going public

Well...there is not really any other way to say this but... Aaron and I are having a BABY!

Yep, Baby Schultz should be arriving this Labor Day. We could not be more thrilled about the news! Once we got through the 12-week ultrasound, which is what this picture is from, we were ready to spread the news! I know there are still lots of people who should have gotten phone calls, and for that I apologize that you are finding out now, but I was just ready to get it out there! And now I will answer the questions that typically follow up this kind of announcement.

1. Were you trying?
Well....not exactly. From the beginning I have felt pretty strongly that we were not in control of this whole baby-making situation. I have known many women who got pregnant on birth control, or when they didn't even know they could, and those who "planned" it and then it has taken longer than hoped. I've just always been pretty sure that when the Lord determined we were ready, He'd make it happen. So, long story short, we're necessarily trying, but I wasn't be crazy about not. Oh, and all my friends are having babies, so that certainly didn't help, ha! 

2. How far along are you?
I will be 14 weeks on Saturday...so I am in my 2nd trimester. 

3. Have you been sick?
I felt pretty bad in weeks 6-10, but starting school and work has definitely helped to distract me from the nausea. I started feeling less nauseous around 12 weeks and now I am exhausted all.the.time. 

4. How did you find out/tell Aaron?
Well, the simple story is that my period was late...and 3 tests over a span of 12 days finally yielded a positive one! We were actually in Virginia over Christmas and had already taken 1 test before we even left Colorado and 1 test before Christmas. Then about 8 days later I knew I needed to take another one. It was kind of late at night so I just went upstairs while Aaron was watching TV and took it. I freaked out, of course, and just went to bed. 
The next day Aar and I went up to Camden Yards to see the stadium and have lunch. After a really silent car ride (all I could think about was how I was going to tell him, so I was hardly able to talk about anything else!) we got out toward the stadium and he finally just looked at me and said "Are you okay?", to which I replied "Aaron, I'm pregnant." Not the news he expected, as he was still constantly joking about being on the 5-year plan. But, after about 10 seconds of just shock, he got really excited and has been ever since! 

5. What are you going to do about school?
The plan is right now to continue. I'm hoping to take a pretty easy load in the fall, and by easy load I mean 1 class that requires me to meet with my mentor once a week. Something I'm hoping I can easily bring a baby along to. Then in the spring, I'll jump back in a little more and see where it takes me. 

6. Do you know what it is/ what do you want it to be?
While clearly the goal here is to have a healthy baby no matter what the gender, so far we've both been leaning towards girl. When we talk about it and pray about it, it just always comes out "she" and "her". But, that could all be changing...we've been talking a lot recently about boy names, so who knows!
And speaking of names, it is my choice that while we'll discuss names with people to a point, we're not going to reveal the final decision until after the baby is born.

I think that about sums up the most FAQ. If you have any others, feel free to leave a comment or email or call me!

As I said before, we are thrilled about the news! Though it may seem like crazy timing (I love that Cori's response was "they've only been married a year!"), we're confident that the Lord will provide all that we need and lead us through this. And we're both very happy that the news is finally public!