Hello Everyone!
Once again, another month has flown by! We are enjoying the spring, but are definitely not looking forward to the coming predicted snow today. :) Layla Belle is now 7 months old! She is a pure delight! She is now talking and laughing up a storm...I think she already realizes how cute and funny she really is. She is also sitting up on her own (mostly) and beginning to be mobile. She scoots across and blanket like and inch worm and rolls from place to place. LB will be crawling before we know it! She amazes her daddy and I daily on her new skills.

Ryan continues to stay busy at Thrivent. He still travels quite a bit, but is always happy to be home. I am looking forward to spring break...5 days away. It has been a long haul since Christmas without a break! Ahh, time to rest...we look forward to spending time with family for Easter and LB's first Easter! One more family member to update you on...Lucy. She still isn't always quite sure about LB, but loves to give her kisses. She lets LB pet her, but only for a little while. LB thinks that Lucy is awesome! Her little face lights up and she screams with delight whenever she sees Lucy. :)

Our Layla Belle is 6 months old today! Ryan and I cannot believe how fast these past 6 months have gone by. She is growing like a weed and showing off her new skills daily. LB can flip herself over both ways, sit with support, and wriggle her little body like a worm. Layla loves her cereal and we cannot wait to begin her on other foods beginning this week (love her food just like her mommy). She plays hard and is an awesome sleeper! LB always has a gummy grin and laugh for everyone. She is such a delight!

Ryan and I have been keeping busy. Ryan has been traveling quite a bit for work. He even managed to squeeze in a trip to Lake Tahoe to go skiing with part of his family. My school year continues to fly by. We are already near the end of the third quarter. It feels like I just wrote report cards, yet here I am again having to do them. We have a long stretch until our Easter Break. Ryan and I are hoping to get away for a few days. :)

Layla Belle is already 4 months old! We cannot believe how big she is getting. Her mom and dad are daily amazed at the new abilities of this little girl. She loves to talk and suck on her hand. LB also has a smile that can melt your heart! We went to the doctor last week and here are her four month stats...

Weight: 12 pounds 6.4 ounces
Length: 23 inches

The Jones Family Christmas 2008

Where does the time go? Between work and home...baby and husband time...my days get away from me! Once again this post is long over due. We are enjoying this busy and joyful time of year and are looking forward to Christmas! We are spending time with family and just relaxing (well needed). I am looking forward to the next two weeks in which I get to spend my days with my daughter.

Last weekend we went Christmas tree hunting. Layla Belle enjoyed her first tree hunt. It was a beautiful warm (30 degree) day and the snow was falling. We enjoyed ourselves, but missed the rest of the family in the annual hunt. We found the perfect tree and hauled it back to the truck. Before we left, LB had a quick visit with Santa. As you can see from the picture, she apparently was quite bored with the jolly man.

We wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a blessed new year!

Where does the time go? This post is way over due! A quick update on the Jones family. Hunting season continues to go well for Ryan. He did manage to get his first doe bow hunting a few weeks back. He is now on the hunt for the big buck! He is enjoying every minute of hunting this year...including all the times he has sat in the rain. :) I have adjusted to being back in the classroom. I must admit, that I am enjoying teaching. My children this year are great! Their excitement has helped make the transition easier. Layla Belle is now 2 1/2 months old! A few weeks ago she had her 2 month appointment. She now weighs 9 pounds, 6 ounces and is 21 inches long. Yes, she has doubled her birth weight in 2 months! She is still wearing newborn clothes, but probably won't be for long. She is growing so quickly! Everyone says that she looks like her mother...what do you think? :)

Wow! Where did this month go? We have had a great month! Ryan has been busy hunting...no deer yet, but tons of ducks! He had a great time in North Dakota and they got their limit each day. Ryan continues to be busy at work and has been traveling quite a bit. I am heading back to the classroom this coming Tuesday. It is going to be quite an adjustment to get use to a school schedule again...and to add a baby to the mix...yikes! Layla will be heading to school with me. We have worked it out to have childcare right at school for a few of the teacher's children (which is sooo nice). It is going to make the transition easier. Layla is getting huge. We are guessing that she is about 7 pounds (Huge in our eyes!). We head to the doctor in about 1 1/2 weeks for her two month appointment. Her personality continues to show itself every day. She is smiling, talking, and making faces. She even rolled over this week! We are enjoying being parents to this sweet little lady. :)

This past Sunday, Oct. 5th, Layla Belle was baptized. Her godparents are Ryan's brother Derek and my sister Abby. Layla continues to grow quickly...she is 5 weeks old and I can't believe how much she has grown! It is hard to remember the time that she was not here! :) My maternity leave is about half over...I'll be headed back to the classroom on Oct. 28th. I am having mixed feelings about heading back, but I am going to enjoy every moment with her until then. :) Ryan continues to be very busy at work, but has managed to squeeze some hunting in...he is actually spending the week duck hunting in North Dakota. He's gone until Saturday, but we miss him already! He was very much looking forward to this trip and I hope that he has fun and of course comes home with lots of ducks.

Our little lady is two weeks old! It is unbelievable that she has already been with us for 2 weeks! We are continually amazed by her cuteness and the blessing that she is in our lives. The picture shows Layla's favorite sleeping position, but she has found her lungs too! She is now weighing 5 pounds and 9.6 ounces. She is 18 inches long. We love seeing her grow!

Sorry for the delay on pictures...so many people have been asking to see more of Layla Belle. :) We have been a little busy! We are enjoying every moment with our little lady. She is doing well and will head to the doctor on Tuesday for her two week appointment. We are hoping that she has put on some weight. :)

As for Ryan and I, we are doing well. I am enjoying spending time with the little lady and Ryan continues to stay busy at work. Bow hunting started today, so Ryan has been out in the rain twice today hoping to get a deer.

Layla Belle was born at 12:30 pm today, 4 pounds and 14 ounces of joy. Mom and baby are doing great and we're all enjoying the view from our room. What a day of joy!

Last weekend, we went camping at LuWiSoMo for family day weekend. We had a great time! The weather was wonderful (despite an afternoon shower) and the company enjoyable (we love you Rick, Kathy, and Dan). Who would have thought that at 8 months prego, I would even attempt to camp! :) I did sleep in the RV with Rick and Kathy, but that's still considered camping, right?

A few weekends ago, Ryan and I had a chance to attend Packer Family Night at Lambeau Field. It was great to see the team play and to get a sneak peek at the upcoming football season. We managed to get 10th row tickets with a great view! We enjoyed our first family trip to Lambeau.

Before and after photos of the nursery for our baby girl, scheduled to enter the family in September. Some window treatments, and rocking chair, and I think we'll be set.

We just returned from our week long vacation to Minocqua. Our first full week vacation in 5 years! We spent the week relaxing, fishing, reading, and playing golf. I became very good at riding along in a golf cart :). We did play some mini-golf and I would like a rematch...Ryan beat me by one stroke! We were joined for the second weekend by Ryan's cousin and some good friends from Appleton. They got some skiing and tubing in as well...I had fun watching, but I sure wanted to join in. It was a great week! It was very hard to come back home.

Long awaited belly picture..31 weeks and counting...feeling great!

Happy Anniversary Ryan! Can you believe that it has been 5 years?! I love you!

4th of July camping trip to the Nicolet National Forrest....some time spent in the woods, some time spent at the beach, all time spent relaxing and enjoying life.

Brewers game up in the Twin Cities (everyone else seemed to think it was a Twins game) with Matt and Abby. Great times.... First 18 batters were outs and the game ended in 2 hours (hardly even enough time to eat a dog and drink a beer).