Evan Ryne Fandrei

On Thursday, May 29th we welcomed Evan Ryne Fandrei. He is the son of Todd and Amy Fandrei, Mindy's brother and our sister-in-law! He was a little guy, but he is a cutie!
Our congrats to them, and the man with a full head of hair. Welcome Evan!

June - Summer is here!

Bring out the pool and crack the sun tan lotion. Aiden is ready for the pool, the Mr. Hoppy Frog Pool that is. Aiden is definitely ready for the summer sun.

The weather finally cleared on Father's Day and we were able to get to the park to play and walk around. We have realized that there are not many pictures where Aiden isn't eating something or his mouth is widen open. Oh well!

May Update

Our May activities involved us traveling to South Carolina to visit Zac's parents. Aiden and Hannah, Aiden's cousin, spent as much time in the pool as possibly. Next trip, Poppa promised that Aiden could drive the tractor. He won't stop talking about it.

April Update

April started off with some play time outside. We enjoyed some unseasonable weather and took advantage of it.

Happy Easter!!!

We hope that everyone had a wonderful Easter this year! Aiden has become extremely fond of wearing hats and head gear.

Aiden's Christening Video

Aiden's Christening - January 2008

February 2008

January 2008

December 2007

Christmas Time

Christmas Photos

We took some family photos for Christmas as well as some of Aiden enjoying his first venture out into the Great White North... well it was just our backyard, but it was mystical.

First Major Snow in NWI

House Decorations

We grabbed some shots of our decorations in the snow and of Aiden doing his favorite thing, wearing a hat!

Solids Baby!!!!

First Time Eating Cereal

Aiden made the first attempt at solids, well cereal actually. The texture seemed odd to him, but he got the hang of it eventually.

Thanksgiving in Kentucky and South Carolina

We made a trip to South Carolina for the Thanksgiving holiday and stopped along the way in Kentucky to visit Zac's grandparents.

Thanksgiving-Kentucky

Thanksgiving-Anderson

November Update

November Update

Just some shots from the month of November.

October Update

ACM Update - October

I think the captions will speak for themselves. No intro needed.

Purdue vs. Notre Dame - Tailgating

Tailgating

This was Aiden's first adventure to the Holy Land. We enjoyed a great day on campus and showed him what it was like to party without football tickets.

September Photos

ACM Update - September

Things have been extremely busy here at the McConnell House.
Our little guy is getting to be not so little anymore. We hope you
enjoy the pictures.

Week 7

Week 7

Here are some pictures from this last week. Aiden is doing great and is starting to make different faces and smiles when he responds to us. It really is incredible how fast he is growing.

Aiden's Dance Moves

Aiden has figured out how to throw his arms and legs around. He is growing so fast and we figure he is easily pushing 11 lbs by now. We caught a little bit of his dancing on video. We will be posting more photos soon, so please check back.

Aiden's 1 Month Old

Week 4

Aiden is one month old and we have some pictures to share. He had a doctor's visit yesterday and he is weighing in at 9lbs 10oz and 22 1/4 inches. He is doing great and he said that he wants to stay here! Hope all is well with everyone. Enjoy the rest of the summer!

Oh Rubber Ducky, You're the one!

This is our first attempt at posting a video. The original was a higher quality, so I'm going to work on that to see if we can improve it. But this was Aiden's last sponge bath before he gets to use the big boy tub.

A.C.U. (Aiden Cooper Update)

Week 3

Back by popular demand, we have posted some updated pictures of Aiden. He is in is 4th week and doing great. He is weighing in at 8.5 oz. and 21 1/4 inches as of the last doctor's visit. He is becoming more alert every day and beginning to follow things with this eyes. He is extremely excited about this weekends pre-season Bears game. I promised him some Buffalo wings if you he can say "Bear Down" by kick-off. We won't hold our breath though. Hope you enjoy the photos!

Zac and Mindy

Introducing Aiden Cooper McConnell

Aiden Cooper McConnell

Well he finally arrived on Saturday!!!!!
He surprised us early Saturday morning when he decided to come a day before Mindy was going be induced.
Here are the stats

Born Saturday, July 14, 2007 at 6:41 p.m.
7lbs 8 oz. 20 inches long.

Many people drove near and far to share the moment with us even after short notice of the pending delivery. Zac's parents made a 12 hour trip from South Carolina and made the birth within 10 minutes. The Chucker (Zac's dad) pulled off another long haul to get Nana Mac (Zac's mom) here in time for their latest grandchild.

Mindy's family set up shop at the hospital during the day awaiting the news starting at 7:00 a.m. Randall El and Cor Dog (Mindy's mom and dad) brought a steaming hot cup of Dunkin Donuts coffee for Zac as well as his wallet that he forgot at the house. We'll cut him some slack, it was 2:00 am. Anyways, Mindy was tormented by the smell of fresh DD's, we thought the nursing staff would frown on a woman in active labor sucking down a cup of joe and a bear claw.

We want to thank everyone for everything they have done to make this moment in our life so special.

We are extremely happy and can't express the love we have for him already. He has already developed his own little personality. Here are some pictures of the last couple days that we thought we would share with everyone! Double click on the image below for the album. There will be more to see in the near future so please stay tuned.

Baby Cradle

Well after four years of having it in my possession, I have finally put the protective finish on this beautiful cradle that was handmade by my grandfather and dad. We are so appreciative of their hard work and effort that went into this piece of furniture. We can't wait to rock our son to sleep in it!

FYI, all of the additions to the McConnell (Us), Bredemeier (Jen and Blake)and Tolin (Caryn and Rick) Tribes have had or have one to enjoy.

July-Cradle

Basement Remodeling Update

We just had the carpet laid and the drop ceiling is in the progress of being installed. We are getting closer and closer.

July-Basement Remodel

Basement Update - Part Duex

We are in month 5 of the basement remodeling. Things are moving along slowly, but surely. If I was getting paid by the hour, I would have broke the budget back in April.
We have the 1st coat of paint on the walls and the doors are resting nicely in the closet (see slideshow). We are starting the ceiling this weekend and whatever else we can get done.

For future reference, when I say "WE", I usually mean Mindy. She has enjoyed having me as a sub-contractor. If it weren't for her constant nagging to have a "safety meeting" due to all the debris on the floor, I would have wrapped this up awhile ago. Well that's all for now.

Nursery Pictures

We are working hard to prepare for the "little ball of fire" to arrive. Mindy has been putting things in their places. We put together the furniture this weekend.
I think this kid has a nicer bedroom set then we do!

Well, the countdown has begun, (like we weren't counting before). We are at 4.6 weeks to go!
I have my catchers mitt ready just in case the coach calls on me and the bags are packed and in the car.

Home Improvements

Some home improvements from over the past couple years.
Not sure why I felt the need to show these, but what the hell!

Home Improvements

Basement Remodel - February and March Progress

Basement Remodel - February and March Progress

Here are some images of our basement and the remodeling/finishing that is taking place. Thanks to hours and days of help from numerous family members and friends, we are making great progress and are hoping to have this complete before the baby arrives in July. Enjoy!
-Z