The Moberg Family

Author: Susanne

  • Selah B, 4 months

    Selah B, 4 months

    Selah B turned 4 months old on February 8th. Sorry to make you wait for the very exciting happenings in this 4 month old’s life!!

    Selah is 14 lbs and 25 ¼ inches worth of 4 month utter perfection.

    She is just the sweetest little thing…I can hardly handle her sweetness. She loves people. She hasn’t been so good with the camera because she will ONLY smile when she sees someone’s face (but I’ve managed to catch some good photos this month…). My favorite thing to do is stare at her while she’s playing, and wait for her to catch my eye. As soon as she does, she smiles SO BIG. It melts me every time.

    This has been a month of milestones! Just after her 3 month birthday, she started rolling over! I had set her on her tummy one day (January 13, to be exact!), walked away, and when I came back, she was on her back!! I screeched with delight and snapped this quick picture on my phone for proof. (Cute pjs provided by Aunt Bev and Uncle Roy, and cute hat provided by Auntie Melisa!)

    “Whew! That was exhausting!”

     

    I put her on her tummy and encouraged her to do it again so I could get it on video but she sweetly refused. I, of course, called her daddy right away to tell him the good news. Later that afternoon we were playing with her and she did it again, this time while we were both watching! She did it again and again, and so I finally pulled out my phone. Here’s this silly little video of her rolling over. I was certain she wasn’t going to roll over because I finally had the camera out, so my reaction is hilarious. As a result, Elliott thinks this video is hilarious and LOVES watching it over and over again.

     

     

    Next new trick: Turning in circles! No matter if she’s on her tummy or her back, she turns herself in a complete circle. She loves to move!

    Next milestone: Sleeping through the night! Yahoo!! Attention all moms of infants out there: if you’d like to get your baby to sleep through the night, I have the fail-proof way of doing so. Read my story below, and follow the steps carefully to achieve a full night of sleep for the first time in A YEAR (if your pregnancies are anything like mine!).

    We were almost 2 weeks in to staffing the DTS, and we had the most incredible full schedule imaginable. We were very, very busy. But this particular Thursday morning was the most busy, most exhausting day that I had had yet. I was on the tail end of being sick, and it was WINDY out. Like really, really, really windy out. Like the windiest day in the entire history of planet earth. And I decided that would be a good day to walk to the base with Elliott. Now, it’s important to note that the walk to the base is entirely uphill. Short, but uphill. And Elliott decided he didn’t want to walk. And it was windy. Did I mention it was windy? Like really, really windy. So as I was pushing Elliott UP, UP, UP the hill in the stroller, the 100 mile an hour winds were pushing  DOWN, DOWN, DOWN against me! So after this 15 minute walk of straight uphill, into the wind, my body was wiped. (I may not have muscles of steel quite yet after carrying and birthing a baby.) So I wiped the sweat off my brow and proceeded to Elliott’s little “preschool”, where I was going to teach a short lesson for the kiddos. I played with them for a bit, taught my little lesson and then fed sweet Selah B who had been napping in her little secret room on the base (don’t worry—Brian was watching her on the monitor!). After getting both the kids home and Selah down for a nap, I fed Elliott lunch. While he was eating I tore through the house like a tazmanian cleaning devil, because a group of girls was arriving in just an hour for a small group. I put Elliott down for his nap, the girls arrived for small group, and my friend Amanda and I led the time. They left, and I sat down to prepare for my teaching that night with the DTS Staff. Dinner, kids, nursing, playing, and burning brownies all happened before our friends arrived at 7. I taught for a couple hours and by the time everyone left, it was 10 pm. And I was EGG-SAUCE-TED. The most egg saucy this nursing, not-sleeping mama had ever been.

    Still tracking with me? Because this is where the key to the story is:

    I got ready for bed, put my ear plugs in (like normal) and—here it is, don’t miss this—I forgot to turn Selah’s monitor on.

    Earplugs are the greatest gift known to man for me because they drown out my husband’s occasional night time noises (aka, snoring) and Selah’s little tosses and turns that generally wake me up and convince me that it’s a good idea to stare at her while she’s sleeping soundly. (You know, just to make sure she continues to sleep soundly.) Earplugs make it so that I only hear her through the monitor when she needs me, when she’s actually crying. Which, typically has been happening once a night.

    But if I fail to turn the monitor on…I fail to hear EN-EE-THING.

    Well, you’d better believe this tired mama slept oh-so-soundly until…I woke up at 6 am on my own, checked the time, and panicked. Why hadn’t Selah cried? I looked at the monitor, realizing it was not turned on to her room, and panicked again. Oh, no! Had Selah cried??!! I turned it on to her room, saw her sleeping soundly and peacefully, and panicked again—because I didn’t know what else to do! I quickly woke Brian up, telling him of my horrible mistake as I was, of course, panicking.

    “Well, is she okay?” Brian asked.

    “Well, she is NOW, but I have no idea if she cried all night long!!”

    “Yeah, she looks pretty troubled to me…” he said as he looked at the peacefully sleeping babe on the monitor.

    And Selah has slept through the night ever since. So there you have it, folks. I felt TARE-I-BULL…but, truth be told, I am quite enjoying sleeping through the night. And, I don’t think she’s holding it against me :).

    Well, here she is: my rolling, sleeping, smiling, bundle of baby girl perfection: (P.S. As a little bonus, I added some pictures of Elliott when he was this age for a little compare/contrast!)

    One of her favorite things to do…stare into the eyes of her big brother!
    The princess sitting on her throne…daddy’s tummy!

     

    She loves chewing on her fingers!
    She adores her big brother…

    Speaking of her big brother, here’s a little flash from the past:

    She started really intentionally playing with the toys on the exersaucer…

     

    …just like Elliott did at this age!

     

    Are they siblings…

     

    …or WHAT?!

     

    She is so close to rolling onto her tummy–I’m shocked she hasn’t yet because she so often rolls herself all the way onto her side to play.
    She really likes playing with her toys…
    …and eating them.
    Her feet are her newest playmates this month!

     

    And, she discovered how cool her tongue is. She loves sticking it out of her mouth, especially when she’s smiling! 🙂

    Now, just for a fun bonus, here are a few fun faces from our sweet, 4 month old Selah B:

    Elliott picked this headband out for her to wear one morning while still in her pjs. I think she likes it :).
    Captivating, isn’t she??
    “Hey, Mom, look what I can do with my lip!”
    Oh my sweetness.
    Baby girl is growing up so fast!!

     Okay, one more flashback for you…

    Elliott Brian, 4 months
    Selah Bethany, 4 months

    Okay, okay…so I guess I’m starting to see that they look a little bit alike :). Happy 4 month birthday, Selah B!!!

  • Valentine’s Day, Part II

    Valentine’s Day, Part II

    “For God so loved the world, that he gave…”

    It’s impossible to separate my sacrificial love for my children from my husband’s sacrificial love for me. The two are inseparable, because although I know it would be possible to pour out my life for my children without him, I am also certain that it would be much, much, much more difficult. Oh, how beautiful is God’s design for a marriage team and for family!!

    John 15:13 says, “Greater love has no one than this, to lay one’s life down for his wife*.” (Um, I may have changed one of the words in that Scripture so it fit better with my blog post…….)

    Someone wise once said something along the lines of, “The person you marry will have faults; it’s inevitable. But know the quality it is that you cannot stand, and make sure the person you marry doesn’t have that fault…”

    For me, the quality that I don’t think I have the character to live with is selfishness. I’m actually not positive I knew that for certain before getting married or not, but perhaps, subconsciously, that was one of the many reasons I was wooed by Brian Moberg himself…he is simply the most selfless man I know.

    My husband gives. He gives without being asked, without complaint, without grumbling. He gives with joy. He pours out his life for his family all the time.

    (Ladies, find yourself a selfless man. It will make your entire world go round much. more. smoothly.)

    Last night as I was brushing my teeth (the place/time where most of my blogging inspiration occurs), all I could think about as Valentine’s Day approached was how grateful I am for the ways my husband gives all year long. Not roses or chocolate, but his very self.

    I’ve often heard it said that you don’t know how selfish you are until you get married. Then, you don’t know how selfish you are until you have kids. For some reason, that hasn’t been the pattern with us. So, either we are doing something very, very wrong, or…my husband leads our family in selflessness, and makes selflessness the standard, not the exception.

    I am convinced that the way a man leads his family will be clear by the atmosphere in the home. Brian leads our family by giving, and that manifests in our home as peace, joy, and security. As he serves, burdens are lifted off of my shoulders and I have greater peace. As he serves, I am blessed and filled with joy. As he serves, I know he loves me because “greater love has no one than this, that he lay his life down...” Peace, joy, and security. Three attributes of our home, thanks to my hubby.

    My love, thank you for so selflessly laying down your life every day for me and for our children. Thank you for serving us. Thank you for taking care of us so extraordinarily. Thank you for going above-and-beyond in service while I’m pregnant so that I can survive! Thank you for doing all the grocery shopping every week for the last year even though you hate it! Thank you for doing our laundry since the laundry machine is ALL the way down the stairs and outside! Thank you for always taking the garbage out and for keeping us stocked with paper towels and toilet paper! Thank you for doing the dishes so often! Thank you for getting me protein bars late at night when I’m starving! Thank you for snuggling with our sweet Elliott on those rare nights that he wakes up in the middle of the night and needs some comfort. Thank you for letting me take naps on the weekends! Thank you for making me laugh when I’m grumpy and thank you for pressing me to be the fullness of who God’s created me to be! Thank you for adoring me. Thank you for giving me the world’s most perfect children! Thank you for giving your very self so that I can give my very self to incubate and nourish our children.

    Brian Moberg, I have known no greater love outside of my Savior than this love that you lavish on me. Thank you for loving me sacrificially. Thank you for loving me so wholly. Thank you for pouring out your very life for me. Every. Single. Day. I love you to a depth I never knew possible. Happy Valentine’s Day, my sweet, sweet love!!!

     

    And, thank you for giving me this new pair of earrings!! 🙂

     

     

     

  • Valentine’s Day, Part I

    Valentine’s Day, Part I

    “For God so loved the world that he gave…”

    Love is about giving. Love is not just about giving things, but about giving your very self. Any mother could testify that this is the most difficult, yet the most rewarding, part of being a mama. We love so much, that we give…

    We give our body over for almost 2 years so our babes can grow into healthy, strong, thriving toddlers. We give our uteruses for those first 9 months for the sake of creating a safe haven for our little peanuts to grow within us and then we become a milk machine for the next 12 + months. We are the means by which they get nourishment for 9 months and once they are born, we are the means by which they are sustained. During pregnancy, we give up the space for our bladder to spread out, thus giving up the right to only pee a few times a day; instead we are slaves to the bathroom at all hours of the day and night. We give up our right to choose any food in the world that we want to eat, and instead we eat what the baby wants, trying hard to choose foods that keep the baby healthy. We give up our favorite jeans and replace them for elastic waists and belly bands. We give up our heels and (have someone else) lace up our tennies. For me, I give up the comfort of food going down my throat once and staying there. For me, I give up consecutive, deep sleep, only able to get 2 or 3 hours of light sleep in at a time because my body wakes me up to eat (or pee!). For me, I give up the right to use my favorite toothpaste because I have to use the baking soda kind to dilute the acid coating my teeth. For me, I give up the right of ever being more than a few feet away from a toilet, a trash can, or a vomit bag. For me, pregnancy is about loving so much that I give… And then my perfect, precious infant arrives in a bundle and, thankfully for me, the joy of giving during infancy far surpasses the joy of giving during pregnancy. As mothers, we give so much to our little darlings, especially in those first few days and months. We give at times that no one else will ever see or know. We give in ways that no one else will understand. We stumble out of bed to the tiny newborn cries and we can’t help but give a huge smile as our eyeballs peek out of the slits of our eyelids and see…see the perfect miracle looking back at us. Who is alive today because we gave. We give a little laugh (because what else can you do??) when our newborns spray poop all over EV.ER.Y.THING. at 2 in the morning. We give an extra kiss and an extra squeeze when we are overwhelmed with gratitude at our little loves. We give a little whisper in their ears, because we cannot help but repeat over and over and over again how much we love them, how much we cherish them, how much we adore them. We give our very selves, all day and all night long, so that our littles will grow up, bathed in love. We give our very selves, all day and all night long, so that our dear ones will be fed, and swaddled and rocked with love. We give our very selves, all day and all night long, so that our children will know, without a shadow of a doubt, that we love them so much that we give…we give our very selves that they might live, and live abundantly.

    On this Valentine’s Day, I couldn’t be more grateful for the honor it is and has been to give for my little ones. To be the one who gets to give so that they live. To be the one who gets to sacrifice so that they thrive. What an honor. What a joy. What a gift from God!!!!!

    My little Valentine
    My other little Valentine!

     

    To all the mamas out there who spend each day sacrificially loving your own children, and to all the mamas out there who spend each day sacrificially loving children like they are your own, happy Valentine’s day! The way you have poured out your very life to love these children is reaping an eternal impact that no one can ever take away. Take heart, the seeds of love you are planting are blossoming into beautiful fruit. Take heart, He sees you as you selflessly give.

  • Selah B, 3 months

    Selah B, 3 months

    Selah B turned 3 months old on January 8th…though she’s now closer to 5 months old (WHAT?!) I want to post her 3 and 4 month blogs. Because she is just.that.cute.

    Height: 25 inches

    Weight: 12 lbs, 12 oz

    Ahh, month 3, and life with our Selah B only continues to get more wonderful.

    This past month we moved into a different house, and Selah officially has her own bathroom! A wish that every girl dreams of… 🙂

    Selah has been sleeping in a bassinet in our room, which I love. I love listening to her breathing and knowing she’s just a couple feet away from me all night long. It was hard for me to move Elliott into his own room, and it was hard for me to make this leap with Selah, too. I know it’s best for everyone (like when Brian’s alarm clock goes off at 5 am, thus causing Selah to think that’s her awake time, too!) but it feels like she’s going off to college to my little beating mama’s heart.

    So, just past the 3 month mark, we decided to make the switch. Did I mention that this very own bathroom of hers also happens to be her bedroom…

    Besides needing to invest in a rug, it’s not bad for a bathroom bedroom, is it??!!

    We moved into a little 2 bedroom condo. The second bedroom is too small to fit two cribs in it, so we decided to put Selah in the second bathroom! Her crib fits perfectly in the shower. And my incredible husband removed the faucet and built in a changing table above the sink. Her room couldn’t be any more perfect :). (Her bedding and nursery apparel is still in the process of being made, so that’s why her bathroom is still a little bare!)

    Look at this changing table my husband built!!! Pretty impressive, eh?!

    Selah has had a few sleeps all the way through the night, but is still generally waking up once to eat. She’s lifting her shoulders high off the ground during tummy time, and has decided that the bumbo isn’t her favorite thing in the entire world. She has cut her nursing time down to six minutes (sniff, sniff) and would much rather look around than eat. Her favorite things to look at this month? Besides the hanging animals on her play mat (which she’s started to grab a hold of this month), she loves looking into the mirror and…most especially, looking at her big brother. She smiles so big when he is near!!

    Oh! And she giggled for the first time on her 3 month birthday. I was changing her into jammies (which just happened to be from Auntie Erika) and she just let out the biggest giggle while smiling at me!! Being Selah’s mom is the most incredible joy on the planet…

    Well, without further delay, here she is: my giggling, smiling, beautiful 3 month old!

    Just past the 2 month mark, in one of her cute Christmas outfits.
    All the babies born in 2012 at YWAM San Diego/Baja! All girls and one boy! Listen to these cute girlie names: Liel, Aviana, Madison, Natalia, Kindred and Selah! Selah is the youngest, all the way to the right.
    Post nap stretch!

     

    Precious.
    Our little burrito! This is the only way to roll when your house is 51 degrees! Try and guess how many layers she has on underneath that swaddle!!
    Lots of hoodies this month!
    Cuddle time with Daddy
    Senorita Claus, making a face
    Sweet lil’ smile.
    Ladies in red
    Oh my cuteness.

     

    Learning how to grab the lion…
    Oh, hi there!
    “Mom, let’s chat, shall we? I have a few things I’d like to discuss with you.”

     

    “Will you smile for me, Selah B??
    “No, Mama, but I’ll let you get a good shot of my long lashes!”

     

    Our very serious 3 month old 🙂

     

     

  • Where in the world…

    …is this Mexican Mama Blogger??

    Well, for those of you who have been beating down my door, shouting at me from your rooftops, emailing me daily wondering why I haven’t been blogging*…I want you to know that I’m right here.

    And I want you to know that my lack of blogging simply isn’t my fault. There are probably a lot of things that ARE my fault, but this isn’t one of them.

    Unfortunately, I was without a computer for almost four months.

    (Fact: No computer=very difficult to blog.)

    Fortunately, our insurance money for said stolen computer finally came through and we got me a computer at the end of January.

    (Fact: New computer=first step in being able to blog effectively.)

    Unfortunately, we didn’t have working internet.

    (Fact: No internet=very difficult to blog.)

    Fortunately, after a little money, a lot of time, and an untraceable amount of tears trying to get our internet working, our neighbor gave us the password to use hers.

    (Fact: Working internet=second step in being able to blog effectively.)

    Unfortunately, every computer and electronic device from here to Timbuktu works perfectly with our neighbor’s internet…except my brand new computer.

    (Fact: 5 months worth of computer and internet drama=one very defeated Mexican Mama blogger.)

    So, hello, world. Here I am. With internet that works V-E-R-Y sporadically and V-E-R-Y slowly waiting to thwart me once again, with about a dozen blogs written into word documents waiting to be copied and pasted into new posts, with hundreds of pictures of my beautiful children waiting to be revealed to the world, and with a cup of decaf, tepid Joe waiting to recharge me as I attempt to catch up.

    New blog posts…coming soon! 

    *Actually, no one’s even noticed that I haven’t been blogging except my 98 year old grandma** who lives to read my blog posts. After her health has showed a very steady decline since my last post 2 months ago, I realized I had better explain myself.

    **Actually, I don’t have a grandma. But I was hoping that Murphy*** would read that, feel sorry for me, change his little law and leave me alone.

    ***Actually, I’m trying to renounce my belief in Murphy’s Law because my husband tells me I’m ridiculous. But I’m telling him, “You can’t argue with the facts.” Well, here’s to you, Murphy, and all your little blog-thwarting tricks!!! 

     

  • Feliz Navidad

    Feliz Navidad

    Ahh, Christmastime… does it get more wonderful than twinkle lights, the smell of pine trees, buying special gifts for the ones you love, singing carols and coming up with creative ways to acknowledge the birthday of our Savior? Christmastime…simply the best!

    We decided not to travel for Christmas, and although it was a tough decision knowing we wouldn’t see our Tacoma & Colorado friends and family, we were so grateful for the low-key holiday. We spent all of Christmas Eve in our pajamas and ventured out to San Diego for the day on the 25th.

    Last Christmas we were traveling among three different countries and two different states, in preparation to pack up everything and move to Mexico. Christmas was about as simple as it gets…we got Elliott two new board books and that was it. For his 1st birthday we kept it simple as well, as we built a home for a family in need instead of buying him lots of presents. SO…needless to say, I couldn’t WAIT for Christmas this year. Giving gifts is for sure one of my love languages, and I just couldn’t wait to pick out so many fun things for our Elliott!! His big gift was a train set with wooden tracks. We also came across a little bike at Costco and just couldn’t resist. I’m pretty sure we jumped the gun on that one as his feet don’t reach the peddles yet 🙂 but Brian especially was so excited to get our son his very first bike!

     Christmas Eve eve:

    We put the kiddos in bed, wrapped presents, and assembled the bike!

    “The Bike”…plus Elliott’s (other) big gift and Selah’s “big gift”
    Elliott’s been able to pick out the letter “E” for a while now, so we had him find his presents by finding the letter E. I also, of course, drew his favorite object next to his name on each package…it may look like a circle to the common eye, but Elliott and I both know that is A BALL…

    Christmas Eve:

    We decided to swap our days and really do Christmas on Christmas Eve.

    Britght-eyed Selah was the first one up that morning, and what JOY to wake up to this shining face!!

    Little buddy then came down the stairs, knowing there was a big surprise for him…

    After he had had enough of the bike 🙂 he moved on to the next present… Brian had so much fun setting up the tracks for Elliott so they were just right…

    At first all Elliott really wanted to play with was the styrofoam packaging that the train set came in…
    But then he started to catch some vision for playing with the actual toy…
    “choo-choo!”
    I can’t get enough of this little face!!!
    Or this little face!!
    My favorite gift this year.
    Elliott helped Selah open her “big” gift…this super cool owl toy! He was so thrilled to open her presents and then give them to her each time. Selah, on the other hand, wasn’t quite as impressed with the owl as we were :).

    (Disclaimer: I am interrupting this Christmas Eve/Day blog to take you into the future. The following couple of presents were opened several days later because we spread out his present opening…but nonetheless, part of our Christmas celebration!)

    A new puzzle because he’s mastered ALL of his other ones…
    We finally got him to try on MY favorite present for him… a backpack!
    Complete with his favorite–all kinds of balls–and his name!

    Okay, back to Christmas Eve. Elliott also helped me open my present…something that I have been asking for for THREE YEARS. Reminding Santa on a (VERY) regular basis that I would L-O-V-E to have a warm, hooded fleece over the last 36 months finally paid off this Christmas… 🙂 Elliott tore open the wrapping paper with me and promptly put my long-awaited gift on himself.

    “Hmm, Dad, do you think Mommy would mind if I borrowed her new jacket from time to time?”
    “It’s just that it fits me PERFECTLY!!”

    Like Mother, like Son.

    “And what did Brian get?” you wonder. Well, every year he only wants one thing–a new pair of boots. So those arrived a few weeks ago and he’s been wearing them daily. Of course I had to get him something special, too. So, I thought long and hard and decided to get him…drum roll please…a new pair of nail clippers! Because my husband loves himself a good nail clippin’!!

    “Nail clippers?” you ask.

    No, not just any nail clippers…I got him these nail clippers.

    “You spent $13.25 on nail clippers?” you marvel. Yes, my friends. I did. Because these nail clippers have “Brian Moberg” written all over them. They have been reviewed by over 200 people, they are lifetime guaranteed, and they are high quality. Talk about a good value! Yes, these are a few of his favorite things!!

    Still not convinced? Check out an excerpt of this passionate review, and I’m sure you’ll be buying yourself a pair in no time:

    “First off, it’s stainless steel, not chrome plated … no flakes of chrome getting imbedded under your fingernails … no rusting after a few days in damp shower kit. Second, the construction is sturdy and substantial, not flimsy. Third, the cutting edge is masterful, delivering a clean, smooth cut every time … a cut accompanied by a satisfying CLICK!! that tells you it’s cut cleanly through the nail. Forth, the mechanism is designed to work smoothly with no ill fitting, loose or wobbly parts. It’s simply the best fingernail clipper I’ve EVER used and I can highly recommend it.”

    Sold. And be honest…you are, too.

    When Elliott went down for his nap, Brian and I whipped up a big yet simple Turkey dinner, complete with my mom’s amazing sausage stuffing, mashed potatoes and green bean casserole. I don’t know what we did that was just SO RIGHT, but it was INCREDIBLE. So yummy!!

    Christmas Eve dinner, train set and all.

    So, we choo-chooed, slept, ate, and clipped the day away….and successfully spent the entire day in our jammies. We held our own little church service in the playroom that evening, and Elliott acted out the story of Jesus being born with his nativity set as Brian read it aloud from both Elliott’s bible and his bible. Precious moments with our family…

    Christmas Eve pj picture, 2012

    Christmas Day:

    We got ourselves up and out of the house and headed to San Diego for brunch. Talk about blessing my ever-living soul…mmmm, Christmas BRUNCH!!

    We got to the restaurant a bit early so we let Elliott take the car for a spin, and then we all walked around beautiful San Diego exploring.

    “Don’t worry, Dad…I’ll mind the speed limit.”
    Elliott’s practicing walking with his eyes closed. What a talented kid!!
    Family self-portrait…oops, where are the kids?!
    There they are 🙂

    Brunch was FANTASTIC. I packed my diaper bag with a new puzzle for Elliott to open to keep him happy long enough to stuff my face full of plenty of food to last me all winter. Surprisingly, Elliott was perfectly content stuffing his face for a long time, too. And since he was free, we definitely got our money’s worth :).

    We forgot to put Selah’s headband back on after it fell off, and she was mistaken for a boy shortly after this picture. Really though? A red pea coat, snowflake pants and feminine buckle-shoe socks…and you think she’s a boy?? *sigh* Sorry, Selah.

    We spent some time playing at a park in San Diego that afternoon and headed home early evening. It’s hard to see, but Selah’s shirt says, “Mommy’s Little Joy.”

    Look at the sunset shining through our windows in the background!!
    Truly, truly…my little joy.

    And, finally, what better way to end a Christmas post than with adorable pictures of our babies…

    Do you have ANY idea how hard it is to get a good picture of a 21 month old and a 2 month old?
    You may think that Christmas ornament is simply a cute prop, but really–it’s a full-on BRIBE to get Elliott to sit with his sister and smile. Biggest treat EVER for little buddy to get to hold one of the coveted “Christmas balls” that have been off-limits all month…
    ONE of them always looks great…
    Well, except in this one. “He who smelt it, dealt it!”
    My favorite. You can only see 3/4 of Elliott’s face and Selah’s not giving us her usual huge grin…but still, I think it’s perfect. I love my Christmasy babies!
    Our family’s most wonderful Christmas gift!

     Feliz Navidad, amigos!!

  • Selah B, 2 months

    Selah B, 2 months

    I’m not sure how we ended up with the two most wonderful children in the world, but I’m certainly not complaining!!!!

    Selah is such a doll…ahhh, it’s so hard for me to communicate the fullness of her wonderfulness in words. I take so many pictures of her every day, just somehow trying to record how much I love her, how beautiful she is, how she makes me feel in those moments that she smiles at me from the depths of her soul…I find myself wishing someone could follow us around all day…videoing and photographing every precious moment with our baby girl.

    She is a CHATTER. Oh my word, this princess LOVES TO CHAT (she must get that from her Daddy, right?…HA!) And so, of course, we’ve started what I believe will be a lifelong habit…our mommy-daughter chats! Oh, they are my FAVORITE moments of the day…chatting away with my daughter. I love her voice.

     

     

    Every since I heard Selah’s very first few cries, I have said, “I love her cry!!” It is just adorable…she lets out a cry, and ends it with a big gulp of air that comes out like a squeak. It is so stinking cute. And this month she has started talking…she “coos” and she “ahhs” at us and her voice is so heavenly. Whether it’s crying or chatting, I just love her voice. I believe she is going to have a voice on this earth…a voice declaring the goodness and faithfulness of the Lord. A voice that brings peace. A voice that brings calm. A voice that transforms hearts through the love of Christ. Oh, sweet Selah…may your voice be loud, and never quenched!

    Well, back to the fact that my baby is TWO MONTHS OLD!!!

    Words that describe my baby in the last month? Radiant smiler, sweet chatterbox, tummy-time player, bumbo master…conqueror of the 45 minute intruder (well, most days…). Oh yes, and rejector of the bottle.

    Selah won’t take a bottle. We tried for the first time when she was a couple of weeks old and I had to go to San Diego for an appointment and couldn’t bring her with me. Brian barely got an ounce or so in her through *lots* of tears. We didn’t really think to try again until she was about 6 weeks old, and wow…I think we were about 6 weeks too late. We tried really hard for a few days to do one feeding a day with the bottle, but goodness gracious… baby girl is NOT a fan. We’re going to try again once we’re not so focused on sleep training… It honestly just never occurred to me to “train” her to take a bottle because Elliott always took a bottle so well. But we also HAD to give him a bottle at 3 days old because we had to make sure he was getting enough milk. So he had plenty of practice right from the start… But, I will be honest, it is slightly daunting thinking about not being able to leave Selah for longer than a few hours at a time for the ENTIRE NEXT YEAR… Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying I’m eager to be away from my baby, but it is a value of our family to free me up every once in a while to be away from the kiddos for longer than 3 hours. Any-whoo………

    Alright, without further adieu, here she is! Our beautiful, bright-eyed 2 month old Selah…!!

    6 weeks old, and bundled up in a wrap on my chest.
    Our smiling chatterbox. As SOON as Selah sees one of our faces, she lights up…this is us, smiling and chatting each other during one of our Mommy/Daughter chats…
    Okay, is this a “Susanne face,” or WHAT?! Does anyone else see it, or is it just me??
    Our beauty.

    Selah’s first Thanksgiving!

    Who would have thought that our first two children’s first two Thanksgivings would be in the Dominican Republic and Mexico?! Last year, Elliott’s first Thanksgiving, it was so hot in the D.R. that we all went swimming. This year, although it wasn’t quite hot enough to go swimming, it was certainly warm enough for Selah to wear a dress!

    So happy to be celebrating her first Thanksgiving!!
    Tummy time

     

    Taking a little tummy time rest
    “Wait a minute, why am I the only one who didn’t get a piece of pie??”
    Waking up from a nice, long, Thanksgiving slumber…
    “What is this large squishy blue thing under my bumble, Elliott?”
    “You’ll get used to it, Selah. Here, do you want me to show you how it’s done like a pro?”

     

    “Just like this! See, it’s not so bad…”
    Grandma and Grandpa came to visit for Thanksgiving!

    I love this next picture…we were trying to take a family photo of the 4 of us, but Elliott refused unless Rayel was in it with us. What were we thinking?! Of course our Thanksgiving family photo would have to include Rayel as she is totally part of our family!!

    Our little family 🙂

    More bumbo shots…because aren’t they so cute?!

    “Bet you can’t find my neck!”
    “Peek-a-boo! HERE it is!!”

    “Okay, but seriously…why am I the only one in this family who has to sit on a squishy blue chair?”

    Play mat time!

    At this age, Elliott loved the mirror at the top of this play mat. He would stare at it and smile and laugh! Selah is much more into the monkey than the mirror. She will stare at that monkey for long periods of time, smiling and cooing at him :).

    The only thing better than play mat time is play mat time with Elliott!
    I LOVE her sweet face…
    …and THOSE EYES!

    Funny faces!

    Pouty face!
    I think Selah looks SO MUCH like her cousin Fable in this picture!!
    Those lips!!
    Her pooping face…
    A content pout…
    “It wasn’t me!”
    Trying to show the monkey who’s boss…

     

    1 Month Old

    8 weeks old…and probably the closest pic we have that captures her REAL huge smile…I love this photo that I snapped on my phone!

    Brian and I tried to get a “perfect” picture of her gorgeous smile, so we took a lot of pictures on her 1 month birthday. Although we didn’t get any great ones of her HUGE grin, I do think these pictures capture the beauty and delight of our baby girl very well…I couldn’t cut them down any more 🙂 so here are SEVERAL pictures of our sweet Selah…one month old!

    Can you see how her smile radiates even through her eyes??

     

    Happy, 1 month birthday, our sweet delight!! Your beauty overwhelms us, your voice captivates us, your smile touches us in the deepest places of our hearts…we ADORE you…!!!!!

  • Elliott’s First Haircut!

    Thought Elliott’s locks were adorable, he was starting to look like a wild child. So we ventured into San Diego to make his very first hair cut a fun event. The coolest part was, Grandpa and Nonna arrived for a week long visit at the EXACT right time and got to be there!

    Before…
    “WOW! Mom and Dad told me that I was old enough to get my hair cut, but I thought I had to wait until I was 16 to drive a car!”
    “Um, excuse me? Do you REALLY know what you’re doing?”
    “Hmm…I’d better keep my eye on you, lady.”

     

    “Okay, seriously…WHAT are you DOING??”
    “Why don’t I just give you a few pointers.”
    “See?! What did I tell you? Now you’re making progress! I’m looking good!”
    “Dad, can YOU believe how good my hair is looking?!”
    ‘If you’re going to brush me off, do you HAVE to use a bright pink one?? You’re cramping my style!”
    AFTER!
    My handsome boys.
  • Selah B, 1 month old!

    Selah B, 1 month old!

    Selah Bethany (Selah B, Selah Love, Little S, Selah Insert-random-middle-name-here-like-Daddy-does…) is one month old!

    You hear every parent say it, but I don’t know how to communicate the sentiment in a less cliche way…

    She is growing up SO. INCREDIBLY. FAST. 

    I don’t remember feeling quite this sad about growth acceleration with Elliott. Maybe because he was our first and I was so excited for him to be able to talk to us and walk and laugh and I just couldn’t wait to see it all develop….but with Selah it has been so different. I wish she would stay this tiny forever…I wish she would do the “newborn stretch” forever, where her back arches and her little frog legs cross and tuck right beneath her bumble while her clenched fists stretch above her head…I wish she would make her little newborn sounds and snorts and squeaks forever…I wish she could snuggle up on my chest and fall asleep curled up in a little ball forever…ahhh, these first few weeks are so, so sweet…

    Here are a few facts and a lotta pictures to help you get to know our sweet little Selah from afar…

    She is CHUBBY! And for that, we are so grateful! (Only when referring to babies is the word “chubby” actually a compliment!) She looks so much like me when I was a baby, and I certainly had rolls :). And I love her chub…I love her thighs, her arms, her tummy. Selah weighed in at a healthy 10 lbs 5 oz on her one month birthday, and we are certainly proud of every ounce she gained. She is still eating every 2 hours, but only nurses 4 minutes per side…a pretty efficient nurser, wouldn’t you say?? How different than my little buddy, who nursed for ONE HOUR every two hours until he was 6 weeks old! This makes life a lot easier because nursing isn’t nearly the ordeal that it was when I was nursing Elliott.

    She is a SQUEAKER!! She doesn’t just cry, she squeaks. She makes more noises than any newborn I know…they are so sweet, and so loud! And she definitely lets us know when she needs something…she’s for sure a…how should I put this? A verbal processor :).

    She LOVES to have her diaper changed! I don’t think she has ever cried through a diaper change! In fact, it calms her down…she LOVES being clean. Which is REALLY FORTUNATE because…

    She is a POOPER. Okay, I know this may sound obvious, but oh no–I guarantee you’ve never met a baby who poops like Selah poops. She has projectile poop. Seriously. We have each had poop sprayed all over us while changing her diaper. But then one day, Brian went upstairs to change her diaper and I heard him say in his usual understated tone, “Whoa.” And then a few seconds later, “WHOA.” And then a few seconds later, “Whoa…WHOA.” Since he sounded so calm, I didn’t think much of it…I just thought it was a really, really full diaper. But I asked if everything was okay and he responded–again, in his super-understated manner, “Selah pooped everywhere.” Well, it turns out, he wasn’t kidding.

    What the changing pad & cover looked like post projectile poop…
    …aaaaand what the FLOOR looked like post projectile poop…can you believe all of that poop projected out of a 2 week old baby???

    She is a SMILER. Whether she’s awake or asleep, she’s smiling! I know a lot of people say it’s gas at this age, but I’m telling you–Selah responds to us and smiles at us all the time. She smiles every time she falls asleep (yes, I know that’s just a newborn twitch thing) but also, she smiles at us when we get real close to her and smile and goo-goo talk away… I even got her awake and smiling on camera at just 7 days old.

    Sleeping and smiling…5 days old.
    Awake and smiling…7 days old!

    She is BEAUTIFUL. It overwhelms me every day. She is just perfect…I love, love, LOVE that she gets to hear how beautiful she is every day. (Because yes, I believe it is SO important for little girls to grow up knowing they’re beautiful! And smart, and capable, and compassionate, and, and, and…but also that they’re beautiful. But that’s an entire other blog post :).)

    Here is the progression of our sweet little love over her first month of  life. I don’t have pictures from every day, but some days I couldn’t narrow it down to just one so there are a few to make up for the days that I missed :).

    Her Birthday

    2 days old

    3 days old

    4 days old

    5 days old

    6 days old

    First time wearing a dress and a bow!
    That’s better 🙂

    7 days old

    8 days old

    9 days old

    10 days old

    She’s a couple ounces bigger than her birth weight here, but you get the idea 🙂

    11 days old

    12 days old

    13 days old

    Dressed up for the Harvest Party…Daddy’s Little Princess and Daddy’s Little Builder 🙂

    14 days old

    15 days old

    22 days old

    First trip to the Rosarito Beach

    23 days old

    25 days old

    Oops. Mommy fail.

    28 days old–ONE MONTH OLD!! 

    1 month old, laying on her special handmade blanket from Nonna

    We celebrated her one month birthday with…chocolate chip cookies! Grandpa and Nonna were here for the milestone, so we all gobbled down cookies in honor of this little pumpkin head. Poor Elliott missed the celebrations because he was already in bed. Don’t worry, I ate a cookie or two for him :).

    Okay, time for a little compare/contrast of siblings… I really don’t think Selah looks anything like Elliott did or does, but people say you can tell they are siblings. I can’t really, but that’s okay :). Selah looks so much like me as a baby and Elliott looked SO MUCH like Brian as a baby. Anyhow, you can judge for yourself…

    Elliott 1 month
    Selah 1 month
    Elliott 1 month
    Selah 1 month
    Elliott 1 month
    Selah 1 month

    Selah Bethany, you are the perfect addition to our family. WE ADORE YOU…though you are sweet as can be, we can tell that you have some spunk to you, too! You are not afraid to speak up and let us know exactly what you want. You are simply STUNNING, and you have the most beautiful smile that shows itself every time we come near… Please stay tiny forever while simultaneously blossoming into the radiant little girl that God has created you to be! We love you…happy 1 month birthday!!!

  • The Day That Selah Came Part II

    The Day That Selah Came Part II

    The Day That Selah Came–Part II

    Click here to read Part I

    It’s amazing how when something goes right, you realize how wrong it was before. In retrospect, I have even more confidence that the c-section was exactly the right call with Elliott. I know it may sound crazy, but despite the facts, there was always this teeny, tiny lingering thought in the back of my head wondering if the c-section was absolutely necessary. After Selah’s birth, that thought is totally gone. I had contractions. I dilated (eventually). Her heart rate stayed strong. I pushed. She came out.

    I also have to laugh a little (mostly at myself) for all of the research and reading that goes into creating the “perfect” birth experience. “That” experience is just so far out of our control. I have to laugh at all the people who say there is a “right” way, and “anyone” can accomplish that way… When things are in the right places and going right, you’ll probably have a successful vaginal labor and delivery. When they’re not in the right place, you might end up in a c-section. I strongly believe in the expert help of a doula and/or midwife to help with positioning, etc., assuming that there are no complications big enough to keep the baby from being birthed naturally. But this whole delivery experience (and the ease of it) has really made me calm down a bit. Why did I push for 30 minutes and I’ve had friends push for hours and hours? Not because I read a book on pushing! Because…because…? Because we’ll never know. Because labor and delivery is OUT OF OUR CONTROL… And…IN HIS…

    Now, back to Selah B and her birth day! I got to hold my daughter for the first entire hour of her life. How precious, how special. Such a gift. Just after noon, I handed her off to Daddy, who finally got to hold his little princess.

    So proud.
    The first kiss of many, many, many more to come…
    I remember the nurse asking us how big we thought she was, and realizing that I hadn’t even thought about the fact that we didn’t know her stats yet. I remember having no idea how big she was. I had been so scared of giving birth to a HUMONGOUS baby because a) I had gained AN ENORMOUS amount of weight with this pregnancy (way more than with Elliott) and b) I had had two friends recently give birth to 9+ and 10+ pound babies in September. I think I guessed 9 lbs, assuming she’d be bigger than Elliott because she was my second and also because I figured hot dogs & mac & cheese probably make for chubby babies, right?
    But she wasn’t 9 lbs at all…8 lbs, 2.9 ounces to be exact!
    The nurse measured her at 20 1/4 inches. Although, here’s a little secret fact for you. At her initial doctor’s appointment when she was 4 days old, she very clearly measured at 21 inches. SO, either the nurse measured her wrong originally, or our baby girl grew 3/4 of an inch in 4 days. You can decide for yourself what you think Selah’s REAL length was :).
    Tiny feet
    3/4 of the Moberg Family
    Before Selah was born, I made a banner for her and hung it over her waiting bassinet as a sort of declaration of faith. It said, “Welcome Home, Selah!” But in the exclamation mark at the end, it said, “We did it!” And although I didn’t know exactly what the “it” was going to look like, I knew the Lord was going to bring us through. I looked at and thought of that banner MANY times during the last few weeks of pregnancy and during my labor, as a reminder that yes, I would soon be bringing my baby girl home…that yes, I could do this…that yes, we would soon pass this test of faith…that yes, we would soon be on the other side of this pregnancy, of this labor, of this delivery.
    And then all of a sudden, there she was…
    OH, welcome to the world, 
    our perfect…
    …baby….
    …girl…
    WE DID IT.
    The End

    …or should I say, “THE BEGINNING!”