Isha Meets The Endo Gang

I am still trying to catch up on some pictures from the Idaho trip. We spent an evening with some of my former coworkers from St. Luke's. Lauren has been a great friend to me. Her and her husband used to watch Stitch for me and she still sends me a birthday card every year. She has also been a great mentor to me in my nursing career. She just retired a few weeks ago and she has a sister that lives here in Virginia, so I am hoping that one of these days we may get to visit again, but it will be here instead of Idaho. Debbie has family here and she came to visit us once when she was in Virginia. It is so cool to have people from home come to visit. Where do I begin with Byron? He has also been a great mentor to me in my nursing career and he has been like a big brother to me. He was always giving me advice, especially when it comes to finances. I was so lucky to have such a great group of people to work with. I hope that someday Isha finds friends and coworkers as great as my friends from St. Luke's!

More of Isha and "The Family" in Texas

Here we are playing poker. Isha lost her money quick but Mom (Jen) was still in. I guess this is the new family tradition, to play poker. The family with all the good, bad, and the ugly (not Jai or Isha).

Isha's time in Texas

Check out the my sister (Bov), nephew (Stephen), and brother-in law (Tom) hanging out in the pool. They had a blast. I guess they did not like the temperature of the pool since they were cold. I hope they didn't go in their wet suits. Yes, you guessed it right, they are drinking in the pool. It's not water, soda, or even beer but the good stuff. I had the privilege of drying Isha off. She's so cute. I guess Bov and Tom really wanted to see if they could drink Isha size bottle. It almost looks like the bottle is bigger than Isha but she's sitting down. Here's Isha with my sister. She's praying that Bov doesn't drop her. Just kidding. She's praying that she doesn't let one out while Bov has her (Not).

Isha rolls over for the first time

Isha rolls over for the first time and it happens when I'm not around. I asked Jen to tape this so I could see it for myself. Wow, this is awesome!!! She's (Isha not Jen) so smart. I love it when she knows to get her arm out under her so she could hold herself up. Now that's my girl. (This video is about a month old. Now Isha is rolling over like a pro.)

Isha eating solid food for the first time

Here some video of Isha eating her first meal. She's so excited and can't wait for more. You have to love her. Isha keeps eating but starts making faces. I guess she doesn't like mild food. If only she could have some blended chicken (Laura found it and it does exist). I think she wants some Thai or Indian with some taste to it. Now, you have to love the facial expression in this one. She's like, this food sucks. Mom and dad, give me some Thai.

Happy Half Birthday

Isha turned six months old on Sunday the 8th of July. She wore her adorable red dress from her Aunt Tony. I know I have said it a million times, but I can't believe how fast the last six months have gone. Isha has changed so much. Everyday there is something new that she has discovered or accomplished. We had a half birthday party for Isha. Uncle Adam and Aunt Laura came over for some BBQ ribs. We ate so many ribs that we were practically oinking by time we were done with dinner. I also made a cherry chip cake for Isha. That was my favorite cake when I was a little kid. It is sickeningly sweet and obnoxiously pink. I felt guilty that we ate it after Isha went to bed, but it's not like she could eat it anyways. Adam and Laura brought a gift for Isha. They gave her this great new toy that she loves to rattle and chew on. They also brought her a four course meal of baby food. Isha went to the doctor on Tuesday for her six month check up. She weighed in at 13 lbs and 9oz. That was only a nine ounce gain in two month. I guess she spent the last two months growing taller instead of heavier. She grew two inches. She is now 25 and 1/2 inches. I was a little upset about the weight gain, but the pediatrician was not concerned. He said that just means that she is ready to start on solid food.

More Idaho Friends

My Uncle Mart came over so that he could meet Isha. When I was little and I would go places with him people always thought he was my dad. I am sure it is because of the blond hair. Here is my cousin, Kaylee, Uncle Mart's daughter. She is going to have a baby at the end of this summer. A little girl!! I am so excited for her. I hadn't seen her in the longest time so it was great to see her and to see her house she just moved into. She is in the process of getting the babies room ready. That is such a fun time. Of course we had to stop in and see Calvin, he is one of my mom's friends. He owns his own car lot. Jai is always asking me if I think Calvin could help him get an Acura NSX. Poor Jai and his endless quest to have another sports car. I'm sure Calvin could help him get the car of his dreams, but just not for the price I am willing to pay. I just hope that some day when it is Isha's turn to get her first car that she finds someone as nice and honest as Calvin to buy it from!! Maybe we will just have to buy the car from Calvin and have a road trip home! I know that is some serious thinking ahead. Dana came over the night before we left to get in another visit with us. Unfortunately Gordon was unable to make it over, but we did get a chance to see him earlier in the week. Dana and Gordon are friends of my parents. I have spent many nights eating pizza and watching Survivor with them. I am so glad that Isha was able to meet so many of the people in my life from when I lived in Idaho. I miss them all so much.

Isha Meets The Best Girls

While we were in Boise we were able to visit Heather. She is one of my closest friends from way back. We actually knew each other in elementary school, but became good friends in high school. We used to carpool to school every morning and that is where we got our nicknames Special H and Special J. Isha and Amelia are 3 months apart, but they are the same size. It was so cute when they first met because Amelia immediately started giggling as soon as she saw Isha. Heather also has an older daughter, Hadley, who just turned five and is headed to kindergarten in the fall. It is hard to believe she is so grown up. She is a great helper with the little ones. Here is a shot with Heather and all the gang! Hadley wanted to hold Isha. She is such a good big sister. Isha looks so small to me, but when I put her in Hadley's little lap she actually looks really big, but Hadley did a great job holding her! It was so great to see Heather and her little girls. I miss her so much. We have lived so far away from each other for a long time. Heather was in Arkansas for awhile and as soon as she moved back to Idaho I moved to Virginia. Even though there are lots of miles between us we have remained good friends. For that I am forever grateful. Sorry to be so sappy, but I can't help it.

Computer Problems

Once again we are experiencing technical difficulties. Now our modem is fried. Verizon said we should have a new one in 2-3 business days. As soon as we are up and running we will post our new family picture we had taken the other day. Thanks for being patient.

A Day With Grandpa Jack

Isha got to spend some time with her Grandpa Jack. We went out to dinner and had some great BBQ. Uncle Jamie also came and we had a good time visiting. Grandpa Jack took a day off so that he could take Isha out and do some spoiling. He bought her some new clothes and then we all went and had a great lunch. After lunch we went home and let Isha take a nap and then we went over to Grandpa's house so spend some more time together. Grandpa loved holding her and giving her lots of attention. We went out to lunch the day before we left so that we could let Isha see her Grandpa one more time before heading back home to Virginia. Uncle Jamie also came and had lunch with us. We went to Pollo Rey. I always have to eat here so I can have the fish tacos and salsa verde. YUM! Finally, Isha warmed up to her Uncle Jamie. I think he was feeling more comfortable around her also. I thought it was so cute that when Jamie holds her his hands go all the way around her. We had a great lunch together and I am glad that Isha was able to meet so many of the people who love her so much.

Fiddle Festival

While we were in Idaho we went to Weiser so that we could visit some friends who's band was playing at the Fiddle Festival. Dale and Anna Fisk are from Council Idaho, which is were I was born. We found a nice spot in the shade to sit and listen to the music. Isha had a good time playing with her toys, while we sat around eating Kettle Korn. Yummy! Here is a group photo of all of us. We had a great time just hanging out. On the way home Isha had a diaper disaster in her car seat. Yuck. The liner had to come out and get washed. We made it almost 6 months before that happened so I guess we are pretty lucky!

Isha's First Fever

Yesterday afternoon Isha felt warm so I checked her temperature and it was 100.2. She seemed to feel okay so I didn't panick, but I gave her a dose of Tylenol. Three hours later her temp was 102.0. I waited an hour and gave her another dose of Tylenol. Poor things was hot to the touch so I stripped her down to her diaper and let her pass out on top of me for a nap. I was getting worried, especially after what the Millers just went through. Luckily a few hours after the second dose of Tylenol Isha's temp was back down to normal. She felt much better after her nap. Grandma Louise gave her the top to a cup and she was mesmerized. It is amazing how the most basic things can be as amusing to a baby as all the fancy toys that they have. As you can tell Isha was feeling much better. She let out a few good laughs for her grandpa Skip. We finished off the evening in the exersaucer. Unfortunately the fun stopped here. It took Isha an hour of crying to finally go to bed and the whole rest of the night was rough. She was up every few hours fussing. Poor thing. Today she has had a runny nose and runny eye, but no temperature. What a relief. I called Jai today because I needed some moral support. You don't realize how much help you get until you don't have Dad around to pitch in. We miss you Daddy!!!

Our First Day In Boise

Isha met her uncle Jamie. I think she is a little scared of him. He is very tall and has a deep voice and his hands fit all the way around her. She kept burying her face in his chest and then she would look up at him with a "pouty"face. When he held her the other night at dinner she cried, but today she did just fine with him. They finally got to hang out for a little bit without Isha being afraid. My mom's friend Misty let us borrow this amazing exersaucer. Isha was so excited that she was shaking. She couldn't wait to get in that thing. She has had a blast playing with all the toys on it. We have to thank Belle for sharing her toys with us. When we get home I am going to put the link to Belle's blog. She is a total cutie and I am hoping that we get to meet her while we are here.

Dad is missing his girl so I put this picture in so he could see his baby. She had just woke up from a nap and was having one heck of a hair day. Isha can't wait to see her Daddy.

Isha Meets More Family

Here is a picture of Isha with her great grandma Jeannette. Great grandma gave Isha lots of love and attention. Isha also got to meet her great aunt Donna. She even took a nap on great aunt Donna's lap. Here is a picture of the whole gang. My cousin David came to visit with his wife Stephanie and their daughter Mary. This was the first time I had met Mary. She is adorable, but she was not in the mood to have her picture taken. Maybe I should have explained the importance of the picture to her. Had she know she was going to end up on the blog she may have been more excited to have her picture taken. Either way she was so cute. We had a good time playing together. Isha, Mom , and Great grandma. It was really great to get to see everyone. We had a good time just relaxing and visiting.

Auntie Meg's Wedding

The real reason for the trip to Seattle was to go to Megan's wedding. I started crying as soon as I saw Meg. She looked so beautiful and it has been almost 3 years since I last saw her. Isha was able to meet Megan also. Auntie Sara was also at the wedding and it was great to see her again. As you can see Isha is wearing the dress that Sara got for her. There were two babysitters at the wedding to watch Isha and Kellan during the ceremony. These two had a great time playing together and keeping the sitters busy. Kellan is 3 months old and he looked so cute in his little suit. He is lucky that Jai wasn't there because daddy can be very protective of his little girl. But Kellan was a perfect gentleman. Here is Megan in her wedding gown, which was the prettiest gown I have ever seen. She looked so beautiful. The wedding was perfect and the cake was great. Isha got a chance to dance with me and Meg and Sara. Back in the day the three of us were out dancing all the time. Funny how time changes things. Now we are all old married women dancing with a baby instead of dancing at a club. Thats okay though because I would take my new life over my old one any day!

Our trip to Seattle

Isha got to see her great grandma Carol again. Grandma picked us up at the airport and we spent a few days with her in Eatonville Washington. Isha did great on the plane. Our five hour flight from Atlanta to Seattle turned in to a six and a half hour flight due to the right engine not wanting to start! That always makes me nervous for the rest of the flight. Everyone sitting around us was very nice. They took turns holding Isha so I could have a break. I had planned on reclining in the seat and trying to get Isha to sleep, but we managed to get a broken seat that would not recline. Therefore Isha did not get any naps that day. Poor thing was up at 5 am, had no naps, and went to bed at 6:30 pm Seattle time, which is really 9:30 Virginia time, but was the greatest baby ever. No crying, screaming or fussing! I was so proud of her.

We had a good time in Eatonville. We went to the senior center to meet all of grandma's friends. We drove into Puyallup and say Aunt Laura. I am so mad that I forgot the camera and was not able to get a picture of Isha with Laura. We also went to breakfast Saturday morning with all of grandma's friends and Isha had a good time soaking up all the attention.

Here Isha is just chilling out while I got ready for the day. After this I put her down for a nap and these PJ's suffered a diaper diasaster along with the sheets in Isha's bed. I think that Isha nows that there are only a limited numer of clothes that were brought and she is making messes just for fun!

Too Much Fun

This morning I put Isha in her jumparoo while I went to take a shower. When I got out I was surprised that it was so quiet downstairs. I went to check on her and this is what I found. She had bounced herself to sleep. Poor little baby. I took her upstairs and put her to bed in her crib and now she is fast asleep. Isha and I leave tomorrow morning for Seattle to see Megan get married and visit family. After that we are off to Boise to spend a week visiting there. I am excited to see everyone and to give Isha a chance to meet everyone, but I am sad that Jai will be here alone. So if you are not busy give him a call and make sure he is doing okay! I know that he is going to miss Isha terribly so I am going to try to post pictures for him so he can at least see his little girl while we are away.