3 months later

My sweet baby is 3 months old. He is interacting more and more every day, smiling, laughing, batting at toys, reaching for things, and can roll in both directions. He loves baths, tummy time, cuddling, and being outside. He is tiny for his age but super strong. I just adore him! Justin and I are loving getting to know little Levi. Of course, about the time we think we have him figured out he has a growth spurt and changes the game on us. He is a super sweet and generally happy baby - as long as he is being held. :)  He will stare at the pictures when we read him stories and will grin and kick his little feet when smiled at and talked to.  He is growing up so much and it is so much fun to see him learn new things seemingly every day.  

1 month old

2 months old

3 months old

We are so blessed by this precious little boy!

Levi Shafer Schofield

My baby boy is two weeks old today. It seems crazy that it has already been two weeks since we headed to the hospital, and at the same time a part of me thinks, I've only known this little guy for two weeks?? He is such a sweet baby and I feel beyond blessed to be his mama.

The Story
Levi's due date, March 6, came and went uneventfully. After 3 weeks of thinking he may be born any day, this was kind of a bummer. We had been advised that he would likely make an early appearance, and there was even some talk of inducing labor as early as 37 weeks, so when he held out to his due date (and then some), I was getting a little weary of waiting. Don't get me wrong - I am so thankful that this little baby made it to full term and that he was born healthy and strong on his own timeline. But the anticipation was making Justin and me a little crazy!

I worked on Wednesday but wasn't feeling great and decided to take the next day off. I'm glad I did because I started having contractions around 4 in the morning on Thursday, but not wanting to be dramatic about it (and having had them for over a month already!), I ignored them and probably would have headed off to work anyway thinking they would taper off soon enough. Except that this time they didn't taper off. I took my dog on a walk, showered, rested, and for some reason they just kept getting stronger rather than disappearing like they normally did.  Meanwhile, Justin was at work and I encouraged him to go ahead and go to that meeting he had scheduled an hour away, because I was sure I wasn't actually in labor. After all, they say that you'll know when you are in labor. And besides that, they weren't all that regular, and labor contractions are supposed to be regular. Or so I thought. Justin called after his meeting, and when I reported that yes, I was still having contractions, and strangely enough they were beginning to get more intense, he decided he'd better head home. By the time he got home I was pretty miserable and he insisted on calling my doctor just to see what she recommended. (At his request, I had done this already and wisely left a message telling her I thought I might be in labor but that I wasn't sure. Who does that??) We were advised to head over to labor and delivery just to see what was going on, and I dragged my feet to the car just knowing that if they sent me home I was going to lose it.

Thankfully, we were told that not only was I definitely in labor but that things were moving right along very quickly. At this point, I felt a little sheepish for insisting the baby was not coming, completely relieved that he was, and understandably nervous that our world was about to change forever. We got checked into the hospital around 1:30,  called the family to let them know, and just a few hours later, welcomed little Levi into the world at 5:46pm.  He was 7 pounds 12 oz and 20.5 inches of sweetness.

Everything went incredibly smoothly and Justin was exactly who I needed with me. Holding Levi for the first time and getting to know the little face I had been waiting to see for months was surreal. I couldn't believe he was finally here and that this little baby was ours. March 7 will forever be a day to celebrate!

Meeting Levi for the first time

The Name
Levi's middle name, Shafer, is after his great-great grandmother who turned 100 years old exactly one week after he was born. She is an incredibly kind woman who Justin and I admire and enjoy. We hope to make it up to Pennsylvania to introduce her to her namesake soon!

The Last Two Weeks

We are so thankful for this little chubby cheeked baby and for the joy he has already brought to our lives. We have had several doctor's visits, a few walks, and lots of cuddle time. Beau is adjusting well to the new addition! My parents were able to come up when he was born and my mom stayed for his first week home.  We are looking forward to introducing Levi to Justin's parents in a couple of weeks when they make the trip down from Michigan.  In the meantime, we are all very thankful for pictures and facetime!  It has been so much fun getting to know Levi and getting to see Justin as a daddy. He is so in love with this little boy! Levi already seems to have grown up so much since we brought him home - and I know that this is only the beginning! Having a baby is making me a sentimental mess, but I am loving it. I am so thankful for this little miracle!

First day home

Baby Shower!

Justin and I are eagerly counting down the days until our little one makes an appearance! At least we would if we knew how many days we had left... we are so ready to meet the little guy!

We had a wonderful baby shower and enjoyed celebrating our new little one with family and friends. Justin's mom and grandma even made the trip down from Michigan! I have the best in-laws.  My sweet friends did an amazing job on the shower, complete with make-your-own onesies, cake pops, baby blessings, a dress-up photo booth, and fun gifts!

 

 

Hopefully the next time we blog it will be to introduce you to the newest little Schofield!

Oh Boy!

Baby Schofield's anticipated arrival date is 8 weeks from today! Cue joy, panic, excitement, and relief. We are eager to meet our little one and are suddenly finding ourselves scurrying about trying to get things ready. We have enjoyed so many fun things since the last post. I'll try to recap just a few...

We found out the big news.... It's a BOY!!!  Get ready world, there's a little Justin coming your way. This little guy is already awfully active - I think I'm going to have my hands full!

We had a great time sharing the news with our family and friends and revealed the news to our home group with some surprise cupcakes.

The last few weeks we have been busy registering, researching, looking at little boy names, painting, cleaning, going to doctor's appointments, and trying to wrap our minds around the fact that we will be in charge of another life very soon.

In between all of this, we enjoyed spending the holidays with our families. We flew up to Michigan to spend Thanksgiving with Justin's family and had a great time. I somehow came home from the trip without a single picture, but it was complete with games, yummy food, good conversation, and snow.  

Back in Texas, we braved the sunny 70 degree weather to pick out a tree and decorate for Christmas. 

"Baby on the Way" ornament from Justin's parents

We spent Christmas in Belton in true Pittenger style.  We arrived in time to join the family in Cocoa & Cookies with Santa, hosted in my parents yard. It was great to see friends and neighbors have so much fun sharing the Christmas spirit and visiting with Santa and Mrs. Claus.  

It was so fun to see everyone together and to get to enjoy the holiday together playing silly games, eating delicious treats, and relaxing. (Feel free to read more about our Christmas on my sister's blog!)