Happy Birthday Henry

Our sweet Henry turned 1 today.

Michele's masterpiece - a Curious George cake.

Mesmerized by the candle.

Taking a photo of a photo.

All 3 playing on the sofa.

3 generations at Thanksgiving.

Sweet Summer

Henry at 7 months


Hamming it up


Pool party in our front yard...


...and coloring with sidewalk chalk.

It's been a good summer. Lots of trips - Cedar Falls, IA for the funeral of my favorite uncle. Then on to Wisconsin Dells where we met up with friends and relaxed for a few days. Next was Poplar Bluff, MO to visit my grandparents over July 4th weekend. This coming week we're heading to Springfield, MO for Michele & the kids to visit family & friends while I go to a conference in KC. When we get home, I'm taking Sam to his first concert - one of our favorite singer/songwriters is playing a show in Peoria.

And thinking of shows, we're hoping to host a house concert. Wouldn't that be fun?!

We've seen Eric twice in concert and he's another one of our favorites. We'll let you know if the house show becomes a reality. Meanwhile, add your name to the list and maybe Eric can have a midwest run on the In Your House tour.

Introducing... Henry!

Finally... a few photos of the new guy!

Henry Nicholas
Born 12.6.10
Weighed 9.0 lbs at birth. Now about 11 or 12 lbs.
And I've managed to forget how long he was.
He's basically half the size of Eva! She's just now reaching 21 lbs.

Sam & Eva were a little hesitant at first, but it only took a few days for Henry to become one of the gang. They love to snuggle on him.

Hero Boy Rescues Mom

Michele posted this on Facebook today. In her words...

Among the many projects in our new home is figuring out why doors won't close. So, my Monday project was to fix the door jam to the basement bathroom. In the process, I got myself locked in the bathroom with Eva and Sam on the other side.

After taking the door knob off from the inside and not being able to get the latch to move (thank goodness I had been using a screwdriver) I decided to scale the wall of the shower and climb up through the drop ceiling. Being pregnant I decided there would be no possible way for me to climb over the wall and jump down ...to freedom (w/o injuring myself, the baby and taking the whole ceiling down with me).

So, I called for Sam. Looking down at him from the ceiling I told him I was stuck and needed him to get the phone. He said, "Oh...ok Mom I'll get the phone." After what seemed like an eternity he came back with the phone, climbed on a chair and reached up to hand me the phone.

I proceeded to call Rob's office (the only local number I know) knowing he was in a work meeting. But what was I to do? Fortunately, he called back immediately and rushed home. In the meantime, I tried again to use the screwdriver to move the latch and was able to free myself! I have to say Sam is my hero. Of course he says, "I'm not a hero Mom...I'm Sam." :)

Coming Alive

We've been busy since our last post. Here's a quick summary:

• I received a promotion within the company and am now CFO of Galesburg Cottage Hospital.
• We moved at the end of February... in the aftermath of a snowstorm. Apparently we like a good challenge.
• Our old home sold 14 days after we listed it. We miss that home. And our neighbors.
• Our new home is lots of work. The prior owners didn't put as much love into it as we do. We've made it better, but still lots to do.
• In the process, Michele has learned how to repair drywall and wire new lights. She can repair drywall better than the pros.
• We've made several new friends, mainly because of this place.
• We recently found out we're going to have another one of these! It's scheduled to arrive a few weeks after this.
• Sam and Eva are pretty excited about this new development. They're rooting for this. Eva thinks we should name it after her.
• Sam turned 3 a few weeks ago! His favorite things are playing with / tormenting his sister and wrestling with Dad. He's been potty training the past several weeks and has almost mastered it.
• Eva is now 20 months old! Her favorite things are snuggling with Mom in the early morning hours and putting up with Sam. She is very much a lightweight and weighs only about 19 lbs. This has prompted some concern by our new pediatrician. We're awaiting results from some blood tests.

Helping Mom bake Sam's birthday cake.

Admiring Mom's masterpiece.


Michele is now an expert at custom cakes.

All dressed up on a Sunday morning.

Big smiles after enjoying chocolate shakes.

Catching up

We enjoyed a fun Christmas with both sides of the family. For photos with my side of the family, check out my sisters' blogs here and here.

These photos were all taken while we visited Michele's family. And they're all taken with a fancy Nikon digital SLR that belongs to Michele's sister Angela. Wow, what a nice camera!

I finally caught some photos of Michele with the kids. She loves on them all day every day, yet we rarely capture the moment on photo. (Could be the fact that she spends all day cooking, cleaning, changing diapers, playing with them, teaching them, disciplining them, giving them baths, washing all our clothes, and the list goes on.) It was great to capture these photos of Michele having fun with them!

We also captured some great photos of Michele's family:

Almost all the grandkids (missing Richie)

All the kids (8 of them!)

All the kids + all the grandkids

In other news... we're moving! In early December, I spent a week helping a sister hospital complete their annual budget. It worked out so well that they asked me to come there permanently. It's a great opportunity and a nice promotion. If you'd like more details, send us an e-mail at rgasaway at hotmail dot com.

Double trouble

Enjoying a cold frosty one.

Goofballs.


Eva comforts Sam as he faces his fear of Santa.


Reading a few books about baby Jesus.
We bought the kids an early Christmas present - the Little People manger and drummer boy sets. They love to play with them, and they're great visual aids when we read.

Look who's walking!
She's been practicing for several weeks. And in the past few days, she seems to have mastered it.