Phashion Phorward Phoebe

I've realized that there is nothing like a newborn when it comes to challenging your fashion sense. Those of you who know me and my own personal style (or lack thereof) can attest to the fact that I'm pretty low-key: earth tones, comfortable fabrics, Birkenstocks or Crocs, that kind of fare. My favorite t-shirt is 9 years old, heather grey and falling apart at the seams. Well, as the picture below shows, I think it's safe to say that my daughter will have decidedly different tastes...

Yes, folks, it's a bright orange onesie tank-top with a bright pink skirt (attached only to the front, mind you) with bright little flowers all over it. I know it sounds awful, and it looked a little awful when we opened it (it was a present from my mother-in-law), but I have to admit, once Phoebe was wearing it, it was much cuter than I thought. Look out: I'll never be able to judge an outfit on the rack again. If something looks remotely cute, Phoebe will have to try it on!

The good news is that I can now have the best of both worlds: comfort for myself, and cute outfits for Phoebe. I'm convinced that my fashion sense is beyond help, but now, through the magic of reproduction, I can live through my daughter! Don't worry, friends, as soon as she's verbal, she'll have a Mom that will listen to her fashion requests (within reason - no visible thongs until you're paying your own rent somewhere else!)

What's in a Name?

It seems that Matthew and I inadvertently took an old family tradition to the next generation in naming our daughter. Oddly enough, in attempting to avoid one tradition, we perpetuated another. You see, Matthew's family has a tradition in which a new baby's name includes some derivative of a grandparent or great-grandparent's name. Our niece Charlotte gets her middle name from her Great-Grandma Rose, my sister-in-law Elizabeth gets her middle name from Grandma Lois, and so on.

Our dilemma had been: which name to choose, and how to go about picking one without hurting feelings? It got still more complicated when the actual naming candidates were considered. Matthew's family had some strong possibilities. The Schnaare family is rife with nice names like Roberta, Craig, Lois, Rose, Gene, and so on. Then you get to my family. It is no secret that the Schassbergers got the short end of the naming stick in some respects. Names like Harriet and Dexter just don't have the same ring that they did 50 years ago. Take that back another generation and you end up with candidates like Alverta and Webster. Also nice names, "back in the day," but nothing I'd like to necessarily pass on in the 21st century. And lest anyone get defensive on behalf of my parents (or their names), my sister Kate and I had always been told that our names were chosen to maximize nick-name potential, in case we disliked our names as much as our parents disliked their own growing up. Thus am I Anne Elizabeth, and my sister Katherine Suzanne. Lots of combos available there, folks!

So, in discarding the commemorative aspect of passing names on, Matthew and I decided to go biblical and leave it at that. Now, here's the rub: although nicknames remain a possibility for our dear Phoebe Rebekah, we fell into another trap: spelling. Now, I'm not talking about using the Hebrew spelling for Rebekah, of course we thought of that. As rarely as anyone ever really uses a middle name, we figured it was okay to use a different spelling. We simply forgot that Phoebe was as rare a name as it is. What with Phoebe from "Friends" and Phoebe from "Charmed," it never occurred to me that there may be alternative spellings out there. (To be fair, it's not like the name is flashed up on the screen every time the character shows up- just because you get used to hearing the name doesn't mean you know how to spell it!) And really, our friends and family have done terrifically well at getting her name right - the only misspelling so far has been a fun one: Phobe instead of Phoebe. I find it funny that the misspelling is actually a word - drop one letter and the meaning of the name changes from 'bright or shiny' to 'one who has an irrational fear.' Awesome!

So where is the tradition? It's a little thing, really, but when you're growing up and finding your own identity, it can seem like a big deal. You see, having grown up with a name like Anne (with an E), and pronouncing it with one syllable (NOT ANNIE!!!), I became somewhat of a stickler about not dropping that E. My sister is in a similar position, being Katherine with a K. Granted, Catherine with a C is pronounced the same way, but still, it's a detail that doesn't get put aside by either of us. Now add Matthew with two Ts. Statistically, Mathew with one T is a more popular name. So you see, I'm sure we've created another stickler for spelling. It probably would have happened anyway, with a name like Schnaare, but I think giving our daughter a name that has a "Ph" that sounds like an F, and an "Oe" that sounds like an E, and an E at the end of the name that ISN'T silent, well, let's just hope we never have to invest in Hooked on Phonics. Otherwise our Feebee may become a logophobe, or one who is phobic of words. I would prefer she just remain our Phoebe!

Crazy Pix of My Baby Girl

So, this started out as an attempt to capture Matthew and Phoebe's chins side-by-side, but sadly, since cleft chins rely on shadow to be seen, the likeness is much less obvious on film. Yes, I know I could probably fiddle with the camera and get a much better picture, but hey, I can still pull the "I just gave birth" excuse, right? It's still a cute picture though, so check it out!

Here are some more pictures I took that just crack me up!

This one is my favorite, because it looks like our sweet little daughter was just in a Biergarten. I can't guarantee that this photo won't surface at a later date with a nice beer stein in her hand. We'll see how motivated I am to figure out Photoshop...

I just love how Phoebe is looking at her dad like he's from another planet. That look of suspicion in her eyes is both precious and wise beyond her years at the same time...

This one is just cute, and really emphasizes how small Phoebe is. I knew we had to show off her tininess while it lasts - she's already 9 days old, and not going to get any tinier!

And last but not least, here is proof that this is a seminary baby. A little background for those of you who aren't classmates: We have a professor here who, when he is listening intently to something in church, bows his head down and covers his face with his hand. During my first several weeks at seminary, I seriously thought he had fallen asleep during chapel. Well, it appears that Phoebe has gone to the Chris Bryan School of Intense Listening, and that she has already begun what I'm sure will be a long career of attentiveness. My evidence is below...

Well, that's all for this edition of "Crazy Pix of My Baby Girl." For more fun pictures, click on the link on the main blog page, and you'll get to see every picture Matthew and I take. (Thanks, Matt, for adding the link for your html-inept wife! )

One Quick Baby Update!

Hi Everybody! I figured blogging would be the fastest way to get some very brief details out to as many people as possible (thanks to Blogspot and Facebook)!

The wait is over, and Phoebe Rebekah Schnaare is finally here! Matthew and I went to the hospital early Sunday morning and Phoebe was born the following day, Monday, June 30th at 11:16. I'm tired, but recovering well, Matthew is tired, but still running around and being my hero- getting necessities from the house, communicating with hospital staff, even interfacing with the insurance company so I don't have to deal with that sort of stuff right now!

And of course, there's Phoebe. Now, keep in mind, we've only known each other for about a day and a half, but I must say she is beautiful and smart and a real charmer, if I do say so myself. Oh, and if the singing voice were measured by sheer volume, she should be on stage at the Met real soon!

We should be going home on Wednesday, and Matthew and I are looking forward to sleeping in our own bed and reading all the email we've already been sent. Already, we've had messages and visits from well-wishers, and I would like to thank all of you for your support and prayers! Stay tuned for updates to this blog and to Matthew blog, which is penguinpoet.blogspot.com

God bless all of you, and please continue to keep us in your prayers!

Shame on you, McDonald's!

Okay, maybe I'm being a little harsh on McDonald's itself. My real problem is that I just saw a Big Mac commercial (it's about 1 a.m.) and now I SO want a Big Mac. That has been the form that my pregnancy craving has taken: I don't necessarily want weird things like strawberries and garlic, or pickles and ice cream. I'm just very easily influenced. If I see a Tollhouse commercial, I want chocolate chip cookies. If I see a Sonic commercial, I want a limeade. And, of course, if I see a McDonald's commercial, I want a Big Mac.

The problem is mostly that it's 1 a.m., and if I were to follow through on said craving now, that would mean getting out of my pajamas and into real clothes, driving to Monteagle, and purchasing a Big Mac, which would most likely be cold by the time I get home. I feel just a little bit weird about that. The good news is that it's Saturday night/Sunday morning, and I'm pretty sure the Monteagle Micky D's is open - they close at midnight during the week. So I guess I can at least be glad that I didn't see the commercial during a time that the restaurant is closed. At least I have only myself to blame for my lack of Big Mac. That's very lucky for them- who knows the depth of my pregnant rage if McDonald's coerced me into craving a burger from them when it was impossible for me to get one? Let's hope that day never comes....

Ramblings of an Pregnant Insomniac....

So, as many of you know, I haven't been able to sleep on a normal schedule lately. I think it's because of a combination of pregnancy hormones and excitement/anxiety about becoming a mom. In effect I've become somewhat of a third-shift sleeper - it doesn't seem to matter what I do, I just can't sleep before about 5:30 am.

Happily, school is out, and I don't have a summer job, so the only reason I can't sleep until 3 in the afternoon is sunlight - I have no obligations (except the weekly doctor's appointment), so I can usually still get my 8 hours in. Another plus? Late-night TV and silliness with Matthew. It's been awfully fun to watch old movies I haven't seen forever, such as The Naked Gun 2 1/2 and Batman and Robin. It almost makes it worth sitting through the 18 "Girls Gone Wild" advertisments per hour they start on G4 and Spike after midnight.

As for the Matthew silliness, it's been fun to play "How Wacky Will Labor Be?" So far, Matthew wants me to say "Kamehameha!" (from Dragon Ball Z) right before the final push, and "Skadoosh" (from Kung Fu Panda) when labor is done. I doubt I'll be in the mood to indulge such silliness at the end of labor, but it's fun conversation for 3 am! And of course, if nothing is on, I can always play video games. Funny, but something about playing Kingdom Hearts and Katamari Damacy at 4 am makes me want to eat Cheetos. Matthew says I'm turning into a 13-year-old boy. I say I'm more of a video-game-playin', Cheeto-eatin' vampire. Anybody else have a vote?

Okay, as most of you have found out, staying current with my blog is not a strong suit. So... No more promises or apologies, I'll just say I'm going to blog when I remember and have time to do it, and I hope you all enjoy my stories, etc. even if they don't come weekly (or even monthly). But don't worry, you all can still nag/pester/remind/tease me as much as you want. Who knows? It may spur me on to actually write another blog! :)

So, this will be a quickie, since I have a fondue date at my friends' house (Hooray Wil and Amanda!) Here are my stats to catch up since my last blog:
-Still pregnant, and the due date is July 6th
-Finished my Middler year, and I am now officially a "Rising Senior"
-That means I have one year left before seminary is all done!
-Matthew's doing great and excited about being a dad!

Coming attractions:
-Baby should be here just about any day
-Senior year should be a fun, crazy, challenging blast while I juggle my new "mommy" role and continuing schoolwork
-If all goes well, I should be ordained to the diaconate in December
-Again, if all goes well, Matthew and I will be leaving Sewanee next summer (2009) and will be beginning new glamorous lives in a different town (who knows where?) as a priest and a math teacher!

So that's kind of the snap shot of the last 7 months or so. I aspire to do a better job at keeping all y'all informed (yes, I've been living in the South long enough to say all y'all!) But, as I said, no promises! I'll just do my best!

Halloween Fun

This Halloween was just a little different than most years. In addition to the usual trick-or-treater ducking (complete with turning out all the lights in the house and turning down the volume on our movie, so people think we're not home), we added one extra activity. A pregnancy test. Matthew and I made a special trip to get a new pack (the ones we had at the house were expired) and made a stop at McDonalds on the way back. I took the test, and we got results so fast, I had barely set the timer for 3 minutes. When I saw the read-out, Matthew thought I had seen a mouse because I yelped! Yep, we're pregnant! I went to the doctor the next day, and he confirmed it. I got pre-natal vitamins and the name of an OB to see down in Winchester. So far, it seems the due date is the end of June, which works out perfectly for us- Matthew and I will both be off of school by then, and I'll have several weeks to freak out and finish "nesting."
So far I've been feeling really good, no morning sickness or any of that stuff. I'm just becoming an expert at napping- I'm tired all the time. I've really had fun telling our friends, and they've already been great about offering to help out. (We already have a virtual army of friends ready to babysit.)
So keep us in your prayers, and I'll TRY to keep up on my blog, so you all are up-to-date!!!

Septuagint 1, Laptop 0

Hi Everybody!
Yes, I've been absent for a while, and no, CPE didn't totally eat my brain! I'm back and healthy, and already in the throes of my Middler year, Wahoo!

How fitting is it, then, that my triumphant return to the blogosphere is centered around an epic battle. This battle embodies many things, Science vs. Religion, Faith vs. Physics, or more specifically the Septuagint vs. my Laptop.

In this corner, we have my Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Torah!It is used in our Greek class and various other Bible classes. It's a about the size of a double-thick Book of Common Prayer, and has been a lot of fun to page through.

In this corner, we have my laptop. One would think it would be sturdier than my Septuagint, but we've all been wrong once or twice before, haven't we?

What happened was this. I was putting a few books away on a shelf above my desk, and my Septuagint literally flew off the shelf and attacked my laptop! (Well, not literally, but it sure looked dileberate!) The result? I have two keys missing, and a great blue scar running across the lower left corner of my laptop. The book? Not a scratch. That's one tough book of Scripture!!! :)

We're half-way done!
I can't believe I've just finished week 5 of CPE. It's been a crazy summer so far, with lots of ups and and several downs, but I think the hardest part is behind me. You know, the "Oh no, I have no idea where I am or how to find my way around this hospital or what to say to this patient, and I feel like I'm in the way of the nursing staff" part. Here's my list of how I know things are getting better...
1-I haven't gotten lost on the way to the cafeteria in almost a month.
2-I can identify that frightened look in a patient's eyes, when THEY'RE trying to find their way to the cafeteria!
3-Once I see a lost person, I can usually help them find where they're trying to go.
4-I can suit up into the apron-gloves-mask combo for contact precautions in less than 10 minutes.
5-I can help a patient order lunch from their room. (Think roomservice...)
6-I've learned that if a nurse asks me if MRSA freaks me out, they're referring to the bacteria, not some person named Marissa.
7-I'm able to communicate to nervous patients that they don't need to be dying in order to get a visit from me: I can do more than "Last Rites."
8-I don't feel like I'm cheating when I use the "Clergy" parking pass to park at the hospital.
9-I spend more time charting my patients than trying to remember my passwords to get into the charting programs.
And....
10-The lunch lady doesn't give me the 3rd degree before giving me my free "Chaplain coffee."

So you see, there is hope! Good luck to all my other CPE friends out there. See ya in August!

Hi folks!
Sorry everyone, I know it's been a while since Quiet Day!
Matthew and I are spending the summer in Naples, Florida, and we're enjoying it a lot! It's a little hot and humid, but we have the Gulf of Mexico to cool us down! The beach is beatiful, and we get to go at least a couple of times a week to look for seashells. The people are nice, the weather is great and the shopping is fabulous (especially compared to Sewanee- they even have a Starbucks down here- ha ha).

Quiet Day

Today was our Spring Quiet Day, in addition to being Maundy Thursday. What is Quiet Day you ask? Well, the day is a requirement for all students, and most of the faculty show up as well. Picture this: You get up in the morning and go to a convent. You have morning prayer and you hear someone give a talk. After the talk, you sit and meditate or journal or read the Bible for an hour. Then you hear another talk, meditate, maybe eat some lunch, have another short prayer service, and keep repeating this pattern until the day is finished. Did I mention that nobody except the guest speaker talks for the whole day?

What a battery charger! For starters, I got to wear my pajamas, a pair of bunny slipper-socks and my Birkenstocks. I took my over-sized pillow so I didn't have to sit on the floor, and the fleece Packer blanket my mother-in-law made for Matthew. Other people were there in their "comfort clothes," blankets, one person even brought a sleeping bag! Any day that I get to wear pajamas all day is a good day!

The three talks were interesting, but really the best part was time set aside to just sit and meditate. I really enjoyed just sitting and not feeling guilty about all the work I have to do. Any school that has a required day to sit and be quiet for a while is good in my book!

The Bishop is Coming! The Bishop is Coming!

Wow, what a couple of weeks! We were on Spring Break two weeks ago, and my Bishop was in town last week.

Spring Break was kind of a bust. I had so many papers due that I spend the whole week writing and doing research. The nice thing was I got to sleep in, and when I took a break from my work, I could go into the living room and Matthew was there to hang out with me. (He had Spring Break too!) There's nothing like sharing Daily Show Reruns at 1:00 in the afternoon with your loved one to perk you up! :) The good news is I got all my work done in time for the Bishop's visit.

I think it's official now. Fond du Lac has the coolest Bishop ever. Bishop Russel E. Jacobus was our Bishop-In-Residence at Sewanee last week, and we just had a great time. He was a big hit with my classmates, and even showed his support by attending a concert put on by Shrimp Boots, a seminary band. He sat in on some classes, met with some students and faculty, and participated in a community forum about church politics. Here's what some students have said...
"Your Bishop is so cool."
"We don't share the same political views, but even so, I would work for him in a heartbeat."
"He is so pastoral."
"I would work for him if I could handle the weather in Wisconsin!"
"He has such a cool name!" (I didn't make that one up!)
and on and on...
So...
Thank you to Bishop Jacobus for a great visit. We're all looking forward to seeing you again next year!

Spring in March? Unheard of!

Sorry, all you Wisconsinites! I just had to share how gorgeous it is down here! This photo was taken by seminarian Rob Goodrich at one of the local fields. Yup. Those yellow things are daffodyls.

This picture is from our back yard. There are more now, but I didn't want to rub it in! :)

Any suggestions out there for fun bulbs to plant in the fall? I'm open to suggestions, since I get to see my handiwork in March!

In Like A Lion

We had some crazy weather here this last week. Wednesday it was gorgeous. 70 degrees, sunny, light breeze. Almost all of the daffodyls in our back yard are in bloom, and they're beautiful!

Well, Matthew woke up on Thursday and said, "It's March!" and I said, "Do you think it will be 'in like a lion' or 'in like a lamb?'" As Matthew was leaving for work, he opened the door and said, "It's definitely 'in like a lion.'" Wind, rain,the works. It rained most of the day. They actually closed the public schools at 1:00 because of several tornado watches down the mountain.

I rode my bike home after my classes (the peak of the storms had passed by then) but it was still raining very hard. Thanks to Mom and Dad for the rain gear they got me! It worked really well! My shoes, however, were just full of water. I don't think my shoes have been that wet since I went on back-to-back water rides at Great America when I was a kid! It was great fun, expecially since it was still relatively warm outside (60ish) and I love rain, especially if I'm just going home so I can towel off and change into pajamas!

More Monkey Business

You won't believe the weird luck I'm having with my monkeys and their heads! I got a great pair of monkey socks from my mother-in-law, Roberta, for Valentine's Day. They had hearts and monkeys on them, and a little monkey head-bauble on the back (like a pom pom.) Well, I was in class last week, and I realized there was something under my shoe: a monkey head! Not again! I picked it up and showed it to my friend Mark. It went something like this...

Me: I lost my monkey head!
Mark: What?
Me: Yeah, my monkey head! See? It should go right here on the back of my sock. Just like... Oh no! Where did the other one go?


Yes, I lost both monkey heads. That's like three in two weeks! I walked all over the building, hoping to find the other one on the floor some place, but no luck. But then. . . .

My friend Danae gave me a ride to school yesterday, and I found Monkey Head #2 (or is that #3?) in the parking lot, right next to her car! It came back! What a great way to start the day! On my friend Eric's advice, I am going to make the returned monkey head into a pin for my academic robe, so I can always remember how my monkey came home. You know? When I heard that nothing is too big or too small for God, I really didn't think that would apply to sock decorations, but maybe it does!

Oh, the monkey-manity!

We had a bit of an accident in the junior classroom Wednesday night. Many of you may know Matt and I have a bit of an obsession with monkeys. We have a monkey clock, a monkey light-switch plate, a monkey toothbrush holder, and among other things, a pair of monkey bookends. Each bookend is a monkey sitting on a pillar wearing a fez and reading a book. Ugly, but cute, you know? They've been an object of equal amounts of love and derision in our classroom, where they live on my desk.

Sadly, they got bumped Wednesday night, and all of my books got knocked over, as well as the bookends. I was approached by several classmates after chapel Thursday morning, trying to prepare me for the "shock." "There was an accident." "There were some injuries." "Just be ready for an awful sight." So, I walk in to my classroom, not knowing what to expect... There they were... My books scattered, my poor monkey bookends on their sides... Wait! What happened to his head????

Sure enough, one of my monkeys was decapitated in the accident. THE HORROR! My classmates sprung into action, snapping pictures of the scene (which will be posted as soon as they send them to me!) People gave me their condolences. I was actually contacted by the pastoral care committee. (I received a condolence card the next day. Really!) I couldn't have asked for more support! I can only hope to always have such loving and caring friends by my side! Actually, we all had great fun with it too. The drama! :)

So, I submitted my monkey to Woody, the I.T. guy for a revolutionary head re-attachment procedure. Hopefully, he will come through the surgery okay, without too many side-effects from the super glue. I'll let you know when we know what the outcome is! In the mean-time, I hope everyone is more careful with their monkeys!

It's Here!

Well, it seems the flu has hit the Schnaare household (would that bee the Schnaarehold?) I just sent Matthew to bed and he was all shivery. It's not even 9:00 yet! We're crossing our fingers that he feels a bit better in the morning. The guy hates calling in sick, especially since they just had two days off because everyone else had the flu! Great timing!

I've been checking out some other friends' blogs and stealing ideas. (Thanks Matthew, Eric, and Amanda!) Keep your eyes open for new additions like links to other sites and my word-bank!

A Winter Day Off

Today was a big day: I actually got to go "off the mountain" for a few hours! (That's a big deal around here since I spend most of my time studying! The only time I've left campus this month was one Saturday when I went with some friends to buy a book case from Wal-Mart!) Matthew was able to go shopping with me in Chattanooga, because school was canceled. Why? Was it a snow day? No! The schools were closed because the flu has hit Tennessee! It's a bummer for all the people who are sick, but it was nice for us to have a little field trip. We went to Kohl's, Target, and Starbuck's. Big day, right? :)

You see what passes for excitement around here! But really, it was a great distraction from all of my reading. The weather was beautiful, the sun was shining, and it was a balmy 48 degrees! It still doesn't feel cold enough to be January, but I could get used to it! The "southern folk" down here still think I'm crazy for not wearing a coat all the time, but I love it!

Greek Procrastination

I'm taking a break from my Greek homework. I've got Greek coming out of my ears!

I thought I'd mess with my blog a little. Here is a picture I took in our backyard this summer. We have lots of cardinals and lots and lots of squirrels who love our bird feeder. (Thanks again, Marie and Anna!)

Speaking of squirrels, here's a true story. I'll even use visuals, so I can practice adding pictures!

When Matthew and I moved to Tennessee, we bought a washer and dryer set. The day that Home Depot was delivering them, I went into the laundry room to make way for the delivery guy. Now, as you just read, we have a ton of squirrels around here that love our bird seed:
Well, I thought the laundry room was a good place to keep the extra bird seed, since it was a concrete room, and it should be safe from any pillagers. That is, except for the hole in the wall for the dryer vent. (I've never owned a dryer before!) So I walk in the laundry room, and no kidding, this squirrel jumps out at me from behind the bag of bird seed, and is totally flipping out. I scream and get the broom. (Yes, I was that housewife with the broom and the screams!) I finally coax it out of the laundry room, then out the porch door, and he runs for safety. I go back to the laundry room, and bang on the door: "Is there anybody else in there? Come out now, before I get the cat!" Nobody answers, so I figure it's safe. But, no kidding, as soon as I walk in, Squirrel #2 jumps out, ricochets off the walls, and finds his way out the dryer vent hole. Luckily, he (or she) was the last one, but they must have been there a little while, because they had tried to chew their way out of the room:

Yes, those are real tooth-marks!

Well, with the help of some friends up the street, we finally got the washer and dryer installed, and it's been laundry heaven around here ever since. But I'll never forget the day I had to fight two squirrels for the right to wash my own clothes without buying a roll of quarters!

I love happy endings!

Well, I hope you all enjoyed my silly little story. Tune in next time for more silly stories from Tennessee. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got a bit of Greek to translate!