later we met Gary at his place of work, got a tour, and went out to lunch: pizza and natural fruit soda, yum!

We ate a lot of delicious, local, seasonal food with Gary and Adina. Oregonians, and especially Portlanders, are really big on seasonal, sustainable food--which we love!


Our last night in Portland, we all got together for dinner with our uncle Bill. Brian and I hadn't seen Bill since our cross country trip in 2003, and it was great to see him again. We always love seeing Bill because the conversations seem to just pick up where they left off. He's very honest and enjoyable to converse with.

We left the next morning. Gary went to work a little late so we could eat breakfast together before we headed down to Lake of the Woods.

Our second visit to Lake of the Woods was similar to the fist, with fewer mosquitoes and more games. And I mean games! Disc golf, Scrabble, Boggle, horse shoes, multiple Wii games, poker, etc.

I don't have any pictures from our second visit, but if I get any, I'll add them.

Hooray for Oregon!!

Ok. Here's a picture of Brian and me from our second stay at Lake of the Woods: