Winter Activities

Isaac learning to sit up. Caleb "playing" Settlers of Catan with Dad. Got to start young! Caleb and Dad building a snow fort. It had tunnel in it too- way better than Mom would have made!

Isaac is changing every day. He is now rolling from his stomach to his back consistently and the opposite direction once in a while. He is also sitting up fairly well, with supervision of course! Isaac is also having allergic reactions to something. He had a bottle of formula last night and ended up with a rash and bumps/hives on his chin. The Dr. told us to give him Benadryl and not give him the formula again. I thought the formula was to blame, but tonight we gave him a bottle of breastmilk and he broke out again. So, we are not sure what is causing him to get a rash. Any ideas?

Bathtime

I wanted to see how easy it was to post a video, so I told Stacy that I would do an update for her. Isaac likes to take baths and was enjoying watching Caleb. So Stacy dipped his feet in and then all of him. He apparently had a pretty good time.

On a separate topic, Caleb has grown nearly 2 inches in the past four months. No wonder all his clothes always look small.

Relief

Right before Christmas I posted a picture of Nate's dislocated finger. He finally had it checked out 2 weeks ago. The doctor took x-rays and found out it was broken and had a bone fragment chipped off. The orthopaedic surgeon then told Nate he should see a hand specialist because he might need surgery to repair it. We were getting nervous by that point. Nate saw the specialist today and was told he doesn't need surgery. That was a huge relief for him. He was given some exercises to do and has to go back in 2 weeks for more x-rays. So, yea for good news!

29 Is Oh So Fine!

Today is my 29th Birthday! It's been a really nice day. This morning we had a MOPS meeting and my friend made a cake for me. This afternoon Nate and I had cake with the boys and opened my gifts. This evening Nate took me to a nice Italian restaurant in town we hadn't tried yet. It was a great restaurant and it was so nice to have dinner sans kids!

I've been reflecting alot about turning 29. I think this year I'm going to look back on what has happened in the past decade. When I turn 30 I'll set out my goals for the next decade. :)

What's been accomplished:
-graduated college
-graduated with my MSW
-been married to the most wonderful man for 6 years
-had two miscarriages
-struggled with infertility
-had two amazing kids
-became licensed foster parents
-lived in 4 states
-moved 6 times
-traveled to Eastern Europe, St. Maarten, and Canada. Does Canada count as foreign travel?:)
-been involved in 4 churches
-became a MOPS coordinator

That is all the highlights I can think of. While looking over this list I am struck by how blessed my life is. God has guided me through the high and low points. He is so faithful, even when I am not. My life has been blessed by all of you as well. Thank you!

By the way, I included the last picture of Isaac because he looked so cute.:)

Almost 5 Months!

Isaac is almost 5 months old! We have now ventured into the realm of baby cereal. He loves it! The first time he gobbled it up, like we had been depriving him or something.:) The pediatrician recommended not introducing other foods til he was 6 months, but I don't know if we'll wait that long.

His newest tricks include sticking his tongue out and wanting us to do the same. Unfortunately I couldn't get a picture of him doing it yet. He is also entering the shrieking/screaming stage when he's happy. He's also losing alot of his hair and it's coming in lighter. My Mom kept saying he had reddish highlights, which I disagreed with at first. But, I admit he does have some red in certain lighting.

The other day I made the mistake of looking at Caleb's 1st year calendar to see what he was doing at this stage. He was sleeping alot better than Isaac! So, now I am more determined to work on Isaac's sleep schedules. I am reminding myself that each child is different, so I don't stress too much.

I also want to say, I love the exersaucer! Caleb used it from the time he was 4 months old til he was 1 year old. Isaac is just starting to use it. It entertains babies for so long! I would recommend them to every new Mom.

Christmas

It's about time to update the blog! We had a really nice Christmas season. We hosted Nate's family for about 3 days for Christmas. Our house was very full, but everyone had a great time! The first picture is the whole family, minus Nate's brother, Pete. The second picture is of the boys with Nate's Mom. She made matching vests for them, very cute! Isaac was our little elf this year, as shown in the third picture. Caleb was more than happy to open Isaac's presents for him, such a good brother.:)

After everyone left we had about a day to clean up before we headed to my parent's house. We then drove thru the night to Rochester, NY to visit Nate's parents. Driving thru the night actually worked great! We had alot of fun being back in NY. Nate was really wishing we lived there again. One of the highlights was getting together with some former NY friends. Sam and Angelisa drove out with their 3 kids for New Year's Eve and spent the night. We had so much fun! A big thanks to Mom and Dad DM for hosting us all and the crazy kids.:) The fourth picture is Angelisa with Isaac and her daughter, Talia, who is 6 weeks younger than Isaac. As for the rest of our NY friends who read this blog, hopefully we can get together with you the next time we're out there!

The last picture is at the Children's Museum in Rochester. They had a Bob the Builder exhibit, Caleb was very excited about it! Mom and Dad DM also babysat the kids a couple times so Nate and I enjoyed a couple dates.

The biggest blessing is that we all stayed healthy and had safe traveling. We are so thankful for our friends and family across the nation. God is good!