update 3...

Well, we all made it home yesterday afternoon... thankfully, we're not yet outnumbered, but it's leaning in their direction. Here's a few more photos from the last couple of days. Silas is doing well with the transition... and as you'll see, he's still a goof ball!


Here's a couple of what he wore home from the hospital...


a BIG yawn...




And Damon holding Nathan on Sunday night...



And now... the crazy man himself...





where'd he learn to dance?






and it looks like we might have a plumber in the family... and for the record, those are 12 mo. shorts...

Day 2...

Sheila is beginning to walk again, and is doing great. It's amazing to witness her determination. Our very good friends - the Swaseys - have been kind to us by watching Silas over the last few nights. I'm at home tonight to try to get Silas back onto a schedule. Here's a few more photos for your viewing pleasure...

Ok - would you think it's time to eat from his expression?




You talking about me buddy?



That's it, I'm just gonna sit right here - and there's nothing you can do about it.


And you think taking my shirt off is gonna help...

Introductions are necessary...

I got a call at 4:30 yesterday afternoon at work from Sheila...essentially saying "It's TIME..." Thankfully, by God's grace, work is now only 15-20 minutes away. By 6:00 we were at the hospital, Silas was in the care of our very good friends - Garrett and Rachel Swasey - and contractions were on their way. The hospital is brand new (it opened a month ago) and the birthing suites are ENORMOUS... what's even better is that the beds for Dads are actual beds. The couch in the post-delivery room opens to a full size bed - SO MUCH BETTER than our last experience.

Anyway, at 1:10 am God blessed us with another baby boy, Nathanael Kinnick Aichele. Sheila definitely knows how to grow em... he was 8 lbs. 8.5 oz. and 20.5 inches long.













For those who may not know... Nathanael mean "gift of God"... and Nathan means "God has given". Did you catch how big he is? Sheila made every effort to deliver naturally, however, with a guy that big, there was NO WAY that it was going to happen, so she did have a C-Section. As a whole, he is a HEALTHY boy.

Sheila is recovering well, and as I type, Nathan is in his mama's arms. We've got to get him back to the nursery in a hour and a half for additional testing.

Our Big Boy....

Kurt happened to capture this photo the other night before bed when Silas was acting goofy. After we looked at it, we both just fell in love with it for some reason. He seems like such a "big boy" in this picture that I had to share it.

Anyways, no baby news yet. My official due date is tomorrow, but we know how that goes based upon how everything went with Silas, so we're just trusting in the Lord's perfect timing, as always!

Daddy and Son Hike

Our church had their annual care group hike this past Sunday. I decided it was not in the best interest for me to go. It is a beautiful hike into the foothills with the colors just starting to change, but it does take some effort and I was fearful of the hike down the foothills. So, Kurt took Silas in the backpack and gave me a Sunday afternoon to myself. I had a very relaxing day, as I took a nap and really didn't do anything. I'm not sure I can remember the last time that has happened. Silas did really good on the hike and both Kurt and Silas were pooped last night! Here are some pictures that Kurt took on their hike.

Denver Zoo

We had the opportunity to visit the Denver Zoo on Friday, because Kurt had a conference there, so he got in free. Although we love the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo here in the Springs with the wonderful mountain view and the giraffes, I must admit there are many benefits to the Denver Zoo. It is much bigger, and even though it has more walking, it isn't all uphill, so it was much easier on me. They have a lot of African animals, so we enjoyed seeing all of them. Silas liked the bears best, as they were very active, taking baths, playing and sunbathing. It was a long day for all of us, but much enjoyed.

Silas also got to ride on the carousel for the first time with Kurt. He wasn't so sure about it at first, but of course, once the ride ended, he made sure everyone knew that he liked it and didn't want to go! Here are a few pictures we took.

Miss Sandy

Well, as I prepare to stay at home after our next child, we are sad to say good-bye to our wonderful childcare provider, Miss Sandy. She has been such a blessing to us and I know we will continue to keep in touch.

Miss Sandy started watching Silas a little over a year ago, when our provider at that time could no longer do childcare because of health issues. Our provider at that time basically called us and gave us a one day notice that she could no longer do it. We didn't know what to do and where to turn, but she recommended Miss Sandy. So, Kurt had the opportunity to meet her and then I went the next day and we have been blessed ever since. This was a new endeavor for Miss Sandy, as she wasn't currently watching any children and throughout this whole year, Silas has been the only child that she has watched. However, we have been the ones to benefit from this, as she has given him such great care. I think of all the times that we have dropped him off, I have no concerns and normally he waves good-bye to us and says "bye-bye". Then when we pick him up at the end of the day, the funny thing is is that he also looks far better than when we dropped him off, as he normally has had a bath and a change of clothes. Miss Sandy is also a Christian, so it has been so nice to have a Christian lady to take care of our child and love on him when we are not able to.

Anyways, we are going to miss seeing Miss Sandy so much, as she has become an important part of our life, but I know we will keep in touch. She is still more than happy to watch Silas (and hopefully our new little one), which we might take her up on the offer so that I can have a little break every now and then and also for date nights. Miss Sandy is going to start watching another little boy (9 months old) so we're thankful she is going to continue as I'm sure she will bless this family also.

Here are some pictures of Silas and Miss Sandy.

Our mini golf experience

Kurt and I love to go mini golfing for fun, so the other day we decided to try it. Mini golf sure takes on a new meaning with a toddler! Silas loved to chase around the balls and move them wherever he wanted to. Thankfully the course wasn't busy at all, so we took our time and just enjoyed playing wherever the ball "landed". The best part, was that Silas was more than happy to always get our balls out of the holes, which meant less bending over for mommy! Yeah.

Well, that worked great until the 18th hole when the ball goes "bye-bye" and doesn't come back. So I've attached a few pictures of Silas trying to figure out where the balls went when he tried to retrieve them. It was really funny! We sat there for probably 5 minutes while he kept trying to find the balls.

18 month old update

Hard to believe, but Silas is 18 months now. I thought I'd update on what he's been up to lately. He changes so quickly, it's hard to keep up with him. We just had his dr's appt and he weighs 21 lb 11.5 oz, which is the 7th percentile. Hey, he moved up ever so slightly! He's still such a peanut. His height is 31.5 inches which is 25th percentile, so he did increase on that.

Silas is really into balls, and our living room has now become a soccer field. He will kick the ball from one end of the room and turn around and go right back in the other direction. He is really into books and now he lets you know where to sit and he brings you his favorite book and the next thing you know time has just flown by. He really enjoys his books. Some of his favorite words are "bus", "truck", "car", "ball", "cracker", "haven" and all kinds of animals and noises. His favorite song is "the wheels on the bus" and he is starting to imitate it, so it is really cute to see that. I know I'm missing a lot and I'll think of more, but these were things that just came to my mind.

This weekend we attempted to do our own family pictures and 18 month old pictures to save money. I think they turned out great. Kurt is finishing cropping the ones we like and making them look even nicer, but I'm going to attach a few of the funny ones to show off.