Sophia's Sunflower Garden!

A wise woman recently asked me...'In twenty years (because thirty just sounds too far away and twenty doesn't sound as old :) are you going to look back and remember that the floors are spotless, the baseboards are dusted and everything is perfectly in it's place? Or will you remember the moments you spend playing with Sophia and watching her grow?'

It has been something that I've thought a lot about lately and as a military wife, I think sometimes things can so quickly get overwhelming so much so that you lose focus on what is truly important and what can quite simply...wait.

As Chris is in the field until next weekend, Sophia and I started to think about some things to do to help make our new house more like a home while spending quality time together. When we first arrived in Alabama, we were staying with Kathy who is an avid gardener. Her yard looks stunning and she just put in a beautiful veggie garden which makes my mouth
water just thinking about all the veggies of summer. I think being around her has given me the itch to attempt at this whole gardening thing. As a housewarming present for Miss Sophia, Kathy gave her her own little gardening set, complete with a Big Bird gardening bag, tools and some seeds to start some planting. As the sun was setting yesterday, Sophia and I decided to plant some sunflowers! Here are some pictures of our pots that Sophia and I had a blast putting together! I marked on three calendars that we have to water our seeds every day so hopefully we'll have some budding flowers soon. I can't wait to see Sophia's reaction to her flowers growing! Isn't it such a great lesson to teach kids? Not only will Sophia see first hand the beauty in the outdoors but reminding her to water her flowers every day gives her a sense of responsibility and hopefully in the near future, a sense of pride watching them grow. Sophia woke up this morning and ran to the back door yelling FLOWERS, FLOWERS, FLOWERS so I'm thinking it was a great idea! :) Next on my list, maybe a tomato plant or herb garden? Let's not get too crazy! We'll just start with some sunflowers. HA!

Thank you Kathy for everything this week and since we've arrived. It is a blessing having you and Amanda so close.

Fun at the Huntsville Fair!

I just love Memorial Day weekend, don't you? It is a lot like July fourth in a sense with less hooplah. What a great weekend to remember all of those who serve and to give them the 'Thanks' they so very much deserve. A wonderfully, American holiday! :)

Chris, Sophia and I had an especially great Memorial Day weekend shopping the Memorial Day sales for some new furniture AND checking out the local fair! It was a lot of fun once I was drenched in sweat and got past the 90 degree weather with 500% humidity but Sophia didn't seem to notice the heat at all. If you ask her what we did at the fair she'll tell you (hand gestures and all) that we 'rode the chu-chu', went on the 'merry-go-round', slid down the 'BIG slide', rode the 'horsey' and went on the 'big wheel' (the Ferris wheel). I was very impressed seeing Sophia venture out and try so many new things. Between her love for animals and her 'no fear' mentality, she was in HEAVEN and Chris and I had a wonderful time watching her explore her very first fair. A wonderful day! I got my funnel cake, Chris got us all on the Ferris wheel and Sophia had a ball taking it all in! Ah, seeing life through the eyes of our Sophia. What a beautiful way to view the world! It certainly shines a new perspective on every day life...a perspective that I can't believe I ever went without.

So the house is coming along...slowly but surely. It turns out we have A LOT more space in this house than in the houses we've previously lived in but other than an additional playroom for Sophia and an extra bedroom, it is extra space that we need to fill. We've purchased some new furniture so I'm super excited to have everything set up in it's place and start enjoying our new house instead of constantly rearranging and reorganizing. On a really good note, we've met the majority of our neighbors and have truly lucked out. Although there aren't a lot of kids Sophia's age in the vicinity, the neighbors seem wonderful and have been so welcoming. I plan on getting Sophia into a couple fun classes, maybe some gymnastics or ballet classes once a week so that we meet some little one's her age and I can meet some fellow moms. As Chris said today...meeting people always take time, but told me to be patient and soon enough we'll have our routine going with some new friends thrown into the mix.

Speaking of Chris, he's doing great. He's been learning the in's and out's of his new job and loving it. Turns out working with a Reserve Unit is a whole new world so it has been interesting hearing about the differences and seeing how seamlessly Chris has adjusted. Coming up soon is a two week training period and when Chris is back he will officially take command and start preparing for their upcoming deployment! I'm just happy to see him happy, in charge and excited to be working again. He is thrilled to have 'command time', he's happy that he'll get to beef up his resume with a deployment to Afghanistan and he's enjoying working less than ten minutes away from home, where he's been coming to visit Sophia and I for lunch. A little different than his forty-five minute commute to Pendleton!

These days I'm just taking it all in. Sophia's adjusting to her new surroundings and is constantly surprising me, keeping me on my toes. I know that although Chris' deployment is a good eight months out, life takes over and it'll be here before we know it. I try to remind myself not to take anything for granted and to 'live each day like he's deploying tomorrow'. The more organized I am before baby number 2's arrival, the more prepared I'll be for that inevitable day where he leaves all three of us for the call of duty. Such is the life of a Marine Wife! Happy summer everyone!!!!!

This is a video I got of Sophia and Chris playing baseball in the kitchen. Of course, Sophia had to wear her shades but they apparently got in the way when searching for her hit ball! :)

I'm going to dedicate this post to my little brother...

I'm sure if you know anything about my family, you know that we're huge University of Michigan fans and we have good reason to be. Humor me a bit and let me ramble on about one of the greatest people I know and just how proud I am to call him family.

This past weekend, Chris, Sophia and I made the ten hour drive to the University of Michigan to see my little brother Chris' last home series of his career at Michigan! We had a little mini Berset reunion with Auntie Tisa, Auntie Diane, Uncle Bruce, Madi, Tisa Amanda, Mom, Dad, Annie and Mary joining us for a baseball filled weekend! I had been looking forward to this trip for quite some time now and it exceeded every expectation I had. Chris played well the whole weekend and Michigan split the games Friday and Saturday one win, one loss. As you can imagine, winning a weekend series is vital to these baseball guys so a lot was riding on the Sunday game scheduled to start around 1pm. It started on time but it started out ROUGH and by the third inning Michigan was losing 14-0. Yikes. I remember meeting Amanda out at the snack bar and just cringing at the sound of the small Northwestern crowd clapping and cheering for their guys after yet another hit. Alright, alright we all say to each other...The beauty of baseball is that it's one of the only sports with no clock counting down...the beauty of baseball is that it isn't over until it is OVER and by God, the Michigan bench sure didn't give up. Base hit after base hit, homerun after homerun, run after run, the boys fought back and with a great pitcher on the mound, they got to the bottom of the ninth trailing only by TWO runs, the score 14-12. Two runs before three outs and they tie the game.

One out after the first batter grounds out.
Base hit and we've got a runner on first.
Fly out to deep center...two outs.

So there's a runner on first, two outs, down by two in the bottom of the ninth and who's up to bat? My kid brother. Aw man, this is the chance of a lifetime right here! It is what my little brother has been training for for twenty years. He's holding the team on his back and he steps up to the plate.

Pitch one...strike.
Pitch two...strike.

Uncle Bruce turns to me and says, 'Well this pitcher isn't going to give him anything good to hit on this count' as we hope for a ball and as soon as we turn to look at the plate....

Chris nails the ball and SAILS it to right-center field.

Is it going far enough!?!?! Will it go over the fence?!?!?! Has he hit it hard enough?!?!?!?! Oh my gosh, oh my gosh....................IT'S GONE!!!! It's GONE!!!!!

To this day, I can SEE the ball sailing over the fence. Wow, what a moment. Now you might think I'm a little nut-so that I did a pathetic play-by-play of a baseball game on my blog and you could probably chalk it up to the fact that I'm prego and my usual dramatic self. I mean really, it's not the World Series or even one of those elimination games that keeps you 'alive' to win something super important, but this is my kid brother. This is one of Chris', what I'll call 'World-Series' moments. Michigan went on to hold Northwestern in the top of the 10th and one of the other seniors and Chris' fellow captain Mike Dufek, hit a homerun to end the game 15-14. Michigan wins the series and ESPN went on to recap later that night the greatest comeback in baseball history. The Berset clan is still screaming!!!! :)

I have seen my little brother start as a kid and grow into a man all the while playing this sport that he just can't ever seem to get enough of. Tying this baseball game after trailing by so much, on senior weekend, of his last home series, with loads of his extended family there...his brother-in-law, girlfriend and little God-daughter witnessing it all...come on, isn't everybody hungry for a moment like that?

Now, let me tell you why this touches my heart in a very special way and segway into why my kid brother is one of the greatest people I've ever known. Not only is Chris a phenomenal baseball player but he is one of the most honorable men I've ever met. You don't come across guys like Chris very often. He is dedicated, strong and focused on what he wants to accomplish in the life God has given him. He is confident yet humble and believes that God is in control of his destiny. He is sensitive to those around him but steadfast when people need him. He is quick to smile, the first one to laugh and he is always there to lend a helping hand. He goes to church every Sunday and is quick to thank God first and foremost for all of his blessings. He loves with his whole heart and while others strive to always do the right thing, he more often than not, does. He is a man of faith, a man who loves his family and friends, a man who leads by example and a man who is going to go far in life because of all this. I have no doubt we will see his name in lights one day playing for the big leagues. The world needs a professional baseball player like him and he deserves every piece of success that comes his way. I haven't always been strong like him and Lord knows, I've made plenty of mistakes that others would just shake their head at but Chris has always believed in me. It is a pleasure to be his sister...to be his friend.

So little brother...you thanked Chris, Sophia and I in your speech that Saturday night on YOUR senior night for making the trip to see you. Consider this my little speech to you. I'd shout it on the rooftops given the platform. You have made us all so proud and a fraction of that comes from your performance on the baseball diamond. I love you.

'GO, GO, GO CHRIS. HIT THE BALL' ~Soph had to get a word in too for your games this week! :) (Check out the Michigan boys on the Big Ten Network for game two against Minnesota tonight at 7:05pm)

Now that things have started to settle down here, I can finally take some 'mommy' time and fill you in on life (so far) here in the south! I'm so happy to be here and even more ecstatic after I met my new 'baby' doctor, Dr. Fiore and had my first checkup for baby number 2! :) Everything's looking great, said Doc and after meeting him and answering some questions about my pregnancy/delivery with Sophia, my little munchkin had his or her first photo shoot!!! I was telling Chris what a relief it was to finally see the little one and hear a strong, fast heartbeat! The appointment probably lasted less than half an hour and I've got my second appointment scheduled for the beginning of June! :) I will be fourteen weeks on Thursday and still due to deliver our little one around November 27th! Here's a photo of the baby from my appointment! I'm not technically savy enough at all to label all the body parts so you'll have to figure out for yourself where his or her big ol' head is! ;)

While on the topic of our growing family, one of the wonderful things about the house we have now is the amount of space we have. Chris and I are in the process of transitioning Sophia into a 'big' girl bed which has turned out to be quite the challenge because for the past three weeks traveling, she has slept with us. Nonetheless, Chris and I have hope and just the other day ordered Sophia a brand new bedroom set complete with a chest, standing drawers, a mirror, a nightstand and an adorable headboard! I can't wait to see it all set up although I did kind of laugh inside when I read the reviews and heard the assembly took some people up to six hours! I have no doubts that Chris will rise to the challenge, as usual, but most especially for his little girl who thinks he hung the moon and the stars. Sophia seems to love the house as well. Off of the living room we've set up a whole playroom for her with her desk, tent, play kitchen, toy box and all of her toys. Once I get things in a little better shape and have all of our things up on the walls, I'll post some pictures of the final project! It's all coming together, slowly but surely! It is a bit of an extra challenge being three months pregnant and getting settled somewhere new. To top it off, I have felt so much sicker this pregnancy and it seems I'm always nauseous with a dull headache. However, seeing it all come together thus far and imagining what it'll be like six months or so from now when our family is complete, is making it all worth it. Thankfully I have a wonderful husband who without asking steps up when Sophia wakes in the middle of the night or when I need a quick nap. He told me the other day that he shoots for perfection in everything that he does so that if he on the off chance falls short, he's still done pretty damn good and I can see that in the way he raises and treats Sophia. I'm a happy Mama and can't wait for all the exciting things to come this year.

We have made it to Huntsville, Alabama and have successfully found a beautiful house for our growing family! The trip out was pretty easy for Sophia and I, it was Chris that had the tedious job of driving the cars cross-country. He's made the trek a time or two when he was in college at Auburn, but this trip was slightly different after his run-in with a wild turkey somewhere on a Texas highway. Twenty-eight hundred dollars later, the front of his car is back to it's usual shiny self and my hubby is happy to have made it in one piece! I feel like I could tell one of those jokes...you know you're in Texas when you get hit by a wild turkey crossing the highway! HA!

Anyways, thanks to my amazing friend Carolyn, her mom Kathy and sister Amanda...Sophia and I found a wonderful four/five bedroom home that has been completely remodeled and like new. After the first week of looking in Huntsville, I was getting a little discouraged with what I was seeing but thankfully, we stumbled across this little wonder in a perfect area of town. I truly could not ask for more. Our stuff arrived in tact and after a week and a half of sleeping on air mattresses, sleeping in our wondrous bed was amazing. It's hard to believe that we're here and settled. I truly could not have done it without Carolyn, Kathy and Amanda. I was telling Chris that I feel so spoiled having what might as well be family in a town miles and miles from anywhere I've ever lived before. I made a quick run to Target after all of our stuff arrived and who did I run into? Kathy!!! I came home all excited to actually be in a place where after only being here a week I can run into someone I know and LOVE! Chris must think I've gone off the deep end but I love it. I love the mountains here and all the green, big, beautiful trees! I love the people that I've met so far and I could definitely get used to the southern style of living! Once all the craziness subsides, I can't wait to explore the town in more depth, finding friends for Sophia, finding some moms I can relate to and of course taking care of my Marine who sacrifices so much so that Sophia and I can have the life that we have. So here's to a new town to explore and a new house to make a home...with the important things like family always staying the same.

Chris has been working really long days this past week, so Sophia and I have been bringing him yummy lunches to hold him over until he gets off around 10-11pm. Yesterday, we decided to bring him a pizza which is one of Chris and Sophia's favorite things to eat. Sophia is so content to just drive around with me, running errands, dropping things off, seeing friends, you name it, she's up for it and lately Sophia's been more chatty in everything that she does. She'll walk by people in stores and say 'excuse-me' or 'thank you' or just wave to everyone that she passes which I think takes people by surprise more than anything else. But yesterday, after scooping up some Papa John's for Chris, putting her back in her car seat and getting myself all ready to start driving again, I hear Sophia in the backseat say, 'Thank you Mama.'. I hadn't given her anything or passed her sippy back to her yet, she just said 'Thank you'! needless to say, I was so very proud! So off we go to see Dad who to Sophia goes 'bye-bye in the truck' every day for work! I know I say it often but she's so content. She points out the airplanes in the sky and the sun and the moon. She talks about Dad going to work and how she wants to 'play' when she passes a playground. She talks about her friends 'Abby' and 'Kyrsten' every chance she gets and asks for Dad more times during the day than I can count. She sees a hill and points 'up' and 'down'. She loves to go for 'walks' to see the 'big trees' and the 'pretty flowers'. She sings her ABC's to anyone who will listen and practices 'counting' sometimes in the middle of playing with her teddies. She loves being at the beach and every time she sees the coast she say 'WATER!!'. My heart just about melts when I hear her tell us she loves us which she does every day, multiple times a day. But I think my ultimate favorite is when Sophia is tired and wants to go to bed. She sleeps with four blankets (yes, I know but even when I try to trick her into having two, she knows and doesn't appreciate it!!!), her stuffed 'Rosie', her 'dog' pillow from great Auntie Tisa, and her 'baby' from her godmama Carolyn! I'll tuck her in and she'll peek up and ask 'Dad? Dad? Night, night! A kiss!?!' letting him know that it's time for bed and she wants a kiss! We turn off the light and we hear, 'Night Mama, night, night Dada, love you.' and it is the perfect way to end every day

What did I do all day before I had Sophia? It seems so strange to me to look back on the days before I had kids. Yes, grocery store trips were easier...heck, trips in general were easier but the happiness you get from your child truly is priceless. I always say how quickly time flies. I can remember so vividly how small Sophia once was but to be sad to see her growing up seems like an abuse of my job as a mom. She's beautiful and smart and fun-loving and has exceeded every dream I have ever had for my little girl. I look into her eyes and I know that everything is going to be alright. Take away the stresses of moving, of cleaning, of cooking, of working, of every day life...strip life down to it's core and she'll be there continuing to make us smile. So call me emotional because I'm pregnant or just reflective because I'm on the cusp of so many big changes...either way, I don't think I'll ever be able to stop talking about my little girl and why not share this with you all...my friends and family I love so much.