christmas(s) 2010

Christmas is one of those holidays where family gatherings are very important to most of us. This year is a bit different for us. With a new job starting for me in February I'm not going to be in a position to travel for a while. That means our planned trip to Washington in March is out. So we quickly booked flights for December. That means TWO family gatherings this year.

First up was a trip to CT and my family gathering. With our trip to Washington starting the next day and a house needing prep work for sale it meant the kids and I left Shelby at home to work while we went to my Mom's house. It was great to see my Mom, brothers and their kids. Here's a slide show of the festivities:

The next day, after cleaning and straightening the house all day, we got a flight out of Boston to Seattle. Shelby's brothers and their families live in the Seattle area, and her parents were coming to town for a visit. Mom and Dad didn't know we'd be there though...and it was a great surprise. Here's a longer slide show of the week and a half we've been here:

Christmas this year is a season full of a multitude of emotions. We are really excited about my new job in Colorado Springs. It seems like it will be a really cool place to live and fortunately we already have some friends there which will ease the transition a bit.

At the same time there is terrific anxiety over trying to make a fast sale of both our home and my practice. It seems like a nearly impossible task and there is so very much to do. We are going to be very busy for the next six weeks, and until things get resolved we'll likely be living with upset stomachs from the stress.

There is also a sadness that comes with knowing that we'll be leaving behind friends, some of which we've known for decades. There are so many people that we will miss so very much. And for me there is leaving the area that has always been home.

Add to this the joy of seeing family and of sharing our kids with them. It is truly a crazy time emotionally.

A time like this is one where I lean very heavily on my Lord and God. I know that I can't handle all of this by myself and I'm grateful for the promises God gives us of His provision. I fall back on Matthew 6:25-34. I especially love two parts, "your heavenly Father already knows all your needs." And also, "So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today."

So the "Christmas Season" brings us a great hope, joy and love. The hope of a Father who knows our needs and cares for us, taking care of them. The joy of the Spirit, who guides us and "prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words." And the love of the Son, that tiny babe who was born to save us from our sin by suffering and sacrificing so much, in fact sacrificing everything for us.

It is these truths that enable me to keep going when things are so crazy. And it is also these truths that make me so grateful for the tiny babe whose coming enabled the healing of our relationship with our great God.

The reason for the season. Praise God.

Jonathan

all things job related...

There have been a lot of job related happenings in the Berg family over the last couple of months. Shelby wrote of her layoff back in the beginning of October. That actually gave us a shove in a direction we had really been wanting to go for a long time.

We've been wishing that Shelby could stay home with the kids, or at least work a minimal number of hours and be home more. In this area that's a tough thing to do. With the layoff we BOTH started looking diligently into other employment and possibly a move. That search payed off today...for me.

I've been mainly looking into chiropractic jobs with the federal government. One of the spots I applied to was with the Air Force Academy. The job seemed like it was made just for me. Colorado Springs looks like an awesome place to live. We even have friends out there already.

I had my second interview today and at the end of the day I was offered the job! It's hard to leave New England, but I am really excited about this job and what it means for my family. There is still a lot to do; I'm going to sell my practice and we need to sell the house. And then there's moving of course...but it is one really great opportunity.

So here's a note of thanks, to my friends who have offered support and especially for all of you who were praying hard for me today, but also to our great God who answers those prayers. Thank you friends and praise you Lord!

As Shelby did in her post on the layoff, I want to close with the last verse of "All Must Be Well" which takes on a different meaning for me now:

We expect a bright tomorrow; All will be well
Faith can sing through days of sorrow, All is well
On our Father's love relying
Jesus every need supplying
Yes in living or in dying
All must be well


Jonathan

christmas tree day

One of our family "traditions" (it's only a few years old) is that we get and decorate our Christmas tree on the day after Thanksgiving. The tradition is filling out a little with time and it's becoming a full, fun day. Here's a little video I put together which shows you how we spent the day.

We love Christmas tree day. It just gets to be more and more fun.

Jonathan

8 months...she's mobile!

It's been a while since our last blog post. Suffice to say that we've been VERY busy with non-blogworthy things and until recently were without a decent camera. Thanks to a very generous birthday present (Thank you Michael & Cheryl!) we're back at it again.

Kendall is growing stronger every day. She is now perfectly happy to sit up and will play with her toys for a long time while she does:

Sitting and playing














The other news is that she is now MOBILE! We didn't get much time where we could just put her down to play and not worry about her moving. She is now scootching around military style:

Kendall loves the jumper and spends time in it several times a day. It takes very little to encourage her to start jumping...

Jumping Girl














Riley loves his sister (I love the way he says her name when he says hello to her) and she loves him too. She watches him constantly. Here's a picture of them on Riley's rocking horse after we took it down from the attic for him. Riley turned and said, "Kendall get on" and pointed to the spot behind him. He's such a sweet kid.

Ride 'em cowpokes!














All in all our girl is growing up. She's becoming more fun each and every day.

We love our Kendall Girl!


Jonathan

7 Months old!!

Our baby girl is getting bigger by the week it seems. This is such a fun time when her development really seems to be taking off and she's changing so much during the month. Here's some of what she's up to right now:

She's reaching and grabbing at everything now. I can't sit at the computer with her without her reaching for the keyboard, mouse and any papers that we have on the desk. Everything goes into the mouth for oral examination so we keep the electronics well out of reach.

She's doing better at sitting up unassisted, but still needs something soft for falling on -- the maximum time I've seen her sit up is about 2 min. While on her belly, she slithers around and manages to travel quite a bit, so I don't think that crawling will be too far off.












She gets daily practice at sitting up (I'm really anxious for this milestone to be reached). Here's hoping we'll be there by 8 months!












Video of Sitting Practice

Standing is still her favorite posture:












As far as food, well she's not to interested in solids yet, so we're still working on that. I've offered her applesauce, yogurt, butternut squash & peanut butter and had the best success with the PB. I guess that particular food love continues to run in the family; also it doesn't fall out of her mouth as easily.

And if anyone's gasping at my offering PB at this age -- the biggest risk factor is genetics. Since there's no nut allergies in our family, I gave it a try. No worries.












I gave her a couple of baby feeders and she seems to like them. Works nicely as a chew toy too:












Otherwise, she's now weaned and taking 4 bottles of formula a day of approx 30 oz total.

Still hates her car seat...but has learned to live with it (and I have learned to live with the fact that pink will be a primary color in her wardrobe):
















We're beginning to hear some babbling (something like nigh-nigh and da-da) that's terribly sweet, but mostly she coos and sighs. She's ticklish on her belly & neck and squeals whenever we tickle her there.












It's hard to believe she's seven month's old already. The next seven hold quite a few milestones.

We love our Kendall girl!

Shelby

acadia 2010

Columbus Day weekend meant our annual trip to Acadia National Park and Bar Harbor. This year marked Shelby's eleventh trip and my seventh. Amazing.

We knew going into the trip that this year that it would be on the low key side. Just as when Riley was an infant Kendall would change all things. That together with my bike rack breaking as I was loading the car to leave meant that there would be much less activity this time around.

Travel is different now too. Riley is an active boy and so we need to take some time along the way to let him run off some of his excess energy. This meant stopping (in both directions) at a really great new playground in Portland. The playground is in a park that Shelby spent a lot of time in when she lived in Portland so while Riley got to play she got a chance to reminisce.

It's always great to hang with the cousins. Erica and Riley always have a great time together as well. Shelby's Aunt Marilyn and Uncle Jim were also along which was nice because they got to meet our Kendall Girl.

We hit some of our regular faves: Cafe This Way, the Jordan Pond House, Hunter's Beach and the Morning Glory Bakery. The rest will best be told by pictures and video. If a picture is worth a thousand words then what follows will be book-worthy.

It was a fun trip, as usual, but I'm looking forward to being able to take Kendall out in the kayak, in the bike trailer and in the backpack. Future trips should be very different. So here's the aforementioned pictures and video:

Days one and two:

Days three and four:

Jonathan

ch-ch-ch-changes

Exodus 33:14 And he said, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”

This verse has been banging around in my head for the past 10 days -- ever since I got called into the Treasurer's office and informed that my career at IG was over. Just like that. After 8 years, my routine is now all out of whack; it feels strange not to be going there anymore. It took me almost 90 min to get myself packed up and out of there and I still forgot things that I had to go back for. If you've ever been through a layoff, then maybe you understand the fog that I was in.

Since we were leaving for Acadia a few days later, I didn't do anything related to job hunting that first week. Just enjoyed a little extra time with my kids and doing household stuff while they were at daycare & preschool.

Everyone that knows me knows I'm the "worst-case scenario" girl -- I imagine the worst, work really hard to try to keep it from happening, fret about the things I have no control over and then breathe a sigh of relief when reality turns out to be better than I feared. While I still think about what my take on the worst case might look like, I'm finding that this time around I've been able to theologize my way out of the dark place it usually leads me. It involves reminding myself of the things that I believe to be true because of what God tells me about himself. Things like this:

1. He didn't spare his Son for you, so won't He give you everything else that you need in life? (Rom 8:32)

2. God delights in those that hope in Him (Ps 147:11)

3. Everything is ordained and works for my good and God's glory (Rom 8:28)

Besides praying more (Shouldn't I be praying this much all the time?!), I've been reading the story of the Israelites and their exodus out of Egypt, their wanderings in the desert and their journey to the Promised Land. For reasons I won't go into here, I've been identifying with them in their longing for change and their doubts about God's resolve to bring that change about and lead them to a better place. Every time they're facing impossible circumstances and it seems that God has reneged, He uses it to show them how much he loves them, how powerful He really is and that He keeps all of his promises.

So now I'm faced with unemployment at a time when it's harder to get employed and J's business is suffering a slowdown. Already, I see God's provision in that I received a decent severance package, so we're not relying on unemployment benefits to pay the mortgage currently. The rest of the provision has yet to be revealed. I suppose the only way my faith gets tested & strengthened is in these times of uncertainty. I'm so glad that I have a God that doesn't treat me as my sins deserve and knows my struggles and meets me in the midst of them (Ps 103:10-13).

I love the last verse of "All Must Be Well":

We expect a bright tomorrow; All will be well
Faith can sing through days of sorrow, All is well
On our Father's love relying
Jesus every need supplying
Yes in living or in dying
All must be well

Shelby

kendall is 6 months old!

Happy Half-Birthday, Baby Girl!

We say it over and over but it's so true how time flies. It's hard to believe that it's been six whole months since Kendall came into our world. I didn't feel like we were missing someone prior to her arrival, and yet now I can't imagine our family without her. With her, we "The Boston Bergs" seem complete.












The only vitals I got at her doc's appt is weight -- 14.8 lbs (20th percentile). She continues to get 5 meals of mama's milk a day. However, now that she's hit the 6 month mark, I'm going to start giving her formula while I'm at work, so I don't have to pump. I'll continue to nurse her morning and night and pump an extra bottle as long as I have the supply.

I'm going to delay solids for another few weeks as she doesn't seem ready for spoon feeding quite yet. She still thrusts her tongue out, so nothing seems to go down her throat. I'll try again in a week or two and see if she's ready. I've started giving her a sippy cup to practice on, tho' right now she just gnaws on it.

As reported last month, her bottom front teeth are coming in.

She rolls back and forth easily and has been sleeping on her belly for a couple of months now. Her neck is strong, but her back is still wobbly. Her arms are strong though, and she's started using them while on her belly to scootch herself forward a little bit. She is also doing something on her belly that looks a bit like crawling when she pushes her chest completely off the floor and flexes her knees. Since her next big milestone will be sitting up unassisted, I'm giving her practice doing the tripod sitting:












Her hand-eye coordination is improving and she can transfer an object from one hand to the other, but she doesn't hold objects for more than about 15-20 seconds usually. She's gotten good enough to grab one of the animals of her crib mobile, so I think we'll be taking that down before she busts it (since it's promised to a friend).












She took her first ride in an outdoor swing last week. At first she held on to both bars and then she just got herself into a relaxed position and enjoyed the ride. Note the placement of her feet...












One thing that has really struck me this time around is how much Kendall (and Riley) will choose interaction with people over any toy offered. Kendall enjoys the jumper, but when Riley comes over to play too, all she wants to do is watch him. So cute.












I wasn't sure if Kendall was going to be ticklish like Riley is, but in the last month, I've discovered she is quite sensitive on her neck and around her belly button. I've exploited it to my fullest advantage, just to hear her giggles!

As if you didn't know I love my Kendall-girl (as does Daddy & Riley too!) and we're so grateful for these first 6 months with her.












We're looking forward to the next six months with all of it's amazing changes as she starts eating solids, saying first words and goes mobile. Look out world, here she comes!

Shelby

labor day

Labor Day weekend is usually a time we spend visiting my family and also taking a trip into New York City. This year was a little different since NYC wouldn't have been as much fun while caring for a five month old. So we spent this year in CT. Our friends the Davis's moved about 20 minutes away from my Mom, so we were able to pay a visit to them as well.

The weekend was fairly low key, highlights were a killer breakfast by Dea, a very cool wooden playground Riley got to play in and a visit from my brother Drew and his family, with Riley getting to have some fun with his cousins. The only low point was Riley waking up (for good) at 4:45 am on Saturday at the Davis's. At least it was because he was exhibiting exceptional potty training habits...

There are the highlights. Pictures and video can fill in some of the details:

Labor Day Weekend 2010

It was a great weekend. Hopefully we'll be able to head back to NYC next year though. Kendall has to get her first taste of the Big Apple!


Jonathan

making the most of the end of summer

With the end of summer coming fast we got a lot of outdoor activity crammed into the last week of August. There were so many pictures and videos that I put together slideshow / videos so this post wouldn't be 20 feet long... Here we go.

Splash Park at Beaver Brook Reservation in Belmont

Mom took part of a day off from work to take Riley over to this fun and...free...splash park. Riley had a great time, you can tell because he does his "Happy Dance" when his Mom asks him if he's having fun:

Davis Farmland

Davis Farmland is an amusement park with a farm theme (it's actually on a working farm) which is specifically for small children. It has a combination of attractions as you'll see in the videos; it's a large petting zoo, splash park and playground all in one. Kid heaven. We'll break this into three videos:

The Animals

The Splash Park

The Playground

This was an incredibly fun day made easier by our getting a babysitter for Kendall so that Riley could take full advantage of the park. He had a great day (as did his parents...)

Crane Beach

On the last day of August Shelby took the day off so that she and Riley could join a bunch of friends at Crane Beach in Ipswich. It was a perfect beach day and a great way to see August off for another year:

A Day At Crane Beach

We have had a great summer here this year. Perfect for outdoor fun. This was a perfect way to end it!


Jonathan

...and another one coming!

Discovered today that Kendall's bottom right tooth is just barely starting to erupt, -- it's still a teeny spec of white, but appears to be the reason why baby girl is gnawing on her fingers like there's no tomorrow.

Can't wait to see that toothy grin in the coming weeks!

Shelby

first tooth!

I was laying in bed with Kendall this morning and as is her custom, she grabbed my finger to put it in her mouth and chew on. I felt something sharp this morning and lo and behold my 5 month old is cutting her first tooth!
















It's the bottom left one. I wasn't expecting it yet, since Riley got his first tooth at 9 months. Also, she wasn't drooling, cranky or plagued with diaper rash. If only it would stay this way...

Shelby

hometown fun

Today, while Jonathan was helping some friends with their move, I ventured out with the kids to Wakefield's annual Safety Day in our Town Common. Each year, local DPW & safety vehicles are brought in, so the kids can explore and ask questions of the personnel. Riley enjoyed it as much as his favorite playground!

The bucket truck where he got a "hard" hat:

















Driving the back hoe:













"Naughty" Riley in the back of the police cruiser:













"Helper" Riley received a Junior EMT sticker after being in the ambulance:













Driving the Fire Truck:

















Climbing on top of the Fire Truck and enjoying the view:













Giving Sparky the Fire Dog a hug:













Climbing up the ladder truck and sporting his new Fire hat:































We even got to ride in an antique fire truck:













Kendall, who had been napping, was not amused by the clanging bell -- she screamed pretty much the whole ride:













In addition to free burgers & slushies, Riley had his picture and fingerprints taken for his ID card, courtesy of the Molly Bish Foundation:































It was a fun couple of hours and both kids did really well. I look forward to next year when J can join us and Riley can spend even more time exploring the vehicles. But it was worth it to give J up for the day so the Four Zs could complete their transition to Somerville. We excited to play with them more now that they're closer!

Shelby

Kendall is 5 months old!

Can't hardly believe that another month has passed already. Not a lot has changed, but I think Kendall looks a little older this month:












She weighs 13.9 lbs and continues to drink mama's milk 5x per day.

















She sleeps a lot in comparison to Riley -- at least 18-19 hrs a day. Riley was sleeping less than 15 hrs at this age.












She has good neck control now and doesn't squawk during tummy time. Now that she can roll both ways, she just changes position. After rolling on to her tummy consistently, we began putting her to sleep that way. This is how she soothes herself to sleep:












Now she's aware of the TV, I don't bother nursing her during one of my Netflix shows. She's way too distracted. Look what happened when I put her down to put Veggie Tales on for Riley. She was totally in to it (don't worry I didn't let her watch it!).












Now that her neck is strong and her back is getting stronger, she's started playing in the exersaucer at daycare and the jumper at home. She loves it -- until she's ready for her next nap.
















She loves to stand so I tried setting her up against the back of the couch. She kept herself upright for 5-10 seconds. Not bad!

















But you never know when those legs are going to give way, though!

















This is her standard "look" nowadays. She loves sucking on her two left fingers.












When she's awake, she's a happy girl and a lot of fun to be around. I was a bit worried that she might end up being the exact opposite of Riley -- our perfectly contented baby boy. While her excessive napping (and strong preference for her bed) do keep us home more than we'd like, she seems to have a sweet disposition.












It's finally beginning to feel like she's always been here. We love our sweet baby girl and are so thankful that she's a part of our family!












Shelby

summertime fun

Some random snaps of the kids from the past month:

Riley likes to call himself "Baby Riley" right now, looking for more attention from mama and daddy:
















Daddy snuggling with his kiddos:

















Backyard fun with our neighbors, Jack & Gracie:



































Riley loves playing in the dirt...

















...and climbing!

















Our boy has no fear of heights:




















































One of the brief play times with Kendall when she's not napping (this kid sleeps a lot!):

















She doesn't mind this at all...

















Our pretty Girl!