Sara: First of all, thanks to all the kind souls who gave us advice regarding my “pregnancy blues.” We really appreciate knowing your advice, and that we are in your thoughts and prayers!

As my mother mentioned, it seems I can’t have “tiny” changes in my life – they tend to come all at once, including a new boss, new baby, and more!

I have noticed several factors seem to contribute directly to my mood. Being overtired and lack of exercise make it easier to be crabby and harder to be patient with others. Some extra sleep and some time with family and friends have definitely helped cure my blues! Hopefully, this revelation will make me at least slightly easier to live with. I’m sure Justin would appreciate a few less tears this week.

This weekend, Justin and I were blessed to go to Northern Iowa and see my “baby” brother graduate from college. Christmas had been the last time my entire family had been together, so it was great just to catch up and to celebrate this exciting time in his life.

It also was especially neat to see my niece (and godchild) again. She’s about six months old, and in the very squirmy stage. I wouldn’t be surprised if she began to crawl within a few weeks.

Justin and I stayed with my sister and brother-in-law, and it was interesting to catch a glimpse of what their home life is like with an infant. While it helped me realize just how much care our little one will take, I’ve never seen anything like my niece’s happy smiles and “talking” noises. It helped me become even more excited for our little one, if that’s possible!

Watching my sister and brother-in-law reminded me that life with a baby is going to be hard at times, too. My niece was exceptionally good during the hour and a half graduation ceremony, but she definitely was getting tired by the time we made it home that night. In fact, she was so tired that she didn’t want to play while she took a bath. Even on Sunday morning, she was still tired, and decided to be very vocal (with happy noises) during Mass. My sister was very embarrassed that her daughter was being so loud. In fact, my brother-in-law had to take their daughter outside because she was being so loud. It had been the first time my niece hadn’t behaved during Mass, and so they were a bit uncertain of what to do. It made me realize that Justin and I will need to discuss this (and many more things) as our baby gets older.

The neatest part of the whole weekend was one of the times holding my niece. Even though Baby’s fairly active, sometimes it’s hard for me to remember that he or she is already truly a person. One time, I was holding my niece, and she started kicking my legs. Then Baby started to kick as well. I told my sister the cousins were already playing together even while one was in the womb!

The countdown for Baby Kraft continues – and I’m looking forward to my first Mothers’ Day this weekend!