My Plans are All Coming Together

• Step 1: Have adorable baby.
• Step 2: Find worthy steed.
• Step 3: Take over world with puppy-mounted baby army.

Greeting Great-Grandfathers

Bergscribble followers (if we still have any after such a long silence?) may have noted a pause in posts that coincided -- not coincidentally -- with my return to research from maternity leave in September. Sorry for the shortage of cute Phil photos! I'm hoping to squeeze in a few more posts around the edges of a very busy fall (back-dated to the events they described to keep everything neat and tidy, of course).

At the end of the summer we made two special long-distance trips with Phil to meet his great-grandparents, after taking him hardly more than 20 minutes away from home since his birth. Thankfully, he proved himself a good little traveler, so long as we abided by his requests for milk stops. (Promptly!)

In late August, we drove up to Middlebury, Vermont, to introduce Phil to his Great-Grandpa (my paternal grandfather), then in early September we visited Ithaca, New York, for Phil to meet his Great-Granddaddy (my maternal grandfather). He also had a grand time with his great-aunts Hannah, Cilla, and Janet, and great-uncles Daryl and Jon.

To view our trip albums, click on these four-generational family photos:

Phil's First Swim!

In late August Phil discovered swimming! He loves bathtime, so his Nana and I bought him a batch of swim diapers and took him down to the tot pool for our community to take a dip (without getting his head underwater). He smiled, cooed, and stayed afloat! He went for 8 more swims before our pool closed for the fall...can't wait for next summer!

About to take the plunge!	Testing out the water
Kick! Kick! Kick!	In his adorable puppy robe (from Tim & Angelita)
Cuddling with Nana	In his carseat for the walk home

A Few Faces of Phil

Here's a little slideshow of our wriggly, squirmy, bouncy bundle of joy, taken on his two-month birthday (in the span of about three minutes). He truly is an active little fellow! (Or maybe we should say "big fellow," as he weighed in at 14 lb 10 oz later that day...) He hasn't yet "found" his hands and feet (in the sense of knowing they're his to control), but that doesn't stop him from waving them about when playing, eating, or even sleeping -- thank goodness for swaddling blankets or he'd wake himself up all the time!

Fifth Anniversary!

August 6th, 2005

You are my best friend, my companion, and my partner in life. With a joyful heart I give myself to you to be your wife/husband from this day forward. Before God, our friends, and our families, I promise to cherish you, comfort you, trust you, and care for you through joys and sorrows, sickness and health, calm and chaos, in all the changing seasons of our lives together. I will encourage you, laugh with you, cry with you, listen to you, and speak the truth to you in love. You have taught me so much, and I commit to continue growing with you in faith, wisdom, and love. By the grace of God and with the help of those gathered here today, I will be faithful to you and to these promises for as long as we both shall live.

August 6th, 2010

On August 6th, 2005, Hilary and I were married. It's hard to believe that it's been five years already! Our friends were kind enough to babysit for us while we had our first real "date night" since Phil came along. (Thanks, Bill and Jenny!) We managed to squeeze in a quick dinner, a movie, and a trip to Starbucks to reminisce about the past five wonderful years!

Phil's Dedication to the Lord

On July 18, 2010, at Princeton Alliance Church, we formally dedicated Phil to the Lord, acknowledging that children are a gift from God and committing to do our best to exemplify the love of Christ for him.

We were thankful to be joined by many friends and family, including several not pictured (Ann Marie Russell and Mike LaRiccia, David and Christina Keddie, Valerie and James Taylor, and Erik Granstedt).

(Click either image for more photos...)

Phil's First Playdate

June 10th was a banner day for visitors: Lu Lu and Charles Lee came up from Maryland, and Ann Marie and Mike brought their son Mikey (7.5 weeks older than Phil) along. The boys didn't really know what to make of each other, but seemed to get along well...

Cousin Edie Comes A-Calling

Phil's adoring cousin once removed (ACOR) Edie Burbank-Schmitt paid Phil a visit on June 8th. Once he woke up, he was very excited about his new playmate!

Fun(ny) Times with Phil

Phil continues to delight us with adorable/hilarious facial expressions like the following.

He appears to enjoy tummy time (for as long as an hour if his Nana's involved!), even when his toys tackle him.

Tummy time is supposed to develop arm (and neck) strength -- here Steven gives him a helpful demo.

My First Father's Day

Little Phil arrived just in time to allow me to celebrate Father's Day in high style. Although he hadn't been around long yet, he'd already taught me a few key things about being a dad:

• Unintentional baby facial expressions are the best, rivaled only by unintentional baby gestures. For example, when he's sleeping, Phil likes to declare victory by raising a clenched fist.
• Parenting is much easier with two people.
• Moms are for feeding, but Dads are better for burping.
• Button-front baby clothing is awesome, especially when pooping is involved.
• Never, ever touch the walls at the pediatrician's office. You don't know who has peed on them before you arrived.