As promised before, I have a few more pictures from Andy's ordination:
Bella playing before the service
My Dad, Kristen, and Bella
The Service
Andy's first benediction as an ordained pastor
The little party afterward
Some high school friends and significant others: Left to right: Brianne & Dan Babcock with their daughter, Mackenzie, us, Brian Wedderspoon, and Angela (soon-to-be-Hanson) and Adam Hanson. 
The day's festivities wore Bella out! (Of course, missing her nap may have also contributed).
After the party, we were able to catch up a little with the Golackson's! Here's Caedmon pointing to the fish!
What child doesn't enjoy balloons?
Big balls are also lots of fun!
Lily's silly face!
Andy received some really nice gifts.
~ Life in New Jersey ~
What child doesn't enjoy balloons?Big balls are also lots of fun!Lily's silly face!Andy received some really nice gifts.~ Life in New Jersey ~
We arrived at our new home on Tuesday, July 24th. Overall, the transition has been pretty smooth. It took me about two weeks to venture out in the car on my own. Our house is in a high traffic area that is also under a lot of construction. Lots of traffic tends to make me nervous, but I'm getting used to it. We're slowly switching our PA life over to NJ. So far, I've noticed that things are just a little more expensive around here. For example, our car insurance premiums went up $100 just because we moved here. I haven't seen a gallon of milk for less than $4.65. I guess we're not in Wisconsin anymore! One interesting thing about New Jersey is that you don't pump your own gas here. That will be really nice come winter!
Bella is starting to get used to her new home. Her first week here was rough. She was extra crabby which made that time a little tough. I felt a little bad for her as she really didn't know what was going on. . . all of a sudden we were in this strange place - away from everyone that we know and love. Thank God that things have improved since then. She has already gotten pretty popular with the people at church, so that helps. 
One thing that has kept us pretty busy during our free time is painting this house. All of the walls were white when we moved in. This is the first place we've lived that we've had the liberty to paint, so we've enjoyed that. Some friends from seminary have even come out to help a little. 
Before and after pictures will come eventually. . . we're just not totally to the after part yet (but we're getting close).
One thing that has kept us pretty busy during our free time is painting this house. All of the walls were white when we moved in. This is the first place we've lived that we've had the liberty to paint, so we've enjoyed that. Some friends from seminary have even come out to help a little. Before and after pictures will come eventually. . . we're just not totally to the after part yet (but we're getting close). Bella's continues to grow rapidly - she's almost 21 months now. I really can't believe how close she is to turning 2. Her language has started to explode recently. I've lost track of all her words now. Most of her pronunciations are pretty accurate, but there are a few Bella-isms that are kind of funny:
cars = guys
church = durch
apple = bopple
Amen = ahmay
please = peace
She loves to wave, blow kisses, and say Ba-bye to anyone who visits. Her favorite things to point out are balls, babies, cars, and buses. She's into shoes and accessories as much as ever. Imitation has become a huge thing with her lately - when I'm brushing my teeth, she wants to be brushing her teeth. If I put my hair up, she wants her hair up. If I put my shoes on, she wants her shoes on. It's really cute. I love that she wants to do what I do. She no longer wants to sit in her high chair, so she's in a regular chair now. And, she has gotten really good at using a spoon and fork. She's definitely not a baby anymore. 
Check out the crazy hair!
~My 27th Birthday~
Check out the crazy hair!~My 27th Birthday~This past Tuesday was my birthday. I really wasn't expecting much, but it ended up being a very nice day. Andy took me and Bella out to dinner that night. After that, we went to Blockbuster to pick out a couple of movies to watch (I picked out Miss Potter and The Queen - both of which I would recommend). When we got home, Andy lit candles on my birthday pie and he and Bella sang to me. I felt so blessed as I looked at my husband and daughter. Even in this new place, we still have each other. It sounds so corny, but that is really the best birthday gift I could ever get.
Bella watches as Daddy lights the 27 candles.
Me and my birthday pie!
Me and Bella-Boo!
It took me three tries to blow out these candles. I really thought that I could do it in one. I guess that's a sign that I am getting old.
This water fountain was my gift from Andy. It's going to go in our bedroom. The sound of the trickling water is so relaxing.Me and my birthday pie!Me and Bella-Boo!It took me three tries to blow out these candles. I really thought that I could do it in one. I guess that's a sign that I am getting old.
If all goes well, we will hopefully have our internet at the house by the end of the week. I'm not holding my breath, we'll just wait and see what happens. Once our internet is up, I will be much better about keeping the blog updated. Hopefully I will have another update for you very soon!
Trying to keep her still throughout the service was a little difficult. We were in the front row (we usually sit in the back when we're at church) and she thought she had free reign to go up and play on the alter steps. These are a few of the rare moments when she actually sat with us. 
I have plenty more pictures from Andy's ordination but don't have the time to upload them right now. We're heading out for New Jersey tomorrow so I need to go to bed. I'm not sure when the blog will get updated next - all depends on when we get our internet hooked up in the new house. Next post will be from New Jersey!
Taking a breather and telling Grandma quite the story!
Another joy in life is the little blue horse.
Auntie Lori gave her quite the ride!
We're back at Andy's parent's place for a few days. Andy's ordination is this Saturday at his home church in Madison. On Sunday we're heading back to my parent's house and then we'll leave Monday morning for New Jersey. I'm already feelings lots of mixed emotions - excitement about what's to come but also really sad to say goodbye to our family. . . we've been really spoiled with how much time we've gotten to spend together over the past few weeks and I'm going to miss that.
It was a nice day, so we decided to have some pool time. Jed loved splashing in the water and Bella enjoyed watching him!
Two little cuties!!!
Bella also had a lot of fun playing with her cousins. She hadn't seen them since Christmas, so there was a lot of catching up to do. Here are Bella and Jacob playing on the couch. He was probably saying "Hi Isabella Isabella Isabella" He's such a sweet cousin! 
Bella was excited to help Auntie Laura water the flowers!
Tyler splashed away in the pool!
Bella just wanted to play with her shoes. 
As you can see, she really loves to play with shoes. She even got Jacob to join her!
I took her to the park today and snapped a photo of her going down the slide. She only went down once as the steps to the jungle gym were much more enticing for my little stair climber
Too bad that her feet are too short to reach the pedals. 
This past Monday (which was also my mom's birthday) my mom, Jeff, me, Andy, and Bella took a little trip up to Oshkosh to visit my sister Kristen at school. The drive really wore Andy and Bella out. 
Bella and her Auntie Kristen. 
So happy!
Fourth of July: Isabella wears piggy tails for the first time. She finally has enough hair!
She is such a big girl - goes up and down the slide all by herself!
We went out as a family to the Olive Garden to celebrate my Grandma Rose's 90th birthday. A bunch of us piled into the Expedition, only to have it die on the way to the restaurant. Fortunately, we were practically there when it happened. Unfortunately, it still had to be pushed into the parking lot. My brothers and Jodi's boyfriend, Aaron, got behind the truck while Andy steered. It can't be a Benetti family outing without a little added 'adventure'!
After the car was safely in a parking spot, we all went in for a yummy lunch. Bella was so happy to sit next to Auntie Mary.
Jeff, Grandma Rose, and Lori as Grandma received her birthday cake from the restaurant staff. 
Bella was delighted to eat some chocolate cake. 
She couldn't shovel it in fast enough!
Leaning in to give Auntie Mary a messy kiss!
And. . . the adventure begins again. After getting the truck jumped, we thought we could make it home. That was not the case. It died again shortly after we left the restaurant. My dad followed us and jumped us again. After losing power at least four times and about an hour later, we dropped it off at my other set of grandparent's house and squeezed into two smaller cars to get the rest of the way home. 
Car problems aren't necessarily 'fun' but this will always be memorable! We're already laughing about it. My brother Scott diagnosed the problem and determined that the Expedition needed a new alternator. He fixed it a couple of days later and now the car's back on the road again!
Bella's become pretty talkative lately. Last week, 'yes' was her favorite word. It was the answer to every question. Somewhere along the line, she learned the word 'no' and now it is her answer to everye question. We think we liked 'yes' a little better.
