Before and After

Abby after her haircut with Jenn..... Jacob playing in the dirt before his haircut........ Jacob after his haircut and all clean from a bath.....

This week both Jacob and Abby got haircuts. These are some pics from before the haircuts and from after the haircuts. Jacob got a nice buzz, and Abby got her long stragglies cut off. But kids looked so cute afterwards.

Vacation Highlights

We had an amazing time on our trip. My 2 days in Chicago were great. It was so fun to see Melissa and her boys. And a special treat was getting to see John-Mark and meeting his wife, Sheena. Melissa's boys are so fun, and the baby Aidan is just a squishy bundle of love. I had a chance to see Carolyn at work, as an efficient and essential assistant to the Director of Friedman Place, a home for the visually impared. Time went by quickly and then it was off to Toronto.

We had the best time ever with Joe, Miranda, and baby Elsa. Bob and I took turns holding and loving on our third grandchild. She was so small compared to our Abby. Elsa was just beginning to smile and coo. We got to babysit her one afternoon for 3 hours while Joe and Miranda went out for their 7th Anniversary and then went over to a friends to pick up a crib, which Joe and Bob put together when they got home. Miranda is such a relaxed and comfortable Mommy and Elsa senses this and she is a very mellow baby. Joe just adores his daughter and is always kissing and loving her. What a special blessing to be able to see our son as a father. We fell in love with this beautiful baby instantly and it was so difficult to say, "good-bye".

Our Next Adventure

We are packed and all the necessary details are complete in order to facilitate a peaceful and fun vacation this coming week. We leave for the airport this evening since Bob's flight to NY tomorrow is at 5:45 am. We will stop and see the grandkids for a while before heading out to our airport hotel. It is a way to park the car for free and saves us an extra 2 hours in the morning. I like going out to the hotel the night before a flight. Flight day is less stressful.

I fly to Chicago tomorrow to spend three days with my sister, Carolyn. I will get to see my niece, Melissa and meet her three little boys. Can't wait to hold little Aiden who is 4 months. Bob is flying tomorrow to NY for his quarterly meeting. On Thurs. we will both fly to Toronto and arrive (weather permitting) at about the same time. Then Friday - Sunday we will spend all our time with Joe, Miranda, and Elsa Jane. YEA!!!

I will be taking tons of photos of our little Elsa Jane to share with everyone when we get back. My arms are anxious to hold and cuddle with this new baby. Babies smell so sweet. You could just sniff and kiss them all day. Bob and I will be vieing for 'Elsa' time. Abby is so big and active now that we don't have any baby time any more. No more snuggles for her.

Being a Grandparent is a wonderful surprise and joy. I don't know anyone who does not love it and the pleasures of just loving without conditions. These little grandbabies need all the love and support they can get in this world. They need to know that Grandma and Grandpa are on their side, no matter what. What a privilege it is to be a part of their lives.

More later...........

Time Flies, Life Continues

I realize it has been over three weeks since I last posted to my blog. My Dad had knee replacement surgery over 6 weeks ago. His recovery has been very slow and painful. My brothers, Phil and James, went down also to help Mom and encourage Dad. My sister, Barb was down in AZ with my parents for 2 weeks to help out. And now my brother, Phil is back down in AZ trying to keep Mom encouraged and is helping with so many things. Carolyn, Paul, James, and I have been on the phone talking to Dad and Mom frequently. Dad has been in the hospital, in a Rehab center, in a nursing home, back to the hospital, and now back in Rehab. With the encouragement of the attending Dr. at the Rehab center, we are seeking a second opinion as to why Dad's knee is not healing like it should. He is a Diabetic and he does have Parkinson's Disease, so those things do contribute to his slow recovery. Monday, Dad will go to the CORE Institute in Phoenix to see a knee reconstruction orthopedic surgeon. (Center for Orthopedic and Reconstructive Education) The surgeon that will be seeing Dad was the head of Orthopedics at the Mayo Clinic for 17 years. His credentials are top knotch. Hopefully, he will be able to discover what is going on with Dad's knee and help with his recovery. We just wait and see. Please pray with us for a complete and swift healing of Dad's knee and for his body to recover.

Her Mommy's face, her Daddy's chin

Well, Elsa is now almost 5 days old now. She looks so much like Miranda, which is a good thing since Miranda is very pretty. However, she did get one physical characteristic from her Daddy's - a cleft in her chin. Joe got that from my Dad, and I noticed it right away. And Elsa now has it from her Dad. Very cool. Her skin is so beautiful and she is such a pleasant little baby. I can't wait to hold and cuddle with her. My lips ache to kiss her soft head. Here are more photos that Joe sent of Elsa at 4 days old. I love digital photography!

We are off on a trip for 9 days to Southern CA........business and pleasure. We will be back Mon. May 19. No photos for a week. More later.

New Baby Pictures

I just got these adorable pictures of Elsa Jane. Such a cute baby.

New Granddaughter

Well, on May 5, 2008 at 11:35 pm our new little granddaughter arrived. Elsa Jane Snyder weighed in at 7 lb. 14 oz. and measured 20". She has a little bit of dark hair and she looks so much like her daddy did as a newborn baby. The midwife says that she is very healthy. She is a good eater and sucks with enthusiasm. Joe says she is peeing and pooping a lot, so that is good. He even has changed two of the nasty meconium diapers. Both Joe and Miranda are smitten with their little girl. We are very anxious to get out to Toronto the middle of June to see her. I can't wait to hold and cuddle with this new baby. Being a grandparent is the best role ever!

Interesting bit of trivia......both Joe and Miranda weighed 7 lb. 14 oz. and measured 20" when they were born. Very unusual for all three of them to have the same statistics.

Miranda was induced at 10 a.m. Monday morning and really did not progress much during the next 12 hours. But then about 10 p.m. her body responded to all the pitosin and things began to move very quickly. She began pushing at 11:20 and in 15 minutes Elsa was born. By 3:30 a.m. the little family was in a cab on their way home from the hospital......less than 4 hours after the baby was born. The midwife said that healing is faster and the family bonds much quicker in their own home. Joe has the week off and he is loving this time alone with Miranda and Elsa. Miranda's Mom and Dad are coming in on Friday and are anxious to meet Elsa.

You can see from the pictures that Elsa Jane is a very pretty little baby. We pray the God will wrap His arms around her heart and that she will grow up to be a mighty woman of God.