Happy Birthday Mark!

happy birthday husband.

Nearly 10 years together, and this oldie is still one of our favorite pictures. The year ahead holds many adventures for us, bringing a second son into our home, a potential move, and fingers crossed, a trip around the world. I cannot wait to enjoy it all with you.  

Here's to a weekend full of sticky buns, crackling fire places, family to chase after Behr while we rest and revel in having nothing on our to-do list! 

Our Graduate + the epic journey that got us there

I don't really know how to write this post. In my head it was going to be about how proud we are of all of Mark's hard work over the past two years, the incredible way he juggled work and family and school and a crazy neurotic blogger wife becomeing a momma for the first time. Leaving the country days after his son was born, knowing he was missing a few small things, but holding firm that this step was leading to a life of being present for more. Because, you know, sometimes you have to make the hard choice now for the better future. Our little family is still in the waiting phase, waiting to see what's next, waiting to see if DC will remain our home, waiting to see where God is taking us, what he has in store for us. But as we celebrate Mark's graduation, the completion of his master's degree from Johns Hopkins, we are proud of him and that's what this post was supposed to be about.

But the real story is how we got there, no not the whole journey, just the day of the actual ceremony. Mark was required to arrive by 2:00. I was required to be seated by 2:45. We left DC around noon, with nearly two hours to spare, the biggest lag time we have ever given ourselves to get to Baltimore. And then it took us 40 minutes and twist and turns to get out of DC, only to sit in bumper to bumper traffic, switching highways for open road, only to be slowed down by on and off visability reducing downpours. Everywhere we looked we were in traffic. No matter how hard we tried to go faster, we slowed down. Finally, at five after 2, a few blocks from the ceremony site, we plotted our Chinese firedrill. Mark jumped out of the car, grabbed his regalia, and began to ran. I got in the driver's seat as Behr woke up and began to scream. I circled the building twice, following the direction of event staff to parking. Lots are full, lots are full. By the third parking lot I resorted to bribery, offering to pay extra, and lying about my condition in hopes of gaining pitty. I am not proud of this moment. Nor was it successful. I can typically charm my way in and out of things, but my efforts were futile. As 3:00 rolled around, I am literally about to burst into tears on the phone with my mother-in-law, proclaiming I am going to miss everything. I find street parking, the very first spot I see, I take. I am 14 blocks away, but desperate to finally park. I pay the meter, juggling Behr, the diaper bag, the umbrella, and my wallet at the meter machine, a gentleman approaches and offers to hold my baby while I pay. Ummm...no. Now my momma senses go on high alert and I feel threatened, the last thing I need. I begin to run, in pouring rain, in a silk dress and heels, over cobblestone and brick sidewalks, carrying a 16 month old, because strollers are not allowed at the graduation ceremony, and the heaviest diaper bag on the planet filled with the essentials for two hours of entertainment. I ditch my umbrella. When we get to the building, my father-in-law spots us immediately. Bless him. I hand him the remaining tickets and elbow my way to the nearest bathroom, closed, and then find another so I can pull myself together, change the worst diaper I have ever seen in my life on the dirty floor because there were not changing tables. At this point, I may or may not have told a group of graduates straigtening their caps and gowns to never believe the world is a baby-friendly place. Once again, not a proud moment. Finally, Behr and I have both stopped crying and we sprint to our seats, over 30 minutes late, but somehow just in time.

The ceremony was wonderful. The speakers were thoughtful, interesting, and brief. Behr clapped with the crowed, and signed "more" every time he heard the word in a speech. My heart melted watching him be so excited to be with the adults, attentive and well behaved. Mark crossed the stage, his brother cheered, Behr clapped so hard, it was as if he truly understand the significance. I passed Behr off to the grandparents so I could return to the car, 14 blocks away to feed the meter, passing a few open spots along the way, I decide to move the car closer and make it back inside in time to meet Mark as he filed out of the ceremony with his classmates. We reunite with the rest of the family and celebrated. We gathered with friends in Federal Hill at The Rowhouse Grille for a fabulous dinner in honor of our graduate!

I could have posted one hundred pictures of these two hanging out. We are already certain they are going to be life long friends, Behr and Evelyn.

I am linking up to small style, even though the rain kept most of my picture taking at bay, I can't resist sharing Behr in a button down with his hair all combed! Behr wore: a plaid shirt from Polo Ralph Lauren via TJ Maxx, hand-me-down khakis, and a Carter's zip up sweater.

Until we are old and wrinkled.

Mark and I started dating when we were young, practically babies.

We were married before either of us turned 25.

But deep down inside, we have always been old souls.

Our dating life consisted of grocery shopping, Jeopardy watching, and too many board games to count. We read the paper and talk about the price of orange juice. We both have incredible relationships with our grandparents, and look to their generation to set an example for our marriage.

When we do take an occasional date night, we both secretly hope to be seated near a more established couple. We love seeing the spark of love in experienced eyes, wrinkled hand holding across the table, and the ease in which two bodies move in harmony, even if the pace has slowed.

We like to take a peek inside the lives of a generation that came before us and hope that we can live up to their example. So when I saw this Time magazine special featuring Lauren Fleishman's work, I was smitten.

"Little by little we change but we don't change in our hearts. Love gets stronger. That is the way I feel. I believe he feels the same way. Yes, he was my first love. My first love and my last."  - Leila Ramos

I am not sure which I appreciate more, the photos or their wise words on life, love, and marriage.

Valentine's Day is just a week away.

What are the examples of love in your life?

::All About Marriage:: A Blog Series

108 months ago I was a college freshman who didn't want to date

107 months ago I met an awesome boy, but didn't want to date

101 months ago I agreed to date said boy and learned how to be outside of a comfort zone

69 months ago he proposed

60 months ago I became his wife

48 months ago we moved to DC and learned what marriage was like outside of a comfort zone

18 months ago we celebrated being pregnant {and started counting time in months!}

8 months ago we became parents and continue to learn what marriage is like outside of a comfort zone

Marriage is gloriously wonderful and uncomfortable and secure and to be cherished.  On Friday we get to celebrate 5 years of marriage and 9 years of love. 

I am overwhelmed at how each day it is possible to love someone more. 

More. 

After 9 years, how is there possibly more love to give?

There is.

Marriage is beautiful and sacred.

I am the luckiest girl in the entire world.

Mark and I both work hard at our marriage.
It takes prayer and patience and a whole lot of grace.

It is hard work.

And worth every ounce of sweat.

But it takes time.

One of the gifts I am giving Mark this year is time. I am committing to a no computer zone when I get home from work.  A commitment that will give us time as a family and as a couple to love on and serve each other better.  So for the next two weeks you will be hearing from some of my favorites in a mini blog series all about marriage.  You will be reading about their love stories, how they make it work, tips they have for success and more. I hope you enjoy their words. I know Mark and I will be enjoying the time. 

Thanks for helping Mark and I celebrate 5 years of marriage!



Dear Baby, Your Story Continues {Part Three}

This is the story of Behr's Birth told through the eyes of his father.  Haven't caught the first half?  Read up!

Tuesday, January 11th (continued):


Standing and waiting there felt like an eternity, but eventually a nurse called me and said, “Mr. Schreiber its time.”

Entering the operating room was surreal as the doctors were gathered around my wife as she laid there on the table. The doctors and nurses were thoroughly preparing for surgery in an impressively coordinated rhythm. As I approached, I could see my little wife peering up at me. I smiled at her as I made sure she was ok and comfortable. As surgery began, my main focus was encouraging Shannon, keeping her comfortable and also talking enough so that she was focused on the sound of my voice and nothing else. We talked about vacations, traveling and other topics to keep ourselves distracted and before we knew it…

Wednesday, January 12th:

….little Behr was tugged out and the doctors briefly lifted him over the curtain so that we could see him for the first time. The doctors, then quickly took his vitals as our son vocalized his entrance into this world.

Can you blame him?

He was in a warm dark, fed on demand environment, and now he is in a bright, cold room with people wiping him down.

The nurses quickly brought Behr over to us and he continued to cry until the moment when the doctors placed him in my arms and I said “hello.” He must have recognized my voice, because he looked up and calmed down instantly.

Filled with utter joy, my eyes began to tear up. I turned to my wife and could not believe we were in this moment, celebrating the birth of our son.

As we sat there in the OR, the nurses helped to move Behr close to Shannon so that he could lay on her chest. Although exhausted from hours of labor and exhausting the moments leading up to surgery, the birth of our son re-energized us. While the doctors finished up the surgery we had an incredible time meeting our new born son.

Once surgery was complete, the nurses took us back to our labor and delivery room so that mom and son could bond immediately. We bonded and talked through basics and then I helped the nurse with our son’s first bath.

And by “helped” I basically watched in awe, as I could barely function with fatigue setting in.

When bath time was complete the nurse asked if I wanted to help put Behr’s onesie on, I took a try at it, but had to turn the reins over to the professional, as I needed to practice more. We finally got wheeled down to the recovery area around 4 am. By then all three of us were rather tired and we dozed off for a couple hours.

Waking up, I began a quick crash course in changing diapers and Shannon was coached on feeding methods. The staff at Georgetown was incredible as we even had doctors and nurses from Labor and Delivery stop by to say congrats. Someone even said, “Congrats this means you can stay until Sunday…” referring to the fact the Behr was born in the wee hours of Wednesday morning, not late on Tuesday evening.

We turned to each other mutually agreeing that we were not too excited about the thought of staying until Sunday. Shannon was ready to get out of the hospital and I looked forward to brining my family home before leaving for Brazil.

Overall the day was a blur, I made phone calls, we sent emails and then Behr got to meet all four of his grandparents as well as Uncle Ben. It was absolutely incredible stuffing our family into the small hospital room as we each were glowing with joy. When the visiting ended we rested up and quickly learned to nap when our less than 24 hour old son rested.

we also gave Behr his first lacrosse stick before he was 24 hours old!
text book hand positioning,
he is a natural.

Dear Baby, This is Your Story

Hey guys, Shannon here.  Letting you know that Mark is about to continue telling the story of Behr's Birth.  Just in case you missed it, check out my intro here, and part one here. Enjoy!

Tuesday, January 11th:

My wife is wonder woman. Why you ask? Because we have now been here since Sunday.  Do you realize that is now over 30 hours of contractions?  30 hours of labor and her body is just beginning to respond to the drugs.  Things are certainly happening, but at the same time they are not. Aren’t the drugs supposed to be speeding things up?

By this point, Shannon is having contractions ever six minutes, so doctors cannot increase the pitocin dosage.

As we consulted with the doctors and nurses they continued to keep us posted on the status of everything. With Tuesday here my pending trip to Brazil started to nag us in the back of our minds. We quickly squashed those concerns as we decided I would change my flight, etc if need be. With our focus on what was best for Shannon and baby, the doctors suggested breaking her water early afternoon. This meant upping the potential timeline and encouraging Shannon’s body to take over the labor process.

Even with a short break from the drug induced labor contractions last night, Shannon continued to endure and persevere. We continued to past time with playing card games, etc. Doctors and nurses continue to change shifts with amazement that we were still there. One of the most challenging parts mentally for us began to creep in as we were seeing and hearing other families in the labor and delivery wing come and go as their babies were born.

At 1:30, they broke Shannon's water. Things immediately began to pick up and become even more intense as far as labor pains, etc.

By 4:30 Shannon was three centimeters, only thee centimeters, and it had been 45 hours of contractions!

Around 5:30pm, Shannon was not getting enough of a break between contractions so she was on oxygen and shaking uncontrollably, causing her to throw up between contractions.  All the while, Shannon stood, leaning over the side of the bed to bear through contractions. It became evident that this baby was sunny side up, meaning back labor, with the baby's skull pressing against her spine causing more pain. Standing provided just enough relief in the pain's intensity, that she could continue to endure.

However, by 6:30pm, the pain was so concentrated that we requested an epidural for Shannon. I did all that I could as I prayed and tried to support my beautiful wife in her labor pains. For a husband, we can’t experience these pains, and if we could, I know we would trade places with our brides, take away the pain from them and endure it ourselves.

As I reflect in writing this now, I can’t help but imagine how great God’s love is for us to send his only Son to die on the cross for our sins, taking our place from the wrath that we deserve. And in order for Christ to conquer death he had to separate himself from God’s glory and receive our punishment. These moments of our life help us to better understand this absolutely beautiful act of love.

Outside the weather was cold and the forecast was snow. As the day progressed evening fell and the hospital staff kept us informed. It was obvious by now that Shannon was, and by all means understandably, getting tired. If we kept this up at this rate there might be some real activity taking place late tomorrow morning. As we got a glimpse of what tomorrow could hold, we knew we would need to get some rest.

Shannon was laying on her side, still on oxygen, while the nurses came in periodically to check on the baby's heart rate and rotate Shannon to get a better reading.

Around 10:00pm or so, as Shannon tried to sleep I decided to get a few hours of rest myself.

Literally as I turn the last light off, put my glasses down on the night stand and lay my head down, the doctors and nurses come in wanting to chat. As they monitored Shannon and baby, they were beginning to get concerned about how restful our son was getting during contractions. Behr's heart rate was resting for too long.  This meant he wasn’t actively engaging with labor, this could be a sign that he is too tired. Out of concern for the safety of mom and baby the doctors reluctantly advised for a c-section.  In spite of our exhaustion, we were suddenly jarred awake; a c-section was imminent.

With this news came the realization and flood of emotions for next steps. Even before the doctors and nurses arrived, Shannon expressed in her fatigue a question of how much longer she would be able to continue with the drugs inducing painful contractions even with an epidural.

The doctors gave us some time to discuss ourselves and we decided to move forward with a c-section based on the doctor’s recommendation. The doctors then debriefed us on the risks associated with the surgery, especially with the amount of drugs used in an attempt to induce labor. Since Shannon had been receiving pitocin for nearly 52 hours straight, the risk of her bleeding out during surgery increased.

As reality set in, I had to be strong for my wife – the only problem was I didn’t feel strong, in fact my stomach was in a knot.

The nurses provided me the surgery cover ups that I needed to wear, they then allowed for a couple minutes for my wife and I to prepare for surgery. I was very proud of Shannon, we posed for a picture and then the nurses and I wheeled her down the hallway.

Before we got to the operating room the nurse explained to me that I would need to wait in a separate room until the surgery was ready to begin. It was clearly described to me that if I passed out during the surgery that I would be taken to the emergency room and could miss the birth of our son. This was challenging for me, as I’m not a huge fan of blood, etc.

As I stood alone in the room adjacent to the OR, I stared out into the snowy night sky, praying for God’s strength. I was weak and tired and just wanted my family to be safe.

Standing there felt like an eternity.

Dear Baby, This is Your Story {Told by Daddy}

Hey guys, Shannon here.  I am so excited to share with you what has been a long time coming, Behr's birth story told by a first hand eye witness, Mark, my much hyped about guest blogger!  I am officially turning over the reigns of my blog.  Hope you all enjoy!

A Father’s account…

This is an account of Behr’s birth story through his dad’s (my) eyes. God has blessed us with such an incredible son and it is absolutely amazing how quickly/instantly a father loves his son. For me there was no warming up point, trying to find a connection, my love for Behr is indescribable as it flooded in directly to this new father’s heart. Since Behr’s birth I have learned so much more about my love for my wife and family as well as my own parent’s love for me and Christ’s love for us all.

To my wife Shannon, thank you for this incredible gift of a son. I love you.

To my son Behr, I praise God for your safe delivery, your smiles and attentive look. I pray for God’s blessings on you as you grow into a strong, brave young man pursuing God’s heart.

To my parents and brother, thank you for your endless love and support.

Before the birth story starts it is best to set the stage and put into context the dates leading up to Behr’s birth:

01.03.2011 - Behr's due date. Given that this pregnancy was my wife’s first we did not know what to expect. Would our son arrive early/on time/late? 

01.09.2011 - Once we passed Behr’s due date, the doctors wanted to schedule an induction out of concern for the safety of mom and baby. 

01.15.2011 - I depart on a flight to Sao Paulo, Brazil for a mandatory trip for my international residency for my graduate studies at Johns Hopkins University. 

How would this all play our?  Well, Behr, this is your story…

Sunday January 9th:

As we sat at home watching Sunday football and eating a freshly delivered pizza, it was hard to imagine that in a few hours we would be checking into the hospital to begin an induced labor process. Wasn’t the story supposed to go as follows – husband is in a meeting at the office and gets a phone call from wife “water broke; hurry it is time for the hospital”? 

After reading the book “The New Dad’s Survival Guide: Man-to-Man Advice for First-Time Father” (Thanks Dague family for the gift), I practiced to make sure I knew how to “Be Cool Fool” BCF as the author humorously preps us new dads.  However with all my planning on what to expect – i.e. how to (hopefully) calmly navigate “the panic stricken – water broken/rush to the hospital scenario” this was not to be our birth story at least for our first born.

So as the story goes, our bags were packed, the Eagles playoff game was on, and with only a couple of slices of pizza consumed, half time arrived for the game, said a prayer (no not for the Eagles but for Shannon and Behr) and it was time to drive to the hospital – going the speed limit.

As we left the apartment we could hardly imagine that the next time we walked through these doors would be with our boy. The drive was as relaxing as it could be as we shared our excitement on how incredible it will be to hold our son for the first time.


As I recall I even boldly predicted that we would meet our son in a day...
...definitely two days max.

We were full of wonder and curiosity as well as held each other’s hand in the car ride. Pulling up to the hospital we knew where to park – I did my practice runs, but in our case there was no need to race up to the hospital entrance and grab a wheelchair. We simply grabbed our bags from the trunk, checked in at the main entrance and preceded up to labor and delivery. Once we arrived in delivery I quickly scoped out the room and located the tv, knowing that Shannon really wanted an update for the Eagles’ game. As nurses began to introduce themselves and take Shannon’s vitals they became concerned with Shannon’s higher than normal heart rate – little did they know it was because the Eagles were in a tight game down in the 4th quarter.

due to her iv, shannon was constrained to her bed, far away from the tiny old school tv

We assured the hospital staff that Shannon was a big fan and that her heart rate would return to resting levels once the game was over. Unfortunately the Eagles lost, ending their season early, but Shannon’s vitals returned to normal levels.

As the evening progressed we were briefed on the possible timeline of what to expect starting in the morning and the staff encouraged us to get as much rest as possible tonight.

Monday January 10th:

Incredibly, we were able to get some sleep.  With the morning came the excitement and busyness to continue along the induction process.  At this point Shannon is having regular contractions about 6 minutes apart.

Side note: it is obvious to say that us dads have the easiest part of the child birth experience. One of the ironic challenges for us dads is attempting to sleep on those oddly designed pull out chairs. Does the designer of these chairs actually think these are comfortable? Or perhaps uncomfortable is the point of the design of the chair since the husband has the easier part of the delivery? Possibly the designer thought, “why not make something uncomfortable for them”? Not complaining here, but just thought I’d share this observation which will make more sense later in the story.

Back to the story, the day consisted of wonder and awe in trying to anticipate what to expect as doctors and nurses monitored Shannon’s and the baby’s status. It was a lot of fun to hear our son’s heart beat. Shannon was resilient in tolerating the initial pain associated with the drugs, first cervidil and now pitocin, to induce the labor process. With trips back and forth to get ice, water, and juice the day involved stories, laughter and disbelief that the Eagles lost the night before. Even one of the nurses was an Eagles fan and could relate. All the while, Shannon's contractions continued to be regular at 6 minute intervals.

Towards the end of the day, it was confirmed that the induction progress was not advancing as quickly as the nurses and doctors hoped for.  Since Shannon had gone nearly 24 hours of contractions and no food, the doctors decided to give her a break to regain her energy.  I helped her shower up, get a bite to eat, and rest before the doctors continued the induction process.

Another side note: my meals consisted of visiting the hospital’s cafeteria, which believe it or not is pretty good. Well – it has to be as it is also used by some of the Georgetown students, etc. Can you believe there is a pub as well as a hibachi grill and sushi place attached to the cafeteria? Folks, this is Georgetown after all…only the finest.

After picking up our gourmet dinner from the cafeteria, we played a couple cards game and watch the movie The Blind Side. As the doctors and nursing staff rotated through we began to see the same staff from the night before. The responses we would get is, “Wait – you guys are still here?” and “Impressive Shannon you are tough!” We’d chuckle and respond with “Did you miss us?”, but at the same time, we longed for the labor process to pick up.  We wanted to meet our son.

With the evening winding down we prayed for the safety of Shannon and the baby and for things to pick up tomorrow.

{Read the Birth Story Intro Here}

Family Easter Photo

We are moving a bit slower than normal around the house this week.  {actually, we are frantically moving faster, but with less time for things like blogging and photo editting.}  Mark heads off to his 6th residency for grad school, so I head to PA to be with family and visit dear friends.

Phew, now that our schedule has been shared, here is our Easter picture:

And for those of you were were wondering about the status of my pre-easter panic attacks about family traditions and lasting memories...  Easter went very smoothly.  Mark and I had a wonderful moment with Behr early in the morning to discuss the meaning of Easter.  Behr was attentive and well behaved.  My crisis was averted and the day proceeded peacefully.

Oh man...

...this guy is awesome!  Seriously.  He puts up with a lot and keeps a smile the entire time!  {difficult when living with me}  And TODAY is his birthday.  He is a rockstar.  Let me show you why:

Some of our best memories over the past 8 years! 

Thank you for...

your loyalty

your love for adventure

your desire to travel

exploring the world with me

your cheesy sentimental gestures

the ability to kick back and relax

{and sleep anywhere...I spared you the napping pictures!}

your athletic and competitive nature

fantastically orchestrated date nights, particularly for big occasions

dreaming the big dreams

for treasure hunting at the beach

your patriotism

for being able to make the best memories out of the simplest moments

and so much more!  

oh yeah...and for your willingness to pose for umpteen million pictures!

{just wait until the baby arrives}

Happy Birthday Mark!