Can't believe...

...that it's been more than 3 months since I've posted to this thing! (so sorry! priorities shift!)

...that we've been in OKC nearly 2 months...and are homeowners! (all grown up now!)

...that the cats haven't totally made me crazy with begging to go outside all the time now that we let them into the lovely fenced backyard!

...that the cats have not figured out how to climb over the fence...yet (PTL!), have not brought us any "presents" from their backyard adventures, and that I've only had to rescue one of them from the tree once (and have the scratches to prove it!)

...that I would much rather give birth again any day than go through the crazy ordeal we went through in moving down here...seriously not fun, but the Lord got us through and we lived to tell the tale!! (and one day I'll laugh about it, I'm sure...)

...that I am so happy to be back in the land of Braum's Ice Cream and Dairy Stores...and that I am now hopelessly addicted to their Peanut Butter Cup ice cream!!!

...that I have a 3 month old baby...seems like just yesterday that I was huge and pregnant!

...that time is already flying by so quickly, or that I would so desperately want it to stand still to capture every moment

...that what started as a tiny bunch of cells nearly a year ago grew to become the not-so-tiny (13 pounds and growing!) person I see today...what a MIRACLE it truly is!!

...that the actual birth process was everything I thought it would be and at the same time nothing like I thought it would be....the hardest thing I've ever done and yet the most natural...it was awesome, beautiful, and so empowering!

...that having a natural birth would make me such an advocate for it...and amazed that more women don't attempt it!

...that the next time around (Lord willing...and hopefully it won't be too soon!) I would really like to have a homebirth with a midwife, possibly even a waterbirth (see this documentary on The Business of Being Born...amazing! EVERY woman who is even considering having a baby should watch it!)

...that I'm no longer just Sara, I'm Ephraim's mommy (and "the pastor's wife")!

...that you can love another person so completely

...that I could find so much joy in watching my baby sleep

...that my heart could almost melt when Ephraim flashes a smile!!

...that it would be such a thrill to do something that makes Ephraim laugh...or that we would get so creative at it!! (let's just say, he likes blowing raspberries, goofy faces/noises, and songs from Fiddler on the Roof, Mary Poppins, and Sound of Music....oh yes, and Old MacDonald had a Farm!!)

...that you can survive for so long on so little sleep *yawn* (it is getting better...he's been sleeping almost the whole night through since 8 weeks! now if I could just stop being such a nightowl...)

...that being a stay at home mom does not automatically mean that the house is perfectly clean and dinner is on the table every night (hehe, guess my delusions of turning into Martha Stewart will safely stay in the realm of fantasy!!)

...that I have virtually NOTHING written in his baby book, when I swore that I would be so good at keeping up wit it!

...that caring for another human being could be so all-consuming and such an awesome responsibility...I figure if we both survive to see another day, I did a good job! :o)

...that there is so much STUFF that comes along with a baby!

...that there are still so many boxes in here...hey, who's in charge of unpacking, anyway?! And more importantly, who decided that Oklahomans don't need basements?!? Where are you supposed to keep your STUFF???

...that I've been outside of the house so little since we've been here (cabin fever, anyone?)

...that it hasn't gotten below 90 degrees since we've been in OKC (I don't think, anyway...that whole not leaving the house thing...maybe that's not such a bad thing!)

...that I was healthy as a horse during the entire pregnancy (seriously, NEVER been healthier!), but that within the first 2 months postpartum I've had 3 infections requiring antibiotics (guess I'm making up for having an "easy" pregnancy!)

...that I could fit into my pre-pregnancy clothes 2 weeks post-partum and am less than 5 pounds away from my pre-pregnancy wait!! (yay! breastfeeding really is the best diet!)

...that taking a shower would become my daily victory (sometimes an infrequent one...)

...that spit-up is not the only baby by-product that can be explosive (I'll spare you the details...)

...that I could stand to wait more than a day (or 2...) to change our sheets when there is baby poop, pee, and/or spit-up on them (I know it's gross...don't judge me!!)

...that using cloth diapers is so much fun...yes, I used "fun" and "diapers" in the same sentence. :o)

...that I would have reason to be so interested in any other person's bodily functions (or proud of them!)

...that I know people with 4 kids who seem to get so much done when I can't seem to figure it out with just 1!!! (you know who you are, and I am truly in awe)

...that breastfeeding could be so rewarding when it's going well, and so frustrating when it's not! (but that is pretty rare...it really is wonderful!) I can see why women give up on it during the hard times, but I am committed to making it work because I know it is one of the best gifts I can give Ephraim!

...that I survived my first overnight trip away from Ephraim (3 nights!!), and that he thrived in spite of it! (thanks, Mom...you were a lifesaver!)

...that while every day may not go exactly like I planned, and that even though I may get frustrated and lonely some days being at home, there is nothing I would rather do than to take care of the precious life I helped to create. I love being a mommy!! :o)

...that I am promising to post more often from here on out...thanks for being patient during all of our transitions, but most of all thank you for PRAYING for us during it all...we felt your prayers!

...that you read all the way through to the end of this post (I know it was long!!)!! :oP

Demotivation

Family life and ministry life has kept us extremely busy these days. Sometimes you just need a little demotivation. I thought I would share some of my favorite demotivators with you. Enjoy!

Have a productive week!

Back in the Big OKC

Sara and I began a journey over five years ago that has come full circle. While we were students at Southern Nazarene University, we began working with an urban church plant called New Life Community. I served as their youth pastor for about three years and then when the planting pastor left, I filled in as interim for a time. We left for Kansas City about five years ago that I might attend Seminary - we had a sense then that God would call us back to this unique ministry.

New Life Community partners with an amazing compassionate ministry called Reaching Our City (ROC), which offers numerous services to this community. We feel blessed to be a part of this powerful compassionate movement.

Standing back and observing all that has happened to bring us back to this place, I can only say that it is nothing short of providential. We moved late last Thursday - driving all night with a caravan of vehicles, a six week old baby, and three cats that we might be here to close on our house early Friday morning - then unpacking, preaching Sunday and getting things in order all week... well, I'll just say we've gone through some refining heat over the last few weeks. I don't have time to go into all the details, but I'll post more as we get settled in. You can also check out some info on the church at http://www.okcnewlife.com/

These are just a few of the kids that we are reaching in the community. You can check out more about ROC at their website http://www.reachingourcity.org/ Until next time ~ Blessings in Christ!

Before & After

Now, we really do have a before and after to show. We went back to Lea Murphy to get Ephraim's new born pics. He cooperated about as much as one might expect from a four day old. I think we'll have some great shots to remember this blessed time in our lives.

Lea is gracious enough to put up a sample of our shoot on her blog. We'll go back next week to see all of the pictures and try to decide what we want to purchase without breaking the bank...that's going to be tough.

Ephraim Todd Schneberger's Birth Day!

At 5:27am on Sunday morning the miracle began. Sara had her first real contraction. Obviously, we were excited and anxious as we anticipated all that this new day might bring.

Sara's friend Jaye, who just happens to be a labor and delivery nurse, had just arrived from New Mexico on Saturday. Sara wanted to share this experience with her best friend and receive all the support possible. Shortly after her first contraction, Sara went in to Jaye's room to get the diagnosis - labor had begun!

It was time to take a shower and begin making all the calls. The first call was to Dawn, Sara's doula. Since Sara wanted to have a natural birth, she began working with Dawn and she was a God send. We really couldn't have done it without all the support that we received.

Sara wanted to labor at home as long as possible. The contractions were coming pretty regularly through the morning, so I had to call our worship pastor Tim and let him know that I would not be preaching on this particular Sunday...time to go to plan B.

Sara was contracting about every 6 to 7 minutes and they were lasting anywhere from 30 to 60 seconds. Around 11am we decided to go for walk. During and after the walk the contractions began to come more regularly and were lasting longer. Soon they were coming every 3 minutes and lasting 75 to 90 seconds. It was time to go to the hospital.

We arrived at St. Luke's Northland on Barry Rd. around 1:00pm. They checked Sara shortly after arrival and she was dilated to 7 cm and 100% effaced and the baby was at 0 station. We had made lots of progress and we knew our little boy would be coming into the world soon.

Sara continued laboring so well without any pain medication. Around 3pm they checked Sara and she had only moved to 8 cm and not progressed any further, but that was primarily because the bag of waters had not broken yet, which was providing a cushion that was prohibiting the baby's head from coming down much further. When at 4pm Sara had made no more progress and was still at 8cm, the doctor talked to us about breaking Sara's water in order to help labor ...we took a few minutes to think about it and then decided to go ahead.

The doctor came in and broke Sara's water at 4:06pm. Then, everything began to progress very quickly. Around 4:30 pm Sara began to feel the urge to push. She started pushing at 4:48pm and Ephraim was delivered at 5:18pm. Only 30 minutes of pushing for her first baby! Sara did such a great job with the whole pregnancy, labor and delivery - no pain medication whatsoever.

The first hour after delivery was full of frenetic activity. Cutting the cord, getting pictures, weighing and checking vitals, getting pictures, making all the calls, getting baby to feed. What a miracle. He is here!

Ephraim weighed 6 lbs 15 oz and was 19 3/4 inches long. Mom and baby are both healthy and doing well. And I got video of the whole thing...but I don't think mom will probably let me post it on the world wide web. But, if you are lucky enough to come by our home, you might get to see some of the video.

Ephraim got his first bath around 12:30am. We've been up and down all night checking and feeding and changing, but it is definitely worth it!!

You can check out our pictures at the link over on the right. We will constantly be updating the blog and our pictures of our miracle!

The Miracle: 39 Weeks

Not much time left now! Today has been a bit rougher than yesterday...I am definitely feeling heavy and achey and very much pregnant! I woke up with my lower back and hips really hurting, as well as a dull ache in my abdomen. Could be signs that I overdid it with my walk around the neighborhood yesterday, or it could be signs of early labor. It's kind of a toss-up at this point! I took some tylenol and Richard and I went for a shorter (and less hilly) walk today after lunch, which I think helped to loosen me up a little bit (well, Richard walked...I waddled!). We'll see what the rest of the day holds!

"E" has remained very active, in spite of having less room to move around...can't believe I'll soon get to feel his squirms and wiggles from the outside instead of the inside! Thanks to the website http://www.spinningbabies.com/, I was able to determine that he is in an optimal position for a relatively smooth labor and delivery. Since I am wanting to try for a natural birth (that's right...no drugs! call me crazy...it's just something I've always wanted to try...letting my body do what God designed it to do without unnecessary interventions), having him in a favorable position now can really make a difference in the speed and ease of labor. I know it won't be easy regardless, but it helps to know that it doesn't have to be even more difficult! So we'll see how it goes...you know I'll keep you posted!

I hope (and think) this will be my last post about baby "E's" progress in utero...from here on out I sure hope I get to post about how he is growing and changing out here in the real world! :o)

How your baby's growing: Your baby's waiting to greet the world! He continues to build a layer of fat to help control his body temperature after birth, but it's likely he already measures about 20 inches and weighs a bit over 7 pounds, a mini watermelon. (Boys tend to be slightly heavier than girls.) The outer layers of his skin are sloughing off as new skin forms underneath.

The Miracle: 38 Weeks

Can't believe we are talking about the baby being here in a matter of days, rather than weeks! I am finally feeling ready. Since the doctor's appointment last Wed we have managed to accomplish quite a few things on the "to do before baby" list, so I am not stressing out at this point! Today we had another doctor's appointment, and while me and baby are both doing great, she said we are pretty much at the same place we were last week, so no further progress. I had figured that would probably be the case...we REALLY toned down the walking and stretching after last week's appointment, because I knew I wasn't ready for this kiddo to get here any earlier at that point! Now that we have more of our ducks in a row, I'm ready to get back to our former routine. And what a beautiful time of year to get out and enjoy walking around the neighborhood...I LOVE the spring! All the green and all the trees budding and flowers in bloom and birds singing...this is why I wanted a spring baby!

Thank you to all who have been keeping me and the baby in your prayers. I have said it before, and I will say it again...this has been a very blessed pregnancy! I really am feeling wonderful...no major physical complaints at all, still sleeping through the night (with maybe one visit to the bathroom at most), no major swelling, etc. The doctor this morning was actually surprised when she asked how I'm feeling and I told her that I feel great...she jokingly let me know that it was ok to say that I was ready for this all to be over and how horrible I was feeling, etc, etc. I just smiled and told her that, REALLY, I feel great! Now we're just playing the waiting game. My prayer is that with an easy pregnancy we can also expect to enjoy an easy and happy baby...we'll see how that pans out! Guess we'll find out soon enough, at any rate. :o)

Even though I'll be 39 weeks tomorrow, here is how "E" has developed over this past week:

How your baby's growing: Your baby has really plumped up. He weighs about 6.8 pounds and he's over 19 1/2 inches long (like a leek). He has a firm grasp, which you'll soon be able to test when you hold his hand for the first time! His organs have matured and are ready for life outside the womb. Wondering what color your baby's eyes will be? You may not be able to tell right away. If he's born with brown eyes, they'll likely stay brown. If he's born with steel gray or dark blue eyes, they may stay gray or blue or turn green, hazel, or brown by the time he's 9 months old. That's because a child's irises (the colored part of the eye) may gain more pigment in the months after he's born, but they usually won't get "lighter" or more blue. (Green, hazel, and brown eyes have more pigment than gray or blue eyes.)