Sunday, June 6, 2010
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Ian's Baptism
The little man was baptized on Sunday, April 11. It was a bit of a race which would happen first - his baptism or his first steps - as we were a little lax in scheduling the big event. In the end he beat us by just a few days.
Here he is having the holy oil applied to his forehead. True to form, he was very calm and observant throughout the whole ceremony.
Here he is during the actual baptism. He didn't even flinch when the water hit his forehead - he just laid there looking at me the whole time, as though he trusted that I had it all under control. Little does he know...
Here's a nice shot with the godparents, my aunt Cathy and friend Tim.
And here he is getting the final blessing. Father Fitz was excellent as usual.
Newly christened!
Here he is showing off the cheeks, which appear to be a family trait he shares with his sister. Just a guess, but I don't think it's one they get from their mother.
Jocelyn had a ball throughout the whole event playing in the pews. She has been known to wander during Sunday Mass as well, sometimes taking off and walking up to the altar and sitting on the steps while the priest delivers his sermon.
After the ceremony we had a little party back at the house. We took advantage of the beautiful weather and set up the sandbox for the first time this season. The little man, who can't get enough of playing with toy cars when inside the house, was loving all the dump trucks and construction vehicles laid out for him to play with.
Later he also showed off his favorite wrestling move - the fishhook. It's his go-to move that he usually pulls out after I have tickled him into submission, but here I think he is just showing off his technique for the family.
During the party Jocelyn wouldn't let Poppy out of her sight. It was pretty cute to watch her, who usually is trying to lose Ian as her shadow, follow someone else around for the day. Poppy didn't seem to mind!
Later, we opened some of the great gifts that guests had brought for Ian. Grammy and Pepere got the young man his first Sox hat. It looked good on him, but may take some getting used to.
All in all a wonderful day at which our little man had lots of fun!
Here he is having the holy oil applied to his forehead. True to form, he was very calm and observant throughout the whole ceremony.
Here he is during the actual baptism. He didn't even flinch when the water hit his forehead - he just laid there looking at me the whole time, as though he trusted that I had it all under control. Little does he know...
Here's a nice shot with the godparents, my aunt Cathy and friend Tim.
And here he is getting the final blessing. Father Fitz was excellent as usual.
Newly christened!
Here he is showing off the cheeks, which appear to be a family trait he shares with his sister. Just a guess, but I don't think it's one they get from their mother.
Jocelyn had a ball throughout the whole event playing in the pews. She has been known to wander during Sunday Mass as well, sometimes taking off and walking up to the altar and sitting on the steps while the priest delivers his sermon.
After the ceremony we had a little party back at the house. We took advantage of the beautiful weather and set up the sandbox for the first time this season. The little man, who can't get enough of playing with toy cars when inside the house, was loving all the dump trucks and construction vehicles laid out for him to play with.
Later he also showed off his favorite wrestling move - the fishhook. It's his go-to move that he usually pulls out after I have tickled him into submission, but here I think he is just showing off his technique for the family.
During the party Jocelyn wouldn't let Poppy out of her sight. It was pretty cute to watch her, who usually is trying to lose Ian as her shadow, follow someone else around for the day. Poppy didn't seem to mind!
Later, we opened some of the great gifts that guests had brought for Ian. Grammy and Pepere got the young man his first Sox hat. It looked good on him, but may take some getting used to.
All in all a wonderful day at which our little man had lots of fun!Sunday, April 4, 2010
Happy Easter!
We had a wonderful, 80-degree Easter Sunday and hope everyone else did too! Here are some shots we took throughout the day.
In the morning after the kids went through their Easter baskets we decorated some eggs - well, at least Julie, Jocelyn and I did. Ian was a little under the weather and slept most of the morning away. Jocelyn was especially proud of the green egg with the eyes.
After naps were over we went to my aunt Cathy's for Easter dinner. Jocelyn was very excited to show off her pretty dress to Nana...
...and even more excited to play on the swingset in Cathy's backyard. She spent much of the afternoon either going down the slide or chasing a soccer ball around the yard.
The little man was feeling much better in the afternoon, but had more relaxing pursuits in mind. He spent most of our visit on someone's lap soaking up the attention (perhaps as a warmup for his Christening this weekend). They, and we, had a wonderful day celebrating the holiday with family.
In the morning after the kids went through their Easter baskets we decorated some eggs - well, at least Julie, Jocelyn and I did. Ian was a little under the weather and slept most of the morning away. Jocelyn was especially proud of the green egg with the eyes.
After naps were over we went to my aunt Cathy's for Easter dinner. Jocelyn was very excited to show off her pretty dress to Nana...
...and even more excited to play on the swingset in Cathy's backyard. She spent much of the afternoon either going down the slide or chasing a soccer ball around the yard.
The little man was feeling much better in the afternoon, but had more relaxing pursuits in mind. He spent most of our visit on someone's lap soaking up the attention (perhaps as a warmup for his Christening this weekend). They, and we, had a wonderful day celebrating the holiday with family.
The Many Faces Of Ian Gesner
I've read that many parents with more than one child experience some anxiety before their second child is born because they just can't imagine being able to love another child as much as they love their first. I definitely experienced a little of this before Ian was born because my feelings for Jocelyn were so powerful. Now that he has been with us for a little over a year, I just can't imagine life without him. He is such a charming, adorable, affectionate, inquisitive little man. On Easter Sunday I had the opportunity to get some close-ups of him that I think illustrate some of the more endearing aspects of his personality.
The young man loves him some affection. He spent much of the afternoon being passed from one person's lap to the next and loved every minute of it, usually nuzzling in as he is here.
He is just about as affable a little guy as you can imagine. If he catches your eye, there's a pretty good chance he is going to smile at you and try to make you smile back.
Once something captures his attention, he gets fixated on it and won't rest until his curiosity is satisfied. Here he is reaching for the camera; after this picture was taken I spent the next few minutes trying to pull it away from him until I finally just relented and let him handle it.
For a one-year old he surprises me often by showing a sense of calm detachment and awareness of his surroundings. It's tough to explain why, but I have a hunch that he will have the ability to remain poised during times of difficulty.
Once more enjoying the embrace. He is definitely the apple of his Momma's eye.
The young man loves him some affection. He spent much of the afternoon being passed from one person's lap to the next and loved every minute of it, usually nuzzling in as he is here.
He is just about as affable a little guy as you can imagine. If he catches your eye, there's a pretty good chance he is going to smile at you and try to make you smile back.
Once something captures his attention, he gets fixated on it and won't rest until his curiosity is satisfied. Here he is reaching for the camera; after this picture was taken I spent the next few minutes trying to pull it away from him until I finally just relented and let him handle it.
For a one-year old he surprises me often by showing a sense of calm detachment and awareness of his surroundings. It's tough to explain why, but I have a hunch that he will have the ability to remain poised during times of difficulty.
Once more enjoying the embrace. He is definitely the apple of his Momma's eye.
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Roof finished, most windows in
There's been some pretty substantial progress since we last posted a few weeks back. All the interior walls are framed, the roof is on and shingled, and just about all of the windows are in. Here's the front of the house:
And here's a shot of the back of the house. The big picture window looks from the family room out to the backyard. There is a covered porch area just off the kitchen, a perfect spot for barbecuing and relaxing.
Things are moving along pretty much on schedule and on budget so far (knock on wood). The only major hiccup we've had so far was some extra lanscaping we decided to do. To ensure proper drainage of rainfall away from the house, the builder said he would like to grade the land on the left hand side of the house (looking at it from the front) to an extent that it required ripping out the retaining wall that was there and replacing it. And to ensure a nice flat play space in the back we had to bring in a lot more fill than we had planned. But Julie and I actually think it will be for the best because the new wall will be much more pleasing to the eye than the old one and the yard will be beautiful. We'll post more updates in a bit!
Ian's 1st birthday party
We had a celebration at the house for Ian's first birthday last weekend! Momma took care of booking the musical entertainment, which the kids all seemed to love.
She had the crowd moving to "Old MacDonald Had A Farm" and gave a raucous rendition of "Itsy Bitsy Spider," which Jocelyn requested about 18 times.
Then it was time to bring out the cake and ice cream and sing "Happy Birthday," which Ian seemed to tolerate much better than Jocelyn had at her first birthday party (although he does seem a little confused by what's going on).
After blowing out the candle, it was time to dig in...
...and dig in he did!
Later, after we cleaned him up a little, he gave Momma a birthday snuggle to thank her for all the hard work she put in to make sure everyone had fun!
She had the crowd moving to "Old MacDonald Had A Farm" and gave a raucous rendition of "Itsy Bitsy Spider," which Jocelyn requested about 18 times.
Ian was having a blast in his front row seat and wowed everyone with an amazing drum solo.
All his friends got in on the act too!
After the music died down, all the kids seemed to love the crafts Momma set out on the tables to play with...
There were a few birthday masterpieces created, I'm sure!
Then it was time to bring out the cake and ice cream and sing "Happy Birthday," which Ian seemed to tolerate much better than Jocelyn had at her first birthday party (although he does seem a little confused by what's going on).
After blowing out the candle, it was time to dig in...
...and dig in he did!
Later, after we cleaned him up a little, he gave Momma a birthday snuggle to thank her for all the hard work she put in to make sure everyone had fun!
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