A King is Born

"So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.”- Luke 2:16-20

Big Boy Bed

Ryan moved into a big boy bed two nights ago and has been adjusting well. Here is a screen shot of the camera that Mommy and Daddy use to keep a watchful eye on the lil' man. Ryan is big into reading books in bed to wind down before 'falling' asleep. He literally falls over from his studies and passes out! It has been really fun to watch him transition to his new bedroom and this new stage of his life.

Congratulations cousin Josh!

This past weekend we traveled up to NE Iowa for my cousin's wedding. We were only missing 3 of the 16 first cousins on the Larson side.

In the kitchen....

Ryan loves to help make meals...

and try new things...

sometimes they're not as good as they look!

Daddy's "Helper"

Mark brought home a job trailer to do some landscaping prep and Ryan was fascinated by all the equipment. Let's just say he's wired like his Daddy and wants to figure everything out. Look out everyone!

Anything you can do, Daddy, so can I!

I'm catching up....

What a view - I've discovered Mommy's hiding spot!

From Orchard Apples...

to Apple Pie!

Ryan's First...

MUCH needed haircut. He did great and was very focused on what was happening.

Center Grove Orchard

One of our favorite places is Center Grove Orchard just outside of Cambridge, IA. Thanks to season passes, we've been able to go back and plan to keep going back several times this fall. Here are pictures of our first visit back in September. The following are many of Ryan's favorites.

Little Pig's Stick House, Peter Peter Pumpkin Eater

Duck Races, Jumping Pillow

The Corn Pool

Roping the Steer, One Room Schoolhouse

We always end with a yummy apple cider slushie - definitely Ryan's favorite!

What a Face!

15 Month Photo Shoot

Here are a few of our favorites...

Showing my first calf!

More John Deere, Please!

Like Father Like Son

Helping Mommy with Laundry

One of Ryan's favorite things to do is to help with laundry. He usually "helps" by either taking everything out of the laundry basket and throwing it on the floor or by taking all the wet clothes out of the dryer once I've put them in. Good thing it doesn't bother Mommy too much!

Dummermuth Visit

Ryan had a great time with his Dummermuth cousins this past weekend. Lydia is just over a month older than Ryan. Caleb is Ryan's only boy cousin on the Dummermuth side (7 girl cousins), so they have become good buddies. Here are a few pictures to highlight the weekend.

Rodenberg Visit

Ryan had a great time with his Rodenberg cousins this past Saturday. He especially liked playing catch with his older cousins.

Don't worry Mom...

...I've got a hold of Dad's hair!

First Trip to Menards!

Dad finally let me go to Menards a few weeks back. And all I can say is...WOW. I'm going to have a lot of fun there in years to come. There is lots of plywood (behind me- see pic) and other lumber to build things. There are a whole bunch of ceiling fans over in the corner- rrgghhhh-that'll get 'cha dizzy in a hurry. Just about tossed my biter biscuts- haha! Anyway, back to the trip... there's a lot of power tools and man!- talk about cool stuff- this place it packed with cool stuff! There's so much to look at- I can only take a little bit a time or I go into 'Man Cave' Overload!

Mommy had these pictures on her camera and Dad forgot about them- so that's why it took so long to get posted! (I'd do it myself, but I can't reach the ctrl/alt/delete thingy to login.)

Til next time...

Your Handyman, Ryan

Look out Grandpa Kim

I'm practicing with my John Deere, so I can drive yours!

Did I mention he likes to climb?

One of our favorite holiday moments was when we found Ryan in the living room on top of his present. He loves to climb...apparently on anything and everything! One of his favorite things is to crawl over Dad when he's lying on the floor. He also loves to climb stairs and will climb the entire flight of stairs at our house if you let him.

Back from vacation!

So, we've been on a little (ok, a 3 month) vacation from the blogosphere, but we're back! Our goal in 2009 is to update more consistently so everyone can keep up with Ryan. Since we left you, Ryan has changed a great deal. He started crawling the day he turned 6 months. It didn't take long for him to discover how to pull himself up to stand. He is super fast at crawling and is even crusing around furniture. It won't be long before he's walking....any guesses? Ryan loves to try anything we're eating and definitely prefers "people food" to "baby food". His first word was "da da" and most recently he learned how to make the clicking sound with his tongue. His first two teeth are just pushing through, so it's been a little painful for him! He loves to do "so big" and wave at random times. We're working on clapping and pattycake, but he has yet to do it purposfully. Ryan is still the active, mild-tempered, great sleeping, wonderful child he always has been. He is growing up way too fast, and we can't wait to see what's in store for 2009!