Christmas 2009

We had a wonderful Christmas this year, filled with several family gatherings and fun activities. We enjoyed baking homemade gingerbread, doing Christmas crafts, singing Christmas songs, seeing holiday lights, helping out those less fortunate, and shopping for others. I love watching our collection of Christmas traditions grow each year. It was a wonderful, sweet time and I love watching our little children's testimonies of Jesus grow.

Ben's sister, Cyndy, held a cookie--or rather, a cupcake-decorating party at her house on the 23rd. It was a lot of fun and Luke was thrilled to be able to sit in a big-kid chair all by himself and eat junk. Good times.


Grandma and Luke

Aunt Sue and Rachel

Christmas Eve tradition of gathering at my in-laws' house for homemade clam chowder (the best!) and a mini-talent show of music and readings. Emma played the piano for us and the girls sang some songs they had practiced. Ben read the Christmas story in the Bible.

Aunt Kathy and Emma

Christmas Eve tradition of opening one present. I made the girls jewelry this year--a necklace and bracelet. I thought they turned out pretty cute!


CHRISTMAS MORNING!!!
Luke loved his new puppy!

Aunt Cyndy gave the kids some new sleds. They are great! And they work well as surfboards too!

Ben got a new guitar and new teeth for Christmas (check out that smile! Beautiful!)

My cute boys

Luke got a xylophone which he loves to play and chew on.

Granby made each child a warm, fleece blanket. Aren't they cute? We love you Granby!

Emma's big gift was a Leapster. And she loves that thing!

Santa was so kind to give me pickled pigs feet. This may appear as a white elephant gift next year at a Christmas party. Beware family!

Rachel's big gift: a Barbie swimming pool!


Thank you everyone for a wonderful Christmas! We received so many fun and thoughtful gifts. We love you all! Happy new year everyone!

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow!

The kids watching the snow fall today. Keep it coming!

Santa

The kids got to visit with Santa on Saturday at the ward Christmas breakfast. Rachel flat-out refused to go see him; she wouldn't even look at him and preferred to be very far away from him. Kind of sad. Emma was adorable with him and in the sweetest little whisper, she told him what she wanted for Christmas and then told him what Rachel wanted (since Rachel wouldn't have anything to do with him). Luke was SO sweet with Santa and was quite fascinated by him. He sat so still and just smiled and stared at him. It was amazing how comfortable he was. There's just something about Santa--especially THIS Santa. He is the best!




An intimate moment with Mr. C--I love how she's holding his finger.

Bergin Kids 2009

Happy Holidays everyone!

Giving Thanks

I've read so many wonderful thankful posts recently and wanted to add my own to the mix. I have much to be grateful for and I love this time of year for reminding me of that.

I'm thankful for the gospel in my life. I am often touched by the Spirit during scripture study, lessons, Conference talks, and testimony meetings. I feel loved by my Heavenly Father and elder brother, Jesus. And I love that we can feel His spirit so often through His gospel. He is mindful of each of us and knows what we can handle and what we cannot. It's always a good reminder for me to trust him in that.

I'm thankful for Ben. He struggles a lot with his health and yet he still goes out to work each day to support our family. I know it is very difficult to do that. I am grateful for the plan of salvation and look forward to the time when he will be made whole again with no pain. He is a good daddy and the kids just love him so much.

I'm thankful for Emma. She has such a zest for life and loves to learn and experience new things. She is strong, spiritual, creative, compassionate, and fun, with a big heart. And I love talking to her about everything.

I'm thankful for Rachel. She gives the tightest hugs and I can't get enough of them! She is a sweetheart and loves to be with her family. I go to her when I need some sunshine--that sweet little voice always brightens my day!

I'm thankful for Luke. He can be a handful these days, with his constant desire to put EVERYTHING in his mouth and destroy each and every room. But his mischievous grin wins me over and his chuckle cracks me up every time. He is my cuddle-bug and I love watching him learn about this world.

I'm thankful to be a stay-at-home mom to my 3 precious kids. They light up my days, bring me so much joy and laughter and fill my life with love (and chaos and messes too). :)

I'm thankful for my extended family: my parents, siblings, in-laws, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. They all have such wisdom and teach me how to love unconditionally, endure trials happily, and give of myself. Not to mention, I LOVE my family and enjoy being with them as much as I can.

I'm thankful for my friends. I read somewhere that having close friends helps you live longer. I totally believe that! Being able to laugh together, share stories, and experience each others' life events (new babies, holidays, sicknesses, etc.) deepens that bond so much and makes your life so rich.

I'm thankful for this beautiful world. Being outside brings me so much joy as I see and hear all the wonderful parts of nature. I'm thankful for the comforts of life we enjoy and sometimes take for granted (I don't think I could ever be a pioneer!).

There are many more things to be thankful for, of course, but I'm sure I've rambled enough already. It's always good for me to write down the things that matter most to me and the many blessings I have.

Happy Thanksgiving!

First Haircut

I took the kids to get haircuts today. This was Luke's very first haircut--a huge milestone. Especially for Luke, since he was starting to look like a girl. :) I just couldn't bear to cut it before, but with his hair is in his eyes, it was time.

The "before" pictures. He was one shaggy pup with quite the mullet.



This girl was so good with him--sweet, gentle, patient. And Luke was amazing! He didn't move at all even with that buzzing around the ears.


After.




He looks so different, doesn't he? I have to admit I got a little teary-eyed when I saw how much older he looks--and when I saw that pile of hair on the ground. Please tell me he still looks like a baby!!!

And the answer is....

Okay, guys, it's
Emma
Rachel
Luke
Did you get it right? Rachel is definitely easy to pick out--she has a bit of a different look than Luke and Emma, who can be easy to mix up. Cute kids, eh?

Cute

Can you guess who is who?



It's not very often that three kids can wear the same outfit. These jammies and hat were given to us when Emma was just teeny. It's so fun to snap photos of each kid wearing them. It really makes you focus just on their faces--and their similarities and differences.

The Perfect Food

Edamame. I love this stuff. Here's why:
1. All 3 of my kids love it (including Rachel, who is not so hot on veggies) and consume vast quantities of it.
2. It is a super food, packed with fiber, protein and vitamins.
3. It is way fun to eat. You shell each pod yourself, just like garden peas.
4. It steams right in the bag. No pots or pans necessary.
5. It's great as an appetizer. Sometimes I'll put a bowl of edamame on the table or at the bar and the girls will have at it while I finish cooking dinner.
6. It's delicious! Especially if you sprinkle a little sea salt on it before eating.
If you haven't tried edamame, have I given you enough reasons to try it? Give it a whirl. You'll be glad you did!

Independence

Luke has been walking about 90% of the time for the past four days. I think we can officially say he is walking! I am so proud of him. And his steps are the sweetest, most careful, slow and steady steps ever. I love watching him.

And the best part is when those sweet baby steps come right back to me.

Halloween Fun

My three little pumpkins--well, actually, a kangaroo, a bee, and a witch. Aren't they cute? Man, I love these kids.

Sweet sisters

I love the lighting in this picture. Oh, the anticipation and excitement of trick-or-treating! I love it.

Luke's first sucker. He just chilled in the wagon the whole time and was so good (I'm sure the sucker helped). Don't those chubby cheeks just kill you? They are so kissable!

Earlier in the day on Halloween we hosted a big Halloween party for some of the kids' friends. We had 12 kids seven and under. Whew! But it was a lot of fun. We had a little bit of playtime while the pizzas were baking and I thought it was interesting how all of the girls were playing with the racin' ramps garage and cars and all the boys were playing with the kitchen and food. How's that for breaking stereotypes???


I think my favorite part of the party was the games and dancing. I made this skeleton dance and the kids had to copy the skeleton's movements and dance the same way. It was hilarious!!! I was just cracking up the whole time.


What a cute group of friends! All of their costumes were great. Oh, how I love Halloween.