Summer Lovin

  The past two months have been absolutely incredible! Mike and I are LOVING sweet baby James and the amazing spirit he has brought into our home. James is known as "the perfect baby" and "angel baby" by all of my extended family members because he is such a DREAM. He came to this earth with such a calm, happy, and sweet disposition. Thanks to his easy going, happy temperament, this transition to parenthood has gone incredibly smooth for both Mike and I.

 For a while my dad was worried something was wrong with him because he hadn't ever heard him cry (rest assured, he does know how to cry, but only when he's hungry, and it's a cute cry at that). That's how incredible he is! He can sleep whenever, wherever, and is just thriving! We feel so blessed to have been given the opportunity to be parents to this amazing little soul. He has made our lives so much better!

I cannot believe how quickly James is growing! This past week he hit his 2 month mark! He is such a strong baby, and every milestone is so exciting for us. I have literally taken thousands of pictures of him already. He was holding up his head when he was two days old, rolled for the first time at four weeks old, started sleeping 6-7 hour stretches at two weeks, and started smiling at five weeks. Lately he is becoming so interactive. He recognizes voices and people, and loves smiling at his mama, daddy, and his grandma Alison. This morning he laughed for the first time and I thought my heart was going to burst.

 We have been having so much fun just savoring every moment this summer. I'm LOVING being a stay at home mom, and with Mike's flexible work schedule, we've been able to spend so much time together as a family. James took his first trip at one month old when we went to Idaho Falls to visit Mike's parents, and we've stayed up in Heber at my parent's house several times already this summer. The poor baby has almost spent more nights away from home than he has in his actual crib, but he is so flexible, adaptable, and happy wherever he is.

 Here are some photos from the summer so far.....

 

James' Safari Nursery

From the moment I found out I was pregnant, I started daydreaming about nurseries. I knew in my heart that a baby boy was going to be joining our family, and so once I got the confirmation of the ultra sound, Mike and I got to work. We were so excited!

 I wanted to create a magical place for our baby boy to grow up in, but I also didn't want to break the bank. After a lot of brainstorming I decided to go with a safari theme. We had so much fun putting everything together (with the help of my fabulous interior designer friend Teresa). Everything in the nursery was carefully selected. I wanted the items decorating James' nursery to be special and meaningful.

 Some of the meaningful heirlooms and items included in the nursery design are:
 - The vintage cedar chest that my grandfather gave my grandmother before their wedding over 50 years ago. - My grandfather's old fishing net.
 - A box of Chocolates Mike got on his mission that says, "Cleveland... a sweet place to be" (Mike and I both served our missions in Cleveland, which is why James' middle name is Cleveland).
 - A photo of the Kirtland temple (again, important because it was such a huge part of our mission and I served at the historic Kirtland church sites as a missionary)
 - Masks, drums, wooden animals, cloths, and other African treasures my grandparents got when they lived in Ghana.
 - A chest of drawers that was purchased for $20 on the side of the road in Africa (Pottery Barn has one just like it)
 - National Geographic magazines my grandparents have been collecting for years and years - A huge turtle my grandfather got somewhere in Asia long ago
- A globe that Mike and I purchased in Sun Valley, ID (a very important place to our family)
 - A huge giraffe that Grandma Alison gave James
- A photo of Christ from his Grandma Carol

 My grandparents were kind enough to offer to let us use so many of their african treasures, and we were given so many gifts, that the only things we had to buy were the crib, the rug, and some of the photos on the wall. I absolutely LOVE how it all turned out. Every time I walk in I have to smile. It's my favorite room in the house. But most importantly, I LOVE the little babe that lives there.

 Here are some photos (thanks to the incredible Jen Herem)......

Capturing Joy

When James was just five days old, we hired a photographer, the fabulous Jen Herem, to come to our home and take photos of our little family, and most importantly our precious baby boy.    They turned out absolutely beautiful, and I feel like she truly captured the joy that sweet James has brought to our home.  I look at them and can't believe how much he has already grown and changed in the past few weeks.  We will cherish these photos forever.  Here are some of my favorites.....

 

Family of Three

I've squeezed a lot into my 27 years of life.

I've been a lot of places, seen a lot of things, and been blessed with so many opportunities.

But nothing compares to the joy I've experienced over the past two weeks.

Being a mother tops everything.

We are completely smitten by our little mister.

We love his big blue eyes, pouty lips, serious resting face, and blondie hair.

He's a cute little wiggle worm (just like he was in the womb), he loves playing with his hands, hates being swaddled, loves being burped, and sleeps like a champ through the night already.

He looks like his mom, but has the calm, contented, easy-going temperament of his dad.

He is a wise old soul, and has brought an incredible spirit to our home.

His grandparents & aunts and uncles can't get enough of him.  

He is absolutely perfect.

Mike has had the past two weeks off work, and we've been soaking up every single moment together as a little family of three.

Our Sweet Baby James

Best Birthday Present Ever: Becoming a Mother to a beautiful baby boy.

James Cleveland Bergeson

Born May 27th at 12:12 am 

7lbs. 13 oz, 19.5 inches long

and perfect in EVERY way.

We are SO in LOVE.  

I think back to just five days ago and wonder how we ever thought our lives were complete without our sweet baby James.  The process of this beautiful and perfect baby coming to our little family has been wonderful, beautiful, emotional, sacred, life altering and full of love.  Our hearts have been changed, and have made more room for this tiny little soul than I EVER dreamed possible.  Life could not be sweeter.  Being a mama to this extremely sweet, chunky, angel baby boy is by far the best thing that's ever happened to me (in addition to me marrying my wonderful husband).  xoxo