Friday, February 27, 2015

The Bar is over!

We spent the last week in Des Moines. It was great to see my family! We were there for Kley to take the Bar Exam! We went up a few days early, which was nice to get settled, and for Norah and I to see my family while Kley was studying. It was a long last couple weeks with Kley studying basically non-stop. But, the light at the end of the tunnel has arrived and the test is OVER! Yay!

Here are some pictures we took Wednesday night after the test was done!


Aunt Kayla.


Uncle Keaton.


Grandpa and Grandma.





Yay for no more studying!


I am so thankful that it is over and that we can see Kley a lot more now! I am thankful that my dad was able to drop him off each day and bring him lunch, so he didn't have to worry about that. I am thankful that he was able to sleep well before the test (Kley has never slept well during stressful times, like finals). I am thankful that his stomach did not act up (he has ulcerative colitis and often has stomach issues during stressful times). I am thankful that he thought it went pretty well. What answers to prayer! Most of all, I am thankful for how hard Kley studied! We are so proud of him and are sharing in the relief of it being over!

Way to go, Kley! Norah and I love you so much!

Wednesday, February 25, 2015

Norah lately.









Monday, February 23, 2015

Norah- Four Months.


Norah is four months! She is growing so much and is getting so strong. That’s our big girl! This was the first month we were in the same place- Norah’s first month we were in our apartment in Des Moines, then we lived with my parents for a month, and then moved to Orange City. Norah is a lot like me in liking her routine and stability. She is such a good baby and doesn’t cry often, but trips/new people throw her off a bit. She loves to be around mom and dad, which is fabulous, but is slow to warm up to others. Mom and dad are definitely who she wants to hold her and be around! She is getting better and better, though, and warmed up to that as the month went on.

Norah became more set in a routine this month, which happened pretty naturally. She occasionally takes a bit to fall asleep or wakes up early (a few times in the night), but she regularly sleeps through the night, which we are so thankful for, especially as daddy is studying for the bar! She sleeps from about 10:30-8:30am. She still loves her bath and long night feeding before bed. Napping is still a little sporadic and short; she takes a few naps during the day, about 40 minutes each. She has started to transition to fewer but longer naps, but we still have a ways to go before that happens. We are also trying to get her to nap in the crib more. She does well with it at night, but doesn’t love it during the day. She burps less after feedings, but still does, and often will burp on her own. She eats about every 3.5 hours and loves to eat!

We are seeing more personality shine through this month too! She is full of smiles, and we are hearing more laughs. She also shows fear, mainly with new people and loud sounds. At 13 weeks she started sticking her tongue out. At 14 weeks we took a trip to Des Moines, and she took her time warming up to family. At 14 weeks, she also started rolling onto her side and wearing size 2 diapers. At 15 weeks she started pushing with her legs to try to stand up. She first rolled over on February 15 at 16 weeks, and has been rolling ever since. It is so fun to watch! Her arm gets stuck sometimes when rolling; she rolls from back to tummy, but then gets stuck. She still loves to suck on her fists/fingers, and has sucked a small blister on her left hand. She enjoys reading a few books and playing with toys. She loves the bright colors and sucking on them, and prefers soft toys to hard. Norah’s favorite things are being held, talking to mom and dad, riding in her car seat, sleeping in the baby carrier while mom vacuums, and sucking on anything and everything. Happy four months Norah- we love you so much!













Sunday, February 22, 2015

House Tour- Office.

Welcome to our office! 

(Here you can see the rest of the rooms.)

At first we didn't really know what to do with this room, but it has turned out so nice to have. It's painted the same color as our master bedroom (booth bay gray- though it looks like it has a blue tint). We got all the furniture in here from my in-laws, because they just moved/downsized, which worked our amazing for us! The desk is perfect for this room and for Kley's computer/books. The couch we were originally going to put in the living room, but then we were able to buy the sectional by selling items that the previous owner left, so it worked out perfect in here. We almost weren't able to get it through the doorway, but thankfully we did.

This is my "travel wall," composed of pictures I took on different trips. I love hanging personalized art.




The pictures on the left are from our honeymoon and where Kley proposed to me. :)


Law books!


Here is what it looked like DURING the moving process:


Here is what it looked like BEFORE (I am so glad we took out that old built in): 

Friday, February 20, 2015

House Tour- Norah's nursery.

Welcome to Norah's nursery- one of my favorite places! Decorating your first baby nursery is so much fun. I love how it turned out!

Having a rocking/gliding chair is so nice.


I LOVE these letters from Pottery Barn Kids, and the picture collage I made on Shutterfly of our first day together!


I love all the sentimental things in Norah's room. The giraffe picture is from the Des Moines Farmer's Marker (which isn't really sentimental, I just liked it). The little wooden Dutch shoes were mine from when I was a baby. If you look closely under the picture, you can see that it says De Jong in blocks- that was a sweet gift from my friend when we graduated college (she originally gave it to me for my teaching desk, but now it works perfect for a nursery!). The white lamb was her first ever stuffed animal from grandma. The Pottery Barn Kids holding case has her baby/toddler Bibles in it, and the lamp is also from Pottery Barn Kids. 


Her closet is gigantic and awesome.


I got this alphabet poster in DC when I was visiting Stephanie.


This was a Christmas gift from her great aunt.


This piece is also filled with sentimental things, along with her changing table. There is a picture of my grandma and I when I was a baby, a Willow Tree "Now you are Three" piece that Kley gave me last Mother's Day, a wooden rocking horse that was mine when I was a baby, a stuffed giraffe that Norah's great great grandmother made, an engraved piggy bank from grandma, a keepsake box I ordered for her hospital tags, and some fun blocks.



This picture I had specially made just for Norah. My mom always used to sing me "You are my Sunshine" when I was younger, and now we sing it for Norah. My blogger friend over at meandwee.blogspot.com made it.


I love this canvas of one of her newborn shots!




Her rug.




Toy/book nook.


I somehow missed uploading a digital picture of the before shot onto my computer, but it was an office before. This is what it looked like DURING:


(You can visit the rest of the house here.)