Picture Overload!!

So, we broke down recently and purchased a new point and shoot camera to keep around the house. Our other one died a horrible death quite some time ago. And while we LOVE our "big" camera (the one Seth uses to get all those awesome shots you see on here all the time), it's not the handiest for those "quick! get the camera!" moments. We also realized we have an extreme shortage of pictures of Isaac's infancy as compared to the girls'. We realize some of this is to do with the fact that we have three kids to keep up with...but, really, how long does it take to snap a photo?? So, with the hopes that I (Jen) can keep this camera with me and snap some more candid (and not so candid) shots, and the hopes that I can get some of these on the blog more often, this camera will prove to be a good choice.

So, without further ado...pictures!!

Isaac is...amazing. He's defintiely his own man. I've never seen a baby, child or adult that smiles and laughs as much as this little dude! His name means "laughter", and he lives up to it!! He's also very laid back; not in any hurry to get anywhere. What he's more concerned with is standing, and bouncing. He's still not able to stand on his own (which, at 7 months is fine with me!!), so we end up holding him a lot so he can stand and "jump" to his heart's content. Because he wants to stand all the time, he's been much slower to sit unaided than I would've anticipated. Every time I try to put him to sit, he arches his back, juts his legs straight in front of himself, trying to stand. But today, he did this:

He was so proud of himself!! And while he sat a good few minutes...

He still isn't terribly sturdy.


The girls were really excited to see his latest accomplishment and rewarded him with toys and ooh's and aahhh's.

I added this pic for my mother-in-law. The look on Isaac's face looks SOOO much like that picture you showed us!

And, because we DO have THREE children, here are a couple of pics of our lovely ladies of the castle:

Camogie

Organized sports have begun in our household! Hannah is old enough this year to begin playing the sport of Camogie. This is a sister sport to Hurling, which is an ancient sport; estimated to be about 2,000 years old. It's fairly straight forward - two teams line up and try to hit a little ball called a sliotar (pronounced, shli-tur) in the opponents goal using something called a hurl that resembles a hockey stick. There aren't too many rules, other than you pretty much can't intentionally bash an opponent with your hurl and the ball has to stay in between the lines. It really does resemble hockey, which ultimately are shared in origin.

Today was just a spectacular day; absolutely beautiful outside, and perfect for going and playing some sports. She was a bit behind today being that they actually started when we were in the states, but she took to it right away. Immediately she began drills on how to hit the ball, and then moved to some practice throwing and catching, then they actually played a scrimmage. And the best part is, Hannah scored a goal!!! She was so excited and happy to be out there. Though there was a little nervousness as she began the day not knowing how to do it, she really took to it well!

Learning to hit the ball

Catching drill...not going to well yet ;D

Hannah got right into the action!

She may have just been as excited to run around on a nice day as she was playing!

Proud girl after her first practice!!

We've lost a tooth...

Well, tonight Hannah made yet another leap in her movement up the development ladder. She came to us earlier in the afternoon complaining that her tooth was bothering here, and sure enough, it was loose and we could see the new one already poking our a bit underneath it. We knew it would only be a matter of time! She got really scared as she began eating her dinner that it was going to hurt, so we set off to investigate the tooth a little more. (Mind you, Hannah had taken a couple chances to wiggle her tooth a little bit, so by now, it's really been worked over!) I saw right away that it was ready to come out. Of course, by this time, Hannah's getting freaked out because she realizes that this thing is actually coming out. I got her to help things along a bit by pushing her tooth with her tongue loosening it up a little more. After that, it was just about fell out as I reached in for it. She was SO excited about it...obviously, just a massive moment for her. And Cailyn was just as excited for her! It's now resting under her pillow, excited for her first visit for the tooth fairy!

Here's the even in pictures...

Sitting there waiting to come out...

Her new smile!

Liked this shot...holding her tooth and you can see the hole in the background

The culprit

Cailyn was unbelievably excited! I think she was happier than Hannah!

Properly placed under her pillow before bed

Hannah and Cailyn come to meet Isaac

Oh, what a GREAT night last night! Hannah and Cailyn were able to come to the hospital last night and visit Isaac for the first time, and boy were they happy!!! Isaac was in great form, and loved meeting his sisters. He really did act like he knew them! Both girls got to hold him, and it was just a great time...the first time our whole family was together! As I combed through all the pictures that were taken, tears have come many times because I am SO incredibly blessed with a wonderful family!

A big thank you also to our friends W & D who have been watching the girls, really since all this started for us Tuesday morning, and they were our photo/video crew for the event...guys, this week has been really amazing with all the help you've given us. We appreciate you so much!!

Anyway...enough talk! How 'bout those pictures!!!! ;)

Hannah seeing him for the first time

And then Cailyn's turn

Both girls really were anxious to give him kisses!

Hannah getting to hold him for the first time

And then Cailyn got her chance. She was so taken with him!

Isaac was so thoughtful and brought them princess dolls as presents!!

Isaac needed a little help from his sisters opening their gifts to him...

First picture of 5 member Deibel Crew

Cailyn got another chance to hold him before we headed home

Amazing how tiny he is, huh? I love this picture of us!!

Sweet picture of the new big sister holding her brother

Not sure if you can tell but Hannah REALLY loves her new brother! Love this shot!!!!

Cutie of the day...

So, you've been seeing a lot of Black and Whites lately...I don't know why, I just am really liking the way they're coming out. Hope you've been enjoying! Let me know what you think!

Sports Day

Every year, the schools have "sports days" where they load the kids in the buses, take them to the local field and have a day filled with games. It's a great day, and all the kids get to participate. The older kids have some games like the distance run and high jump that Hannah didn't get to take part in, but she got to do a lot. It was a great day today to be out! The sun was shining, and there were lots of people from the community there as well. We got to talk to a lot of people that we normally wouldn't see for more than a few minutes, so that was really good. I took lots of photos (of course) and just enjoyed the day. Here's some pics of Hannah's Sports Day!

Hannah in the wheelbarrow race

Potato sack (or actually a coal sack) race

The egg in the spoon race - of course, we live in Ireland, so they use Potatoes instead...

Having fun doing some Simon-says games

Can you tell she got worn out??

Cailyn came with us, of course...and had to have her own events. Not sure what she's doing here...it was almost a somersault, but then she stopped. But she was proud of whatever it was!

Cailyn asked us to sit in the stands so she could give us a show. She did her best ballerina dance for us!

Cute children pic of the day...

While we're away, I thought I'd post some pictures in the mean time. I got the girls to pose a little for me after playing out in the yard the other day...

Pics of Hannah...

A couple of great pictures I got of Hannah on our walk the other day...

Happy to be out in the sunshine!!

Doing a little "fishing" in a puddle

Hannah's Party

Sorry these are so late! Saturday ended up being a GREAT day! This year we decided to give Hannah her first "friend" birthday party at a local haunt that is just incredibly popular with all the local children. It's called Monkey Business, and for months, Hannah's been asking to go there. So, we invited about 10 of her friends from school, including a couple of their siblings that are Cailyn's age. It's a great place...basically a warehouse that has just TONS of bouncy houses, and climbing cages like you've seen in Mc'Ds or something...just a whole lot bigger. We had a great day, and Hannah had a GREAT time celebrating with her friends, and we had fun hanging out with all the parents, some of whom we hadn't really met yet other than picking Hannah up from school, so it helped us make some great connections. Anyway, here's some pics of the day...

Big 5 year old!!

Fitting picture for "monkey business" don't you think?

Jen has made some great cakes for the girls' birthdays. This year, Hannah asked for a cake with Belle on it, and pink icing. Jen hand-made this cake for her! Great job Jen!!

It took a couple tries, but she got all the candles out!

Cailyn was having a great time all day!

Happy Birthday Hannah!!

So, today is the day...we have a 5 year old in our house! Today, 5 years ago, our lives were richly blessed by having Hannah, our first. Life changed drastically for us when she came, but I had no idea just how awesome being a dad would be. She IS my little girl, and no matter how many of these birthday's pass by, she always will be. Over the last year, we have seen some amazing things out of her. We've moved to Ireland, she basically taught herself to read (no, I'm not exaggerating!) and has learned quite a bit of a new language. She is incredible. Her sense of humor, her tender heart, her laughter and joy she finds in life is a blessing to all of us, and we are so much better with her in our lives. Hannah, as your Parents, we are honored to have you as our daughter! You amaze us all the time and bring so much joy to our hearts. We hope this year of being a big 5 year old is incredible, and we can't wait to see what life brings your way this year! We love you!!!

Here's a few pics from the last year...