The Lake

Growing up in Lake Geneva, you would think that I would be a bit more of a fan of the oh-so-beautiful Lake, but alas I again prefer the pool!  Don't get me wrong, I LOVED growing up with the beauty that surrounded me, the boat rides across the lake for Cheese Fries at the Bait Shop in Fontana, fireworks over the water, walking the lake path, but as far as being IN the water I was never a huge fan.  I was never a great swimmer, and was a bit fearful of seaweed and the dead fish that were all to often floating there way towards me!  When I was little, I loved going down to the water with my girlfriends.  We would splash each other, fight over who would get to be Ariel while we played "Little Mermaid", and challenge one another in handstand contests.  The list of memories goes on and on, but somewhere around 8th grade, my silly, self-conscious self got in the way of my fun-loving self.  I then began worrying more about how I looked in my swimsuit, how white my legs were, the fact that I could barely get my yellow ribbon because of my lack in the swimming skills department.  I hated not being good at things, and instead of trying harder or just having fun, I avoided the lake as often as possible. 
Paul spent his summer's down by the water every day.  He was one of the "hardworking" lifeguard's at camp.  As mentioned in a previous post, he LOVES the water, especially Geneva Lake!  Every summer, he would plead with me to come visit him at the lake.  I would always give him false hope, and only on a few sporadic occasions did I actually indulge in an afternoon on the pier.  We spent time on the boat together, sometimes involving a competitive tubing adventure.  (Competitive only on my part, as per usual!)  He would spend his days in his swimsuit, acquiring a handsome, browned tan making his blue eyes all the more vivid, and I would spend mine roaming around camp, more than likely hunkered down on the canteen porch.  I always looked forward to free time coming to an end, because that meant the lakefront would close, and Paul would be coming up the hill in his red swim trunks, towel draped over his shoulder.  He always looked happy to see me, which I of course loved and very much felt the same way.

Lake Geneva will always be my "home".  It holds most of my memories, of not only my childhood, but of how Paul and I came to be husband and wife.  This past weekend we went up to celebrate my mom's 60th birthday and my parents 40th anniversary.  We threw her a surprise party on Sunday with some of her closest friends and family.  It was a great time celebrating such a wonderful woman and the best mom a girl could ask for; and the added bonus was celebrating the 40 years of wedded bliss, and the Godly example they have been to so many.  We had to, of course, come up with a reason for our weekend visit, and what better excuse then the Lake!  Zaylee had only dipped her feet in the water in early June when it was still quite frigid, and she was not a fan of the chill it sent through her little body!!  With the hot weather this summer has brought along with it, the water felt like a warm bath.  It was lovely, and Zaylee enjoyed it very much!  

Here's to many more summers at the lake with our little Zaylee Bug, and to raising her up to be fun-loving and confident in herself!! 

Grandparents

Growing up I always envied people my age that had grandparents.  I have always been drawn to elderly people, and am constantly gushing at them when I see them in public.  More often than not, I look at Paul and say, "Aww I just LOVE old people!", and he replies with a smile, "I know you do love, and I love that about you!"  This is most likely due to the fact that I never was privileged to have the chance to get to know any of my grandparents.  My Grandma Jean is the only one in which I have memories of, but her memory went quickly by the time I was old enough to truly get to know her.  I did happen to be her favorite (wink), and have fond memories of her bringing homemade banana bread and a bag of candy for me when she was still able to visit.  When I was around 16, we went up to Michigan to visit her, in the nursing home in which she lived, and I remember commenting on how beautiful her ring was.  At this point her mind was gone, but she slipped it off her finger, struggling a bit getting it over her swollen, aged knuckles, and allowed me to try it on.  It was a perfect fit!  I joked that it was a sign that when the time came, I would inherit her rings.  She chuckled and said that would only be right!  To my surprise, ten years later, I have the honor of wearing her diamond surrounded by Paul's Great-Grandmothers.  What a blessing to have such history in an age-old tradition, symbolizing the coming together of two families.   

I sit here now thinking of the great joy it brings to my heart to have two sets of God honoring parents, that have raised us both to love and serve the Lord.  We are beyond blessed to have parents that love the Lord, love one another, and love their children with the utmost devotion.  It is so wonderful to me that not only does Zaylee get grandparents, she gets all FOUR of them!!  Added bonus, she gets a wonderful Great Grandma Suzanne, and had the honor of being held in the arms by her Great Grandpa Zay!  I pray over our sweet girl every day, and I often thank the Lord for her four loving grandparents and the legacy they are leaving here on this earth.  I pray for many years to come with each of them, full of memories, laughter, singing songs, and lots of love. 

 

I often find myself overjoy when I look at Paul, and imagine life with him when we are old and gray.  We used to write letter's about it in our "in between" phase back in 2008.  He once said to me, "When I see my future, I see you being my personal pain in the butt that I can't live without.  I can imagine you old and holding your hand."  So much truth in that first part, and so much JOY comes from the latter.  As we are about to celebrate my parents 40th anniversary this coming weekend, and after celebrating Paul's parents 30th last month, I can't help but look forward to the many years that lie before us.  I am so excited to see where the Lord leads us as a couple, and now as a family.  I pray we can be wonderful, Christ-like examples in all we do for our sweet Zaylee, as our parents have so selflessly done for us.  

A Few First's

 A couple weekends ago we were up in Lake Geneva with the family.  Paul has been begging me to start feeding Zaylee, so when little Remmington was eating his baby cereal I decided to give her a bite to see how she would react.  She is definitely becoming more curious as to what food is, and watches every move we make while we are eating.  I think she would get the hang of it pretty quick if, in fact, I started to introduce her to foods slowly, but I'm just not quite there yet.  I want her to be my baby for a bit longer.  I want her to keep wanting ME for her source of food!  Soon I will give in to the pleading of her father's desires, but for now I will remain selfish on this matter.  Back to the first bite of food...well, she didn't hate it, but she didn't quite understand she had to close her mouth around the spoon in order to retrieve the food.  She would purse her lips and push the food out of her mouth, but small bits managed to be swallowed down into her cute little belly!! 

Inspecting the spoon

Looking for confirmation from Daddy

Not so sure about this whole food situation

This past Sunday, we headed down to Lincoln Park Zoo in the city.  It is a pretty spot to walk around, but if you want to see animals, it's not the best choice of a zoo.  The free part makes it wonderful, and really gives no room to complain about the lack of animals to see!  My family grew up going to Brookfield Zoo on the south side of the city, and that zoo is truly great.  Great also equals expensive, so we will wait until next year when Zaylee will actually understand she is looking at animals, not just walking around in the heat for no good reason!  It was great to be just the three of us on a little family outing.  Later in the evening we had the pleasure of having dinner with my folks at a nice little Irish restaurant in Lincoln Park followed by an aimless, evening walk!  Overall it was a great Sunday Funday! :)

A picture with her Sophie Giraffe

Fun with daddy and the Lion

It's so fun watching her grow, and experience new things.  Even if she won't remember most of them!! 

Zaylee's Love for Water

          

      

When we had our 20 week ultrasound, we were amazed by how much our little baby moved.  I mean even the ultrasound tech who watches countless babies moving on the monitor, multiple times a day, was impressed with the energy this little one had in her.  The tech kept looking at me and asking, "So you really aren't feeling her yet?  What about right there?  She just kicked you!"  It wasn't for another week or two that I really started to feel her moving around, and from that point on I never felt her stop!!  One thing that really caught Paul's attention while watching our little lady swimming in my belly was her legs never stop moving.  He said she looked like a graceful swimmer! :)  And boy oh boy did she like to kick me, and I loved ever bit of it.  It's so fun to now be able to watch her little legs move so fast and with so much gumption.  Her little personality is so tender and sweet and full of life!
She has always loved bath time, and after seeing her embrace the cold waters of the Mediterranean Sea, I knew with great certainty our little lady will be a water lover like her daddy!  I've always been one that enjoys being "on the water", whether by boat, beach, or pier, but not so much IN the water!  And as for beaches, I love the beauty that comes with being on them, the sound of the waves, the great, big, endless sky, but as for thoroughly enjoying the dirty feeling of ashy skin from the sand dust, having remnants of the beach in every crevice of your body along with all personal belongings, seaweed, fish lurking in the dark patches of the water...well, it's just not my favorite thing in the world.  Pools, now they are a different story!
It's funny when you have a baby, things that seemed to matter, don't seem to matter much any more.  Your life is quickly changed in a BIG way, and your selfishness rears its ugly head in a very bold fashion.  It's scary, beautiful, humbling, and wonderful to put aside things that once mattered, for someone that brings so much joy and satisfaction to life.  Even in the short four month's of my journey into Motherhood, I have learned this lesson many times over.  All this to say, that my little Zaylee Jean LOVES the water, so I better learn to love it for her sake!  I may never love cleaning up the mess of the beach, but I am certain I will love the time spent watching her enjoy every minute basking in the sunshine and splashing in the waves!!

Four Months

how did that happen!??

The day we left France, little miss Zaylee turned four months old!!  She has seen so much in her short life so far, and has been loved so very, very well by so many people!  I think she is going through withdrawal from all the kisses, snuggles, singing, and all around good times with family this week...that or maybe it's the jet lag?! 
I have been showing her the videos I took while in France so she can remember all of your voices and faces.  It makes my heart sad to be so far away, but I'm so thankful for today's technology for long distance family sake!!
Here is a few shot's from her "four month" photo session today!  She was very cooperative, although I wanted a shot with her on her back like previous months, but she wasn't having it.  This little lady is getting awfully quick these days with her rolling over abilities and is even making it across the floor with five quick rolls in a row! :)
We miss you so much Tabailloux family, and keep you all close with videos, pictures, and stories we tell to sweet Zaylee Jean!

Sending love to you all!!

Pool Time

It was a beautiful, hot, sunny day perfect for swimming!

Babies in swimsuits are the best, especially polka dot suits!

Zaylee LOVED the water just like her daddy!  Can't wait until dad gets to swim with her!

Lake Geneva Family Time

All 11 cousins = all kinds of fun (chaos!) 

This past week was a fun one packed with lots of energy and noise.  My sister Michelle came up for a visit with her four girls.  Her oldest, Hailey, and Craig's oldest, Micah, enjoyed a week of day camp at LGYC.  It was a great week with everyone filled with many memories, laughs, fun times, and HOT weather!!   Zaylee was very loved by her cousins and had more kisses and squeezes than most get in a lifetime.   She took the loving well, but she was happy to be home, and truly has not stopped talking since we arrived in her own, quiet domain. 

Hanging with Remmers on the first day of Summer Camp at LGYC

For now she just gets to watch the older cousins play:  Paige, Aubrey, and Kendrick

Future little Zaylee and Remington! 

Aubs had a wardrobe malfunction caused by Zaylee!   Aubrey would rather hang with Zaylee then play with her other cousins...she ADORED her! :)

Fun times with Kendrick

Snuggles with Aunt Michelle...this made Paul and I both jealous as she won't ever snuggle like that with us!

Beach time smiles

Tired baby girl!

Sawyer and Zaylee laying out at the beach

Morning cuddles from Uncle Craig

Sweet Paige

Zaylee's trial run in her Baby Bjorn

Getting ready to leave for home

A fun week with the McKendrick side, and now preparing for a fun extended week with the Tabailloux's in France!!   Laundry, packing, and cleaning in preparation for Zaylee's first plane ride and debut into the French Clan! :)
We are so blessed with two great, loving families!!