1st Christmas as home.....

It was officially our first Christmas at home. Since Todd and I have been married we have not been home for a major holiday. We typically alternate Thanksgiving and Christmas yearly between each of our families. This year we went to Wine Country for Thanksgiving and hosted my parents for Christmas! It was so much fun!

Growing up, Christmas Eve was always spent with our immediate family. We went to family mass, ate pizza, opened gifts, and then had strawberry pie. On Christmas morning we would open gifts from Santa and then head over to my Nano and Nana's and/or Grandma and Grandpa's for the day.

My parents had a bit of an adventure getting to SF secondary to the snow storm that descended on the Midwest! They still made it on Christmas Eve, just a little later than planned. Sticking with tradition we had pizza. Todd made his manly pizza on the grill and it was awesome. Then we opened gifts.

Todd was the elf....as you can see he enjoyed his job.





















Thank you to everyone for all of the great gifts!! I received a lot of baby stuff...the diaper bag, hooter hider (for those of you that don't know - it's a really cute cover-up to use while nursing), in addition to a few things just for me. Todd and I gave each other a new camera in preparation for the baby's arrival. The baby got some books, outfits, and toys from both sets of grandparents. And, he is already being stocked with Philly's gear from Uncle Brian and Aunt Erica. One for daddy and one for baby.....


Murphy also received a gift from my parents. He was so funny....he found his present under the tree without disturbing anything else. Then proceeded to entertain us by carefully unwrapping it all by himself.

On Christmas morning we got up and had our traditional 'monkey bread' with the new addition of a quiche. And then went to mass. I officially retired my choir robe after Christmas mass and will not be rejoining until things get into a routine with the baby. I am not exactly sure when that will be. But, thankfully, the choir director is being really great about it and wants me to come and sing when I can. So, that is really nice.

After church we came home, opened our stockings from Santa, and then my Mom and I spent most of the afternoon cooking. For Christmas dinner we made a orange and rum glazed ham, mashed potatoes, broccoli casserole (Todd's favorite and a Schneider staple), and a holiday salad. It turned out really nice. And for dessert we had a pumpkin pie courtesy of Bobby Flay's recipe and I must say that I out did myself. The pumpkin pie was to die for.

The 27th was my Dad's birthday and we went to dinner nearby in Sausalito. We picked a place with amazing views of the city and on a clear night you can see all the way to Oakland. Of course, if was overcast, rainy and foggy all day. But, dinner was still good and my Dad got his favorite - a good steak!


My Dad shares his birthday with little Samantha Dilullo who is having in her first birthday this year! http://dilullodaily.blogspot.com

Speaking of the Dilullo's, this new years will be the first in 4 years that we have not spent with our friends Pete and Alexis. Hopefully we can coordinate so the Schneider's and the Dilullo's will resume their yearly tradition of spending new year's eve together! Although we may not get kicked out of any 'fraternity houses' I am sure that it will be just as fun with kids (in a whole new way)! We'll miss you guys! I am sure that you will be at home crying without us....

My Mom and Dad were here until the 29th. Mom and I made a few final additions to the nursery. Dad and Todd put together all of the baby equipment...strollers, swing, bouncy seat, etc. Now the strollers are hanging out in the house so that Murphy can get used to them. He is not a big fan of big, rolling objects. But, I think that he is going to be great with the baby....a new pack member! He will love it! Thanks Mom and Dad for all of your help!! It was so great having you here!!! You will be back in a little over three weeks...hard to believe:)

The rest of this week, I have had off of work. The clinic is closed. So, I am running errands and trying to relax. Made a call to a pediatrician today. We are supposed to have a pediatrician in place before the baby arrives and then the doctor will makes rounds and pass through after the baby is born to check things out. I feel really lucky because a friend/colleague of mine takes her baby to a great MD in the same building as our office. So, it should work out great as long as he will take us as his patient! Next on the list is daycare...but that is something for after the new year. My maternity leave begins on January 7th. So, only 3 official days of work remaining! It's so hard to believe that the baby will be arriving soon. I have not had this much time off of work while at home (not travelling for our honeymoon) since I was about 16 years old. It should be an interesting, exciting, and anxious time! I think that I have enough to do to keep me busy and plus, I really should be relaxing:)

Happy 2010 everyone!

35 weeks - baby showers!!!

It's official! 5 weeks and counting....if the little guys decides to join us as predicted January 20th! My boss is hoping for two days late so that they can share a birthday. That's fine with me as long as he does not come much later than that.
















From the front (at least in this picture) it's hard to tell I am pregnant. But clearly there is no mistaking my belly from the side:)

Over the last couple of weeks people have been so generous! We have had two showers. First my choir at church threw a little shower at the beginning of the month and then my friend at work planned a little lunch shower. One of our admins at work is also pregnant so we had a joint shower with pink for her little baby girl and blue for our little guy! I brought my camera to the church shower and, of course, forgot to take a picture. But I did not forget at work! See below.....we balanced the camera on a chair so we could all be included and it was about to fall. As you can see by my face!

















Everyone has been so generous by helping us prepare for the baby by building our baby necessities! We feel so lucky to have such generous and supportive friends!

Todd is in Portland, Maine right now. He was so sweet before he left asking 'Do you think it's okay if I go? I don't want you to go into labor!' At this point not much is happening! I think that I am having some practice contractions but only intermittently. It is more like my belly is a jungle gym with the baby bouncing around in there and then he takes a nap. I don't think he is ready to come out yet! It was really funny....I had my choir Christmas concert on Tuesday. I am standing there, ready to sing and my folder is leaning on the top of my belly. The baby kicked so hard you could see my folder bounce up!

The count down is beginning at work. I have the rest of this week and three days next week. Then we are closed in between Christmas and New Year's and then I will work from the 4th to the 6th in the new year. Time has flown by....there is so much to be done during my time off before the baby arrives. I have to get things set up with a pediatrician and find childcare. There is more to do but those are the two big things that are weighing on my mind.

In the immediate future, my parents are coming to visit for Christmas. They will arrive Christmas eve and then leave on the 29th. Todd and I are looking forward to having them. I can't wait for them to see the house and the nursery. It will also be nice to have our first Christmas in our house. I am looking forward to keeping some of the Marx family traditions and cooking a nice holiday dinner! Should be lots of fun....

Off to bed before I fall asleep at the computer. I will try not to wait so long before my next post!
Happy Holidays everyone!