STILL waiting

39 weeks today...Looks like our baby is quite comfortable inside. I have to admit all the anticipation and excitement has waned...I've been staring at my suitcase for the hospital for weeks now, and I've looked in the baby's room dozens of times, going through her drawers and closet to make sure I have enough of everything.

I've put my life on hold for the past couple of weeks, thinking that she would be here by now. I think I probably feel even worse about the fact that my mom came a week early, interrupting her schedule at home so she could watch Ethan while I make my trip to the hospital. At the very least, it's good bonding time for the two of them. They have played quite a bit, and it's great to hear both of them laugh and giggle as they play.

I don't have a picture taken yet, but I can't imagine I look all that different. Friday morning we have one last sonogram (at my request) and another check up to see how baby is doing, and to see if I have dilated any further. I haven't felt too much this week as far as contractions go. She does move regularly, so that is reassuring. But it just seems she's not quite ready to meet the world...

38 Weeks--I'm still here

Well, looks like baby isn't coming as early as we thought! Now that my mom is here I'm anxious to be done and delivered! But, I realize that it's all in God's timing. My midwife says I'm a bit bigger than 3 cm, and I'm 70% effaced. But that's not much of a change from last week.

In the meantime, mom and I have had some fun ourselves. This weekend we had a little mini spa day! She had an hour massage while I had a facial, and then we both got our nails done with a paraffin treatment! Ah...relaxation and pampering :)

Things I love about being pregnant:

• My growing baby bump
• Feeling baby move
• Eating whatever I like!
• Dreaming about baby

Things I do not like at all about being pregnant:

• My growing rear rump
• Varicose veins
• Aches and pains
• Physical limitations (there's so much I'm not allowed or unable to do!)

I'm sure I could add to both lists, but these are the things that I'm thinking about right now.

Picture Taking

Ethan has a little camera that he likes to play with once and a while. It's actually a REAL 35mm camera with waterproof casing that we bought on a vacation years ago. It's so big and bulky and bright, that it looks like a toy, which is probaby why he likes it so much. But a couple of days ago he started using it just like his mommy does.

I often take family photos by putting our digital camera on the tv stand and setting the self-timer. Looks like Ethan picks up on things rather well... (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pWzxVRuGgjU)

37 Weeks--What's in a Name?

I was sitting in the doctor's waiting room yesterday when the door opened and the nurse's voice called, "Vicky?"

You may be wondering why this surprised me so much. Since I married and moved to this new town, I've used my legal first name (Maria) for all paperwork. Being a stickler for rules, I fill everything out with my full legal name, and as a result, anyone who doesn't "know me" calls me by this foreign name that I have never used.

So what happened here? Strange how I've been to this doctor's office for nine months and they've finally called me by "the name I go by". You see last week, I was discussing baby names with one of the midwives, expressing my dilemna at not having a suitable middle name to go with the first name we have chosen for our little girl (some of you know this name, but I may change my mind, so I won't mention it here!). She then asked me, "Well, what about YOUR name?" I then told her that I actually go by my middle name, and not my first, and that I wouldn't like the way any of those combinations would sound anyhow. She quickly made a note on my file...

So what's up with baby this week? She's doing great. Her movements are slower since she's low on space, but she still moves and stretches. She is considered full-term now! I've been feeling some contractions for a couple of weeks now, and am 3 centimeters dilated already. My midwife thinks I may go into labor next week! Many have said that I don't look that big for being 3 weeks out, but since I've taken the above picture I feel like my tummy has gotten considerably bigger! I don't know, maybe it's all that chocolate cake I've been eating, heh heh heh...

36 and a Half Weeks

Every week that goes by I get more and more excited, anxious, even impatient! This week I'm dilated 2 to 3 inches (technically, my cervix is dilated 3 inches externally, 2 inches internally), and my cervix has obviously begun to soften. My midwife thinks I'll go earlier than my due date.

Well, lets pray that I do. She also told me that the doctor will be going out of town on my due date--a last minute thing--and when he goes out of town, neither one of the midwives perform any deliveries. I would hate to repeat the last childbirthing experience I had with Ethan--my doctor back then also left town, and I ended up working with a complete stranger! It wasn't fun at all since she and I butt heads quite a bit during the whole ordeal!

Tea Time

Yet another birthday celebration! Yesterday I went up to Chicago to meet with my old small group gals to have afternoon tea! It was a beautiful setting, a delicious selection of treats, and two and a half hours of girl talk. As a food enthusiast, I usually take pictures of food when I go out to a special restaurant (David laughs at me when I do this), but I just can't help myself. The top plate had assorted finger sandwiches (the turkey and arugula was especially good), the middle section contained a variety of pastries (the fruit tart with a slice of fig was delicious!), and the bottom section had an assortment of scones and breads. Their plain scone with lemon curd and devonshire cream on the side is to die for! Ok, I should probably stop talking about food!

I was blessed with an easy drive up to Chicago and back, though the walk from my car to the hotel went a bit slower than usual! I had forgotten that I was carrying a little extra weight :)

Thank you, ladies, for celebrating with me! It made my 30th birthday very special!

Happy 30th Birthday!

Today is my 30th birthday! Last night David threw me a wonderful birthday celebration with our closest friends. It had been in the planning for some time, and I finally told him "what I wanted to do". We ordered several pizzas from Monicals and cheesecake for all, and had everybody over at Casa de Snyder.

What a fun time! After eating pizza, David called everyone to our tiny living room to watch a little video he put together. What a surprise! I knew he wanted some of my baby photos, but I had no idea that he was going to put all THIS together. Take a look at the video below (or click on this link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xkmQcEP5Bg)-- It made me laugh and cry! We then sang Happy Birthday with my birthday cheesecake before me. Yum!

Afterwards, we had some fun and games. At a bbq this summer, the kids were playing a water balloon toss, so I thought it might be fun for the adults to do that, too. David made up some "how well do you know your mate" questions for all the couples out there. Incorrect answer? You both take one step back. Correct answer? You get to stay where you are. Then...TOSS! You know, silly questions like "Does your wife still have her tonsils?" or "Does your husband still wear any clothes from his college days?" I'm sorry to say David and I actually missed a few answers and by the end of the game we were standing several feet apart! But no matter how hard we threw, our balloon never broke! Turns out maybe we should have filled them up a bit more! We eventually ran out of questions, so we had several winning couples left standing at the end (with the exception of the engaged Erika and Rob, whose balloon DID break!).

It was a fun time. Ethan had so much fun, in fact, that he didn't eat dinner until almost everyone left for the evening! (I'm glad he finally ate SOMETHING). Thank you to my wonderful hubby for throwing me such a great party!

Not only did he throw me an awesome party, he had a little surprise for me this morning on the breakfast table: a gift certificate for a spa pedicure! Woo hoo!!! What gal can say "no" to foot pampering??

34 Weeks

The countdown to baby's arrival continues! This week's check up went well. She's not doing anything yet (that's a good thing), and she is still head down. I will be seeing my midwife every week now until I deliver.

Her movements are a bit different now that there's less room. Most of the time I feel her stretch her legs, which means her butt juts out on the uppper left side of my belly, and her feet poke out on the lower right. I've also felt some braxton-hicks contactions I think. All totally normal, but not true labor.

I feel great physically. Finding a comfortable position at bedtime is a challenge, but once I find it I only wake up once during the night to get up and use the bathroom (a lot better than two or three times, like some other moms-to-be!). And I usually stay comfortable in bed all the way through to the morning. This is SO much better than my first pregnancy, when I tried all sorts of sleep positions--different pillows, the recliner, the living room couch. I'm glad that I am able to get good rest at night.

Emotions do run high, though! I find I'm a bit hyper-sensitive to EVERYTHING! Don't be surprised if I bust out crying because of a commercial, or if I'm particularly snappy at the end of the day. David's great about rolling with the punches. I'm blessed to have such a great husband :)

A Wonderful Surprise

God has a way. The other day I was particularly overwhelmed with the preparations of our second baby. In an effort to wrap my brain around it, I wrote down a list of all those things just so I could get it out of my head! Sometimes, they seem bigger in your head and smaller on paper, you know? I then prayed to God about these things, just pouring out my heart to Him, my worries and fears.

And then He answered. Every third Saturday of the month I go to a girlfriends' brunch that started a couple of years ago. After marriage and children a lot of us got busier and busier, and so we thought setting aside one Saturday a month would allow us to catch up! It's usually a potluck, and we take turns hosting each month. I thought today was our usual get together, but when I arrived it turned out to be a little mini baby shower for me! This was such a wonderful surprise and blessing!


Thank you to Carrie for putting the scheme together, and thank you to Jen H. for hosting. Thank you to Angie R, Eli, Julie, Jen T, Angie S and Marla for celebrating the upcoming arrival of our little girl, and for gifting me with such cute outfits! It really cheered me up, lifted my spirits and made me feel special to know you gals were thinking of me.

Aren't these outfits cute? I received beautiful dresses, onesies, two piece outfits, and even some summer wear for next year when she's bigger. Among the gifts was a soft honey bee baby blanket, too.

And so with the surprise baby shower, along with a FANTASTIC morning of garage sale shopping, I have secured our little girl's 0-3 month wardrobe. 3-6 months and beyond are still in the works, but I already have some great outfits for her when that time comes. God also resolved and provided a few other things on my list this past weekend. And so I can happily cross those things off, too. Looking at my list again, indeed, my worries are insignificant because God is bigger. And He is faithful! How easily I forget, even though He reminds me time and time again.

Ethan's Friends

Two weeks ago we had our last Bible Study session with our summer group, but we were not able to find a babysitter! So, yours truly, Vicky, watched the four 2-year olds while the rest of the group met downstairs. It was probably the longest hour and a half of my life! Afterwards, some of the parents did tell me that they weren't sure whether or not the boys were going to settle down, but after about forty minutes, they finally did :) For a full twenty minutes they sat on the couch while watching a video. I had to catch it on film :) You might be wondering why they are sitting on throw pillows. Well, we just had to build a fort with the couch cushions! :)

This video is a good example of Ethan's current stage: "monkey see, monkey do". Sometimes I worry that he might want to do EVERYTHING his friends do when he gets older. But for now, it's just cute and endearing, I guess.

Knee Surgery

A few days ago David went in to the hospital to have some "work done" :) For several months now his left knee has been bothering him, and after seeing a specialist it was determined that he had a torn miniscus. Interestingly enough, eight years ago he had the same condition on his other knee. So, here he is, in a state that I have NEVER seen him in. I thought I would take a picture. The poor guy was pretty woozy from the anaesthesia, even nauseous during the car ride home. Needless to say, it's been a rough week for him not being able to get around as he usually does. It's been hard for me, too, doing all the running around after Ethan!

We were instructed to remove his bandages two days after surgery. I couldn't wait! It was like opening presents on Christmas day. He had so many bandages wrapped nearly the entire length of his leg! What we found was quite a bit of swelling. Totally normal, but uncomfortable for him nonetheless. He had it drained today, which made it feel a lot better. I was also surprised to see his initials still printed on his knee, too. David said that while he was waiting for surgery, every nurse that came to see him asked him the same two questions: "What is your name?" and "Which knee is doctor operating on?". He thought it was interesting that although they had the information right in front of them, they wanted to make sure they had the right patient with the right paperwork! Not a bad idea to ensure quality control :) I wonder how many times they performed the wrong procedure on a person due to a simple mishap of mixed up paper and patients! We're looking at about six weeks of recovery. Until that time David is taking anti-inflammatory medicine, using ice packs, and using his leg as he feels comfortable. It gets better and better everyday. Next week the sutures are removed, and probably another pint of drainage from that nasty swelling!

32 Weeks

It's hard to imagine that I have begun the ten week countdown! All I have to say is that I am tired of getting kicked in the ribs! Other than that, I feel pretty good. Sleeping on my side is getting more difficult because of the extra weight, too.

Speaking of extra weight...my weight gain so far has been 25 pounds. Not too bad, but I'll be putting on about another pound a week for the rest of the pregnancy. I've already had to go out to buy bigger maternity clothes--yikes!

A Born Cowboy

I keep forgetting that even though Ethan is no longer a baby, he still experiences many "firsts". Last weekend we went to the McLean County Fair where he got to ride his first pony! I couldn't believe how cute he looked on that "horsey".



He also got to ride his first carnival ride. I was surprised that he wanted to ride this one...It looked fast, and the music was so loud! He was jolted at first, but I think he enjoyed it. He also rode a little train ride, and cried bloody murder when it ended! We had a lot of fun that afternoon :)

A green thumb?

When we got back from South Haven I was surprised to see that we had our own little farmer's market in the backyard. A friend of ours watched the house while we were gone and said that some of the heirloom tomatoes were ripening and that she had tried a cucumber as well. A cucumber?? The last I checked the fruits were tiny. I couldn't imagine there was anything ready to eat. Boy, was I wrong. Look at these things! I would have loved to have these cucumbers in the first trimester of my pregnancy when all I wanted to eat was cucumber salad!

Goodbye from South Haven

It has nearly been a week since we left our little vacation cottage in Michigan, and I still do miss the beach! Here is a picture of our last sunset on the lake.


Our last morning at the house we had to clean up and check out promptly at 10. Afterwards, we went out to the Saturday farmers market and had some breakfast at a local cafe. The market had beautiful fruits and vegetables to choose from, but I had only one thing in mind: blueberries! Every year, South Haven hosts the National Blueberry festival, but we were missing it by a week. Oh well! At least I got my blueberries! I also bought some cherries, and Ethan absolutely devoured them.


After breakfast and a quick tour around some shops, the Snyders and Zimmermans parted ways. We decided to make one more stop to end our vacation, and that was a short hike in Van Buren State park. It was a delightful surprise. After we parked the car and hopped on a trail, we were brought up and down some wooded hills, and eventually hit sand. Then beyond the trees we saw this:

It was the perfect combination for David and me. We love woods, paths, sand and the beach. And they were all right there at our feet! The weather was pleasant with a strong breeze, and it was so exhilarating to stand on this hill, looking down at the beach. We sat on a log and enjoyed the view for some time.

We highly recommend vacationing in South Haven, Michigan! We'll have to come back next year...

New Experiences for Ethan

Seeing a pirate ship!

Riding a floaty with Daddy...

Flying a kite...

Eating ice cream (and liking it!)...

Holding hands with another boy! We are happy to say it quickly degenerated into a tug of war fight after we finished crossing the street altogether. But it was a cute moment, wasn't it?

Vacationing with Friends

For the last half of our week in South Haven, our friends the Zimmermans joined us at the cottage. We were so glad to have the company, and Ethan was especially happy to see his friend, Grant, when he woke up the morning after they arrived. They instantly took to playing cars and trains as they watched some morning PBS cartoons.



Fellow beach bums are always nice, don't you think? One of the best parts of the trip was spending quality family time together. Or I should say, quality time between fathers and sons! The boys would go off in the water or play in the sand as the moms relaxed under their umbrellas, again, reading our favorite books. Most days we didn't get too far, since we would often start gabbing about something or other! I always welcome girl time between friends. And the weather was perfect. Not too hot, and not too cold. And the lake was so refreshing to swim in.

Ethan sitting in an impromptu chair to have his morning snack!

Lakeside Living

The lake feels a lot like the ocean. It's hard to believe, but on a windy day, the lake can get pretty choppy, with lots of waves! One of our beach mornings it was particularly choppy and Ethan was reluctant to go in the water. But he was confident with Daddy holding him.


Ethan was also quite at home in this vacation cottage. Here he is playing with his trains in the living room...


...and trying out his new tricycle in the drive way.

Our first day at the beach

Our first day in South Haven was spent exploring the beach and walking the harbor. Most mornings after breakfast we headed straight to the beach where Ethan played in the sand, "swam" in the water, and went for long walks along the shore with his dad. I happily sat in the shade of our huge umbrella reading a book :)

This is the harbor that cuts through South Haven, dividing it into the North Beach and South Beach. We stayed in the South Beach area. In the evenings we would walk the harbor and watch the boats go by.

South Haven Vacation

We've just come back from a lovely beach vacation in South Haven, Michigan! Yup, Michigan. It's hard to believe, but this lazy resort town feels like the real thing!

Highlights from the trip: staying in a cute, cozy cottage one block from the beach, and half a mile from downtown, shops and the harbor. More pictures to follow...