Dinner with the Family

Today Jesalyn and I went to dinner with my parents and my grandparents. We had a nice dinner at Ruby Tuesday’s. Nanny and Poppy brought the clothes that dad and I were brought home from the hospital in and some old overalls that were my dad’s. Jesalyn had a great meal and the waiter even brought us free cupcakes to celebrate. That was probably Jesalyn’s favorite part.

On the way home we stopped by my other grandmother’s house. It was a great day. It made it even better because we brought home a fresh baked pound cake and a couple jars of nanny’s pickles from Nanny. It didn’t take long for me to put a slice of pound cake in a tall glass of milk when I got home.

Tomorrow will be a long, but fun day. We have our next Movies in the Park and as long as it doesn’t rain I will be out there all day. It’s time to get some sleep.

Half Way to Leo’s Grand Entrance

Michael Leonard

We are almost there. October is fast approaching and I can’t wait.Michael Leonard Davenport will make his grand entrance into the world this fall. Jesalyn and I are so excited!!!

To reveal the sex to my family I took a trip to see my Great Aunt Blanche. She has never had kids and always treated my dad like he was her son. Her health is decreasing and she told everyone she just wanted to know the sex in case she didn’t live to see the baby being born. Not only did she know, but she got the privilege of calling everyone else in the family and telling them.

We are about half way through the pregnancy and Jesalyn has been experiencing some crazy effects. She has started loving pickles and Mexican food. She still gets sick with certain smells and even some sounds. She eats constantly and gets hungry at crazy times. Having a pregnant woman in the house is fun and exhausting. I can’t wait to see how fun and exhausting having a baby in the house will be.

Grandma Blanton’s 80th Birthday

Last weekend we went to Wilmington to celebrate Jesalyn’s grandma’s 80th birthday. All of her dad’s side of the family came into town and stayed for the weekend. It was a great celebration and a rare occasion to have everyone there. We had the official party on Saturday night and Elvis made a surprise visit. Jesalyn’s dad broke out his old Elvis costume and surprised everyone. Check out the video of Bob as Elvis and try not to laugh.

Back to blogging

I took some time off from blogging. I had three writing intensive courses last semester. I wrote more than I wanted to write in my entire life. Now that it is over, I’m ready to start blogging again. With the world premier of our baby coming in the fall, I figured its the perfect time. I can’t wait to be the doting father that posts every second of his son’s life online. So here is a recap of the last several months of my life…

1. Jesalyn is pregnant… with my baby!

2. I finished my last core classes I need to graduate, but I have a few more hours to take before finishing.

3. I won a free trip to NYC and we took a 10 day trip to the city for my spring break.

With the exception of school, church, and magic, that’s about it. Now that you are caught up, be looking for more posts to be coming in the future.

Piece of my Heart will always be Broken

My last blog, “Caring For Orphans” was passionately written and sent out on Wednesday, October 19, 2011 to all of our family, friends and acquaintances. Friday evening, October 21, 2011 I found out I was pregnant. I could go on about how I felt and what happened for that time being, but as I already typed I was pregnant. So with that said, I cannot remember how I felt before I heard the news because my heart quickly went from extreme excitement to extreme heartbroken.

Thanksgiving Day – The first day I felt great in the 8 weeks of pregnancy with morning sickness nonstop. This was also the day I lost my baby and did not know it. I ended up going to the Emergency Room to get an ultrasound on Friday at the time I was suppose to go to work; my OB/GYN nurse told me to get checked out “just in case” and “better safe than sorry” but “things will more than likely be just fine.” Because my symptoms were minor, I didn’t prepare myself for the worst. If you truly know me, then you know I am always prepared for the worst so for once I was thrown off guard when the Radiologist very bluntly said, “Unfortunately, no heartbeat has been found. So you may miscarry soon. Sorry for giving you not-so-good news.” Just like that my heartbeat wanted to stopped, too. I kept a straight face and truly thought I could handle the news. “Because I knew it happens 25% of pregnancies and 1 out of 3 pregnancies are miscarried. Also,I just knew I would miscarry because I know I’m suppose to adopt so why would I get pregnant? So of course I’m not shocked.” Those were the thoughts running through my mind. When I finally dared to glance back to Michael, who had been standing in the corner beside me, I could see the instant pain reflect from the face of this man who just found out he isn’t a daddy after-all. Because I am pessimistic and Michael is optimistic, it may be true that he was more heartbroken than me. At least right away….

So what happened next? I went back to work the next day. Shhh, don’t tell me I am crazy because I now know I was. In my logical mind, it’s only an emotion so I can physically go to work and besides, I did just miss work on BLACK FRIDAY. I owe it to them, right?! Well I barely made it to 2 hours on my shift. Out of nowhere I felt this sharp pain again in my left side but much worse than what brought me to the E.R. I still didn’t want to leave, even though I was sobbing in front of my supervisor. If it weren’t for my co-workers (older ladies) insisting it was labor pains and I shouldn’t be there but to go home to rest, I would have continue to think I was just over exaggerating. That pain continued from Saturday through Wednesday, when I woke up from the D&C procedure, which I begged my doctor first thing Monday that I had to have!

So I go back to work Friday to find out my Assistant Manager is giving me paid sick days for the days I’ve missed from work! PRAISE GOD for not letting us financially slide down because of this and PRAISE GOD my managers are more than compassionate about my absences, especially during the busiest time of the year. I thought my healing was over but after travelling in the car for 5 hours on Sunday to visit my sister I had some minor complications, which effected my time and energy with my family as we celebrate Christmas together (early).

I am confident that God gave me those physical pain in order to bring out my emotional pain. If it weren’t for all of this, I would have bottled up emotions I wouldn’t even know I had (still have) and that would have been a huge problem in the long run. I have been able to deal with strong pain both from my body and from my heart then cope with it as I begin to heal in both areas. At this time in my life, I am literally taking it day by day, not planning my future like I have always been doing since I was a kid. I am taking that as from God as well. I have just opened up only part of the pain Michael and I have been dealing with over the past few months. So there is a lot of healing that needs to be dealt with. I am beginning to see that God giving me a baby then losing my baby is allowing me to heal in that area but also in the other areas in our lives.

One of the resources getting me through ALL of this is the book:

Boundaries: When to Say Yes, How to Say No to Take Control of Your Life

Having clear boundaries is essential to a healthy, balanced lifestyle. A boundary is a personal property line that marks those things for which we are responsible. In other words, boundaries define who we are and who we are not. Boundaries impact all areas of our lives: Physical boundaries help us determine who may touch us and under what circumstances — Mental boundaries give us the freedom to have our own thoughts and opinions — Emotional boundaries help us to deal with our own emotions and disengage from the harmful, manipulative emotions of others — Spiritual boundaries help us to distinguish God’s will from our own and give us renewed awe for our Creator — Often, Christians focus so much on being loving and unselfish that they forget their own limits and limitations. When confronted with their lack of boundaries, they ask:

– Can I set limits and still be a loving person?
– What are legitimate boundaries?
– What if someone is upset or hurt by my boundaries?
– How do I answer someone who wants my time, love, energy, or money?
– Aren’t boundaries selfish?
– Why do I feel guilty or afraid when I consider setting boundaries?

Dr. Henry Cloud and Dr. John Townsend offer biblically-based answers to these and other tough questions, showing us how to set healthy boundaries with our parents, spouses, children, friends, co-workers, and even ourselves.
Posted by Jesalyn Hanna at 8:31 AM 0 comments

This Friday! Don’t miss it!

I am so looking forward to this!

Bring your family and friends and come have a great time with us! I will be doing magic and there will be tons of family friendly activities, give-a-ways, and snacks. See you there!

I’m a Momma’s Boy! (Mother’s Day Edition)

The measure of a relationship is usually the answer to the question, “Where would my life be without this person?” Usually the richer the relationship the harder this is to answer. When asking this question about a mom the answer is simple. Nowhere…

I don’t get caught up too much in “hallmark holidays”. I’ve never been a big fan of Valentine’s day. I’m not a mom, a dad, a veteran, a president, and even if I lived in Canada I’m not a boxer. So this weekend I often use to reflect on the entire year. I think of my mom and how I have treated her, not just on Mother’s Day, but every day. So I am going to do that in writing. First I need to let you know something about me…

I am a momma’s boy!

I have never been ashamed to admit my love for my mother. Sometimes I even feel that I express my appreciation and affection for her more to others than I do to her (like I am probably doing by writing this). So in honor of the greatest mom in the world, here are some random Mother’s Day thoughts:

At this point in my life, my mom has shaped my heart, my morals, and my beliefs more than any person. My relationship with Jesus (hopefully) defines my heart, but without my mother that relationship would be drastically different.

They say you marry your mother. That is definitely true in my situation. Jes’ heart embodies the overflowing compassion and sometimes scarring vulnerability of my mom. From the first time they met I felt a connection. Oddly enough, it was a defining moment in my decision to marry Jes.

My mom is not perfect, but she is the perfect mom. I think my mom was just what God intended the mother to be. Comfort, servant, love, servant, compassion, servant, encouragement… did I mention servant?

As the years move on and my relationship with my God and my wife grow deeper into existence, they seem to define me more and more. That does not mean that the relationship with my mom defines me less and less. It just shows that my mom helped lead me into the relationships that God called her to lead me into. She has done her job well. Her job as an encourager, servant, and comforter have changed. They have not lessened, just changed. As her role has changed, her heart has not.

So as I’m sitting here writing this, Jesalyn is driving back from a visit with my mother. My mom continues to serve me by serving my wife. Jesus calls us to be a servant to all. My mom taught/teaches me this not just with words, but by example. This is why I am not ashamed to say, “I AM A MOMMA’S BOY!”

Sham Rock N’ Roll

Last night was the first ShamRock n Roll music festival the the NC Music Factory in Charlotte. Jes and I took the evening and went early. She had an interview with a family in Charlotte for a nanny position with their new baby. From there we stopped by the original Lupe’s Cafe on the way to the Music Factory. It was great! We both had one of the best burgers we have eaten in a long time and I definitely recommend the sweet tea. They served mine in a mason jar. Other people were ordering tea and it was coming in regular glasses so I’m not sure why mine came in a jar, but I liked it! I’m thinking I will start drinking everything from a mason jar.

After Lupe’s we stopped by to see some friends and then headed to the concert. We got there super early so we claimed out spots in the front and waited for an hour and a half until the show finally got started. Sister Hazel

was Jes’ favorite band in middle and high school and she has kept up with them for all these years. You may remember their biggest hit, “All for You”. We got to see them up close and personal.

I’m so glad Jes got to experience that. We left the concert and I was thinking was that the only thing cooler for her would have been to be able to meet them in person. So we did what any groupie or crazed fan would do and hunted down the tour bus and stalked them until they came out. And wouldn’t you know, it actually worked. After standing outside for a while and almost giving up

Ken Block, the lead singer, came out of the bus and greeted us and a few other hardcore fans that have been standing around with us. He gave Jes a big hug, shook my hand and thanked us for coming to see the show.  It was a very cool moment for Jes and I was so happy to be there with her. The concert was great and I actually have a short video clip of it on my youtube channel. I got about 20 seconds recorded before you can see the bald security guard come over and make me turn off the camera.

Emma Vu Nguyen

Born February 21st 2011, Emma Nguyen weighed 8.3lbs and measured 20.5 inches.

Seeing the joy of my best friend as he talked about his newly born daughter already had me smiling, but seeing my wife hold Emma sent chills down my spine. I have dreamed of being a father for many years and one of the first things that made me choose Jesalyn was her love for children and her natural gift of motherly love. I don’t know if you can see it in this picture, but I could see it as she stared at Emma.

Emma will be home tomorrow. They decided to keep her around the hospital for another day. Uncle Mike (me) and Aunt Jes can’t wait to love all over baby Emma and I’m sure there will be many more pictures to come.

My Talented Niece

I’m going to start a charity to put Lexi in dance and voice lessons, because she already knows how to soak up the spotlight.