Newborns in the spring

I'm a little freaked out about having a baby in the middle of winter. I always expect the worst and fear that something will happen that will affect my ability to care for the baby. I know that in our society that I shouldn't have to fear for things like power failures, blizzards, etc, but it does happen.

Which explains why I lost about 10 lbs when I brough Mary Grace home from the hospital last winter. I worked and worked and worked to make sure I was ahead of things so that I didn't need to be stressed about those things if something were to happen.

Which takes me to my point. I'm so happy to have had William in the spring. Sure, it's still cold at night, but when the days are sunny and the temperatures approach the 70s, it takes that bad weather stress right off the table. Ahhhh. So now I just need to worry about William getting sick, or not eating enough, or not pooping, or Anne getting sick, or Mary Grace getting sick, or Mary Grace accidentally hurting William, or someone else getting hurt, etc. You get the picture.

So far I've lost 5 lbs this time around.

But enough about me! William was very good last night. He and Anne let me get about 6.5 hours of sleep (10-1:30, 4:30-7:30). Mary Grace and I attended a family First Communion celebration in the morning and took a nice long walk in the afternoon.

And if you've read this far, then please join me in a quick thought/prayer for my friend Heather who is in the last week of her pregnancy and can't wait to have her baby!

William comes home!

Today, our little boy came home for the first time. Mary Grace and Momma greeted him with smiles and joy. He slept right through leaving the hospital, his first car ride, and the videotaped walk into the house. As a matter of fact, he slept through the next two hours in the house too!

After a great late-afternoon meal, he had a traditional infant afternoon. Awake and alert for a little while, made a big poopy, cried while he got changed, then went back to sleep. We got some great pictures of the little guy during his awake time, and they're on kodak gallery.

Mary Grace paid much more attention to him and seems to welcome him into "her" house, so long as it doesn't interfere with Daddy paying attention to her. Unfurtunately, there were some tears cried this afternoon. She kissed William good-night tonight; it was one of those moments that makes your heart ache with the love you feel...

Today from Mary Grace's perspective

Today was great! I woke up and snuggled with my daddy for a little while. Then I had breakfast and played. I got to take a bath in the morning, then we went bye-bye in the car to see mommy. Oh yeah, I also got to see my new little brother William. Just to make everyone happy, I touched him a little. My parents really got a kick out of that!

I remember a little about a car ride, then I woke up in my bedroom and felt very well rested. Momma and Daddy gave me lunch; elbow macaroni with butter, then canteloupe. Yummy! Daddy took me for a ride in the stroller and we saw lots of flowers, then I played with Mamma for the rest of the afternoon. Mamma gave me a yummy dinner then we played some more. Daddy came home and read to me, then I went to bed.

I love Mommy, Daddy, Mamma and William!

Mommy and baby are doing great.

Anne is up and walking already and eating solid food. She commented on how much better she feels this time around versus after having Mary Grace.

Mary Grace got to see mommy and her new brother today. She was very happy to see mommy but had to contain her enthusiasm because of mommy's "boo-boo". I know that she's going to be a great big sister, since she's already such a great helper.

Momma is having a great time with our little angel and will be looking after her for a few hours solo this afternoon.

Welcome William Carl Schreiber!

William was born today at 12:51pm at Parkridge Hospital and greeted a very happy and thankful Mommy and Daddy with some healthy screaming!

He weighed in at 7lbs 6 oz and measured 19.5". And everyone (including our doctor) thought he would be over 8 lbs. He's just one ounce heavier and a half inch shorter than Mary Grace when she was born. The big difference though is that he has some blond hair!

Mommy is getting back to her old self and expects to be eating solid foods and walking by tomorrow.

Mary Grace had a great time today with her sitters and was exhausted by the time Daddy came home at 6:00 to play and eventually put her to bed.

The son will come out tomorrow!

Bet your bottom dollar!

We're very excited to meet William. We went to the hospital today for a non-stress test and I got to listen to Williams heartbeat on the loudspeaker while watching him move around in Mommy's belly. He apparently didn't like the sensor, because he moved a lot!

Mary Grace had a great time with her cousin Catie and her aunt and uncle this morning. She loves her cousin and gave her a big hug and kiss as we left.

Mamma is here now and everyone is calling to wish us their best. Keep us in your thoughts and hold your breath for the next exciting update!

Wow, just 2 more days

It's such a relief to be done with work for the next three weeks. I'm looking forward to giving William, Mary Grace and Anne all my attention for the next 23 days.

Mary Grace slept from 7:30pm until 9:00 am last night, except she woke up in the middle of the night for some reason. Mommy was already up, so she got Mary Grace back to sleep.

The picture is from our first trip to the playground. It's a very nice playground, with a cork base, three slides and a bunch of swings. It's usually very quiet at 5:30ish, when we usually arive. Mary Grace has taken to finding the youngest kid there (who is always older than her) and latching on, then following that kid around. It's very cute.

The last time we went, she wanted to go down the big slide alone, but I was already at the top, so I held her and we went down together. Next time, I'll just catch!

Three more days

With just three days to go, Mary Grace or William's new room will be ready to be occupied! It was tough, but with Anne's help in running the day-to-day stuff in the house, I was able to finish all the painting, and the room looks fabulous! Pictures to follow.

Mary Grace has been in a great mood and is as helpful as ever. On our walk last night, we played with the Turner family for a little while and she had a great time. I think we'll be tapping into this new baby-sitting resources after seeing how well Mary Grace took to Yanni.

Mamma is coming to stay with us on Sunday, which will be a great help, as Mary Grace loves when she visits. I fully expect Mary Grace to be perfectly fine with her temporary care-givers but I know she'll miss her mommy too.

4 days to go

Mary Grace is recovering from her first illness and got a look at her (potential) new room. She didn't seem phased at all.

Mommy is sleeping better lately, probably because she has no choice. William has been hungry for all sorts of naughty food, like doughnuts, poptarts, popscicles, potato chips and pickles.

We're on the verge of entering our final weekend as a family of three. I hope the weather holds out so we can spoil Mary Grace all weekend long!

T minus 5 days

Mary Grace, Anne and I are very anxious to welcome William. Anne has been busy getting all the baby stuff back in circulation, and I've been trying to finish up William's new bedroom. Mary Grace has been just enjoying the spring with long stroller rides to the playground.