What a beautiful weekend!  It could not have been more perfect and the weather could not have been better.  Maybe a few degrees cooler, but after this winter and spring, I'm not complaining!

Yesterday we took Lincoln downtown to the Howell History Days.  We'd never been before and we were surprised at how much there was going on.  Ok, so it's a little podunk, but we really did have a good time taking Lincoln to the old train station.  He had a really good time playing on the train and on the old train tracks.  And, it made for some really cute photo ops.

Our little Beatle.



Kirk had to work today, so it was just Lincoln and I.  We spent most of the day outside since it was so nice.  I was so excited for Lincoln to play with his new outdoor toys.  He really had a great time in the sandbox and playing with the little sink we got him.  There were times he was way more into the airplanes overhead and moving his chair around the backyard, but overall, it was a really fun day.

I'm not sure about anyone else, but I feel like we deserved a nice weekend after the crummy weather we've had lately!  On a sidenote, don't look at the 10 day forecast...let's just hope it's wrong.

We're looking forward to a lot more warm weekends and playing outside.  I hope you were able to get out and enjoy the weather, too!

Life Lessons

I'm not a big Oprah fan.  I started watching this last season because it's her last season. Anyone who knows me at all does, however, know that I am a huge Gayle King fan.  Seriously,  LOVE HER!  Anyway...

There was an episode on last week that had something to do with lessons learned on the Oprah Show.  I cried through the whole show which may have something to do with the show itself but probably  more to do with these darn pregnancy hormones.

There were a couple lessons that got to me.  The first was a lesson from Toni Morrison.  There was much more to her story (she's Toni Morrison for goodness sakes and can tell a much better story than I!) but the gist of it was taking a second to recognize your children when they walk into the room; or when you walk into the room for that matter.  Today when I walked into Lincoln's room at daycare, he ran over to me from the other side of the room and was yelling "MAMA MAMA MAMA!!!!"  It was the best feeling.  Walking into that room knowing that I was the only one he saw and no one else mattered made me feel so special.  I want Lincoln to feel that way when HE walks into the room because that's the way I feel about him.  I wish I could run across the room and yell "LINCOLN LINCOLN LINCOLN!"  I want him to feel like he's the only one in the room that matters.

The second lesson seems so obvious: slow down.  That's it.  Just slow down and enjoy life.  It seems like the easiest thing to do and yet it's so difficult.  I never want to look back at the years we have with Lincoln (and the little one on the way) and wish I had done something different.  Or think, "I wish we had..." or "Why didn't we ever...".  I want to enjoy it all.  I've already learned how quickly the time goes by.  I realize in a blink of an eye, Lincoln will be graduating from college and starting his own journey.  Maybe that's being a little ridiculous, but the last 21 months could not have gone by any more quickly.  I look at Lincoln and wonder where the time has gone.  I know I need to slow down and enjoy every second and moment with him.

I never want to forget the way he literally YELLS "YYYYAAAAYYY!!!!" after hearing a song or singing a song or the way he says "ticko ticko ticko" when he tickles Kirk or I or the how he blows me a kiss when I tell him I love him or his excited face.  He is my greatest accomplishment to date.  I want him to know how special he is to me every single day.  I will slow down to enjoy all of the little moments we have together.

I'm so sappy these days!  Damn hormones.

Thanks to everyone for being here with me.

(Thank you Jennifer of Jenny Lane Studios for taking yet MORE fantastic pictures of Lincoln.  I loved them all, but the one above was my favorite of the bunch.  I'm not sure why it's fuzzy.  Her picture isn't fuzzy; must be the way it downloaded.)

Schultzi?

I've put this blog off for a long time now and I'm not really sure why.

We're pregnant!  Yay!  We're excited and scared and anxious and nervous and every other emotion you could probably think of when your life is about to change.

The biggest question now is will it be a boy or a girl?  I'm already 18 weeks so in less than two weeks, we'll know the answer.  We didn't find out if Lincoln was a boy or a girl the first time, but we're finding out this time.  (Joelee....)  I'm making sure the ultrasound tech tells us only if she's 100% positive!  I had a feeling right away Lincoln was a boy, but this time, I'm not so sure.  I always thought I'd be the mom of all boys.  You know that obnoxious mom in the stands wearing a hoodie with the high school's name on it?  Maybe even blowing a fog horn?  I have always thought that'd be me!  Ok, maybe not the fog horn part cause that's just plain annoying, but you get the idea.  Something tells me this could be a girl.  Either way, we'll take it.  Neither of us has any preference.

And if you're wondering how I'm feeling the answer is still crappy.  I'm still nauseous about 25% of the time.  On the bright side, my back seems to be MUCH better this pregnancy and for that I'm so grateful.  I can take meds for nausea, but Tylenol just doesn't cut it for my back pain.

Mark September 29 on your calendar!  We'll have one more little sweetie around here!

While I'm thinking about it: any new blog title ideas are being accepted.  It can't be One Little Schultz when there are 2 little Schultzi!

Let's hope Lincoln is a little happier than this when he realizes we won't be all his anymore.  :(

Easter

I swear I used to be so much better at this whole blogging thing!  What the heck happened?!

I'm late on the Easter blog.  Sorry about that!

I'm not sure what Kirk and I were thinking.  We thought Lincoln would enjoy dyeing eggs or maybe putting stickers on eggs...anything to decorate the eggs!  We were wrong.  He put one sticker on an egg and that was enough.  He did drop a couple eggs in the dye, but I'm pretty sure we ended up decorating most of the eggs.  Oh, who am I kidding: Kirk decorated most of the eggs.  :)

Easter morning was so fun.  The Easter Bunny kept it simple, but Lincoln could not have been more excited about his gifts.  I thought for sure his favorite gift would be this push sweeper.  It's old school, but he loves it. 

He did love the sweeper, don't get me wrong, but he was absolutely more excited about this darn kazoo than anything.  He loves the thing.  I am cursing the Easter Bunny for getting yet ANOTHER gift for Lincoln that makes noise!

Another highlight of the morning was finding the eggs hidden throughout the house.  Or, as the case may have it, hidden throughout the room.  I would not have guessed Lincoln would love finding eggs as much as he did.  Actually, it was the dropping the eggs into his basket he really loved.  I wish I had left out more eggs to be hidden!

We're hoping you're all enjoying your "spring"!  It hasn't felt like spring, but I think it's going to start warming up soon.  It'd better!  I don't know how much more of this crummy weather I can take!

(Lincoln finding an egg in his chair)

A Day for the Record Books

April 29, 2011 was a big day.  Hello, Royal Wedding!  I was a little obessed.  I didn't get up at 4 a.m., but I did DVR it and start watching the wedding around 6:15.  I loved it!  I'm looking forward to a trip with Dawn (and anyone else who wants to join us!) to England when Harry gets married.  No hotel necessary.  We can camp out in front of the Abbey.

Anyway, April 29 was also the day Lincoln said his first complete sentence.

The sentence was:

"Mo meowk, peeze."

It was so sweet! 

18 Months and Counting

We had Lincoln's 18 month appointment this past week (although he's already 19 months).  The appointment went really, really well.  He didn't cry and even better: he didn't need any shots!  Thank goodness.  I never watch when he gets shots.  It breaks my heart.

We didn't have any big concerns at this appointment.  It was an easy, quick visit to the pediatrician.

His stats this visit were:

Height: 32 inches (31st percentile)
Weight: 22 pounds 10 ounces (8th percentile)

He's growing!  He gained almost 2 pounds since his visit in December and grew more than 2 inches.  He's still on the small side, but he's getting bigger.  This is a good thing!

The Nurse Practitioner we saw also said more than once it was no wonder he took a long time to walk: apparently Lincoln is top heavy.  She just meant he had a "toddler belly" and very short legs.  I like to think it's because it's familial, not because he has a little gut and short, skinny legs.

We don't have to go back until August, his 2 year appointment!

Playing Catch Up

I know...it's been a long time!  That is an indication of how exciting things are around here these days.

Last year was so different because Lincoln was always doing something new.  These days, it's a lot of the same thing: Lincoln running around and us chasing him.  Kirk and I are both looking forward to the weather getting warmer.  Last week, Mother Nature played a joke on us and we were able to get out of the house.  Lincoln LOVES being outside.  On more than one occasion when I have gone to pick him up from day care, Lincoln will be playing outside with his friends and as soon as he sees me, he cries.  Not because he's so happy to see me, but because he'd rather hang out outside.  (On another note, he's usually so excited to see me, he can't run over to me fast enough!)

Kirk and Lincoln were playing outside one day earlier this week when Lincoln's legs started moving faster than his little body.  As a result, he fell face first onto the cement and ended up with a nice strawberry on his chin.  I think it hurt us more than it hurt him.

There are a couple things Lincoln is into right now.  One is his pacifier and the other is pulling his pants down.  I know: strange!  Lincoln wasn't a pacifier baby.  We'd try every now and then to give him his pacifier, but it was never his thing.  I'm not sure where or when he found his pacifiers, but we turned around one day and there he was with his pacifier his mouth.

I'm not sure where he got this pulling his pants down thing, but it's slightly annoying.  The ladies at day care think it's because he sees the bigger kids learning to use the potty and pulling their pants down.  I'm not sure if that's the reason, but when Lincoln stops dead in his tracks and starts pulling his pants down, I can't help but laugh.  I probably won't laugh if he ever does it in public.

This past weekend, Dawn and her son Daniel invited us to Eaton Rapids to see Maisy.  (Maisy is a character in books by Lucy Cousins.  She's a giant mouse: need I say more?)  The event was actually way more fun than I expected.  It wasn't just Maisy standing there waving.  There were a lot of activities for the kids AND Maisy.  She was happy to take pictures with the kids.  Lincoln wasn't necessarily happy to have his picture taken with her, but he warmed up to her.

Lincoln kept his distance at first, but eventually he got a little bit closer to her and was giving her fives by the end of our time with Maisy.

I think it's hilarious that Maisy's nose is blocking out Dawn's head.  Not sure why I find this so ammusing.

Sooo, that's our update!  Hope this finds everyone out there doing well.  Time is flying for us!  We're looking forward to the warmer days ahead.  :)