First Report Card Already on Fridge

Lillian Brooke got an A+ on her first report card today - and it's already hanging proudly on the fridge :)

Goal = get back to birth weight within 2 weeks of birth... Lillian is a hungry little monkey and gained an ounce in weight and a half inch in length in less than 4 days!
Just back from the doc and ready to snooze - Lily loves sucking on things but isn't ready for a pacifier just yet so she'll stick w/ fingers for now :)
Thanks for my cute cherry outfit Gigi, it's one of the favorites!!
At the doc on the table ready for check-up
Lifetime weigh in #2 - Dad changing a diaper... that fresh air seems to get things moving down there every time
Lillian was not a fan of this car ride
DB&Z swung by with Red Mill for dinner last night - yum! - pups love Lillian but wish she could get on ground and play with them - for now it's toe licks and lots of sniffs. Big sister Lucy is a little protective of Lily so far. :)

Introducing... Lillian Brooke!

Ali and I are so happy to report that we are now the proud parents of Lillian Brooke Schlameus, born at 9:51 pm on Sunday, April 25. Both Ali and Lillian are healthy and doing wonderful. Lillian weighed in at 7 lbs, 6 oz and was 20.5 inches in length (perfect golf build, I might add). Did I mention that women's golf is the most underutilized college golf scholarship?!?

Jokes aside, we couldn't be more thrilled to welcome Lillian to this world. It was a life-changing experience that we always remember like it was yesterday. Ali and I (Ali really) feel very fortunate to have gone through a relatively quick labor without any complications. On Sunday, after having contractions for the past couple days, Ali decided she was up for a long walk with her Dad, Brenna, and the pups to explore the Ballard Sunday Market. The contractions were occurring every 8-12 minutes so there wasn't much concern that Baby S would arrive that day. Well, we were wrong! A couple hours later, Ali broke the news that the contractions were now occurring every 3-5 minutes. Following my semi-frantic call to the doctor, we hopped in the car feeling extremely anxious/excited for what could come.

Upon arriving at Swedish on First Hill at 6:15 pm, the doctor decided, after receiving a second opinion, to admit us. A good decision considering that in the span of our two hours after arriving at the hospital, Ali had progressed from 4 cm to 9 cm! About 3 1/2 hours after check-in, we were blessed with our little Lillian. I know we are biased, but she is perfect. Words cannot describe the joy we felt and continue to feel about our daughter. We were truly amazed of how much we could instantly love something/someone that we had never seen or met before. We are extremely excited to get to know and care for her.

Ali was amazing throughout the entire labor - she was so tough, focused, and determined to meet her little girl. Her courageousness and love for Lillian surpassed any expectation I could have had. She is going to be the best Mom. I am so proud of my wife and daughter.

Thanks for all the calls, texts, emails, and visits. We look forward to sharing Lillian Brooke with all of you over the next few days, months, and years.

Lily & Auntie B (Becky, Ali's sister)

Lillian after first bath:
Lillian & Aunt/Godmother Brooke
Grandma for the first time

Just minutes after birth
Day 2

I get to go home!!
Sister Lucy meets Lillian for the first time
Minutes after getting home, time to test out nursery and have a little snack
Sleepy in Dad's arms
Day 3 w/ Uncle & Godfather Jake

Grandpa Jim

Nursery & the Big Bump!

By popular demand... at last here are pics of the big bump & the nursery!

With just two days 'til due date Brett & I are getting very excited to meet our little girl (so strange to have no idea when she is going to make her debut... tonight?! next week?? we'll see!) This last week it has all become more "real". I am now off work, which has been absolutely wonderful... left behind the long work days to get a bunch of prep done around the home front (including a little R&R and fun lunch dates with some of the closest ladies in my life which has been a real treat!)

Hope this note finds you well - and apologies it has been so long since our last post!

Just three months ago...

And now!

Saturday at the house before heading out for Kristin & Marcus' Engagement Party/Send off for their Hawaii wedding
Here's a pic Brett sneaked while I was getting ready - look at that big bump!

The Nursery... when we bought the house...

And before we started prepping for baby...NOW!

Such a spoiled little girl - this is only 1/3 of her closet... so many adorable little outfits all gifted by family & friends

Fun treasures on the shelves from Brett's childhood...

Baby S.'s view into our backyard

The Conch Republic

Saturday we arrived in Key West the southernmost tip of the U.S. While I had been here before on a quick cruise stop with my family several years ago, this was Brett's first visit.

For those of you that have been you know what a cool vibe this city has.Their motto of "One Human Family" rings true as you see no separation of low and high brow - across this gorgeous 4x2 mile island mixed between watercolor pastille homes, turquoise water and palm trees you will see expensive art galleries, Caribbean villas, literary festivals...

mixed in with t-shirt shops with sayings on their merch I'm embarrassed to repeat, clothing optional bars, and drag shows galore. This provided for a confusing experience when we adventured to a highly recommended Mexican spot from our travel guide book. The entrance was down an alley with out indoor seating (the 40 degree weather didn't make that appealing) but the owner assured us they are working with another establishment to use their indoor facilities so grab a seat there. Needless to say we enjoyed amazing Mexican inside a Country Bar that half way through dinner started showing a topless bull riding competition. I kid you not. Watching the folks our parents and grandparents age make this realizing as we did was entertaining to say the least.

More pics of Key West...

Sunset Time on one of the piers of our resort:

Looking back at the resort:
The town's infamous hypocondriac got in the last word on his headstone found in the famous Key West Cemetary:

Ernest Hemingway's home... saw a wedding taking place there when we were exploring

Babymoon!

Babymoon (n.) – A vacation taken by a couple that is expecting a baby in order to allow the couple to enjoy a final trip together before the many sleepless nights that accompany a newborn baby.

When planning our “babymoon” we thought about several factors:

1. A fun spot for a young couple like us that may not be on the list of family vacations in years to come.

2. Somewhere we haven’t been together.

3. Good food (meal time is always a highlight in a pregnant woman’s day)

4. Somewhere we could speak the language and has “safe” healthcare, just in case

5. Nice hot weather.

Our first couple days in gorgeous South Beach Miami proved to hit all our “musts”, except maybe the language barrier, but hey, as we all know, Brett is 1/16^th Mexican and was Spanish Speaking Student of the Year his senior year of high school so the Spanglish found in South Florida has proved no problems.

We enjoyed a plush direct flight down to Miami and a nice relaxing day scoping out the Art Deco architecture, relaxing on the beach, great food and taking in the trendy, flamboyant vibe of South Beach.

We woke up on Day 3 to rainy day and 50 degree weather. This is 25 degrees below average for January in South Florida and the locals are in shock. Brett and I threw on our REI raincoats and took to the streets like the proud Seattlites we are where a little chill and wet weather never hold anyone inside in the winter.

After an amazing breakfast off of A1A on Ocean Avenue we hopped in the convertible (dang) and headed out for the stretch of drive on the Overseas Highway down the keys.

Despite the rain and chill in the air the drive was still breathtaking, and the frosty beverages (virgin for me of course) that welcomed us at the Casa Marina Resort were still just as refreshing!

This evening we enjoyed some local Cuban cuisine at a famous neighborhood spot then capped off the evening hovering in the hotel bar that overlooks the Mayors Ball going on at our resort.

This time together has been such a luxury after the busy last couple months at work and around the house. It is such a treat to get this alone time together to relax just the 2 ½ of us before the family starts growing (and not just my belly).

6 more days – and sunshine in the forecast – more blog posts to come!!

2009 Schlameus Family Holiday Letter

“It’s nice to be important, but it’s more important to be nice.” – Floyd "Papa" Schlameus

The memories of those we have lost continue to stay strong and have acted as daily reminders of the importance and value of each and every one of our family members and friends.

We were so blessed to spend time with each of our immediate family members this year (always a challenge with my family spanning 5 states from Hawaii to New York!). This year my family voted for time together in the heat versus the usual chilly holiday travel, which resulted in some great trips including a 4th of July weekend in North Lake Tahoe, California with the Parks crew (Ali's Mom's side of the family), a summer trip to Denver to visit the Warren Family and Labor Day in Long Island.

While we had the opportunity visit Brett’s maternal grandparents down in Arizona for Mariners Spring Training and also enjoyed a summer in Seattle with them, we are spoiled with Brett’s immediate family and my sister and brother-in-law so close, resulting in more gatherings than we can count. It is such a blessing to be able to spend all “important” days together, the hard ones and the fun ones, but even more fun are the impromptu gatherings and random family traditions, such as the annual Griswold “Christmas Vacation” viewing (costumes required).

We are beyond excited for the MOST overwhelming news in our family… the three 2010 additions!! After three years, Brooke catching 2 bouquets in a row, and an immense amount of support from his family and ours, Jake popped THE question to Brooke this October! For anyone that knows Jake, or has ever seen these two together, you would agree that they are the perfect match and we feel extremely lucky to gain this brother-in-law and new addition to the family. I could go on and on, but then I suppose I should save the good stuff for my speech next August.

Just after going to print on the Christmas cards, we received the green light to share the news that we are getting another niece or nephew this June!!! My brother, Brian, and his wife, Anna, have done an incredible job with our niece Bridget. Any of you that have met that little blonde charmer know that the world will be a better place with more of anything that resembles her cuteness running around!

…and for any of you that have browsed our blog in the past couple months, you know our biggest and most exciting piece of news! We are going to be parents of a little girl come April! Despite 19 books we have been gifted/lent, the 3 websites I’m subscribed to, an 8 week prep course we have signed up for, and endless advice from friends and family (thank you!), I think the only thing we seem to have absorbed in this overwhelming preparation to become parents is that our kid is now the size of a spaghetti squash!?! Even more so, we have learned that no matter what stage you are in the parent cycle, you feel an immediate, unconditional, and overpowering love for that little squash, even before you’ve even met.

After that exciting news, it sounds less important to fill you in on the laundry list of the places we’ve been blessed to travel this year (check out our blog if you are really curious) or to go into deep detail about work, work, work (Brett is still enjoying his patent preparation and prosecution practice at Lee & Hayes and I am loving sitting within shouting distance of my sister-in-law Brooke as now both of us are working on the Movies team at Amazon.com). So there you have the quick and dirty details.

Thank you for your love and friendship you have show each of us and our family.

And finally, cheers to the exciting known and unknown blessings to come in 2010, and here’s to a happy and healthy new year!