6 months old

Oh sweet baby girl, how is it your half birthday already? I can hardly believe how fast time is going. Although I knew it would, nothing can prepare your for the enormous amount of changes and joy a baby brings in such a short time. I remember the first weeks after you were born I kept thinking to myself how I couldn't wait for you to be 6 months, a year, a toddler. Now that I realize how fast you are growing I just want to soak up every moment of your precious life. Everyone always talks about how much you will love a child and how it is a different kind of love but you cannot imagine the joy until it happens to you. We hate to leave her even for an hour or two because she is just so cute and so much fun we hate to miss a thing. 

1 Week old

The older she gets to more fun it is and the "easier"  it is in my opinion. It is just getting so much more fun to take her places with me and dress her up and play with her during the day. I love being a mom, I always knew I would. 

So what are you doing now that you are 6 months our little Sutton button? Well, you love your momma. I wouldn't be surprised if you ended up being a daddy's girl a little later on but right now you are definitely my little tag along. You hate when I leave the room and you don't smile for anyone else like you smile at me (how can that not make my heart melt?). You do also, however, love your daddy. When he gets home from work, the second you hear him talking from another room your eyes grow big and you look behind you at the door and wait for him to come in and scoop you up. Basically, aside from your nana who you are happy to stay with or Grandma Beth, you just want to be with momma and daddy, which is normal for your age and we don't mind it at all.

You are on a pretty good schedule right now, you go to bed between 7 and 8 usually, still eat once during the night, then wake up between 7 and 8 again. Eventually we will get to sleeping through the night but we aren't complaining about the once a night we still get to wake up and cuddle with you. You love to play in your exersaucer as we call it and watch me get ready in the bathroom or clean the living room. However, you do not love when I leave the room but sometimes you do OK by yourself. Right now you are teething, have been for a month or two. No teeth popping through but thankfully you have not been a bad teether after the first week of symptoms. You are taking it like a champ and drooling all the time. Right now you are definitely capable of rolling over and can do so with ease. However, you are also very smart and have learned it is much easier to either scoot yourself in a circle if there is something you want to see, or yell at me to pick you up so that you can look around much easier. You are a stinker, you are already a comedian. You know how to "fake" laugh and cough now and have learned that if you continue to do so we will keep laughing at you. 

You are a big talker, at home atleast. When we are around other people with new things to look at you are pretty quiet but at home you are a constant talker always chirping, or yelling, at me from the other room. You talk a lot when you are tired and talk yourself to sleep sometimes, it is the cutest thing to listen to. 

You are now finally and officially taking naps in your crib! Hooray! This may seem a little (a lot) late to most BUT, to us, it is a huge success. In the first weeks after you were born we were so desperate for sleep that if it meant you would sleep longer if we held you and one of us could take a nap, we did. SO about a month ago I started to try the self soothe method and try to get you to take naps in your crib. With gradual progress we are now up to almost two hours in the crib once or twice a day! Yes!

 In other new and exciting things you are beginning to get the hang of eating solids. I have been giving you baby oatmeal with formula every morning and although its funnier to you to spit it all over me most of the time, you are beginning to be fascinated with food and want to try it. You also got your ears pierced three weeks ago (against your daddy's will) and they look SO cute and are healing so well!

Food ALL over her face and her usual morning hair :)

Sweet sweet baby girl, what did we ever do without you. We love you so much and I can't believe in another 6 months I will be posting your first birthday party. We are so thankful God blessed us with you and gave us the privilege of being your parents. We cant wait to watch you grow and change. I love you Sutton!

Love, Momma

Banana Bread Muffins

The other day as my bunch of bananas rotted on the top of my refrigerator I decided that rather than throwing them out this time I should do something with them, so I made muffins! 

They turned out awesome so I thought I would share

Total time: 30 mins

2 cups all purpose flour

1 1/4 cups finely chopped walnuts (optional)

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

3 very ripe bananas

1/4 cup plain yogurt (I added closer to a half cup and used greek yogurt)

2 eggs, beaten

6 T butter melted and cooled (3/4 a stick)

1 tsp vanilla 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a large muffin tin. 

In a large bowl combine all the dry ingredients together and softly blend. 

In another bowl combine the rest of the ingredients, bananas, yogurt, eggs, butter, vanilla.

Fold the wet ingredients into the big bowl of dry ingredients.

Scoop batter evenly into the tin. 

Bake 20-25 mins until tops are golden brown, cool.

In the second half of the batter I used chocolate chips, for myself, and it is Wonderful with some chocolate. I would also highly recommend a hazelnut latte to go along with it.

Enjoy!

Sista and New brother

Soooo, apparently my last blog was deleted? I went to post yesterday and apparently Google thought it was suspicous and there is no way for me to get anything back? Yes, Sad. I cried...But here is my new, improved (still working out the kinks) blog!

This blog goes out to my awesome sister and her awesome soon-to-be husband. Lauren and Paul, this is to you!

Because of our crazy busy lives I forgot to mention, They're Engaged! Yes that's right, my little sister is getting married, Im a mom, and now I am old apparently. Yikes.

Well first of all here is a little dirt on the groom-to-be. Paul Allen Kleyer (yup I used your middle name :)). Braden and and Paul were friends in high school and involved in FFA together. When they both decided to go to Dordt in 2009 they decided to room together. They Would have gotten a house together Junior and Senior year so was the plan but as Paul said I stole his roommate and plans changed. But Paul was awesome about the whole thing and didn't get mad at us for deciding to get married, thanks Paul! As I became a part of Braden's friend group I got to know Paul really well and always commented on what a nice respectful gentleman he was (Its true Paul!). Paul was a part of our wedding and he and Braden were pretty close but have grown a lot closer since then. We always say that Paul is the one friend we know we could Always count on if we needed anything, he is just that kind of guy. He is a hard worker! I think he had like ten jobs at one time last year (not really but he had a few). Paul graduated Dordt this past May with a Bachelor Degree in Mechanical Engineering and is now working at Interstates in Sioux Center as a Programmer. If that sounded really smart and confusing to you, you're right, I have no idea what he actually does. 

Smarty pants. 

Lauren: She is currently a Junior at Dordt going for her Bachelors in Communication with a minor is psychology. She lives in the apartments on campus this year and works at the local sporting wear/goods store. She currently has two internships she will be doing this summer as well as getting married!  

Lauren and Paul: Well Lauren and Paul's relationship has not been the cookie cutter date, spend every day together for a year or two get married. Nope. They started dating about a year ago this past November after Paul took forever to actually ask Lauren out, that's according to Lauren :) However, the beginning of January Lauren was scheduled for a semester abroad for Dordt in the Netherlands, ya awesome, I know. When her and Paul were going through the usual first love obsession with each other they were faced with the daunting reality that she was scheduled to be thousands of miles away for four and a half months. Although it was hard for both of them, especially for Paul to be the one to stay home and let her go on an adventure without him, he told her to go and supported her. It wasn't easy and I dont know if I could do it but they managed to maintain the relationship and help it grow and when she got back they were sure they didn't want to be without each other. Cute, I know. 

She is pretty proud of their first "appliance"

On December 20, 2012 Paul popped the question! Hooray! And to top off the already exciting news, she got a killer ring!

Basically they're awesome! Lauren is one of my very best friends and Paul and Braden are best friends, how does it get any better! I love you both and I cannot WAIT for June 28, 2013! You're both awesome people and I am so happy God led you to eachother and that maybe in some small way I could be a part of that too :) Its so fun to watch you grow as a couple and I couldn't ask for a better sister/friend/auntie to Sutton!

Model? Probably.

Congrats you guys!!!!