Lincoln's First Christmas

It was exactly 17 weeks ago today that Lincoln was born.  I still think of him in weeks old even though everyone counts months at this point.  In only a few short days he will officially be 4 months old.  It seems like just yesterday we brought Lincoln home and our life began as a family.  All Christmas season we've been getting cards for "The Schultz Family".  I've been tempted to write "Return to Sender" a few times! 

We were looking forward to Lincoln's first Christmas all the while knowing it would probably be much more exciting for us and everyone else than for him.  We love Christmas and seeing our families and sharing in our traditions, but by last night, poor Lincoln was whipped!  After two days off his routine, I think he was happy to have a day at home.

We always spend Christmas Eve with Kirk's family.  The day is always full of fun, food and a lot of gift opening.  Kirk's nieces and nephew went wild and crazy opening gifts and throwing wrapping paper everywhere!  They are at a fun age and it makes the holiday that much more special to experience Christmas through a child's eyes.  (From L to R: Sophia, Noah, Linc and Olivia.)

Noah, Olivia and Sophia all love Lincoln.  In fact, the first thing Noah said to me when they walked in the door was "where's Linc?"  Lincoln did really well and got his fair share of gifts.

On Christmas, we made the trip to Grand Rapids to spend the day with my family.  We were a little worried about the weather, but Mother Nature held out for us and the trip was just fine.  Lincoln did so well and was in a great mood when we got there, but by the end of the day, I think all the excitement of the two days caught up to him and his was miserable!  Poor thing.

Lincoln, again, made out like a bandit!  And he got on some major bonding time with his cousins.  Quin played so well with Lincoln and the babies were in good spirits.  Easton and Lincoln even managed a little play time together.  It didn't last long, but we were able to catch a picture.

I love seeing my family, holiday or no holiday.  This Christmas was much different for my family than last year.  Last year, Joelee was in the hospital on bedrest.  It was great to have everyone together again.  Hard to believe that a year ago there was only one little one there at the family Christmas. This year there were 5!  (From L to R: Ellery, Joelee, Easton and Gianna...sorry, Jo, it's the only picture with all three babies!)

Santa did make a quick trip to our house.  He only left Lincoln with a couple small gifts.  Linc had a great time playing with his new toys, but it wasn't long before he had had enough.

A year ago, we didn't even know we were pregnant.  Here we are one year later celebrating one of life's greatest gifts.  Each Christmas with Lincoln will only get more and more special.  I can't wait until the day he's waking us up at 5 a.m. telling us Santa Claus has been here!

Happy Holidays everyone!

A Weekend of Firsts

What an eventful weekend around our house!  It was a weekend of first for Lincoln.  I know there will be many firsts along the way, but he was a busy little bee this weekend!

On two seperate occasions, Lincoln has rolled over from his back to his stomach.  The first when he was only a couple weeks old (I consider it a fluke!) and the second time a couple weeks ago when he was mad while I was changing his diaper.  On Friday, with Kirk and I cheering him on, he rolled from his stomach to his back.  He hasn't stopped since! 

He also has discovered his thumb.  We've busted him on several occasions with his thumb in his mouth.  The ladies at day care said it seemed he was really trying to find it one day last week.  Sure enough: yesterday morning Kirk went to check on him while he was napping and there he was sucking his thumb.  Kirk was finally able to capture a picture tonight.

There are always fun little events happening around Howell.  Yesterday, "Charles Dickens Christmas" was going on all day downtown (or "uptown" as the locals call it).  Linc had his first meeting with Santa Claus.  We were excited, but it was totally uneventful!  I guess he's a little too young to be afraid him yet.  I'm sure next year will be a different story.  (Note Santa's nice backdrop.  Nothing says the North Pole like a fake tree with lights on it and cubicals!)

Oh, and the laughs he gave us this weekend!  There is nothing sweeter than the sound of a baby's laugh.  It's not the belly laugh we're waiting for but he's laughing more.  I can't wait until he has that first real belly laugh. 

Did I mention he also his first little cold?  And he's managed to give it to Kirk and I!  He's actually had it since last weekend but he has the saddest little cough now.  Kirk says he doesn't think he got it from day care because he was sick by his third day there.  He seems to be getting better while Kirk and I are getting worse.  Better now than later, I suppose.  Oh well...

Kirk and I can't help but to say to each other almost everyday: "what do you think next year will be like?"  It's gonna be a riot!  Can't wait to have a little toddler running around here!

Hope you all are enjoying this holiday season.  Thanks for checking in with our little family!

'Tis the Season!

We had a really good first week at daycare.  The ladies at daycare love Lincoln and cannot believe how mellow and laid back he is.  They are amazed at how well he adjusted to his new surroundings.  I'm so happy he seems to be doing well and the ladies can't get enough of him.  I love that each day brings something new.  Everyday he smiles a little more, giggles a little more and recognizes us a little more.  I love it.

I loved bringing the Christmas tree home when  I was growing up and putting on the ornaments.  One year, we walked to the lot up the street and dragged the tree home.  There may have been some caroling involved, if I'm not mistaken.  Jo?  Nate?  Mom?  Pop?  Anyone remember?  We always had the best tree and Mom always has had the greatest ornaments.  I find myself looking for a new Christmas ornament everytime we travel to a new place.  I love the non-traditional ones.  

The past couple of years we have gone to a local tree farm to cut down our Christmas tree. I think it'll be a great tradition and something fun to do with Lincoln each year. The last couple years we've gone to get our tree it's been a snowy mess.  It was weird walking around and not trapsing through a foot of snow!  We weeded through lots of trees before finding the perfect one.  I'm so happy we were able to get the lights up and decorate the tree this evening.  It's the perfect little tree.  I'm looking forward to smelling pine for the next month.  No holiday smells as good as Christmas.  Love it.

We hope you all are enjoying this holiday season as much as we are here with our new addition.  I'm looking forward to the Christmas when Lincoln will understand this magical time of year. 

We survived!

And by "we" I actually mean Kirk and I. Lincoln, of course, was fine. It was Kirk and I who had a hard time today.

I knew it'd be hard dropping Linc off at daycare, but I didn't think I'd be crying so hard when I got there I wouldn't be able to see the monitor to check him in! The whole dropping off business didn't even seem to phase Lincoln. He fell asleep in his car seat on the way there and was completely calm with everything.

I only checked in on him once...I didn't want to be the OCD mom who is obsessed with her baby! Kirk and I picked Linc up a little early and he was happy to see us. Susan, his teacher, told us he did great. He didn't do a ton of sleeping being that it was a new place and there were screaming babies, but they couldn't say enough great things about how laid back he is and how happy they are to have him.

Thank you, everyone, for being so supportive! I know it'll get easier.

As for me, I'm back into the swing of things at work. I was happy to only work 3 days last week. This will be my first full week back. I wish all my work weeks were 3 days! It'd make Monday mornings so much easier!

It's hard to believe there are only 24 more days until Christmas!! I know the days will fly, as they always do. I should probably start shopping! We're going to get our tree this weekend. Having a baby will bring along a bit of a challenge as we chop down a tree! We've had an adventure every year (ok, by every year I mean the past 2 years) so I can't wait to see what adventure awaits us at the tree farm this year. I'm sure there will be pictures. Lots of pictures. :)

My Last Week of Freedom!

Ok, "freedom" is relative. If you call being at home with a sweet little baby and taking care of him all day "freedom", then yes this was my last week of freedom!


We started the week hanging out with Dawn and Daniel. It was a bittersweet visit since it was officially our last play date before I start back at work. Daniel celebrated the visit by showing off and sitting up! Lincoln, well, he celebrated by sleeping the day away while I held him. Lincoln and I both loved our visits with Dawn and Daniel and while it was our last official visit before work, I'm certain it won't be our last.

Missy and Perrin weren't able to make it over for their visit on Tuesday, but we did take Linc to the docotor for his 2 month appointment. He's a little on the small side, but the PA we saw isn't worried in the least. He's a whopping 11 pounds 8 ounces and 24 inches long. I tell everyone he's long and lanky: like his parents. :) He did ok with the shots, I, on the other hand didn't and managed to cry 2 times just talking about him getting the shots and another time while he got them. I think he's finally getting back to his normal self after the shots.


Linc and I went back to the day care for another look on Thursday. One of the teachers in his room held him and fed him while I hung out and played with the other babies. He's in a mostly boy classroom. The oldest boy is 18 months and there is another little guy Linc's age who will be starting around the same time. So happy he'll have little friends at day care!


Friday, Uncle Dave, Grandpa and Mom came to visit. Uncle David hadn't yet met Lincoln and Gramp hadn't seen him in a while. We had Tomato Brothers for lunch: one of our faves! Lincoln was great at the restaurant and afterward he got some lovin' from Uncle Dave and Grandpa. Linc loves snuggles so it was an all around perfect day for him! And us, of course. :) Kirk really would love to take a trip to AZ by the way of Route 66 someday soon. A perfect way to visit Unlce David and Ilonka!


And, finally, yesterday we celebrated Thanksgiving with Kirk's family. I love it when we see Noah, Oliva and Sophia with Lincoln. They are so sweet with him and I have never seen a little boy who loves babies like Noah. I just love the way Noah snuggles with Lincoln. Besides the love Linc got from everyone, we had a lot of great food, conversation and laughs. It's always a good time.










It has been a quick 12 weeks. Every Saturday since we had Lincoln, I always say to Kirk: "X weeks ago right now we were...". I think he probably gets tired of it, but I love to look back on the day I had Lincoln as one of the best days of my life so far. We always said we'd start trying for a baby when we felt like something was missing from our lives. I don't think we realized what was missing until we brought Lincoln home. Having him home has been more wonderful than I ever could have imagined. All the crying (that's his and mine), all the stinky diapers, all the sleepless nights are worth it. I can see now he's exactly what was missing. And while I'm happy we waited as long as we did and I wouldn't change a thing, and sure there are nights when I'd love to be hanging out with our friends, I think Kirk would agree Lincoln is the very best thing to happen to us since the day we said "I do".

While I'm sad to start working again, I know Lincoln will be well taken care of by women who love babies and will do nothing but love him. He doesn't start day care until nexDecember 1st. Kirk will be home with him the next 3 days. I'm happy to have a few days to adjust to work before we take Lincoln to day care.


We have so much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving. Thank you to all of our friends and family who have been there for us the last 12 weeks. We love you all!

Friends and Family

Last week Kirk, Linc and I headed to our dear friend's, Eric and Allison's, for dinner. We were also able to meet their newest addition, Isabelle Faith. Isabelle was born about 3 weeks after Lincoln. She is precious! So adorable! We thought Linc was a good baby: sweet Isabelle slept almost the entire time in her mama's arms. I look forward to watching all of our little ones (their son Ezra, too!) grow up together.




We headed to Zeeland today to celebrate Papa's 29th (or so...) birthday. I always love spending time and hanging out with my family. It's a little different now with all the babies and Quinners running around, but I still love it.

One of my favorite parts of the day was Quin running all around the house taking pictures of anyone and anything. I didn't include her shots of the floor, or the ceiling or of the food in the fridge...she took so many pictures!! Here are a couple. Can you tell where her eye level is? We think she has a future in photography. Wouldn't you agree?








Oh, how I love that little girl! She is a ray of sunshine. I love her smiling face, her sweet voice and the naivete of a 2 year old. I love it.


We had to take our usual picture of all the cousins together.



It amazes me how fast they grow! They normally look happier than this!! (L to R: Gianna, Easton, Ellery, Quin, Lincoln)

Happy Birthday, Papa!

Well, this is it. My last week before going back to work. I'm having a hard time, but we know this is what we have to do right now for our family. It's not ideal and hopefully someday I'll be able to stay home with Lincoln. He starts day care December 1st. I'm sure I'll have a tearful blog after his first week at day care. Or maybe a happy one telling everyone how easy it was and how great he did!

We have a busy week ahead of us: a visit from Dawn and Daniel tomorrow, a visit from Missy and Perrin Tuesday, Linc's 2 month appointment (a few weeks late!) and even a visit from Uncle Dave, Grandpa and Gigi (a.k.a. Mom) on Friday. Hopefully all the excitement will take my mind off of my first week back at work.

Give Cloth a Chance!

Forgive me for going on a bit of a rampage...I can't make any promises, but I'm pretty sure this will be my only "blog rampage".

When I first found out I was pregnant, my assumption was I'd be using disposable diapers. When my mom, my sister and Kirk all mentioned using cloth diapers, I decided to look into a little bit further. I did my own research on-line and talked with one of our friends who used them with her first to get the truth behind cloth.

After doing some research, Kirk and I found a local lady who offered cloth diaper informative classes (for the true cloth diaper novice). From that moment on, we knew cloth diapers were the way we wanted to go. The shop where we get the diapers offers a starter package: we have 2 diapers of 5 different brands in order to determine which diaper is best for us and for Lincoln. Once we decide which brand we like, we'll return the rest and get store credit toward the diapers of our choice.

I'll never ask anyone (except the day care people) to change a cloth diaper. They aren't for everyone. For us, though, we have found they aren't as bad as you remember (I promise and for you Aquino's insert me riding around on my bike with rubber pants on my head), they're more affordable (we'll be spending about $500 on cloth diapers until Linc is potty trained as opposed to nearly $2000) and most importantly, they are better for the environment.

We put Lincoln in disposable while we were out of town this past weekend. When we arrived at the hotel, we found he had pooped right through to the car seat. That night, he pooped through his sleep sack and this morning I had him in disposable and, you guessed, it: another blow out.

I'm not a cloth diaper pusher, I'm not a pusher of anything. I will tell you, however, that cloth diapers have come a long way and I'm fairly certain they aren't what you remember. And after 3 blow outs in only a matter of days, the verdict is in: we're sticking with cloth.

Weekend in The Badger State

We had a fabulous weekend in Wisconsin visiting with Jason, Nikki and Gavin. The wedding was beautiful and the weather could not have been more perfect. Not to mention SE Wisconsin! What a gorgeous and under-rated part of the country.

Lincoln had a fabulous time hanging out with his aunt, uncle and cousin. We are so happy he was in excellent hands while we were at the wedding. He was showered with love and kisses from everyone! Even Gavin!


We can't thank Jason, Nikki and Gavin enough for their help with Lincoln.

As for the wedding: it was beautiful! We had to make a pit stop to pick up Kirk's tux in a small town about 20 minutes from the ceremony and reception. You know you are in small town USA when the place where you pick up your tux is also the place where you buy your Packers gear, your UW gear, your work clothes, your work out clothes, your hunting attire and everyday clothes! The long trip was worth it. Congratulations to Andy and Kyle.

On the way home we stopped in Chicago to visit Lisa, Julia and Rick. We had yummy pizza and came across a tavern named after Lincoln:

What are the chances? :)

Day Out

Since Lincoln was about 4 weeks old, we've had a weekly playdate with our great friends Dawn and her sweet son, Daniel. Daniel was born June 3rd. I'm so happy Lincoln will have a playmate once they both are a little older. This week it was our turn to head over to their place for a fun little visit.

I'm so sad that our weekly playdates will be coming to an end in only a couple of weeks when I head back to work. I'm afraid we'll never see Dawn and Daniel! :(

This weekend we are heading to Wisconsin for the wedding of one of our college friends, Andy. Kirk's brother Jason, his wife Nikki and their son Gavin haven't yet met Lincoln so they are going to come and watch him while we are at the wedding. We are really excited!

Cooing Machine

Happy Halloween!

We had so much fun celebrating Linc's first Halloween. We dressed him up as a dinosaur. I bought the costume a few weeks ago and decided I'd put him in it each time we left the house. I wanted to get my money's worth! I think he's tired of wearing the same thing over and over...

We went to our neighbor's house so that they could see him in his costume. We didn't make it to any other houses. I wanted to get home and help Kirk pass out candy and Linc was getting tired. We had a pretty good turn out this year. We both love seeing the kids in their costumes. Is it just us or are the costumes getting more unoriginal?? I think the most original costume I saw was a boombox. And, I'm not even sure if it was a boombox!

We hope you all had fun this cold but dry Halloween night! I know we did.

Blogging?

Well...this has been a long time in the making. Ok, not REALLY a long time. Only about 3 weeks, to be exact, but this technology stuff is for the birds! But, I figured if Joelee could do it, I could, too. :)

As you all know, we were blessed with Lincoln Jerome Schultz (a.k.a. Linc, a.k.a. LJ...) on August 29, 2009. My hope is to keep the blog updated as often as possible so that our family and friends can keep up with us. Lincoln grows and changes everyday. It amazes us! There are days when we wake up in the morning and we swear he doesn't even look like the same baby we put to bed the night before! It's been nearly 9 weeks now and while our lives have changed, we wouldn't change it for anything. Every milestone is so fun. Right now, Linc is doing a lot of cooing and smiling. He loves kicking his legs and I love that he is beginning to enjoy all of the fun toys occupying space in our house!

I'll do my best to keep the blog updated. Our lives aren't that exciting, I'm warning you all, but I'll post pictures and updates when I can.