Christmas 2008

We celebrated lots of Christmases, at different parties with my Dad's side of the family, then my Mom's side of the family, and my Grandma's family, too, but on Christmas Day, my siblings all gathered at Mom and Dad's house along with my Grandpa and Grandma. Here we are at Christmas lunch, after going to Christmas Day services at our churches.

My Grandma and Grandpa -- we love them!

The cousins had their own special kids' Christmas table.

After lunch we opened Christmas presents -- it was lots of fun!

I'm reading December a Curious George book that she got from Grandpa and Grandma. December LOVES Curious George!

Here's Isaac's Great-Grandma holding him.

Have you ever seen Chevy Chase's Christmas Vacation? Well, here's the squirrel in our Christmas tree!

Makenzi, Markus, Emilia, and December all rough-housing with Great-Grandpa, loving every minute of it!

The girls all got matching dresses, which was quite adorable.

Taking a break from all of the excitement (this is not December's best picture...)

Grandpa reading his grandkids a book

Here's Isaac in his Baby's First Christmas outfit!

Our Trip to Michigan

It's been a while since I've blogged, and I'm sorry it's taken so long! It's been more difficult to find time to blog ever since Isaac was born, but as he gets older, I'm sure it will get easier to find the time...But I'll hopefully put up alot today, because I've got tons of things to blog about!!

Mom has a jacuzzi in her bathroom, and the kids LOVE to take huge bubble baths in it! December's three cousins are here with her: Markus, Makenzi, and Emilia.

Mom is helping the kids make Christmas cookies, and they loved it! They each got a cookie cutter to help cut out the cookies.

Isaac's Great-Grandpa is holding him (my Mom's Dad)

Mom took all of us girls for a girls' day out, and it was so much fun! We went to Starbucks, went shopping at the mall, went out for lunch, did more shopping, and all around had an awesome day! From left to right: my sister-in-law Maria, my almost-sister-in-law Marie (she's marrying my little brother Klynt in July), my sister Kelli, and me.

Kelli holding her nephew

Markus and Makenzi wanted Isaac to try on Markus' boots, so Isaac was pretending to be a BIG boy!

The boys hanging out at night -- Brad, Isaac, and my Dad




Sometimes Isaac reminds me of a cat -- he loves to be cozy and warm and sit in front of fireplaces, so here Mom and him are cuddling in front of the warm fire.

One night we rented a movie that needed 3-D glasses, so here we are, looking quite nifty

Mom and Isaac

Isaac looking up at his Mommy (who loves him alot)

I think December is a bit afraid of holding Isaac, so she doesn't hold him very often (I think she's scared because the first couple of times she held him, he was crying, and that made her cry) -- but here's one of the few pictures where she's actually holding her little brother!

Makenzi, Emilia, and December all holding Isaac (he was a very good sport about it all!)

Emilia and December in matching outfits. They thoroughly enjoyed matching each other!


They're only four months apart in age, and they play well together...

Emilia and December in matching shirts, watching Clifford the Big Red Dog together.

Isaac and his Daddy taking a nap together.

We had such a wonderful time in Michigan! It was so fun to see all of my family and extended family and our church family again. We were there for the entirety of Brad's break -- we left on the day Brad finished his last exam, and we came back almost three weeks later, on the day before Brad began his January term. It was great to be able to be there for so long, although it went really fast! I especially enjoyed having all of the extra hands to help out with December and Isaac!

Pictures of Isaac, One Week Old

The most recent picture of Isaac, taken last night (December 7)


A very sleepy boy!

Brad and Isaac hanging out together

Isaac has two or three awake periods during the day, when he'll be awake for an hour to an hour and a half -- here he is during one of those awake times.

Isaac sleeping in his bed

And one picture of a very messy December, with boysenberry jam all over her face.

We are loving having baby Isaac around! He's so sweet, and December is doing really well with him, giving him kisses and all -- although we can tell it's a bit of an adjustment because she is majorly reverting in potty training and we are nearly at our wits' end with all of the messes we have to clean up! So that's been pretty awful. But she loves Isaac and doesn't seem too terribly jealous! Isaac weighed 7 lbs 12 oz at birth, and when we left the hospital he weighed 7 lbs 9 oz. At his doctor's appointment (when he was four days old), he weighed 7 lbs 10 oz. I was happy that he had gained one ounce back already! His next doctor's appointment is one week from today, and I hope he's gained lots by then! He's a good little guy, and Brad and I are so thankful to have him in our family.

Grandma's Visit

Brad's Mom came on the Monday before Thanksgiving, and she stayed until this past Thursday. She was SUCH a big help with absolutely everything!

Here's Brad and I on Thanksgiving Day, only two days before Isaac decided to come!

Grandma let December help with all kinds of baking, and December LOVED it!

Here's a picture Brad's Mom took of us as I was in labor and we were heading to the hospital (I had a hard time mustering up that smile!)

December loved playing with Grandma and reading books. I really don't know what I would have done without her! She kept December occupied, cooked all of the meals, did cleaning and laundry and anything else you could think of! She was absolutely wonderful. It was so nice to have her around!

Grandma getting to hold her new grandson


Isaac's first doctor's appointment, at four days old -- the nurse is trying to get his temperature, and he is NOT enjoying it!

The three of us in bed, getting some much-needed sleep!

Brad's papers were due on Friday, and I think he's pretty happy to have those out of the way! Although that doesn't mean he's out of the woods yet. His first exam is on Thursday, and between now and then he's got tons of reading to do for his classws, plus Greek notes to do, which are very time-consuming and tedious! He's a very busy man right now -- we can't wait until finals are done and we get to go to Michigan for Christmas!