random updates...

Just some random updates on all of us:

Sick Days:

Sickness has hit the Berg household in the past couple of weeks. First of all, Riley appears to have gotten a fever blister under his nose, so his appearance will be altered for the next week or so:

















Poor kid. I've read that having one under the nose rather than the mouth is more painful. Of course, he can't stop picking at the scab so it may last longer than it normally would.

I got strep two weeks ago. I had this nasty sore throat that wouldn't go away, coupled with chills and night sweats. This let to taking antibiotics for the first time since the mid-90's. I hate having to use them, but had to do whatever was necessary to function. I'm now on a round of probiotics to try and restore all the good bacteria I killed off in the past 10 days.

Now Jonathan's got a cold. Not surprising since he's scheduled on the church music team next Sunday. He always seems to get congested just before he has to sing.

And with the warm spring weather we've been having, come the allergies. I used to deal with them in Nashville but seemed to develop an immunity to them over time. The past couple of years however, the sinus congestion and familiar itchy sneezes have returned. I chock it up to getting older and waning immunity. Maybe my years of getting just a couple of colds per year are finally over... so sad.

None of this has helped make the adjustment to life with two kids any easier. Someone told us that "one is fun and two is work" and we've certainly found that to be true. (I wish I had the energy that I had at 25!) Kendall requires more assistance in getting to sleep than Riley did -- all I had to do was swaddle him and lay him in his crib. With Kendall, we've resorted to using the swing, the binky & lying in bed with her if that's what it takes to help her to calm down and go to sleep. I'm not a fan of sleep props, so I hope we can wean her off of these things before she gets too dependent on them. But she is just 5 weeks old with more "stabilizing" to do, so we have some time.

Breastfeeding:

B/f is going fine, though I am still using a nipple shield to help Kendall to latch on. I've started taking it off during the last 5-10 min of the feed to get more direct stimulation. Thankfully, my milk supply is good and I've been pumping some extra each day that I'm putting in the freezer for future use. Since my supply went down after I went back to work, I'm preparing for a possible repeat of that occurrence again this summer.

Playtime:

Kendall's daily rhythm is eating -- playing -- sleeping. The past week or so she's been enjoying her playtime more and not just crying to be held. I'll put her on the playmat or in her bouncy chair and she'll find something to fix her gaze on and stay content for 15-30 min before she starts to show signs of tiredness. At that point, she is put in the swing or her bed to sleep.

Now that it's getting a bit easier to put Kendall down and have her only cry for 5-10 min before falling asleep, that leaves more time to play with Riley. I've been able to give him a little more mama time on those days that I have both kids in the afternoons. For those that don't know, Jonathan goes into the office at 12:30, so I have his help in the morning. On T & TH afternoons, Riley goes to the office with Jonathan -- an advantage of having your own practice and an open-concept office setup. This serves a dual purpose of giving me a break and giving Riley an alternate environment. The patients enjoy seeing him and he serves as Dr. Berg's helper.

On the days that Riley's in the office, I try and get out with him for a "date" in the morning. Sometimes I take him along on an errand, other times we go to the playground or get a treat somewhere. But he gets me all to himself and he seems to be ok with leaving me for the afternoon if I do this beforehand. It makes me feel better too as I really miss time with my boy.

Riley's Speech:

He's talking all the time now and willing to try more and more words. Riley's saying more two-word combinations now. He only had a handful that he would say before now, but lately he's been willing to mimic almost everything we ask him to. Sometimes they even come out spontaneously. We're encouraged.

Mama's recovery:

I'm nearing the end of my 6 wk postpartum period this coming Thursday. Physically, I'm able to do whatever I was doing prior to pregnancy, with the exception of exercise. I've been feeling good enough to be walking 45-60 min (slowly) and starting at 4 wks postpartum, began some slow jogging every other day for about 30 min. While it feels like a hard workout aerobically, I'm being careful not to overdo it.

I feel like the one time I'm really in tune with my body is when I'm working out. I've been running for so long I know how I should feel to get the kind of workout I want. So as long as I work out at that intensity, my speed automatically increases as my fitness improves. Running increases my fitness like nothing else, so coupled with good eating habits, I hope to be back in pre-pregnancy shape in the next 6 months or so.

Dad & his bike:

Jonathan's been missing his mountain biking a lot as this past winter didn't offer as much good riding and the obvious scheduling complications of having a newborn once the conditions improved. He has gotten out for a couple of good rides for the past month, of which I'm happy to indulge him. While he misses all the riding he used to do (alone and with Riley), he loves being a dad even more and is keeping it in perspective. This season will pass and soon he'll be taking Kendall out in the bike trailer in the morning, while Riley is in preschool. He'll introduce her to the fun of riding in the woods in hope of grooming another riding partner in the family.

In closing, here's some photos of Kendall's first picnic at Lake Q this afternoon:




























Did we mention how much we LOVE our Phil & Ted's double stroller?














In addition to climbing, sliding and swinging at the playground... Riley likes to put the wood chip pieces through the holes...














Thanks to Kristy C. I get to use an Ergo to tote Kendall around. My back is grateful!














Ergo Sleep














Shelby