First Baby Shower

I had my first baby shower yesterday!  My wonderful work family threw a beautiful shower for the other two pregnant first grade teachers and me.  We had yummy food, great conversation, good advice, and time with the newest Westwood mommies and their babies.  We also opened gifts and the generosity of my coworkers was overwhelming.  It has been hard for me not to just buy a bunch of the stuff from our registry - I like to plan ahead and waiting this long to get prepared for baby is killing me!  However, after yesterday I already feel infinitely more ready.  Thank you to everyone who planned, contributed, and attended the shower!  It was perfect. 

Me, Kristen, and Sara - the Moms-to-be

New photo of the Westwood Mommies - with our newly added pregnant friend Kelsey (due May) and the first two babies, Cara and Averi (see the "before" picture here)

Our wonderful hosts: Sue, Julia, and Marcy

Wow!  We are so blessed.

37 Weeks

I have neglected to update baby's growth the past few weeks, but all has been well in doctor visits and I have continued to feel great, though definitely uncomfortable at times.

This week's visit to Dr. Princ proved to be slightly more eventful.  After the typical question, "Is baby still moving?" I answered honestly that it seemed to have slowed down in the past couple of days.  This was not something that Jake and I were concerned about - we had assumed that as baby's space becomes more and more crowded, the little munchkin's movement would lessen.  I still felt him or her shift positions, but there was a definite change in activity.

Well, my doctor was not overly concerned, but less nonchalant about that comment.  Apparently that can be serious at this point in pregnancy because it could indicate that there is not enough fluid in the uterus or that there is an issue with blood flow for baby.  She decided to do an NST to make sure everything was still fine - as if the average new parent knows what "NST" means.  Luckily I had just finished reading a good friend's blog post and Jake had conversed with a coworker about their Fetal No Stress Tests so we weren't too freaked out by the lingo.

She strapped me up with two sensors around my belly - one to measure baby's movements and one to measure any contractions (what?!) - handed me a button to push when I felt baby move, and made me eat a snack to help wake baby up. Then we waited.  Our little champion started moving around a bit within the 20-30 minute window that they want to see and Dr. Princ assured us that all was still great.  She also pointed out the top sensor's readings - that I had had several contractions!  I guess it wasn't so crazy to monitor that along with baby's movements.  Too bad the "real" ones during labor won't be so painless. 

So, all is still well with Baby Schulz and we added a little excitement to our routine check.  I am dilated less than one centimeter (does that even count?!) so we should still have some time before meeting our sweet little babe.

Here is a snapshot of the little one's growth the past few weeks (I have definitely noticed the change now as I can no longer zip my coat and even the oh so comfy elastic maternity pants feel tight by the end of the day!):

35 Weeks

36 Weeks

37 Weeks

Happy birthday Jesus!

I am slightly conflicted this year because it does not feel like Christmas without snow.  I am one of those "crazy" people who loves winter anyway and it just doesn't seem quite right to have a brown Christmas.  As Jake and I sit watching Love Actually (our VERY favorite Christmas movie and one of our favorites in general), I am reflecting on the year and our holiday celebrations thus far and I am also very content.  We have been truly blessed and the past few days have been a tiny snapshot into the love and joy that we are surrounded by with our amazing family and friends.  Here's a peek at our recent Christmas events (can you see how lucky we are?!)...

Olson Family Christmas (notice the beautiful attire!)

The (not so) "little" girls reading the Christmas Story

Pyle Family Christmas

Ed enjoying his white elephant gift

The beginning of our little peanut being spoiled by all those who already love Baby Schulz :)

We have one party to go next weekend and I am thrilled to extend the joy of the Christmas season, to have an excuse to leave the tree up and continue listening to Christmas music, and to enjoy more time with those we love!

Time Flies

We're down to 6 weeks until our due date.  As my doctor said with a smile, "maybe 7".  But either way we are definitely in the home stretch of this pregnancy!  We have an active baby, I can still breathe, I can walk without waddling, and my favorite time of year is upon us.  Although I am not always comfortable and sleep is becoming a bit of a challenge, we continue to feel blessed and eagerly await the arrival of our sweet baby!

33 Weeks

34 Weeks

Out of the mouths of babes...

There are so many great things about being a teacher; seeing the amazing growth my students make socially and academically, building positive relationships with so many incredible kids, connecting with parents, and, of course, giggling at the funny things that the kids say and do.  It can also be challenging and with the excitement of Christmas coming up, my class has had some rough days.  However, one funny story came out of the chaos and I just had to share...

One of my students brought me a note after an especially wiggly day.  It was sealed in an envelope and said (in blue highlighter), "Dear MRS. Schulz i am so so so sorry for my BehaBvor and to show my appoligy you can signe this note saying yes or no and if you say no then here is some money," with $2 enclosed.  Well, I accepted his apology and did not keep the money, but will cherish the note as a reminder of their sweet little hearts even when they are acting like hooligans! :)

Christmas Cards

We got our first Christmas card in the mail yesterday!  That is one of my favorite parts about the Holidays - opening the mailbox to find cards and letters from good friends and family.  I truly love catching up on what has been happening with others throughout the year and enjoy reconnecting with them through their letters and kind thoughts.  Over the past several years I have gained a new respect for those who are on-the-ball enough to get these mailed every year...

When we first got married I was thrilled at the prospect of sending our own family Christmas card and letter.  It had been a big year with buying a house, celebrating at our wedding and honeymoon, and Jake applying to grad school.  We had plenty to share.  Then 2009 and 2010 came and went and all of our good intentions fell through.  Well, this year I was determined to restart this tradition for the Schulz's.  I forced Jake to take pictures, searched through SO many templates to find a card that fit us and tried to put the joy of our year onto paper.  So, we finally have a card in the mail again!  We hope that it brings a little holiday cheer to our family and friends.  

32 Weeks

For some reason, having only 8 weeks to go makes this baby's arrival seem SO close!  The movements are changing as Baby outgrows it's little space, yet every flutter, roll, and push is still so exciting.  I can tell I'm getting bigger because the first graders have started to comment that the baby is growing.  One sweet little student has started to say two goodbyes at the end of each day; "Goodbye Mrs. Schulz" (with a hug), "Goodbye baby" (with a second hug)!  Can you see the difference this week?