Potawatomi Zoo

We took the weekend to make a trip to the Potawatomi Zoo in South Bend.  We planned to drive down the night before so that we could get to the zoo early and have plenty of time there before anyone got tired or hungry.  The kids had a great time in the pool, staying in the hotel, and eating the hotel breakfast.  Then they had to hang out in the hotel lobby for three hours while I got a flat tire fixed.

But other than that (and Debbie did a great job keeping them entertained), the day went well.  They had fun at the zoo and even more fun at the playground next door (all the way through the zoo: "Can we go to the playground now?").  Ethan's shoes got wet at the hotel, were removed to dry, and then were forgotten, so he had to run barefoot through the zoo and the playground, but he didn't seem to mind (we remembered to pick them up on the way home).

Easter 2012

Another Easter, another chance to look for eggs.

In the morning:


And after lunch:

A lot of the candy quietly disappeared later!

First Ice Cream of 2012

One Saturday in March the weather was beautiful and warm, so we packed a lunch and the kids and took everyone for a short day trip to Hidden Lake Garden, an arboretum run by our local state university.  It was the first all-family trip of any kind since Isaac was born.

On the way back, we stopped so that Isaac could nurse, and I treated Abigail and Ethan to the first ice cream stop of the year.

All About Isaac

He's six and a half weeks old. Gaining weight all the time: newborns always have such skinny arms and legs, but his have filled out so now he looks like the classic pudgy baby. His neck is getting stronger: he can almost support his head. And he's starting to make little baby noises (besides crying). And he may smile at us soon: I've caught some accidental smiles that show that he'll have a very cute smile once he learns how to use it.

Sometimes he sleeps in his bouncy chair, and sometimes in his carseat, but mostly he sleeps here in this corner of the couch. 

Abigail loves spending time with her baby brother. "Reading" to him was completely her own idea.

And this is from a day when I was home with the three of them and needed some time to get the dishes in the dishwasher and change Ethan's diaper, so I asked Abigail to give Isaac his bottle. She was eager to help!

Home Again

Third time home with a new baby. The older kids are still with the grandparents tonight, so it's a quiet house.

So little, and yet it won't be long before he outgrows this car seat.


Poor Striker...yet another kid in the house. Then again, more dropped food and someone else to steal cookies from, so it's not all bad.

Isaac meets his big sister and brother

Grandma and I went to get them from daycare and brought them back to the hospital to meet Isaac. Yesterday was the first warm day (high of 76!): Abbey even got a sunburn!


They had a lot of fun with Isaac.




Ethan liked the baby but was really more interested in the dinner that had just been delivered for Debbie.


Abigail was disappointed that it wasn't a sister (for a while she insisted that it was a girl brother) but was very happy to see him and hold him (with help).


Isaac will never be lonely!

Meeting Isaac

Debbie had a very hard labor and delivery, all naturally, but she did very well.


We were admitted about 1:00, and Isaac was born an hour and twenty minutes later.


First phone call was to Debbie's mom. Isaac makes their 14th grandchild (9 boys, 5 girls)


Her mom and dad stopped by a little after 4:00 to meet their newest grandson.