trip to the park

MeMa and Pop made the long drive to come and see us for Easter Weekend. We've had so much fun!

Here are a few pictures of our trip to the park on Friday. It was a beautiful day.

Preaching Class

I'm taking a preaching class this semester and I have to preach 2 sermons and have them evaluated. For those who have about 17 mins to spare, my first is posted here. (This is easier than putting it on a disc, if you'd still like a disc, just let me know.)

Sermon 1 from D. Merricks on Vimeo.

iPhone = Isaiah Phone

If you don't know this already, Isaiah loves phones. Yesterday morning he somehow got the regular phone and somehow called these really nice people in Batesville...on speaker phone. I walked in the room and heard a lady saying, "Hello? Hello?"

Of course, being the responsible parent that I am, I grabbed the phone and hit the off button.

This morning, I left my cell phone within Isaiah's striking distance and so he grabbed that too. Let me just assure everyone that Isaiah's dexterity, meaning the strength of his fingers and thumbs, is just fine. He began carrying around my phone and somehow took this video. If you listen closely you can hear Corrie discovering him red-handed.

A Spring Break

Last weekend we took a break from life in Oxford and went to visit Sis in Birmingham. Aside from the dusting of snow on Saturday morning, the weather was perfect for getting out and about. On Saturday morning, we went to the McWane Center, which is like a children's science museum. We all had much fun playing with water, magnets, pulleys, and 'lasers'. Isaiah especially enjoyed looking at the fish in the aquarium.

On Sunday afternoon, we went to the Botanical Gardens. Corrie's affinity for flowers and plant life showed as we walked through all the different parts. As you can see below, Isaiah also had fun walking around picking up pine cones, 'prickly pears' (you know the little round spiky things that stick to your shoes), and leaves of all shapes and sizes.

"Daw"

Isaiah has a new word: it's "Dog" without the -g!

We went for a walk on Monday and heard a dog barking. Isaiah pointed and said "daw"....twice!

This morning I picked up his "doggies" book (that is overdue at the library) and asked him what was on the cover. He said "daw"!

Maybe he inherited the dog-loving gene from his mom. Soon he'll be saying "Springer Spaniel", "Viszla" or maybe even "Weimaraner."

Adventures in Birmingham

We spent the weekend before Spring Break in Birmingham. Here are a few clips of what we did this weekend.

Bear

Isaiah loves stuffed animals. He has been particularly attached to one we like to call "Bear" for a while now. He likes it so much that we couldn't wash it, so we got a backup bear. He really isn't particularly concerned about which one is which--he just loves them both. He really likes to carry them both around, one in each hand. Here he is rocking his bears.

Problem Solving Skills

Just in case you were concerned, Isaiah's problem solving skills are developing nicely. Here are the steps required to get to where he is in the picture:

1. Open the appropriate cabinet.
2. Select the appropriate box of cereal.
3. Open the lid to the box.
4. Take the bag out of the cereal box.
5. Open the bag.
6. Enjoy cheerios and one's autonomy.

Update

Isaiah said "mama" on Saturday... and definitely knew what it meant! Now I feel prideful too.

We had a great weekend of hanging out, raking the yard, playing with bubbles and going for long walks with Rigby since it was warm and beautiful weather. We are looking forward to Spring Break next week too!

official first word

"Daddy."

as of 6 pm on February 20th, 2008.

And I think D. is feeling a little prideful about it.

vocab update

Last night we mastered "where's daddy?"

If I ask Isaiah where daddy is, he points at D. and looks quite proud of himself. D. is proud too.

vocabulary quiz

Isaiah is not talking yet, but we are realizing every day how many words he knows. It is so fun to see him process what we say and translate it in his own way. We have successfully taught him three signs: "more," "eat," and "Touchdown!". (D. got touchdown on video the other day, so hopefully he will post that soon.) We have not mastered please or thank you yet, though.

We are realizing that Isaiah knows a lot of words that are related to food. The other day D. asked him if he wanted supper and he signed "eat." Last night one of our friends said he was hungry and Isaiah signed "eat" again! If you're realizing that food is very important to Isaiah, you're right! He weighs 24 pounds and he still has quite a belly.

We'll let you know if he develops any new vocabulary, especially if it's not food-related!

an amazing documentary

The Business of Being Born

Regarding the post below, D. is obsessed with the new Indiana Jones movie. I really don't understand why. In my opinion, it only demonstrates that Harrison Ford is way too old to play the part of Indiana Jones now. A prequel would have been better--I don't know who should play Indy in the prequel, but it should obviously be someone who is much younger than Harrison Ford.

Anyway, this link will connect you to a trailer for a documentary we went to see last week. It is a remarkable movie about something that D. and I are both pretty interested in--childbirth! If you don't believe me when I tell you that D. is interested in childbirth, just ask him. He'll talk about it for at least 10 minutes.

Check out the movie if you get the chance.

Oh yeah....

Huck Finn

Appropriately, we read The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn in my American Lit 2 class last week. Doesn't Isaiah look cute in his new overalls? Yes, they are a little long. He has a long torso and short legs like his mom!

family hugs

D. and I have noticed that when we hug (or kiss), Isaiah always watches us and smiles his biggest smile. Sometimes he walks over to us with the sweetest grin on his face. Of course, we always pick him up and make it a family hug. Loving him is part of our love for each other. I was telling my friend about this via email and she said that family hugs are the way we learn about God's love for us. God is a "we"--a trinity--and he is already love. He is inviting us to join in on the God-hug and he wants us to share in his love. What a beautiful gift!

Isaiah's Escapades

This should make you smile.

(make sure the volume's on)


Isaiah's Escapades from D. Merricks on Vimeo.

Isaiah is on the move

Tonight is the night! Isaiah really started walking tonight. We were playing together and D. and I started encouraging him to walk between us. As he realized that he could do it, we started scooting farther and farther apart, and eventually Isaiah was walking across the room. When he realized he could do it, he didn't want to stop. He was walking all around the living room! We have entered toddlerhood and we are excited and a little nervous about the adventures ahead!

who's out there?

Listen up readers:
Every now and then I'll talk to someone who says "Hey, I saw your blog!" but I didn't know that you were keeping up with us through the blog. So leave us some comments and let us know you're keeping up with us! We'd love to hear from you.

she's "that mom"

There is a lot of info in the news about how Mississippi is the most obese state in the nation. Oprah was in Meridian last week kicking off a national weight loss challenge! (Heard it on NPR). I am wondering why everyone is so surprised about that when every kids meal at every restaurant is made up of some fried food and french fries! It doesn't take much to realize that 2+2=4, right?

So last night, we went out to eat as a family as a special treat. We went to Oby's (they have good salads), and I ordered the kids' meal for Isaiah. BUT instead of fried chicken, I asked for grilled, and instead of french fries, I asked for cherry tomatoes. They looked at me a little strangely, but they did it! And Isaiah thought it was a special treat since he LOVES tomatoes! The girl at the register said--"He's going to be the only healthy baby in Mississippi! All of our babies are so fat!" I told D. that if they think I'm weird, at least there is worse stuff they could say about me than that I want my kid to eat healthy!

So, yes I am "that mom." And I am okay with it.

one year portraits

Isaiah is one year and one week old! He is growing so much and changing every day. He isn't really walking--he takes a few steps here and there. He does best when he doesn't think about what he's doing. I maintain that he's hard enough to keep up with anyway (think of the speed-crawling I mentioned before), so it's really fine if he takes a while to learn to walk.

He continues to have a voracious appetite. It is really amazing how much food he puts away. His current favorites are broccoli and cherry tomatoes. He likes grapes a lot too.

His new favorite activity is pushing the toy cars we got him for Christmas all around the family room. He is really starting to play by himself more, which is something we are thankful for!

Story time

It's time to start telling stories about Isaiah. Now that he is (almost) walking, he is all over the house. Whenever I open the door to go down the hallway, I can hear the "pitter patter" of little hands and knees speed crawling behind me. (If you haven't seen him crawl, you cannot understand that it truly is speed crawling!) I have to close the door to the bathroom quickly or he gets into his two favorite places: the toilet and the toilet paper. For some reason, our toilet is really fascinating to him, and he loves to put both hands on the sides and stick his head down and gaze into the pool of water inside. Thank goodness for antibacterial gel that kills 99.9% of germs, right? When I close the lid to the toilet, he gets a very determined look on his face that involves the pursing of his lips. It looks something like the picture I've added here. He proceeds to unroll the toilet paper as fast as he can. Speaking of that, I need to go to the store this afternoon before we run out of toilet paper!

My Red Wagon

Isaiah got a red wagon for Christmas from his Nana and Papa. Looks like fun, doesn't it? His cousin Anna liked it too, or maybe it was Uncle Miles who liked it so much.

Noteworthy firsts

First birthday!
Isaiah turned one year old yesterday. We had a fun, low-key day together as a family. We went out to breakfast, went to Square Books, Jr. to play, took naps, and hung out with some friends. It was a good day!

First fall!
Isaiah fell and bumped his head today. He has his very first bruise smack in the middle of his forehead. We were all a little traumatized by the incident, but we have recovered and moved on.

First steps!
Isaiah took his first steps today. He was pretty excited about it. He took four or five steps in between D. and I several times! He would not take any steps to show off at church tonight, but he was tired, so we're okay with it! We did get some on video and will try to post that soon.

We have SO MANY pictures from Christmas and his birthday party... we haven't posted any because it is a bit overwhelming, but we will get some more pictures up soon.

C'mon everybody... to Santa Claus' Party

O Christmas Tree...

Here we are choosing a Christmas Tree. I have to say that ours is one of the most beautiful trees... ever.
Decorating pictures will come later.

By the way, this was several weeks ago, but we are just now updating the blog.

Mohawk Baby

a trip to Mema and Pop's park

Mema and Pop live within walking distance of a great park, so two weeks ago while we were visiting for Thanksgiving, we took a walk down there, of course! Isaiah is a big fan of playing at the park, as you can see.

Isaiah's Funny Faces

Turn up the volume for this one. Isaiah has figured out how to make sounds with his mouth. It's pretty cute.


Isaiah's Sounds and Faces from D. Merricks on Vimeo.

10 months old

It's hard to believe that we're parents of a 10-month-old!

Currently, Isaiah is learning how to walk. His favorite foods are butternut squash, peas, and cheese. He loves his stuffed animals, and he is quite a comedian.

first halloween

We did not do too much for Isaiah's first Halloween...
He can't have candy, and we didn't want to eat all the candy! He does have a T-shirt on that says "mummy loves me" though.

We went to a community Halloween party just so he could see all the kids in costume, but as you can see, this crunchy leaf was his favorite part!

After the party, we went to the ENT doctor for his one month checkup, and he said his tubes look fine and everything is working.

Learning to walk

We bought this new toy for Isaiah a few weeks ago. Normally, he would sit on his bottom as soon as it started to roll, but last night and this morning we taught him how to walk behind it. As you can see, he is very proud of himself!


learning to walk from D. Merricks on Vimeo.

Isaiah's Adventures at 9 mos

Isaiah's Adventures (9 mos) from D. Merricks on Vimeo.

happy fall

It doesn't feel too much like fall here yet, but I'm from Florida, so it doesn't make that much of a difference to me!

As you can see, we had fun visiting the pumpkin patch on the square today.

Isaiah had outpatient surgery on Wednesday to have tubes inserted in his ears. It was scary for us (mom and dad) but it didn't seem to bother him too much. After a good nap, he was back in full force crawling all over the house. His appetite has improved a lot, and he really seems to be feeling better. We are thankful.

exploring the grass

Here's a picture of Isaiah exploring our yard this week. He enjoys grabbing and feeling everything in his path... we're okay as long as he doesn't put it in his mouth!

Isaiah has been sick a lot recently... he's had 3 ear infections since we started school in August, and this weekend he has a virus. Please pray for us this week as we visit an ear, nose, and throat doctor on Tuesday.

We are thankful that he is happy and lots of fun... even when he's sick!

Recently

This video shows two of Isaiah's favorite activities. The first is standing. He likes to stand on anything sturdy enough to hold him up (crib, toy bin, window sills, etc). The second is playing with the musical noise-maker. In the video, he's especially proud of the way he can make it play music by spinning the thingabob on his right.



Isaiah Stands and Plays from D. Merricks on Vimeo.

first trip to the park

We took Isaiah to the park today. He loved swinging in the swing, going down the slide (with assistance) and climbing back and forth through the tunnel. He also enjoyed watching the other "big" kids play!

8 months old

Isaiah will be 8 months old on Wednesday. Here are a few pictures we took today at Rowan Oak.

that's entertainment

Watching the rain and checking out the air conditioning vent... two very entertaining things to do around our house.

standing tall

About two weeks ago, I went to get Isaiah up from a nap, and this is what he looked like when I opened the door! (These photos are not of the actual event; this is a dramatic reenactment.) After just a few weeks, he stands up now whenever he possibly can and he DOES NOT want anyone to try to stop him! He started cruising around (walking while holding onto furniture) this weekend. It's hard to believe how fast he moves from one milestone to another.