Christmas Letter

2009 Christmas Letter

Merry Christmas from the Bergstrom household! Wow, I can not believe another year has gone by...flown by! It has been a wonderful year filled with challenges and joys just like any other. Here is what has gone on in our lives in 2009

In March Sam stepped down from his job at Forever Granite. It was a step of faith, but we are so thankful we listened to the Lord and our hearts. Sam re-entered teaching for the rest of the school year and made a final decision that he would be done teaching for good. The summer and fall provided great jobs for Sam, one being an internship with our church on the worship team. Sam is in his element with this job. He loves playing guitar and has begun teaching guitar lessons as well. Sam is also now co-owner of PC Gauge Calibration West; a company he and a friend started which will take over PC Gauge Calibrations customers west of the Mississippi. It's an exciting, yet very busy time for Sam, but he is loving every minute of it.

If you have been following the blog you already know all about Søren. He is full of life these days and never slows down. He is really into cars, trucks and trains. He loves to help me cook and clean. Books are a must throughout the day and especially before bed. I am getting a glimpse of what it must be like to have a teenage boy because all Søren wants to do is to EAT! He is definitely a comedian and loves to laugh and dance. He shows his independence more and more each day and will be quick to remind me that he can do it! Søren isn't very affectionate, but that random "hugk", kiss or "wuv woo" just melts our hearts.

I am doing well, just trying to keep up with the boys. They definitely keep me on my toes. This last year I have fallen in love with photography all over again. I am working on making it a business and trying to take my time to do it right. I have focused on photographing families and children, but would love to dip my toes into the wedding industry. I have been involved in mom's group, 2 bible studies and a couples home group this fall and have loved what I have been learning about the Lord.

This Christmas season has been especially meaningful to me this year for some reason. I usually don't like Christmas songs and I tend to be a scrooge about the pagan aspect of Christmas. But this year the Lord has really been speaking to me through Christmas songs. Maybe that sounds silly, but i don't know how often I ever really stopped and listened to the lyrics. People around the world are singing the story of Jesus, even those that don't like to say Merry Christmas. :)

We hope you have a blessed holiday.

We are so thankful for all of you.

Merry Christmas!

22 months!

Two more posts and I won't be posting every month about Søren's life. Promise. That being said, I hope to make a blog scrapbook at some point. This has been a great reference and time of reflection for me.

Søren has had another explosion of language these last two weeks. He pretty much has a word for everything now, but I still feel like an interpreter most days. My new favorite word has to be "pinecone." It sounds something like "pi-koh-nuh-ha". He still says "la-bla-la-bla-la" for blueberry.

*He is really into lights. Its perfect with all of the homes decorated right now.

*He is starting to pretend play. He'll feed me cookies out of a book, cook with bowls and spatulas (he is currently making me a football sandwich.)

*He'll have little conversations as he's playing with his cars, trucks and trains.

*He kicks everything (except for people, thankfully.) 5 minutes ago I had to tell him to stop kicking the Christmas Tree. Maybe he'll be a soccer player like his mommy. :)

*He loves riding the "doo-der" (scooter) with grandpa.

*He is beginning to really show his independence. He'll tell me which clothes he wants to wear and what type of food he wants to eat.

*He has learned his shapes. Triangle, Square, Circle, Rectangle, Hexagon, Oval, Star and Heart. He'll point them all out to you. Maybe I shouldn't admit this, but I have my iPhone to thank for this one. I have an ap that teaches his shapes and gives him stickers.

*He's told me he's had to pee and then actually peed in the toilet. But, I think we're still a long way off from being completely potty-trained.

*He'll ask for a baby wipe and walk around a clean anything he thinks is dirty.

I think that's all for now.

Here is a video of Søren watching the Ellen show and singing along with the Opera Singer.

Holidays

We spent our Thanksgiving in Chicago at my brother's house. It was so great to have the whole family together, well we at least all overlapped long enough to get a Christmas card picture taken.

When we have not been in Chicago for Thanksgiving, tradition has been that we head up to the mountains to cut down our own christmas tree. The last two years we have gone to a U-cut tree farm. Not quite the same (especially price wise...mountain trees are much much cheaper).

Here are some pictures.

It snowed!

The infamous "Sam throwing Soren" in the air picture

Unlce Ethan taught Soren how to catch the ball

Intense piano playing

Yummy turkey!

Sarah's homemade rolls were SO good!

Grandpa reading to Soren

Sarah and Soren

At the Shedd Aquarium

Grandma and Soren

Just flippin' some eggs in the tent at the Aquarium