David, Lisa, Kayla, Isaac & Annika

We had Kayla's 1 year pictures taken by the same photographer who did her professional pictures at 3 months. We are very pleased with how they came out! Kayla was a bit of a pill for the photographer... she was in constant motion and did not want to sit still in any picture! Her look is pretty funny in many of the shots - you can see her frustration! But there are some that are just so precious too!

If you'd like to take a peek, Click here
Choose "Kayla" from the drop-down menu
The password is our last name in all lowercase.

Let us know what you think!

Posted by Lisa at 08:03 PM | Permalink

I honestly have no idea how one year has passed. Must be the sleep deprivation! :) It has been an amazing year.
I thought it would be fun to post one of my favorite pictures from each of the 12 months, just to show how much progression and change there has been.

She's grown up so much this last month. She is running now... trotting is probably a better way to describe it! She's still not always the most stable, although she has realy good balance! We don't trust her to walk by herself on concrete, but otherwise she's good to go. And she's so fast that her pace doesn't even slow us down! Her random decisions to head in a different direction however, is a different story!

She can (finally) climb down/off of objects. I am usually right there with a hand behind her when she is on a new object. But she can successfully climb backwards off the couches, off misc boxes, off our bed and off the things in the children's play area at the mall. That is really nice, because now I don't have to worry about her falling off the couch if I'm working in the kitchen! She can also get on and off her riding toy and can push herself backwards!

She has really developed mentally this past month, she's a smart little girl! She can follow simple commands (not that she always does it, it must be on her terms!). She will bring us objects that we ask for (monkey, glow-worm, doggie, ball).... she will point to a clock, fan or light when prompted. She "understands" toys. She figures out what buttons to press and what goes where. She can easily open and close her toy cabinets. We finally put more child locks on the kitchen drawers, because she kept opening them and emptying out the Ziplock bags or coming to us with 5 Tupperware in hand! Not going to hurt her, but not helping the state of chaos that is our house! She also understands "pull and push" on drawers.... and "in and out" when playing with toys.

Other things she can do:
1. Play ring-around-the-rosie, and fall down on her own (sometimes!)
2. Give high-5's
3. Give a kiss (although we have to show her a kiss several times before she offers her own wet version of one)
4. She points out every ball - in a book, on a shirt, on the ground - she loves balls!
5. She dances, often turning around in a circle when she hears music!
6. She is past (I think/hope/pray) the "stick everything in my mouth phase" and is into the "hand everything to mom phase". It's amazing how many times a day I say "thank you". However, at least she is showing me the little pieces of leaves, crumbs of food and misc other things she finds, rather than eating them. It is pretty cute too! She looks so happy and has such a feeling of accomplishment!
7. She knows the phrases: "do you want breakfast?", "lunch" and "dinner" and will run to her chair when we say these things. She knows "do you want a bath", and will run to the bottom of the stairs with squeals of joy! She knows "do you want to nurse" and will go trotting over to the couch and grab my boppy! There are tons of other phrases she understands, but these are a few of the cute ones!
8. She likes to hold multiple objects in her hands. She often now carries more than one ball in her hands and sometimes something in her mouth as well!

She used to be so squirmy during diaper changes. Thank goodness that phase ended. However, now she clenches her cheeks together, making it near impossible to wipe her clean! Another challenge is when giving a bath, she refuses to put her head back when try to rinse her hair. So, instead of easily getting shampoo out of her hair, she insists on letting the water drip in her face, and then looks pitiful and is gasping for breath when the water gets in her mouth. Seriously! However, she enjoys her baths SO very much, it is really cute!

I think one of her favorite toys is her Mickey doll that we have in her crib. Almost every night we find her snuggled up with him!

Things are so fun, we are really enjoying this stage!

1. Her eyes are still a pretty blue color.
2. Her left tear duct is still plugged. It isn't bothersome or crusty, but it is not right either.
3. She very rarely spits up.

Posted by Lisa at 10:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Well, Kayla's one year mark marked the end of an era for me. As a shower gift, I received a "nursing notebook", which had spots to mark down every time she ate, slept, had a diaper change, etc. For some, keeping track of such things sounds like extra work. But for someone who wrote down every bite she ate while on Weight Watchers for over a year, it seemed necessary! A little Type A? Yes! When that 90 day notebook ended, I panicked. So, I went to the store and bought a small notebook and thought I'd continue to do it for a little while. Four nursing notebooks and 1 year later, I am done! :) Now that her schedule is more or less the same, it seems a little pointless to keep track of such things. I will say that it has been nice for me to be able to track certain things (how many diapers we need for a week's vacation, how long and when should I expect naps, etc). I also marked her "firsts" in these notebooks, so it's fun to look back and see when she did/ate what. But, I don't plan on doing this the rest of her life, so now seemed like a good stopping point. I feel a little naked without it. Now I actually have to remember things... like when did I last change her? What time did she start this nap?! But, all good things come to an end. I expect that I will keep a notebook for subsequent children. I can't imagine not keeping one, at least for awhile! :)

Posted by Lisa at 01:03 PM | Permalink

This past week was jam packed with fun! David's family came in town last Wednesday evening and they were in town for 4 days. My parents came in town on Saturday evening and were in town for 4 days, so they overlapped on Sunday. During that time we celebrated Kayla's birthday (which is also my FIL's b-day), and we had her dedicated at church with a party to boot! It was....busy. But such great fun!

On Kayla's birthday we spent the morning playing at home. Then in the afternoon we went downtown to the Children's Museum. I had never been there before, and it was FUN! There were so many things to do, so many things for Kayla to explore (I say Kayla, but really everyone! It was fun for the kid in all of us!). There were so many different exhibits, I was quiet impressed. This is a place that Kayla will enjoy now, and even more so as she grows. The Taylor's gave us a membership to the Children's Museum for Kayla's birthday, so we will be visiting there frequently!!

For the birthday dinner we had crab stuffed salmon and steak! This was Kayla's first time having salmon, and she truly enjoyed it. We couldn't keep enough of it on her plate! For dessert, she had her first taste of cake. I'd say it went over pretty well!

After a bath we opened presents... she got a John Deere wagon and a huge supply of fall/winter clothes from Pop-pop and Grandma. She got Kayla-sized books from Uncle Brian, and a beautiful piece of artwork done by Aunt Laura. And she got a Little People farm from Great-Grandma. Kayla enjoyed ripping pieces of paper off of her presents and immediately bringing them to Pop-pop to collect! It was very cute!

David and I gave her a pink chair from Pottery Barn Kids. I absolutely fell in love with this chair, and like HAD TO HAVE IT. I have visions of her sitting in her chair and reading books or playing with toys! I also got her this cute piano/mega blocks combination, which she loves! Best $2.50 (on the piano) spent ever!!

My parents had some serious car trouble, so instead of getting here for dinner on Saturday, they didn't get in until late that night. We didn't see them until Sunday morning when we all went to church together! Then we came home for a little bit, did last minute food preparations and cleaning, and headed back to church for her dedication. At Mars Hill Bible Church, we have small intimate dedication services for babies. Parents dedicate their child to God, vowing to teach them about Jesus and to model Christ. Then, when the child is older and professes their belief in God, they can make the decision to be baptized as a believer. As part of the ceremony, David and I wrote a covenant to Kayla. I've included it below, so people can hold us accountable to what we promised her.

Kayla -
We love you so very much. From the moment we found out that Mama was pregnant, we were so excited and our love for you continues to grow every day. We are truly blessed to have you as our child. We realize that you are a gift from God and we hold you before the Lord with open hands, knowing that ultimately you are His child not ours. Today, before our family and friends we dedicate your life to God and give Him control.

We believe that God wants you to know Him and know the unconditional love that He has for you. We promise to teach you about Jesus and encourage you to have a personal relationship with Him.

We promise to continually grow in our personal relationship with Jesus, doing so through prayer, reading the Bible, cultivating fellowship, and living by the example Jesus gave us.

We want our marriage to be an example of a godly marriage for you. We promise to be faithful to one another, showing love and affection and having open communication with each other.

We promise to make our home a place where you feel safe and loved. We promise to play and have fun together. We want to help you enjoy life and the creation that we live in, finding beauty in all things. We want you to explore and try new things without fear, knowing that in your success or failure our love for you is unconditional. We promise to help you learn to love God, others and yourself. We also want to help you build a positive self image. Already we can see the passion you have for life and a love of discovering new things. You display pure joy and innocence. We want to nurture those qualities in you, with God’s help.

We commit ourselves and our family to the way of Jesus for our whole lives striving to live by faith. We want to constantly be listening to God’s voice and following His plan for our lives. We realize that life is not easy and things do not always go according to our plans or desires, but we vow to obey His word and find the good in every situation and draw on God’s love and support in times of hardship or need.

Kayla, you are precious to us and we love you.
-Mom and Dad

In the first picture, Kayla is wearing a gown that the majority of the Thorn family has worn for generations for infant baptism. David and all of his siblings wore it, Mom Taylor and all her siblings wore it, etc. They've figured out that it is over 100 years old! It was very special to have her wear it for her dedication. However, with its age it is very fragile, and with her age she is very active. So, she only wore it for a few minutes so she didn't destroy the gown!

It was our family and closest friends who were invited to the ceremony and then the reception after. I can't even begin to say how special it was to have those people there. We had really wanted to dedicate her earlier, but this was the first chance that both of our familes were able to be out here together and also a time when our church was holding the ceremony. It was just so special for us. We are so thankful for our families who made the long drives to be with us and our friends who came. We had a big cookout afterwards and that was a fun time as well. We had lots of food, fun and cake!

After the Taylor's left, we did birthday presents with the Slighter's. She got finger puppets, a stuffed soccer ball, a musical activity table, and a learning kitchen!

I went to Meijer Garden's twice, once with Mom Taylor and Laura, and once with my parents (although I was only there with my parents for a few minutes)! Here are a few pictures.

While my parents were at Meijer Garden's with Kayla, David and I snuck out on a date! He took off a little bit of time at work and we were able to watch the Dark Night in the iMax theater. Then we headed to one of our favorite restaurants, San Chez. It's a tapas restaurant, so you order a bunch of different things. We ended up ordering 8 different tapas, which was WAY too much food. But we sure did enjoy it! And it was nice to have a little time to ourselves. And of course Grandma and Grandpa Slighter were thrilled to babysit!

It was a fun-filled week and extremely special for us to have all of our family in town for both Kayla's birthday and dedication. For more pictures of our "Week Extravaganza", click here!

Posted by Lisa at 06:32 PM | Permalink

This post will be updated with new picture links as I add new photos online, so check back often :) I'll denote new pictures with this

2011:
Annika's Birth

December

November

October

September

August

July
June

May

April

Isaac's 1st Year Pictures

March

February

January

2010:

December

November

October

September

August

July

June

May

April

Welcome Isaac

2009:

Pregnancy/Baby #2

Christmas 2009!!

Two to Two-and-a-Half!!

2nd Birthday!!

24th Month

23rd Month

Italy:
    Senigallia
    Rome
    Florence
    Venice

22nd Month

21st Month

20th Month

19th Month (mostly spring break!)

18th Month

2008:

17th Month (includes Christmas pictures)

16th Month

Thanksgiving 2008

15th Month

14th Month

13th Month

Videos!!

Older Videos

Kayla's First Year

Posted by Lisa at 12:14 PM | Permalink

Dear Kayla,
One year ago today, at 1:03am, my life changed forever. I was handed this tiny little baby that had been kicking and squirming inside of me for months. I met you, my precious little girl. Words can not express the joy I felt the second you came into this world. I had heard that becoming a mother is like watching your heart beat outside of your body. And it is true. A part of me is in you. I love looking at you, seeing parts of me, seeing parts of your dad, seeing your own personality. I love who you have become. Before we had kids I'd always try to imagine what it would be like to be a mom. I only ever got to the baby stage in my daydreams. I thought about what it would be like to be pregnant, go through labor, and have a tiny little baby who just liked to be cuddled! I had never been able to think beyond that, because even thinking that far ahead seemed like a stretch. You have proved to me that motherhood is so much more than that... it is an all encompassing job. It takes every last bit of my patience, every last bit of my energy, but it gives back new meaning of joy, of love, of innocence, of life. You are SO incredibly precious to me. I can't even begin to count the number of times I say "you are so cute" in a day. You are a beautiful little girl, on the inside and outside. You are such a happy baby with huge smiles, such delight in your eyes. Strangers notice this and comment all the time; I rarely go shopping or on a walk without people commenting on how beautiful you are, and how happy and smiley you are. You seem to have an immense love of life. You are also so smart. This last month I have enjoyed more than any month previous (and I have enjoyed every stage of your life!). But you are catching on to things so quickly. I feel like you are a sponge, and you are soaking up every little thing I say. Constantly learning. I love that. I love teaching you, and I love watching you learn. I am so excited for each new day... every day seems to be better and better! Yes, we have rough days. Some days you are crabby, or I am tired, and it's hard to get through the day. But even on those tough days I realize how blessed I am. You are so incredibly special to me, and I can't wait for what the future holds. Happy 1st Birthday Kayla.
I love you punkin' punkin',
Mama

Posted by Lisa at 01:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

One year ago today, I was woken up with contractions. I began thinking about the baby that I was excited to meet. At this time in the morning, we were making the surreal drive to the hospital, knowing that the next time we were all in the car together there would be three of us. Although doctor's and nurses claimed the baby would be born on the 13th, born on the 13th she was not. It was a day of work, of pain, of exhaustion, and eventually of pure excitement about the impending birth. I am a different woman today - this past year has brought on so many changes and so much growth. I am sitting here looking at a beautiful child that had not taken a breath of air one year ago today. I am in awe of this gift of life, and truly thankful to God for the many blessings He has given to us.

Posted by Lisa at 09:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

David is starting a new work schedule. It is just in "trial mode" right now, for 2 months.... to see if he likes it, to see if his company likes it. But every other week he will work 40 hours in 4 days (10 hour days), and then have Friday off. Last week was his first week to try it. For him the days were long but very productive. For me, it wasn't bad either. He left an hour earlier, but Kayla and I sleep until 8, so it doesn't matter to me when he leaves. He came home an hour later, and that wasn't bad. However, having him home on Friday was fantastic! I mean, a 3 day weekend! It was great. We spent Friday enjoying the day. We went to Meijer Garden's and he got to see Kayla play in the water exhibits for the first time. We went to the mall and he watched her play in the breakfast play area for the first time! It was a blast! Then Saturday we were well rested from our fun day, so we worked in the yard and on the house, preparing for our house guests later this month. And then we still had Sunday to relax and work some more! I mean, really, it was quite ideal.

I did (re)learn something about myself... which I'm going to have to work on. I don't like to miss out on things. I never have. I did so many activities in high school, stayed up late in college because there was always something to do.... David offered to take Kayla to Meijer Gardens on his own, but I didn't want to miss out! It seemed like a fun family activity! And he offered to hang out at home with her and let me go do some shopping on my own. But I couldn't get the motivation to leave. Why is this? I'd really love to have some time to myself. But when it comes down to that actually happening, I'm not motivated. I'm not sure why, but I need to work on this. I know it's good for me to get a break from her. I come back as a better mother. But it's something I struggle with. I really enjoy having family time, where we all do things together. But I need to make time for myself, and be willing to miss out on some things with her and David so they can have fun together as just the two of them.... and so I can get some alone time! With David being home an extra day every other week, hopefully we can build in some time for both!

Posted by Lisa at 12:38 PM | Permalink