Library Visit

We went to the library and while we were looking at books we let Ira explore a little bit, this is where we found him.

Spring Thaw

Thought I would put a quick update out. We're starting to get to know the area better. We visited the Minnesota Institute of Art and found the library. We were all sick for a week, but it was nice to have an excuse to stay in for a weekend since the weather was cold.  Now we are finally starting to get some slightly warmer temperatures and the snow has begun to retreat allowing us to get out and explore some of the trails around our neighborhood. It's nice living in a neighborhood that is pedestrian friendly. While on a walk around a small lake we saw some beavers coming up on the ice to bask in the sun.  We're also getting to know the ward better.  I got called as an Elder's Quorum teacher, and Sharon is a nursery worker.  She says that Ira seems so small compared to all the other kids in there, but usually fends for himself well.

We put a little video together of some of the things Ira enjoys doing at this stage of his life. They mostly involve crawling into small dark spaces and surprising us. He's pretty cute. Enjoy the video below.

Apple Photo Shoot

I got the camera out and tried to get some pictures of Ira in the beautiful sunlight this weekend. I need to brush up on getting the settings right to capture the light, most of them ended up a little overexposed. I decided to see what I could do with Picasa's online photo editing software, picnik. I was impressed with the range and flexibility they give you for editing with their free version. I'm too cheap right now to pay for their premier offering. Here is what I ended up with, you can see the originals in our 2011 album.

The number one comment we get on Ira is along the lines of, 'His eyes are so beautiful and blue'.

 I love the apple juice drool rolling off the bottom of his chin.

New things Ira has been doing:

- Babbling long strings of sounds that are almost sound like words.

- Relaxing in his high chair when we feed him with one leg up.

- Walking whenever he can, he's really getting the hang of it.

- Putting food in containers, like bowls, then holding a fork or spoon and smashing the food in the bowl.

- Getting more teeth

Laughing Babies

Sharon says she is embarrassed at how funny she thinks this is. One laughing baby is enough to bring a smile to my face. However, four laughing babies make me laugh out loud with them. Enjoy.

Minnesota Acculturation

We are starting to feel settled in our new place in Minnesota and have begun the acculturation process. I have to honestly say I'd never imagined living in the North Central United States before and have met very few people who have been from the area. I now know why, very few people seem to leave. The community is great here and the culture distinct.

We will post on some of the interesting insights we have while we're here, but this weekend gave us a wealth of wonderful exposure to the way of Minnesotans. My work opted for a 'Winter Extravaganza' event in place of the usually summer picnic, clue #1 that people up here enjoy doing things a little differently. The event took place on (literally) a lake out in the suburbs of Minneapolis.

 Nothing like some good old ice bowling! 

They had an ice fishing tent, complete with a wet bar for the adults. Needless to say no one caught anything all night, but we at least got to try ice fishing... 

 They had fires set up so we could roast some mallows eat s'mores. 

 Ira liked the lemonade they served at dinner.

They also had a DJ so all the kids could get their wiggles out.

We went on a 'sleigh' ride pulled by horses, but didn't get any pictures. Some other activities we didn't play because it was getting too late and cold for Ira, included hockey, ice golf, ice bocce ball, and 'couching' (They put skis on the bottom of a couch and towed it behind a jeep on the lake).

To clear the confusion of our move to Minnesota six months after moving to Connecticut, I'll provided a brief update on why we're in Minnesota. I'm in a two year program that for the sake of explanation works like a two year Mormon mission. Within GE Capital (The 'mission') I move (get 'transfered') every 6 months to a new assignment ('area'). With each new assignment, there is the possibility of moving to a new City or State. The purpose is to give the people in the program a wide breadth of experience on different types of projects filling a diverse range of roles as well as expose them to different parts of the business so they understand the 'big picture' of how the business works. My first assignment was in Connecticut (where a large majority of the assignments are for GE Capital). My second assignment is in Minnesota. In six months I will get my Third assignment, which will probably be back in Connecticut, so we will move again.

Ira Begins to Walk

The last month Ira has become more confident with standing and shuffling his feet a bit. We threw together this video to show some of the progress he's been making this week as the concept of using his legs for getting around seems to have finally settled.

RELIEF SOCIETY (Tribute song)

For those who aren't familiar with the Latter-Day Saint(LDS or Mormon) culture this might be harder to appreciate, but to give some context the Relief Society is an organization within the LDS Church exclusively for women. It is one of the oldest women's organizations in the world if I remember my facts right. Even if you don't understand the church references it is a fun tribute to womanhood in general. Enjoy.