Garden Update

Well, two months into our garden and it's finally bearing fruit! Literally!

Spencer has been a big help and always waters the garden with Brant.

We've harvested three or four large zucchinis, and probably 15 tomatoes. Our favorite treat so far is tomatoes with some of our fresh basil and fresh mozzarella cheese!

Gavin's First Month

Some pictures from Gavin's first month. He's been a fantastic newborn and is sleeping very well. We're so glad he's a part of our family!

4th of July in UA

One of the biggest holidays here in Columbus is the 4th of July. We started our day at the Upper Arlington parade. I knew that Columbus was Buckeye-crazy, but never realized the extent of it until I saw that half of the floats in the parade were Buckeye-focused! I asked Brant whether we were celebrating the founding of our nation or the OSU Football team and he just smiled. Welcome to Ohio :)

Spencer waving his flags as the parade begins!

Boy is this ever the truth..."Buckeye Babies Grow Up to be Buckeye Fanatics!" Spencer's favorite song? The OSU fight song. His favorite colors? Scarlet and Gray. And even as I write this blog, Gavin's wearing an Ohio State onesie. Amazing.

This was a hilarious float. Ohio State "doctors" are shown treating a University of Michigan football player. As they walked down the parade route, they would jokingly ask "Should we treat him?" and the crowd would say "No!" and then pretend to waver on whether or not to save him. A bit morbid, but hilarious all the same.

After the parade, we hung out at home for a while before going to the fireworks at Northam Park. We went with some of our good friends, the Buskens and the Morins. The fireworks were AMAZING and directly over our head. Spencer wasn't a fan at first, but liked them more and more as time went on.

Gavin hanging out at Northam Park before the fireworks began.

Me, Spencer and the Buskens

Visit from Grandma Bonnie!

We were lucky enough to have my mom come and visit for two weeks! We loved having her here and it was great to be able to spend so much time with her.

This was where my mom spent the majority of her time--reading books to Spencer! Pretty much the first and last thing out of his mouth every day was "I read books with Grandma Bonnie." If we would ever try to step in to give my mom a break and suggest that Brant or I read books with him, he would immediately refuse and say "No, Grandma Bonnie read books." Needless to say, we made multiple trips to the library to replenish our stock!

One of our favorite trips was to eastern Ohio to visit the Longaberger headquarters and factory. Here is their corporate office--in the largest basket in the world!

Me, Gavin, Spencer and Mom in front of the Apple Basket at Longaberger.

Spencer loved the big baskets and even got to stand inside of one!

Because it's in Ohio, of course there is a section with Buckeye gear. Here's Brant and Spencer showing their true devotion!

Another fun trip was to Amish country about two hours northeast of Columbus. Here's Brant and Spencer hanging out in a buggy while Mom and I shopped around a craft store.

An adorable picture of Mom, Gavin and Spencer.

We also got to bless Gavin while Mom was here. Below are some family pictures, including Aunt Danille who made the trip from Indiana. We are so grateful for our family and their support. We made multiple sales pitches to Mom on the benefits of living in Ohio, so we'll see! We won't hold our breath, though :)

Fun with Dad

Thanks to Brant being able to take some time off of work for the baby, he had lots of bonding time with Spencer and Gavin. They frequently went to Tremont Pool, where Spencer learned to "jump far" into the water and Brant would catch him. Here they are practicing at home.

They also got to go to COSI one day with Grandma Pam (gotta love the Grandparent's pass!) and had lots of fun.

By far Spencer's favorite game was this machine that blows air beneath these plastic balls so they stay suspended in mid-air. Spencer loved to put them on the air so they would float, then hit them with his hand like he was playing T-Ball!

He also loved this computer that let him draw different colors with his fingers. MUCH nicer and less messy than finger painting, but with the same result! Brilliant!

Spencer, the future Life-Flight captain of Columbus.

Brant and Spencer in an old submarine.

Because Spencer was so good (and in an attempt to make him feel less neglected due to Gavin's arrival) he got a special set of new Dinosaurs from COSI and loves to play with them.

In addition to COSI, Brant and Spencer got to just hang out a lot around the house as well. Here's Spencer busting a move. He loves to put on Brant's hat and say "Yo, yo, yo!" Now where he learned that from, I have NO idea...

Of course, Brant being in-charge of Spencer also resulted in Spencer getting to eat things he normally wouldn't. For example, here's Spencer taking down an entire ice cream sandwich...and loving it :)

Another fun picture: Brant and Spencer in a microwave box that was magically transformed into a rocket ship so Spencer could "be like Buzz." We're pretty sure he's referring to Buzz Lightyear, but perhaps a nod to old-timer Buzz Aldrin as well?

Baby Gavin Has Arrived!

On June 23rd at 8:23 P.M., Gavin Neils Christensen was born! I (Brant) came home from work around 5:30, and Marcie started having contractions pretty much as soon as I got home (good timing). After checking into the hospital at 6:15, Gavin came just over two hours later. Needless to say, he's not a very patient little boy and came very quickly.

The doctors at nurses at Riverside Hospital were amazing and took great care of Marcie and Gavin. He weighed in at 7 lbs 1 oz., and 21 inches long even though he came three weeks early! He's very healthy and happy, as is Marcie. Spencer is adapting very well and loves his baby brother. We're excited for the adventures ahead and welcome Gavin to our family!

Mom and baby right after birth

The proudest big brother in the world!

Spencer, Marcie and Gavin

Ready to go home!

And finally, what has got to be one of the funniest sleeping positions ever.

The Basement is Finished!

Brant and his Dad finally had some time this month to tackle our basement and finish it! When we moved in, there was no separation between the back part of the basement where the washer/dryer are, and the rest of the basement. First, Brant's dad put up a new wall to separate the two areas. Then, this past month, they painted the cinder block, drywall, and ceiling. Then, after all the painting, the put the carpet in. And now it's finished! Well, because we didn't put in a finished ceiling it's not technically finished, but we absolutely love it. It's added tons of living space in the house and we're down there all the time.

Before....

...and after!