Beware! First Birthday photos and reports will soon follow!

What a Stud! 9 Months

Isn't this a good picture of Gabe and Jenn! I REALLY like it!




He get so excited when the water for his bath starts running! He loves bath time! I have to hold him back while I strip him down he wants in so bad.

Gabe quick up-date

So Gabe is growing teeth, and he isn't a big fan of the process. He was sleeping 6-10 hours a night, and now he is waking up 4-6 times a night. He is the greatest little boy that I have ever had! He is now 6 months old and wants more than any thing to crawl and be mobile. He has started to push himself backwards, and can get up on his knees, but his face is in the carpet. And he loves to laugh. Today at church there was a family with 5 children and two of them had Gabe laughing hard as the meeting started. He is a stud!

Will power, mostly

I know it is not much, but I wanted to post a victory that Jennifer had the other day. We are now training for a triathlon and as we were walking through the grocery store she walked down the ice cream isle and didn't stop to buy more ice cream! She may have had a little reminder that we are now in training mode, but she did it! Way to go Jenn! Your going to rock this tri!

See my youtube video

Yes I did film this. Let me tell you what is happening: We had 6 pallets stacked with a microwave on top of them. In side the microwave was a gallon of gasoline. We poured a bunch of gas on the pallets and lit it on fire. Also on the pallets were several new and unused propane tanks. The plan was that when we shot the propane tanks they would explode in the fire making a fire ball. Well I guess we didn't pour enough gas on the pallets to begin with and the flame went out. So Ben went back up to light the fire again and put more propane tanks up as targets. The rest, you will enjoy watching. It really was a lot of fun. Yes I did take my pellet gun, but I also took my 7mm, they are both a lot of fun to shoot. I think there were near 20 people there and I hope that we can do this again. I love my guns. I will continue to shoot my guns. I will continue to buy guns. My children will be taught gun safety, and how to shoot a gun. Education is in many ways better than elimination. Really, this was a lot of fun.

The School of Life

It has been some time since I have posted on our blog, and after taking my last final of the semester I thought that I would take a moment and remember what happened during this last three months:
Gabe was born, that is semi apparent on our blog. Having him around adds to life that really is indescribable. Some will say wait 'till you have your own, you'll see how they change your life. Initially I was thinking about the scheduling, and the sleep, and the dollar value of raising another person. I have learned that these are all minor changes in my life. I want to smile more because I want him to see his dad smile. I have recognized the true power and beauty of my heaven sent wife. She will be holding Gabe after feeding him watching the news, working on the computer, or thinking of all the possibilities of the day, and I sit next to her and rest my head on her shoulder because my day of joking with co-workers, talking with customers and playing with paper, boy I get tired after an 8+ hour shift. She is a wonder woman.
I am also a better student. When we first got married I still wasn't the best student, but now that I am responsible for being a good example for my own son, and if I want to be able to say "If I can get good grades, you can get good grades." I am also learning better to see the beauty in the moment. I have several nieces and nephews that are 4 and 5 so I am excited for that age because that is a fun play age. But watching him learn that he has hands, and a mouth that can be used for things other than eating. Watching him laugh. Watching him recognize me and my voice. I love being a dad!
School taught me to be more accepting of people and to look past the clothes, the hair, the accent of their voice, but to listen to what they are saying and try to understand why they have the point of view they do. But also that we are living in modern day Book of Mormon times and that people are selfish and prideful and willing to say anything to get them in office, I mean where they want to be. This has also boosted my faith in God. It has amazed me that some people put their trust in men more than God. They trust a man or woman who will say what they believe the public wants to hear and then flip to the other side to do what they want. Versus putting trust in a God that has a perfect record. If He says something, it will happen. A Being that has the ability to give and take life, to call the heavens together, compared to a man or woman that will say that they will change the country for the better, but can't take care of their health or marriage in a exemplary fashion.
I know that there is a God in heaven, life is to complicated, fragile and short for there not to be, and because I have felt His guiding hand in my life, I have felt His Spirit and seen His work in action. There is a God, and He is our Father.

Two Months Old

Still only in the 28% for weight, but he started in the 3%. Check out that double chin!

This is one of the best parts about being a mom.

Gabriel at One Month Old

Photos by Jamie Van Orden

Blessing the Boy

Gabe is going to be blessed tomorrow Sunday Nov. 2nd. The building is on 4395 Albright Dr. (2145 E.) Our meetings start at 1 pm and the sacrament meeting starts at 2:50. There are going to be light snacks at our house after. If any of you other father's have any tips for a nervous father about to bless his first, feel free to send them my way.

Congratulations!

For those who haven't heard, Christopher Van Orden has been called to serve in the Austrailia, Adelaide mission! Congratulations on your choice to serve, Chris! We love you!

Home Improvement

Kitchen

Before: ugly wallpaper

After:



Nursery

During: (forgot to take before pics):

This is my wonderful brother Jay who may kill me for posting this picture.

After:

Stars and moon bedding. Overstock.com rocks!

The Inspiration: Starry Night

Master Bath (tax rebate project)

Before: Carpet. Who does that?

Dry rot. One of many reasons carpet does not belong in bathrooms.

After:

Notice the toilet in the bathtub. does it look precarious to you? Shortly after this picture it tipped over and broke both the toilet and the bathtub! Yep, we're out a few hundred dollars for a new toilet and bathtub repair. It would have been worth the extra $50 to have the tile people install it for us. At least we have a great memory now of shopping for our first new toilet.

Thanks to Jay and Sabreena for all their help!