Levi Is One!

Happy Birthday, Levi! What a year it has been! I was kind of under the impression when you arrived that you would be a baby for a LONG time...but here you are, one year old and growing up so fast! 

Starting to use words...eating and sleeping like a big boy...halfway potty trained...and taking his first steps! All with a smiley and very social personality! 

I think Levi's favorite thing is still his Daddy! Dad's arrival home from work is the most exciting part of the day. He loves to greet him with a big grin and "Da-da, da-da, da-da!!!!" It makes me smile to listen to his delightful squeals and giggles coming from wherever they are together!

Reading books also keeps Levi pretty busy during the day. He often goes through about thirty books per minute, due to a two-second attention span rather than advanced reading skills. :)

Levi is quite social and rarely knows a stranger. Piano lessons are often a highlight of the day when he gets to play with other kids! Also loves: bananas ("na-na!" -big grin- "eeeeeeee!!!"), peek-a-boo ("bah!"), puppies, kitties ("tee-tee"), his blankie, babies, playing the piano, and strumming Daddy's guitar.

For now, Levi has developed a fairly routine day. He wakes up around 8am, eats breakfast, plays, takes a morning nap, eats lunch, plays some more, takes an afternoon nap, wakes up when he hears the piano playing for lessons, eats supper, plays some more, and goes to bed sometime between 7:30-9. That said, he is still pretty flexible when other things are on the schedule.

We celebrated Levi's first birthday with both sets of grandparents and the single aunts and uncles. He had so much fun getting lots of attention for the evening! 

It took some work...but he eventually got the candle blown out! 

...and the cake eaten! 

His "puppy dog" cake...(I see I never did get a picture of him with his cake, but he loves puppies and thought this cake was pretty funny!!) 

My camera was having issues the rest of the evening...so I had to get a picture of him the next day with his gift from Daddy. This wooden rocking horse has been Matt's project for the last several weeks and he finished making it just in time (blog post about the rocking horse to follow...)! It turned out great and Levi will get lots of entertainment from it!

And now...the full collection of his first year sticker photos!

Can you believe Levi is about to be a big brother?! I think he is going to love having a little more excitement around here, once he adjusts to getting a little less one-on-one attention! :) 

God's blessings to you, Levi! We love you so much and look forward to watching you grow in the coming years!

The To-Do List is Complete!

Before I begin to ramble about how we are now ready for the baby to come, I will share with you the amazing feat that happened on our ice a couple weeks ago. 

Matt's homemade zamboni has been completed! A zamboni is a machine that smooths out the ice on hockey or skating rinks to make it slick again after being cut up with skates for awhile. 

The zamboni debut after a morning game of ice hockey.

He put a barrel full of water on the back of the Gator and pulled a rug behind it. The barrel drips out water while the rug distributes the water into a thin layer to fill in the cracks. The water quickly refreezes and leaves behind smooth ice for skating!  

...and it worked!!! :)

Back to business...

Well...the countdown is on! I mentioned last time that I had a long to-do list to finish before the baby came, and we have been tackling the tasks one by one! The first week of the month I got Christmas wrapped up, our 2016 yearbook done and ordered, packed my hospital bag, and got things organized in the baby room now that there will be two kids needing the same space. 

Among other things, week two involved moving Levi to his new "bed" - specifically, a crib mattress on the floor next to the crib. If anyone wonders how this transition works with an 11.5-month-old...

It started with a learning session one night to teach him not to get off the mattress when I put him on. After about twenty minutes of training, he pretty well had it figured out that he wasn't allowed to get off. 

Fast asleep on his new bed for nap time the next day! 

He fell asleep, but woke up a few times throughout the night when he rolled off the mattress. Matt decided to make a railing for the side, and had it rigged up in only a few days. What a handyman!

Since Levi had trouble getting in and out on his own with the end rail on, we just left the bottom open for him to crawl in and out as needed. However, he is very hesitant to crawl out without one of us in the room since he knows he is supposed to stay in bed. 

So...we are now calling this transition complete and successful! We promptly got the crib all prepped for the baby. :) 

In the last week and a half, I sewed the third of three maternity skirts (about time!), got Levi's baby book up to date, made my baby announcement (a little premature, but might as well get as much done as possible!), got organized for my baby break from piano lessons, took Levi's one year photos yesterday and got them ordered, and made cupcakes for the freezer for Levi's birthday party on Thursday. 

Last weekend was my two-day kitchen marathon to tackle the long-procrastinated task of filling the freezer with meals for post-baby. We now have about 25 meals worth of food in the freezer! I found that it made things easier to double each recipe for twice the number of meals, and to choose very simple things to make.  As long as we don't get sick of having the same thing to eat for two months straight, we should be good to go! 

The only thing left on my list now is "Clean." I decided to put that one off a little longer. :)

My due date is about 12 days away, but I put on my calendar that the baby will be arriving on Saturday. No, I have no control over when this baby comes; this coming Saturday would just be a good day to have a baby. Stay tuned... ;)

Have a good week!

Our Family Christmas Album

The month of December was pretty well filled with family gatherings, caroling, and other traditional Christmas activities. It was a blessing to spend time with much of our extended family! 

Family Gathering #1: Christmas with the Bill Massner family at Skylines in Peoria.

Levi and Max are the two newest great-grandchildren! 

Levi's FIRST EVER Christmas gift (a booster high chair for when he gets kicked out of his current high chair in a few months). Thank you, Great-Grandma!

Family Gathering #2: Christmas with the Myron Schulz family at Mom and Dad's.

Mom's activity for the evening: Schulz family Bingo! 

Family Gathering #3: Christmas with the Richard Schmidgall family in Minnesota.

The creative new activity idea for this year: Christmas caroling on a hay rack through the streets of Hancock. So much fun! The weather cooperated well, and several people looking out their windows seemed to appreciate the Christmas cheer! 

Levi and Kortlen were the two newbies at the Schmidgall Christmas. They were both entertained by the singing snowman! :) 

Family Gathering #4: Christmas with the Ezra Knobloch family in Lester.

Family interview! 

Kyra and Levi

Levi meets Great-Grandma (Marie) Knobloch for the first time!
(Brain teaser side note: As one may have deduced, Levi is fortunate enough to have TWO Great-Grandma Knoblochs. Yet he still doesn't have an ounce of Knobloch blood in him. Hmm...??)

Kellan brought this shopping cart with him to Lester, so Levi got to have some fun pushing it around! 

Family Gathering #5: Christmas with the Chuck Massner family. 

As some may know from previous years, the program is typically a highlight. This was the front cover. :)

Grandpa got a big chair for Christmas! 

The Christmas band (Levi was the new addition this year on the maracas). 

Family Gathering #6: Christmas with the Gary Schulz family.

All the kids with their red balloons! 

Three new babies in 2016! Levi, Krista, and Weston bring the grandchild tally up to 15!

Family Gathering #7: Christmas with the Matthew Schulz family!

We planned to celebrate Christmas together as the three of us on New Years Day. Matt got sick during church and spent the afternoon in bed while I worked on supper and played with Levi. Eventually Levi went down for a nap, too, so I enjoyed a quiet afternoon of coloring in my new coloring book. :)

They both woke up just in time for supper, and since Matt was feeling better, we resumed our Christmas plans. A nice meal for supper, homemade grape sorbet (I mixed a couple tablespoons of corn syrup with three cups of the slightly-sweetened grape juice concentrate I made from our grapes in August, and put it in our ice cream freezer until it was done. Yummy!), and a few gifts for Levi from his great-grandparents.

We enjoyed the quiet evening to ourselves after a busy two weeks of constant activity!

Our first Christmas as a family of three! A pregnant mom + a sick dad + a confused boy on self-timer = one beautiful family photo. 

In the meantimes of December:

Matt did eventually complete his insulated box for the cattle tank. This isn't necessarily the finished product, but it is out in the horse pasture and seems to be serving its purpose. 

Levi found the go-cart in the shed and had fun driving it! 

Great-Grandpa Schulz brought this chair home from Texas last winter for Levi, and now he thinks he is pretty special when he sits in his chair to watch the fire! 

Yep, it's been another month for this boy, too! He turned 11 months old on Christmas Day, hence the Christmas pajamas. The highlight of this month was learning to use some words: mama, dada, ah-da (all done), old-old (cold), ot-ot (hot), nana (banana), baba (bottle). 

Matt is now busy on yet another project, this time for Levi's birthday gift! He has made a lot of progress the past few days. We will share photos when it is completed! 

And then there is me...the condition of my house would indicate that I have not kept busy, but I have actually been doing everything besides housework. :) Hopefully now that things are settling back down after the holidays, things will get caught up. I came to the startling realization this week that we only have one more month to wait for the baby, and there is a lot on my to-do-before-baby list! I am thankful to be feeling very well and for good reports from the doctors.

We hope you felt the Lord's blessings this Christmas, and that you will seek His presence throughout 2017!

So Much Reason to be Thankful

Oops. It's the last day of the month and the day that I scramble to get the blog updated so we can have at least one update each month. I think I left off somewhere along the lines of wanting life to slow down a teeny bit before the holidays...?

...at least the weather cooperated! Levi loved going down to look at the piggies, and they seemed to like his company, too!  

Well, for trying to slow down, we certainly had our share of activity! But all of our blessings in life are what keep us busy, so we are very thankful for all that God has given us: family, travel, church, friends, health, time, food, music, nature, and much more!

Levi helped Grandma make cookies! 

This is the outfit that all of my brothers wore for their nine-month pictures, so I tried to remake the pose with Levi. He is a wee bit smaller than any of them were! 

The day after I wrote the last blog post, Matt called from work and asked if we could go with him to MIPSYCON (an annual engineering conference) the next week in St. Paul. Ummmm....sure!!

Whew. Phil & Kelli and Krista (about six months old) were also along for the ride. Nothing like keeping two babies happy in downtown St. Paul for four days! Monday night, while Levi cried in his pack-n-play for a half hour before falling asleep and I worried about the guy next door planning his revenge, I thought I had made an awful mistake in going. However, things did get better from there and I think it was better than the alternative of being at home all week by myself. :)

Meanwhile, in America...election day! Matt and I had some excitement Wednesday night when we heard shouting outside and looked out our hotel window to see a Trump protest make its way toward the state capital. 

Kelli, Krista, Levi, and I spent Tuesday shopping with two other engineers' wives from Lester, and then Wednesday was our "break day" when we stayed in the hotel rooms most of the day with sleeping babies. Thursday morning we went to the Mall of America until the men finished their conference at noon. As for the evenings, Levi and I joined the Stanley men for dinner on Monday night, on Tuesday the babies and mommies joined several couples from church at a restaurant called Xavi, and Wednesday night we went to church for supper, singing, and service.

Watching the rides at the Mall of America! 

Overall, it was fun to get away from our normal routines at home. Levi was certainly thankful to be home and have his own space again!

The elephant is his favorite toy!! 

Enter: One day of break!!

That weekend was Brianna and Eric's wedding in Mediapolis. We enjoyed keeping guests overnight and seeing all kinds of new and familiar faces in church. Every wedding weekend is such a blessing to remember our special day three years ago and to be encouraged in strengthening our own marriage!

The next week and a half consisted of random plans throughout the day, one being my 28-week OB appointment and another being Levi's 10-month check-up. We are very thankful to report that both of our babies are doing well! :)

10 months old! 19#1oz; 28in long

Thanksgiving provided plenty of opportunities for eating and relaxing with family. Thursday we attended services at church, a noon Thanksgiving meal at my Mom and Dad's, and an evening meal with the Lanz family at Uncle Keith and Aunt Tonya's with around eighty in attendance.

Friday morning, Matt went shopping with Levi while I did dishes, laundry, and packed for a weekend getaway to a hotel in Cedar Rapids with my family.

Might I add...this kid was SO excited to go bye-bye with Daddy! 

The weekend was spent snacking, eating, swimming, playing games, and spoiling Levi. The game "DING" could probably be purchased from one of the Massners for a great price, if anyone is interested.

Levi enjoyed swimming in the pool! 

We drove straight to church from the hotel Sunday morning. That afternoon we were all very tired and took naps until suppertime.

I spent the past two days working in the kitchen. For some reason, I thought it would be a great idea to combine my Sunday church serving duties with my Christmas baking, and it turned into a bigger project than intended. I only have one more pan of bars to make between now and Sunday, so I decided today was going to be my day off.

The last of yesterday's cookie decorating endeavor! 

And today I woke up and wrote "November 30th" in my journal and wondered what had happened to his month. Surprisingly, I didn't feel nearly as overwhelmed by November as I did by October. December, on the other hand...that month is just going to happen one day at a time.

In case you wondered what Matt has been up to...just the normal: projects! This is an insulated box for the cattle tank to keep the horse's water from freezing over the winter (the horse is Trevor's, but makes its home in our pasture). 

At least the flying time makes this pregnancy go by quickly! It probably helps that I am not nearly as impatient with this one. The memories of childbirth and the exhausting postpartum days are still fairly fresh in my memory, and this time it will all happen with a twelve-month-old in tow. I am contenting myself in these peaceful days and restful nights while they are still around! (Though we are certainly looking forward to holding our new baby in our arms when the time comes!)

And now...Christmas! Somehow, Christmas seems to last the entire month of December. We are hoping to try the day-at-a-time strategy for the next month so we can enjoy our blessings and avoid getting too "wrapped up" in the details! Wishing you all a blessed holiday!

Everything

For every thing there is a season...and that season seems to be fall. We have had a very busy month of October, and hope for a bit of a reprieve now before the next "season" arrives.

Toward the end of September, we spent a weekend working on landscaping at church. It looks so nice now and will hopefully look even better when spring comes! 

The next weekend, Matt got to meet our newest nephew, Weston! I was home with Levi, who spent the weekend with a high fever. 

Little Weston is growing fast! I think he looks like a Schulz. :) 

We had a cousin get married here one weekend, and then two weeks later we drove to Morris for another cousin's wedding. In between, we had a lot of evening plans, several appointments, and other projects and events consuming our time. 

One of Matt's "projects" this month was creating this fishing pole rack for our garage. It looks so organized and is very handy! 

We celebrated our third wedding anniversary on October 20th! Of all three years of marriage, the third required the most patience, understanding, and effort to maintain a good relationship. Becoming parents was a big adjustment for us; from months of prenatal and postpartum hormones, to many sleepless nights, to the constant care and attention required of parents. But by God's grace, it has been another joyful year with many blessings.  

After three years of marriage, his pancakes are still heart-shaped... 

...and the fresh flower vase rarely sits empty! His anniversary bouquet included three roses to celebrate three years! 

We were very excited to have an overnight getaway to Bentonsport, IA and Van Buren County to celebrate our anniversary. Levi stayed with my Mom and Dad, and the two of us enjoyed our first bed and breakfast experience at the Bentonsport Village B&B. It was a nice place with a lot of history and very gracious hosts!

For some reason, this was the only photographed documentation of our trip.

It was a blessing to spend some time together as a couple. Saturday, we drove through some of the villages, stopping at the Dutchman's store in Cantril, the Milton Creamery, and Dutch Country near Bloomfield. We also made a short stop to visit Tim and Laurie. I had still not met Weston and Matt had not been to their place since the big house transplant and remodel project. It was good to see them for a bit and celebrate Garret's "half-birthday!" Our final stop was to ride a potato harvester near Tim & Laurie's with some friends of ours. A new experience for the books!

Meanwhile, Levi must have enjoyed his time at Grandpa and Grandma Massner's! The boys carved pumpkins Friday night, so Levi got in on the action and painted a pumpkin, too. 

I was thankful I didn't have to deal with a baby's painting mess afterward! :)  

Sunday afternoon, Matt, Jesse, and Quinn had a successful afternoon of fishing! They kept about fifteen of them to fillet. 

And now, the part of the show where Levi comes out and shows his smiles.

Levi LOVES the kitten! 

Yay for yummy lunches! (Ugh for cleanup time...)

It only took a few bites to realize a red pepper tastes different than a red apple. 

Nine months old! 

Levi got his first haircut last week, in two installments. The first time, I trimmed the sides and a tiny bit off the top. On Saturday, I decided the top looked like a mo-hawk, so I shaved that off too. Now he finally looks all trim and proper.  

Though I have not documented everything we did this month, it was full and I yearn for a break. I have been so tired, perhaps in part from pregnancy, but also because I have been putting my energy into too many things. Some people thrive on a busy schedule, but I do not. It is too easy for me to spend all of my energy elsewhere without saving enough for my husband, my son, and my Savior. Thus, I hope November provides a chance to slow down. I suppose the chance is always there, I only need to take advantage of it. 

Except I just made the mistake of glancing at the calendar, and there is something on the schedule every night for the next week and a half. I suppose we will just take one day at a time, and get our rest during the day.

I am having trouble bringing this post to a close. Thus, I shall cease my murmurings and acknowledge that God has been faithful, He has been present, and He has been good. Though I feel like I say it often, we really do have so much reason to be thankful. Though busy, we have been blessed this month with many good times and wonderful memories. We know God will be faithful in November, too, and we hope to be useful in fulfilling His work!