Family Updates

Along with a new baby, we have also been busy preparing for other big changes for our family. Last Wednesday we put our house on the market and so far have had six showings, but no offers yet. Hopefully we'll still be able to sell in this crappy market!
But on the flip side of it, we were able to find a great deal in St. Joe. Jake found this house on the Internet right when it came on the market before any pictures were up and wanted to check it out before we had the baby. So we drove out the day before I was to be induced. And then it snowed about 6 inches. It was a little stressful, but in the end it was worth it. It is a three bedroom, three bath ranch style that sits on 55 acres and most importantly, comes with a three acre stocked fishing pond (which is the main reason we purchased this house, haha). The owners also threw in their riding lawn mower and 4-wheeler, which will definitely come in handy!

And the reason we are moving to St. Joe, MO . . . Jake has accepted a position with the Women's Heath group at the Heartland Hospital. Jake will be the 10th physician in the group which means he will only be on call a couple times a month. They also only work four days a week. We are so excited to be able to spend time with him again! I'm sure he and the boys will spend lots of time riding the 4-wheeler and going fishing!

First Car ride, Bath, etc.

Colton's first car ride was home from the hospital on March 3rd! I still can't believe how tiny newborns are. After waiting four years to have another baby, and considering Mason to be my baby all of this time, Colton really seems small!

Nana gave Colton his first bath in our kitchen sink on March 14th. He was not happy about it! And he really gave Nana that look of "I can't believe you did that" after she wrapped him in his towel.

And here is just a cute picture of him with his eyes open. They are really blue and we are hoping that they'll stay that way. With Logan having blond hair and blue eyes and Mason with brown hair and eyes, Colton could be the brother that links them together with his brown hair and blue eyes, if they stay blue!

Our Little Bundle of Joy!

One last pregnancy picture before we leave for the hospital. We arrived Sunday morning for my induction and Colton was born at 4:50 pm, later that day. Everything went pretty smoothly. The only glitch was that my epidural didn't completely work and I have a new appreciation for what my mom must have gone through having four babies without one. OUCH!!! Dr. Nichols, Nurse Karen, and Dr. Winkleman were great. Here they are with baby Colton. My parents brought Logan and Mason in to see their new little brother and boy are they excited! They just love and adore him. Mason was sad that Logan got to hold him first. Then Mason gets his turn and checks out his new little brother. Grandpa and Nana with their third grandson. Mommy showing off her adorable little man!The boys have been so much help since we've been back home. They always want to hold Colton and feed him. Here's Logan feeding Colton a bottle.

The Big 3-0!

Well I turned 30 today, and am thinking that I should feel old or depressed, but strangely enough I feel the same as I did yesterday when I was still in my twenties! =) I guess it helps having an older husband that hits all of these milestones a couple of years ahead of me. HaHa! We celebrated with some yummy chocolate cake and ice cream and my favorite gift was a card that Logan made me saying, "Happy Barfday Mom." He gets his f and th sounds mixed up. It was cute and I have it proudly displayed on the fridge!

New Smile x's 2

Well Logan lost his second tooth with a little help from Dad. Logi had been asking me all day to pull it out, which I was too scared to do, so he waited until Dad came home.

First they tried tying a string around it, but the string kept slipping off of Logan's tooth. So Jake just ended up pulling it out, it was pretty loose to begin with. Now Mason can't stop asking me, "When do I get to go to Kindergarten so that I can lose a tooth?"

Happy Belated B-Day Grandpa!

So it was a couple of weeks late, but we were able to celebrate Grandpa's birthday together! (Grandpa and Nana were kind enough to come down to help us move some things into storage before we put our house up on the market.) Mason really wanted to get a Batman themed birthday cake, he was just convinced that Grandpa was a big Batman fan. But I was finally able to talk him into an ice cream cake. You can't go wrong with that. Who doesn't love ice cream cake?

Logi Bear's New Smile!

Logan was so excited to lose his first tooth! It had been loose for a couple of days and he finally ran upstairs proudly showing off his "new smile" as he described it. Here are the shots of before and after:I have to admit, I was a little sad in a way. Losing his first tooth is just another childhood milestone that he has passed and it reminds me that he is constantly growing up! It seems like he just barely grew those baby teeth in!

Christmas Morning

The kids were so excited (and a little relieved) to get up Christmas morning and see that Santa had come leaving them gifts (instead of coal, Logan was very conscious of all the times he had picked on his little brother). Their big presents from Santa were Leapster pads. And they have been a big hit, they haven't stopped playing them since. I've even had to replace the batteries! Daddy and Mason:

Logan and Aunt Rita:

Some other fun gifts they received were Clone trooper helmets from Grandpa and Nana.

They also spoiled the boys with adorable little "farmer" coats. So now when they are on the farm they can look just like Grandpa! Here are Jake and the boys posing with their matching coats:

The boys also got some cool Transformers and sweatshirts from Grandpa Craig and Grandma Janet.

We enjoyed good food, perhaps a little too much . . . and of course played lots of games including our favorite, Loaded Question, which Jake and Mitch always seem to make very interesting. I don't know how they come up with their answers. (This picture was taken by Logan).

And of course, the Neddenriep family tradition of trying to find the rat hiding in the Christmas tree. Don't even ask.

Happy Anniversary!

I can't believe it's already been 9 years! It's gone by so fast. I'm so grateful to have Jake in my life, he's such a great husband and father. I love you! And he was so sweet by surprising me with a dozen roses! Just like the ones we had at our wedding! Thank you!