Happy 2 Months, Elise!

Here are some updated pictures of our family. Elise is growing and changing every day. She weighs somewhere between 10 and 11 pounds now! She has definitely become more expressive, smiling and trying to talk to us. She's starting to be entertained by her big brother Noel. We are getting ready to take our family of four on our first big trip--heading to Aunt Kendra and Uncle George's in Hotlanta. Hope everything goes well, as we'll be staying in one hotel room--YIKES! Wish us luck!

Tractor man

This weekend was a busy one for all of us. On Friday we met up with the Cole family at the Tipton park for a picnic, some playing, and ice cream. Noel would have played all night if we'd let him. Then on Saturday David, Elise, and I went to visit our friends who were camping at Potato Creek State Park, while Noel got to spend the day with Grandma Rita and Grandpa Ralph. The highlight was that he got his own fishing pole, which he played with the entire day. Even when it was too hot to play outside, he used their bathtub to fish in!

Then Sunday David and Noel went to a tractor show. 3 of the pictures are of Noel at the tractor show, which he loved! To top it all off, Sunday night Noel and David met up with our friend Dick Blazer and rode on his tractor while he planted corn nearby. I don't think Noel could handle much more excitement!

Three Weeks Down!

Yesterday Elise turned 3 weeks old! Here are some things she has accomplished:
*lots of eating
*lots of pooping
*lots of crying
*lots of loving from all of us

She is starting to be awake more, and looks like she's trying to focus her eyes. Noel is doing well. He was sick with a cold and ear infection for 4 days, so he was up in the night as well, making it a long, sleepless night for everyone. But thankfully everyone seems to be better. Noel has really taken to Elise. He of course wants our attention, but he also lays down next to her and just talks away to her, it's really sweet.

Everything is good here. David and Noel have been working on the garden, and I am feeling really good--recovering from the c-section.

She's Here!

We'd like to introduce you all to our newest addition to the family: Elise Jo Wittenbach. She was born Tuesday, April 21, at 4:03 p.m. She weighed 8 lb. 9 oz. It was a little bit of commotion getting her here. We found out very late in labor that she was breech, so we had to have a c-section. But everything is great now, and we are very thankful for a healthy baby girl.

Late Arrival

Just like Noel, this new little one of ours must be so cozy and comfy that she doesn't want to leave her little home. So, if nothing happens before Friday the 24th, I'm scheduled to be induced. Hopefully we will have pictures of our new Miss W. to share with you very soon! The picture above is from our Easter egg hunt at the Deans in Ohio. We had a really good time, and Noel loved looking for eggs. It's so fun to watch him figure things out every day. The other day he was just babbling on and on. . .he looks up, pauses for a second, and says, "I don't know what I'm saying." Who is this kid??

Spartans Win!

Just wanted to post some pictures from the game yesterday. We got to see the Spartans beat Louisville, and it was so much fun. When we got there it was a little overwhelming, because about 90% of the fans were Louisville, and they are LOUD!! But as the game went on, somehow it got quieter and quieter :) We didn't have great seats, but Lucas Oil Stadium has great big screens and we brought binoculars. I think the best part was after the win all of the State fans went down to the floor seats and got to see the team get their trophy and cut down the nets. We were really glad that we got to go.

Fun in the Tub

Wanted to post a few pictures of Noel enjoying his bath time. My mom got him some bathtub crayons, and he would play in there until the water is cold if we let him. It's pretty entertaining for all of us.

Something's Fishy!

This past week, David had the week off, so we took advantage of the time and went to Cincinnati for a couple of days. I forgot my camera the first night, but we went to a car show, which Noel absolutely loved! He could get in the cars and pretend to drive each of them--except the Mazarati :) Then on Friday we went to Newport Aquarium, where we had a really good time. It wasn't very busy, so we could take our time exploring and letting Noel look at everything. He was fascinated by all of the different animals. We had planned on staying longer with a visit to see our friends Brian and Ashley Craw, but Ashley was sick, so we had to cut the trip short. But we had a good time, and although Noel won't remember his last big adventure out as an only child, I know we will!

Chocolate Man

We made a cake today, and Noel thoroughly enjoyed licking the beaters. Here are a few pictures of him in action over the past week.

Viewer Discretion Advised

So I am giving Noel a bath this morning, and as I start to scrub him down, I say, "How about those toes?" and start for his toes. His immediate response was, "How about that penus?"

How am I supposed to respond to that?

Good looking kids

Here is the most recent picture of all of the Wittenbach cousins, taken at Boyne after our 3 day ski vacation. They are all such neat, unique people. Noel is blessed to have such a great family.

Christmas Morning

I wanted to share some pictures of our Christmas vacation. We had a great time while David was off, and tried to pack as much into it as possible. This first set of pictures is from Christmas morning. Noel doesn't know enough about Christmas to wake up early, but we did have to snap a Christmas morning picture in his big bed, which he started sleeping in around October. We got Noel a set of tractors and other farm equipment, so instead of wrapping it, we set it up under the Christmas tree. He also got a Mr. Potato Head. Here he is showing off Mr. Potato Head's glasses. After Christmas at my grandparents' house, we headed off to Belding to spend Christmas night with the Wittenbach clan.

Merry Christmas, Girls!

Last night at church we had our high school youth group Christmas party. Anyway, I got a snapshot of some of the girls in my small group, and I wanted to post them. These are some of the sweetest (and funniest) girls you will ever meet.

Merry Christmas, girls!!

Cookie Monster

We have been busy making goodies for Christmas these last few weeks. Instead of gifts, we hand out Chex mix, caramel corn, fudge, and cookies. Noel has been very interested in "helping" me, which usually means standing on a chair next to me and asking questions about everything, which occasionally getting to lick the spoons. I wanted to show a couple of pictures. The one of him with the sweater is Noel playing hide and seek. He hides in the same place over and over--we're still working on the actual concept of hide and seek!

Let the Season Begin!

Last night we kicked off the holiday season by going out and getting a Christmas tree. It was really special because for the first time we went to a farm and cut our own tree down. We had to walk quite a ways, and it was cold and snowy, but well worth it, as you can see by the pictures. Noel is really starting to enjoy the music and lights. Plus we are reading through the Jesse Tree Advent Calendar. If you haven't done that, it's a really neat way to see how God has been working since creation to bring us to Him.

Anyway, we hope you are enjoying your season so far.

Happy Thanksgiving!

We have so much to be thankful for this year.
*Noel has had a great year--he's stayed healthy for the most part, and he continues to amaze us every day with his wit and understanding.
*Despite all of the setbacks at Delphi, David still has a job
*I am still able to stay home with Noel, since David still has a job!
*We have a little girl on the way in April!
*We are headed to visit the Wittenbachs in Ohio to celebrate Thanksgiving and enjoy being together.
God continues to take care of us, guide us, and protect us.

We hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving. What are you thankful for?

Halloween Festivities

I know, I know, it's the middle of November, but since our computer has been on the fritz, I am slowly trying to catch up with pictures. These ones are from our fun Halloween activities. We don't have any pictures (thank goodness) of the not-so-fun Halloween activities, which included Noel getting sick in the middle of

the night on the 30th. We opted to stay home and just let him play in the front yard and hand out the candy, which he loved doing. Every time people came by, he would get so excited and then say, "Happy Halloween!" to which they ooohed and aaahed at how cute our little pumpkin was. I also had to post a picture of our jack-o-lanterns. Can you guess which one is David's? Yes, that is Sparty. So proud, so proud.

More Fun on the Farm

We have lots of pictures to share from the farm. These are some highlights of Noel riding in farm equipment. I did want to document that not only did I drive a forklift (Hi-Lo) for the first time, but I carried an apple box, too. The other 2 pictures are of Noel enjoying some quality farm time with David. He still talks about this almost every day, and it's been a month. I think this boy has some farm boy blood in him.

Catching Up

We have lots of pictures to post, so I'll just do a few a day. In early October we went to Michigan to visit David's family. We had lots of fun spending time with everyone and enjoying some beautiful (yet chilly) weather on the farm. Some highlights for Noel were getting a new tractor from Grandma and Grandpa and visiting his best friend, Mr. Hi-Lo. The other picture is of David and Noel showing off one of Noel's favorite pasttimes: playdough. He wants us to build anything he can think of, which makes for some challenging feats, but we enjoy seeing his mind figure things out. What a funny kid. Here they are showing off some farm animals.