Isaac's favorite toy...

So - we got Isaac a new toy last week. Needless to say, he LOVES the thing. Can't get him out of it. Jen and I had an idea of how we could "show you" his new found love, and this is what we came up with. Enjoy!!!

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:

Creepy Pic of the day...

There's always something special about watching your kids sleep. (And no, it's not just because they're quiet and not moving, but we won't decide that it's not a slight bonus, ha ha) Ever since Hannah showed up, it's always been a moving thing for me to watch them. It gives me opportunity to reflect and pray over them, as well as just to think of all the things I enjoy about them. Isaac is no exception. But, each time I see him sleeping in his little Moses basket, all bundled up nicely, there's just something creepy about the way he looks. All nice and peaceful, but at the same time, a little like he's perhaps a little too peaceful.

Finally...

After a long break, we're finally putting a post up on the blog. YAY! Literally the day after the last post we had, Seth got a really awful case of bronchitis. Couple that with the adventure of not having water in our house for the week leading up to Christmas and him having to haul water in buckets up into the attic to fill the storage tanks, and the fact that Isaac is still just a newborn and hasn't totally figured out this whole concept of sleeping, it's been a long, long month. Seth was on some serious antibiotics and steroids to get rid of the bronchitis, and praise the Lord, they worked well, but the effects took a large toll on him. He just in the last week really feels back to somewhat normal after everything.

We have been quite busy as well, which is the best thing, and has taken up a lot of time. We've met with several friends, actually went out one night without kids (the first time since Isaac came along!!!) and celebrated a 6th Birthday (that's for another post...). It's been a busy time around here, and for those of you who are still following us, thanks for keeping us in mind!Here's some pictures of Isaac and what he's been up to lately...

Jen found him a very cute Santa suit for his first Christmas!!!

His new thing...he is a VERY smiley baby! Such a sweet smile! The laugh is just about to start, so hopefully soon we'll have that for you too!

I love this look he gets on his face. Kinda looks like he's about to ask a question, or spit up...we can't tell.

And the best picture of the night...my cute wife holding her boy.

Isaac helping us Christmas shop...

With the way things are here, with us having the one car, the lack of time during the day due to the girls' school schedule, traffic always unbearable around Christmas time (that and because of the "snow" we've received making traffic move especially slow - but that's another story...) we weren't sure how we were going to accomplish Christmas shopping. Luckily, an opportunity came up for us yesterday where we had to be in the city. Jen had a follow up visit at the hospital for all the post-delivery "fun" she was having just after Isaac was born. Glad to report that she's doing great, and everything is still on track for her recovery wise, so we praise the Lord for that! Anyway, surprisingly the appointment actually didn't take 4 hours, and we had a brief window to get to the toy shop, get our stuff, and make it home to pick up the girls from school. Of course, this meant Isaac was with us. We'd left his stroller at home, so we just set him in the trolley. (Yes, I said trolley...shopping cart to most of you). See, Isaac has a wonderful trait about him. When it's about nap time, if he goes for a ride in the car, he's out. Like a light. We say this is wonderful, because he's the only one of the 3 to do this. Hannah would just stay awake. Anyone that knows Hannah now can see this; that's just a part of who she is - having to see what's going on around her, figuring stuff out, etc. Cailyn screamed. All the time. From the moment she was set in her seat, to the moment you rescued her from the torturous trap, she screamed. Isaac loves his seat. He sleeps. If he's really ready for a nap, he'll be asleep before we get past the gate leading to our house. Well, by the time we got to the shop after he'd been awake during Jen's appointment, he was asleep again, so we just left him. And so, he got to help us with our shopping! We got several strange looks, piling all the presents we had to buy around him like that, and more than a few double-takes from people inspecting our cart as we walked by. It was funny, Isaac was cute. He's the pic.

Isaac's Passport pic

Here's the picture I got for his passport...what a cute little guy!

Random Isaac pics

Who doesn't want to see some more pictures of a really cute little boy?!?

Some more pics of Isaac...sorry it's been so long!

Wow, so it's been a pretty crazy few weeks for us since Isaac decided to show up on the scene. Hard to believe he's already 3 weeks old! If you didn't know before, Jen was actually back in the hospital last week after developing an infection from the surgery. She's doing much better, and we're all home; happy as a new family of 5! Because of all that was going on, I just couldn't really get going on posting any pics...so sorry! Hope you understand though!

Isaac is settling pretty well. He's a great sleeper so far...3 weeks old, and he slept for 8 hours last night! (A big woohoo from Jen!!) Overall, aside from the bout Jen had, things have been great so far. We're blessed with our little guy, and love already watching him grow! Hannah and Cailyn dote over him all the time; they have to kiss him when they get home, hug him before bed, and they're so proud of him! They really love their brother!

Ok...the good stuff...some more pics!!!

Mommy and her son!

Daddy with all his kids on his lap...won't last long like this!

Isaac relaxing a little bit

Isaac's first man to man...

This guy loves his sleep! (As opposed to his older sisters at his age!)

He had a bit of an eye infection for a few days, but it's cleared up pretty good. He's taking a long look at the couch here...

oooohhhh...

Anyone ever think that new babies look like old men?

Hands...

One thing about Isaac is that he has some REALLY long fingers...I'm sort of reminded of ET in a way...like I want to slip a Reese's Pieces in there! You'll probably see several of these type shots in the coming weeks/months/years ;)

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!!!!

Isaac is here!!!!

Whew!! A long couple of days, and Isaac is finally with us! He was born about 10:15p.m. local time by c-section. Everything went great, and Isaac did perfect through everything. It was a long time, basically, because they were trying to give Jen every chance to deliver naturally if possible, and things just didn't happen right. Since her water had broke on Monday night here, there just wasn't any more time they'd risk letting her try for the safety of her and him. Not what she wanted, but all is well. The most important thing is that we have a very healthy baby boy. He's very laid-back so far (only cried for about 10 seconds when he came out and never started up again for a long while!) and took to feeding pretty quickly. The numbers: 7lbs 12oz, 21.5" long. You know that more pictures are on the way, but here's some we got just after he was born. Thanks for your prayers everyone!!

Isaac Edward Deibel

First set of clothes!

Reacting to said clothes...

VERY proud daddy!

Tired, but very proud mommy too! Jen, you did so amazing!! I love you so much!