He crawls!

Well Kale started crawling tonight! I was very exciting....he just decided I going to do it and he was gone! I have some videos but they are not uploaded to YouTube yet....they should be showing up any min. (I have done my part). You can just go to YouTube and then search Kale Jaob Dreiling and you can see 3 videos of him crawling.....

No Surgery!

Well I avoided surgery! woo hooo! I showed no signs of having cronic infections so the Dr. let me keep my gall bladder! I am back to work now and regaining my energy! Hopefully we won't have to go through that again!

Kale is recouping slowly from vacation but getting worn out again playing with Grandma and Grandpa Dreiling. Since Grandpa was on vacation this week they wanted Kale to come up and play during the day instead of going to daycare. Since they already babysit Marisa they have both kids all week. It is really keeping them on their toes but they are enjoying it! Kale and Marisa have gotten to go and play in the fountains at the water park, walk around Dillon Nature Center and walk to mall countless times, along with playing with all the neat toys at their house.

I haven't had a chance to upload any new pics lately cause we are trying to catch up on everything around the house from vacation. We are getting our carpet laid on thursday next week. So that means we have to have all the "stuff" around the house picked up and out of the way for them to work! Yikes! Kale is still not crawling but very close. We lowered his crib last night though cause he kept standing himself up and hanging over the edge!

Update on Stephanie

Well for anyone who I haven't talked to since our return I just wanted to let everyone know I am still in the hospital but I am starting to feel better slowly! For anyone who doesn't know what was going on here is what happened.

I started to have some pain in my side on Thursday. I just assumed I had ate something that wasn't agreeing and with all the walking we had done, figured it would go away after getting off my feet. The pain didn't go away and was starting to affect my appetite. Sunday night we ended up leaving the final dinner a little early to get on the road a little faster. The pain only started to worsen. Due to being in the car I am sure it didn't help but we drove on to get home as quickly as we could to get home. We pulled into Topeka about 4:40 PM on Sunday and Erin and I decided to get all the way to Hutchinson so I could sleep in my own bed Sunday night. We got into Hutchinson about 8:30 PM and by 9:30 PM decided to head into the ER and get checked out. I was not sure what was wrong but thought maybe it was appendicitis or something like it. After getting checked in the Dr.'s ruled out Appendicitis but found the pain could be caused by my gall bladder. I ended up being moved out the ER and into a room about 3:30 AM Monday morning. Erin and I finally got to bed about 4:30 this AM. After waiting all day for the Nuclear Medicine appointment today to get one final scan I am finally able to have a liquid diet for the evening. I will be staying here again tonight and see a surgeon tomorrow to find out if they are going to remove my gall bladder or if they are just going to treat the inflammation (and possible infection) with antibiotics.

Kale stayed with his Grandma and Grandpa Dreiling last night and during the day today. Erin will be staying at home with this this evening then they will watch him during the day tomorrow, while Erin goes back to work.

If any surgery is going to be done I will keep everyone updated but it will be Wednesday if at all.

Steph

PS I will try and get the vacation stuff up one of these days!!!

Oops!

Sorry guys I have not gotten our trip stuff updated! I hope to get that done very soon! We are having a great time up here! Kale is seen some cool things and gotten to stay up past his bed time almost every night!!! We will be heading part way tomorrow night then the rest of the way to Topeka on Sunday. Then on Monday we will drive to Hutchinson.

Packing!!

Well we are almost done packing for vacation.....as much as we will do tonight at least! It is really hard packing for the first long vacation with a baby! You never think you have enough. At this point I am not sure if we will all fit in the car with all of Kales things!

Our itinerary includes:
Monday:
Drive to Topeka and stay the night with my (Steph's) parents
Tuesday:
Be in KC at Children's Mercy by 8:30 AM for Kales Dr. AppointmentsLeave from KC and head towards Clear Lake, Iowa (stay for the night)
Wednesday:
Leave from Iowa and head to Superior arrive early afternoon and spend the day sightseeing Mom and Dad have a dinner to attend at the Amsoil Conference but we are free the first night
Thursday:
Check-in at Conference by 1:30 attend meetings until 5...spend rest of day sightseeing
Friday:
Tour Amsoil plant
Saturday:
Attend final meeting and dinner
Start home about 8 or 9 PM
Spend night somewhere about half way.
Sunday:
Arrive in Topeka and drop off Steph's parents and then head back towards Hutchinson

We are very excited to go and hope that Kale enjoys it! Check back throughout the week I am going to try and update this as we go along so I don't leave anything out!

More Weekend Events!

Yesterday (July 5th) was also a fun and busy day for us! Kales Great Grandma and Great Grandpa Dreiling celebrated their 60th Wedding anniversary! We loaded up the car and took off for Hays about 8:15 AM. We arrived just in time for the party to start! We had a great time seeing everyone! Many people Kale was meeting for the first time! He did very well with everyone around. At first he was a little timid about going to others but after he warmed up to the situation he was passed around to everyone with no objections!

When we got back into Hutch, we went and visited one of Kales other Great Grandmas. Great Grandma Fischer has been having some pain in her back so we went to help cheer her up! Great Grandma really enjoyed seeing him for a little while, and Kale liked to play with all the new things in her room!

Today has been a day of relaxation for Kale and a day to catch up with the house cleaning for Erin and I! Kale was really worn out from the weekend events because he has slept quite a bit today! Erin and I did alot of laundry to help get ready for our vacation next week, and even got grass planted and the rest of the yard mowed!

We had a nice visit from Monica and Marisa today, they were on the way to the store to do a little shopping! Now our day is winding down but Kale is fighting sleep so Erin is rocking with him to see if he can finally get him to fall asleep for the night!

Forth of July Weekend

We had a very busy and entertaining weekend this 4th of July! We started it off by lighting off some fireworks of our own on the 2nd. We wanted to make sure Kale was comfortable being around the noise before we took him out the rest of the week! Erin and I took turns shooting off our fireworks and to our surprise Kale loved them all! Kale stayed up until about 9:30 PM watching our fireworks and also everyone around us.

On the 3rd we went to Bill's house (Stephanie's Co-Worker) north of town to eat dinner and shoot off more fireworks! Bill had lots of fireworks to shoot, they started shortly before dark with the smaller ones and the non-nighttime fireworks. Then at dark they started with the huge ones! Kale was very entertained with the lights and colors. He jumped a few times when there was a loud boom but never cried! The large fireworks went off for about 30 min and Kale watched all but about the last 7 or 8 min. He even slept through 750 Saturn missles going off!!! Once he was asleep there was nothing that could wake him up!

On the morning of the 4th Erin, Kale and I went for a walk down main street to kick off the parade and daily HutchFest activities. To our surprise the huge crowd that we had expected to join the walk was very small! We ended up being one of the last few to cross the finish line since everyone else was running or biking! Then we stuck around to watch the parade. We found Monica, Michael and Marisa along the way and sat with them for the parade! To our surprise the parade lasted for 2 hours!!!

The afternoon of the 4th Monica, Marisa, Erin, Kale and I went for a swim at the Salt City Splash pool! We had alot of fun watching and playing with the kids in the water! Marisa really liked the water and had great fun playing with Kale and his toys!

After Kale took a long nap! (much needed after his busy day) We went out side to watch more fireworks. Kale watched them for a while but was not near as close as we were to them at Bill's house so he was distracted by everything else around him. We went to the corner of 17th and Plum to watch the fireworks at the fairgrounds. Again Kale watched part of the show and fell asleep!

Video's

It seems some people are having trouble viewing the videos. If you would like to see any of Kale's movies you can also view them at www.youtube.com Once on the website search for Kale Jacob Dreiling and all of his videos will show up! Sometimes you have to click play more than once but just note I do not remove the videos so if the error message pops up just go out and back it to view the movie!

Another Movie!

Here is a funny little clip I finally got uploaded! Kale loves to bounce in his excosaucer! Here is a short movie of it! You can also hear his scream!!!

Video of Kale Crawling

Check out this video of Kale learning to crawl! Erin and I are still learning not to talk when we are using the camcorder! Sorry! :)

HutchFest

Yesterday was the start of HutchFest 2008 however, today was the car show that Erin attended to help promote his Amsoil sales. He cleaned up the Pilot and loaded it up with all his products and materials. He arrived about 3 PM, and started speaking with people. Amsoil is Erin's at-home business that he is starting to work with. My dad has sold Amsoil for over 30years now and has gotten Erin interseted. It started out as a Synthetic Oil line, but now has evolved into vehicle oils and lubricants, car accessories, organic fertilizers, and even vitamins. It is a great business that has alot of great products.....check them out at http://www.amsoil.com/ .

Well anyway today was a great day for a car show but it sure was hot! Kale and I walked around for a few hours and checked everything out! Along with the car show there were rides, games and even a petting zoo! The petting zoo was his favorite part.....(even though I wouldn't let him touch the animals)! Afterwards we went back and sat with dad at the truck for a while. We ran into Marisa (Kale's cousin) who was walking around with Monica (her mom, Erin's sister) and Michael (her dad). All in all, we had a great time, but we had to come home and take a nap cause it was getting really hot!

Tomorrow, we are planning on going swimming so hopefully we will get more pictures up!

Summer Fun!

Well summer is going well for us this year. We are having alot of fun spending time outside! Kale really enjoys the water and playing out side. Lastnight, we took Kale to the Salt City Splash (the public pool here in Hutchinson). After a long day at work for Erin and I, we decided it would be a nice way to relax for th evening! So off to the pool we went! Kale and Erin had a great time swiming in the big pool and watching all the other crazy kids splashing around. We have to watch him though cause Kale likes to try and drink the water! He is really good at kicking around when on his stomach, but he is not a fan of being on his back yet! He always trying to sit back up, he likes to see what is infront and all around him. By the time we were done swimming he was worn out and ready for bed! He laid around on the lounge chairs while we got his stuff together! It was a fun and exciting 40 minutes for him!

Here is a short video of Kale playing in the water fountains!

Well this week we have had alot going on at our house. We are done with our portion of the basement and now the Drywall guys are there getting the walls hung. It is a big and messy project we are finding! While they are working in the basement we have had the air conditionar off to help keep the dust in the basement and not upstairs! Uhhhggg it really makes it hot and sticky upstairs though! While working in the basement I stepped on a nail and it went through the sole of my shoe and into the bottom of my foot. So, on Monday I had to go into the doctor and get a tetnis shot. Ouch! So now not only does my foot hurt, but my arm does too! Guess that is what I get for not watching where I walk! We hope to begin painting this weekend, but the drywall guys decided not to show up today so we are not sure the room will be ready for paint this weekend.

We have alot going on this month as far as birthdays and other personal events. Evan had a birthday on the 10th, along with Chastity. Chastity is my cousin who lives in Arkansas. She just had a new baby girl on the 2nd of this month, welcome Brooklynn Nicole Gillin! She is just beautiful. The 13th is my moms birthday, then the 15th is my sisters. My brother-in law also had a birthday this month. Then, of course, we have fathers day! Kale is very excited to celebrate that with his father, being it is their first one! The 17th of this month is my in-laws anniversary. So with all the presents and cards we are sending, the post office is loving us! Hopefully, if we are not painting, Erin, Kale and I will head down to Winfield to celebrate all the birthdays and Father's day with everyone.

Kale is doing well, still trying to get over his cough. He is really getting big and is ready to crawl any day now. He is great at getting up on his arms, but is still working on getting his knees underneath him. Right now, he is great at crawling backwards! So I am sure we are not far off! Still no teeth yet, but that is alright!

We got word from all our friends in Manhatten that they are all safe from the monsterous tornado the other day! Also spoke with my college roommate's family and found out their home in Chapman was spared from all the damage. They were very lucky. Hopefully these storms will start dying off soon and the threat for severe weather will end!

Fun in the Sun!

We had a great weekend, and productive too! Friday evening we worked on the yard a bit then hung out inside! Saturday, Erin took the rest of the carpet and paneling to the dump, so the basement is officially cleaned out and ready for new drywall! The water proofers started Saturday also, and will hopefully finish up today. That leaves Erin responsible for the electrical work before we can get the drywall hung. I finished up with a project on the east side of the house, I finally got my trellis painted and my rose bushes pulled over to it. I also pulled a lot of weeds and got my flower bed ready for the new wall. However, I ran into a slight speed bump when I found out the rock that I wanted to put around my flower bed was not being sold any longer! So now I have a flower bed with flowers and nice dirt but no border!



Also on Sunday we had a great time as a family in the pool! We put it up a few weeks ago in hopes it would start getting warm. It seems to be getting there but the humidity doesn't warm it as much as those hot sunny days! Kale got in for about 20 to 30 min but was ready for a nap! He really likes to splash in the water, but he is not a big fan of putting his belly in. As long as you hold him with the water at only waist level under he was fine! He seemed to be more interested in playing with his bath tub toys than taking pictures as you can see! But all in all we had a great time!!

I haven't forgotten!

Well I have already slacked off and not written for a bit, but I am back now! We had a great long Memorial Day weekend recently. I was off work four days straight which was nice! Erin got a three day weekend. Kale and I went shopping on Friday and got some new clothes for him since he is really growing now! He will soon be wearing all 6-9 month clothes! He is really growing fast!

Saturday we did some work around the house and got the basement all torn up. With a little help from Erin's dad they got all the walls and carpet torn out and off to the dump! Next step the waterproofer will come out and do his thing then the drywall can be hung!

Spent Memorial Day (Sunday) at Grandma and Grandpa Dreiling's house here in Hutch. Where Judy and Larry, Shirley and Don all came up to visit. We had a nice lunch and afterwards took some pictures outside.

Monday we all hung out around the house together and spent a fun day together. Erin and I played the Wii and tried to master our new Wii Fit game while Kale took a nap. Now we are all back in the routine of the week!

Graduates!

Well Erin and I did it, we graduated! It was really nice having our family's come and share the day with us! We enjoyed having our parents and sisters in attendance at the ceremony.

Erin and I would like to say Thank You to everyone who shared our special day, even if only in thought! It was a great motivator having everyone supporting us! The cards and gifts were all appreicated as well!

We have a few pictures of the special day, but because of the huricane-force winds we don't have any outdoor shots!! Thanks Nicole for taking all the shots!

Kale did well through the ceremony, he actually did better than some of the grown-ups! We know he was proud of his parents!

Welcome

Well I have decided that since much of the family doesn't get to see Kale on a regular basis and everyone doesn't have a MySpace of Facebook account that I would start a blog spot for Kale! I got this idea from a great friend who has recently started a page since she is away from home for a bit!

I will try and update this as often as possible and anytime something big is going on in our lives!

Kale is really getting big now! He is over 15 lbs now and just over 2 feet long!!! He is a real cool dude.....check out his shades! He really likes them a lot and never tries to pull them off!

Erin started his new job out at the office (Dillon's) as a investigator in the Loss Prevention Department. He is really enjoying it, and was recently awarded a "Gold Star" for his achievements in a recent case!

I am still working at the college in the Financial Aid office, it is going well but I am hoping to move up soon.

Erin and I will both be graduating from Friends University tomorrow with Bachelors degrees in Business Management.

Kale is doing well at day care. He seems to be a very social baby! Not sure which one of us he got that from!! :) He is babbling more and more each day! He is sitting for long periods of time now without falling over and is just starting to eat solid foods.

Kale has alot of fun playing with the dogs at home! He does have a habit of pulling on Harley's ears, but Harley really doesn't seem to mind! Skeeter thinks she is mom. She is always watching over Kale and running to him any time he cries!!