Our Christmas Elf

Grandpa W. took this picture of Lizzie during one of her weekly visits to their house.

Lizzie is our perfect little Christmas Elf!

Words to Make a Mom's Heart Melt

Lizzie made my Thanksgiving Day. On the way to church in the morning, Lizzie was securely strapped in her carseat with a pipe in her mouth and her doll in her lap. Out of the blue, Ryan said, "Let's start a family tradition and on the way to church each Thanksgiving morning go around the car and tell eachother what were thankful for." Ryan told Lizzie she could go first (like she understood - besides, she had a pipe in her mouth). So, I proceeded to say, well Lizzie is thankful for her pipe and babydoll. At the mention of "pipe" she took out her pipe and handed it to me so her mouth was free and she could "talk". Ryan once again said, "Lizzie, what are you thankful for?" and without hesitation in her cute little Lizzie voice she said, "Mommy!"....Oh, my goodness, it was like her and Ryan had practiced it. It was so perfect! So, that was my perfect Thanksgiving that made my heart melt. I really don't think I'll ever forget it. I hope that yours was great too!

(Sorry, no new pictures lately, so I'll use a picture taken by Katie DeBoer!)

Style

Grandma W. is teaching Lizzie about style early on in life. Tuesday I went to pick her up from Grandma's house after I was finished working and she was decked out in a fur vest (the one in the picture) along with matching leopard print shoes. In my opinion, she looked very adorable. Well, Lizzie has taken a liking to the vest. The last two mornings she has requested to wear the vest overtop of her PJ's (thus the attached picture). She needs a few more lessons from grandma on style and how to match an outfit - don't you think?!

Enjoying the Fall Weather

Lizzie loves the leaves in our backyard. I'm glad that she does, because I know that her father and I are not too fond of them. Don't get me wrong they are beautiful, but after filling 80+ extra large leave bags full of "beautiful leaves" they no longer look so beautiful. (Yes, that is 80+ bags every year!)

My Little Pumpkin

Happy Halloween! No candy for Lizzie, just a book from Grandma & Grandpa Griffen. We'll put off the candy for another year or so.

Dylan was dressed up as a fireman. He was the only one who was allowed to have candy. Although, he got a book from Grandma & Grandpa too.

Even though she didn't get any candy, she thoroughly enjoyed watching all of the neighborhood kids come to the door all dressed up.

1 Year Photos

We had Katie Deboer take Lizzie's one year photos and a few pictures of our family. Katie does an amazing job. Originally we had planned on taking pictures outdoors but the weather did not coorperate. Lizzie had a few less smiles this time around too; but the pictures still turned out great! You can check out Katie's work at http://www.katiedeboerphotography.com/

Fall Apples

I love fall! Apples are synonomous with fall. I guess that is a good thing because Lizzie loves apples right now. She likes them even better now that I let her eat them whole rather than sliced up into small pieces. (Of course, I keep a watchful eye on her as she takes her big bites :) ).

You might be wondering why I am blogging about Lizzie and apples, so here you go (it may not be the most interesting story...but the Wolthuis family is pretty common folk these days and that is okay with me).

I have a bowl full of fake apples on my table. Every time we would walk past the table she would say, "ball". After a number of times with her saying "ball" as we walked by the table, I finally realized that she thought the apples were balls. I mistakenly gave her one of the fake apples to help her understand that they weren't balls and she tried to take a bite out of it (hence the new teeth marks in my fake apples). Due to her frustration with not being able to eat the fake apples, I decided it was time that she could start eating real apples. She loves it!

1 Year Dr. Appointment Visit

Lizzie had her 1 year Dr. appointment today. We met with Dr. Whalen because Dr. Rauwerda is off on maternity leave. Ironically, Dr. Whalen was the first pediatrician that Lizzie saw after she was born - Alger Pediatrics has a number of doctors, so when you give birth you get the pediatrician that is on call for hospital visits.

At any rate, Lizzie was once again off the charts in almost all of her milestone measurements.

Head Circumference - 95% (not sure of the measurement, she forgot to write it down).

Height - 95% - 32 inches

Weight - 90% - 24 1bs. 2 oz.

Lizzie received 3 shots, which were met with her normal crying and breath holding - she probably will never grow out of that. Ryan and I will have to remember to tell her future husband (this is a ways off) not to make her mad or else she will hold her breath for a VERY LONG time. The nurse was laughing at how long she could hold her breath.

We praise God for a healthy 1 year old - still our baby girl, even though she is officially a toddler!

First Birthday Party

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Today we celebrated Lizzie's Birthday with our family. It was so much fun. She is so loved. Lizzie's birthday is not until Monday, but today was the date that worked for everyone. Lizzie had so much fun that she went to bed early. THANKS to all of our family for being such a huge part of Lizzie's life. We are so blessed to have such a loving family.

Climbing

It has been a busy week for Lizzie. She is taking a lot of steps on her own, but she is not officially walking. I have a feeling she will be walking in the next couple of weeks. She has mastered climbing. She can now climb onto the ottoman which brings her to the chair. We have to keep a close eye on her because as Ryan and I like to say she likes to "dive-bomb" off the side of it (she has no fear). She also likes to climb into infant car seats (her cousin Cassidy's car seat) and exersuacers. And as you can see from the attached picture, she has attempted to climb into empty bathroom drawers. To keep her occupied while I'm getting ready I taught her to throw her bath toys in and out of the drawer. Yesterday, while I was getting ready, I looked down and saw her yellow "fishy" in the drawer - nothing new. The next time I looked down I saw her sprawled across the top of the drawer trying to figure out how to join her yellow "fishy". After numerous attempts to fit into the drawer accompanied by yelling and screaming and bumping her head, I helped her sit in the drawer. This was probably not a great idea, but I was finished listening to her tantrums and I didn't want her to hurt herself...so I caved.

Real Life & A Real Step

"The great thing, if one can, is to stop regarding all the unpleasant things as interruptions of one’s “own” or “real” life. The truth is of course that what one calls the interruptions are precisely one’s real life—the life God is sending one day by day: what one calls one’s “real life” is a phantom of one’s own imagination. This at least is what I see at moments of insight: but it’s hard to remember it all the time." C.S. Lewis

This is the day that the Lord has made.

And he’s orchestrated every unpleasant interruption—um, sovereign delivery—for our good. Let’s pray that God will help us to remember this truth. Because Mr. Lewis was right: it’s easy to forget.

This is a little tidbit that I took from - Navigating the Interruptions and Busy Seasons of Life by Carolyn Mahaney, Nicole Whitacre, Kristin Chesemore, and Janelle Bradshaw.

Additionally, I've attached a picture of Lizzie taking her first step - or should I say, her falling from her first unassisted steps. I was not quick enough to get her first steps. But, last night she took some more steps, so it is confirmed, she is trying to walk unassisted. The very cute sweater she is wearing in this picture was made by Grandma Wolthuis - she is so lucky!

Just a few pictures

Hitting daddy with Mr. Lion. I couldn't believe that I got this action shot with my "slow" camera...so I had to post it. Besides, it was really funny to watch her hit Ryan with her favorite stuffed animal.








This other picture is so typical of what Lizzie likes to do during the day...look out the front window and wish that she could spend her entire day outside crawling around.

Highlights from Lizzie's Week

I can't believe it, in a month Lizzie will turn one. Where does the time go? She is growing up so fast. If I think about it for too long I'm going to cry...so I better finish my post.

She seems to be having a lot of fun growing up (as you can see from the pictures and video).

Daddy thought it would be funny to help Lizzie pretend to be either a "hippie" or rambo with his tie after he got home from work one evening this week.

Lizzie not wanting to go to bed - "Oh, you're talking to me? I'm supposed to be going to bed. No way, playing with my toys is much more fun than sleeping."

This video shows Lizzie playing her version of hide & seek. She thinks that it is so much fun to "hide" one of her toys from Mommy & Daddy - pretending that she has no clue where it is. It is so cute, after she hides it and we ask her where it is she says "oh" and then she finds it.

A Beautiful Day on the Deck

It has been a week since I've last posted, so I thought I would post some pictures that I took earlier this week that I thought were cute. Lizzie loves spending time on our deck looking at the trees, leaves, birds, neighborhood dogs - basically anything that moves.

Fun at the Zoo

Yesterday Ryan and I took Lizzie to the John Ball Park Zoo here in Grand Rapids. Even though it was pretty hot and humid outside, Lizzie really enjoyed the zoo. Lizzie loved looking at all the different animals. The only thing she didn't care for was the loud noises made by the Pygmy goats.

Gerber Baby

Today I was messing around with my photo software and I came across the embossing technique. The attached photo is the end result. When I looked at the picture, I thought to myself, those people who keep telling me that she looks like the Gerber Baby are right. In this picture, she does in fact kind of look like the Gerber Baby to me.

Sprinkler Comparison

Oh the things we let our children do.

Last night after we came back from our evening walk, Ryan said that he needed to fix one of the sprinkler heads. In a moment of comparison, I decided to let Lizzie explore the concept of a sprinkler. Moment of comparison? What do you mean? Well, last year when I was pregnant for Lizzie, Ryan and I were watching Dylan one evening and we thought it would be great to show him the sprinklers and see if he liked them. He hated them. Hence, my moment of comparison. The pictures pretty much speak for themselves - she loved them. The consensus at the Wolthuis and DeVries households is that she is pretty much the complete opposite of her cousin Dylan.

Pictures from this week

My four top teeth are almost in - mommy's had a lot of fun at night!

Daddy and I look a lot alike when we wake up!

I love Mr. Lion!

Growing up

Daddy & Lizzie all tuckered out - the day we can home from vacation.













We took Lizzie with us to vote this past Tuesday. I told her that I am going to teach her at a very young age that it is important that she votes b/c we are blessed to have the opportunity to express ourselves in a democratic system of government (I'm sure she doesn't understand our political system yet...its a little complex, but that is why I plan on starting young!)






The other night I was making dinner and this is where Lizzie ended up. She became a prisoner of the kitchen table. I'm not sure how she got under the chair b/c it took a lot of work to free her.



Grandpa and Grandma W. are on vacation and will not see Lizzie for 3 weeks, so we are in the process of keep them updated via our posts (so for those of you who visit our blog regularly, you may see more posts than normal).

Lizzie is very excited because she is beginning to stand unassisted for short periods of time (seconds) and she can also walk behind her toy unassisted. I can't believe how quickly she is changing.

Summer Vacation 2008

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Vacation

We're home. It is a little disappointing. Honestly, it feels like we just packed the car to head off on vacation at Robinson Lake and now we're back home. This is the first year that Ryan and I had to worry about packing for another human being and boy was that different. Not only did it make our checklist longer, but it also made the Honda Accord seem that much more packed to the gills. We (I) really need to become more efficient packers. The first few days seemed rather long, but I think that was because we had to get acclimated to the new, slower vacation routine. The last half of the week was anything but slow. Each day seemed to go by quicker than the last, until we found ourselves packing things back into the Honda to head home. There were so many wonderful things about our vacation that it seems only fair that I share my list with you: Robison Lake, the weather, play area for kids, decent cottages (although I will say they are just cottages - not as clean as home), cousins to play with, husbands who play with their children, aunts/uncles - sisters/brother-in-laws, friends, food, conversation, fishing, warm lake water (Lizzie loved it)...and the list could go on. It was great to share our vacation with Uncle Matt, Aunt Kim, cousins Dylan and Cassidy, as well as Mr. Nate & Mrs. Lisa Burgess. Mr. Nate & Mrs. Lisa are expecting their first baby in November, so they thought that it would be a good idea to get some real life experience by spending a week with kids who range in age from 4 months to 2 1/2 years old. I think that they had a fun time and are still excited about having their own little one to run around...at least that is what they told us. Lizzie did so well on vacation. She absolutely loved the water and being outdoors. Ryan and I were so amazed at her ability to adapt to her new surroundings. We praise God for a wonderful vacation!

Rose Color Glasses

Don't you wish that you could look at the world through rose color glasses?

Lizzie's Birth

Make a Smilebox photobook

Sewn with Love

Thanks Grandma Griffen!

Grandma Griffen is back in her glory sewing baby clothes. She has been on a 20+ year sabbatical (ever since her kids grew out of the baby stage). I don't understand the joy that she gets from sewing baby clothes (that is probably why I don't sew very often or well), but I am grateful for her willingness to sew clothes for her grandkids.

Yesterday I ran a number of errands with Lizzie and I got nothing but ohhs and ahhs over her cute outfit. So, thanks mom for making such a cute outfit - you get all of the credit!

FYI...Grandpa Griffen says - get rid of the hat. He says he'd rather see her cute hair than her crazy hat.

Grandpa Griffen must've influenced Dylan to take his side, b/c when we went outside with him he pulled the hat off Lizzie's head and said, "leave it inside."

Lizzie's Laugh

Lizzie's laugh changes with her level of excitement. The attached video depicts her "very excited" laugh. With that said, it is a bit tame because we had to keep her going until we got the video camera. It seems like the video camera and digital camera are always on the opposite side of the house when you really want to capture a special moment.

I hope you enjoy her laugh as much as we do!

A Recycled Hoop

Thanks to one of my parent's neighbors we now have a real basketball hoop, not just a little tikes hoop. Originally, Ryan did not want to take the hoop. The fact that Ryan did not want the hoop surprised both me and my parents (they picked it up while he was gone at a conference in Philidelphia for a week). Even though Ryan said he wasn't really that interested in the hoop, since we took it home, he has been shooting hoops quiet regularly. As you can see from the pictures we have already introduced Lizzie to the real basketball and hoop. She really loves to play with us.

The hoop is very forgiving, both Ryan and I admit it. The first day we had the hoop I made 7 of my first 8 shots - I almost convinced myself that I should've kept playing highschool basketball instead of running cross-country and track.

Lizzie & Gus

Daddy, can we get a dog like Gus?

Ryan and I have a difference of opinion on what size dog, if any that we should have as a family pet. When I was young (& older), I grew up with small dogs that did not shed. When Ryan was young (& older) he grew up with medium size to large dogs that did shed. So, as you can see, we have a difference of opinion just based on our family history. Needless to say, we do not have a dog. Why? Probably because we can't agree on the size and type of dog. Who looses? We all do, because we actually really love dogs.

So, I was very excited when Gus, our neighbor dog came over to play with Lizzie. Gus is exactly the type of dog that Lizzie and I think that we should have as a family pet someday. Yes, even though Lizzie cannot talk, her actions - nice, gentle petting, giggles of glee, mezmerising stares at

Gus - tell me that she agrees.

So, I will ask one more time on Lizzie's behalf - "Daddy, can we pleaaasee have a dog like Gus?...Pretty Pleaaaseee."