Holy Moly!

I almost fell off my chair when I read our blog just now and saw that we have not blogged in a month!!!! A whole month! Well, here is our long over due update....

We started June out with a week of Vacation Bible School. Steve was on the drama team and taught a class with twelve 5 & 6th grade girls. He pretty much had his hands full and hairs grayed that week. I (Calie) was the snack leader and taught 8 kindergartners. I quickly realized how much I really miss teaching this age of kiddos. Isaiah had a great time visiting with all of the church members and getting passed from one to another. A trooper and smiler through it all, he will certainly be missed by our congregation more than Steve and I combined! One evening of VBS, he was taken on a "walk" with two ladies. He was returned to us a tattooed man.
And yes, it is a tattoo of a scarecrow/pumpkin head. I guess it was the only one they could find. But as Steve said, at least he did not come back with any piercings!

Right after VBS, we headed down to St. Peter to celebrate Father's Day and Mom's birthday on the farm. My sister and our two nieces were there. It was a fun filled couple of days. We got to jump in the bounce house, ride the 4 wheeler, and visit the cows. Check out the slide show below for pictures. Then on Sunday we headed to Hudson, WI to visit old friends from Trinity. Although we didn't get to see everyone, it was a great get together and a ton of fun. We really do miss living in Hudson and all the friends and family we made along the way.

Steve got to enjoy his first official Father's Day. Though it didn't turn out exactly as planned, it was still a fun day. Earlier in the week, we found out that Isaiah not only cut his first two teeth (bottom front), but also had bronciolitis. A week of coughing fits, runny noses and flem in the throat...poor little guy! Isaiah gave me so many great kisses, that I too got a little sick. Needless to say Father's Day was kind of a bust with a sick wife and child and a crummy weather day. Though even that wasn't so bad as Isaiah snuggled and slept in Daddy's arms for a couple of hours. And we still had tasty grilled chicken kabobs and made it our favorite Fargo ice-cream spot that was handing out free waffle cones to dads. So we relived part of 'Father's Day' the following week with a breakfast buffet to die for at Granite City!

Isaiah also had a big week of meeting new people. He met our friends Cory & Megan from Hawaii, crazy Sonja from our Hudson days, and his first play date Joshua. Joshua was born to friends of ours from the seminary a couple of months after Isaiah. So there is bound to be a few more play dates in the future.

We enjoyed going to the cabin a few times in June as well. We have become unofficial members of the Friedrich family. Either that, or we have just become those annoying house guests that will never leave. Regardless, that won't stop us from trying to get there as much as possible in our final weeks in Moorhead. Steve has realized how much he loves to fish. I am stilling waiting for some warm, sunny days to work on my tan and Isaiah just loves being outside, swinging in the hammock, and getting held by everyone and anyone! We are still hoping to have some days in July that will be warm enough to spend in the water and on the boat.

As long as you have read all of that, I will include his 6 month stats! We just got back from the doctor today; he had to have his six month shots. He weighs a whopping 17 pounds and is now in the 40th percentile (that's up from the 7th percentile just two months ago). He is 26 inches long in the 33 percentile. We thank God each day that He gave us such a cutie pie.

We are now staring at the last few weeks in MN. Then off again to a new adventure in St. Louis. I promise I will take more time off from packing to update the blog more often this month.

Life here has been more of the same, Steve goes to work while Isaiah and I play the day away. We had an awesome week of beautiful weather, which we enjoyed by taking walks. Isaiah and I even ventured out to a park. We just got him a sun hut thing, which is more like a tent that blocks the UV rays, so we went out to try it out. Isaiah had a great time in it until the wind picked him up! The wind caught the side of the tent and blew it over my head, which caused Isaiah to rollover many times.
I think that he was a combination of tired and surprised, so we packed up and went home. I was in control of the situation until I had to pack up the stupid tent..... I have a bit of troubles with things that need to twist in order to get them to fold up, like the car sun shades. So here I was in the wind, with a crying baby, trying to read the directions and twist the tent up to fit in the bag. I got it half twisted, and then jammed it into the bag and took off. It must have been quite a sight!

Our baby also turned 5 months old this past Sunday. Steve had to stay in Moorhead for several church-related things and so Isaiah and I went to St. Peter for a long weekend. The car ride took an extra hour on the way there because we had to take a few extra stops. Isaiah was fantastic and slept most of the way. The weekend was super busy with a wedding shower, visiting family, shopping and an extra long car ride home. Isaiah got to spend some time with his cousins Megan and Mallory.

While we were at my parents house, we picked up a jumper thing for Isaiah to use, which he LOVES! He just stands and bounces, laughs and smiles whenever he gets in it. Thanks Katie!


We were both very happy to get home on Monday. The car ride was extra long because we got stuck in some traffic and it was a little loud (screaming and crying) for the last hour. But Steve was very happy to have us home and we were happy to be there. We are all looking forward to a busy week next week, as we have VBS at church. Look for an update soon after that!

Memorial Weekend

Well, it's official the summer is here. We were lucky enough to spend the weekend at our friend's cabin. Isaiah was able to wear his life jacket for the first time as he enjoyed his first boat ride. Isaiah was not a fan of his life jacket, but did like watching the waves that the boat made.

I know that the highlight of Steve's weekend was fishing the entire weekend, even though he did not catch many fish. They did catch enough for us to have a fish fry on Monday afternoon. It was unbelievably yummy! So after tasting the fruit of their labor, the boys decided to go out just one last time. They were just about ready to come in for the weekend, when Steve got a bite. Luke thought that it was a northern, so they were going to let it go, but it turned out to be a huge walleye. They tried to grab the net, but it got away. That gave them the determination to stay on the lake to try for more. Luke did catch another smaller walleye, which he cleaned and gave to us.

The highlight of my weekend, was relaxing in the sun, working on Steve's stole, eating AWESOME food, and enjoying laughter with friends. There is just something funny about Steve forgetting to bring shorts, and putting on a pair of women's shorts that wouldn't even fit me!

It was a great weekend, that we were sad to see end, but hopefully we will have many more the rest of the summer.

Our Little Swimmer

It has been a time of many firsts for our little dude. He went for his first couple of outdoor walks, celebrated his first Mother's Day, started eating rice cereal, his first X-ray, he started finding and eating his toes, he is so close to sitting up on his own, and even had his first beer (more on that and even a video to come later). Today was another fun first for Isaiah. His very first day swimming came as we headed to Casselton, North Dakota to an indoor "water park." I put "water park" in quotes because it was just two pools with a couple of slides in them.

So, tired of waiting for consistently warm weather to bless us here in Moorhead, we packed our swimsuits and headed across the river to Casselton. First we had to put on Isaiah's "Little Mermaid" baby swimmers on. Real manly I know...way to go on that one Mom! I think Calie learned to look at the package before she buys little swimmies. Our guy needs some manly swim diapers! Anyways, after we were all suited up and ready to go we headed into the pool.

Isaiah and I did a few laps in the pool while Mom sat on the edge taking plenty of pictures. We bobbed up and down in the water, did the backstroke, the sidestroke, and even tried going down a water slide. Just for the record, the picture of Isaiah going down the water slide need not be overshadowed by his father's beer belly. Good motivation to lose a few pounds this summer I guess. And that will be a lot easier now that Bible study and church groups are done for the summer and all the church ladies will no longer be bringing in cookies, brownies, and all that good stuff. Dang sweet tooth! But Isaiah just loved looking around at everything while we were there. All the water toys, the flashing signs of the snack bar, and the out-of-control kids running around. Plus he only spit up and drooled a little bit during the whole time in the pool! Hope anyone who swam after us kept their mouths closed!

Our time there did not last long because it was pretty cold. The water was warm but the air-conditioned air was a bit chilly and so Isaiah was often found shivering--his cute little chin and toothless gums chattering. So after a few minutes cuddling with Mom and getting all nice and toasty again in his towel we headed back home. From bath time to the awesome Casselton "waterpark" we know Isaiah loves the water. Now we look forward to the rest of the summer where Isaiah will experience a few other swimming firsts. His first speedo, his first time in the lake, his first boat ride, and his first time at the New Jersey Shore! OK, well maybe not the speedo but hopefully he'll at least be wearing little swimmers without the Little Mermaid on it!



Oh and before I close. It must also be said that the Fargo-Moorhead has some pretty breathtaking sights to offer as well. Casselton is also pretty well known for yet one other thing. As our fellow vicarage friends are off on trips to the Grand Canyon, the Rocky Mountains, the different coasts & oceans, Lake Tahoe, baseball games, and Disney World (among other things) we made sure to take time to see the world famous pile of cans. At least that's what the Casselton natives like to think!

Mother's Day & More

Weight Gain

Well, no one likes to gain weight, unless your a baby. Isaiah just turned 4 months old, and it was time for his check up. Last time he was in the 10th % for his weight, which was alarming. We were hoping that he gained a bunch over the two months. We were less than happy to find out that he only gained 1 pound and is now in the 7th % for weight. For those of you who have no idea what this means, kids should follow the middle of the track at about 50%. It is a curve from 1 to 100. So now you understand the low weight concerns.

Our doctor was concerned as well, so he ordered an upper GI test. So on Tuesday we went in for the test. Isaiah was such a trooper. He couldn't eat for 2 hours prior, so he was getting hungry since the doctors were a little behind schedule. He drank the barium and they got some good pictures. Steve fed him, so I got to watch the X-ray taking place. It was very interesting.

The hospital called Wednesday with the results and we found out that he has GERD. GERD is basically acid reflux or heartburn. So now we are giving him Prilosec, which he does not like. We found out though that we can give it to him in his bottle, so hopefully he will take it better now.

Isaiah has also started eating rice cereal once a day. He actually really likes it, and cried last night when he was all done! He opens his mouth when he is ready for more, and only spits out a little bit!

We are looking forward to Isaiah throwing up less and gaining more weight. We have clothes that he can't wear because he is still too small!

Steve and I are still doing well. Nothing really happens in our lives that is anywhere near as exciting as Isaiah's life. We are excited to go to our friend's cabin this weekend for the fishing opener. Possibly Isaiah's first boat ride too!