Christmas at the Clover's

Fun at Jeff's Mom's! This was Christmas morning! :)

This pic of Creighton was actually Christmas eve.  They each opened 2. Slippers and a toy.

Me and my boy

One of my favorite things! A new Nelle and Lizzy Ring with ALL THREE KIDS' NAMES (I love it!)

One of Jackson's favorite presents was his Buzz Lightyear costume (with the cool light up glasses)

Charleigh slept through Christmas but Pop loved holding her (and so did Grammy)

Jeff is absent from the pics because he was taking them~sorry.  But not to worry he was very excited about all the movies (TONS!) he got to watch on his new big screen tv (from my parents and his too) :)

Christmas Family Pictures!!!!

The Big Kids Got Treated--BIG

My mom and dad bought tickets for an early Christmas present to go see Curious George Live. It ended up being that my dad wasn't able to make it, so I went in his place. (lucky me)

It wasn't too bad, although I am certain that it is a much better grandparent extravaganza than a parent ;)

Both the kids had George dolls already and so they took them with us! They both really liked it!

Although I couldn't get them to smile and look at the camera at the same time...must have been the pound each of popcorn and cotton candy they had!

My mom helped them make a gingerbread house and they really enjoyed doing that too!  She had come up to help Jeff and the kids set up all the Christmas decorations while I was gone at a conference.

They really enjoyed putting up all the ornaments this year and all the festivities that this season brings! :) It's exciting to see them excited for the first time!

My dad came along too. His job was to take a nap with Charleigh. It suited him perfectly...and her too, apparently! :)

This is the sweet Christmas outfit my mom got for Creighton this year. She wore it today to school...so I snagged a shot before they walked out the door.  She's so pretty!

Thanks Nonna and Papaw!

My mother-in-love and father-in-love came over on Monday after school to bring over Jackson and Creighton's big 'together' gift because there would be no way we'd ever get it home otherwise, and then they could play with it early too (plus it'd been a month since they'd seen/held Charleigh).  So it was a win/win!

This is when they found out there was a surprise waiting in the living room for them.

When they first saw it!

It's a John Deere "gaydur"....do not get that wrong when you talk to Jax about it :) It's so funny! They rode it in the house for about...5 seconds...

before we moved it outside! It was FREEZING though so I didn't get many pics. They obviously LOVE it and ride it around the backyard as often as I'll let them out.  I hate that it's so cold. Today was nice though and they enjoyed again!

Loved this pic of my big princess in her winter gear!

Thanks Grammy and Pop!

She's smiles for the camera!

I got her not only to smile, but to smile on camera! :) ENJOY.  I sure am!

This is her belly laugh smile complete with the "you're kidding me hand" ! ahhaha

Sweet friend Melanie got her this cute little pink polka dots!

My mother-in-love had this made for her and I LOVE it.  If she wouldn't spit up so much, she'd be in everyday. I LOVE her name and I love the spelling and I love that it's on her so the world can see! :)

She was excited too! :)

Her eyes are still blue! She is smiling all the time even though she feels terrible. I can't believe this is her while she's sick...can't wait for her to feel better!  I bet then she'll be ALL smiles all the time.  And so will we!

Charleigh 6 1/2 weeks

Charleigh started smiling today.  She only did it a few times, but it's a start! She smiles in her sleep ALL THE TIME, but wouldn't ever really connect with a smile while awake.  She did it twice and then I got the camera and she was mesmerized by that so she wouldn't smile anymore for me.  But then she did again later in the day but I didn't have the camera.

She is doing so well...even though she is sick. I am taking her to the doctor tomorrow because she just isn't feeling well and is having difficulty breathing because she is so congested.  Hopefully they'll have some good news for us though...both Jackson and Creighton had RSV and that is NO fun.  I hope it's just minor.

I can't believe how much she is growing.  I still only have a few outfits that are small enough to fit her, but she is finally starting to fill them out...at least a little:) I have so many cute clothes that I can't wait for her to grow into!  When we had her weighed just before Thanksgiving she was 7 pounds 5 ounces. Over Thanksgiving break we weighed her on a "big people" scale by holding her with us and then not, and she was right at 9 pounds.  So hopefully tomorrow she'll be even more!  I love hearing their weights! It's something so fun and exciting that changes so fast over the first few months.  She is definitely getting longer too.  She is still a stick but is starting to have tiny rolls on her arms and legs...and they are SO adorable.

Her hair is still wild as ever.  It gets REALLY fluffy after bathtime...which she LOVES the bath! And then within a few days it's sticking out and right and left in every which direction!

Her eyes are doing much better and have stopped gooping.  That is a blessing for all of us.  I know she hated having the tear duct massaged...probably as much as I didn't enjoy doing it.

She is the best and most laid back baby in all the world. I just am in LOVE with her. I missed her so much while I was gone for 33 hours this weekend.  I couldn't stop kissing her and holding her when I got back.  She seemed to be glad to have her momma back too! :)

She has the sweetest little voice and I am loving hearing her cooing noises that come and go. I can tell she's gonna be a talker...like her big sister! Whew...bring it on!

Precious Baby Charleigh!

Thanksgiving Ramblings

We went to the Zoo today to get out of the house.  It was fun! It was such nice weather too!  I had Charleigh in the carrier and the other 5 kids were running around like crazy :) It was good though...Charleigh's first time and she did wonderful.  We got some cute (hopefully) pictures of all the grandkids (now 6) but I'll have to wait for home to post pics. 

After naps we did the traditional thing and went to Rhema for the turning on of all the lights.  It was probably my favorite year so far...and this time I mean it!  Normally I don't love going because it's so cold and crowded and my kids were always too little to have a clue what was going on.  But this year, I feel complete and the sparkle in my kids' eyes and the huge smiles and laughter were wonderful.  So even though I went with a less than perfect attitude, it was grand! :)

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving Day.  I have a new bundle to be thankful for!  But so much more...I am just loving where we are right now as a family. Jeff and I are doing really well and are more in love than ever.  The big kids are getting bigger and well, that's just a good thing for the Berg clan.  They are learning and growing and maturing and I love seeing small glimpses of the little people they are growing up to be.  When it's so difficult to press on and be consistent in discipline, it's nice to finally see some positive reinforcement for the parents :)  they are FAR from finished or perfect, but I love this stage that Jackson is in, and well, Creighton...she thankfully makes me smile and laugh more than she makes me want to pull out my hair.  Charleigh is such a good baby and is the delight of all of our hearts.  She is very content most of the time and is a good sleeper.  I am just thankful!  We are so very blessed.

We will have 'the' meal for dinner tomorrow night at 5pm.  My brother and his new wife will be here and then our home will be filled to the brink with love and wild wild wild little people :)  It's fun.  It's crazy, but it's family...we will do our other traditional thing tomorrow and go see a movie.  It should be interesting with everyone there...but I am hoping for the very best!

Good night all. 

New Extended Family

We met with Charleigh's birthfather on Saturday.  It was a really neat time with him and I think we all hit it off well. 

We are learning on this incredible journey all about Open Adoption together.  It's new.  It's scary.  But it's good. So good. We love family and have lots of it, by adding Charleigh to our family we've added even more! It's awesome.  I do believe this is the way that God would want this to be. 

Today

I wrote this yesterday...
Today was a hard day in our journey of adoption.  It was like getting hit by a freight train with no brakes after such a SWEET yesterday.  But, I will still praise the Lord. 

The birthfather needs and wants more information and wants to be a larger part of the process than we had orginally anticipated.  I am choosing to believe that in the end this will be a good thing. I want Charleigh to know who he is, and that is his heart's desire too.  We love open adoption and ALL that it holds...including hiccups...or whatever you want to call today. 

I do believe that the power of prayer was manifested in its full force today.  I could feel it. I could almost audibly hear the petitions on our behalf.  I know that nothing has changed in circumstance, but definitely in my heart. I have a peace that does transcend understanding.  I am claiming promises, claiming scripture, claiming truth.  God has a huge plan for this little girl, and one day, she will have an incredible story to tell. 

She has been loved by so many in the process and will continue to be, I know this.  No matter the outcome.  My friend Marci reminded me that He cares for her more than I (or anyone else) ever could. I will celebrate the life that she has been given, and I will celebrate each moment that she is with us.  We have from the beginning wanted what was VERY best for her, and I know that will prevail.

Thank you all for your prayers.  Please continue them as this is far from being finalized in any direction.

Dedication Sunday

This is my sweet family.  I love this picture even though it's not the 'best' of everyone.  It's certainly a LOT characteristic of each of us. 

Sunday was Orphan Sunday and also the day we chose to have the two precious girls dedicated to the Lord in front of the congregation...and our family.  It was a sweet experience.  It couldn't have been better, well--maybe if Charleigh weren't hungry right in the middle of it...but otherwise, it was fantastic!

Rod, our Pastor, prayed for each of them individually and our family.  They both did well, with only a few squwaks from Charleigh and me dropping her binky (twice).

I don't have any more pics of all 5 of us except for these few...I cherish them!

The neatest thing in the world happened after Rod prayed for the girls.  He presented us with a gift, a large gift! The Church had gotten together and have begun an Adoption Fund for future adoptions, and the first people to use it is our family.  We have been beyond blessed in this journey and this is the icing on the cake.  We will have little to no expense out of our pocket for our adoption now.  I mean really?! God is awesome.  Now there are so many people on this journey with us and that is how I like things...I enjoy people and Love...and we have an abundance! Thank you EVERYONE who is a part of this!