Schnelle Christmas

Gabe and I spent Christmas with his family in SW Missouri. Christmas at the Schnelle's is always an awesome time. The whole family gathers for feasting and fun and it usually is at least a 2 day affair.

Gabe's mom with all the grand kids. Yea, we are adding a little late, but there is always room for one more!
Patiently waiting to open gifts.
It isn't Christmas in Missouri without the St. Louis Cardinals apparel.

Its too much excitement for Cheyenne.

As is tradition, after feasting, the family gathers for some type of game. (this year it was competitive BuzzWord). Then we break up into smaller groups and play games and watch movies until the wee hours of the morning. Of course, I am always the first to poop out. I end up going to bed at 11:30.

The weather was really strange. It was 70 degrees and very humid, making for a very uncomfortable night. Then a cold front moves through and this morning, as we were packing up to head home, we were under a tornado warning. Tornadoes at Christmas??

Tonite, back at home, Gabe and I celebrated our Christmas with a quiet meal and leftover fudge and cookies. Check out my Christmas gift! Yep, I have the world's greatest hubby!
The little bean had her share of fun too. She is moving around more than ever now and certainly made her presence known when she felt like it. My tummy actually visibly moves around now. My weekly preggo email says I have 77 days left. eeeeek!

Motherhood....oh my...

As the big day draws closer, I often find myself daydreaming about what's about to happen. And often, I find myself on the edge of sheer panic when I think about how drastically our lives are going to change. How will we handle it? Will I be a good mom? Will I be a patient mom? Will I feel smothered? Overwhelmed? Will I be affectionate enough? Loving enough? How will our animals suffer? I am already filled with guilt. What did we get ourselves into?


That is when I know its time for Cjane. In the blogging world you happen upon some great blogs. Cjane is has become a daily favorite and a source of comfort and reassurance. Her family values are something to be admired. She makes motherhood/parenting/family seem like heaven, even in the face of tragedy. So, whenever I get anxious about the massive changes that are coming our way, I go to Cjane and read this. Or my personal favorite.

Then I fill up with warm fuzzies, look lovingly at my husband and our home, thank god for all our blessings, and know everything is going to be alright.

Turkeys, Baby Showers, and Girl Time

Gabe and I spent Thanksgiving week in Denver. It was great to have more than just a long weekend and actually spend a full week! We normally drive to Denver with the dogs, but this time, we left the animals behind and decided to fly. A 11 hour drive while pregnant just didn't sound very appealing. We had a great time in Denver visiting friends and family. Even with the extra time, we still never get the chance to see everyone we would like to. Thanksgiving dinner was fantastic. My dad dug out the turkey fryer and we had the best turkey ever! I didn't realize until we got there how homesick I really was for my hometown. So it was nice to be home again, even for a few days.

Once back at home in Missouri, it was a crazy stress week for me (hence my panic post below), and I then found myself on a plane once again headed back to Denver for my baby shower and annual christmas brunch with my BFF's. Gabe opted to stay behind this time.

It was a GREAT weekend. The shower was beautiful, and it was so great to see family and friends that I have not been able to see since we moved. Kristi and my mom put on a great spread. The gifts were incredible. And the clothes!!! oh, baby girls are so much FUN!

Here is a brief pictoral review:

My cousin, Rachelle, is so talented. She made the cake for me. So cute!!



















The shower was in an open house format so that people didn't feel like they had to stay the entire time. One of the things I hated about showers was how much time it took to watch the gifts being opened! But, I was amazed the everyone stayed while I opened a huge amount of gifts. Everything was adorable. 85% clothes. It was so funny listening to the "awwww's" with every outfit. It also really started to sink in what was about to happen. So I had a bit of the butterflies through the day. It was a blast and I can't WAIT to put all of it to use. I am so blessed to have a wonderful group of friends and family.






This is the back of my mom's Outlook when we drove home with all those gifts. I was actually able to ship everything home. 4 big boxes. Crazy!

A big thanks goes to my Mom and my Aunt Maxie for helping me out with the shipping. I couldn't have done it without them!

Sunday my BFF's (Kristi, Collie, and Karrie) had our annual christmas brunch. Normally, the shindig is at Kristi's house where we cook, drink, and be merry. But this year, we decided to splurge a bit and have brunch at the famous Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs. It is a gorgeous hotel with a renowned brunch. They didn't let us down. The place was beautifully decorated and the food was fantastic.


View of the front of the hotel. With the mountains in the background, I was in heaven!



The Gang. Along with a rare shot of a me 7 months pregnant.



A picture is worth a thousand words. Karrie branched out and tried her first oyster on the half shell. ha! Sorry Karrie, this one was just too good!


I loved this gingerbread house display.

















As much as fun as it was, it is always good to be back at home. I was exhausted and needed to recoup. Now we are grounded for a while. I can't travel after January so we will be sticking around home. Our focus now is prepping for the Baby Bean. March and April will be busy with visitors and before we know it, it will be summer. How the time flies!

The Bean and The Butterball

Whew! We finally have a couple of weeks to breathe and catch up a bit. That means also catching up with the blogging.

Let's see....where to start......

I guess I will take it one post at a time. First, an update on The Bean.
There have been a LOT of changes since the last update. I have officially lost count of what week I am in. I think its somewhere around 27 or 28. We go for a checkup tomorrow, so I will find out for sure then. I think I am at 28 weeks because this is the last appointment before we go to an every-two-week appointment schedule which means I have entered into the 3rd trimester. wow....

Anyway, here is a quick recap of the latest in the preggo world:

• Kicks, punches, and what I refer to as "squirmies", are a regular occurrence now. It's pretty cool except when she really gives me a good one and then I yelp like a dog. Gabe still can't feel her which is a big bummer. Just when I think he might be able to, he puts his hand on my belly and she goes quiet. Little stinker. Is this a sign of things to come?? oh boy....


• She is growing like crazy. Of course, this also means I am growing like crazy too. I think I am starting to look like the butterball turkey we ate for Thanksgiving!


• I grow out of clothes in record time. Yesterday I fit into my favorite maternity pants, today I can barely get them on. Shirts that fit a few days ago, can't even fit around my butterball belly now. Crazy!


• While in Denver last weekend, I started sleeping with a body pillow. Right on schedule. I fear my days of blissful sleep are coming to an end soon. They will be sorely missed.


• My new favorite thing: maternity belts.


• Simple walking and talking are a chore now. I actually lose my breath when I talk. What gives!?


• Yesterday, while in the grocery store, the checker asked me when I was due. I said "March". She replied "Are you going to make it?".....enough said.


• So far, its been a by-the-book pregnancy for which we are very fortunate. I am a little nervous for the final lap. Hopefully, it will go smoothly.


• There is still a lot to do. We hope to have a hospital chosen by the end of this week when we tour the 2nd of the 2 choices. We will start to go to all our "new parent" classes (birthing, nursing, and infant CPR) starting in January, and need to decide on a pediatrician for the bean.


• I just realized I have 7 weeks of work left and 12 weeks until the big day.....trying not to hyperventilate!

Work on the nursery finally began this weekend. The bedroom set that is currently in there will go to Gabe's niece, Amanda, and her husband who are moving into their new house this weekend. We spent Saturday cleaning out the closet and drawers, which of course, leads to about 5 other re-organizing projects we have to do now. Once the room is empty, we can paint and then its furniture time! We finally decided on a furniture set after many agonizing months of research. I am so excited to get it!

Catching Up...

Well, I made it through finals...YIPEE and a second trip to Denver!!!! Now its catch up time.

Stay tuned for updated blogs as soon as I get all my Thank You cards done. I have lots to cover (Thanksgiving, baby shower, Bean update...and more!)

Behind

I apologize that I am horribly behind on blogging. I am horribly behind on everything right now. House is a mess, still need to finish the christmas decorations, have not given any thought to starting on the nursery, zero christmas shopping done, even my suitcase from our trip to Denver is still lying on the floor 1/2 unpacked. Need to update the blog with a Bean update, belated Thanksgiving wishes, recap of our trip to Denver (which was awesome). But, all of it will have to wait. For this is finals week. The week from hell.

The following assignments are due on Thursday:

• 5000 word research paper complete with 25 cited sources. I have 3500 words and 20 resources. Need a miracle.


• Final test. This is an online test, but its at least 2 hours of essay questions. Can't start this until the research paper is done.


• Oral presentation on Thursday for which I am not the slightest bit prepared.

Today is Tuesday.....

This is me today:

This will probably be me tomorrow....

Oh and did I mention I am going back to Denver on Friday? Time to pack? I think not....

Sometimes, life just isn't fair...

This last weekend, Gabe and I drove down to Aurora, MO to see his parents and go to Silver Dollar City to look at rocking chairs that I have been coveting for at least 5 years. We now finally have a good excuse to buy one. They are beautiful, sturdy, solid wood, handmade rocking chairs with big comfy cushions. I was so excited to get down and see them. Gabe and I have been going to Silver Dollar City in Branson, MO every year since we have started dating. It’s a fabulous place, especially at Christmas. A big entertainment park with rides and food and shops all based on old time America. They have lots of great shops full of handmade art, crafts, and furniture…..like rocking chairs. Every year, we would go into the furniture store and I would drool over the rocking chairs. I would sit in every one and dream of having my own one day. So when we found out we were pregnant, I immediately thought of these rocking chairs that I have been dreaming of all this time. And where I will put it in the nursery. And what color cushions I will get. And how after babies, we will use it forever in our family room until we can hand it down to our kids…..oh boy, I really can’t wait to get down there!

After a ill-fated drive south (something to do with a lot of dog vomit, but I will spare you the details), we finally make it. I practically run to the store and make a bee-line to the room with the chairs. Only…..no chairs. Where are the chairs????? I start to panic.

I ask the salesman, “where are all your rocking chairs?”.

“We have one on display in the very back”, he says.

ONE????? I run to the back to the one chair. Nope, not the one. “Where are all the others?”, I ask. “We don’t display them anymore and only have two styles still available to order”, replies the salesman.

Devastation.

The kind salesman takes out the catalog and shows me what styles are left. I point to one that sort of looks like the one I like. Maybe, just maybe I might get lucky? He punches numbers on his calculator and shows me the price. $1100.00 with the ottoman. Ummm…No. Devastated.

In the end, I learned a valuable lesson. About the emotional attachment for a piece of furniture. A materialistic thing. This isn't what life is about. We will get a rocking chair and it will be great and wonderful. It will most likely be from one of those big furniture superstores with bargain prices on factory made knock-offs. I mean, who needs a 1,000 dollar rocking chair anyway?? Not us. Because let's face it, in the big picture, there is much more to life than the perfect rocking chair.

Another Halloween Bites the Dust

Halloween 08 came and went with a whimper for us. Halloween has traditionally been a favorite day of ours. We love to decorate the house, carve pumpkins, and watch scary movies. This year was a complete flop! Between work, baby, school and remodeling, we just didn't have time to celebrate properly. The front porch went undecorated, not a single pumpkin was carved, not a single bushel of mums set out.....how sad. However, the holiday didn't go by completely unnoticed. We did take the time to attend our neighbors Halloween Bash. Finding a couple costume while pregnant is a challenge but we decided to go as Charlie Brown and the Great Pumpkin. A meager effort. I thought Gabe made a great Charlie Brown. I on the other hand....



I had envisioned a great pumpkin costume. In my defense, I did attempt to make a decent pumpkin from the proper materials. But it was a disaster. So I ended up using an orange T-Shirt in desperation. I really must learn to sew.

The party was great. Being out in the country you can really get creative. They had a live band, bonfire for a weenie roast, and a hayride through the graveyard and spooky woods, and Mother Nature helped finish if off with a nice thick, freaky fog over the whole place.

Today, I am home sick with a nasty cold made worse by being outside in the cold on Saturday night. And when I am sick, I have to clean. Today, the dog hair in this house has me at my wits end. This is the time of year when the dogs lose their summer coats to make room for the winter coats. The Dyson work overtime, but it is impossible to keep up with. Today it has become a mission.
Chey was the first victim...

Wow.
Guess I will take a nap now...

Big Week

Okay, okay, so we caved and found out. Actually, since we couldn't seem to decide, the baby decided for us. And boy she wanted to show too! She was spread eagle for all to see and there were no boy parts there. At least, that is what the sonographer thinks, and we are goin' with it. Still, I think we had better keep our receipts just in case.

The ultrasound was awesome. She was wide awake and movin' all over the place! She has all her appendages, a good heart with all the chambers in place, all her organs look good. We both took a big sigh of relief. They gave us a cd with video and pics. Here is one of her looking straight at the camera with a big smile on her face. Can you see her eye sockets? She was smackin' her lips in this shot and we got it on video. I wish I could post it here but the file is too large.

As you can imagine we both had Perma-Grin as we walked out.

Other developments this week:

• Oct 29 - finally felt movement! Yea! - Gotta mark that one in my journal
• Heartburn begins
• Tummy itches like crazy
• Lost ability to verbally put together a proper sentence

Now the real work begins...

Weekend

This weekend went by faster than I thought for me, but slower than Gabe had hoped.

Gabe's trip started out great. It was beautiful there will the fall colors in full swing. He and his friend, Chris Morgan planned for weeks and were very prepared and rearing to go.

Here he is at the start of the trail. My man is darn handsome! :)

However, things quickly changed for the worse. They ended up getting the terrible rain storm that swept through the Midwest last week. It poured and poured and was very cold. I can't believe Chris is actually smiling here!

Finally, after spending 14 hours in that small tent, all their clothes soaked, and no end in sight, things just got too bad and they decided to go ahead and pack out. They were so very bummed since they had put a lot of thought and planning into this trip. You can't control Mother Nature. However, it wasn't all bad. He and Chris did have fun regardless and were able to spend quality time together. Which they hadn't done in a long while.

For me, the weekend flew by and didn't go quite as I had planned:

Saturday I had my hair cut and highlighted. The plan was to get that done and head out to the campus to work on my elusive research paper. Um, that didn't work out. I was at the salon for SIX HOURS!!!! Got there at 11am, left at 5:30. The girl I got was new and apparently had not done many highlights. I was terrified how it would turn out. But, in the end it turned out great and they were all very nice to me. Even going to get me something to eat since a pregnant girl has to eat! However, blew my entire Saturday. I was exhausted by the time I got home and didn't do a darn thing that night.

Sunday I baked Halloween Cookies (which came out awesome, good recipe), cleaned and did homework for this week. Still no progress on the research paper!!! UGH!

By Monday, I was tired and very ready to have my husband home. While I stayed busy, he was lonely and bored and stuck in Knoxville, TN. Needless to say, it was a happy reunion.

I left my heart in Colorado

The hardest thing about leaving Colorado is leaving the mountains. They get into your soul, and when they are gone, there sits a huge hole.
Oh how I would love to be here right now....

Oh here....

I started to write this post earlier today, when I was feeling particularly melancholy. I had just had lunch with my hubby and said goodbye (more on that later). It was super gloomy, cold and pouring rain. Couple that with hormones that have me on a crazy emotional roller coaster ride, and you have the perfect recipe for one depressing blog! So I decided to spare you the gory details of my current woes and how darn homesick I am for the mountains and closeness of friends and family. Instead I will focus on more positive, happy thoughts!

It's 9:15pm (past my normal bedtime) and I have just finished my homework for class tomorrow and feeling quite good about finishing it before the actual due date. I have left the melancholy behind (for the next few minutes anyway, haha) In my current euphoria, I felt like a little light blogging before bedtime.

First, I have promised an update on the Little Bean. The appointment went well yesterday. She said I was measuring "big" (I have no idea what that means)but I am doing well on the weight gain front. Still under 10lbs total. I am not sure why I am so obsessed about the whole weight gain thing, but I guess being pregnant didn't change my constant weight worries.
Anyway, we were thrilled to hear the heartbeat again. She found it quickly this time and it was nice and loud. After the appointment we went up to the labor and delivery ward and made an appointment for the grand tour next month. But the big day is Tuesday, when we have the ultrasound. We have not yet fully decided to find out the sex, but I think we are going to leave it up to the Bean to decide for us. He/she will either show or not show. Either way, watch the blog next week for that news.


Gabe left today for a five-day backpacking trip with his college buddy to the Smokey Mountains. This leaves me with a few days to myself. All week I have been wondering what I will do with my alone time. At the very least, this will be a great time to catch up on my schoolwork, organize and clean. I am so behind on it all. I am particularly stressed out about a 15 page research paper that is due in 6 weeks and I have put zero time into it. Sounds like a trip to the library for me on Saturday. Plus, I think I am going to attempt to make iced Halloween sugar cookies and see how I do. I may even spend some long over-due time at my out-of-tune piano trying to learn a new song. Or maybe I will rent a bunch of Chick-Flicks and the 4-legged crew and I can have a nice movie night together. Wow, I could be pretty busy if I wanted to! Usually I love the alone time, but I have a feeling by Friday night I am going to be twiddling my thumbs and wishing I had some company.

These darn hormones!!!!

The phone is ringing!! Could it be????

I will let you know how the cookies turn out!

Family, Flies, and Sawdust

Wow, what a week!

Gabe came down with a nasty bout of the stomach flu last Monday. I have never seen him so sick, let alone in bed for an entire day! It was moving through the Schnelle family like wildfire. His dad was very ill from it the week before and ended up having to spend 5 days in the hospital due to dehydration. Luckily, there was no permanent damage and he is doing much better. Unfortunately, the illness was passed around the family and Gabe was no exception. We were a little worried that I would get it too, especially since my Mom and stepdad, John, were coming in on Tuesday, but by the grace of God (and some obsessive anti-germ action), I was able to avert it and avoid impending doom.

We had a great visit with Mom and John. John is quite the work-a-holic and he and Gabe immediately started remodeling the basement. I cannot believe the amazing progress they made!! Here is a pictoral review:

Before:

New toys!!

Building walls is a snap!

Had to stop around day 2 to fix a fly problem. Forget the flies!! What the heck is that monstrous spider doing there!?!?!? I hope they killed it or we are moving!

Had to replace all the molding around the door where it rotted and made a nice nesting ground for flies. YUK! Back to work. Time to knock out some concrete!

Placing pipe for the shower

Who let the dogs out!? ooops.
Of course, we had to take time out for some KC BBQ!

mmmmm...I think John deserves some chocolate

Shower surround is in! Next step, drywall...

Wiring. Looks a bit scary to me...

End of week one. Now its all up to Gabe to finish. I wonder how long it will take? We guess about a year. And....the blog wouldn't be complete without an 4 legged appearance. John actually captured Brody engaging in his favorite sport. Chasing the stringy thing. Look how high he is! Spread eagle!! LOL!
We are forever indebted to John for all his help getting us started on this mammoth project. While the guys worked, Mom and I went power shopping. She spoiled me with a new maternity wardrobe. Thanks ma!

And finally, we got a crib! Again, thanks to Mom and John. Boy, we should have them out more often! This makes the arrival of the little bean more real.

Speaking of the little Bean, next dr. appt is on Monday, so stay tuned for a baby update!

Bean Update

All is well on the baby front. I just completed my 16th week. Dr. appt went very well. I was dreading that scale, but was pleasantly shocked to see I only gained three pounds. 5 total. My little weekly update from baby.com tells me I should have gained 5lbs by now so I am right on target. Although I look and feel like I have gained 20! I have officially "popped out" too, so I have a visable baby bump now. Doc says I am measuring right where I should be too.

Little Lima Bean is now the size of an avocado. Holy cow! We had a hard time finding the heartbeat which freaked me out a little, but she said that was totally normal and ended up finding it. Still sounds normal and running abut 150 beats per minute, but is normal too.

Ultrasound is in five weeks. Gabe and I haven't decided whether or not to find out what it is. I guess we have 5 weeks to decide. We are leaning toward not finding out, but part of me really would like to know what it is. Mostly for planning purposes. But, there are so few surprises left in life, and it would be so neat for Gabe to go out and tell friends and family in the waiting room what it is. So we will see.

What do you guys think??? Let's take a poll!

So that is the baby update. I got what I wanted. I got to hear the heartbeat again so now its time to start shopping!!!! Yea!!

Now we wait for the kicking to start.....oh boy.

It's Love

Yep, it is love....
Never thought I would see it, but it is there nonetheless.
Linus Loves Cookie

It is unbelievably cute to watch. Most of the time the camera isn't handy to capture these little love fests, but we got lucky a couple of times.

I was able to catch this one day as I walked past the front window. Linus must be close to Cookie at all times.

This one Gabe was lucky enough to get the other night. Linus lovin' on Cookie is a daily ritual now. Still can't figure out how Cookie feels about it, but she seems to like it.


This week's guest, Cindy, came to visit for a long weekend. We had a great time hanging out and shopping for the little Bean. While she was here, she discovered that Brody has a new favorite sleeping spot. Inside the fall wreath that has been sitting on the piano bench waiting to be hung. Just too much cuteness!!

Stay tuned for a Bean update.....Dr. appt is tomorrow.

Fall

This is my favorite time of year. The weather is cool and crisp, giving way to the feeling that Fall is here and the holidays are just around the corner! As I write this the football game is on in the other room and giving me warm fuzzies all over. Makes me want a big bowl of chili!

This time of year is gorgeous in Missouri. The humidity dies down making the weather wonderfully comfortable and we are able to open the windows for the first time since Spring. The trees begin to turn color and you find yourself wanting to spend all your time outdoors. Thus, this is our busy time of year for visitors. Usually we have visitors every weekend through September and October. This year looks to be no exception and we have officially declared the Schnelle "Bed and Breakfast" open for business.

Last weekend kicked it off with my Dad and stepmom, Linda. They were able to stay a few days. Dad enjoyed the relaxation time in the country and Linda helped me catch up with some much needed house-cleaning. Not feeling well over the last few months has crippled my normal manic cleaning habits and Linda was a real work-horse to get the house back into tip-top shape. And, it was the perfect time to bring out the fall decor.

Ah, I love fall!! And a clean house. Drug out the new fall stuff I got on clearance last year. I am so ready for some turkey and pumpkin pie!!!

Linda and I took a break from cleaning to get a good day of power shopping in. After two years of searching for the right fit, we finally found a mirror to fill the empty space above the mantle.

The B&B is booking up fast. My friend Cindy comes in this weekend, Gabe's parents arrive the 1st weekend of October, immediately followed by my mother and stepdad, John for a week. Mom and John have finally moved back to the states after 10 years in Saudi Arabia. We are so happy to have them back for good.

Lima Bean Update: our little bean continues to grow very fast. I think my belly has grown at least another inch around just in the last few days. Clothes I fit into last week are suddenly tight. The weekly pregnancy email I get says Lima Bean is now the size of a lemon and can wiggle its toes and fingers and blink its eyelids! So amazing!