Two Thirds //

Oh this little boy. How can he be eight months old already?! Life with him is just so much fun! There is nothing better than the moments he crawls over to give me a kiss when I'm crashed on his floor because he's up far too early for this mama (but slept all night so how can I complain?) or when I hear him and Dada laughing at each other in the other room or when he marvels at new sounds like hearing a train or how chatters in the backseat of the car or how proud he is when he figures out different things (like somehow opening his water bottle and making a puddle to splash in on the dining room floor). We love our little Behr and still cannot believe he's really ours.

The last month has had many highlights including but not limited to:

Learning to obey/listen to Mama. I love this pose of "I'm juuust looking not touching Mom." Fans and cords are the main no-touch in his little world.

Becoming a good sleeper. He's never been a bad sleeper he's just not a record-setting sleeper and that's ok. We've settled into some good sleep habits though and especially as a little boy who never stops moving he needs his rest.

Giving kisses. He is particularly affectionate toward me and his buddies Audrey and Edy. We figured out a few weeks ago that he thinks the open mouth attack is equivalent to a kiss. I guess he must find us very forceful in our affection cuz he sure tries to take you out with his kisses.

Baths of any kind are his favorite. Actually water of any kind is. He scampers to the bathroom or kitchen if he hears water running and gets some "bath time" nearly every day just cuz it makes him so happy.

Playing with his little friends. He and Audrey are learning to share and Edy is getting so close to participating with them. I'm not sure what A is going to do when there are two babies vying for her attention and participation but they both adore her.

We took a family day trip to the zoo (with Miss Meeps too) and Behr loved the meerkats. They were so busy in their little enclosure and he just gasped with delight watching them run around. He likes to watch videos of them on YouTube now too. It's the sweetest thing.

Little boy you bring such joy to your mommy and daddy. You make every day more fun even when you're a mess because of your stubborn teeth or when you simply do not stop moving all day long and keep me on my toes catching up to you and keeping you out of trouble. We love you busy boy!

Mover

Well it happened: my sweet little babe is now completely and entirely grown up. He moves. By himself. From place to place. To wreak whatever havoc he imagines on various parts of the house. And we love him all the more for it.

Last Monday started the same as any other but just before bedtime Behr crawled, like he'd been doing it for months, across his little rug to his bathtub basket in his changing table. The object he was motivated to crawl to retrieve: his hairbrush, go figure!

Hairbrush trophy!

The little man hasn't stopped moving since! I knew that him moving would shake things up but I really had a hard time wrapping my mind around how much a mobile, extremely curious monkey would change things. It messes with his sleep (he moves allllll over his crib and while the moving doesn't seem to wake him--just like his dada--when he randomly manages to sit up in his sleep he doesn't know how to lie back down and that wakes and keeps him up). It results in so many bumps on his sweet little head and so many frustrations when he gets "stuck" which is generally him stuck half perched on a bookshelf or a table or the couch (though so far life is much less frustrating now that he can actually crawl). He crawls so he can get to things or pull up on things. Cords, outlets, the kitchen, paper, well really anything is his goal. This week his fascination is a bag of onions that I keep in the kitchen and really, while it makes a small mess to clean up the dry peels of skin every time I've been in the kitchen with him it's really a small price to pay for keeping him entertained and safely away from other objects.

Little frog crawl-ing boy.

Oh that guilty face...and a bag of onions on the floor. ;-)

In the last month our little Behr has...

Really, truly gotten on a consistent genuine schedule. It wasn't that he was all over the place before but now he's rather predictable in terms of waking, napping, and going down for the night. We're still working on helping him stick to it so that hopefully he'll be even more adaptable down the road.

Taken to eating "solids" of all types. Sweet potatoes and carrots trouble his tummy but he won't turn any type of food down. He will literally eat until he's sick. I don't think he has a favorite food. His favorite is food! This week to celebrate his seven months I started giving him finger foods and he thinks that's a very fun game. It took help from me and his best buddy Audrey but he ate half a banana in pieces the other day and a handful of "puffs" today. 

Gone to the pool at least once a week and still loves it. As soon as we walk up the hill he starts waving his arms and "jumping" in our arms.

•  Started to pant like a little puppy dog when there's something he wants or is excited about. From jumping in his jumpy-seat to hearing Dada walk in the door or waiting for his dinner he "pants" sometimes with his little tongue out. It's pretty darn cute even if I have no idea where he got it. 
• Turned into an all-boy little boy. He bangs on things, growls, is obsessed with wheels and pushing things, and spitting/blowing bubbles. It's like he knows that he's a boy in the midst of a sea of little girls. After one particular play date with his little friends (Audrey, Irene, and Edith) he started growling and making really guttural sounds to communicate and/or get other peoples' attention. 



• Demonstrated that he understands more and more of what we say. He clearly responds to his name when called. He bats his lashes and leans into my face when I say "noses." And today stared at the door and started panting (see above) when I announced that Dada was home! This also comes with an unfolding little temper when he can't have what he wants or do what he wants.
• Gotten somewhat mobile and scarily close to crawling. When left on the ground he will flop onto his belly and wiggle to what he wants to reach. He gets up on his knees and "rocks." He seems to know he needs to move his little legs because he'll be up on all fours and then hang his head down to stare at his legs as if trying to coax them to move with him. He also loves to stand up and will pull himself up to stand on anything sturdy enough to hold him (or that he thinks is sturdy). 

Little Puppy playing on Mama & Dada's bed.

We love you darling boy. You are more fun than we ever imagined when we met you seven months and one day ago.

Half-a-Birthday

The last six months have been the funnest, sleepiest, messiest, and fastest months of my life. I love being a mommy. I love being a mommy to Behr. I love watching my husband as a daddy. It's just...fun. Behr is fun. He's silly. He's chattery. He's drooly and not very gentle (especially with hair). But oh goodness is life as parents fun! I can't believe we've already been holding and loving this little dude for six months and know the next six (and years after!) are simply going to fly but I wish I could bottle up some of the silly moments, the messy moments, and even the sleepy moments to remember forever.

Because Dre's schedule will be all over the place for most of our kiddos' early years we've been thinking ahead of little things we can do or memories we can make for them that are special even if it's a Wednesday adventure rather than a Saturday sports game with Dad. (He'll likely work weekends and most holidays at least for a while.) We thought it would be fun if we celebrated the kids' (hopefully more than just Behr!) "half birthdays" every year. Nothing big just a special cake and a trip to the Dollar Store with Dada to pick out a treat. Behr's a little too young to be trusted with Dollar Store toys so he went to Target with Dada and "picked out" a nice classic baby toy. (According to Dre he "leaned" for the toy and fussed when he had to surrender it at check out. This kid.) So we'll see. We know we're first time parents and completely infatuated with our little dude but hopefully this is a simple thing we can do in years to come, with children to come, to communicate that they are special and a joy to their mom and dad.

Behr's half-a-cake for his half-a-birthday. This one Mommy and Daddy (and Daniel/Doug) ate after our dinner. Behr smashed his hand in it and really wanted to know what it was. Soon little son, soon.

Since he couldn't have the 'real' cake I 'made' Behr a cake he could get messy with and enjoy: a lovely half avocado! We started solids a few weeks ago but took a break because sweet potatoes (or food?) seemed to unsettle his stomach. This week we're back at it and Behr is enjoying avocado so far. He likes to talk while he eats which makes the mess a lot bigger but it's pretty darn cute so whatcha gonna do.

The toy Behr "picked out" at Target with Dada today. He sat on the couch and played with it for a good 45 minutes after he was ready for bed so I guess that's a solid indication he really likes it.

Messy avocado face. We love you silly Behr!

Month Five

How can we possibly have an almost six month old?! That's half of a year!! Oy. It's crazy to me but when my mind isn't wondering how that can be it's enjoying every minute of our fun little boy. At five months Behr hit a point of just being "fun." He is fun and he has fun. He really seems to just enjoy his little life. He laughs a lot, talks a lot, plays a lot, and is just overall a happy little dude. These pictures are some of the highlights of the last month of our growing little Behr.
my favorite things about him at this five months are: (1) when he rolls onto his side when he's falling asleep, (2) his little voice chattering away on the couch next to me or in the back seat of the car, and (3) how he talks in his sleep. oh my heart. those three things just melt me.

helping Dada pick crabs after a crab feast with Grandma and Grandpa Kless

when Behr gets tired he gets slap happy; these were at a baseball game that went into extra innings a few weeks ago; he went to sleep and took a long nap in the Ergo but when he woke up he was very silly!

last weekend we took a family trip to Ikea to look at couches. Behr thought the store was a party! he was giggling and chattering and patting (or trying to eat) everything within reach. I think the catalyst was this: our boy loves to spend time with his Dada. 

this is one of my favorite pictures right now and so perfectly captures our little guy at this stage. during a middle of the night diaper change the other night (in which he usually completely sleeps through) I looked up from grabbing a diaper and Behr had rolled onto his side--his favorite way to sleep right now--was snuggling his blankie, and of course, was half naked. if this kid could not wear pants all day he would be a happy boy all the time. such a boy. 

playing in his bed before nap time. of course half dressed again. a few weeks ago he pulled into a seated position in my lap and pretty much immediately decided he had figured out balancing to sit and it's his usual preferred position to play and hang out these days. I can't believe how "old" it makes him feel to have him sit alone, unsupported and play with his toys. he doesn't crawl yet but can scootch--unfortunately for him he usually scootches backwards. playtime usually looks like him sitting 'til he drops or throws his toy, flopping over  onto his stomach to reach it and then "accidentally" scootching farther and farther away from it and becoming very angry that his toy isn't near him anymore. it's a hard life being a little Behr sometimes.

the pool opened last weekend and, as we hoped, our little guy is in love with the pool. I don't know what Dada would have done if he wasn't. as soon as we walk onto the pool deck he starts bouncing and kicking his legs. he doesn't need to be gradually warmed up to the pool each time either; just plunked right in and he immediately starts splashing, kicking, and trying to get his face in the water. crazy kid. this sweet face was when he was taking a break from the pool and telling Mama about all the splashing that he was watching the big kids do.

going in to pick up this little bunch of cuddles in the morning couldn't be more of a joy. we love you Behr!!

Mother's Day

It's funny. When I went to write this post I felt like I needed to search for some grandiose quote or something to fully capture how my heart feels about being a mommy especially a mommy to my little Behr. But really there simply aren't any words that can fully capture motherhood for me. It's been everything and more I dreamed of: more work, more fun, more instinctive, more confusing (mostly what on earth my body is doing), and quite simply more wonderful than anyone could have told me or prepared me for.

To me motherhood is in so many ways hope. I hoped and prayed and waited to be a mommy. I trusted and waited. I wrestled and waited. I cried and waited. And really, as long as it felt in my heart, I didn't actually wait that long; I only tasted what so many people experience in waiting. God was kind and merciful and sovereignly knew when it was time and gave us our little Behr. Because of that (and probably because he's only five months old), I almost always see the promise of God in him. Quite honestly--and I know I'm speaking as someone who has an overall "easy baby" who usually sleeps and usually laughs more than he cries and whose biggest health challenge is seemingly endless sore gums--on Behr's worst days, the days he cries and cries and screams and arches his back and looks at me with tears on his cheeks seeming to ask why I can't fix his pains or frustrations, I am more grateful for him and more blessed to be his mommy than any other day. (That's not to say I don't go to bed exhausted on those days and silently beg for him to sleep even for half an hour so I can get a ten minute nap or moment to myself.)
I still cannot believe he's real. I simply can't. There are moments I look at him and I'm just in awe that God would give us this little boy as our son, that we get to hold him and squish him and clean up after him and burp him and simply love on him in it's various forms for the rest of his days. I know that some day he will make me so mad I'll go sit in the bathroom to try and collect myself and keep from yelling at him or pulling my hair out. I know that some day he'll be an awkward, big footed, smelly teenager testing his mom and dad's limits and sanity. I know that some day, Lord-willing, he will leave to be a man on his own. But for every one of those days I want to remain grateful. And hopeful of all that God has already done in providing him and all that God will do to continue teaching me to trust Him to be his mother and trust him to his Creator.

Little Behr Malachi you speak to me hope. I love you son.

Hope is the thing with feathers

That perches in the soul,

And sings the tune--without the words,

And never stops at all. 

--Dickinson

Five Whole Months

Five months with the sweetest little boy I've ever known: where is the time going?! There are mornings nearly every week--and sometimes nap times--where when I get Behr out of his bed he just looks "older." Like in the few hours he spent sleeping he grew up on me. It breaks my heart a little bit and yet makes me so excited for the fun to come of having a little boy instead of a baby. I feel like I know this little guy pretty well right now and can tell when he's sad or when he's hurting or when he's just being silly but I can't wait to watch and see what he's like as he grows into a little boy--and to see what kind of toddler he is. Hopefully an adventurous one that isn't too destructive. ;-) Here's a few favorite pictures from the last few weeks.

Doesn't he just look like such a big guy? Knocked out at nap time in his cool clothes. The Ewok in the top right corner starts every bed time or nap time upright at his side and somehow ends every bed time or nap time flung to the opposite corner and usually with is little cloak torn off. Behr likes to pat him as he falls asleep and apparently at some point either the Ewok comes alive or Behr gets aggressive. 

Mondays are our "Dada Days" and we usually spend the whole day together as a family having little adventures like trips to Home Depot or the library or out to lunch or picnics. We've almost always included a trip to the swings across the street on nice days too--and then often make other trips with Little A as well. Behr loves to be outside and he loves the swings. His little legs kick furiously and he giggles and spits at the air. He really can't get much cuter.

Behr's biggest accomplishment and goal in life each day is to get his toes into his mouth. Apparently they're the perfect chew toy for his sore gums. He gets this very proud look in his eye when he manages to get his toes in and chews and chews and gets them all drooly. Drool is the defining feature of his world these days. He soaks through his clothes and my clothes and anything he gets his hands on. When he's been in his bumbo seat for a while it's usually coated in slobber. Deeeelicious.

And we officially have a mover! Behr's not big on rolling over. He can and does but he's not too concerned about it. (He typically only rolls over "without thinking about it" like when I lay him down on his tummy he'll do a quick roll but if I put him back on his tummy he'll just play there for 15-20 minutes rather than roll again.) What he does do is scootch. Be it on his back or on his tummy he wiggles all over the place now. Many times at bed time if he's having a hard time settling down we'll go in and find him jammed into the corner of his crib. He's a silly little bug and doesn't yet seem to do it because he wants to get somewhere or get something. The months to come are only going to be filled with more realizations that he can control his own movement. It's insane to watch a person grow up.

Baby Buddies

One of Behr's favorite people in the whole wide world is Audrey. She's his little buddy. She teaches him all kinds of important things and helps with his diaper changes, paci, and all kinds of mischief already. I really can't wait to watch them be friends as they get older and see what kind of trouble they get into. I mean seriously. Look at that smile in the picture below: Meeps can do no wrong in Little Behr's eyes.

In the early, early morning hours last Saturday, while Behr was sleeping in his little bed, Audrey became a big sister. I got to be there to welcome Edith into the world and it was once again one of the most incredible and amazing experiences of my life. I think I could have a dozen children of my own and witness a hundred children be born and never get over the wonder of life. It's incredible.
Janet had a fast and furious hospital labor (I barely know what to call it considering she was pretty much in labor for weeks after being on bedrest for over a month to keep her little girl from coming early) but all I could think the entire time was how kind of God it was that she was coming then and not a few hours later since Dre and I were heading out of town on Saturday and I sure didn't want to miss meeting my best friend's baby. Waiting for her to go into labor and watching her labor after having a child of my own was a whole new experience. I told Janet at one point I didn't know how to pray for her to be in that sort of pain after knowing how it felt (or at least what I experienced; I'm sure it's different for everyone). But thankfully it went insanely fast and I was home and back in bed before Dre even left for work that morning. Before we headed out of town Dre wanted to go meet the baby and of course Behr had to meet his new friend.

Behr is the perfect age right now for his new little friend. He stares and stares at her and sure isn't really sure what to think but is very intrigued especially when she waves her hands or legs around. Eventually he was more attracted to the pattern on her blanket and tried to steal it away and chew on it. Silly kid.

Janet is "like family" to me. She is truly the friend who sticks closer then a brother and I cannot imagine life without her. The Remsnyders are very special to us Klesses. We love you little family and love watching your family grow. Lord-willing these three will be friends and we parents will survive their misadventures together. If their personalities continue the way they are I'm pretty sure Audrey will be the ring leader, Behr her happy accomplish and the one who does her dirty work, and Edith will just gracefully follow along and keep them from getting into too much trouble.

A Third of a Year

What??! A baby who is a third of a year old? Four months of this little man being in our arms and his giggles and cries filling our house?? How did that happen?! I have no idea but we are more in love with him and more amazed at watching him grow and learn about his world every day.

Oh those arms. His little arms have been a favorite of mine since day one. Though back then they were skinny and hairy and now they've got sweet soft little pudge that I love to squeeze.

Last week our little man rolled from front to back for the first time. I lay him down for "tummy time" and he immediately rolled over. But the stubborn dude hasn't done it again since. He doesn't mind "tummy time" as much now and likes to chatter while lying on his blanket. He almost always winds up spitting up while on his tummy even if it's been hours since he ate. Go figure? // His new toy is an exersaucer and I'm pretty much in awe of  how he's changed even in 24 hours. One morning he played in it and pretty much just "hung" there and batted at his toys. The next morning we plopped him in and he steadied himself with his feet, attempted to "stand," and hit whatever toy had his attention. Over and over and over. I still haven't gotten over observing that dramatic change in his development. My little boy is growing up!

Sweet boy napping in a big bed. He's such a little man: he loves to have his pants off and onesies undone. If everything else fails it's typically a guaranteed way to soothe his fussies.

This past weekend we headed up to Western New York to visit Andree's grandma just outside Buffalo. The many faces of our road trip are captured above. Poor guy tried as hard as he could but teething + driving through mountains (aka elevation) + hours and hours in the car wasn't his favorite adventure ever. He did great interacting with new faces and gave lots of smiles and chatter to Great Grandma Kless and Uncle Dave and Aunt Diane. He survived the hours in the car though and of course won't remember the "trauma." His reaction and behavior when we finally got home Monday night were almost worth the entire trip. He was SO happy. We set his car seat down and he immediately started kicking and rocking his seat. When we took him out and handed him to Kristen and Caleb he started chattering and telling them all about his trip. He'd lean back, look around, laugh, and then nuzzle into Caleb. Until bedtime he just talked and talked and talked. Poor sweet boy. I love him and his little developing personality so much.

Little Behr, we could not love you more. Four months in and being your parents has been the biggest joy in our lives and no matter what our nights with you look like (sometimes only waking up once, sometimes waking up three times to feed and comfort you) we wake up each morning excited to get you out of your bed and spend our day playing and being with you. We are so grateful for you son. So, so grateful.

15 Weeks of Our Little Behr

Life with our little Behr only gets better. He wakes up each morning more fun and sweeter every day. (Note: that's every morning when he wakes up. When he wakes up at nap time it's rough. He's very like his mama. ;-)) At three months he's so much more interactive and are so much more in love with him. The most recent highlights are...


The Swings. Behr had his first adventure on the swings with Aunt Titi and Little A a few weeks ago on one of these unseasonably warm March days we've had this month. Audrey kept telling us she was going to take Behr to the swings but any other time he's gone he's stayed in the stroller. I guess this time he and Audrey convinced Aunt Titi he was big enough to try it out too. ;-) Word is he loved it even if he wasn't totally sure about it and sat and stared and kicked his little feet.

The Outdoors. The obvious advantage of this gorgeous weather has been lots of time outside for all of us. Behr seems to love going for walks or sitting out on the deck with me or Dre. He fights hard to stay awake on walks so he can lick the wind and squeal at the tree branches. Love this little dude. He's even helping his dada to 'love the outdoors.' ;-)

Gravelly Point. For Dada's birthday we had our first family picnic at Gravelly Point and introduced Behr to Dre's favorite hobby of airplane watching. He wasn't too into it and definitely found it a little overwhelming and scary but tried his best to be brave for Dada's sake. ;-) I know we'll be back for many more picnics and family times in the days to come. Behr also went to his first museum the Monday before when we spent the day with our friends Andrew & Cassie at the Udvar Hazy Air & Space Museum. He was a perfect baby that day away from home from 10:45-7pm and only fussed when he was hungry. Some days we're just spoiled.

Moves. Well this picture doesn't really capture it unless you were sitting at the angle I was when I took it but little man is starting to figure out controlling his movements. Some mornings when I got to get him up after crib time I find him moved 90-degrees or more from how I left him. He wiggles his little legs and pushes his little belly all over the place. He likes to wiggle his hips out of his bouncy seat if left not strapped in. I let him test out his jumperoo the other afternoon and he was pretty sure he was the man making himself bounce and sway in the doorway in it. (Until he got hiccups and scared himself silly.) He also gets pretty impressed with himself when he can manage to grab hold of the spoon or plate or whatever is on the table in front of him when he's sitting on someone's lap. It's so neat to watch him already start to grow up into a little boy in these ways. It's just amazing to watch someone learn like this.

More Books. Behr is still sweetly captivated by reading picture books together. His favorites are Frank Asch books (below) which I'm guessing is because they're big illustrations with lots of contrast on a page. He'll often kick and squeal as they're being read to him. He loves pretty much anything with good pictures so Dada's had fun introducing him to books like If You Give a Mouse a Cookie too. Reading a book or two together every day is one of my favorite things about having this little boy.

Teething. Behr is looking to be a child prodigy. I mean we're his parents so clearly we're biased but most evenings he can be found looking like this...

or this...

Poor little dude is teething "early" at 3 1/2 months. He just wants to be special I guess. (3 months is the early side of average I suppose and his daddy set him up for it by getting his first tooth at 5 months.) His mean ol' teeths make him rather miserable in the evenings. Some nights it just means he wants to gnaw and gnaw and gnaw and release buckets of drool. Other nights he's rather inconsolable without a little Tylenol and extra snuggles to numb the pain. It's so very sad to not be able to help him much or explain to him why he hurts but we know he'll survive it and that we all had to go through it and none of us remember the apparent agony we went through having our teeth first push through our gums. He's got the white spots, the epic drool, the need to gnaw, and all the other "signs" of teething. I'm just hoping, for his sake, that whatever tooth or teeth need to push through get through soon so he can have a break from his evenings of misery.

Pooh Bear & Snuggles. The other side of his super sad teething phase is a snuggly little guy. About a month ago he started being attached to his Pooh Bear and soft blankets. When he's sleepy--or needs the reminder that he's sleepy and it's nap time--a little snuggle with Pooh or a blanket has him drifting right off. The other morning he put himself down for a nap by reaching over and stealing my blanket and rubbing his face into it and clutching it with his fists. It's just about my favorite thing ever to witness--and definitely a life saver on his fussy days to have him learning to self-soothe.

What a gift this little guy is. We knew he would be but he's better than we ever could have dreamed of and we are so grateful!