Daddy play time...

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Here's a typical evening with Mike and Milo..

His new favorite thing...

So Mom got Milo this MN gophers hat for Christmas, and it's one of those fold-over beanie-type things. His new favorite thing is to pull the hat down over his face and just sit there. He doesn't freak out or anything, just sits there with his hat pulled down over his eyes... Last night, on the way home from an outing, he pulled his hat down and fell asleep... Are we that traumatizing that he already feels the need to block us out? :)

And then he woke up when I opened the door. Peek!

May the jumping commence...

Busy, busy, busy...

Sorry avid fans, lacking in the updating of the blog. Crazy times at work as holiday shipments come pouring into the store, literally filling our backroom floor to ceiling. My last wedding of the year was this past weekend as the Hastings on Mike's mom's side of the family married off their youngest. Beautiful ceremony, and I have to say, I think the flowers looked pretty good. Mom was up for a couple of weeks to help with daycare as one of my daycare providers was on vacation, but I barely saw her. I worked, came home, slept, and started again the next day all over again. But Mike and I are both missing her. No one to magically do our dishes while we're gone during the day. No one to make us coffee and share a cup with in the morning. Mom is such an easy visitor, I almost feel guilty. And we found out about a month ago that my grandpa has lung and brain cancer. So I've made a few trips down there over the past couple of weeks to hang out with him and my grandma. They only just moved up from Texas to Iowa, amazing timing, but hard and unfair all at the same time. The first time in my life that we've been this close geographically, and it's difficult to enjoy it. But I think I'm closer to both of my grandparents than I've ever been. Milo survived his 4-month appointment today, and mom was much better prepared with baby tylenol, so everyone's surviving well. I'll leave you with this great picture my friend Kory took of the little nugget. Gap's advertising for this holiday is all about the snowflakes made out of people, you know with everyone's head in the middle and their arms and legs radiating out in a snowflake-like shape? And in one of them, in the middle of the human snowflake is this little baby, the nugget. We've decided that our management should do one of these pictures, and Milo will be our nugget.

Milo's first rugby match...

My friend Alex plays rugby. This is a mysterious sport to me. It looks and sounds like pain incarnate. Kayla says it's everything boys want to do in sports, and anything goes, no holds barred. Though I think Alex did say one time that biting wasn't allowed. Other than that, anything goes.

Alex plays on the U of M team, and they're really good. They go to nationals every year, and I guess they're a club sport, but they play all the D1 teams. Yesterday, they played in the U's new outdoor stadium; pretty big deal in that they

usually play on some random field with no benches or bleachers for their few fans to watch from. But this match, they invited lots of people, and went to battle against their arch nemesis,

U of Wisconsin, Madison (there's a big rivalry with them in every sport apparently, something with gophers and badgers)

Alex's whole family came, Sarah, his gorgeous girlfriend, and her whole family (who happen to all be great friends with Alex's family) came, and Kayla and Derek and Milo and I went to see and be proud.

As I said, I don't really understand how rugby goes, but Alex seemed to play a pretty important

role. He's #1 (the announcer at the start of the match introduced him as "#1, both in uniform

and in their hearts" or something like that :) You can see him lifting a guy up to try and grab a

toss from the sidelines. He also ends up being in the scrum, or scrim, or scrub, that huge crowd that tries to plow the other team over while getting the ball to their own player.

It was super fun to watch, and I'd love to learn the rules sometime. Milo was a great sport; maybe he'll play rugby some day? I guess that goes back to him earning his nickname "Mack" if he can survive a match with cousin Jake the Tank :) Way to go Alex; you're #1 in our hearts too!

Thirteen weeks...

Couple of fun random ones...

Daddy thinks it's really funny to prop him up in a sitting position until he tips over. No worries, always on soft pillows or cushions, and always while Mike is watching closely. And apparently Milo thinks it's pretty funny too...

And how long do you think this will last, Sally letting him get this close to her? You can't tell here, but her tail is totally poofed out and the hair on her back is raised, yet she keeps checking

him out, she even sat over his feet as he kicked

her. Maybe she inherently knows that he'll be the bane of her existence in a few short months :)

Like father, like son: watching the Vikings in his PJs. They're actually looking really good, thanks to APeterson, the Favre, and a few other boys.

The first

season in a good many, and I'm glad;

worried that the Vikes were going to break Mike's heart, again.

Mommy meltdown...

I don't know if I'm hormonal or tired or anxious about going back to work or what, but yesterday was my first official mommy meltdown. I've had a couple of other minor stressful moments or times when I just didn't really feel in control, but yesterday I lost it. I'm sitting on the couch, feeding Milo, seeing the half basket of laundry that I did on Tuesday and still haven't put away, the dirty glass sitting on the table, the beer bottle over on the trunk, the stack of mail that just seems to keep building, then the cat threw up on the carpet right in front of me. And I just started to cry. I'm home all the time, but our apartment is never clean, I'm really only taking care of one infant, but he seems to suck all of my time. I love him dearly and wouldn't trade these days for anything, but I wonder how any mom gets anything really done during the day as he seems to demand most of my time. I'm getting better at the 5-10 minute tasks while he naps or sits in his baby catapult, but he's been a little crabby this week, and I feel like somehow I'm failing him because he's not the happy baby he's been. I'm sure he's fine, and I'm fine, just had a moment.

Mike came home, poured me a glass of wine, and whisked Milo out to Chaska to see Nana Steph. I worked on our bedroom disaster for a little bit, went to see a movie (why do I love seeing movies by myself; am I a hermit at heart?), and then met a couple of friends for happy hour at our new local spot. And today is a new day. Milo and I went to the post office and talked to Auntie Kate. And now he's oogling his baby gym and cooing happily. Maybe we've both turned a corner.

Two month appointment...

Poor Milo. Went to see the doctor yesterday for his two month appointment, and things started out just fine. Apparently he's in the 50th percentile for his height/length, and the 80th percentile for his weight. I don't think the nurse was able to get a fully accurate measurement of his length, he was just waking up and arching his back and stretching, but needless to say, he's turning into a little portly fellow. Doctor checked his eyes and ears, his back and head, his heart and lungs, and everything looks just great.

Then the nurse came back with three rather large needles. Let the immunizations commence. As the first plunged into his little leg, he paused for a moment, then the pain set in, and Milo let forth a scream like none I've heard from him. He's usually such a mellow little man. And then with the second and third, continued bafflement and resonant yells. Why would his mom let this happen? What is happening? He just seemed beside himself at the injustice of it all. As soon as possible, the nurse handed him over, we cuddled for a few minutes, mom cried in utter helplessness and longing to make it go away, and he calmed down. I got him into his carseat, and we headed out.

For the rest of the morning and early afternoon, he slept, long and hard; woke once, ate, went back to sleep. Then about 4pm, he woke again, moved one of his legs, and let go again. Poor man; mom ignorantly thought the worst was over, hadn't stopped to get any baby tylenol, and now was powerless to stop the aching in his swollen legs. Fortunately, Nana Steph called mid-screaming and offered to stop by with the blessed drugs on her way home from work. I managed to get him to calm by the time she got there. By the time Mike got home from work, I thought we were through the worst, but later in the evening, about an hour after he ate, I tried for a second dose of the tylenol. He took it, let a little dribble out, sat and worked on it for a couple of minutes, then vomited every liquid from his little belly, managing to drench both him and me, but miss everything else. After some more crying, he took a warm bath, and we rocked and rocked and lullabyed, and rocked some more. And today he seems reasonable back to his normal, happy self. Whew. This parenting learning curve is steep and sometimes breaks my heart, but so far we're both surviving unscathed.

The best gifts...

I love being able to register for gifts, and those lists are essential for getting what we needed for Milo. But on the other hand, some of my very favorite things we've received since Milo's been born have been made just for him.

This gorgeous, plus educational ABCs and counting, quilt was made by the award-winning quilter, pharmacy mentor, and dear friend Marcia Millonig, with help from her sister. The second picture is the patch they made for the

back, complete with one of our first family

pictures. The fabrics are amazing, the back of the quilt is this soft, fuzzy green fabric, and the patch just puts this work of art over the top. It will be one of those pieces I will treasure forever!

This great onsie some of you might recognize; it was on Kate's Etsy site for a little bit before she graciously gifted it to our little guy. It says "trick or treat" on the owl, is made out of an old t-shirt, and will be the perfect size for Halloween this year. Not that Milo will be going out on October 31st, but we might have to go visit a few people ;)

This one is so great, and was one of those things I was completely not expecting, and then this envelope came in the mail from Sarah and Kim Knuth up in Duluth. There was also this great hat that looks like the top of an eggplant and another onsie, a red one with a tie stitched on the front, that I much have put in a different box 'cuz it's bigger. I love this one; Sarah and Kim have very similar tastes as me, and the fabric of the "MS" and the striped onsie are so perfect; I'll probably start putting him in this before it fits him and will keep packing his little body in it even when he starts to be a little stuffed-sausage in it!

Milo will never be cold. I love blankets, all kinds, anything snuggly, and the moms and grandmas know it. The orange quilt is from my mom and my dad picked out the fruit fabric on the back, the blue blanket is from my Grandma Sue, soft and silky and delicious, and the light pink, green, and blue one is from Steph, made of some magical yarn that is both fuzzy and soft and yummy all at the same time.

This adorable little work is drawn by one of Mike's pharmacy friends, Adele. She was Mike's predecessor regent for Kappa Psi, and she and her husband Tom are the easiest people to hang out with. Both of them are great people, lots in common with me and Mike, and we always enjoy them, but again, this was one of those things we just weren't at all expecting, so when it came in the mail, my heart just melted. The girl's got talent :)

And these delicious little bits of sweetness! One of my moms-on-call-when-I-have-no-idea-what-to-do, Kayla, came bearing boxes of goodies! Cheesy potato soup for me and Mike, rice cereal for the next few months for Milo, hand-me-downs from her cutie, Conner, and these little works of art! These beautiful cookies are cookie-pops (on sticks!) and each one has something else about Milo, his length, weight, birthday, and birth time. I can't believe the time and energy she put in, especially as a mom of two!

Milo's first wedding...

Mike's cousin Lindsey got married this weekend. We did the flowers, and I say we because many hands made far too much work very reasonable. Thanks to Steph and Larry, Karen and Bill, Kristi and Jason, Aunt Carol and Uncle Larry, Aunt Laura and Uncle Craig, and Mike, Lindsey's wedding was quite literally covered in flowers. We put things together that I've never done before, mostly because the flower shop I worked for never even offered them; they're fairly time intensive and not very cost-effective. Larry and Craig say they are going to teach me how to price things appropriately, but really with family, that's next to impossible. What's the good in having a florist in the family if they don't give you a great deal on your wedding flowers?

Milo was terribly handsome. He inherited some great seersucker pants from either one of the Rohl boys or Jake, I don't know from whom exactly. Mike and I found this button-down shirt on a clearance rack at Macy's, and I rummaged up a remnant tie out of the tie-bag days, cut it short, and stitched it up. I'm afraid to say he might have stolen the show, at

least in my eyes, but don't tell Lindsey. He is my first kid though, and I am a little biased, so hopefully she'd understand.

We also got to spend some great family time with the Schroeder gang. Kristi and Jason flew out from VA, and Karen's new beau, Bill, came up from Iowa to take on meeting the entire extended family, bless his heart. We all crashed at Larry and Steph's, filling all beds and floor space. And it was a blast! Lots of bossing nice people around with flower stuff, and plenty of loving by experienced and capable hands for the little man, so mom could neglect him for orchids, hydrangeas, and kermit poms. Good thing I have 3 weeks left of leave to stay at home and stare at him :)

Not much to say...

Not much to report on these days, so I figure pictures will satiate the blog-fiends :) I think Milo is almost laughing though, not quite, but almost. These are a few of the pictures our friend Ryan Torma took when Milo was about 10 days old. Click here to see the rest of them...

Six weeks old...

The whole McGrail family, minus one Scott...

Kate, James, Finn, Henry, Milo, and I roadtripped to Indiana last week to hang with the McGrail crew. Mike, Mandy, and Jake flew in on Friday night to join all of us, Mom, Dad, and Heather. Only missing Mandy's Scott :( We were reminiscing that this is the first time the four of us girls have been all together in two and a half years, pre-Jake, pre-Henry, and obviously pre-Milo. And then Saturday afternoon, Grandma Sue, Grandpa Gary, and Aunt Barb and Marv came over from Iowa. A little crowded, but loads of laughs, love, card-playing, mess-making, food, and most importantly, family.

We decided to commemorate the event and take some family pictures. And I think they came

out pretty good, some definitely frame-worthy. When Kate and James and the boys were here, we all went to a Saints baseball game. And though Kate and I look ridiculously alike, people wondered whether it was Mike and James that were brothers. I don't know, I think all us girls look too much like family for there to be a mistake!

A few of my favorite things...

The sounds he makes when he sleeps...

The way he holds my hand, even though I know it's a reflex...

Little Feet...

The way he focuses when he can, especially on this cute lion from Auntie Kristi

Snuggling after snacking...

As promised...

Hello faithful followers. Figure we should get a few more pictures up before someone harasses me, ahem Kayla :) Not going to write a whole lot right now though. Our desktop computer is in the process of potentially crashing, and Mike's been taking the laptop to school, so now it's late at night, and this new mom is looking forward to some sleep.

Smiling at dad...

No worries my Leche League-loving friends, that's mom's best; just let's dad get in on the process

And that might be all you get, google's giving me an error message and I don't have the patience to wait it out. We had our first check ups post-hospital, and everyone's looking good. Apparently Milo's only down a couple of ounces off his birth weight, which is great. They typically want to see him back up to his birth weight at 14 days, so for him to be almost there at 10 days is perfectly healthy. And everything else looks good, says the doctor, color, ears, eyes, reflexes, strength, belly button, all those important things :) Thanks for the many calls and check-ups, and all you who stopped in to say hello, bring meals, and oogle the little man. We are a well-loved family. Hey, Mike and I are officially a family now, not just a couple!

Pretty stinkin' cute

Meg and Milo are snuggling in bed right now; both are recovering after a really crazy night last night. Milo was especially fussy, probably because we weren't feeding him enough to his liking. He has lost some weight (8%), but he has stabilized. We have started supplementing his feeds with formula, which helps reduces the fussiness and prolongs the sleepiness, both really good things. Also, we have started feeding him nakers, per the recommendation of the pediatrician. The problem of not eating enough was compounded by the fact he was falling asleep during feedings. Then, when we put him back in his bassinet, he begins to fuss again! Now he looks pretty pathetic shivering while eating, but at least he is staying awake enough to eat.

Also, on the bilirubin front for all the health-field people types...his serum bilirubin is low, despite his yellow skin. This is a good thing.

Sounds like both Meg and Milo will have many visitors tonight, as well as swirling rumors of McGrails en route. He met G'ma and G'pa Schroeder as well as Auntie Karen on Monday, as well as Great-Uncle Hans and Aunt Kersten yesterday. G'ma Schroeder was so excited, she came for an encore visit on Tuesday. Meg and Milo will probably be discharged tomorrow. Stay tuned.

And the name is...

Milo Patrick Schroeder! You can call him Miles or Milo...maybe Mack if he can beat up Jake later. (Highly unlikely...Jake is built like a tank). Can't wait to see the inter-cousins grudge matches - Battle of the Blondies! If you have any other creative names for the rumbles or wrestling matches when the cousins get together, leave them in the comment box!

Meg and Milo are doing well. Milo is still figuring out the breast feeding thing...he gets sleepy when attempting to eat. Also, his bilirubin is a little high (and he is a little yellow..."tan" Meg says), but nothing to fret about yet. Meg is a little sore still, but walking around nicely. Thanks for all the e-love and support.

Untitled #1

Hi everyone anxiously waiting baby pics! It's Mike, posting on behalf of Meg. We had a baby boy at 7:52am this morning. He is 7 lbs, 8 oz, and 21" long. He has blond hair and Meg's complexion. The pediatrician had the best quote: "He is definitely Caucasian."

We will post additional pics when they become available. In the meantime, let us know if you have an opinion on a name!

1. Milo Patrick

2. Emmett Jay (Jayce?) or Emmett Michael

3. Colby Ellis

What do you think?

8 hours post C-section

Hello World!

Just born!

New life...

So we're going to have a baby! Tomorrow! AHHHH!!! and YEAHHHH!!!! We found out about a week ago that the baby is breeched, head up, occasionally ramming me in the ribs, blessed soul. They tried to flip the baby, to no avail, so we're scheduled for a c-section first thing tomorrow morning. Nothing like planning your kid's birthday. Kinda weird, but kinda neat too. Mike and I have really been able to spend some great time just the two of us, and there's nothing like leaving work as neatly as you can, at least as much as possible within reason, and with no surprises. Been doing a lot of praying the past few days especially, maybe it's hormones, maybe it's the thought of being a mom so soon, even with nine months to prepare, maybe it's eminent major surgery, maybe it's the utter fear and excitement of meeting my child face-to-face after so many months belly-to-belly. Maybe it's putting all that together with a for-sure date and time; there's something oddly soothing about not knowing, and now that we know, it's all that much more serious, that much more intense, that much more, well, eminent. And not necessarily in a looming way, though in my weak moments of doubt, looming is probably not a bad word, but solid, for sure. This is really happening. Mike and I are really going to do this, we're really going to be parents. And I'm thrilled, and freaked out, and so excited, and a little panicky, and over-prepared, and under-prepared. But on this beautiful summer morning, the day before our son or daughter is born, I'm also so content. Our baby is healthy, we have a great doctor, I have the best husband on the planet, who's put up with everything I thrown at him in pregnancy, and in about an hour, we'll go, the three of us together and spend some time lovin' on the One who made all of us to be together. Thanks for your prayers, your love, and your support, what's been given, and what will be given in the next few days. Can't wait to show off our kid!

Showered on by Gap friends...

Shower #1 was a fantastic success, regardless of my anxieties beforehand. Not that I really had any doubts. I didn't actually take any pictures with my camera, but I know a couple of gals have posted them on Facebook, so I'll go on for the first time in about 4 months and try and connect the dots so you can see them.

One of my favorite things about this shower, aside from the great people, and they really are great people. I know I gripe about a few of them, but some of them, I think I'll be friends with for life. And those ones, well, even Mike had a good time with them, which considering the fact that they're my people and he doesn't see them much, I consider that a great compliment to them. Anyways, so one of my other favorite things, this was an especially mixed group, co-ed, young people, moms, college students, working-types, etc. and the gals organizing this shindig decided that shower games might not be the best. One of them, my girl Polly, had been to another shower last year where they had everybody decorate a onsie for the new baby. And here are some of my favorites.

I guess a couple of these might need explaination. The "cute as a bug" one is from Marcia, who loves lady bugs. When I was in Hawaii with Mom, I found her these great little lady bug tumble glasses, and with Marcia, you just buy her those things because you always know that she'll just love them.

These two are front and back. My dear, sweet husband, from the very beginning of our little adventure of growing into parents, has insisted on calling my ever-growing belly "Cleatus the Fetus." I have this ridiculous paranoia that somehow this will follow our poor child far beyond his/her time of being an actually fetus, so I tried really hard to squelch this habit. But of course, my peeps at the Gap caught wind of this, and especially Polly likes to harass me with this. So her's is the one that says "Cleatus" which apparently means "illustrious" at which point she felt the need to justify this with "see mom, it's not so bad." Grrrrr....

And my guy Kory (who's 6'7" and also got us a onsie with a giraffe on it that says "vertically chanllenged" :) who shares a love and devotion to great or not-so-good '80's movies and music, painted the one that says "no one puts baby in a corner."

And though he's still designing his personal masterpiece, also of great note, my buddy Eric got us a onsie that has Bob Marley on it and says "B is for Bob." Totally perfect coming from Eric, and I must say, Mike and I both love it too. What can I say, our kid's going to be the coolest kid on the block.