North Carolina Trip

This past weekend, we had the chance to take a last-minute trip to North Carolina to visit with our friends Bill and Alice as well as my relatives. Since our car is still up in Boston, we went ahead and got a rental car for the two-day trip. In addition to the better gas mileage that this Toyota Corolla got us, it was also nice to be able to have a car to show Caleb how to drive (see picture below). We left early Friday morning for Pisgah Forest, NC - where we met up with Bill and Alice and spent the day catching up and enjoying the surroundings. We got to see some cool waterfalls, go down natural rock slides (unfortunately Sharon wouldn't let me take Caleb), and drive the legendary Blue Ridge Parkway. After Bill and Alice returned to their brother's house in Tennessee, Sharon and I drove up to my Uncle Bob's house where we had dinner and a fun evening of fellowship.

As far as Caleb's development, in addition to learning how to drive, he also had his first teeth make its way through his gums. Although we will definitely miss the gummy smile - I think that the single toothed smile will soon be just as fun. This Saturday, we will be flying back to Boston where we will spend some time with our friends up there and also pick up our car. After our family vacation from Aug. 16-23, we will be making our way back down to the Atlanta area. Today's exciting news is that we put our first offer in on a house, so we may even be driving down to close on our first home. We'll keep you posted, but we're very excited about the possibility if the seller accepts our offer.

Bill, Alice, Sharon, and Caleb in front of Looking Glass Falls

In front of one of the beautiful views off the Blue Ridge Parkway (Look at Caleb's great skill in photography!)

Caleb practicing his driving before we returned the rental car

Projectile vomiting: one of the greatest joys of motherhood (as the "shrapnel" reached all the way down to her legs)

Me on the natural rock waterslide

House Hunting

I have a confession to make. Though I once mocked my wives obsession with HGTV (that is Home and Garden TV for those who are out of the loop) - I have now become the first person to turn to that station and see what show is on. Although my favorite show is obviously House Hunters - I've found myself intrigued with every show dealing with real estate now that we're looking for our own home. Needless to say the whole home search process is a bit overwhelming, but we're starting to narrow down possible options. Our situation is even a little more complex because we would want to find a place that could resell quickly since there is a good chance that we would only be in the area for 2 or 3 years. The good thing is that it is definitely a buyer's market now and that we have a good deal of options. We'll keep you posted on the search as we hope to have a home closed on by the end of August.

As far as how things are going with Caleb, we feel that he has finally adjusted to his new surroundings - which means that it is time for us to leave again :) He also had his 6 month checkup not too long ago and he came in at the 95th percentile for weight again and his length and head size is increasing in percentile also. He still seems like he is on the verge of crawling - but I have a feeling that he may be that way for a while. We're still hoping that he's able to crawl by the time we leave for the beach on August 16 - but I fear we may regret that when we're trying to keep tabs on him all over the beach house. He is such an active guy now so it is a little scary to think what it will be like when he starts crawling.

Finally, we wanted to use this post to pay a tribute to our favorite fast-food restaurant: Chick-Fil-A. During our time at Seminary, Sharon and I took advantage almost every week of the special "buy one meal, get one free offer" that they had for Seminary and college students. It was a fun and cheap date night for us and also was one less dinner that we had to worry about planning each week. Now, we're super excited to be living in the birthplace of Chick-Fil-A. Just last week, Chick-Fil-A had their "Cow Appreciation Day" festivities where they gave free value meals to everyone that dressed up as cows. Needless to say - Sharon and I couldn't miss it and we have pictures of our home-made cow "costume" below. I know it was a little weak, but I was pretty impressed with what Sharon came up with at the last minute.

Logan hugging/strangling :) his cousin Caleb

Close-up photo of the cousins - as Logan took to referring to Caleb as "my baby Caleb" during his visit

We LOVE Chick-Fil-A

Georgia on My Mind

Just in case you didn't realize it, "Georgia on My Mind" is the official state song of the great state of Georgia. Many of you may also have not realized it yet, but this is also the official song of the new home state for Sharon, Caleb, and I. Yes, after many months of wondering where we would end up - we found out last week that we have been given the opportunity to live in one of the last places that we expected: the Atlanta area. It turns out that Janz Team will be employing a decentralized office approach in the United States for the next few years and our supervisors suggested we look at setting up our home base in the Atlanta area. In addition to the possibilities for Janz Team to develop contacts in this area, we are also super excited to be so close to Sharon's family (and the free babysitting that comes along with that).

Although Sharon and I had known about this possibility since the end of May, we didn't dare mention a word of it to her family until it was a certainty. So, when we arrived in the Atlanta airport after orientation two weeks ago, we let them know about the turn of events. As they had expected that we would be moving to the Midwest, they were shocked and overjoyed (to say the least) about our new plans. We are also very excited because the Atlanta housing market actually gives us the possibility of owning our first home, and we are already in the midst of some pretty intense real estate research.

As far as Caleb, he is still continuing to grow and develop super quickly. He just had his 1/2 year birthday last Thursday and we feel he is on the verge of crawling - as he really is trying hard to do it recently. Over the past two weeks he has become even better at eating solid foods - and he sometimes even gets some of it in his mouth. His favorite so far is sweet potatoes, but he has also taken a liking to green beans - which he definitely didn't inherit from his father. Overall, he has been a pretty happy baby recently, which I somewhat hesitate to write since he hasn't really slept nearly as well after I blogged about him being a "super sleeper." If he starts being grumpy again, I'll have to cut off all positive compliments about him on the blog. Anyways, here are some pics showing our happy baby and his enthusiasm for eating.

Here is the big toothless grin we all love


Caleb also LOVES his carrots

A well-rested Caleb is a happy Caleb

Janz Team Orientation

In the last two weeks, we've had a whole lot of things going on in our lives, but it seems like things are finally starting to settle down for us. After finishing packing the POD and cleaning our apartment (which was much more work than what we thought it would be) on June 14 we then left for Janz Team Ministries' Orientation in Winnipeg the next morning. The week at Janz Team Orientation went really well - as it was great to be able to meet the 27 new Janz Team missionaries who will be heading overseas this fall. We really had an amazing group of people at orientation and it was a lot of fun to be able to meet them in person after having so many phone and email conversations with them over the past few months. It also reconfirmed my excitement about moving into my current position with Janz Team Ministries as Mobilization Coordinator - as it really is a blessing to be able to serve these new missionaries as they respond to the Lord's call on their lives.

After a very busy and tiring week in Winnipeg, we headed to the Atlanta area (where we will be the rest of the summer) on June 22. Overall Caleb did fairly well with the traveling and the new situations he has been in over the past weeks - although the teething pain he experienced on the flight to Atlanta sent him over the edge a bit. We were packed into one of those "mini-jets" that was completely full with high-strung passengers when Caleb decided about halfway through the flight that he was going to have a complete meltdown. I'm sure those of you who have flown with kids can relate - but Sharon and I experienced a profound moment of sheer panic where we doubted whether Caleb would stop wailing at any point before we arrived in Atlanta. Thankfully, we were able to calm him down by changing his "ultra blow-out diaper" and giving him some Tylenol for his teeth. After the past few weeks of craziness we were super excited to be able to set up camp at Sharon's parents and count on being in one place for a while. We are also looking forward to the July 4th weekend as Sharon's brothers Mark and Tom are bringing their kids so that all three Smith-Maynard grandkids will be together for the first time. Knowing Sharon's mom, I can guarantee that we will have tons of pictures from that time, so hopefully that will excuse our negligence in taking photos over the past two weeks.


Janz Team New Staff Orientation 2008


A VERY sleepy Caleb waving good-bye

Changes, Changes, Changes!

Since our life is defined by changes right now, I figured that our blog should also be receiving a makeover as well. I could probably try to make some deep spiritual metaphor about why we chose the lighthouse theme, but it really was just because I thought it looked cool. We still can't believe that we'll be moving out in two days, but the POD now parked outside of our apartment has helped make that deadline even more concrete in our minds. Caleb (well maybe Caleb's daddy also) was really excited to see the POD arrive on Wednesday morning but we're also a little sad as that is such a strong symbol that we really are moving after all. Over the past week or two, we've tried to say as many good-byes as possible while also packing as we go. It has been somewhat easier to know that we will be returning in August to pick up our car and say some more good-byes, but it also makes it hard because we don't' know for sure who will be around when we come back then.

As far as really important things (Caleb), things have been going pretty well. He is continuing to grow like a weed, as he should be passing the 20 pound mark in the next day or two. He is also starting to eat some rice cereal - but we don't really know what he thinks about that yet. Just recently, Caleb has started to roll over occasionally and he has also started to almost be able to sit-up on his own. We were hoping that he would be able to crawl by the time of the family vacation in August, but he still doesn't like to be on his tummy - so that might be a problem.

Yesterday, Caleb and his parents had a special treat as my parents were able to meet up with us on their way back from their trip to Ireland. They had a 5.5 hour layover in Boston, so we got a chance to pick them up at the airport, have some fun at a nearby park/beach, and have dinner together at Wendy's. It was great to see them again and hear about their trip to Ireland, as we may not be with them again until the beach in August.

As far as our summer plans, our POD will be completely loaded up by Saturday and then on Sunday we will be flying to Winnipeg for Janz Team Orientation. After that, we will be flying back to Atlanta, where we will be spending most of the summer with Sharon's parents. I officially started full-time with Janz Team as the Mobilization Coordinator, so I will be working at of an office that Sharon's parents are going to set up for me in their house. Then we're looking at returning to Massachusetts in the first week of August to pick up our car and say some more good-byes before driving down to New Jersey for Koerber family vacation. It will be great to be with family for the summer, but it will also be a little challenging to be living out of suitcases for the summer - especially since babies require so much stuff!

Caleb is looking quite stylish in his first cap.

Caleb and daddy make a mean bocci ball team...

...but he's a momma's boy at heart.

Wednesday was a busy day with the POD being delivered...

...and a short but sweet visit with Nama and Papap

Caleb's first experience with solids - although that mush doesn't look very "solid" to me

Graduation and Such

Well, you wouldn't know it from following our blog, but yes I did finally graduate two weeks ago on May 10. It was a great, yet very busy, time as my parents were able to make it up from Pennsylvania for the festivities. It was quite an honor to be able to have them with us for Mother's Day also, as we're starting to feel spoiled because they were also up here for Easter just a month before that. It may be that they're just really excited to spend some final time in the Boston area before we leave next month, but I also get the sense that they enjoy being around Caleb :) They also had a special treat as we had a last minute baby dedication for Caleb scheduled so that they could be there for it as well. We had wanted to have Caleb dedicated at Cape Ann, and we were so grateful that our pastor was willing to do the dedication on only one day's notice.

This graduation reminded me of the fact that this time is officially called commencement, as graduation marked a time of even greater busyness with Janz Team work. Although it is great that we have had so many applicants heading overseas this fall, it has also made things especially busy for me trying to keep up with them and have them move as quickly as possible through the application process. Coupled with the fact that we're also starting to pack up our stuff, these last few weeks are sure to be a whirlwind.

On the moving front, we are so excited to say that we did put down our order for a POD to be delivered on June 10th to our apartment, so that we can have it all packed and ready to be picked up by June 15th when we move out. Those of you who have yet to experience the wonder of the POD moving system should definitely check out their web site - as it is a quite ingenious way of doing things. It is especially convenient for us, since we don't know for sure where we will be going after here - so we can leave our stuff stored in the POD rather than having to unpack it at a storage center and then repack it when we move for good. Although it is a bit more expensive, it will save us the hassle of moving an extra time and having to drive a moving truck from Boston to wherever we end up. It is hard to believe we're already in the last few weeks of our time here, but we are looking forward to the future - and it will be especially good to spend a large chunk of the summer in Atlanta with Sharon's family. Since this may be one of our last blogs as the Boston Koerbers, we also realize that we will be shopping for a new blog title (maybe the nomadic Koerbers for now).


Caleb hanging out with Aunt Dawn during graduation


After graduation with my parents


After graduation with our Seminary friends Bill and Alice (and baby Knechtel)


Not only did I end up with a degree after three years - I also am leaving with a new baby!


Since Sharon carried me through seminary as my "Sugar Momma" I figured I should return the favor


Caleb at his dedication on Mother's Day

Mother's Day Preview

With graduation coming up this week, I'm wanting to make sure that Sharon's first Mother's Day as a mom doesn't get overlooked. With that in mind, I wanted to post a few pics and a video of Caleb with his mommy. Hopefully, Caleb will realize how blessed he is to have such a great mommy, as I'm hoping he buys her something really nice for her. Maybe that's a little too much to hope for, as I think Sharon would be pleased if he showed his appreciation by abstaining from spitting up on her on Mother's Day. I have yet to talk to Caleb to plan what we'll do for Mother's Day, but I'm really counting on something big from him.

Anyways, things have been going pretty good for me since I finished my last Seminary class on April 25th. I haven't had too much time to enjoy being done, as I've been quite busy working a part time job for a local scholarship foundation. After graduation on May 10th, I think that I'll start to shift into packing mode, as we will be moving out of our apartment on June 15th. It's so hard to believe that we're moving already; it seems like just yesterday when we were moving in. I guess we'll be leaving with a M. Div. degree and a baby, so once our job is finalized, we'll have achieved the Seminarian triple crown. Things with our job are becoming more certain and we should know in a week or two exactly where we will be. We're excited about what is next after Seminary, but we are also a little sad to be saying goodbye to a place and time of our lives that we both have really enjoyed.

If you have seen Sharon's baby pictures, you'll definitely spot the resemblance in this picture



Caleb is mesmerized by the camera

Caleb hugging his mommy

Caleb and mommy play time

Super Sleeper!

I almost feel like I'm going to jinx ourselves by writing this, but both Sharon and I have been amazed at how well Caleb has been sleeping at night lately. Over the last four or five days, he has gone for at least eight hours during the main stretch of the night, and he even went for over ten hours one night. Sharon is especially loving it as she got 7 hours of uninterrupted sleep for the first time in over six months. He is such a happier baby when he awakes in the morning after having such a good night of sleep and it has been so fun to hear him continue to babble on and on. He's really taken to making the high pitch squeals, and he even seems to try to imitate our words sometimes (or at least we delude ourselves into thinking he is doing that). He's also been growing like crazy, as he already weighs 17.2 pounds and is in the 95th percentile of weight for his age. Now if we could only get him to nap well, we'd be the happiest parents ever :) However, we're definitely glad that he is struggling with naps rather than night sleep, as it gives us (I mean Sharon) the patience to make it through the day and those crabby periods.

As far as a brief non-Caleb update, it is hard to believe, but I finish my last Seminary class this Friday afternoon. Our time has seemed to fly by here and we know that we will miss so many people when we leave. We definitely feel blessed to have this season in our lives and it has been awesome to look back and see how things with Sharon's jobs have worked at so well and we were able to stay involved in the missions world without going flat broke. Although we're excited about what God has next, I'm definitely feeling nostalgic already as I walk across campus and realize that I'm doing specific things for the last time. It's been a great three years, and I know that we will always look back on this time in our lives with fondness.


Look how BIG that guy is getting!


Caleb seems to be enjoying this book about as much as I did.


This is just a preview of one of the pictures from the photo shoot that our friend did of Caleb. Hopefully we'll have more pictures posted within a week when we get the CD of the pics from her.

Caleb's April Birthday greetings!

So, I finally caught Caleb talking and singing Happy Birthday yesterday to all you April Birthdays!!! (Especially in time for his Grandma's Birthday today!) However, Mike and I fought with the video for several hours before realizing that the video hates our blog and refuses to be posted. So I just put it on YouTube and you all can follow the link below to see Caleb's singing debut. We decided that he is going to be a talkative child like his father was as a boy. Hope you enjoy the video as much as we did!
http://www.youtube.com/v/45wODUZtn6M

Caleb's video montage

Since Caleb is not the most photogenic babies (actually he hates the camera) we've started taking more and more video clips of him. The good thing is that we actually see smiles from him now and it's also a more fun way to capture his personality and what he is learning. Anyways, following are a few brief video clips of the things that Caleb likes and dislikes.

The first thing that Caleb likes is...

"Boxing" with his ball that hangs from the "ocean wonders" playtime mat that his nama and papa bought for him. He can be entertained by this thing for long stretches and never grows tired of playing with his ball.



However, below is one thing Caleb does NOT like...

Shopping with the girls :( This video is a tribute to Grandpa (Sharon's dad) who would often fall asleep in the car while waiting on the girls to shop. Caleb has quickly learned that it is just better take a nap during shopping trips:)

The thing that Caleb likes to do most of all (as if he had any choice in the matter)...

...is play soccer! Yes our little prodigy is already starting on his foot skills as you can see below.