Long & Overdue

It’s been quite a while since I’ve updated this blog. My last entry was when Isabelle turned 4 months old – she is now going on 6 months. Growing every day, the last couple of months have proven to be huge in Isabelle’s world. But before I get into that, I would first like to ask for a personal favor. Isabelle’s Grandma Toni has been experiencing some serious medical issues since early May. We are almost at the point of diagnosis and we ask that you PLEASE keep her and our family in your prayers. She is an amazing grandmother to Isabelle and one of the most important people in my world. Please pray for “Gramma” Toni’s health and her body’s ability to fight and overcome. We simply cannot win this battle without God’s mercy and grace. I will use this blog to keep you posted on how she is doing. Thank you so much for your love and support!

On a happier note...

Isabelle – 6 Months

The summer has already proven to be a great one for Isabelle. She has experienced many “firsts” and has reached several milestones both developmentally and otherwise. Isabelle amazes us with her ability to learn and try new things, making everyday an adventure. She has fine-tuned her personality and is starting to discover who she. She has likes and dislikes, preferences and peculiarities. Here is a rundown of some of Isabelle’s most noteworthy accomplishments over the past two months (pictures in following post):

Baptism
On May 24, 2009 Isabelle was baptized at St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church in Ann Arbor, MI. She was joined by her Godparents, Mike Kovalcheck (my brother) and Andrea Lucas (Alex’s sister) as well as her parents, grandparents and great-grandmas (she has three!). It was a beautiful ceremony followed by a delicious lunch hosted on Gramma and Grampa K’s deck. We are so proud of our daughter and thrilled to welcome her into the Orthodox faith. We know she will live a long and happy life as a child of God.

First Zoo Trip
Isabelle visited the Toledo Zoo for the first time in May. She had a fun day hanging out in her stroller and looking at all of the animals. She saw monkeys, zebra, hippos, elephants and camels – just to name a few. After a long day in the sun, she took a very peaceful nap while Mommy and Daddy ate ice cream and enjoyed the weather. It was a beautiful day all around!

First foods
Around 4.5 months old Isabelle was introduced to rice cereal for the first time. She wasn’t a big fan of the flavor, so after a couple of weeks we added a small amount of pureed carrots for flavor. She loved it! Since then she has tried peas, sweet potatoes, bananas, apples, pears, prunes and slices of fresh melon.

First Father’s Day
Isabelle and Alex celebrated their first Father’s Day together this year. We spent the day together as a family and had a wonderful time. Daddy was very proud to be with his gorgeous little girl!

First Swim
We took Isabelle swimming for the first time in June. She wasn’t too sure about the water but she LOVED her bathing suit and pool toys! Maybe next summer we’ll work on actually swimming.

Talking
She’s not LITERALLY talking, but she is babbling more and starting to make vowel sounds. She says “MMM” and “AH” (I’m thinking we’re not too far off from hearing “mama!”) as well as the “OH” sound. She also likes to blow raspberries. It’s so cute! :)

Sitting Up
Although still wobbly, Isabelle started to work on sitting up around 5.5 months. We make sure to have plenty of pillows set up around her because sometimes weebles DO fall down! I’m thinking another week or two and she’ll probably have this one down.


As you can see, this summer has already been quite exciting for us. We look forward to more memories being made and thank God everyday for the blessing of our beautiful daughter, Isabelle!