365 days - Nolan Lee

Dear Nolan,

Today you will turn one year old.  365 days.  Both a life time and a blink of an eye.

These days I look at you and see such a little boy, so full of joy, so feisty, so brave yet so careful to make sure mom or dad are close by.  What happened to my tiny, fragile little baby??  I almost have to close my eyes to see you that way but the memories are right there.  I have done my best this year to hold on to every moment with you.  The good, the great, and the not-so-great too.

I remember the first time I ever really saw of you - on that ultra sound - and I remember how your daddy and I held our breath then sighed and shed tears of relief to know that it was really true.  We really would become parents.  We prayed for you, planned for you and dreamed about you.

Then I remember yesterday last year.  Oh I was so uncomfortable in my pregnancy and we had just seen the midwife in the morning who told us it was highly unlikely we'd be hearing from you any time soon.  Imagine our surprise when that night I awoke to my water breaking and the realization that we would be meeting you a full month earlier than we had planned.  I remember that day so well and I remember you so tiny, so fragile, your sweet little coos and milky breath.

Slowly you grew and at every stage of the way you have filled us with so much joy.  Seeing you smile for the first time, kick your little feet for the first time, cheering you on to roll over for the first time.  I remember your first laughs.  They were at daddy just making silly daddy sounds.  Then suddenly you were rolling around the whole room, then sitting up.  Then sitting up in your crib.  Do you know that every night for the last 365 days I have gone into your room after you have fallen asleep to kiss you, tell you I love you and just stare at the awesomeness that is you?  I cried when we had to lower your crib mattress because I couldn't reach to lean into the crib and kiss you laying down anymore.  You were just so big.  Then you started to crawl (like a wounded soldier!).  Oh man, that's when I knew you would keep me busy.

And now you are crawling around up on your knees as fast as can be and pulling up and walking along all the furniture and you are all into everything:  kitchen cupboards, pulling clothes in and out of the dryer and washing machine, trying to climb into the dishwasher if I'm not fast enough... the list goes on!  You are just such a little boy.  A little blonde boy, which still blows my mind.

And I love absolutely everything about you.

I love your soft, pale, doughy baby skin.

I love that when you laugh you wrinkle your nose up and show off your teeth.

I love that when you hear mommy and daddy laugh, you start laughing too just to join in on the "conversation".

I love that you love to snort like a piggy.

I love that you lay your head on my shoulder and wrap your arms around my neck so tight when you are tired or just need love.

I love that these days one of your favorite signs is "baby" and that you squeeze and love on a funny looking naked little baby doll.

I love the way you say "mama" with your small, high-pitched, but incredibly big-boy sounding voice.

I love that your first spoken word was "moo" of all things!  And that you are obsessed with animals in books that are (or at least you think are) cows.

I love that you inspire family dance parties in the living room.

I love that you sleep with your blanket tucked beneath you and your little butt up in the air.

I love the small baby you were and the beautiful big boy you are becoming. 

Because of you our lives are richer than we could have ever imagined.  Sweet Nolan, there are no words in the world that could possibly explain the deep love your father and I have for you.  Thank you for the most blessed, full year of our lives.  We love you and can't wait for the years to come.

-mommy & daddy

here is a video tribute to Nolan's first year.  It's 8 minutes long, just a warning.  Get your popcorn ready, ha ha!  (tip: if it's too slow, press pause to let the video load fully.  Wait a few minutes, you'll see the gray bar getting longer, then play or click the grey circle once the video is fully loaded.)

Last Belly Shot

Just for kicks, the last belly shot! I took this at 35 weeks, just 4 days before I went into labor. Can you even imagine if I ended up going to 40 weeks?! wowsa!! ha ha!

34 week Dr. appointment update

Just a quick update for you all. I headed to see the midwife today for my 34 week check up. (I'll see her again at 36 weeks and then start going every week from there.) The baby's heartbeat is still looking good in the 140's but in the last two weeks he appears to have had a major growth spurt!

I'm actually measuring 36 weeks pregnant now but I'm technically only 34 weeks along. Two weeks ago I was measuring spot on at 32 weeks but since then the baby has apparently grown quite a bit. (This would also explain the shocking 6 pounds I've gained in the last two weeks alone!!) The midwife said we'll double check again when I go back in two weeks because things may level out.

We also found out today that baby has turned and is in position for birth, which is great! He's already got his head down and is ready to go - meaning he is not sideways or breech any longer.

So excited the countdown is on! Can't wait to meet our baby boy!

This weekend we are headed to meet our newest family member, Andrea & John's son, baby Charlie! Can't wait to snuggle him and see how the new mama and papa are doing!

33 weeks

Steve took these photos 2 weekends ago when I was 33 weeks. Little guy sure is growing!!

31 weeks

Wow! I'll be 31 weeks in 2 days...that's crazy. When I think about only having 9 weeks left (if we make it to 40 weeks) I start to get panicked about all there is to do!! I also am panicking a bit about how little time Steve and I have left as just Steve and I. I'm hoping we can get away for a weekend at the coast or something before the baby comes. Mostly though, I'm just getting eager to meet our little man!

New in the last three weeks is that I'm actually feeling really pregnant. And not in great ways. I'm not sleeping well - hip pain, back pain, insomnia, etc. and my back has been hurting so bad that I've been seeing a chiropractor. I'm also having some rib pain on the right side - I'm thinking little guy has decided to settle himself into a position where his feet are right up under mommy's ribs. yay. not.

In other news, I'm also starting to feel really sentimental about all that has gone on this year and what is to come. I was sitting in the waiting room at the doctor's office yesterday and had to hold back tears as I watched a couple leave oohing and ahhing over their first ultrasound photos and another couple nervously waiting to to in for their first ultra sound. Neither woman looked pregnant at all yet and I just remembered so clearly how Steve and I sat nervously/excitedly in that waiting room to see our little bean for the first time not long ago! What an amazing journey this is!!

I came across this video a few weeks ago and every time I watch it it makes me cry ;) So sweet I had to share! Enjoy :)

28 weeks - baby is growing and so am I!

28 weeks - baby is the size of a Chinese Cabbage, weighs 2.25 lbs, and is about 15" long. He is now blinking, coughing, sucking and breathing! His lungs have actually reached maturity at this point so the good news is that if something crazy were to happen and little bean decided to join the world now his prognosis would be excellent. Of course we want him to keep baking a good while longer.

28 weeks - mama is most definitely NOT the size of a Chinese Cabbage :)

August Visit From My Aunt & Mom - getting ready for baby!

Late August we were so lucky to have a visit from my aunt and mom. The did so much work helping me prepare for our little guy! They helped us get our crib put together, bookcase built and painted the baby's room. So exciting!! There is still a bit of decorating to do in the room - I'm going to hang some pictures, get one more little storage shelf etc, but here are some pictures of the current progress. (I think if you click them you can see them bigger)







They also threw me a great baby shower with my girlfriends here in Portland. Let me start with saying that I really was unsure about having a shower. I didn't have a wedding shower and I just feel funny being "in the spotlight". (It was nice to share my Wisconsin shower with Andrea!). But I let them convince me to do it and I'm SOOO glad. It ended up being one of the best days I've ever had. I was emotional all weekend and am just so thankful for the friendships I have made here in Portland. Here are a few photos from the shower.

with my Aunt - by the way I was 25.5 weeks at the shower

just chatting

Allison & Angie trying to free their babies in the "my water broke!" game. Allison was super competitive and won all three of the games - hilarious!
check out Parker snoozin' on the back of the chair - he wasn't so into the game ;)

Kara & Sarah

Michelle & Gayle

We also had a great time just running errands, picking up baby items and of course celebrating my 31st birthday!! (that's hard to believe - wow I'm getting old). Here are some pictures from the rest of the week.

July visit to Wisconsin

We had a great visit to see Steve's family in Wisconsin this past July! It was of course busy, busy, but so fun.

There were a number of big events going on during our visit:

1) my first baby shower - it was so fun to see everyone. Steve's mom collaborated with his Aunt Kathy to throw a joint shower for me and Andrea, Steve's cousin who is also pregnant and due about 3 weeks before me. Steve's aunt Linda even made it - she's been recovering from chemo and it was a huge, emotional surprise. It was a ton of fun and really special to feel all the love and support. This little guy is one loved baby already!


2) baby Autumn's baptism! - so sweet and precious. We met our niece and goddaughter Autumn for the first time during our visit. She was just 2 months old and teeny tiny!! It was so wonderful to cuddle with her throughout the week and give Steve a taste of what is to come!


3) fish fry at Grandma Jean's - yummy! we got to spend quite a bit of time with Steve's dear grandma, Jean. She's so lovely and we treasure time with her. We had a fish fry at her house one day and got all all the sons, wives, grandsons and their wives and great grand kids together. So special!



4) We threw an impromptu "birthday hang out" for Steve's dad's upcoming 60th birthday. He's a special guy and very loved on this big birthday!! (and always!)

We also got to visit with other family a bunch - Steve's aunts and cousins - and I got to see my Wisconsin gals Jamie and Jessica and Jessica's little ones, Drew and Aubrey. The week just flew by!

20 weeks photo (July 20, 2010)

Here's a photo from my 20th week (again a couple of weeks late, sorry!)

I'll post a 22 week update soon and also a post about our trip back to WI!

(way late) re-cap of 18 weeks - July 6-13, 2010

So I'm posting this a month late - in true Christina fashion ;) But I really want to write about week 18 of my pregnancy because it was such a monumental week!

Here's a belly shot at 18 weeks.


Week 18 marked the first time I felt baby movements. They were mostly occasional, very light pops and or light tummy growling feelings. I wasn't sure at first if they were really the baby moving or just flukes, but it happened often enough that I was finally convinced it was baby!

Week 18 also marked our "BIG Ultra Sound"....This should be the last ultra sound we'll have and it checks for all sorts of developmental info: baby's size, are there 10 fingers/toes, bones of the legs arms, stomach cavity, are all 4 chambers of the heart ok, it looks at the spine, the brain, the baby's gender and even more I'm sure I'm forgetting. We were in the ultrasound for about 45 minutes and it was SO amazing. Our little peanut no longer looks like a peanut but a real baby! We saw the baby move his legs, reach up with his little hand and more. We were in awe of all the things we could see and I had silent tears running down my face for most of the exam. When it was all over, Steve literally put his hand over his heart and let out a huge sigh. It's funny how much you worry about your child from the very beginning. I'm told it never ends! ;)

Here is a picture of the baby.


The other big part of the ultra sound is of course finding out the baby's sex. We knew early on that we wanted to know (well, at least I did and Steve was open for whatever!). We also knew that we wanted to make finding out as special as possible, so we had did NOT find out at the doctor's office. We had the ultra sound tech tell us to turn away during the gender revealing portion and then she sealed a picture in an envelope for us. The next day (July 10) we took the envelope to the park and had a picnic breakfast so we could open the envelope in private. This was the money shot, ha ha!! (think looking up from inside the toilet) We're having a BOY!


I had not had any "gut instincts" of whether the baby was a girl or boy, but Steve had been convinced for awhile that it was a boy. Here's how that went down! Steve and I went to see The Eagles play a few months ago (yes we were the youngest people there, ha!). They started playing the song "Boys of Summer" and Steve instantly turned to me with a premonition of sorts and said "I know what it is! It's totally a boy! I remember listening to this song, driving down the road with my dad and I just know it's a boy - plus your dad has never had a boy to do 'boy things' with!". From that moment he has been convinced and even referred to the baby as "our son" a few times! Well, he was right and I'll always remember his first "daddy instinct". So excited that we're going to be parents to a little guy :)

July visit from my family

My mom, dad and sister just came out to visit for a week and we had a great time! It was so nice to have them here and I immediately put them to work! (ha ha, but seriously I did!) I had them go shopping with us to give some input on cribs, rockers, strollers, dressers, etc. They were a great help and trekked all over town with us. Steve and I had narrowed things down a lot but my parent's input helped us finalize some decisions. It's really overwhelming how many decisions there are to be made when preparing for a baby. I've been researching a ton, but anyway... By the end of the week, I had ordered my crib and bought a dresser for the baby room from IKEA which my dad so lovingly assembled.

But we didn't just work! We played too of course! We spent 3 days at an awesome townhome visiting Mt. Hood. We hiked and visited Timberline lodge a few times for clam chowder & hot chocolate (it was cool up on the mountain!) and Ashley, Steve & my dad went white water rafting one day. The girls went for pedicures to celebrate Ashley's birthday. We had an awesome time and as always it was tough to say goodbye. Here is a link to some of our photos from the trip! Good times!

CLICK HERE TO LINK TO PICTURES

17 weeks

Ok, so I know it's been a month. Sorry, really - but nothing worth writing about has been going on! I anticipate more posts as the pregnancy progresses and over the summer with all our trips and family/friend visits.

I heart summer - so glad it's here!! finally!! This was a record-breaking cold, wet spring for Portland and summer is still dragging it's heels a bit but overall the weather is finally nice. We're getting ready for my parents and sister to come visit next week and I'm hoping it warms up a bit as they seem to think Portland is never warm ;)

I'm 17 weeks pregnant today - wow - it's crazy to even write that! In some ways time has flown and in other ways it has crept. I've been in my 2nd trimester for a few weeks now and am just starting to get more energy. Enough energy that nesting is in full effect! I'm watching craigslist for used items and buying some things when I find deals (I'm an internet deals stalker if you didn't know!). And the biggest thing is that Steve and I spent all last weekend clearing out my office which will be the baby's room. There was SO. much. stuff!! Of course this also meant that we needed to organize Steve's office to make room for my stuff and clean out our storage closet to make room for more storage... Here are some pictures of what will be the baby's room. It's a blank slate now but we plan to paint later this summer and start some of the decorating. I thought about taking a picture of it as my office but couldn't bring myself to photograph the clutter. (oh and if anyone in pdx wants a full mattress and box spring let me know! they're a bit old and firm but free!)



I also went for my 16 week appointment last week. Little sprout's heartbeat is still at the high end of normal. (160 beats/min now) We go back soon to see the baby again and find out if it's a boy or girl. Steve feels pretty sure it's a boy. I have no clue but can't wait to find out!!

Ok, and here's the one thing you've all been waiting for I know (ha!) the debut photo of my baby bump taken today at exactly 17 weeks :)


And fun facts about the baby now:

• he/she is about 5 inches long
• weighs as much as a bar of soap
• is storing fat
• is beginning to get hair over his/her whole body
• he/she can hear now! (hope he/she is ok with my super loud Glee sing-alongs in the car!)
  

12 week appointment

So I went for my 12 week appointment today and it was a HUGE relief! I got to HEAR the heartbeat for the first time. We were able to see it flickering on the ultrasound at 8 weeks but the baby was too small to hear the heartbeat. Now at 12 weeks it is big enough for us to hear the heartbeat with a doppler. Baby is still dancin' in there with a really strong heartbeat of 180 beats/minute. (That's on the high end but great!) Yippee!!!

12 weeks

Wow! I can't believe I'm almost at the end of my first trimester. In all honesty everything is still so surreal. I can't help but wonder "is there really a baby in there?!" I know I haven't posted in awhile - this is sort of intentional because I don't want to "jinx" anything and also because there isn't that much to say. I've still avoided morning sickness for the most part. I've had about half a dozen moments of fleeting nausea in the last month - usually in the morning - brushing my teeth or driving into work. But it passes quickly and it's really more of an overall icky-ness than feeling pukey.

I still haven't told anyone at work though I think some of my colleagues can tell. :) I'm having to wear looser tops and have actually been asked outright if I'm pregnant by 2 people already, and a student asked me today out of the blue "Mrs. Schabow do you want to have a child or something?" "um, why yes I do...someday soon maybe..." ha ha! She wouldn't have asked that if she wasn't suspicious so I guess I'm not hiding it well, ha! I'm planning to come clean after my appointment this Thursday and I can't wait to finally be "out"!

Here are some fun baby facts for now, At 12 weeks:

• the baby is the size of a PLUM
• eyes and ears are in place
• baby is able to swallow
  
• fingernails are forming
• most body structures are now formed and baby enters the "maintenance stage"
  

Pretty awesome, huh?!!

I head to the doctor on Thursday, so I'll update again then if there is any interesting news!

Peanut's First Pictures

Today might have been one of the best days of my life!! Steve and I headed to the ultrasound appointment and just before we got on the elevator to go in he said "I'm nervous. Are you nervous?" I said "very!". Then we bravely went in for our appointment full of firsts! The ultrasound lady promptly put goo on my belly and then we saw our little peanut!! He/she is just a little blob at this point (as big as a raspberry!), but it's amazing what they can see. I think I held my breath up until the point when the tech said "oh, there's a little heartbeat" WOO HOO!! BEST DAY EVER!!! Actually later the midwife told us the baby is "dancing in there" Little Peanut's heartbeat was 180 beats/min WOW! So cool and amazing. Everything feels much more real now. We promptly called my grandparents and aunt and uncle to tell them about our Christmas surprise. Today was a great day. Here are some of Peanut's first photos! You'll probably have to click the image to make it bigger.

8 weeks

So yesterday I was officially 8 weeks pregnant. I still can't believe it. I've had NO morning sickness and very minimal symptoms otherwise (well, aside from the fact that I'm expanding at an alarming rate, and I'm exhausted all day). In a crazy way I have wished to be sick as it would provide reassurance that there is indeed a little one growing inside of me. The past few weeks have dragged on so sloooowly. I'm dying to shout it from the mountain tops but wanted to wait until my first ultra sound which is TOMORROW!!!!! I am so excited and nervous to see our little one. We should be able to see/hear the heartbeat too which has me just giddy! I want to go home now and sleep until 2:15 tomorrow so the appointment can just be here already.

In non pregnancy news, we've been carrying along just fine. We went to the tulip fest with my friend (and biz partner) Kara and her husband Dominic. It was so beautiful and we had a great time visiting, wine tasting (well, I watched everyone else wine taste), and eating delicious fresh made sausages & brats. Here are some photos from the day!

And Baby Makes 3!!

Yep, you read it right! We are PREGNANT!!! I can hardly believe it. It's a huge secret right now (so I won't be publishing this on the actual day I'm writing it 4/6/10). It's been exactly one week since I first peed on a stick and saw the beautiful pink line. And while it's still really early, the line keeps getting darker, I've been confirmed by a blood test at the Dr.'s and we are just ecstatic! Our estimated due date is 12/8/10.

For those of you who didn't know, this has been a long ride for us. I know it's not as long as for some people, but when we started trying 10 months ago I really thought it would happen right away. I am a planner after all, so were were doing everything, ahem...correctly. ;) But it wasn't long before I just realized something wasn't right (I won't go into all the details). At first my doctor didn't really take me seriously as we are still young and the general rule of thumb is "give it a year". But after some blood tests, it was revealed that there were medical reasons for our difficulties conceiving. Long story short, it's been a really emotional year, but we are finally pregnant!! HOORAY!!

Today I am 4weeks 5 days pregnant and don't really have any symptoms which makes it even harder to believe this is real. In a really odd way I can't wait for morning sickness or some other symptoms to set in for some reassurance.

I promise to be a better blogger and will keep all the baby updates here. Hooray and CHEERS to 2010 and our Christmas Baby!