Ready for bed and ready for Christmas!

Simon's First Haircut

The Toy Story Duo - Halloween 2010

This year Samuel and Simon went as Woody and Buzz Lightyear (aka Baby Buzz). We went trick or treating at the shops in "downtown" Hampton on Friday night and then to a Fall Festival at Hampton First Baptist on Sunday night. Samuel especially loved the fact that all he had to do was go up and say the magic words to get candy in his bucket, lol! He was also thrilled to get to wear his Toy Story boots that Nana and Grandy gave him for his birthday. (Well, actually he always is.) Anyway, Simon was not too crazy about his gloves, he just wanted to eat them and so we had to forgo those. He didn't like his hood either, but I insisted and he eventually forgot about it. :-)

Simon's First Tooth!

Simon's first tooth finally came through on Labor Day.

I managed to take this pic single-handedly -

he thought it was a big game! :-)

Simon's Birth Story

I know that a lot of you expecting Mamas, Mamas that hope to be expecting soon and those of you who just love to hear birth stories have been waiting for me to post this. I am so sorry that it has taken me this long to get it done! I hope that you are encouraged and as always, please let me know if I can do anything for you!


I woke up about 5:30 a.m. on Thursday, 2/4 to realize that Marc didn't get up when his alarm went off at 5 a.m. I woke him up and I went to the front bathroom while he went to our bathroom to shave. On the way I had a contraction, then noticed I was losing some of the mucus plug (TMI for some, I know). I had another contraction before I got back into bed. I was thinking I would just lay down and they would go away, but I kept having them. So, I decided that I would get up and iron Marc's clothes and pack his lunch, maybe walking and moving around would help them go away. {Note: Marc was supposed to leave the next day to go to a men's conference and I just knew that Simon wasn't coming until the next week anyway!}

Marc was making his coffee while I was trying to iron and I kept having contractions. I tried squatting like I did through the Braxton Hicks contractions, but I was not finding the relief that I normally got. He was a little concerned about the fact that I was having more contractions closer together. I finished the ironing and Samuel woke up about 6:15 a.m., so Marc went to his room to get him to go back to sleep and I went back to bed, still sure that these contractions were going to stop soon. Marc put Samuel back to sleep and offered to go into work a little later if I needed him to in case Samuel woke up again, or he could call in if I thought this was it. I told him that I wasn't sure - I'd hate for him to get to work to have to turn around and come back home, but I didn't want him to waste a day off, either. He went ahead and called his boss to let him know what was going on and he got back in bed with me and started timing the contractions. They were three to four minutes apart.

I was having a hard time fully relaxing, so in between one set of contractions I hurriedly got up and made a to-do list to clear my mind. I was worried because Samuel wasn't fully packed and the front shower needed to be cleaned, stuff like that. I was concerned about getting Samuel situated, too. (I was finding that it had been a lot easier for me to relax with Samuel because I didn't have any other kids and my labor started at the hospital.) I made a phone call to work to let them know what was going on, I called my mom and then Tiff who was going to watch Samuel at least until Mama got here to stay the night with him. (I have to say here that Eric answered the phone and he seemed really nervous when I told him what was going on and he started asking me questions that I didn't know the answers to - LOL! He called Marc back a little later to get some more clarification.)

Marc was so sweet to get Samuel packed and clean the front shower. I decided to go take a warm bath and try to relax in there some and more of the mucus plug was coming out. Marc looked online to find out more about the mucus plug and what that meant. Then he called Dr. S. and told him about everything and he said to bring me into the office so he could examine me. Marc said we'd be there within an hour. Somehow I managed to do my hair, get dressed and pack a few last minute things. At this point, I was pretty sure that today was going to be the big day and so I did some necessary things - changed my work email and voicemail and updated my Facebook status, of course!

Marc loaded everything up in the Yukon and it was decided that Tiff would meet us at the hospital to get Samuel. We started the drive to Dr. S.'s office (it was a rainy Thursday morning, the day before my due date, just like it was when Samuel was born). I was having some contractions, though not as many and I asked Marc to take the curves a little slower. He made some phone calls on the way while I did my make-up and I was really sorry that he couldn't go to the Men's Conference. He dropped me off and I waited while he and Samuel parked. When we finally got back to the room and Dr. S. came in there, he took one look at my face and said, "Yeah, she's in labor!" He examined me and said I was 4 cm (I was 3 cm two days prior to this). I said, "That's it!!!" and he just laughed at me, but I didn't think it was very funny! He told Marc to go ahead and take me to the hospital and he would come over around 3 p.m. to break my water. Now Marc and I had already decided that we didn't want my water broken, we wanted everything to be kept as natural as possible. He told Dr. S. this and he said that was fine.

So, we go over to the hospital and on the way I called Mama to give her an update. Marc dropped me off at the third floor entrance with the suitcase and I again waited while he and Samuel parked. I was having contractions during this time and leaning on the suitcase. I didn't care what anybody thought about me as they passed by, which is SO unlike me. I was ready to get to a bed where I could really lay down and relax! Marc and Samuel finally found a place to park and came in. I kept having contractions, so Marc went on ahead and checked in at the front desk. I was so glad I preregistered! I was having a contraction and was leaning on a rail overlooking a fountain and statues of a boy and dog and Samuel was looking down at the fountain. I remember him saying, "Look Mama! Dog! Water!". All I could say was "yeah". The lady at the front desk offered to get me a wheelchair and I said that I did not feel like sitting, but thanks anyway. I felt a little bad for not being very courteous. We got on the elevator and went up to L&D and this Nazi nurse behind the desk immediately said that Samuel could not come back because of the swine flu, so I was not too happy with her. Marc said that he would stay with him until Tiff got there and told me to go ahead and get settled. I don't think I even got to hug Samuel before he left.

A nurse took me back to a room and asked me if I had been here during this pregnancy before and I told her that I had not. She started asking me all of these really dumb statistical type questions like, "How far did I go in school?". I just wanted to lay down and relax and she was getting on my nerves. I made sure that she had a copy of our birth plan. I put my hospital gown on and wondered when Marc would be back. I knew he had to move the car seat to Tiff's van and that is probably what was taking so long. I asked the nurse for an extra pillow and she came back and said they didn't have any extra ones (grrrrr!).

Well, Marc finally came back and I was glad. It was maybe around 11 a.m. He turned the TV on to one of those peaceful music channels like he did when I was in labor with Samuel. That nurse came in and said that Simon was showing some distress and that they needed to keep me on the monitor and that Dr. S. said that I needed an IV (grrrrr! ). I think she may have been lying because Marc went over and looked after she left and he couldn't see where he was showing any distress. I remember just wanting to go to sleep. I was so tired, but there was no way I could sleep! Marc got a snack of PB crackers from our snack bag and decided to go find a drink machine. When he came back he said that he saw the L&D nurse (Jan) that we had had with Samuel. I told him that I really wish she was our nurse again. Well, shortly thereafter, Jan came into our room and said she was relieving the other nurse. I was elated!

I was still having a hard time fully relaxing and I asked Marc to read to me from his Bible. So, he pulled his chair close to me and started reading from Psalms - it was beautiful and really helped me! Then the nurse came in and did a few things, so he had to stop reading and get out of the way. In addition to Marc, I was especially thankful to have three things - my chapstick, breath spray and ice water! Your mouth really gets dry with all of that deep, abdominal breathing.

My contractions were coming even closer together now, they were shorter, but more intense. Up to this point I had not experienced any pain, I was just uncomfortable at times. Now I felt a lot of pressure and it felt good to bear down. At this point Marc and I started doing the "labor dance" and that really helped a lot, but I could tell that this was very tiring for him as he supported my weight and helped me through each contraction. Every time Jan came in the room she would encourage me just like she did the last time with Samuel and that helped me a lot, too.

Well, Marc was getting really tired, so I thought I would try to lay down for a little bit and give him a break. I was trying to hurry up and lay down before the next contraction started, but I couldn't do it fast enough. I had my one and only painful contraction and I felt something pop - my water broke! We buzzed the nurse and when she came in I told her what I thought had happened as I was sitting on the side of the bed. She wasn't too sure, but when I stood up she was! She checked me and said I was 9 cm! Yay!!! She told me that she would call Dr. S. and that if I felt the need to push to let her know.

Shortly after that I really felt the need to push. She came in to break down the bed and take me off of that monitor. I was burning up, so I asked if I could take off my gown because I knew the work was really about to start. I got into the squatting position facing the pillow. I remember that one of the nurses buzzed in and said Mama had arrived while I was pushing. I started standing up on the bed to relieve my thigh muscles in between contractions so they wouldn't get too tired and Jan was scared to death! She said something about giving her a heart attack. Marc said that Dr. S. walked in and saw me standing on the bed like that and she just shrugged! I can't help but laugh about that picture! Anyway, Dr. S. examined me and said that he thought Simon would be crowning in another hour, so he decided to go back to the office and do some paperwork until then. He recommended that I change my breathing (I had forgotten that it was different in the pushing stage) and that I turn around and face the other way while Jan and Marc held my legs to my chest. He left the room and I really started to make a lot of progress. A few minutes later I heard Jan say that she saw blonde hair and she pointed it out to Marc. When Marc looked he felt a little weak and sick because he hadn't even finished those PB crackers that he had started around 11-12 p.m. and it was now about 4 p.m. She made him sit down, gave him his Dr. Pepper and told him to finish his crackers while I held my own legs and worried about Marc passing out or something. In the meantime, Jan called the other nurses to tell them to get Dr. S. back right away and she told me not to push too hard, even though it felt good to push! Marc came back over to my side after he felt a little better. Dr. S. came back in the room and said something about the old "doctor leaving" trick. He felt my belly and said that he thought this was going to be an eight pound baby (and he was right). I pushed and pushed harder than ever for maybe about ten minutes and Simon Charles Schantz was born!

They wrapped him in a blanket and immediately put him on my chest. He latched on right away and I could not believe his sucking reflex - so much different than it had been with Samuel! He ate and he ate and he ate! I asked for some OJ and that was the best OJ I had ever tasted! I was so happy to be able to spend that time with Marc and Simon, just examining our new baby boy and reflecting on the whole experience. I even got to listen while Marc called our friends and family to tell them the great news! These were the moments that we didn't get to have with Samuel, but I had so looked forward to. I will have to say that this was definitely the hardest physical thing that I have ever done, but I would gladly do it again! What an experience!

This is not a very flattering picture of me, but it is Simon's first one and of course, our first one together. He is a little over an hour old here and as you might can see, very alert!

Samuel's Birth Story

I can't share Simon's birth story without first telling about Samuel's because in many ways this has all been sort of a healing process for me. When I was about 38 weeks pregnant, my midwife ordered an ultrasound and from that it was determined that Samuel "only" weighed about six pounds. So, we did the non-stress test at 39 weeks, four days and it came out with normal results. She said I really needed to be induced because there was probably something wrong with the placenta. She also suggested that we go to Henry Medical and have another ultrasound done (because their u/s tech was out). As a first time parent, I was very upset that something could be wrong with my baby, so I went ahead and scheduled the induction for that Thursday morning and then I drove over to HMC for the ultrasound. This tech said that the most conservative weight she could come up with was eight pounds, but I kept everything the same and didn't go with my intuition and gut feelings and cancel the induction.

On Thursday morning, 7/26/07 at 5:00 a.m. I was induced, but I still did not want the epidural. I used the Bradley Method for Natural Childbirth that Marc and I had been practicing and studying over the previous months. They had me hooked up to the monitor and over the next 11.5 hours Samuel started to show some distress and that had us all very concerned. Then around 2 p.m. the midwife started preparing me for a possible C-Section because of the distress and the fact that Samuel was not descending. At this point, I was getting pretty tired and really ready to meet Samuel!

At 4:30 p.m. the midwife examined me again and I was about 7 cm, but Samuel was still not descending and showing distress. So, she advised that we go ahead and do the C-Section to avoid any possible brain damage. She said that they would do an epidural and that I could nurse Samuel immediately after the birth. At 4:45 p.m. the anesthesiologist came in and told me that the epidural might cause my MS to relapse and that he would have to put me to sleep. I didn't realize what that would mean later, but I said okay. Then I found out that Marc couldn't be in there with me because the anesthesiologist had to take his place. Then they took me back to prep me for surgery. Now, my labor was definitely hard work and a little uncomfortable at times, but I had experienced no pain until this point. I was laying on my back on the operating table in a very cold room and I remember asking several times for the anesthesia. The pain was horrible!!! I remember my midwife saying, "Poor thing, she hasn't asked for anything all day." Finally the anesthesiologist showed back up and said that even the gas could cause my MS to relapse and I basically just told him that I didn't care and to just give me something!

Then around 7:30 p.m. I woke up and there was the sweet L&D nurse that had been with me since 7 a.m. My throat was killing me and I remember asking about Samuel. How much did he weigh? Was he jaundiced? When I got back to my room we already had visitors and then they finally brought me Samuel. He had been born at 5:05 p.m. and was 8 pounds, 3 ounces (what??) and 21 inches long. He was perfect! (The reason for the distress that he had been showing was because he was slightly transverse and was bashing his hid into my pelvis with each contraction. As a result, he had a bruise on the crown of his head.) I tried nursing him, but they had given him a pacifier in the nursery and it would be a few weeks (and lots of crying from both of us) before we really got the hang of it. Later I would realize how much that separation of 2.5 hours had affected us.

The hardest thing was what I had so looked forward to - the first moments that Marc, Samuel and I would have together after his birth - checking Samuel over to see how perfect he was, me listening to Marc call our friends and family with the exciting news, Marc and I talking about how it had all been worth it. I felt that all of this had been lost forever! (I still cry about this, I am even crying as I write about it now.) I also felt like such a failure! Why did I let them induce me in the first place? Why didn't I just insist that they give me the epidural instead of putting me to sleep? I knew better! It just seemed that one intervention led to another until the thing that I feared the most happened - the dreaded C-Section! I can't really blame my midwife because her hands were tied by the doctors she had to answer to. I could only promise myself that the next time - if we were given another chance - would be very different!! Still, I am thankful that we were so blessed to have a healthy, beautiful boy that makes me smile every day.

Our first family picture the day after Samuel was born.

You can see the bruise on Samuel's head pretty well in this picture.

Baby Schantz #2 is here!!

Simon Charles Schantz was born on Thursday, 02/04/10 at 4:37 p.m. He weighed 8 pounds, 2 ounces and was 20.5 inches long. The delivery went very well and Marc and I had an incredible, all natural childbirth experience! [I will blog about that later when our life settles down a little bit. :)] Just like his big brother, Simon has a very healthy appetite and in one week has grown half an inch and gained 6 ounces!

A pic of my big belly at 39 weeks, 2 days
(just 5 days before Simon would
arrive).

Simon Charles Schantz
(only 1.5 hours old)

Here I am talking to Samuel for the
first time since Simon has been born...
Big brother meets little brother...
The NEW big brother!
So sweet!
Marc & Simon
My three boys!!!
Simon's "Birth Day" Cake
Fast asleep in the Boppy!
A little smile?
I think it is so cute when he sleeps
with his hands folded like this!
Eight Days Old
(Don't worry - I moved Simon before
Samuel rolled over onto him!)

Samuel the Train Engine

Samuel trying on his costume .....

Samuel and George

Look at all that candy!!!

Baby Schantz #2

Samuel's gonna be a big brother!!!
Our little kidney bean at 9 weeks.

Profile at 20 weeks

Profile Closeup

Left Foot
It's a boy!!!!

Baby Schantz #2 putting his hand under his chin.

Samuel's 2nd Birthday

First, we had lunch at Southern Pit Barbecue........

James, Samuel, Katrina & Jamie

Nana & Grandy

Grandmama & Grandpapa

Then we went back to the house for cake.....

He couldn't resist poking his finger in it...

Yessss!!!! Now we get to eat it!!


And it is yummy!!

Now it's time for presents.......