First pictures in August, 2005!

I am trying to preserve all of the pictures we have saved to our computer. There is no other way to do it other than putting them on this site. Lots more will be coming in the next 2 weeks b/c I would like to have them all posted before I go back to work.
These were from the night Isaac was born and the next day. Pretty neat to go down memory lane!

I started talking to him in the picture below and he stopped crying!

Cute as a button!

Here's where we stayed:
http://www.littlepage.com

Vacation!
Hurray, vacation was tons of fun and a great time of renewal and relaxation. First, Brian visited in Columbus with a good friend from Hiram college. Then we drove to Baltimore and saw Emily, Brian and Sydney. Brian Hair went to D.C. while I visited with my sis. She cooked dinner for us and then we were off to Manassas, VA, for the next part of our trip. In the morning and after visiting a battlefield where the Civil War began, we ventured to the Littlepage Inn which was near Mineral, Virginia. The Inn was centrally located and we visited four other battlefields in the vicinity. We loved the Inn because it was very relaxing there. We were awakened each morning by the mooing cows and tweeting birds. Great! Littlepage Inn recently renovated the swimming pool which was an added bonus. The Union soldiers after winning one of the battles came across the home at Littlepage. Everything was well preserved (lots of letters and stuff). It was an interesting place, very charming and unique. Who knew we were only about one and 1/2 miles from Lake Anna (which was quite the boating location!). We did go to the beach one day, but we preferred solitude and rest. One morning I saw a fox running by. In the evening, owls perched in the cedar trees lining the drive. They were about 3 ft. tall and beautiful! All in all, it was a great trip.
Happy day,
Jen

A new monitor for the computer is a world of difference! Wow, who knew? The Brian-sized desk works well, too, with love from boy for dad's day. I love Monday naps. We're going on 2 and 1/2 hrs. right now.
By the way, the chipmunks are driving me crazy! They are eating all the birdseed I put out. I've got to get a better feeder to outsmart them. Brian says if he has to hear about the chipmunks one more time, he'll scream. Hope his lungs are ready, 'cause I'm obsessed!

Howdy! The John Deere birthday party on Isaac's b-day was great! Several other kids and their moms came for the fun, in addition to my family. The kids wore silly John Deere hats that they decorated with JD stickers, we sang songs, and we ate La Gondola spaghetti for dinner. Yum, yum! Because of the rain, the party was indoors which in the end worked out better.

Old King's Orchard VBS last week went well again this year. I loved the kids!

Brian and several co-workers went on a canoe trip in Indiana on Friday. Isaac and I met them at night and stayed in a hotel. In the morning, we went to the Indiana children's museum which was great. Isaac was petrified-- the dinosaurs were so life-like! He also was very scared of the Polar Star (we read a book about him--a huge polar bear!). We went downtown in Indy for lunch and then got warmed up for our car trip next week by driving home. Actually, Isaac slept the whole way, which was nice. I'm sure on Friday and Saturday we will be listening to lots of kids music. I'd like to go to the library and check out a few CDs.

We will visit with Emily and Brian and Sydney next Sunday in Baltimore. Her new baby will be named Andrew (he's due at the end of July). We can't wait for his arrival!

That's all the news. Looking forward to vacation!

Jen

I dropped our camera this weekend. Right now, it doesn't look promising, but Best Buy is assessing the damage. This could mean posts could stop for awhile, but I'll keep posting without pictures until we can get it fixed!

A really big sea lion was jumping... but I missed the action shot.

We are looking forward to meeting Bill and Louise, Brian's mom and dad, in Virginia for vacation. We are staying at a bed and breakfast in the country near a few battlefields. We went to the St. Louis zoo for our anniversary June 9. It was very hot, but it was a ton of fun. Here are some pictures.

Isaac is growing like a weed. He's saying lots of stuff, which is fun.
We've got more sad news about another family in our small group. They will be moving with ADM to Germany in June. We helped the Rileys move to a new home this spring, and it's really sad that they will be moving again soon.
Tim pitched a really good game in baseball yesterday. His team is now in the sectional finals against Argenta. We're glad that he played well.
It has been a beautiful weekend so far! Guess what?! I saw a Baltimore Oriole in our back yard this week. He had a beautiful song and he was bright orange with a black head and yellow wings. Wow! The birds we see have improved since we got the right kind of birdseed. Who knew?
Two couples came over for dinner last night and that was fun. We played Sequence and a new Cranium game. Both games were entertaining.
That's all of our news. Only 2 more weeks of school! We joined a pool for the summer so Isaac will get to swim with other little ones. We're looking forward to it because the pool is open until 8 pm so Brian will be able to go swimming with the family after work.
Jen

Em's visit

Emily came to visit at the end of April. My mom and I had a baby shower for her. She is having a boy.

Brian and Isaac went camping on Saturday. They had fun, but they decided to drive home rather than sleep outside. Wise choice. I'm not sure Isaac would have really liked it.



The women went shopping and skipped the camping. It was a men and kids bonding experience. We loved shopping and dinner, but of course, we missed our families, too.



Our friends Pam and Barry are moving tomorrow to Valdosta, Ga. with ADM. We are sad, but happy for them and the opportunity they have. That's all our news.



Jen

Spring is here!

We are so happy that Spring is finally here! The trees are budding and flowers are sprouting everywhere, including the bird garden-- yeah! The tulips don't probably get enough sun, but they will be pretty when the finally open up. Isaac's water table has returned outdoors, and the favorite toys are definitely any type of ball he can throw. We survived a long winter, which makes Spring that much better. Let's see-- Isaac is repeating nearly everything we say, or trying to, that is. He really makes us laugh. We got him a little table and 2 chairs for the kitchen, and he's loving the independence. He put up a big fight against the high chair at the end. He said, "Don't want to!" and he really meant it. Tantrums are as expected. We try to ignore a lot of it. It is not o.k. when he hits out of frustration. Time out has pretty much taken care of that, but he still has his moments. Since the new year, Isaac has stayed somewhat well; I say that as I remember he's finishing a perscription right now for a small cold. Poor boy has outdoor allergies. I guess he and I will be in it together... like a team. He doesn't seem to have animal allergies, or if he does, it's not that bad. We went for a short walk today and here are some pictures from it. I'll post more this week since I'm on Spring Break.

The Wiggles!

Isaac and Brian went to see the Wiggles, in concert, yesterday. They had tons of fun! Isaac loved all the kids. He has a Wiggles shirt, but he didn't wear it yesterday. When they got to the concert, they went inside and as Isaac saw all the kids coming in with Wiggles on their shirts he kept looking down at his own shirt. It was funny. When the Wiggles came out in the big red car, Isaac threw his hands up in the air and pumped them up and down like a rocker. It was hilarious. He couldn't stop talking about the show when they left (I heard him through the cell phone). He kept saying, "Daddy...fun...wiggles.." What an exciting day for the boy.

I took Isaac to the 3 year old class last weekend at church, because when we were at Shilling he did really well with them, listening and doing the project. Anyway, it was quite different at Wood St. They hold the 3-year old class in the daycare toddler room. He was so distracted by the toys that he couldn't really listen or do anything in there. Next time, he's going back to the nursery for the lesson in there.

St. Paul's called a new pastor and he has accepted the call. He is in his late 30's, has a wife and 3 or 4 kids. They are very excited to come. We are looking forward to his coming, too. He comes from Thomasboro, near Champaign.

Today is Brian's birthday. We are going to dinner and a movie. We will see Amazing Grace. The story should be really good. We're going to eat steak before the movie.

Isaac has been really throwing tantrums lately. He has quite a temper sometimes!

That's our news. Happy day!

"Diaper change"

"Let me show you how it's done."

"Here's my puppet show."

"My dad wears these big gloves when he shovels the snow. I bet I could do it, too."

"I'm telling ya, this snow is no good for making a snowman."

("By the way, my mom took my haircut into her own hands... SHE NEVER WENT TO HAIRCUTTING SCHOOL. We go Tuesday for the repair.")

"Dad; I want to make another ball this big!"

Snow days!
It's Thursday, and we have been out of school this entire week because of the snow (we had Mon. off for Lincoln's b-day). Decatur was not prepared for all of this and we've been digging out for days. My school was still completely covered as of yesterday and the County roads were not passable. Hopefully things will be better by tomorrow.
Needless to say, Isaac and I have have had tons of fun. Today was the first time out since the snow Monday night. We went to the YMCA to go swimming. I decided to try the floatation device on him. After about 10 minutes, I took it off. It gave Isaac a false security in the water and I didn't like it. He's so different this year at the Y; he's mobile now and he runs very quickly in the water. I keep a hand on him or within an arm's length at all times. He loves the water, though, and the "kids!"
We've been inside for days, but that's o.k. I put some water in the water table for splashing and playing. Who knew that the puppet show I picked up from school would be such a hit (no one wanted it and it was a freebie). We got a few puppets from Tarjea (i.e. Target). Isaac likes to watch a show, but he really wants to be involved. When he puts on a show for us, it's short lived. He looks at Little Red Riding Hood and Grandma-BBWolf and says, "Diaper change." He must think they look like dolls and that's what you do with dolls. It's hilarious.
He's talking in small sentences and really communicating these days, which is so fun. I just put him down for a nap, but left the door open, and he kept coming out, looking at Brian and me, and saying quickly, "Get back in bed Isaac." We laughed.
Now that he's down, I have some time for reading. I usually fall asleep when I read, but that's o.k. today. I wonder how the snow is out in NY. It seems they get big amounts of snow all the time in the snow belt, and they handle it. In upstate NY it looks like a rather large amount (9 ft.). I can't even imagine!
That's all my news. Have a happy day!

Snow! Snow! Snow!
When we got home from church on Sunday, we decided to bundle up and make a snowman. The snow was great for packing, and Isaac loved every minute of it. We rolled the three snowballs and used our snowman kit to complete the s.man with a hat and a scarf. Both Sunday night after the games and Monday morning, Isaac wanted to go outside to say hi to the snowman. I have a feeling he'll be around awhile with the cold temps.
Pictures will follow, my computer is slow tonight.