wordless wednesday

11 months

Emma girl,
It's hard to believe this is your last monthly post before you turn one!  You are such a sweet, happy, energetic little girl. You are hardly a baby anymore, although I don't want to admit it. I caught myself, just the other day, thinking about the morning you were born. You have changed so much since then and we have fallen even more in love with you.

You are walking more and more every day. You can go from sitting to standing up all by yourself.  I keep watching you pop up in the middle of the room without holding on to anything.  You take lots of steps (too many to count) before you either fall into someone's arms, fling yourself onto the dog bed, or just decide to get down and crawl.  It's fun to watch you decide between walking or crawling, hesitating, crouched down with your legs bent and either standing back up or going down. I can see the wheels turning.  And more often than not, when I set you down you firmly plant your feet and either just stand there or take off walking.

You are fearless too.  You love to fling yourself around, be held upside down, or be thrown up into the air.  You go down stairs head first.  You can get off the couch all by yourself as long as we face you the right way.  You slide off and are on your way. You tumble off Mason's bed and roll over, smiling. Mason tackles you to the ground and you laugh hysterically. You're giving us gray hairs already. 

You still love to eat.  You prefer to feed yourself and will eat whatever we are having.  I think at most meals you eat more than Mason.  Current favorites: spaghetti, chicken, wild rice, eggs, fruit and veggies, cottage cheese, and bread of any kind.  You mostly eat with your right hand and are getting really good at holding your cup. 

At 11 months, you:
~love to bounce
~dance whenever you hear music
~wave and say "bye-bye" when someone is leaving
~play peek-a-boo (which mostly consists of you covering one eye partly with your hand and then peeking out)
~blow air out of your mouth with your lips in a perfect "o" when we blow on your face (hopefully you're practicing for your birthday candle!)
~just started stringing together lots of different sounds, "talking" more and more
~say dada, mama (only occasionally), dog, thank you, and hi
~are over the moon about Mason; he can always make you smile
~still have the chunkiest baby thighs

You are such a precious girl.  Lately it's been impressed upon my heart what a priviledge it is to get to be your mommy. We love you so much sweet baby girl.

xoxo,
mommy

New York-Style Crumb Cake

We love a good coffee cake around here. We went through a time when we made it every weekend. We've tried lots of different recipes. There are so many different ingredients you can add. When I first browsed through the Baked cookbook, this one caught my attention because the description said that the crumb topping "is obscenely large in proportion to the cake." Now that sounds like my kind of coffee cake. Everyone know the crumb topping is the best part. Yet, every time I looked at the recipe I just couldn't bring myself to make something for breakfast that had so much sugar and butter in it. But, I finally decided I just had to try it....then I could adjust the recipe to our liking.

I did adapt this recipe the first time I tried it by reducing the sugar and using {homemade} maple yogurt instead of sour cream because it's what I had on hand.  It was the best coffee cake I've made in a long time.  It was cousin {Marylin} and Mason approved.  Mason actually called me (well, had daddy call me) at school one morning and we had the following conversation:

Me: Hi Mason
Mason: Hi mommy!  I ate all the coffee cake!  We need to make more.  You know? The one with all the butter?
I couldn't stop laughing.

The huge amounts of crumb topping did not disappoint.  Actually, there was so much crumb topping that I saved some for another use.  I was planning on topping some peaches or apples with it for dessert, but after eating the coffee cake we thought it would make a delicious filling for homemade pop-tarts.  But I haven't done either.  We put it in the fridge and just keep adding some to our oatmeal in the mornings.  I'm sure I'll be making this again. 

New York Style Crumb Cake
adapted from Baked

Crumb Topping
1 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 Tbsp. cinnamon
1 c. butter, melted and cooled
2 1/2 c. flour

Cake
2 c. flour
1/2 c. wheat flour
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 sticks (12 Tbsp) butter
3/4 c. sugar
2 eggs
1 c. yogurt
1 tsp. vanilla

Make the crumb topping by stirring together the sugars, salt, and cinnamon.  Add the melted butter and whisk until combined.  Stir in the flour and set aside.

Make the cake by sifting together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a small bowl.  Cream the butter until smooth.  Add the sugar and cream until fluffy.  Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat until incorporated.  Add the yogurt and vanilla.  Add the dry indgredients gradually. 

Pour the batter into a greased 9x13 pan.  Squeeze the topping into balls and pull chunks off, dropping them all over the cake.  Bake at 350 for 45-55 minutes. 

smile

When I went in to get Mason after his naptime yesterday, I walked in and he was just sitting there on his bed with all of his stuffed animals lined up next to him. I asked him what he was doing and he said, "we're getting ready for a smile." In Mason lingo that means taking a picture. I asked him if I could go get my camera and he said, "Yes, please take a smile of me and my friends." Precious.
Also, on the way into town yesterday Mason was singing to Emma in the backseat and she was responding with all sorts of jibber jabber. After awhile Mason says, "momma...we're singing it up back here!"

I spent the morning working on my national boards portfolio at the library. I'm hoping after naptime we can squeeze in some homemade crackers and a walk. The weather is just beautiful today!

saturday

Just a relaxing Saturday hanging out at home. It was much needed after a super busy week at school and an aching heart for a friend. I've spent a lot of time in prayer in the evenings and find such comfort in closeness to my Savior.

We started the morning off by making doughnuts. Mason just couldn't believe that we were going to have chocolate for breakfast. But, he actually ended up filling up on yogurt and he didn't even finish his doughnut. He informed me that it was too big. I didn't seem to have that problem.

The recipe came from the Baked Explorations cookbook. Ryan said they were his favorite so far.

We spent the morning making Valentines, reading books and chasing Emma around the house.

Now they're resting/napping and Ryan and I tackled the kitchen floor. Complete with pulling out the stove and mopping behind it. I'll spare you the details.
We're enjoying a sunny day. The peas have begun to sprout in the greenhouse and we're already dreaming about what seeds to order. More cleaning and writing papers this afternoon and then a card making session this evening. I know I say this all the time, but I love weekends!

10 months

Happy 10 months baby girl! It's hard to believe we are only a couple months away from you turning one!

This has been a big month for you! I don't know if I'd officially call you a walker yet, but you sure are close! You mastered taking two steps a couple weeks ago and now you take four or five steps before falling into the arms of the nearest person. You still love to stand and I am amazed by your balance. You can play with your toys and clap while standing in the middle of the room. I think you'll be taking off, walking at full speed in no time.

You also still love to eat. You eat three square meals a day and often have a couple snacks in between. You love to eat all sorts of food. Your favorites right now are eggs, bread, olives, fruit, cheese, lentils, and noodles. It's fun to watch you pick up every little piece and put it in your mouth. So far you seem to favor your right hand.

You are such a happy baby. I'm happy to report the super loud shrieks are becoming less and less, but every now and then you let one out. Especially if your tray is empty and you want more food. You are pretty good about signing for more too.

Ba ba ba is still your favorite sound, but this month you have also said grandpa (or something very close:), dada, and mama. You also say something very close to patty cake when you clap your hands.

One of your favorite things is when Mason wrestles with you. You both roll around on the floor squealing with laughter. Anytime he is giving you attention (which is most of the time) you are full of smiles and laughs. You spend a lot of time "driving" his cars and trains along the floor and playing with his tools.

You are learning so much Emma! It's such a treat to watch you grow and change with each passing month.

At 10 months, you:
~are learning new words
~are mostly walking
~take two naps
~usually wake up once or twice during the night
~had your first sick visit to the doctor with a double ear infection
~follow us all around the house
~drink from a cup (but are still figuring out how to hold it yourself)
~sleep in the car
~can hang out in the nursery during church
~are so full of smiles

You are such a sweet blessing, Emma girl. We love you!
xoxo,
mommy

old made new

Ryan and I are slowly working on our list of house-related projects. Quite a while ago (I don't exactly remember when) Ryan picked up this dresser for $1.00 from an auction. It really wasn't in that bad of shape, but we wanted to spruce it up a bit for the kiddos' room.

After a good cleaning and a couple coats of spray paint, we ended up with this:

Not bad for a couple bucks.

Their room is slowly coming along. I have a few ideas for some wall art, I just need to find the time to work on them. Any exciting weekend plans? Our weekends always seem to fill up with family, friends, cleaning, baking, and playing together. This weekend will probably be no different.

wordless wednesday

january

I sort of unintentionally took a little break from the ol' blog. I didn't really mean to, I just found myself spending my time doing other things rather than being on the computer. It was actually kind of nice. But, I do miss documenting the little things that make up our life. So how have we been spending the last few weeks (besides fighting some serious sickness and lack of sleep)?

We've taken a few small road trips and spent a great deal of time with family and friends.

Emma girl has been devouring food. She hasn't met something yet that she doesn't like but she is certainly taking a preference to feeding herself rather than being fed. She loves finger foods and does surprisingly well with only two teeth. We've been making homemade coffee creamer (and consuming lots of caffiene, thanks to the sleepless nights).

I'm in the middle of way too many projects at school and am very grateful for my wonderful parent volunteers.

Mason has been busy pulling trucks out ditches and taking them to the carwash to clean all the mud off.

We've been enjoying lots of eggs from our chickens. Lots of greens from the greenhouse too.

Mason's been busy fingerpainting and covering every piece of paper he can find with stickers.

We've been trying several homemade cracker recipes.

We've been reading lots of books. Sitting by the fire. Just hanging out and enjoying January (especially now that the ear infections and flu are a thing of the past.) What have you been up to?

wordless wednesday

9 months

Dear Emma,

It's a day late in coming, but happy 9 months sweet girl! This month has gone so fast. It's been a whirlwind of family, snow, good food, and lots of laughs. You are such a happy girl (and often share your happiness with high-pitched shrieks...which people either love or hate!) It's been so fun to watch you learn so many things this month!You are definitely on the move now. You've mastered crawling and are really thinking about walking. You love to stand and will pull yourself up on anything and everything. You have amazing balance and can stand for long periods of time unassisted. You have even taken a few steps on more than one occasion! You can walk from the coffee table to the couch and back. You prefer to play standing up with your toys in front of you on the couch or coffee table. Your walking attempts have kept us entertained for many hours! I love your squeals and giggles each time you stand up. You are so proud of yourself!Your sleeping habits have greatly improved! You have slept through the night several times this month and almost every time you do get up, you go back to sleep quickly. You take two naps a day and will sleep in the car on short and long trips alike. You got lots of cousin time in this month with Annsley, Elsa, and Jackson. You pretty much slept through all of Christmas (even the Christmas Eve service) and so graciously let Mason open all your presents. I'm pretty sure there won't be a repeat of that next year.


Several people have commented that you've become much more animated in the last few weeks. You interact with those around you and love to "talk." Mason is still one of your favorite people and can often make you laugh out loud. The super cute baby belly laugh that makes me laugh too.

You are such a good eater. You've tried lots of new foods this month and loved them all. You are really good at feeding yourself and can drink out of a cup if we hold it. You're just growing so fast. My favorite times are when you are sleepy and cuddle into my shoulder, either before a nap or just after you wake up.

At 9 months, Emma, you:
~are loud....lots of giggles and shrieks
~feed yourself
~follow me around the house
~still have a little stranger anxiety
~play with toys
~have two teeth
~love bathtime
~are slowing getting some more hair
~like to play in the morning for a little while before having breakfast
~clap
~sign for more
~smile and wave when people are leaving
~like music
~get a little sweeter every day

We love you so much!

xoxo,

mommy

12 Days of Christmas: Oreo Candy Cane Pie

Day 12: Oreo Candy Cane Pie This is what happens when my sister-in-law, Caroline, and I start dreaming up desserts. It's also what happens after Grammie makes candy cane ice cream (crushed candy canes mixed into vanilla ice cream) for dessert earlier in the week. We had a lot of ice cream left over, so what better thing to do than turn it into a pie? We started with an oreo cookie crust and spread the softened ice cream on top. Froze it and then added a layer of hot fudge topped with more crushed candy canes and froze it again. Peppermint and chocolate. Oreos and ice cream. Perfect! Then we enjoyed a piece of it every night after dinner for the past two nights. We also enjoyed some sweet victory over the guys in our Spades tournament.

Between all the deliciousness in the kitchen, the crazy card games and the eggnog latte drinking , we are having way too much fun with the kids.

Are you ready for Christmas? I hope this season finds you well. Ryan and I have spent some time discussing what exactly we want this holiday to look like for our kids. While it may be different from year to year, we are excited to teach them the true meaning of the season....a celebration of Christ's birth. Merry Christmas!

12 Days of Christmas: Gingerbread Cookies

Day 11: Gingerbread CookiesI usually don't make cut-out cookies at Christmas, but I knew it was something I wanted to do with Mason's cousins. We spent one afternoon letting them cut out the cookies and then decorate them. They loved it. It was sweet to watch them working together, discussing the frosting and sprinkles.

Gingerbread Cut-out Cookies

From Gooseberry Patch: Christmas All Through the House

1 1/2 c. light molasses
1 c. packed brown sugar
2/3 c. cold water
1/3 c. shortening
6 c. flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 t. allspice
1 t. ground ginger
1 t. ground cloves
1 t. cinnamon

Mix the first four ingredients together until thoroughly combined. Sift together dry ingredients and stir into molasses mixture. Chill dough overnight (we chilled it for a couple hours and it was great.) When ready to bake, roll dough into 1/4 inch thickness and cut out with cookie cutters. Place on lightly greased cookie sheets; bake at 350 for 15 minutes. (Maybe a little less if you want them chewy.) Decorate! 3 dozen.

wordless wednesday

12 Days of Christmas: Honey Knot Rolls

Day 10: Honey Knot Rolls

Last Sunday we had our Christmas meal at church after an amazing service. I was supposed to bring bread, so after searching around a bit on the internet I decided on honey knot rolls, and the recipe can be found here. These are wonderful, with a honey butter glaze on top. Watch them closely though, the bottoms browned up pretty quick.

The kids are napping and when they wake up their cousins should be here! We get to spend the holiday with Ryan's brother and his family who are stationed in Germany. It's going to be a great week! Four little ones will sure keep up busy, but we have lots of fun things planned.