Our New Yard

Well, it took about 10 months, but we finally got our front yard put in. Jarom worked VERY hard for about 6 weeks. He really did a great job! Steve and Brian also helped several days and we are very grateful to them for their muscles and sweat. Cost was an issue in the planning of the landscape; with the high cost of water right now and a fairly large corner lot, we decided to make about 2/3 of the yard gravel with a grassy area protected by a cute picked fence where the kids can play safely since our street is pretty busy. The project included 20 tons of gravel (most of which Jarom shoveled himself in the 100-110 degree summer heat), moving all the sprinklers, design and building of the fence and gate, install of two 10 foot trees and one 30 foot tree, and laying sod. I think it turned out pretty darn nice. Good job my love!

I love the swing. A nice little touch and so nice to relax on in the evening.

Here is the tree installation. Jarom, Steve, and Brian installed a 30 foot, 2 ton tree without the use of a crane or Bobcat. Instead, they backed the trailer holding the tree over the 4x4x4 foot hole, and used engine hoists on either side of the trailer to hover the tree in the air as the trailer was pulled out from under it. The hoists were each secured in place by the tire of a vehicle to keep it from giving with the weight of the tree. Jarom and Steve then lowered the tree down into the hole while Brian kept it level with a rope while the wind picked up. It was quite the sight! Neighbors came out to watch the event. I'm pretty amazed and grateful that no one was hurt and out house is still intact.

Isaac always wants to be in on the action and is very sad when he cannot be. This is one of the piles of gravel.

The laying of the sod was the most rewarding day. So many WEEKS were spent doing work that didn't seem to make much differance in the appearance of the yard, and then in half a day we had lovely green grass!

Emmett's Blessing

Sunday was sweet Emmett's blessing. Jarom gave him a lovely blessing saying he has a "kind and gentle soul", that he will "love and know love", that he will "touch hearts and be a powerful influence for good", that he will have a "strong mind, with quick wit, and a helping hand", and that he will be "a joy to have as a member of our family". I'm grateful to Jarom for blessing our home and family through the priesthood.

There are only a few special events like this in our lives that bring us all together, and we are glad and grateful for our families who joined us, many traveling very far to be here.

Heavenly Father sure knows how to make us fall in love with these little bundles. Emmett is pure sweetness. I don't know how else to describe him. He smiles and laughs so readily. He loves to be spoken to and smiled at. He even loves to laugh and talk to the fish on his mobile over his crib. He is comforted so easily just by holding him close. He is so easy to love and we sure do love him.

2 Years Old

Our little man is two! It is amazing how much our life has changed these last two years. Isaac is a joy in our hearts, a smile on our faces, and occasionally a groan under our breath; we love him to pieces! I love to watch him discover and learn. Everything is a new adventure and he is an excited explorer. Isaac loves cars, trucks, jeeps, buses, or anything else with wheels! He makes a daily collection of things with wheels and carries them around all day, including clothes he finds in Emmett's drawer or the laundry. He loves rocks and dirt and also enjoys eating them. He loves his daddy and asks for him first thing in the morning when I enter his room to get him out of bed. His language is increasing at an amazing rate; I'm surprised daily with new words, phrases and now sentences he is spiting out. He loves his friends and regularly asks to go see them, play with them, or swim with them by name. He even knows their cars and the front of their houses, and excitedly says their names when he sees them.

We had a cars and trucks birthday party complete with a Jeep cake. Isaac was very excited about the cake and equally disappointed that he could not play with it; what is a two year old birthday party without some tears? Grandpa got him a bounce house which was a hit with all the kiddies.

Isaac loves to hang out with Daddy and Grandpa. Here they are during our yard insall. The tears are when he had to watch from inside the house through the window. So sad.

Are you surprised that the monster truck was the favorite ride at Chuck E. Cheese's? He must have gone on it 20 times. That is one happy boy!

Play hard and.....crash!

Beach party with friends.

Favorite menu items include dirt (I wasn't kidding), sugar, and nuts.

We love our Little Man!

The Smoothie

Isaac and I made smoothies the other morning. This was Isaac's first smoothie encounter and it had positive results. He discovered that dipping his toast in it was also very good.

5 & 8 Weeks

I thought some updates might be nice. Here is our little man at 5 weeks and 8 weeks. I'm amazed at how much he has grown. He is about 14 lbs. now and I had to exchange two boxes of diapers for a bigger size. He has a ready smile and loves to talk when spoken to. Isaac loves his brother; whenever we go somewhere, he makes sure to remind me to bring Emmett along by pointing and saying "Baby!?" Isaac does not like to hold Emmett for more than 5 seconds, so pictures of them together are difficult and usually require a bribe of fruit snacks or Otter Pops.

This is Emmett at 8 weeks

Emmett's Blessing- Getting the word out

We will be blessing Emmett on Sunday September 27 at 11am, at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints 18220 Dexter Ave, Lake Elsinore 92530. We invite all who would like to attend. Lunch will be served at our home following the service. If you would like to bring something to contribute to lunch, any type of salad would be great! green, jello, fruit, pasta, etc.

Sweet Emmett - 2 Weeks

Here is our sweet Emmett at two weeks. He is a lover who loves to cuddle and sleep tummy to tummy. Thanks Amanda for the awesome pictures!

Presenting EMMETT STEVEN RENFELDT

We are pleased to present our new little man, Emmett Steven Renfeldt. He was born on Tuesday July 14th, at 4:57 am, weighing in at 9 lbs, and measuring 19.75 inches long. We are enjoying the change that takes place in a home with the arrival of a new baby. The lights are soft, the house is quiet, and there is nothing on the calendar “to do”. Emmett nursed vigorously just after birth, and then could not be bothered with anything but sleep for the next two days. He is now emerging from the shock of birth and now wants only to EAT! He is like a hibernating bear!

We had planned Emmett’s middle name to be after his daddy, but since he arrived a little early on Grandpa’s birthday, we thought it fun and fitting to use his name instead.

My water broke 5 minutes after we arrived at the beach in San Diego to celebrate Steve’s birthday, around 7PM. Our truck was out of gas, we were towing a trailer because we had just bought some furniture, Jarom’s car was at work where I picked him up on the way, the bags I packed for Isaac and the hospital were at home, and we were a couple hours from our hospital (which was a concern since Isaac came FAST). With all of these realizations running through my head, I was NOT mentally prepared, and panicked for a few minutes. Fortunately no contractions started right away so we took a little time to get something to eat, open a few quick presents and then got on the road to get closer to home. We made it home before the contractions started, had time to take a shower, make some last minute preparations, and go to bed for some rest while we could. Around 1AM the contractions started. Around 3:30AM we left for the hospital. Jarom drove slow and lollygagged getting us inside because he thought it was still too early. By the time we got in, changed into a gown, and got examined, I was dilated to an 8; it was about 4:30AM. I was pushing after a couple more contractions, and Emmet was born in about 3 pushes at 4:57AM. Yeah!

Isaac came to the hospital that evening to meet his “Baby Emmett”. Grandpa, Grandma, and Kelsie practiced saying his name the whole drive. He was very sweet and curious about Emmett. After hugs and kisses for Mommy and Daddy, he wanted to see the baby and hold him. He readily sat down in my lap and put his hands out to hold him (like he was catching a ball). He was very gentle, and gave him kisses and loves. Then of course there were other things to explore in a hospital so he went to work sitting in the baby bed, and opening his present from Emmett. He loved the RC Truck and wanted to show it to everyone, including Emmett. It’s a good thing we had our own room, or the sweet Isaac visit would have been more like an Isaac Invasion.

Thank you Steve and Nancy for your help with Isaac! He loves his Mama, and Papa, and CeCe! Thank you everyone for your phone calls, meals, visits, and love! We are very blessed!

Water Bubba

We have a couple families in our ward who have been awesomely kind enough to open their pools for swimming a couple days a week during the summer. Since I am a whale and Isaac is a fish, we have been taking full advantage of their H2O hospitality. We found this awesome floaty at Walmart in St. George, and it is perfect for Isaac to stay afloat, while allowing him the manuverability to swim that some of the bulkier live jackets prevent. He loves to jump off the steps and bounce around in the shallower water. It is nice for me to be able to play with him without lifting, throwing, crawling, etc. while I'm 9 months prego. (Make sure you see the video)

De Jong Dairy Tour

Our playgroup went on a tour of our local dairy. My battery died three minutes after we got there, so thanks Amanda for the great pictures! The kids had fun feeding the cows, goats, and sheep; they learned how the cows are milked (and even got to test out the pumps on themselves), and then got cookies and Herman's famous chocolate milk. Yummm! Can you tell that Isaac takes his cookies very seriously; it must be genetic! In the video Isaac had a near escape from a cow kiss.

Nursery

Isaac loves going to Nursery on Sunday. Can you tell why? He loves to do the actions that go along with the songs (The Snowman Song and If You're Happy and You Know It are his favorites). He is always excited to see his friends, and he LOVES snack time and is always one of the first ones finished. We are still working on lengthing our attention span for lesson time, but I'm sure that will come with a little more time.

Looking for Daddy

Jarom was outside working in the yard. Isaac and I were inside. Things got a little too quiet for my liking so I went to investigate. This is what I found.

Temecula Duck Pond

We took the kids the Duck Pond for a picnic. I love Spring time. The weather has been so pleasant for all of our activities, and this was no exception. The kids had fun eatting as much bread as the ducks, Isaac got to show off his "duck smile", and we enjoyed the sunshine and company of friends.

Swimming with Isaac

We went for a refreshing swim after our friends had their swim lessons. Isaac loved the water. Our friends have a tube seat for babies ones and he was able to float around watching the other kids play. He especially loved jumping off the reef step! He was fearless so I had to be ready for him! Do you like my tan line from our Sea World visit?! Ewe! Thanks Taylors for letting us use your pool!

Sea World

We were able to go to Sea World for the sweet price of $5.75 on an “educational field trip” with a home school group. Grandma Nancy was able to join us for most of the day which we were super thrilled about. Isaac particularly liked the sea lion exhibit, the flamingo parade, and the feeding of the white whales (beluga?). He was not so much into the shows as he is a busy boy and sitting for any amount of time gets old real fast. He would try to push me up off the bench and say “go, go”. It was a fun and sunshiny day!

Isaac AKA "Skater Bub"

Isaac and Grandpa had fun on the skateboard during a recent visit. Isaac had a smile from ear to ear the whole time and never let go of that ball in his hand! Sorry the video quality is poor, it was taken with my camera.

Father & Son Campout

This weekend was Jarom and Isaac's first Father and Son Campout! They report to have had a great time. Isaac loved exploring around camp; they ate lots of sugar; and Grandpa showed Isaac that if he throws things in the creek they will float away (this became his obsession). Unfortunately Isaac did not go to sleep until 3 am (see red eyed picture below) so he is currently taking a very long nap. I enjoyed a quite evening by myself working on photo books and watching Emma.

Mother's Day

I had a lovely Mother's Day on Sunday. I was woken to a tray of gianormous pancakes, fruit, juice, and hot cocoa (my favorite) in bed. Isaac helped Daddy with breakfeast by staying asleep. Then Jarom fed Isaac, put him in the bath, and helped man him most of the morning so I could get ready unhindered. Just having Jarom home on a Sunday morning was a treat, but all the extras were WONDERFUL! I also got these beautiful flowers and a PIANO.