tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29817386427294598802023-11-15T23:38:05.507-08:00The Burgin BunchThe Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.comBlogger68125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981738642729459880.post-35166226843411435892017-04-20T11:34:00.000-07:002017-04-20T11:50:05.034-07:00Happy Birthday, Leah<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;">April 20th has become a day that I anticipate with dread and excitement. It’s a strange feeling to both love and hate a day, especially the day of your child’s birth. I mean, it’s a day; not a person who was mean to me and hurt my feelings, or a friend who did something really thoughtful and made my day. One day out of 365 in a year, and yet… this day has such significance in my life that I can almost feel it coming. It should have been a day that was filled with joy and wonderment, and it was, but it’s also a day of grief and pain. As we celebrate another year of Leah’s presence, accomplishments, and happiness, we grieve another year of milestones not reached, goals not met, and dreams that haven't come true. It’s hard not to think about what an 8 year old should be doing and compare that to Leah. It’s hard not to be overcome with emotion. It’s hard to watch your child struggle with every day life things. It’s hard to not be planning a party for a child who doesn’t have friends, doesn’t care about parties or presents, and doesn’t like to eat cake. It’s hard to explain to your other children why we are not having a birthday party for Leah, but why we celebrate her anyway. It’s hard to admit that being Leah’s mom makes me sad sometimes. Some days it is easier to be the mother of a child with significant disabilities, but today is not one of them. It is not easy, but today I choose thankfulness. Today, I am thankful for three healthy children. Today, I am thankful for grandparents to be with us to celebrate and pick up the ice cream that Leah will eat. Today, I am thankful for friends and family who sit with me in my grief, who pray with me and for me, and who direct my gaze back up. Today, I am thankful for my eternal hope, one day everything will be perfect. Today, I am thankful for a Savior who also grieved, and who will one day wipe away all tears. Today, I am thankful for a Sovereign God, who shows me that He is providentially at work in our lives, for our good and His glory. Today, I am thankful for Leah, my child, made in the image of God, one of His prized possessions, my girl, whom I love more than my own life. Happy 8th Birthday, Leah.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Happy BIRTHday, Leah!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Happy 8th Birthday, Leah!</td></tr>
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The Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981738642729459880.post-30510098419137160542014-09-22T20:28:00.001-07:002014-09-22T20:28:04.740-07:00Micah is 2 Months Old!Our Micah Boy is two months old, and it has been two months of change! In addition to the obvious differences of having a boy (different anatomy ;), different pronouns), Micah has proven to be very different from his sisters. He is a loud baby, almost constantly grunting, groaning, snoring, cooing, crying, some sort of sound! It makes it quite difficult to sleep soundly (in between nursing). Speaking of nursing, he nurses way more than the girls ever did. Not only does he nurse more frequently than they did, he nurses for a longer time than they did. While the girls nursed quickly and were done, he nurses a little, takes a break, and nurses more. We haven't had his two month check-up yet, but we know he is becoming quite the chunky boy from all that nursing! He is still the delight of Rebekah. She just loves him and loves to love on him (a little too much!). And Leah likes to touch his feet and mimic his cries. Everyday he is becoming more and more alert, making eye contact more, smiling a lot, and cooing, too! We are loving getting to know our precious boy!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Caught!</td></tr>
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<br />The Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981738642729459880.post-31775241158572874272014-09-16T05:59:00.000-07:002014-09-23T15:20:45.941-07:00Leah's Big SummerLeah girl has had a big summer! It all started with finishing preschool. Our girl spent two years at Easton Preschool, growing and
developing, and I can't tell you how much we loved having her there.
Easton is just one piece of the evidence of God's sovereignty in placing
us in Norfolk. And this year she had an amazing teacher, Ms. Liane, who
possesses the best attributes a teacher can have: kind and encouraging,
innovative and experienced, and a great communicator who loves our girl. We
feel so blessed to have had her for Leah's last year of preschool. We
will miss Easton and Ms. Liane, but are so ready for kindergarten and a
new school!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Each class got to perform a special song on the stage for the "moving on" ceremony.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leah with Ms. Liane and Ms. Robin (the teacher's aide). </td></tr>
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Summer is usually a difficult time for Leah. She really needs the structure and routine of school, which is something that is hard for Mommy to keep up for her. It was especially hard this summer, having a toddling little sister and a very pregnant mommy to try to coordinate along with our special girl! However, we managed to go and do something fun out of the house everyday, whether that was a trip to the zoo, the mall, the botanical garden, the museum, the downtown splash park, our neighborhood park, or our backyard. Daddy was especially helpful this summer. He made sure to be available to go with us whenever we left the house. And our Leah girl had the best summer she's had in years. We did not have nearly as many meltdowns as we normally do. We even went some days without a single tantrum!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Enjoying the summer sun in our backyard</td></tr>
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Leah also had her annual check up in Iowa with both of her ophthalmologists. As I was almost 38 weeks pregnant, only Stephen and Leah went to these appointments. They had a special trip planned, flying together to Iowa, staying in a fun hotel with a big pool slide, going to her appointments, and flying back home to Mommy and Rebekah (or so they thought...). The trip started off as planned. They drove to D.C. (a three hour drive) to have a better chance of getting on a flight as stand by passengers and flew to Chicago, where they rented a car and drove the rest of the way to Iowa (about a 4 hour drive). Leah is usually a great traveler, but she is so unpredictable and when she gets set off, its very difficult to calm her down. So, we decided to limit the amount of time on a plane. One of the hard things with having an almost nonverbal child is that we have to guess why she is upset, which can be hard to do. And being on a plane with nowhere to take a 5 year old who is having a tantrum can be stressful, to say the least. So, Stephen explained to the flight attendants about Leah, gave her tons of snacks to keep her occupied, and prayed for the best. And our girl did great! <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ready for take off!</td></tr>
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Leah's annual check up in Iowa was with 2 different ophthalmologists: Dr. Wilkinson, who is in charge of functional vision (using the vision she has as best as she can) and Dr. Stone, who is a molecular ophthalmologist and geneticist, in charge of defining how her chromosomal translocation has impacted her development and what it means for her future. We found out last year, that Leah has a chromosomal translocation, meaning that two of her chromosome pairs exchanged segments. We also learned that this event is isolated to Leah and that it is believed to be the underlying reason for all of her disabilities. However, they have been unable to prove that, up to this point, so we have a new plan. During this visit, some of Leah's skin cells were removed in order to grow stem cells to see what they can learn about the underlying dysfunction of her retinas and brain. Crazy stuff! We are also sending them Leah's latest MRI images, so that they can look at her brain and see if they can learn anything from that. So, we know what is different about Leah, genetically speaking, and we assume that those genetic anomolies are the reason for her disabilities, and we are working on proving that theory. We also know that there is no reports of anyone else having this same translocation, which means, we can't compare or get an idea of Leah's future. We know that Leah has been fearfully and wonderfully made, and that God has led us to these wonderful doctors to find answers. Now, we just trust and wait on the Lord, knowing that He loves us and will be glorified in Leah's life.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Taking the visual acuity exam</td></tr>
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They made some time for fun, while on their trip. And after a somewhat traumatic appointment (getting a skin biopsy is no fun!), Stephen and Leah tried their hardest to get home before Micah was born. Click <a href="http://burginbunch.blogspot.com/2014/09/micah-is-here.html">here</a> for that story!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Special dinner at a fancy restaurant in Washington, D.C.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leah loved the big water slide at the hotel pool!</td></tr>
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The final big event of the summer for Leah is the start of kindergarten! It's hard to believe that our little girl is going to elementary school! In some ways, it's not that big of a deal, though. I mean, she has been going to school for the last 2 years and riding the school bus both years. But, there is something different about being in kindergarten. Leah will get to go to resource (PE, art, music, and media), she has a daily behavior chart (which has had all happy faces all week long!), and if she misses school, we have to write a note. Leah will work on goals developed at her IEP (Individual Education Plan) meeting at the end of the last school year. These goals include academic goals for reading and math and developmental goals for fine motor and gross motor development as well as communication development. Stephen and I were very involved with creating these goals and are excited to see what Leah accomplishes this year. We are also excited about her new school (both new to her and a new facility) and her new teacher (who seems wonderful), and that her friend, June, is in the same class!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Waiting for the bus!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyeOrEzUIGYVMQ3gKzTol1yMdJprU44VYs511RfWu97RxwT2-3dAVuTzh4QU1bw8fxeSZwsuWIe2D-TlcEfo59iqp51nfjh2lDZL-401oC3XzcsaHile0evTyvuBnQGf7cbnVHMaprnHI/s1600/DSC_0059.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyeOrEzUIGYVMQ3gKzTol1yMdJprU44VYs511RfWu97RxwT2-3dAVuTzh4QU1bw8fxeSZwsuWIe2D-TlcEfo59iqp51nfjh2lDZL-401oC3XzcsaHile0evTyvuBnQGf7cbnVHMaprnHI/s1600/DSC_0059.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ready for a new school year!</td></tr>
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The Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981738642729459880.post-82958969208153684482014-09-04T11:22:00.001-07:002014-09-04T11:22:52.205-07:00Summer Fun!This summer has been quite a busy one! Besides having a baby (see the previous post!), we have had a pretty busy and very fun summer. Summer started with our first family camping trip for Father's Day. We drove down to Cape Hatteras National Seashore and camped right on the beach. It was also one of the first opportunities for Stephen to take out his Father's Day present - a kayak! We decided to only spend one night, not wanting to be too crazy for our first camping trip ;). And how did everyone do? Leah slept through the night (helped out by a sleep aid), Bekah woke up several times (totally thrown off by being in the same bed with the whole family), Stephen and Pippin slept like logs, and I tossed and turned the whole night (I <i>was</i> in my third trimester of pregnancy, sleeping on the ground, totally consumed with keeping my girls asleep all night long!). After it was all said and done, I can honestly say it wasn't that bad, and camping is something we will definitely do again... maybe next year!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZtT_XzbvIhJ0vj4E2Wvtz5tEa-xnX-A65JcVwlmrSSqVkt-YsT1ynWV8l1W0UbGSPJMeK-j0AaWBpoyhOei3Yc8qy5cOXS0pINH2eFFAevwM2itE-rbuAgjWvlhOtN2mgVOz083JIyX4/s1600/DSC_0804.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZtT_XzbvIhJ0vj4E2Wvtz5tEa-xnX-A65JcVwlmrSSqVkt-YsT1ynWV8l1W0UbGSPJMeK-j0AaWBpoyhOei3Yc8qy5cOXS0pINH2eFFAevwM2itE-rbuAgjWvlhOtN2mgVOz083JIyX4/s1600/DSC_0804.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The girls had a lot of fun playing in the tent.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmYzoOVARiUIOcT4jbZd693pAaVzakk_OVeq4GRCBKs8akGv8SPUYHJeifhhwlLC8rAh_232KdD0rHgcC0wvLkPioPbqPEjdU2FAdwAEU_Hg7NjOlY3JhkzjajxnxMhcIzjaDFkstFGEM/s1600/DSC_0832.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmYzoOVARiUIOcT4jbZd693pAaVzakk_OVeq4GRCBKs8akGv8SPUYHJeifhhwlLC8rAh_232KdD0rHgcC0wvLkPioPbqPEjdU2FAdwAEU_Hg7NjOlY3JhkzjajxnxMhcIzjaDFkstFGEM/s1600/DSC_0832.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bekah's first kayak ride with Daddy.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ-SfYO6Jv2cLLw0afVe0hfk3rxlrzMXK6qjfwlo5fc_H-5-IN4kJkeTpC01J7U_NGuxqFCCPVSXitJS69nPI6G57ejHk-fjnFICHmliBXttx9d7FUPYoGP0r2LQqnE4Y_a4DOEVTX9so/s1600/DSC_0818.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ-SfYO6Jv2cLLw0afVe0hfk3rxlrzMXK6qjfwlo5fc_H-5-IN4kJkeTpC01J7U_NGuxqFCCPVSXitJS69nPI6G57ejHk-fjnFICHmliBXttx9d7FUPYoGP0r2LQqnE4Y_a4DOEVTX9so/s1600/DSC_0818.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Outer Banks Beauty</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOZrjyf-RsE-VxXg562TtMhCVEjlVnGtA15W5Lm7o4KyAvrhRQCghu3PnuRIQiViEP4s5UqEU90ZsMt0wY8SB0NAgN9keT20vaD46Su-cd4JqLt7CdfncMvrwS71DyI7IwvRnZUinJ-e8/s1600/DSC_0787.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOZrjyf-RsE-VxXg562TtMhCVEjlVnGtA15W5Lm7o4KyAvrhRQCghu3PnuRIQiViEP4s5UqEU90ZsMt0wY8SB0NAgN9keT20vaD46Su-cd4JqLt7CdfncMvrwS71DyI7IwvRnZUinJ-e8/s1600/DSC_0787.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daddy and his girls at the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse.</td></tr>
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<br />
Our other major trip was for Fourth of July. We went to Washington, D.C. and to Philadelphia. We spent a couple of days with Sarah and Dustin and the Hanks boys, enjoying their new house, splashing at the Yards park, going to a parade, and a special time for Leah and Daddy to see fireworks on the National Mall. We made a quick stop in Baltimore, at Ft. McHenry, to see the place that inspired Francis Scott Key to write the words to the Star Spangled Banner 200 years ago. Then we went onto Philadelphia to see and learn about some of our Nation's history in the place where the Declaration of Independence was written and signed. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL0ZKw4TOVTnswLof5HFBAXCS3j7KV_TH9XAPwtJQxLIYWlndZ_yJF6kci0qUXdDIYWEeeXHi6OpHmlU3Si_m9emR0PPR3tjKLSe21n6oDzIZjBfirK7X43Gz8G9s_9zGt_zP-59veUX0/s1600/DSC_0865.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL0ZKw4TOVTnswLof5HFBAXCS3j7KV_TH9XAPwtJQxLIYWlndZ_yJF6kci0qUXdDIYWEeeXHi6OpHmlU3Si_m9emR0PPR3tjKLSe21n6oDzIZjBfirK7X43Gz8G9s_9zGt_zP-59veUX0/s1600/DSC_0865.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At the Jefferson Memorial</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvAvlMpbWYWA9hebTuzaOuGzvU4n1xRZjsTRo9GeE-8tBFxR8upAigBvuU683MA0HcKA871-CYPavZmb8auL3BhEqYyqtNomFYf2xsvucyZE-K1-7iE5p_iGZoFY-FXjkYpav-DU3DAjA/s1600/parade.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvAvlMpbWYWA9hebTuzaOuGzvU4n1xRZjsTRo9GeE-8tBFxR8upAigBvuU683MA0HcKA871-CYPavZmb8auL3BhEqYyqtNomFYf2xsvucyZE-K1-7iE5p_iGZoFY-FXjkYpav-DU3DAjA/s1600/parade.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cousin cuties watching a parade</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJk4GcBcdafzMyuqmMpWqcxBsomPMQWy6-mp4SUShv2PDl443WdJcOYY-Q-ts0nWdQHNeeb-6INw8xuKMQ61A8HIKZWG44oxB2_lpzwqt96LUdAY-2te5oKRP0y_RQAy0Q7xUK6lxy08c/s1600/leah.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJk4GcBcdafzMyuqmMpWqcxBsomPMQWy6-mp4SUShv2PDl443WdJcOYY-Q-ts0nWdQHNeeb-6INw8xuKMQ61A8HIKZWG44oxB2_lpzwqt96LUdAY-2te5oKRP0y_RQAy0Q7xUK6lxy08c/s1600/leah.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Listening to a concert before the fireworks start</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL2C_V1AevuNUMBPZDQwGeZAHHraMVjFqcu69FzffmzvVv4XL569ah43ljWHOdbtATd0pOvqB8bLDVl45up-4KtVdeRDIqQrw9jRtbbCTYenGllOlp1iz2cNJaVYYps20UoGccwUUxB2s/s1600/leah2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL2C_V1AevuNUMBPZDQwGeZAHHraMVjFqcu69FzffmzvVv4XL569ah43ljWHOdbtATd0pOvqB8bLDVl45up-4KtVdeRDIqQrw9jRtbbCTYenGllOlp1iz2cNJaVYYps20UoGccwUUxB2s/s1600/leah2.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our lover of the light celebrating with Daddy on his favorite day of the year</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0zK0K6WUx0PwKpRdZVk2G0cmrq0ZNNG_iiXkA4Lrwh0kTX1lVWkmYX-9ZsWkr2KIGySFOTFVlwBfb3vUkNuvNYp9pLxKQbmlIT8hb8Jj9KE0NS612Sv4PiYjiO39wxN3JmBLIk9EZCF4/s1600/DSC_0878.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0zK0K6WUx0PwKpRdZVk2G0cmrq0ZNNG_iiXkA4Lrwh0kTX1lVWkmYX-9ZsWkr2KIGySFOTFVlwBfb3vUkNuvNYp9pLxKQbmlIT8hb8Jj9KE0NS612Sv4PiYjiO39wxN3JmBLIk9EZCF4/s1600/DSC_0878.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At Ft. McHenry, watching the Star Spangled Banner yet wave o'er the land of the free and the home of the brave</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU3b50jCMcQQ2Di0nkz5JVsV39MIyYU6giyvtUgdG26jCWf6wXh2JqKZ90NRRQjyvX-jZxP3RCoI8KlXjgCH-XeFgQLGlr59j-1cUBA8MMOIEAWIqXxiPc7mfnDVK1bDZnYTpuCn9MeB8/s1600/family.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU3b50jCMcQQ2Di0nkz5JVsV39MIyYU6giyvtUgdG26jCWf6wXh2JqKZ90NRRQjyvX-jZxP3RCoI8KlXjgCH-XeFgQLGlr59j-1cUBA8MMOIEAWIqXxiPc7mfnDVK1bDZnYTpuCn9MeB8/s1600/family.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In front of Independence Hall</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-Kk6F_0NCcA1jMdDaAFtCAH1fwtZSojMDt3NQ1w1ViG6xyBQqe18y0vtZZP3vFxbr-QWXP5aVoS-Uavphy_P3PSYyDHu-uA2JxFdQtAMLJRcG4E7UAFAThqTIB-dHNEbDzyZsh_UmqOQ/s1600/DSC_0918.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-Kk6F_0NCcA1jMdDaAFtCAH1fwtZSojMDt3NQ1w1ViG6xyBQqe18y0vtZZP3vFxbr-QWXP5aVoS-Uavphy_P3PSYyDHu-uA2JxFdQtAMLJRcG4E7UAFAThqTIB-dHNEbDzyZsh_UmqOQ/s1600/DSC_0918.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Waiting for a tour of Independence Hall</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpJ5Ztl6_QRxjMWKQgGwJzAZHXSLc8GtxePj-WMHvwficMbv4enN9uiaOn-dF7AZcIcz9kN8sGRsArM7OQk3Vp31_xrWF4Kb9o24UdWHgnE3buHyhVNQ7bi9KcdXnGLj9cjrFuO4aFBhs/s1600/DSC_0896.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpJ5Ztl6_QRxjMWKQgGwJzAZHXSLc8GtxePj-WMHvwficMbv4enN9uiaOn-dF7AZcIcz9kN8sGRsArM7OQk3Vp31_xrWF4Kb9o24UdWHgnE3buHyhVNQ7bi9KcdXnGLj9cjrFuO4aFBhs/s1600/DSC_0896.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daddy and Bekah at the Liberty Bell</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbh-n12EO_hUzYd7kHkO6MCrOumtZrr_QEZWB0-aW8RX9SxXdbP3YvbNQqQHtH-vwiu8RRELsExuhy73IFozkbgUwrsRVvudbH3GF3ELgHWXQwhh7zR_HZfreEZ6YvueOIkDqwxNWe95U/s1600/rocky.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbh-n12EO_hUzYd7kHkO6MCrOumtZrr_QEZWB0-aW8RX9SxXdbP3YvbNQqQHtH-vwiu8RRELsExuhy73IFozkbgUwrsRVvudbH3GF3ELgHWXQwhh7zR_HZfreEZ6YvueOIkDqwxNWe95U/s1600/rocky.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">He's got the eye of the tiger!</td></tr>
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In the midst of these big events, we managed to find time to have fun in and around Norfolk. We took many trips to the splash park, the zoo and the Virginia Children's Museum, went to lots of free concerts, picked peaches, and had fun right in our own backyard. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQW6trBiDtmcGgCOttqKmAmvvl_TtQJDjd_mwOlhcIqhVPlOk887ZFI59pHSfJPgJxodNxUZSn0vZ9aqPhdyLpmfvdZjYy7ascaH0q3NZoGZJvakgee7mcSUamLWLntaSYmwmXdK-UvUw/s1600/splash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQW6trBiDtmcGgCOttqKmAmvvl_TtQJDjd_mwOlhcIqhVPlOk887ZFI59pHSfJPgJxodNxUZSn0vZ9aqPhdyLpmfvdZjYy7ascaH0q3NZoGZJvakgee7mcSUamLWLntaSYmwmXdK-UvUw/s1600/splash.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One likes water a little more than the other!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiThq2WVDScTijoZ5Q9Kaq5cx9gQVaNh6T22-MUBaArAJcsPiagLkYQVqJVjwnB9hJPmxLE1z6D9gfMVlR_SuN_APqSV6OvS1OG-N_4BFvcaTrKDe7-E8YuD0TLT1Z5ssm5eXtGdPmnA9Y/s1600/museum.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiThq2WVDScTijoZ5Q9Kaq5cx9gQVaNh6T22-MUBaArAJcsPiagLkYQVqJVjwnB9hJPmxLE1z6D9gfMVlR_SuN_APqSV6OvS1OG-N_4BFvcaTrKDe7-E8YuD0TLT1Z5ssm5eXtGdPmnA9Y/s1600/museum.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Future vet (?) at the children's museum in Portsmouth</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_6zyVyJZvBQhWtUSUH-oCPLAjTQ3eWRzsHogSjNB6RMaAOoXgTxECkR_T9gvInbJLN4kx3KbBRUt_6y1fheNlu2ooyeF6nO9QprwzBH6AzXufNeQwSNIc-UYqIGyTtOATXz9LvKrRtHM/s1600/concert.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_6zyVyJZvBQhWtUSUH-oCPLAjTQ3eWRzsHogSjNB6RMaAOoXgTxECkR_T9gvInbJLN4kx3KbBRUt_6y1fheNlu2ooyeF6nO9QprwzBH6AzXufNeQwSNIc-UYqIGyTtOATXz9LvKrRtHM/s1600/concert.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dancing with Daddy at a concert in Ocean View.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUZFo3RwilNf3Hh885AKvOy44W9xqtfheoq9qCTZQv2FG5fZe9cCIhs_PXzKIOnDQzeYDtx9NLkxm1DAeSL7qoqXq76S3gYtD_ypkXr5ZzmUraAdR7keG7MVpfcF5_zP1aAHGXBurX7ZE/s1600/peaches.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUZFo3RwilNf3Hh885AKvOy44W9xqtfheoq9qCTZQv2FG5fZe9cCIhs_PXzKIOnDQzeYDtx9NLkxm1DAeSL7qoqXq76S3gYtD_ypkXr5ZzmUraAdR7keG7MVpfcF5_zP1aAHGXBurX7ZE/s1600/peaches.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Picking peaches in Chesapeake</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_TMOHRCUf8894w2zfu_zYAbV4kClmIWYHK_J5bo-j3XrBZRP8cuaT_NTLQWr-LX5ZzDCcqqcWBoNDVtlp_BgierQuoXBAPr2RoulXcPNrBNSegV-nkKt5BbDKBjljthvij7eiMr-eV0A/s1600/picnic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_TMOHRCUf8894w2zfu_zYAbV4kClmIWYHK_J5bo-j3XrBZRP8cuaT_NTLQWr-LX5ZzDCcqqcWBoNDVtlp_BgierQuoXBAPr2RoulXcPNrBNSegV-nkKt5BbDKBjljthvij7eiMr-eV0A/s1600/picnic.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A picnic in the backyard</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUwmfIqxbtUeAHDv3zl0HOCIXFHMQpFaWil8k5RDFFrpy1VMje7NVCnKiXPrJhhDYq1EPxD6XR63KM7u4seJXnmrM-dvL6z0hVJub-4g_4SVdltyT4mllFupexDUtwF-ujBO7k-3K_dTQ/s1600/yard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUwmfIqxbtUeAHDv3zl0HOCIXFHMQpFaWil8k5RDFFrpy1VMje7NVCnKiXPrJhhDYq1EPxD6XR63KM7u4seJXnmrM-dvL6z0hVJub-4g_4SVdltyT4mllFupexDUtwF-ujBO7k-3K_dTQ/s1600/yard.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our very own splash park</td></tr>
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The Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981738642729459880.post-86647596228608383462014-09-03T19:43:00.000-07:002014-09-04T09:34:43.132-07:00Micah is Here!Micah Stephen Burgin was born on July 22, 2014 at 10:33 pm, about an hour and a half before his daddy met him for the first time. What a birth story! My due date was August 6th, and with both of the girls being induced almost a week after their due dates, we were not the least bit worried when Stephen took Leah to Iowa for her annual check up with her ophthalmologists. My mom came to be with me, just in case something happened, but we were planning on a fun girls weekend: making freezer meals, doing some last minute shopping, watching movies, etc. Everything went according to plan until Tuesday morning (2 weeks before my due date!), sometime very early, when I started having contractions. After a couple of hours of somewhat painful contractions (and a couple of other signs of labor), I went to wake mom. As soon as I told her I was having contractions, they stopped. A few hours later, while shopping, the contractions started again. I called Stephen to tell him and he told me to go home and lay down. I did, hoping that would stall labor. These contractions were different from the ones I had <i>before</i> both of my girls' labors, and very similar to the ones I had <i>during</i> both of their labors. After laying on the couch for a few hours, continuing to have contractions that were getting closer and closer and stronger and stronger, I finally admitted I was in labor and decided we needed to have a plan. I called my babysitter to make sure she could come and be with Rebekah, called my dad to tell him to start looking at flights, and called Stephen to tell him to hurry up because I was going to have a baby! I called the doctor, who let me come in, despite the fact that my contractions were only 7 minutes apart, not consistently for an hour yet. I explained to her that I had been laying down for about 5 hours straight and was still progressing and that during my last labor, once my contractions were to about this level, Rebekah had been born within a couple of hours. She agreed that it was a good idea for me to go. Once we made the decision to go in, we kicked it into high gear, packing bags, getting stuff ready for Rebekah and a babysitter, and working on flights to get Stephen in as soon as possible. And, along with all of that activity, my contractions got increasingly more frequent and painful. We made it to the hospital, checked in at about 6:45, and started really laboring. My mom was a great coach. I'm so thankful that we made sure to have her come that weekend! She was comforting and encouraging to me and one of the first people to meet Micah. She even got to cut the cord! I think she will always have a special bond with Micah. And Stephen made it after an adventure of his own! We got them on a flight into Baltimore (to get in earlier) and our brother-in-law, Dustin picked them up and drove them to Reagan National airport, where their car was parked, before they drove home to Norfolk. We'll share their adventure in another blog post. And, now, some pics of baby Micah.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZpBmnNYWGjcnLmAz35a8z2P-NQdm_LG0FnLWze4BO8QvxhsCoaO5arn4b7DRRktIqG603vQlw9W6anpGVO7WgbwsCIrTlYZWx28ILWRq48lX3qp2EH6nrLHvQYWjOxahraGI3EFYfPv0/s1600/DSC_0967.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZpBmnNYWGjcnLmAz35a8z2P-NQdm_LG0FnLWze4BO8QvxhsCoaO5arn4b7DRRktIqG603vQlw9W6anpGVO7WgbwsCIrTlYZWx28ILWRq48lX3qp2EH6nrLHvQYWjOxahraGI3EFYfPv0/s1600/DSC_0967.JPG" height="320" width="213" /><span id="goog_930125426"></span><span id="goog_930125427"></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Micah Stephen</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCC25xJyE4_w0EqyC7FjAlI2HXPACRZIfK35VSnjyuLnq7HuZifcMS9rkYS4W2AJ3kjq8XjrWIcyyop2B5FASuzeTeGi_ONabQ8KeV_reU00S-SK8FU3mXJOM6VtNaE7U0ES4dgyejxfk/s1600/download.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCC25xJyE4_w0EqyC7FjAlI2HXPACRZIfK35VSnjyuLnq7HuZifcMS9rkYS4W2AJ3kjq8XjrWIcyyop2B5FASuzeTeGi_ONabQ8KeV_reU00S-SK8FU3mXJOM6VtNaE7U0ES4dgyejxfk/s1600/download.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First time meeting Daddy</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9HVvJW_R6F5qPARQxcGAa6hFAdmVKijPSKQqLCZP6tKl5PZe2SDC2hpPoU5cwRr9BmpZkApAHV3AxDxLJNfgXbiWpD91xySF5viiIdemDXAGDjwaTwesoDegJ8gLJWOvrWRVLVy77Yxk/s1600/DSC_0981.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9HVvJW_R6F5qPARQxcGAa6hFAdmVKijPSKQqLCZP6tKl5PZe2SDC2hpPoU5cwRr9BmpZkApAHV3AxDxLJNfgXbiWpD91xySF5viiIdemDXAGDjwaTwesoDegJ8gLJWOvrWRVLVy77Yxk/s1600/DSC_0981.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> The little guy, all strapped in.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkuaBm3b97AlLrrCKXT41FCgGNkpcCr9_om85dW0kdWYeOFz5qdPisjKc08tE9oEJztsT78uSDkzmWUzraO4zrBNJ62jdpTqwRXpYhDbdiAWLrWQqQds_hhwrCgTHAdqaey76mvDD6SBU/s1600/DSC_0983.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkuaBm3b97AlLrrCKXT41FCgGNkpcCr9_om85dW0kdWYeOFz5qdPisjKc08tE9oEJztsT78uSDkzmWUzraO4zrBNJ62jdpTqwRXpYhDbdiAWLrWQqQds_hhwrCgTHAdqaey76mvDD6SBU/s1600/DSC_0983.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ready to go home!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7gb5vasG8ZGmgZSCHqVXqL8MHdkMwgePU0ImUs6Mwrzoc_fv0RCC4cce-P-4v0ZGGDpPm6xGpXjA_7RDsZm2MSzVs1hMolLD443fz52kAX1MtGEowDx5agcUVxUSvXi9BSJeCODp0y08/s1600/DSC_0953.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7gb5vasG8ZGmgZSCHqVXqL8MHdkMwgePU0ImUs6Mwrzoc_fv0RCC4cce-P-4v0ZGGDpPm6xGpXjA_7RDsZm2MSzVs1hMolLD443fz52kAX1MtGEowDx5agcUVxUSvXi9BSJeCODp0y08/s1600/DSC_0953.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sweet baby boy</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaVmGaV0UplICYXYDqlEs_QVX_zZVrhE5uoh2l0KpKbAvhD3TM0hgwCQUTCyWugNthyphenhyphen_rhHvuN6FT2SAw5IDe1yOX7URB0QHLODcsVYnjRN6j_QhY3n0sJBOb3kv_1ih4y9iZVppDU9KI/s1600/CSC_0965.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaVmGaV0UplICYXYDqlEs_QVX_zZVrhE5uoh2l0KpKbAvhD3TM0hgwCQUTCyWugNthyphenhyphen_rhHvuN6FT2SAw5IDe1yOX7URB0QHLODcsVYnjRN6j_QhY3n0sJBOb3kv_1ih4y9iZVppDU9KI/s1600/CSC_0965.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Big feet on a tiny boy!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8o9aaJfEGj6qluGpffvQjSlMpOqWvOh_qvFvsK9SCihTCwUbwdmfi-SIq4hab1vn7Uks4lTqpcJbRpts4XM-QAsdx2D172JOfVSv8kEaJRcBuxd65TgtLYSnlSwewMJgpxswozgbjw2k/s1600/DSC_0987.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8o9aaJfEGj6qluGpffvQjSlMpOqWvOh_qvFvsK9SCihTCwUbwdmfi-SIq4hab1vn7Uks4lTqpcJbRpts4XM-QAsdx2D172JOfVSv8kEaJRcBuxd65TgtLYSnlSwewMJgpxswozgbjw2k/s1600/DSC_0987.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Welcoming brother home</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLiwN_x_GFvq9tb2lXjX7PVWCtryGbjzaXy92XmHCd1-Wtrq8y7hD6mAzVnSgX8EWalk0sZ5Q3R46ItakBqVpiiwyqVD8Txup-Bir2pgXd9p4A_4NIPy1yYGrwQoFSW4RjT6DX5YDy2wo/s1600/DSC_0995.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLiwN_x_GFvq9tb2lXjX7PVWCtryGbjzaXy92XmHCd1-Wtrq8y7hD6mAzVnSgX8EWalk0sZ5Q3R46ItakBqVpiiwyqVD8Txup-Bir2pgXd9p4A_4NIPy1yYGrwQoFSW4RjT6DX5YDy2wo/s1600/DSC_0995.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First bath!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimJykmReMFn-aB0aUhyphenhyphenHSOciKihs7nJti_-cIjMUj3MRUt0NyGPGNtdQOH4sVAojxit2LOQkV5PvxnXr_RUtCocliFfmNYc5y3R3uLoHntTpEQBQM40bRXaY-JIA9hxZf7jnlrr5Grev0/s1600/DSC_1000.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimJykmReMFn-aB0aUhyphenhyphenHSOciKihs7nJti_-cIjMUj3MRUt0NyGPGNtdQOH4sVAojxit2LOQkV5PvxnXr_RUtCocliFfmNYc5y3R3uLoHntTpEQBQM40bRXaY-JIA9hxZf7jnlrr5Grev0/s1600/DSC_1000.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First time being peed on!</td></tr>
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Just the first of many firsts in your life, little Micah! We are so thrilled to have our little boy!<br />
<br />The Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981738642729459880.post-54362631016150619482014-04-11T18:10:00.002-07:002014-04-11T18:19:58.045-07:00Playing Catch Up...... I feel like this is what I am constantly doing with the blog. I keep coming up with ideas for ways to keep the blog up to date, but I continually fail. I can give a list of reasons for why I have not updated this blog in about 5 months, but I am not going to. Instead, I am going to give myself some grace, and finally admit: I am not a good blogger. I want to be, but I'm not. Maybe someday, but not right now. In the meantime, I will give a quick 5 months in review. Here goes:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihXQFvR_Sw-QhCm8qcP57LzDsKmyXzNHLXTYrOWVfAwtuuXh2eKReu9DG7-ewT37zQKtGXQ3MLu9N2N1rj81R_toDaqKqa5hyphenhyphenSGOzmaInuaT4So0qpIqfHYOJ9_aR-HUfuolPV2OkFne0/s1600/DSC_0429.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihXQFvR_Sw-QhCm8qcP57LzDsKmyXzNHLXTYrOWVfAwtuuXh2eKReu9DG7-ewT37zQKtGXQ3MLu9N2N1rj81R_toDaqKqa5hyphenhyphenSGOzmaInuaT4So0qpIqfHYOJ9_aR-HUfuolPV2OkFne0/s1600/DSC_0429.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leah got cuter.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfMGaryfIlsdFeAe5yIgzkH7THn2jbALm3v7Q-mFzKElJfP0R3-m72rUDyNNfbt_R73g7oKlojle6qzotRXQW7Z0uTR6r3wnfYA4rmAGrPo91XbwSdJ8C6gAcxOI33js9StfMbsbzmKr8/s1600/DSC_0520.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfMGaryfIlsdFeAe5yIgzkH7THn2jbALm3v7Q-mFzKElJfP0R3-m72rUDyNNfbt_R73g7oKlojle6qzotRXQW7Z0uTR6r3wnfYA4rmAGrPo91XbwSdJ8C6gAcxOI33js9StfMbsbzmKr8/s1600/DSC_0520.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bekah got older (11 months).</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXRNCrvoWsitkMOxfhm-0LpiMh76i-NstgI1AcaG2UhphLTbXv_LEvsyeGeXaeAEQ-D-t-_2XghHnpRiX0IByrKZuDM8YuQ0cl0tzeL7EpOGgKPS1mlo8RVxJzx8SDhuDIfWKIeZW8mOY/s1600/leahodu.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXRNCrvoWsitkMOxfhm-0LpiMh76i-NstgI1AcaG2UhphLTbXv_LEvsyeGeXaeAEQ-D-t-_2XghHnpRiX0IByrKZuDM8YuQ0cl0tzeL7EpOGgKPS1mlo8RVxJzx8SDhuDIfWKIeZW8mOY/s1600/leahodu.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leah got to go to her first ODU basketball game.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKLTDySbYu9QRiQpAk7KOa9N5JbYOswCL06rfjAbBoCed9AlEoe7geSs4yxvJgJC_IqCrTFHZ3jTLD_APE_AL3nPICJVmNU-WTq3ryAu26PXQ1eDUFo0fBADeEJXG_qWEY0l2dV38HlPw/s1600/thanksgiving.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKLTDySbYu9QRiQpAk7KOa9N5JbYOswCL06rfjAbBoCed9AlEoe7geSs4yxvJgJC_IqCrTFHZ3jTLD_APE_AL3nPICJVmNU-WTq3ryAu26PXQ1eDUFo0fBADeEJXG_qWEY0l2dV38HlPw/s1600/thanksgiving.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We had Howell Thanksgiving in Tennessee.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUJLpxIdPGd_VtzryWvehDqjN1giSZHHPCqPzLy-utx43fYh7bKT5fSSa7DsnaA4hkmWfrz3_sf89Z4LWiEenHhAs5PdRjVWRokXeT5FR3BSHDbm5QBxiyXmUJ06OWqgMtHn0j5N3-ETs/s1600/bigsis.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUJLpxIdPGd_VtzryWvehDqjN1giSZHHPCqPzLy-utx43fYh7bKT5fSSa7DsnaA4hkmWfrz3_sf89Z4LWiEenHhAs5PdRjVWRokXeT5FR3BSHDbm5QBxiyXmUJ06OWqgMtHn0j5N3-ETs/s1600/bigsis.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bekah found out she was going to be a big sister (and wasn't happy about it).</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidzmy-GRZhNcgD3gBVDa-HLwtMdXJLpM2I1H7zc-BPcpF_SLIBbrSy99JSKgyHECWAGPtYp4GRmElwtslP47l-8fhY20fK16ZbptUfhtk3vQwazR3LefnvfE5uMC_hVTr0iBUrFSuTXOI/s1600/download-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidzmy-GRZhNcgD3gBVDa-HLwtMdXJLpM2I1H7zc-BPcpF_SLIBbrSy99JSKgyHECWAGPtYp4GRmElwtslP47l-8fhY20fK16ZbptUfhtk3vQwazR3LefnvfE5uMC_hVTr0iBUrFSuTXOI/s1600/download-1.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The girls met Santa.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwpnKW-y6g9Xo833j60RWPD0hI9xw9Gc0uuEPZaZIXTvo0rs8dol6G_gj8J9ZKO9VkjHME1QMsX9xHiYiox7k8LpekB3MrTNwK6S8AgquKqvovcxI_wm0oFTFMYL4ALFcnY_bcAQcNTuA/s1600/DSC_0527.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwpnKW-y6g9Xo833j60RWPD0hI9xw9Gc0uuEPZaZIXTvo0rs8dol6G_gj8J9ZKO9VkjHME1QMsX9xHiYiox7k8LpekB3MrTNwK6S8AgquKqvovcxI_wm0oFTFMYL4ALFcnY_bcAQcNTuA/s1600/DSC_0527.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We had our first Christmas in our new home (and Bekah's first Christmas ever!).</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdkU6Ta450-mlTpphgXnF8k3CmE0gDKz4iJxmxXNEvpJJ7Vcs0Ve6h1Bj780GSPcBlhVHec2acZczMlRi1LUQefMwTgd9Q8iKrWWqWCKT4ZLL7IfkBQtZDOUfIiRXlbhav6CEL4TdYq0Q/s1600/DSC_0529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdkU6Ta450-mlTpphgXnF8k3CmE0gDKz4iJxmxXNEvpJJ7Vcs0Ve6h1Bj780GSPcBlhVHec2acZczMlRi1LUQefMwTgd9Q8iKrWWqWCKT4ZLL7IfkBQtZDOUfIiRXlbhav6CEL4TdYq0Q/s1600/DSC_0529.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bekah liked all her new toys...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGzdLKx06fWERaxfPANrmVZDTKSEZTUh2ky_rLtbvGzJGNJJ08-XgWID4czl75PAh8j0hnNSguECxQotCCP9CqWU78uAXyqtRx4MTUacOufbieRXIuEtcnkEm_eHpYmAkGPGxrl3UUGoE/s1600/DSC_0539.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGzdLKx06fWERaxfPANrmVZDTKSEZTUh2ky_rLtbvGzJGNJJ08-XgWID4czl75PAh8j0hnNSguECxQotCCP9CqWU78uAXyqtRx4MTUacOufbieRXIuEtcnkEm_eHpYmAkGPGxrl3UUGoE/s1600/DSC_0539.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">... Leah's toys, too</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN_rpBDqSFg2JYBa0bsPbqvSeSnksUoec39_sYYUKiKLLDdRnQqnvoLZjIWUf1Q7Jef08atVp1daFNQOTW9xBNZ7-a4a-hFyJAZCypa1964wyGyBb2xQJeHO7xvsJGNuOAahbjRqxdsfs/s1600/DSC_0543.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN_rpBDqSFg2JYBa0bsPbqvSeSnksUoec39_sYYUKiKLLDdRnQqnvoLZjIWUf1Q7Jef08atVp1daFNQOTW9xBNZ7-a4a-hFyJAZCypa1964wyGyBb2xQJeHO7xvsJGNuOAahbjRqxdsfs/s1600/DSC_0543.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leah was able to keep some presents to herself.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLwUYMrVNR7xlFxgqQRvpidHTblWJMzyBLUOLs5Ka8G2qrjANbthL8jsuTZC1TdqQpkW2wJ96cgWYZTe3fekVAyLnY7dOrPU08Gb6Z4aw-5wEunU2MOuwBUtZsvDRcRdKIxNIChkp_6o4/s1600/kidschristmas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLwUYMrVNR7xlFxgqQRvpidHTblWJMzyBLUOLs5Ka8G2qrjANbthL8jsuTZC1TdqQpkW2wJ96cgWYZTe3fekVAyLnY7dOrPU08Gb6Z4aw-5wEunU2MOuwBUtZsvDRcRdKIxNIChkp_6o4/s1600/kidschristmas.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We went to South Carolina for Burgin Christmas (the grandkids in age order).</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYqCHrECR091s6IrQc-D4COrzRdssAFGAtwq_nY9BaW5LjnYMgiQgwXHt1WjThK1FcHYmDiALZ2iTezZk79AZRFtmGVA1JdkFQXltCUpmfJMLGSDmMl-XQ6JDLpLGouwOUZVb0AkTxLb0/s1600/DSC_0552.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYqCHrECR091s6IrQc-D4COrzRdssAFGAtwq_nY9BaW5LjnYMgiQgwXHt1WjThK1FcHYmDiALZ2iTezZk79AZRFtmGVA1JdkFQXltCUpmfJMLGSDmMl-XQ6JDLpLGouwOUZVb0AkTxLb0/s1600/DSC_0552.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The two youngest got to open Baby Jesus (a family tradition).</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh65ljkJxAfw14_dJKQ8MqcJNwPlU4Il-GgogxCVJkk_rDOkTo6Nx4HbUZZclGHZEqFWYuqbnfLbawaoyDpzM8xhenFNE6mxFL-gQXOqDcJpuTT6_Zu3_JIJIWlcKenBcE3eUeuSt2i0Y/s1600/DSC_0562.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh65ljkJxAfw14_dJKQ8MqcJNwPlU4Il-GgogxCVJkk_rDOkTo6Nx4HbUZZclGHZEqFWYuqbnfLbawaoyDpzM8xhenFNE6mxFL-gQXOqDcJpuTT6_Zu3_JIJIWlcKenBcE3eUeuSt2i0Y/s1600/DSC_0562.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leah got a special present: Baby Kate, her cabbage patch doll.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQeWc8j7CFTc1O2boe8bRbHgblNPFzFwmRKwgB0QXDGRlrmmNvamoViv2o59cPjls80Ma5PLI3souBTzDEZ7FL-zqny6tZ_6LxKBTOmilikCciSZpCXB1PLf4WQ2dFn1V4btUW7b__EVY/s1600/DSC_0588.jpg" height="320" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="213" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bekah turned 1 year old!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6oGvTolavjQfQTRiE-uuEEqGOPTizAMzjzrxj1MW04cNpv6zVTUUX_SrnSnwT7MWpstjO0WYCtgE1pXt61r8O8IeImFG-8WLN15Nen1R9cvgqszdFZQtPKcKfASkL7iPkfHmTuB6HSSE/s1600/DSC_0645.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6oGvTolavjQfQTRiE-uuEEqGOPTizAMzjzrxj1MW04cNpv6zVTUUX_SrnSnwT7MWpstjO0WYCtgE1pXt61r8O8IeImFG-8WLN15Nen1R9cvgqszdFZQtPKcKfASkL7iPkfHmTuB6HSSE/s1600/DSC_0645.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">She had a special birthday party...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCWaZkFgx8hGOdKt1aMNSVcd4FOMxKW97RLMxJhI1tiFcXaitLJPIiMNZJ1MkzzJh4yyM9MKZqhVk6MGp5Tzrm2hrbyx_4-Hr_7ZJwgNgTd2Bl_fMhU4AnjleaTNTKdAvGCW1AyDTVPh8/s1600/DSC_0618.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCWaZkFgx8hGOdKt1aMNSVcd4FOMxKW97RLMxJhI1tiFcXaitLJPIiMNZJ1MkzzJh4yyM9MKZqhVk6MGp5Tzrm2hrbyx_4-Hr_7ZJwgNgTd2Bl_fMhU4AnjleaTNTKdAvGCW1AyDTVPh8/s1600/DSC_0618.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">... loved her new baby doll...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioQpdXLv1Fy3z5j16RfF1WMAY6NuAbTQbHKd1WSCfmXWDKilRyMbeQna9jLsEpinXgeG_dDI6Mf7kmcWj9kNnw7A1DeZkNfqaX34lg4LMBSPcfc3GN1MqfAjuou59Y4g-j-5mNFXfzAyY/s1600/DSC_0627.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioQpdXLv1Fy3z5j16RfF1WMAY6NuAbTQbHKd1WSCfmXWDKilRyMbeQna9jLsEpinXgeG_dDI6Mf7kmcWj9kNnw7A1DeZkNfqaX34lg4LMBSPcfc3GN1MqfAjuou59Y4g-j-5mNFXfzAyY/s1600/DSC_0627.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">... her tea set...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzwktb2ncIVOe-ESgtfOY42ZP7iIAgOR1xsNm-Mdfba5mw6tMC1Hum2jfBwx-biWXcW89X0loQ3y4eX_eCe7QdqfXT87wU0txlG0tb99IhZK3-r4cfMoBQYQ2HTn_3ZluPVUnsy7bZ4MM/s1600/DSC_0639.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzwktb2ncIVOe-ESgtfOY42ZP7iIAgOR1xsNm-Mdfba5mw6tMC1Hum2jfBwx-biWXcW89X0loQ3y4eX_eCe7QdqfXT87wU0txlG0tb99IhZK3-r4cfMoBQYQ2HTn_3ZluPVUnsy7bZ4MM/s1600/DSC_0639.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">... her farm...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKvFoKe3tAOtrBPakCIYcjPRghs2CGTCizn30r8z15hHigkkppt16nmHysuzPFEPTL7hqS1bGaC2K3wEhpTlwT3hzcPmB3NkjtlduaGvKdbaxRGPjqFdweOw0Aa3Ft7wfuccs-grQ6_Ko/s1600/DSC_0608.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKvFoKe3tAOtrBPakCIYcjPRghs2CGTCizn30r8z15hHigkkppt16nmHysuzPFEPTL7hqS1bGaC2K3wEhpTlwT3hzcPmB3NkjtlduaGvKdbaxRGPjqFdweOw0Aa3Ft7wfuccs-grQ6_Ko/s1600/DSC_0608.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">... and her pink cupcake.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjEEYfr8Wy9Y4ZKk4OWLjIzOsQpccbktGTcLIhj52DfrYxWBN8XnVVNUaRaq78CVcoxN7ZTN8dgC8tsP0xSeHMJeAm6HOtUmaWtAGINi6iMXFFCGXUqkvTB__z0fFPZKxE4Cq-hNf-gmw/s1600/DSC_0660.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjEEYfr8Wy9Y4ZKk4OWLjIzOsQpccbktGTcLIhj52DfrYxWBN8XnVVNUaRaq78CVcoxN7ZTN8dgC8tsP0xSeHMJeAm6HOtUmaWtAGINi6iMXFFCGXUqkvTB__z0fFPZKxE4Cq-hNf-gmw/s1600/DSC_0660.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It snowed...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBbI5r17Qr-ZLAeYveUpJa8SNt0Hp2ayY-U3SHEs64jSf53Q4DudMHe1wr2SYhj8kyowMpyGVtNmPb2_fmPZmG5PiWL0ee0LsB2YwtEjyLOnozuesqu9Ky171wlb8b7vjVDXc93fyRTYw/s1600/DSC_0669.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBbI5r17Qr-ZLAeYveUpJa8SNt0Hp2ayY-U3SHEs64jSf53Q4DudMHe1wr2SYhj8kyowMpyGVtNmPb2_fmPZmG5PiWL0ee0LsB2YwtEjyLOnozuesqu9Ky171wlb8b7vjVDXc93fyRTYw/s1600/DSC_0669.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">... And snowed.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitK2jvVq0FObHoM4Q85QtWbTAtkg08zmVBCcZj5yKYbpgnTVTmjQmOCkh5xcdnhkbyHK4GzzP1cFMvV0EkeKt14dbPMxwWs6EnUhT2f1aGuXOzaZWLD13ovolVGI9EdQzo2T7F2492Slc/s1600/leahslide.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitK2jvVq0FObHoM4Q85QtWbTAtkg08zmVBCcZj5yKYbpgnTVTmjQmOCkh5xcdnhkbyHK4GzzP1cFMvV0EkeKt14dbPMxwWs6EnUhT2f1aGuXOzaZWLD13ovolVGI9EdQzo2T7F2492Slc/s1600/leahslide.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">With all the snow, we had to bring the slide into the house</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwqA_Wy1f12qnTUAtmthljxFl2eEye0RXDilJioAC3rMgT2Oh5oHcPTeUpScNytiTRzgwslSFnyWCA7GycR-wGRTxXiso5BLQ6j5aPrGmjmU3FAEg_Ej2-DHBU6WUFloJ1iiunVrpXAgI/s1600/DSC_0693.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwqA_Wy1f12qnTUAtmthljxFl2eEye0RXDilJioAC3rMgT2Oh5oHcPTeUpScNytiTRzgwslSFnyWCA7GycR-wGRTxXiso5BLQ6j5aPrGmjmU3FAEg_Ej2-DHBU6WUFloJ1iiunVrpXAgI/s1600/DSC_0693.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stephen made a snow angel.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMXvyQxDf6VM4yi6nhdkS0_hNWKolhL_jWZPWbaOcLtdMkExd8f02k7-hwOljJnxfp8C5B8yplIGynHYjI1Jc8JGm3I38Kc9EJcNR2QWD4JhdVYy6ZEYsjri2edECjDQ536eKRD6FIonc/s1600/fireplace.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMXvyQxDf6VM4yi6nhdkS0_hNWKolhL_jWZPWbaOcLtdMkExd8f02k7-hwOljJnxfp8C5B8yplIGynHYjI1Jc8JGm3I38Kc9EJcNR2QWD4JhdVYy6ZEYsjri2edECjDQ536eKRD6FIonc/s1600/fireplace.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We had lots of fires in our fireplace.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf937apuDPlbjxTScQ2QMCiKoCHoe7rAuTbNHOHmhnBHKxCruFtxXwfHGBBQO8jyXmDedGpOhlr-ry_r-BY67zE6afQTV0SeQfU8onHbgbXlx6fbVBDJl6wlEPzyGeSxmzg1BC2IXmVmA/s1600/DSC_0701.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf937apuDPlbjxTScQ2QMCiKoCHoe7rAuTbNHOHmhnBHKxCruFtxXwfHGBBQO8jyXmDedGpOhlr-ry_r-BY67zE6afQTV0SeQfU8onHbgbXlx6fbVBDJl6wlEPzyGeSxmzg1BC2IXmVmA/s1600/DSC_0701.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It snowed some more.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeMZ5CIzrvX-YmAKSyHXY_khbvtz1LocW1OssbPgqUt9kIEATvXa0Bn-KN7njOe0fWr5olsDCkuRq3Sjy9XQ0yMv0syy6xdLjxHkGcgZ4JXODj6gXrtAC8cRIu3tzuIfEk0YwU9fLL3XU/s1600/bekahstairs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeMZ5CIzrvX-YmAKSyHXY_khbvtz1LocW1OssbPgqUt9kIEATvXa0Bn-KN7njOe0fWr5olsDCkuRq3Sjy9XQ0yMv0syy6xdLjxHkGcgZ4JXODj6gXrtAC8cRIu3tzuIfEk0YwU9fLL3XU/s1600/bekahstairs.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We had to start baby proofing.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihmWhQ8_3QbxfdKo9Mev0Y7FsOpWtAgAL4XcERgRUn6QuPhKVtnhb8tUoUxrIwz7-zrSslmzUbcmeSKAcUANLn85WhKzmdq8UsY7zNA_GzgqyBSFFgZWe5lH7J3wb64uC638oh-phGfpY/s1600/bekahclimbing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihmWhQ8_3QbxfdKo9Mev0Y7FsOpWtAgAL4XcERgRUn6QuPhKVtnhb8tUoUxrIwz7-zrSslmzUbcmeSKAcUANLn85WhKzmdq8UsY7zNA_GzgqyBSFFgZWe5lH7J3wb64uC638oh-phGfpY/s1600/bekahclimbing.jpg" height="320" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Baby proofing failed.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRxx9ak9XaxwuVjYKHeJFyKx_t5R1R-GDSdRjgQEQwF3GvL8bigbSezA5dmx-Oi9B8nIMrSUknYw_1nrn0uxkJLH5VfDOx5mO4yljrpvOxQtQQHIYOpGFh1GmkFXjiXV4H1JX64js6Lww/s1600/springbreakboat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRxx9ak9XaxwuVjYKHeJFyKx_t5R1R-GDSdRjgQEQwF3GvL8bigbSezA5dmx-Oi9B8nIMrSUknYw_1nrn0uxkJLH5VfDOx5mO4yljrpvOxQtQQHIYOpGFh1GmkFXjiXV4H1JX64js6Lww/s1600/springbreakboat.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We spent Stephen's spring break in Tennessee.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNmVRxR3pPckjbrCHEyyytI6A2GoGZyCnKIQ3ZUpOp5nkvqSKfBKqbjUbSBgdxkxRKItkmPLrfFmdonySt3W1p_Kk0Hg71cdipMjcDn9NguR-67Ga11qGFIQ3i1Bm_RWb5OprMoa4FigM/s1600/bekahwaterfall.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNmVRxR3pPckjbrCHEyyytI6A2GoGZyCnKIQ3ZUpOp5nkvqSKfBKqbjUbSBgdxkxRKItkmPLrfFmdonySt3W1p_Kk0Hg71cdipMjcDn9NguR-67Ga11qGFIQ3i1Bm_RWb5OprMoa4FigM/s1600/bekahwaterfall.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bekah touched a waterfall.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ8_2fU6XvtGfDXECA38tlffK5-LKcPG19jgZ8olgX8-guJhxdab8p3aBgZ3zBx302wuS2P10_txz4GKM9p2_GbZsuyXJRYTbMK8iuaIR_gQRfOMCFTQTAsrxXmbif66cZFBHo60_CcvM/s1600/stephenwaterfall.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ8_2fU6XvtGfDXECA38tlffK5-LKcPG19jgZ8olgX8-guJhxdab8p3aBgZ3zBx302wuS2P10_txz4GKM9p2_GbZsuyXJRYTbMK8iuaIR_gQRfOMCFTQTAsrxXmbif66cZFBHo60_CcvM/s1600/stephenwaterfall.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stephen tried to fall off of a waterfall.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQuhXUrAxJVrjvqkSTCrTJ7xxcFDD0RLPY8xJEkj5NjkYblUmIjF75fhch_-E49eYjkA3cxnDRDpCcieUU5x-cbxECysGPnF61Uoi9K-zJmaZ_D10mpklCFI-8hyphenhypheni9kYiEoSUzv69ThZQ/s1600/danieltiger.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQuhXUrAxJVrjvqkSTCrTJ7xxcFDD0RLPY8xJEkj5NjkYblUmIjF75fhch_-E49eYjkA3cxnDRDpCcieUU5x-cbxECysGPnF61Uoi9K-zJmaZ_D10mpklCFI-8hyphenhypheni9kYiEoSUzv69ThZQ/s1600/danieltiger.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bekah met her new best friend - Daniel Tiger.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPdBdtMoN925mQoWoA5_vAEw-glQW71DGoam-eh416eoJc3aKiaon7OXPNJMYV5tQhTfs6vMN6nvhe_5o_HNwRhK5tMu4DdCeEKjtuLWbwMB5Y58bOdEiBBPUIO7pS6r_0uhZdjd98Re0/s1600/rachaelleah.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPdBdtMoN925mQoWoA5_vAEw-glQW71DGoam-eh416eoJc3aKiaon7OXPNJMYV5tQhTfs6vMN6nvhe_5o_HNwRhK5tMu4DdCeEKjtuLWbwMB5Y58bOdEiBBPUIO7pS6r_0uhZdjd98Re0/s1600/rachaelleah.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mommy snuggled her Leah girl.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdTtBJDNXuk_hjiKvdBWYkExFNqOr8yOI0zU6IFK9y1ddK4UQlgt9Fj0l6qpOI-Okcpr3_6zskGUIZXRDVa8Cd76eNrw8DBkQ3ZGFEWWkZa-eBN3yRIn87XVJntjPGChqlw-oYdtH6UA0/s1600/bekahslide.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdTtBJDNXuk_hjiKvdBWYkExFNqOr8yOI0zU6IFK9y1ddK4UQlgt9Fj0l6qpOI-Okcpr3_6zskGUIZXRDVa8Cd76eNrw8DBkQ3ZGFEWWkZa-eBN3yRIn87XVJntjPGChqlw-oYdtH6UA0/s1600/bekahslide.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bekah learned how to climb up and slide down all by herself (while no one was looking).</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3FodpKAb62q-CaDJntbmd3wbGnj7ztEaXbrC4n-ZukPJE6Pn58lFhSngcyFsgFeG6cCFCGyYVpYy06nsSDcpsK2oBAiDTPXtCnKPN5AL_9ztjxFCNDz9DuP3fEVA4zkANKU3ag7-NLXY/s1600/bekahdrives.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3FodpKAb62q-CaDJntbmd3wbGnj7ztEaXbrC4n-ZukPJE6Pn58lFhSngcyFsgFeG6cCFCGyYVpYy06nsSDcpsK2oBAiDTPXtCnKPN5AL_9ztjxFCNDz9DuP3fEVA4zkANKU3ag7-NLXY/s1600/bekahdrives.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bekah also learned how to drive.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiwbmi7D7k28BYzLidHe5ieN64q_DtOfAIs_ushTSP62YZHyTwUpX9tju1rK4m292GcMlggb8wgN5OnygB4hqmKEA2HbeRxeQIMwqzStJSaFYmChJ6SHY_JniCnm6W48stuA1qAW7555Y/s1600/rachaeltummy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiwbmi7D7k28BYzLidHe5ieN64q_DtOfAIs_ushTSP62YZHyTwUpX9tju1rK4m292GcMlggb8wgN5OnygB4hqmKEA2HbeRxeQIMwqzStJSaFYmChJ6SHY_JniCnm6W48stuA1qAW7555Y/s1600/rachaeltummy.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I reached the mid-point of my pregnancy (20 weeks).</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjah9OvKgZ9-N27BxvuRU-SnT-1zxJrwUhLhgd7iy7iETlkpFppSVY081szBUEbbXDOcyBNreVdykC0-jhep9lpP6e5GCPimcIWzISqJa8RiWNDSBXpCRJGRM_qNS1iCHWNrSvuRX9LNyU/s1600/ultrasound.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjah9OvKgZ9-N27BxvuRU-SnT-1zxJrwUhLhgd7iy7iETlkpFppSVY081szBUEbbXDOcyBNreVdykC0-jhep9lpP6e5GCPimcIWzISqJa8RiWNDSBXpCRJGRM_qNS1iCHWNrSvuRX9LNyU/s1600/ultrasound.jpg" height="239" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We got to see Baby #3.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_1nGFtVoC1Z2SSeS6vqe7HZsGmItyQU3KeVCwWgZzYUGagibXvAb6VCBdu1cPVB7zNsyKuDCCJyo0vYTjmIFmvwXqoitjVcPsLb4wXFh93jeAIzalmnsEYYhE_yTxi-krujBrszLkdNI/s1600/Leahpark.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_1nGFtVoC1Z2SSeS6vqe7HZsGmItyQU3KeVCwWgZzYUGagibXvAb6VCBdu1cPVB7zNsyKuDCCJyo0vYTjmIFmvwXqoitjVcPsLb4wXFh93jeAIzalmnsEYYhE_yTxi-krujBrszLkdNI/s1600/Leahpark.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It finally got warm enough to go outside and play.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGSwqYVbW-MpDQttDp8F1jsrwuwsCSeKs0CZMEJnYjGnnVRD7jNuRFoycdQV1gqEkWitY8eJLQXszPBQCZFGFcaAB0VARmKkDPJNvix8qJnJxusehpt7zCsN3XnCPFv5qvl1OTkXFLh9A/s1600/egghunt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGSwqYVbW-MpDQttDp8F1jsrwuwsCSeKs0CZMEJnYjGnnVRD7jNuRFoycdQV1gqEkWitY8eJLQXszPBQCZFGFcaAB0VARmKkDPJNvix8qJnJxusehpt7zCsN3XnCPFv5qvl1OTkXFLh9A/s1600/egghunt.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The girls found some audible Easter eggs...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUWP8rYdeMFLuraua1HpI0xK4cK8e9E3Nx6Ggk0znjpXx6D1U7IKviLL4dyCBQtA04sXOCjM8w_xocKYr1X_pd5dTrFkWAWWIiiSJ-BRy-YQ3Nn04OD00IH1cQhvVZLK5V4Jt1iyeOYIs/s1600/boardwalk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUWP8rYdeMFLuraua1HpI0xK4cK8e9E3Nx6Ggk0znjpXx6D1U7IKviLL4dyCBQtA04sXOCjM8w_xocKYr1X_pd5dTrFkWAWWIiiSJ-BRy-YQ3Nn04OD00IH1cQhvVZLK5V4Jt1iyeOYIs/s1600/boardwalk.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> ... and enjoyed a wagon ride at the beach.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFW_nkSPB0ec1A97ym8gDuDlHOlIlLSEOakKRj_vN7N5qt_A1tkSji6AzTHrz_HWKjXuek-g6nSnwZPNBaOB8AZ1hxMJ91OCmBocjS8RbAWKUlonREHAeP6iVSGzoNtqO3Kk2uEd1_flc/s1600/DSC_0713.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFW_nkSPB0ec1A97ym8gDuDlHOlIlLSEOakKRj_vN7N5qt_A1tkSji6AzTHrz_HWKjXuek-g6nSnwZPNBaOB8AZ1hxMJ91OCmBocjS8RbAWKUlonREHAeP6iVSGzoNtqO3Kk2uEd1_flc/s1600/DSC_0713.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spring has finally bloomed...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7LJW23jfyuchWtJ1ulUkFiZPdIOpTv0BZLVwiLsYXHxMaRlwJn2BVY7goqBUhDPNe7MmHjIOnLAk_65XTVGU2I0jw5fHxCWWZ5PxkdOh4pcaKDuyjopUHCHEcMum8YOLBYWcQu0GHiwQ/s1600/DSC_0731.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7LJW23jfyuchWtJ1ulUkFiZPdIOpTv0BZLVwiLsYXHxMaRlwJn2BVY7goqBUhDPNe7MmHjIOnLAk_65XTVGU2I0jw5fHxCWWZ5PxkdOh4pcaKDuyjopUHCHEcMum8YOLBYWcQu0GHiwQ/s1600/DSC_0731.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">... and we are enjoying all the pretty trees...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGS3XKAquFGtr1HS-dJnS2_yqNSOnEdfMb1rd0VpAevQpI8M80nhNNsgjpkX1oeFpxq9_byTiFxfT3MBRk4FNOwEfjmRrWF3UmRMpDwi_MNa5uEda8VfuD52lmsiAb94gdLOlXULXZSGo/s1600/DSC_0737.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGS3XKAquFGtr1HS-dJnS2_yqNSOnEdfMb1rd0VpAevQpI8M80nhNNsgjpkX1oeFpxq9_byTiFxfT3MBRk4FNOwEfjmRrWF3UmRMpDwi_MNa5uEda8VfuD52lmsiAb94gdLOlXULXZSGo/s1600/DSC_0737.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">... and beautiful flowers.</td></tr>
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The Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981738642729459880.post-37001010232951310672013-11-09T20:27:00.000-08:002013-11-09T20:27:39.827-08:0010 Months Old!Our sweet Rebekah Joy is 10 months old! Can it be?! Each day she is coming more and more into her own and revealing her personality to us. She is a fearless, precocious, inquisitive, determined, adorable and silly girl. We definitely have our hands full! In the last month, Rebekah has:<br />
- learned to climb stairs. Let the official baby-proofing commence!<br />
- really taken off with cruising. She has mastered going around corners and transitioning between different pieces of furniture. Sometimes she makes laps around our ottoman in an attempt to find the best way to get to an object in the middle of it.<br />
- started to wave. She sometimes waves her entire arm, sometimes just her fingers, sometimes her whole hand. I guess it just depends on her mood. One of her favorite times to wave is when she is caught doing something naughty, like climbing the stairs, usually accompanied by a sweet smile!<br />
- said her first word (I know I've already said that she said her first word, but it hasn't been consistent. This one is already happening a lot more!) It's usually when she is doing something naughty like trying to get into Pippin's dog bowl (or see above!). When I catch her going towards his bowl and say, "Rebekah, no no!" She usually looks back at me, smiles and says, "nana".<br />
- been playing peek-a-boo with her blanket. She thinks it is the greatest trick and just giggles while playing. It's quite cute!<br />
- figured out how to make silly faces. It typically consists of arching her back, opening her mouth up really wide, and sticking her tongue out.<br />
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We love our Rebekah Joy and are so grateful that God has entrusted us with raising her. Her life is an adventure and we are so glad to be part of it.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzRot-nNV525ZCeMletMLPHMuvY0hdEBzrPkltwRZaBVbTMnZGfFkAPf1c8A6XlHrdrGIjIgkFiEyoLSv9z60xGfT7dvszxCJXUU_OLPFRtfXFLUDIIXwX4xOzXndVaEeX80GEw7ErCiA/s1600/DSC_0415.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzRot-nNV525ZCeMletMLPHMuvY0hdEBzrPkltwRZaBVbTMnZGfFkAPf1c8A6XlHrdrGIjIgkFiEyoLSv9z60xGfT7dvszxCJXUU_OLPFRtfXFLUDIIXwX4xOzXndVaEeX80GEw7ErCiA/s320/DSC_0415.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Trying to be creative with ways to still incorporate the blocks in her monthly pictures...it's pretty tricky!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAgybs53jNHStzfjf9ozbVSONguIlgLRk2_-R0nHhL7E8SoYXKvzM2Ppimhlg3PtABQuv8cMDEgyNWW9-s_WcJclNI5nq0bcHKfrsyZRK1ilSWs5brBApchkpe1cpria4vOe3W8EDaCzc/s1600/DSC_0404.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAgybs53jNHStzfjf9ozbVSONguIlgLRk2_-R0nHhL7E8SoYXKvzM2Ppimhlg3PtABQuv8cMDEgyNWW9-s_WcJclNI5nq0bcHKfrsyZRK1ilSWs5brBApchkpe1cpria4vOe3W8EDaCzc/s320/DSC_0404.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My new silly face - sticking my tongue out!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN_Jmj5r3G4XxkEq7Ww-oA7DxF29enPhwG50j8L-na12tY2Otq9Ri8IfQ6Lc_hIXgvpbMFN3Z5RHrXS8quBA20BC1OATlaJcoESNx0ugxihe_yNIcd0BT-R_pZz349Ijmj2I3BSpBt1fA/s1600/DSC_0410.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN_Jmj5r3G4XxkEq7Ww-oA7DxF29enPhwG50j8L-na12tY2Otq9Ri8IfQ6Lc_hIXgvpbMFN3Z5RHrXS8quBA20BC1OATlaJcoESNx0ugxihe_yNIcd0BT-R_pZz349Ijmj2I3BSpBt1fA/s320/DSC_0410.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I love standing at the door and looking for the big yellow bus to come and bring sister Leah home.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj54vKb5bdLR-VgCIBYByaXyWQgrJ6NJPO7ZfqgYvurgoHq4uJaZc5UQ9VbqQ4Fgw4Zk0MmmR_-wLrIM-cdEU5NMDMluAz91X7YEGDKFUxPsKGiWNEOBMTTnk8mOQ13l4biUBh4ELQVj0o/s1600/DSC_0418.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj54vKb5bdLR-VgCIBYByaXyWQgrJ6NJPO7ZfqgYvurgoHq4uJaZc5UQ9VbqQ4Fgw4Zk0MmmR_-wLrIM-cdEU5NMDMluAz91X7YEGDKFUxPsKGiWNEOBMTTnk8mOQ13l4biUBh4ELQVj0o/s320/DSC_0418.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pretty Rebekah Joy</td></tr>
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The Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981738642729459880.post-47402324972225925102013-10-19T14:07:00.002-07:002013-10-19T14:07:35.176-07:00The Week in ReviewIt seems like there is always something happening around here, and when I have down time, doing a blog post is usually last on my mind. So, I figured I can try to keep track of some of the major things that have happened during the week and <i>try</i> to do one post a week about those important things to share. So, here goes:<br />
<br />
1. Leah lost a tooth! Yes, I know she has already lost teeth, but this time, it's because of the natural developmental process that the body goes through! And technically, this tooth is not the first that fell out naturally, but since we didn't see the first one come out and never found it, we are considering this week's to be the first! :) Seeing as Leah is not even 5 yet, we were a little concerned about her losing teeth, but the dentist assured us that it's okay and that some kids lose teeth early. This momentous occasion was marked with some sadness for us, though. For one thing, Leah doesn't understand what happened to her, and was very upset by the whole situation. And unfortunately, we can't explain to her (in a way that she will understand) that it's normal and okay. Also, we did not do any sort of tooth fairy thing. This is sad for us. It means nothing to Leah, so why do it? These kinds of milestones often bring back up the grief that will always exist for us in knowing that our little girl has a different life and won't do the things that other little girls will do.<br />
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2. Rebekah had her nine month check up. She weighed in at a whopping 17 lbs 1 oz, which is about the 28th percentile. Now that may not seem very big, but the doctor called her a butterball! She says that for Rebekah's height (27 1/2", the 30th percentile) and delicate frame, she is very plump. Rebekah did very well at the appointment and hardly cried at all when she got her shots. What a good girl!<br />
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3. Rebekah thinks she is a gator! Well, not really, but she does love to growl! Just in this past week, she has started taking turns in a growling conversation with us, and thinks it's just too funny! She is also starting to take turns with other sounds too, but growls are the best.<br />
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4. Rebekah is starting to cruise! She has been pulling up to standing for a while now, but in the last week, she has been pulling up on everything, all the time (including trying to stand up in the high chair at a restaurant!) and cruising while doing it. She has even been transitioning from the couch to the coffee table. The doctor said she thinks Rebekah could be walking by Thanksgiving!<br />
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5. We went to the pumpkin patch. We found one that gives you a "pumpkin barrow" and clippers to cut your own pumpkin from the patch. The place also had animals to pet, pony rides, hay rides, etc. The girls seemed to have a great time being outside, meeting the animals, and picking pumpkins.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH30lrhkKleSS8KLlF91324FSBcLeZbuc5aDwY1FtyLjnGh24a9uZXt9n5psJ6pgGDaUaQgyNuyxfKm6_bk2eM0LTykm2TpUJ-_eTRMKmwEmBaJnDc0RO0XLP6Anv4_77UxRIl_SyuTow/s1600/DSC_0339.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH30lrhkKleSS8KLlF91324FSBcLeZbuc5aDwY1FtyLjnGh24a9uZXt9n5psJ6pgGDaUaQgyNuyxfKm6_bk2eM0LTykm2TpUJ-_eTRMKmwEmBaJnDc0RO0XLP6Anv4_77UxRIl_SyuTow/s320/DSC_0339.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mommy and the girls with the pumpkin barrow.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6GwsVqv0yLWsTcXGtNvtCjc76LrJza9lbrQw9wq2gxXvhFBPNZ4xsSW8wr6FS0uZ7rx2osaaySxJ1ZOGpDzcGSUbCTykaCyxIoeu3O40h4fCxSBG0dO3vYDa-MXBSxRBlru9oQwFeed8/s1600/DSC_0336.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6GwsVqv0yLWsTcXGtNvtCjc76LrJza9lbrQw9wq2gxXvhFBPNZ4xsSW8wr6FS0uZ7rx2osaaySxJ1ZOGpDzcGSUbCTykaCyxIoeu3O40h4fCxSBG0dO3vYDa-MXBSxRBlru9oQwFeed8/s320/DSC_0336.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"What about this one?"</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsfO3sspwXsRB7aoplafvkgCVgZwS8mgKx2wvuRfNJ_sbTAWFa51Qq3pH9vEHoIb1EK1jaPnquFDGlRkeoHtjdefCtyuhGLix72vIg1ssR87Vdt9uNhrCYl42Ag94hPbhhUyS4Zbq_UE0/s1600/DSC_0332_2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsfO3sspwXsRB7aoplafvkgCVgZwS8mgKx2wvuRfNJ_sbTAWFa51Qq3pH9vEHoIb1EK1jaPnquFDGlRkeoHtjdefCtyuhGLix72vIg1ssR87Vdt9uNhrCYl42Ag94hPbhhUyS4Zbq_UE0/s320/DSC_0332_2.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cutest Pumpkin in the Patch!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNefqXJg2jMkcJ7cmfFrtxrBTbmznjeQnp8Ipw_oU5DxYc5xzEnab0z449GsPlabf66JYin253IvpZ7hx4uwxzBxavkZ-Hfi5Y00QgpMsv4lC26P93Hw6VG6DYD10NyT6gMvuAzQb3KdY/s1600/photo-4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNefqXJg2jMkcJ7cmfFrtxrBTbmznjeQnp8Ipw_oU5DxYc5xzEnab0z449GsPlabf66JYin253IvpZ7hx4uwxzBxavkZ-Hfi5Y00QgpMsv4lC26P93Hw6VG6DYD10NyT6gMvuAzQb3KdY/s320/photo-4.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Meeting the piggies. Leah was snorting like pigs!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-_3n5DR0jzz3q7MAAEgegx3kIu5e_Qnfo40hcH-Jn8v5LlZmJ20o42xeRUiE85N5uyPYlt5yhlpWAEpSEMJWzUdKVpVlV-jRd_ueRq2rox27i-UJv1fZvOEV90QIIFpwbiWNhk0RCXig/s1600/photo-7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-_3n5DR0jzz3q7MAAEgegx3kIu5e_Qnfo40hcH-Jn8v5LlZmJ20o42xeRUiE85N5uyPYlt5yhlpWAEpSEMJWzUdKVpVlV-jRd_ueRq2rox27i-UJv1fZvOEV90QIIFpwbiWNhk0RCXig/s320/photo-7.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leah liked the pony. She said, "pat the pony."</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWBYYSiyuBtDWdThZ6-RjzPV0SahXK5OuodNc988A4aKbN1VM60M0DXOkk2xeKDNJB8eSsEkGWiJITzmLx4CbKHn5UNFYyFhr-sQaJ637H1jlx8jLcQ2GluWy81j_q4m6M0EaAeMvkR44/s1600/photo-10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWBYYSiyuBtDWdThZ6-RjzPV0SahXK5OuodNc988A4aKbN1VM60M0DXOkk2xeKDNJB8eSsEkGWiJITzmLx4CbKHn5UNFYyFhr-sQaJ637H1jlx8jLcQ2GluWy81j_q4m6M0EaAeMvkR44/s320/photo-10.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bekah was fascinated by all the chickens!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikoCjxE59rJdc9RIhnRjbnaEPmsubGdrpv_5qJgwIBFZHVg7YhmvnZ1J78YsLudn242mePl25ad-SkX6POP6Glgp7FbMin_7WsCMfb7Au-0xKgMBjLQHBBL4Fa81RCmYNlVB-fGE4Le70/s1600/photo-6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikoCjxE59rJdc9RIhnRjbnaEPmsubGdrpv_5qJgwIBFZHVg7YhmvnZ1J78YsLudn242mePl25ad-SkX6POP6Glgp7FbMin_7WsCMfb7Au-0xKgMBjLQHBBL4Fa81RCmYNlVB-fGE4Le70/s320/photo-6.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leah loves being outside!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9FyIzEEajlfgsdZxKiGWX4b-ScpdxQlWmTOe-xDZvpa0FfKS2IiPcvnvf0oiuN6GM2wV6wJw0nSfCSB2RAKTUGWDQq5_dLTtlkjwxugUvEfBJcwookes_Y1QjNaKh3qIAXqTo7pvjORo/s1600/photo-8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9FyIzEEajlfgsdZxKiGWX4b-ScpdxQlWmTOe-xDZvpa0FfKS2IiPcvnvf0oiuN6GM2wV6wJw0nSfCSB2RAKTUGWDQq5_dLTtlkjwxugUvEfBJcwookes_Y1QjNaKh3qIAXqTo7pvjORo/s320/photo-8.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Two sweet girls</td></tr>
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The Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981738642729459880.post-9516217184600460442013-10-11T09:03:00.000-07:002013-10-11T11:09:52.503-07:009 Months Old!I know this blog is supposed to be about all that's happening in the Burgin family, and that in the past month I've only posted one entry about Rebekah. And that's being followed up by another post about Rebekah. Trust me, a lot more than Rebekah growing is happening around here! I'm trying to come up with a way to keep up better on the blog. However, we do have a big nine month old that I want to share about.<br />
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Our precious little girl is growing and changing every day. It's so amazing to watch her learning and figuring the world out around her. Our Rebekah is a very curious and active girl. Translation: she never stops! I'm sure most babies are like this, and we told ourselves that we were in for a rude awakening with the new baby, but we were not prepared for this energizer bunny! Our big "wow" moments are when she is willing to sit still in our laps for more than 5 seconds. And even then, she usually has some toy or snack to keep her distracted. And changing diapers and getting dressed? Like wrestling an alligator. She is definitely going to give us a run for our money! We are loving every second of it, too.<br />
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In this past month, Rebekah has figured out how to really crawl, and she is very fast! She loves to follow mommy around the house, but Pippin (and his dog food bowl) is her favorite. She knows him by name, so anytime she hears it she is immediately looking for him. She loves to climb up on his back and he is a good puppy who takes everything she gives him.<br />
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Speaking of learning names, she definitely knows her own name and turns anytime you call her. Usually I'm calling her because she's getting into something she shouldn't be (like the dog food bowl, the fire place, electrical outlets) and I think she's starting to learn what the word "no" means. When I tell her no, she pauses, looks at my face, and I swear you can see her brain at work, deciding. Oftentimes, her pause is followed by a cute smile or scrunchy face and then continuing on in whatever her pursuit was. We're working on obedience!<br />
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Rebekah has been babbling for a while, but I think she might have said her first word with meaning... "Dada". She says it mostly when she's interacting with Stephen, which is why I'm pretty sure it's her first word.<br />
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Rebekah now has 8 teeth and she loves to use them! She is constantly putting things in her mouth and trying to discover the taste of anything she comes in contact with: chairs, knobs, bricks on the fireplace, you name it, she's trying it. When it comes to food she has a very strong opinion about what and how she will eat. She's a pretty good eater, as long as she can do it by herself. Miss Independent doesn't just want a few pieces/bites on her tray, she wants you to give her the whole bowl and let her go to town with her meal! Some more recent favorites are broccoli and chicken.<br />
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I'm thinking we are starting to get over some of the separation anxiety now, though for a while it was a little rough. Rebekah didn't like anybody to even look at her. Unfortunately for her, she's so cute. People talk to her every time we are in public. Now, she pretty much has one of three reactions: she smiles at them, she acts shy and ducks her head, or she just stares at them with a very serious face. We're working on not staring !<br />
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One final thing, Rebekah has a favorite thing. It's her blanket. She buries her face in it, she snuggles in it, when she goes to sleep, she likes to have it pulled up over her head. She loves the thing. In fact, if we want her to sit still and snuggle with us, it's one of the only ways to get that to happen. We very rarely leave home without it.<br />
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There are about a thousand other things I could tell about Rebekah, the nine month old, but I'll stop. I'm so grateful that I get to be home with her, getting to know her happy, adventurous, independent personality. She truly does bring so much joy to our lives and we are so thankful to God for blessing our family with this special little girl. And now for some pics:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6kW7V1OWi0OQWtRJlakGb8ftEhDmI_TZXVQhSjlTqE9ElXMDDm47JN_TfYYcXErT5le1gRnfS2noiX9lraFy3OXwAn9zmmzzeApdVad3ugWtOMTuq6MnR_8C74m8CozZ3YxcDEaFDqcc/s1600/DSC_0311.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6kW7V1OWi0OQWtRJlakGb8ftEhDmI_TZXVQhSjlTqE9ElXMDDm47JN_TfYYcXErT5le1gRnfS2noiX9lraFy3OXwAn9zmmzzeApdVad3ugWtOMTuq6MnR_8C74m8CozZ3YxcDEaFDqcc/s320/DSC_0311.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The only okay pic of Rebekah with the blocks. So much for the cute laying down pics. They had to end some time!!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghgY5qS2b-BtpSgEa6WLCdP3BJdQ75erQBMVbwYIk6IewwqHFifDS1cJxqnrnKfL-j-O0q8Wuw5-TTNe0KvyBE1YGAifB8whgpAUH34hWkJIoigK6V5C3G1TL4CfmZ65KKhWyPUTqND7Y/s1600/DSC_0313.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghgY5qS2b-BtpSgEa6WLCdP3BJdQ75erQBMVbwYIk6IewwqHFifDS1cJxqnrnKfL-j-O0q8Wuw5-TTNe0KvyBE1YGAifB8whgpAUH34hWkJIoigK6V5C3G1TL4CfmZ65KKhWyPUTqND7Y/s320/DSC_0313.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">So proud of the mess she's made!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyO0WrBhpwkVaIKggzwJGpZRY8PaXFVpq6LmEDiyhsO-5JKV51j6KyiUr05-zp-MCgJ3qSHAiHXgFdaW1ZsZlouC_g_E0DNSuCvgpgBkKDT0fjU1CbeBhlX9c2uiLQLPi7zTZwFsMGBv4/s1600/DSC_0320.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyO0WrBhpwkVaIKggzwJGpZRY8PaXFVpq6LmEDiyhsO-5JKV51j6KyiUr05-zp-MCgJ3qSHAiHXgFdaW1ZsZlouC_g_E0DNSuCvgpgBkKDT0fjU1CbeBhlX9c2uiLQLPi7zTZwFsMGBv4/s320/DSC_0320.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The pine cones were too tempting to resist, though they weren't that tasty!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDWs1mwfW3YRfuryWNKPeZo7B0n1tzbAc2X_VQa0TccQijUwX8bo4xmCPUrABThzTN3afmVFsVAdVYN9s0KcLbnYoRXQYg7hIzsEBB8azZLgc3PQJrQ6LrJX5EFOdDL28oocDfOnp1zjw/s1600/DSC_0327.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDWs1mwfW3YRfuryWNKPeZo7B0n1tzbAc2X_VQa0TccQijUwX8bo4xmCPUrABThzTN3afmVFsVAdVYN9s0KcLbnYoRXQYg7hIzsEBB8azZLgc3PQJrQ6LrJX5EFOdDL28oocDfOnp1zjw/s320/DSC_0327.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sweet, precious girl</td></tr>
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The Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981738642729459880.post-16856595950044399932013-09-07T11:31:00.000-07:002013-09-07T11:31:50.429-07:008 Months Old!Rebekah is 8 months old. That's 2/3 of a year! It's crazy to think that in 4 short months, she'll be a year old! For now though, we'll just enjoy the happy, funny baby we've got and the big personality that's developing more and more everyday. Some new things about Rebekah are:<br />
<br />
- Rebekah is becoming more and more aware of the world everyday. This is most notable when you put her down on the floor. Don't take your eyes off of her for a second or she'll be gone! Already her favorite things to go for are outlets, Pippin, and the fireplace. I guess we're going to have to baby proof soon!<br />
- She's still not crawling with belly off the floor, but that hasn't seemed to slow her down. She is very good at getting from sitting to laying, and back up. She pushes up onto all fours, and has occasionally made a couple of "crawling" moves before collapsing onto her belly. It won't be long before she's up and running, I just know it. <br />
- She also really enjoys pulling hair, especially Mommy's hair. We're working on not being so mean ;) - She loves to play peek-a-boo, be tickled, and sing "lap songs" (like "Ride the Horsey, From Wibbleton to Wobbleton, and This is the Way the Lady Rides).<br />
- One of the funniest things, though, is when Daddy points at her. Don't ask me why this is so funny. I guess, it's just their thing.<br />
- Rebekah has also become extremely affectionate. She squeezes back when I hug her and she covers my face with baby kisses when I hold her close. I love every drop of baby slobber she leaves behind!<br />
- Rebekah is becoming very proficient at self-feeding. Some of her favorites are: green beans, sweet potatoes, and cheerios. Your typical baby favorites! She is also very fascinated with eating utensils and wants to take them from us and feed herself. She still needs to work on figuring out which end goes in the mouth, though.<br />
-I know I have talked about how happy Rebekah is before, but the best proof I have is this: in the last 2 weeks, Rebekah has had 5 teeth come in and hasn't made a peep about it. In fact, 2 of the 5 surprised me. I had noticed the other 3 and just looked one day and there was another tooth. I looked again in another couple of days and yet another tooth had poked through. The only way that I have been able to tell that anything is going on with her is that she has started getting up multiple times in the night. I'm hoping now that all of these have come through, things will settle down and she will go back to getting up only once (and maybe even dropping that one nighttime nursing!)<br />
<br />
We love our Bekah Bunny and can't wait to see what this next month will bring!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk8ITB4iAnx3Qk1e3Dq18MFbSvJG0I7_Ppdv_vp_YiqjwxRNHp2hfPo3aFZzxkkmPe_dq4gUEKa8xTtjx7DwOXEStLkJfd39qTEjjCxEbwly4MxW0TSqFAGS6hW2cQUPJDNxvv8cekBoc/s1600/DSC_0286.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk8ITB4iAnx3Qk1e3Dq18MFbSvJG0I7_Ppdv_vp_YiqjwxRNHp2hfPo3aFZzxkkmPe_dq4gUEKa8xTtjx7DwOXEStLkJfd39qTEjjCxEbwly4MxW0TSqFAGS6hW2cQUPJDNxvv8cekBoc/s320/DSC_0286.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bright eyes</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWvZP1AxGfO-OWK58va-qjJqHCiK3bpu-CQk0kSEBfOv0eGujq8QWsMXrqUeviD9mkT6DjuqUg9VAPrNSRsR_ds2ffl00O4Pwxl9a5nnrIP36EWQUIJuYVijFaY6c_hezqg1A8Zt4hzEw/s1600/DSC_0290.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWvZP1AxGfO-OWK58va-qjJqHCiK3bpu-CQk0kSEBfOv0eGujq8QWsMXrqUeviD9mkT6DjuqUg9VAPrNSRsR_ds2ffl00O4Pwxl9a5nnrIP36EWQUIJuYVijFaY6c_hezqg1A8Zt4hzEw/s320/DSC_0290.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"I see you behind that camera, Mom!"</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIUTH49qrDYa8TGg3rztjf4kzA3V6JQdvm3I29iUrLsM1p31eXqlk2_BPAmPpGkAh52g55lWVR1PbdocESEhHBLH4m6TsBfBn5Ejc1xJYGqLpZlRbbcmEfolIThz4vGWkioTBzUiw8S8k/s1600/DSC_0295.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIUTH49qrDYa8TGg3rztjf4kzA3V6JQdvm3I29iUrLsM1p31eXqlk2_BPAmPpGkAh52g55lWVR1PbdocESEhHBLH4m6TsBfBn5Ejc1xJYGqLpZlRbbcmEfolIThz4vGWkioTBzUiw8S8k/s320/DSC_0295.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">R is for Rebekah</td></tr>
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The Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981738642729459880.post-77370773809427737442013-08-18T19:31:00.000-07:002013-08-18T19:31:14.392-07:00A trip to Iowa (with a fun stop along the way!)We made our second annual trip to Iowa to meet with the amazing doctors at the University of Iowa. More about that later. We drove this year (17 hours!) and decided to make a fun trip out of it. So, we stopped in Chicago for a few days of family vacation fun exploring a new city. Stephen had never been to Chicago before and it's been about 15 years since the last time I went. We had a great time being tourists and doing almost all of the necessary Chicago things while we were there. And, of course, our girls were almost perfect. We are so blessed to have children who are great travelers and don't mind being dragged around to all of the things Mommy and Daddy want to do. We made our trip a lot easier by staying in a nice hotel right down town. We were able to just walk (or ride) everywhere we wanted to go. I wore Rebekah and we brought the umbrella stroller for Leah, so navigating everywhere was easier because of that, too. The weather was also pretty perfect, so it was just wonderful to spend so much time outside. And now, some of the pics of some of the things we did!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5X4KXy0winIpjHqyjped3hfIyGzJDXn9qTZ7DPxxNA394QHJ7jAZCIMFOjGczAJay4qeXY4lEGRvpkiuMR-45jNXi-Sw-NQ-REaslqAlDfjKpN2ow9RnmOl_2vuGbMg8e-F49eg8VWGI/s1600/DSC_0123.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5X4KXy0winIpjHqyjped3hfIyGzJDXn9qTZ7DPxxNA394QHJ7jAZCIMFOjGczAJay4qeXY4lEGRvpkiuMR-45jNXi-Sw-NQ-REaslqAlDfjKpN2ow9RnmOl_2vuGbMg8e-F49eg8VWGI/s320/DSC_0123.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Navy Pier</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjL80TucLeJNSpxbq2mhwVSpmL9oBWn4WyxLyW2ap0ZKuCTgja85WBI2fqF78Qw8KdV0uMLyLaDoKQE0RMQ0Z4VNktxXyttOnwy4jHMPHe3f_fGmVLDau3c2RbgXtIkHmCPs9aSGe9jrs/s1600/photo-3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjL80TucLeJNSpxbq2mhwVSpmL9oBWn4WyxLyW2ap0ZKuCTgja85WBI2fqF78Qw8KdV0uMLyLaDoKQE0RMQ0Z4VNktxXyttOnwy4jHMPHe3f_fGmVLDau3c2RbgXtIkHmCPs9aSGe9jrs/s320/photo-3.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">On the ferris wheel at Navy Pier</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIKdnbDrJtOi4ce_-H5Lm_n2MpUnSqdWX7LgisIWt-1zOWuMUMBdT8AOdbmxdR9L1p8YXh9ZVSn5PNrVF-Exiv7vMuY9wnOjEFiP_KxubRT93I-dfqHY9kr8dDXnsbR2_euzuhfu497ao/s1600/DSC_0148.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIKdnbDrJtOi4ce_-H5Lm_n2MpUnSqdWX7LgisIWt-1zOWuMUMBdT8AOdbmxdR9L1p8YXh9ZVSn5PNrVF-Exiv7vMuY9wnOjEFiP_KxubRT93I-dfqHY9kr8dDXnsbR2_euzuhfu497ao/s320/DSC_0148.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leah had a great time on our Chicago River boat tour</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMmsiAc7jwMi5WU7miur5FK2fTtP_F3IpR2ma5Cne51k9dwpwqMDs-LU2awQKiUIfovhYmRPwpWIrJopmhSPB9w3lmE9560V4Stq0ZimNgQYeRgxZAYFH3cs85VDRUvFrvncW526clflg/s1600/DSC_0189.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMmsiAc7jwMi5WU7miur5FK2fTtP_F3IpR2ma5Cne51k9dwpwqMDs-LU2awQKiUIfovhYmRPwpWIrJopmhSPB9w3lmE9560V4Stq0ZimNgQYeRgxZAYFH3cs85VDRUvFrvncW526clflg/s320/DSC_0189.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At the Field Museum. One of Stephen's favorite places. He loved seeing the dinosaurs, especially Sue. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhAmKFgPyQAvvcESx2eJRu9VvpxJHzC6bjFLYXR1AjI6Wz0R72snxwuy9UxtAuijFCpmoI_QFqEyBdKuYysY-RmXHMRLXexCNqFzSFv9snPaUfBzpujkyRPuVjEtssnfI76nMDPaMmN1E/s1600/fountain.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhAmKFgPyQAvvcESx2eJRu9VvpxJHzC6bjFLYXR1AjI6Wz0R72snxwuy9UxtAuijFCpmoI_QFqEyBdKuYysY-RmXHMRLXexCNqFzSFv9snPaUfBzpujkyRPuVjEtssnfI76nMDPaMmN1E/s320/fountain.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Splashing in Crown Fountain (the spitting fountain) at Millennium Park</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgylC2ep8XS1In7f0mWhcsybnB0_is99DmaoD-FC5c2_uiOeqfpnqfI8Z5KQ-KC8QxT3q8PDh_I1-kKZqhEAo8b78pQj21d1xIb8VAzWrFK_m3G1V0Su_LiP7uwjXj1mcLTttbBoYeh9eA/s1600/DSC_0178.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgylC2ep8XS1In7f0mWhcsybnB0_is99DmaoD-FC5c2_uiOeqfpnqfI8Z5KQ-KC8QxT3q8PDh_I1-kKZqhEAo8b78pQj21d1xIb8VAzWrFK_m3G1V0Su_LiP7uwjXj1mcLTttbBoYeh9eA/s320/DSC_0178.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Family pic at Cloud Gate (the bean)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMv3SOVeqpMkhl3A7HCFq7OwsmClAKT95iR5LHfIfWpNeL3vh1nJebzbzINGW5tN6F-1nRPpnYxWGq0hLFIjy_pAckojXAJXMBut6ERFFCtgcKCjObcd_s0sFmSuDxXDNyrt4JGVF-wBE/s1600/girls.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMv3SOVeqpMkhl3A7HCFq7OwsmClAKT95iR5LHfIfWpNeL3vh1nJebzbzINGW5tN6F-1nRPpnYxWGq0hLFIjy_pAckojXAJXMBut6ERFFCtgcKCjObcd_s0sFmSuDxXDNyrt4JGVF-wBE/s320/girls.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sweet sisters at the bean</td></tr>
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We ate at lots of great local places and, of course, had some Chicago style deep dish pizza from Lou Malnati's. We also took the "L" to many places, including Wrigley Field to see where the Cubs play. We took a stroll down the Magnificent Mile and did walking tours of some of the historic neighborhoods in the city. It's hard to believe we did as much as we did in just a few days, but one of the things we have learned in 9 years of marriage, is that we travel well together. And, we are teaching our kids to be traveling pros, too! It was a great vacation.<br />
<br />
But, now for the real reason for our trip, Leah's check up in Iowa. We met with the same 2 doctors again this year. Dr. Wilkinson is a vision rehabilitation specialist, who is working with us to help Leah maximize her vision. This includes tips for things to work on at home and ideas for her teachers to work on at school. He wasn't able to do any sort of acuity test, so we don't know if her vision has improved at all from last year. However, we do know that she is using her vision better. He encouraged us about Leah's vision and that she is continuing to
mature in her use of it. After Dr. Wilkinson, we saw Dr. Stone, the molecular geneticist opthalmologist. He shared the results from the DNA testing that they have so far. Late last year, we found out that Leah has a chromosomal translocation, and that they were going to investigate that abnormality in the lab to determine what genes are impacted in this chromosomal translocation and what this means for Leah. At this appointment, they told us that they were able to clearly define the area that is involved and were in the midst of looking at the genes in this area. One of the genes that falls in this area of abnormality is a gene that plays a role in the development of the brain and other sensory organs (the eyes). This knowledge confirms the idea that this chromosome issue is most likely the cause of all of Leah's issues. We asked about any other cases of people with the same chromosomal translocation and were told that to their knowledge, Leah is the only one. This is both interesting and a little sad. It means that we have no other cases to compare Leah's to and no idea what Leah's future might look like. Dr. Stone also shared two things for us to be aware of. One is that people with similar retina issues have also been known to have kidney issues. We now need to be regularly checking Leah's blood pressure and kidney functioning (through blood work) to make sure everything is working well. Dr. Stone said that yearly checks should be fine for now. The other issue is that people with similar retina issues also have been known to lose their vision later in life. If this were to happen with Leah, she would be a candidate for gene therapy to maintain her vision. This gene therapy will not increase her vision, though.<br />
<br />
So, overall it was a mixed appointment. We appreciate any information we get, even the stuff that's not so good. We need to know what to expect, so we can be ready for anything. And, nothing is definite. Again, Leah is the only one of her kind and most importantly, God is great. He is in control and knows exactly what is going on in Leah's body today and for the rest of her life. He created her and loves her more than we ever could. As long as we rest in those truths, we can face anything. For now, we face making it through each day, encouraging Leah to walk and talk more, and to be patient as she eagerly awaits the beginning of school (Mommy is eagerly awaiting it as well:)). Only a few more weeks...<br />
<br />The Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981738642729459880.post-70798761735082291312013-08-14T08:51:00.002-07:002013-08-14T08:51:22.488-07:007 Months Old (and 6 months too)!My baby is 7 months old. It's hard to believe. Everyday she is growing more and more into her name: a determined, observant planner who is full of cheer and love. If you watch Rebekah, you will surely see her watching something/someone else, trying to figure out what it is, if it's good, and how to get to it. She is really working on crawling and is pretty good at backwards and pulling herself/squirming her way forward on her belly. It may be difficult, but if she sees something she wants, she goes after it. And we haven't noticed her getting frustrated. She just keeps trying to get whatever she wants. She has plans to do things on her own. Like drink from her sippy cup. Most of the time, she is ripping it out of my hands and trying to get a drink by herself. She loves to eat and has gotten good at picking up food with her hands and bringing it to her mouth. She still has to work on the release, though she has successfully put food in her mouth a few times.<br />
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Leah was (and still is, for the most part) a content child, but Rebekah is happy. She loves to smile and laugh and is working on waving. Right now it's a whole arm flap, but she pretty much does it anytime you say "hi" and wave at her. She loves being with Leah (though her favorite thing is pulling Leah's hair) and just stares at her in wonder most of the time. She also has found a really cute baby in the mirror that she smiles at, babbles at, and tries to touch. She still loves to play peek-a-boo and enjoys having her "baby back ribs" chewed on, too. She also does a pretty cute "scrunchy face" (see pic below) and we think it's pretty funny!<br />
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We never get tired of having her look at us either. When she wakes up from a nap and I come into the room, I am always greeted by a happy, giggling girl excited to see me. And when Daddy gets home, her face lights up at the first sight of him. I don't think we'll ever take that for granted. Our family is better and more complete because Rebekah Joy is a part of it and we are ever grateful to God for blessing us with her.<br />
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And now for pictures. Since I didn't do a blog entry from when she was 6 months old, I'll include the pictures I took from then.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghZRkpdQJJ5qfw_drI8NGh-LgWi1mUBw-mEwrvOSHYHj6svudzCUAhd4KSfUu7RPR00yGwtW0XGT6uM5ql_BBodKxcZk8kNNecI8QlwRsrJJEmS3lrpJ5LhrACdboAK638XtsDGfGJ93Q/s1600/DSC_0010.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghZRkpdQJJ5qfw_drI8NGh-LgWi1mUBw-mEwrvOSHYHj6svudzCUAhd4KSfUu7RPR00yGwtW0XGT6uM5ql_BBodKxcZk8kNNecI8QlwRsrJJEmS3lrpJ5LhrACdboAK638XtsDGfGJ93Q/s320/DSC_0010.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Look at those piercing blue eyes</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheokevSXL-2zVd82dUj7aSiWf5uiaHNesjQE8FyLgMxZJR6B4YZvwCJkeUcf1mCxsggthydmB4mVP85sQfJL3knTBb3kdowrhsObUhWH0lsNgqKGuXwsR0wbBH1jvTA2JHFybPit6TOvg/s1600/DSC_0016.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheokevSXL-2zVd82dUj7aSiWf5uiaHNesjQE8FyLgMxZJR6B4YZvwCJkeUcf1mCxsggthydmB4mVP85sQfJL3knTBb3kdowrhsObUhWH0lsNgqKGuXwsR0wbBH1jvTA2JHFybPit6TOvg/s320/DSC_0016.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Scrunchy Face!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVi-cj85SieIgMb5ShEROvdRxNgYZXtNmzmcJTqSIkTyehxal0l1aFmbJl-gF6Sva_vlIogEQTsLwheKj5g5MW0o9zgSlJ0yhkwVsEKEkZV0z196ZZhSpmEga2IU71F5auTEmEaPfTnQg/s1600/DSC_0272.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVi-cj85SieIgMb5ShEROvdRxNgYZXtNmzmcJTqSIkTyehxal0l1aFmbJl-gF6Sva_vlIogEQTsLwheKj5g5MW0o9zgSlJ0yhkwVsEKEkZV0z196ZZhSpmEga2IU71F5auTEmEaPfTnQg/s320/DSC_0272.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Look, these are my feet!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7m9CbxqEpQZTFIXaCu07yJRB8H8wGYcJmvg3ChxVQngM_O7NPrrBoXT7LYLOPD4HOT7N_llCBY6zaTldPtY_8kb_VzV59EekQ96gziRtmiMsWTMqjv0YirsEGfW3O0LjL9LvdKadCMt4/s1600/DSC_0276.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7m9CbxqEpQZTFIXaCu07yJRB8H8wGYcJmvg3ChxVQngM_O7NPrrBoXT7LYLOPD4HOT7N_llCBY6zaTldPtY_8kb_VzV59EekQ96gziRtmiMsWTMqjv0YirsEGfW3O0LjL9LvdKadCMt4/s320/DSC_0276.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sweet girl</td></tr>
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The Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981738642729459880.post-13094153307364279082013-07-14T06:59:00.001-07:002013-07-14T06:59:01.711-07:004th of July at the Lake!We celebrated our first 4th of July at my parent's new lake house, and had a great time. Yes, it was rainy for almost every single day of our trip, but we made the best of it. I grew up spending almost every 4th of July at my grandparent's lake house in Hot Springs, AR, so it's really special to know that we have a place for our children to create some of the same memories that we have. Like playing with cousins, swimming from sun up to sun down (only stopping to eat!), catching fire flies, going for boat and tube rides, drinking "nana-nade" (my family's sickeningly sweet version of lemonade) and eating powdered sugar donuts, watching fireworks, and a million other things. What made this first summer at the lake even better, was my Arkansas family were there to celebrate with us!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHhwHBr2mXGGhOguWSnjXmII81WYL34v_h6YrRfUhYUziAoQhz7ss8mNNJKh-O_olrugehflwuAggaHlJGO7dJc-EGSeVnioEv1CHrPQJawhD_VpSi-Chp_Tsi4zsWqCnMt4UaIquLGuU/s1600/DSC_0976.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHhwHBr2mXGGhOguWSnjXmII81WYL34v_h6YrRfUhYUziAoQhz7ss8mNNJKh-O_olrugehflwuAggaHlJGO7dJc-EGSeVnioEv1CHrPQJawhD_VpSi-Chp_Tsi4zsWqCnMt4UaIquLGuU/s320/DSC_0976.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Uncle Stephen gave boat rides.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5YMpztONP2GIYVjVXFnAHDbmJKKIo3Wqh4uGCSHcND7F9jSnIEF0fo2UbNC-xK_R17WoAOTbYmYOgEMYN4xyDMWFe3k3CgOhbqVmRvcUzKlQHvY_eld3ZRG7XniGb_W3UVh8zmoKRzKY/s1600/DSC_0967.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5YMpztONP2GIYVjVXFnAHDbmJKKIo3Wqh4uGCSHcND7F9jSnIEF0fo2UbNC-xK_R17WoAOTbYmYOgEMYN4xyDMWFe3k3CgOhbqVmRvcUzKlQHvY_eld3ZRG7XniGb_W3UVh8zmoKRzKY/s320/DSC_0967.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The bathing beauties</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1bR5cthp0bkcLkb5t6CXryxfSDulV2JdY3hzhosNIKlyAPGbsuBPoYP8WyyK-vgC2zBecuMGIsSeaH3JeDsdaDaIklKLsSRpylTRVfC9tSMti85ePEWptnUX2IxpV6OCWo6RI0sDplvw/s1600/DSC_1018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1bR5cthp0bkcLkb5t6CXryxfSDulV2JdY3hzhosNIKlyAPGbsuBPoYP8WyyK-vgC2zBecuMGIsSeaH3JeDsdaDaIklKLsSRpylTRVfC9tSMti85ePEWptnUX2IxpV6OCWo6RI0sDplvw/s320/DSC_1018.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Homemade American flag shirts for the little girls (pinterest!)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIeYtLkGs0g9p8xb3iwb1cFoX9AOULxCrcUazEVTit2hUKI5JJMedV9ek9mDNH__PVn56XfR2Ix0OiAttshtDsQJIENs9ooPiPz0sQyzbycyyiS_bJiG956gJEoXaR2BwI29ZJjoCmr6E/s1600/DSC_1027.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIeYtLkGs0g9p8xb3iwb1cFoX9AOULxCrcUazEVTit2hUKI5JJMedV9ek9mDNH__PVn56XfR2Ix0OiAttshtDsQJIENs9ooPiPz0sQyzbycyyiS_bJiG956gJEoXaR2BwI29ZJjoCmr6E/s320/DSC_1027.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Red, white, and blue dresses for the 4th</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjunrxOn_D1q45VpnbMubhUlp0DsZLg0uXEseuGhI7RC837Ps07_7p1kMlix-M-rAZaP60eJwA2258AKYgv3UbGk13PMLWfOc2HFumDxMKszzDhhzmGXLA4o2yu_H18qLgd4l-a_S4yQ4A/s1600/DSC_1040.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjunrxOn_D1q45VpnbMubhUlp0DsZLg0uXEseuGhI7RC837Ps07_7p1kMlix-M-rAZaP60eJwA2258AKYgv3UbGk13PMLWfOc2HFumDxMKszzDhhzmGXLA4o2yu_H18qLgd4l-a_S4yQ4A/s320/DSC_1040.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sitting with Nana</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQSM4QCCz1Mr_A0OPzrzmFgtjO6Eb8EG9x0uNTUeo3w5CuD_hDrjSmMlfo2d7o2eSVy9GWsk-wZIEo3D-owLBRsE1lRNdCkYT7IegMCeKfVrUurbtqqIWAP71Q5V62HQqtbPNBlWReF9k/s1600/DSC_1043.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQSM4QCCz1Mr_A0OPzrzmFgtjO6Eb8EG9x0uNTUeo3w5CuD_hDrjSmMlfo2d7o2eSVy9GWsk-wZIEo3D-owLBRsE1lRNdCkYT7IegMCeKfVrUurbtqqIWAP71Q5V62HQqtbPNBlWReF9k/s320/DSC_1043.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Reagan loves Rebekah!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzJDOidjYwNcPj1-3G2Rz0sg76pG0I21xeaQH_gGh2LpIwxwKvUv5lBcbM9UK681BbEc13k-hAjjchUKlmBtQ5ko7yWV5SVJFhlz2hBKBPt0sX74flprRAeaxzZrNG4Z0W4lfL8bcE58o/s1600/DSC_1046.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzJDOidjYwNcPj1-3G2Rz0sg76pG0I21xeaQH_gGh2LpIwxwKvUv5lBcbM9UK681BbEc13k-hAjjchUKlmBtQ5ko7yWV5SVJFhlz2hBKBPt0sX74flprRAeaxzZrNG4Z0W4lfL8bcE58o/s320/DSC_1046.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bocce Ball</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpYHL9qRhAewI44GysJ4R2Qv8ldnVvaXkBboxA51HGMlmI8wZSuBWAjiwfnbGlvj-bOOoBIHjjzxfDKu24XD2vsEcuJMKFonYcaHbVkY3rncg2atCJiuiiDJV5k3GOr7bv2LDqJE4BVBc/s1600/DSC_1054.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpYHL9qRhAewI44GysJ4R2Qv8ldnVvaXkBboxA51HGMlmI8wZSuBWAjiwfnbGlvj-bOOoBIHjjzxfDKu24XD2vsEcuJMKFonYcaHbVkY3rncg2atCJiuiiDJV5k3GOr7bv2LDqJE4BVBc/s320/DSC_1054.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Belle, Reagan, and Garrett</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk6vIOs2Jof5TDH7eJQESbWknaUWQokaSmUiaJGL2QXHlaifELSxqdPk4mCC5XGVKVTjBY8xly8mOmjtLQkOFKayYxbXu1OVj1UreyLvhEHR8rnFH5hyetKp7ky7HtKsjA3KTHDyFAAeY/s1600/DSC_0001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk6vIOs2Jof5TDH7eJQESbWknaUWQokaSmUiaJGL2QXHlaifELSxqdPk4mCC5XGVKVTjBY8xly8mOmjtLQkOFKayYxbXu1OVj1UreyLvhEHR8rnFH5hyetKp7ky7HtKsjA3KTHDyFAAeY/s320/DSC_0001.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Riley had a great time catching lots of fish</td></tr>
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We are looking forward to many more summers at the lake! Thanks, Nana and Grandpa for having all of us at your fun home!The Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981738642729459880.post-21851081839856314742013-06-18T19:53:00.001-07:002013-06-18T19:53:45.017-07:00Rebekah's first solid food!Since Rebekah got her first 2 teeth and is very closely attending to our eating (and still wanting to nurse every 3 hours), I figured it was time to start solid foods. I'll let her tell you the story of her first meal<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5b5FSennDSWa4OkWOsQhqfmSRPevBKvbW3gQ4xqCtRsACQNsiGFe-CBVLvAESzZWDilFMxmlFdQvejhGg2dA68MIyWnt_caAZxsMtN-f_pl35xP61-8gePoJ1mT6WyCaDnT_dnqAusWQ/s1600/DSC_0921.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5b5FSennDSWa4OkWOsQhqfmSRPevBKvbW3gQ4xqCtRsACQNsiGFe-CBVLvAESzZWDilFMxmlFdQvejhGg2dA68MIyWnt_caAZxsMtN-f_pl35xP61-8gePoJ1mT6WyCaDnT_dnqAusWQ/s320/DSC_0921.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm happy to be sitting in my high chair!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1ZhZ7XKvLJPPrMn-5BYOb6JOM-Fe-1al1Un1gQavviOw_7N6FwX2Z_ppCFMcAUpnuPC7vhGD0h9HlVEnflVhw2jA2CIW5ImHkhlOBMEIDjYbfUuRuD48qrKXcGrl_sFS4eaokrWZQGFU/s1600/DSC_0922.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1ZhZ7XKvLJPPrMn-5BYOb6JOM-Fe-1al1Un1gQavviOw_7N6FwX2Z_ppCFMcAUpnuPC7vhGD0h9HlVEnflVhw2jA2CIW5ImHkhlOBMEIDjYbfUuRuD48qrKXcGrl_sFS4eaokrWZQGFU/s320/DSC_0922.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm ready for something...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTkOMm8JaKF0dxmr6vP8IIlpqQFi86yYX1c7Sp3RainisenzkHBZqyFY74Oyf_COTSMqnWw2qH3woDk9C8rhiJi-D7jJtpiMK4iJzcXGUNvHy2JKgEBKlwaalNW7l5VB_tTQMTB54l1ug/s1600/DSC_0923.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTkOMm8JaKF0dxmr6vP8IIlpqQFi86yYX1c7Sp3RainisenzkHBZqyFY74Oyf_COTSMqnWw2qH3woDk9C8rhiJi-D7jJtpiMK4iJzcXGUNvHy2JKgEBKlwaalNW7l5VB_tTQMTB54l1ug/s320/DSC_0923.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I don't know about this, Mom...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIK6ySWhpdAffScsIOHxf0JfdSYWgJ7c51uRpwPymGoo0v52iwkR95yvJRYZv8WLLUK1ZPrYyMkzoaqDH6aSL47JSege2jirb43AraIiqaSscJlZtYJWy3pzv1DwJSsf5tXqLrL5Vwow8/s1600/DSC_0924.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIK6ySWhpdAffScsIOHxf0JfdSYWgJ7c51uRpwPymGoo0v52iwkR95yvJRYZv8WLLUK1ZPrYyMkzoaqDH6aSL47JSege2jirb43AraIiqaSscJlZtYJWy3pzv1DwJSsf5tXqLrL5Vwow8/s320/DSC_0924.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Are you sure I'm supposed to put it in my mouth?</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLKwmVRuDazUwviDo1mxN8hlnKcQSHRntzQ6waMlY0APnF_s-slHvnwkr63ldr49qwwEi57tNV39-iG2QpZLdjWXe5KfH56Hrn9nu7HW9n3YAcxRpqZ-Ho0dVnwTcxvSK0iynSvct7mlM/s1600/DSC_0926.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLKwmVRuDazUwviDo1mxN8hlnKcQSHRntzQ6waMlY0APnF_s-slHvnwkr63ldr49qwwEi57tNV39-iG2QpZLdjWXe5KfH56Hrn9nu7HW9n3YAcxRpqZ-Ho0dVnwTcxvSK0iynSvct7mlM/s320/DSC_0926.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Now, I'm getting the idea...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTk0ZqE0_hgYuDflJJYUPK55x3nH66shEmaZHS6NaEB2HFa23yg8_Hr09i9M-txsHS_vv236zWRMWHmmbPY5o_uxtu_OIhhlli3exSzLghOe7DoehaKH8RWnAmW2BesAv84OdYKlKX5sg/s1600/DSC_0927.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTk0ZqE0_hgYuDflJJYUPK55x3nH66shEmaZHS6NaEB2HFa23yg8_Hr09i9M-txsHS_vv236zWRMWHmmbPY5o_uxtu_OIhhlli3exSzLghOe7DoehaKH8RWnAmW2BesAv84OdYKlKX5sg/s320/DSC_0927.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This stuff is pretty good!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4rkZvJ6aJAETWGJyq_8CipT1WC91wAgNYmiTTaQ-KFAO9PMpYiVgmut1WB0XvLS6MNDheFLd2mImh8s1YDXl-bR8dbOC14AqGS3i-js9gmLEyfzlGIQKe3RF623uqxcAomP0hPF6MknU/s1600/DSC_0928.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4rkZvJ6aJAETWGJyq_8CipT1WC91wAgNYmiTTaQ-KFAO9PMpYiVgmut1WB0XvLS6MNDheFLd2mImh8s1YDXl-bR8dbOC14AqGS3i-js9gmLEyfzlGIQKe3RF623uqxcAomP0hPF6MknU/s320/DSC_0928.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">What? No more???</td></tr>
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She was definitely NOT satisfied with the recommended serving size for baby's first feeding, so I gave her another portion and even then she was still acting hungry. I think we have a good eater on our hands!!The Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981738642729459880.post-47646176833115099792013-06-14T12:25:00.002-07:002013-06-14T12:34:17.566-07:00We Bought a House!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGndogQ6AeINjmvWObVI4zKFRLUsK-KHRT4spCAJRTfJUyKNuaBavi2yo7xhNlAo_r4s6r-j3iQqg7-pW-mfHIBUHMfA_HzSJkPKXJZVM2utJhaaLjmCqV_g7dmCRq7MefujLfMoQg1gc/s1600/DSC_0864.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGndogQ6AeINjmvWObVI4zKFRLUsK-KHRT4spCAJRTfJUyKNuaBavi2yo7xhNlAo_r4s6r-j3iQqg7-pW-mfHIBUHMfA_HzSJkPKXJZVM2utJhaaLjmCqV_g7dmCRq7MefujLfMoQg1gc/s320/DSC_0864.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
After several months of searching, going out at least once a week with the realtor to look at houses, we thought we had found our house. We put an offer on it... and were beat out by another offer. I was pretty upset and was starting to lose hope that we would find a house. However, Stephen reminded me that this is what has often happened in our lives. We have minor setbacks (which always seem major at the time) followed by God's abundant provision, and that this time would be no different. He has always been faithful to provide for our family and would continue to do so. I knew Stephen was right, but was still struggling with a deadline of looking for houses to buy and not finding any prospects. About a week later, our realtor texted me about a new house that would be coming on the market the following day. We looked it up and saw that it was in a neighborhood we liked and told him we wanted to schedule a showing that next morning. We didn't know much about the house, but we walked in the door the following morning and knew. We walked through and told the realtor we wanted to put an offer on it. We knew that this 2100 sq. ft. 4 bed/2.5 bath, with an office, screened in back porch, and garage would not stay on the market long, so we submitted our offer that same day and they accepted! The bathrooms and kitchens need to be updated, but we are excited (and overwhelmed!) that we get to be the ones to make the design choices. God is good and we are grateful! The Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981738642729459880.post-51818938667285632272013-06-06T18:45:00.000-07:002013-06-06T18:45:14.496-07:005 Months Old!Our lives were changed and made so much better on January 6, 2013 when Rebekah Joy was born, and each day it just gets better. Like her name, she truly is a joy.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDbrZoKhmA6qT-G8thJiW7HvcoOAEbggAz3Bh5hqwi5q9j5rQ9-bnWwnEHIoe5sptrv1PgLxIH3B8Mg1RJPF4lz7l3Y-dRrl8kmQWKfhxTeIdVTz-HZx5x804fxIYTh-ZgVB-9m7lAwJ0/s1600/DSC_0729.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDbrZoKhmA6qT-G8thJiW7HvcoOAEbggAz3Bh5hqwi5q9j5rQ9-bnWwnEHIoe5sptrv1PgLxIH3B8Mg1RJPF4lz7l3Y-dRrl8kmQWKfhxTeIdVTz-HZx5x804fxIYTh-ZgVB-9m7lAwJ0/s320/DSC_0729.JPG" width="213" /></a></div>
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A little bit about Rebekah at 5 months old: she is very sweet and loves to snuggle and be talked to. She likes music, especially mommy singing. Rebekah does NOT like for strangers to hold her. She will tolerate it for a little while, as long as mommy is in view, but after a little while, seeing mommy isn't enough. She gets the saddest, pouty face and cries until she is given back to mommy. I know it's sad for her, but it's one of the best feelings in the world for me. To know that my child recognizes me and wants me over others is amazing. It's something we never really experienced with Leah, so it's very new for us. Rebekah has had some big things happen this month, I'll share them (in no particular order) through pictures:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhyphenhyphen1wlRWsNhYRSLi-dWhJUS9wG-YY-0cs5DgvGIjB1NsccKpeVYzNiwURxKGpzEsGdy1gMOEqDcdMMu5yLRCvzkUjpm-WD20a9Jw2dIXiVa6w9_tGD2AvKjR6Rhi-wPNpp_n0j7WQaM5o/s1600/DSC_0716.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhyphenhyphen1wlRWsNhYRSLi-dWhJUS9wG-YY-0cs5DgvGIjB1NsccKpeVYzNiwURxKGpzEsGdy1gMOEqDcdMMu5yLRCvzkUjpm-WD20a9Jw2dIXiVa6w9_tGD2AvKjR6Rhi-wPNpp_n0j7WQaM5o/s320/DSC_0716.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rebekah got her first tooth! The other one is on it's way, I can see the white under her gums. (click on the picture for a zoomed in view)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizYgee2j3UbyH6zZgoIkjmZdLXObq56zZme4WXiN0fGj5ShmmqabeufvyvL4B48F_JB_Mq85vXjZPfg30414nqLbnFk2YYkRDDJvvC_hwELTb4hkTz5_VxvcT4eElfW4F3_lcxqgo0JFg/s1600/DSC_0722.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizYgee2j3UbyH6zZgoIkjmZdLXObq56zZme4WXiN0fGj5ShmmqabeufvyvL4B48F_JB_Mq85vXjZPfg30414nqLbnFk2YYkRDDJvvC_hwELTb4hkTz5_VxvcT4eElfW4F3_lcxqgo0JFg/s320/DSC_0722.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rebekah is getting a little too big for her cradle! She is getting bigger and bigger and we are about to make the transition to crib so that she can have space to stretch out.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCRvhIRW7zWJ1ZbYfno61qbe6JRu1lkYbHCLvPMjdNT-r_B8lkdPmwut1vZD4vUiROZON8_E8cGioatn-NDHEmLvpQfTI76UYRt9uRE37pf7JKQDwgu_mppAlmWjtBdVQLmJgQPZC4870/s1600/DSC_0740.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCRvhIRW7zWJ1ZbYfno61qbe6JRu1lkYbHCLvPMjdNT-r_B8lkdPmwut1vZD4vUiROZON8_E8cGioatn-NDHEmLvpQfTI76UYRt9uRE37pf7JKQDwgu_mppAlmWjtBdVQLmJgQPZC4870/s320/DSC_0740.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rebekah really wants to go! When she is on her tummy, she lifts up the lower half of her body and gets her legs going in a crawling motion. If only she could figure out how to get both halves of her body up, she would be gone!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2XKgy7ss1JGDeDC3YxREaeGt9x8OdvrewzsJ3ZTbEAz9iPHGEX8u83sWuNcrG5GrhjHb7jHRAVBkHiOMXQMk6jd3a7WhMxRbZRJ3-KUJzRF826BrUvBttOfGvEP-U6p5QO5Z25M9I2Sc/s1600/DSC_0628.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2XKgy7ss1JGDeDC3YxREaeGt9x8OdvrewzsJ3ZTbEAz9iPHGEX8u83sWuNcrG5GrhjHb7jHRAVBkHiOMXQMk6jd3a7WhMxRbZRJ3-KUJzRF826BrUvBttOfGvEP-U6p5QO5Z25M9I2Sc/s320/DSC_0628.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rebekah is sitting up... kind of! When she is in a reclining position, she curls up into a sitting position and can hold it for a good while. This picture was taken the first time it happened. She was sitting in the bouncy seat on the table while Leah and I were eating dinner one night. One second she was leaning back and the next she was upright watching us eat, wondering where her dinner was!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2N13rF70s1UpfSK4y3LPW69GverZwmELwbY9v7PEc5EZtRj_hiq7DH3T5nEL5OA4qWsB5yEnCSzN1fm29ylYfNjE1VVMYF8Y_nOy5ayB1g9_nXBL3JOkQWPMDjl1IVZR_FNJJFty4OTk/s1600/DSC_0632.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2N13rF70s1UpfSK4y3LPW69GverZwmELwbY9v7PEc5EZtRj_hiq7DH3T5nEL5OA4qWsB5yEnCSzN1fm29ylYfNjE1VVMYF8Y_nOy5ayB1g9_nXBL3JOkQWPMDjl1IVZR_FNJJFty4OTk/s320/DSC_0632.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rebekah finally found her feet! Sometimes she chews on them, but she still prefers her hands and fingers. </td></tr>
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We love our bunny and are excited for the changes to come in the next month!The Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981738642729459880.post-51942813435436970632013-06-02T18:16:00.003-07:002013-06-02T18:16:56.631-07:00The DaredevilI was doing dishes last week, while Leah was playing on the couch. I turned around to look in the living room to check on her and this is what I found...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcORCvsVaFEy_SdoMWSkycVmaqGXHTVf1SwTdWqdWxuU5Usgwe4WcMUmtN4dkXXAeRLxHhCu3N3ZAFg_gYN7LBo5-mEl1PITHwx9qzkJR0fZXU2J0YUFhqGf4Y6zoy-94ko2u1FRcdUZo/s1600/DSC_0637.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcORCvsVaFEy_SdoMWSkycVmaqGXHTVf1SwTdWqdWxuU5Usgwe4WcMUmtN4dkXXAeRLxHhCu3N3ZAFg_gYN7LBo5-mEl1PITHwx9qzkJR0fZXU2J0YUFhqGf4Y6zoy-94ko2u1FRcdUZo/s320/DSC_0637.JPG" width="213" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTNlor56SMii4n9BXzrtGLSPahNzBCZaVFNOaYiuP54LgreM4_YOQsn8XRRgc4wgJ9QzUN0vhGqH15N9sp5fY1wpDUY6KqCaSvE-RGkVp-4gN8QKUpNsn1-YVo45dNs84LYUdJMmAX2RU/s1600/DSC_0639.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTNlor56SMii4n9BXzrtGLSPahNzBCZaVFNOaYiuP54LgreM4_YOQsn8XRRgc4wgJ9QzUN0vhGqH15N9sp5fY1wpDUY6KqCaSvE-RGkVp-4gN8QKUpNsn1-YVo45dNs84LYUdJMmAX2RU/s320/DSC_0639.JPG" width="213" /></a> </div>
I can't blame her, how else is she going to mess with the blinds that I very inconveniently put up so high, unless she stands on the couch?! The Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981738642729459880.post-12878006298346317622013-06-02T18:10:00.002-07:002013-06-02T18:10:15.681-07:00Sister LoveWe are so happy to see Leah not only acknowledging Rebekah's presence, but seeking her out. Leah has started saying "Baby Bekah" likes to hold "Baby Bekah hand" (See the video Stephen posted on FB). If Rebekah cries, Leah starts saying her name. Leah loves to touch Rebekah, to feel her hands, feet, face. And she is very gentle with her (thank goodness). And Rebekah loves Leah. She watches her intently, and as soon as Leah holds Baby Bekah's hand, Rebekah is trying to bring it to her mouth to chew on it. Rebekah also really loves to grab big sister's hair. Poor Leah! I pray that these two girls will truly grow to love each other, to become best friends, always looking out for each other, and that they will be an example to others of accepting others' differences. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQQgpKju6tiBPf9UFBj_OmXwSodSPOW3H3EBZFvW9ZS8r7b4anHjpbAkowCz8juy4q5ctQxTnbTvyJi0TZ00WO-t6yo6bg4Rx0MlQSGTpAEpOWqR4EGE8LB0Fu_0qQOnN5apZetEXLG8I/s1600/DSC_0622.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQQgpKju6tiBPf9UFBj_OmXwSodSPOW3H3EBZFvW9ZS8r7b4anHjpbAkowCz8juy4q5ctQxTnbTvyJi0TZ00WO-t6yo6bg4Rx0MlQSGTpAEpOWqR4EGE8LB0Fu_0qQOnN5apZetEXLG8I/s320/DSC_0622.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Holding "Baby Bekah hand"</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj2Fz8BixBKzqWNDV_AZJsRuI7-xKBAZPCguorbDMNPSaSgzw2ycqG_S3fkeWFj43FAXDmy5_sXgnZrDF2hN28tvetP-LuC1o0HNet1FOCRngrWYCEKEIiOGVXs7tSa5DvyXuFAJeq_ro/s1600/DSC_0625.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj2Fz8BixBKzqWNDV_AZJsRuI7-xKBAZPCguorbDMNPSaSgzw2ycqG_S3fkeWFj43FAXDmy5_sXgnZrDF2hN28tvetP-LuC1o0HNet1FOCRngrWYCEKEIiOGVXs7tSa5DvyXuFAJeq_ro/s320/DSC_0625.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tickle toes!</td></tr>
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<br />The Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981738642729459880.post-90887349216279968132013-06-02T18:01:00.001-07:002013-06-02T18:01:32.549-07:00Mother's Day (a little late!)I totally forgot to blog about Mother's Day!! And this was an extra special one, too... Not only did I get to spend Mother's Day with my mom, it was also my first as a mom to 2 children. And, Rebekah was dedicated on Mother's Day. Definitely blog-worthy!<br />
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First, let me say how much I love my mom. I am so thankful that God gave me to her. She is truly a selfless person, always willing to go, do, give, whatever you need. I always know I can rely on her when I'm in need. She's sweet and fun to be around, too. I don't think there's anyone who doesn't love my mom, and I'm the lucky one who gets to call her mom. Thank you Lord for my mom.<br />
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I am doubly blessed because I also have a mother-in-law who I love very much as well. She is also a giving person, with one of the biggest servant's hearts. She is extremely proud of, loyal to, and protective of each member of her family. She is almost always thinking of one of us and how she can help to make our lives a little easier.<br />
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I have a lot to learn from my two special moms and I pray that God gives me MANY years to learn from and love them.<br />
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This was also my first Mother's Day as a mom to two children and it was a special one. We dedicated Rebekah to the Lord and promised to do our best to provide her with a home where the Gospel is lived out in the hopes that someday she will come to know Jesus as her savior. I know that any other mother's of multiple children already know this truth, but it is amazing how God created our hearts to be so filled with love for our first child and then miraculously our hearts expand to include love for another child. And somehow, the love isn't divided between the two, but rather multiplied. It's amazing to think that you can love more than one person so deeply. I feel so blessed to have these 2 precious girls to call my own. <br />
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<br />The Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981738642729459880.post-73579053932332661752013-05-11T19:00:00.002-07:002013-05-11T19:00:56.413-07:00Fun at the BeachNana and Grandpa are here for a visit, so we went to Virginia Beach this morning. We had fun playing at the park on the beach, walking on the boardwalk, and seeing some monster trucks.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Big girl all by herself on the playground equipment</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fun on the curvy slide</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Surfer girl</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Walking with Grandpa and Nana on the boardwalk</td></tr>
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The Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981738642729459880.post-28884724104331727182013-05-07T07:12:00.003-07:002013-05-07T07:15:31.496-07:00She did it!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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She finally rolled over! She was playing on her mat and trying so hard to do it. Stephen and I were on the floor with her, encouraging her, but she just couldn't figure out how to get her arm down so that she could roll over it. We gave up and walked away, and I looked back a second later and there she was. What a big girl!!<br />
<br />The Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981738642729459880.post-86832998602189989672013-05-06T19:45:00.001-07:002013-05-06T19:45:19.417-07:004 Months Old!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Rebekah is four months old! Our sweet blue-eyed girl is getting so big! We go for her check up later this week, so I don't have her stats yet. But, look at those chubby cheeks, and you can tell that she's doing just fine! </div>
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There are many things to share about our precious Rebekah Joy:<br />
- Rebekah is a VERY content child. She hardly ever cries, usually only when waking up to let us know she is ready to get up. And when we go to get her, we are always greeted with a great big smile. Her cries are hardly even cries, they are more of whines. Anytime people meet Rebekah, they always tell us how good she is. We know we are very fortunate and are just enjoying having such a pleasant little girl.<br />
- Rebekah has started to enjoy playing games. She likes to play Pat-a-cake and How big is baby Bekah?, but her favorite game is peek-a-boo. She just giggles when we play. It's a surefire way to make her happy if she is ever unhappy (which happens, maybe once a day).<br />
- Rebekah almost always has her fingers, fist, or any part of her hand/arm, she can get to her mouth in her mouth. I think she's going to be a finger sucker (not a thumb sucker).<br />
- Rebekah is still not rolling over yet (from back to tummy), but she's pretty close. I don't think she really wants to roll over, though, so I think that's why she hasn't done it yet. As far as rolling from tummy to back, she's not even close. When she's on her tummy, she's really good at holding her head up and looking around. She doesn't want to be on her tummy, but she thinks that she's going to be able to get off her tummy by arching her back and it hasn't worked yet. Honestly, her biggest priority in life is to figure out how to sit up. I am constantly telling her to relax because if she is propped up, she leans forward and falls face first and if she is laying down, she arches her back trying to get herself up. She can't just lay down. She is also a wiggle worm and is really good at using her feet to turn and scoot.<br />
- Rebekah has started to really make noise. She does a happy little yell, testing out her voice. Sometimes it's not so little, but it's always happy! Sometimes we like to have conversations, she's learning about turn-taking!<br />
- Rebekah is really getting into a good routine. She is taking three good naps during the day and most nights is only getting up once around 2:00 to nurse. She gets up around 6:00, but will usually go back to sleep for another hour after nursing, but I don't count that as a time of her "getting up". I just say thank you and go back to sleep too! :)<br />
We love our little bundle and are so thankful that God gave her to us. <br />
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<br />The Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981738642729459880.post-30462570849406325612013-04-27T14:31:00.000-07:002013-04-27T14:31:31.071-07:00Virginia Zoological ParkI've been looking into some of the fun kids things to do around Norfolk in preparation for the summer (and no school for Leah). There is a botanical garden with a children's garden complete with splash area (yes, we will be going there!), a great children's museum, and a zoo. I found out that the zoo gives free admission to people with disabilities and a companion. And Rebekah is free until she is 2, so we are able to go to the zoo as a family for the price of one adult admission. What a deal! We decided to check it out today, since it's such a beautiful day here. It's a great little zoo. Leah seemed to enjoy herself, and we are looking forward to Rebekah getting to be a little older so she will enjoy it more, too.
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leah and Daddy in front of the giraffe</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daddy and his girls (and an elephant)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beware!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mommy and Rebekah</td></tr>
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The Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981738642729459880.post-31374047610620274682013-04-27T12:08:00.001-07:002013-04-27T12:08:34.323-07:00Leah's LeapsWe haven't done a Leah's Leaps entry in a while. Sometimes, I hesitate to report on Leah's gains, because she tends to make gains and then revert. It's hard to share something she has done knowing that she may not be doing it tomorrow. With that being said, Leah is making progress all the time. We are so proud of her and how she has flourished since being in Norfolk. We are grateful for God's faithfulness to us. He knew what He was doing when he provided this opportunity for us here! So, onto the leaps:<br />
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Leah gets into her carseat by herself (and climbs into the car by herself)! I had her start working on this before Rebekah was born so I didn't have to lift her up while pregnant. If you lead her to the door, she'll climb up and into her seat, she tries to get her arm straps around her and pulls the buckle out from under her for you to buckle her. She even says, "buckle". Recently, I forgot to buckle her, and she grabbed my hand and put it to the buckle. Not only smart, she's safe, too!<br />
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Leah walked holding hands with her cousin! It was truly a moment of hope fulfilled. Not necessarily that Leah would
walk without an adult, but that Leah would walk with a friend. Even
thinking about it now, it brings tears to my eyes. As a parent of a
child with special needs you look at the "normal" moments in life differently. Making a friend and going for a walk are wonderful milestones in a typically developing child, but in a child with special needs, it is a monumental occasion. We have prayed for a moment like that. We have worried and fretted, wondering what things Leah would do in her life and have had to turn those fears over to the Lord. Praise God that He cares for us enough to take our fears and give us even the smallest of desires, like watching our child walk with another child.<br />
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Leah walked up the stairs to the front door by herself! I walked her to them, led her to the railing and she just started walking up the steps before I could even grab her hand to help her. So, I just let her go, and up she went (6 steps).<br />
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Leah is saying words and phrases! You can often hear her repeating things we have said, but she also has things that she frequently says: "Bekah", "Leah", "change your diaper", "up the stairs", "brush"(hairbrush), "buckle" (seatbelt), "bus", "strawberry", "more", "done", "go". I'm sure there are more, but those are all I can think of right now. Still no "Mama" or "Dada", but we are hopeful!<br />
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Leah helps put on and take off her clothes! She's good at taking off all of her clothes (with a little help starting) and shoes. She will put her arms through her sleeves and pull a shirt down. She even tries to get her shoes on her feet and has been successful a time or two! We're still working on pulling pants up, but I think that will get easier when she starts standing independently. <br />
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Leah has started using utensils to feed herself! She will hold a fork or spoon (which was a big battle!) and is getting very good at finding her mouth without losing food! She needs help stabbing and scooping, but it is sure helpful to have her doing anything! She is also drinking from all straws now! For a very long time, she has been unwilling to drink from anything other than soft, rubbery straws. This means we have ALWAYS had to have a sippy cup for Leah, whether we are going to a friend's house or to a restaurant. Now, it's not the end of the world if we forget her sippy cup!<br />
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Leah has been using the potty! I bought a potty a few months ago, mostly as a stool for me to sit on during bath time while I was pregnant. When I got it, I tried having Leah sit on it, and she was not at all interested in even sitting on it, much less doing anything else. So, after her birthday, we decided to try it again. This time, when we tried, we made sure we had books and toys ready to distract her. She was much more willing to sit and even went. We got her a potty that plays music when it's used, and when we heard that music, we were all shocked! Leah jumped and Stephen and I got very excited! Since then, she has been very willing and will go almost every time we sit her on it (as long as we catch her before she goes in her diaper!).<br />
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We are so proud of our girl and can't believe all she is doing now! Leap Leah, Leap!The Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981738642729459880.post-84605487558233813582013-04-27T11:09:00.000-07:002013-04-27T11:09:03.663-07:00Leah is Four Years Old!It's hard to believe Baby Leah is now Big Girl Leah - 4 years old! This child has been through more in her first 4 years of life than most people go through in their entire lives. And through it all, she is one of the happiest children I know. Her joy for life has made walking through all of the trials with her so much easier. We are so grateful to God for blessing us with this special little girl. Our Leah girl has made so much progress in the past 9 months since we moved to Norfolk. With every gain she makes, our hope is increased for her future. She is so much more "in the world" than she used to be. There are many Leah Leaps to share, but that will be in the next post! For now, I will share a little about Leah, the four year old. Leah loves to laugh and sing. She wakes up every morning with both. There are a few words and phrases she likes to say or hear said, that just make her giggle. Leah actually has at least 4 different laughs: she has a muppet laugh, a count chocula laugh, a squeal and cackle laugh, and a forced fake laugh that usually turns into real laughter because she just loves to laugh so much. Leah also knows the melody to 7 hymns now, as well as other praise songs and children's songs. All in all, I would say she knows close to 30 different songs. The interesting thing is, she doesn't just know the melody, she knows how many verses, too. For instance, if you ask her to sing Amazing Grace (and she is willing enough to do it), she will sing through the melody 4 times before stopping. She's pretty talented! She is still an extremely picky eater, which gives me endless amounts of worry over her health. She is definitely a salty snack lover, though. If she could, she would live off of crackers and chips. However, there is one sweet thing that she does love - Lucky Charms cereal. Only, she has to eat it dry, no milk. She eats it almost every single morning for breakfast. She also loves most fruit, so she is getting something healthy in her diet everyday! Leah loves to go to school. Not only does she love being there, she loves the going part. She has been riding the school bus since December and looks forward to it every morning. The weekends are hard for Leah, because she doesn't get to go. In addition to her therapists at school, Leah started working with a speech therapist and occupational therapist at the children's hospital in February and has already made so much progress with them. The last thing I will share about 4 year old Leah, is her new relationship with her sister. She is definitely aware of Rebekah, knows her name, and even says "Bekah" occasionally. She also likes to hold Rebekah's hand and tickle her toes. She still doesn't really like it when Rebekah touches her though. She wants to be the one to initiate contact. And we are just fine with that!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Happy BIRTHday!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLtqJO-i0bwJBqnvZjRQDrKaC8gD68jzNZeL1xKPpH_5q99okvKJ_ryi1mypDVf0ASZl_XYuMkoSJcayNlG2e98s2WNR-2_GkvZHWbSUqKulheWdTMdR8KtA0OAWAlcG95A_-P6NXHMIA/s1600/IMG_3708.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLtqJO-i0bwJBqnvZjRQDrKaC8gD68jzNZeL1xKPpH_5q99okvKJ_ryi1mypDVf0ASZl_XYuMkoSJcayNlG2e98s2WNR-2_GkvZHWbSUqKulheWdTMdR8KtA0OAWAlcG95A_-P6NXHMIA/s1600/IMG_3708.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Happy FIRST Birthday!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Happy SECOND Birthday!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Happy THIRD Birthday!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Happy FOURTH Birthday!</td></tr>
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This year, for Leah's birthday, we decided to have a birthday party with a theme, and even invite a couple of friends (aside from some of her cousins). I had great plans for an outdoor party with a beach theme, but a rainy cold front decided to come through Friday night and Saturday morning, so it wasn't as elaborate as I had hoped. Oh well, maybe next year! We did have a few beach things, including: beach ball bowling in the hallway, a buried treasure dig in the sand and water table, leis for all the kids, life preservers and pool noodles (life savers and twizzlers) for snacks, and a beachy cookie cake. The kids seemed to have a good time, and Leah especially seemed to love her party. It was almost as if she knew that the party was for her. She even enjoyed opening presents. We decided to put all of her presents in gift bags and she did very good with reaching in and pulling items out. It's always so special to celebrate Leah's birthday, to think about the ways our lives have changed since she was born and how blessed we are to be the parents of Leah Rose Burgin.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leah's special friend, June, came. Almost all of the kids had a great time digging in the colorful sand...</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Except Leah, who was much happier sliding!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The cousins (And Rebekah) wanted to help blow out the candles. Leah was very happy to oblige!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The cookie cake decorated with M&Ms like the beach</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Enjoying some cookie cake!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Opening presents</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Skyping with Grandma and Grandpa Burgin from Costa Rica</td></tr>
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Thank you to everyone who made Leah's birthday special. We only wish all of Leah's family could have been here with us. Maybe next year!
The Burgin Bunchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13186489183775847092noreply@blogger.com0