Baby Shower for #Newtab

On Saturday, we hosted our first party in our "new" home in honor of your very first cousin on the Tabailloux side of the family.  Uncle Timmy and Aunt Bethany are due to have a little one right after the new year, and we can hardly wait to meet the tiny baby! 

There were about 30 people who had replied YES!  How wonderful to have so many people pour out love for this new baby on the way.  It was exciting thinking about throwing this shower, and opening up our home to so many close friends, but I started to feel anxious about everything being perfect.  I wanted to make sure there would be enough food, so I kept adding things to my list of items to prepare.  I wanted to make sure there was enough room for everyone, so I started moving stuff around to open the area up a bit more.  I wanted to make sure everything was in it's right place and the house was in order, so I frantically scoured every bit of it.  It seems I always add way more stress than needed when in these sorts of  situations leading to pathetic meltdowns involving unnecessary tears.  Thankful for a husband who reminds me over and over again to breathe and just enjoy myself!  He always calms my nerves and relaxes me.  A few girls from our Open House Bible Study group offered to help with decorations and bringing extra food.  For this, I was extremely grateful! 

When Saturday came I was ready to par-tay, and was excited for everyone to arrive.  Sarah and Katie from open house showed up a bit early to help get everything set up.  I, on the other hand, was still running around trying to make myself presentable before everyone else arrived!  By three o'clock, everything was looking great and little by little guests began to flow in through the door, and just as Maman Jeannie had said, all my stress went away with each new face that entered. 

The house was soon full to it's capacity, laughter and conversation filling the space.  The kitchen was overflowing with food and the smell of hot apple cider poured throughout the house.  The cake I had baked was graciously decorated by our master baker friend, Dan, and it looked beautiful!  Paul walked by me and kissed my face while whispering, "Are you having fun?  No more stress?"  I quickly replied, "Yes.  This is great!"  He was such a great help in keeping things moving, MCing the party, and just supporting and encouraging me! 

Tim, Zaylee, and Dan--the master cake maker extraordinaire

It was such a wonderful time with so many loved ones.  Tim and Bethany were showered with many gifts for their little baby, and as Timmy said, "I'm so excited for this baby now!  We are ready!"  It was so fun to see all the gifts and brought on new waves of excitement for this sweet, little addition to the family.  They are going to be great parents, and we can't wait to be Aunt and Uncle to this little bundle!! 

Some of the lovely ladies!

**Zaylee was so excited for the party she decided to refuse her nap that afternoon, which caused her to be a bit anxious at times with all the people.  Overall, she did great and let most people love on her..until she saw Paul or me! 

Be Thankful

Zaylee girl, Thanksgiving is just a few weeks away.  It is such a wonderful day spent with family, more food than usually necessary, laughter, and thankfulness.  Thanksgiving.  It's something that we celebrate on a specific Thursday of every year, and I always look forward to it, but shouldn't we practice this celebration EVERY day?

In the mornings as I prepare my pot of coffee, and you sit in your chair, I sing "This is the day, this is the day.  That the Lord has made, that the Lord has made.  We will rejoice, we will rejoice, and be glad in it, and be glad in it.  This is the day that the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it.  This is the day, this is the day that the Lord has made!"  You love it, and get excited as you intently watch me move across the kitchen floor.  We sing a lot together, and each time I'm reminded of a song from my childhood I am reminded by the words and they become a prayer for you my darling girl.  I pray for you throughout my entire day.  My thoughts are always on you, but often my actions don't reflect what my deepest desires are for my role as your mother.  I fail often, and am humbled daily by the grace given to me through your sweet smile and snotty nose smudges on my shoulder from your tight snuggles.  I fear as you get older, my actions won't be so quickly forgotten.  My bad attitude on silly mundane tasks, or sharp tongue towards your dad about things that truly matter so little won't be unnoticed as your grow more aware.  Oh sweet girl, how I hope to become better for you.  I want to show you a heart of thankfulness daily.  An attitude that is glorifying and uplifting.  I want to point out the blessings all around me, rather than focusing on my failures and the frustrations that come along with them.  I want to hold my tongue and speak only kind words about others.  I want to exemplify joy, gratitude, love, and not discontentment or bitterness.  I want to be so many things for you, Zaylee, but most of all I want to show you Christ through my life so that you may grow to love Him with your whole heart.

This morning as we came down to the kitchen, and daddy was putting his shoes on for work, I said to you, "Ugh!  Mommy forgot to clean off your highchair again!  Why has mom been so lazy lately.  It's so frustrating!"  Your dad quickly replied, "SHH!  What are you thankful for today?"  Zaylee, I am thankful for your father and the gentle, kind, loving man that he is.  He has been the best example of Christ's loves to me throughout our friendship and now marriage, and I pray someday you will find a man that show's you the same.  For now, I am just thankful you have him to call your dad!  He is such a blessing to me.  You my dear, are the greatest joy, and we are so very thankful for your presence in our life.  Beyond thankful.  I am your mom.  MOM.  That is the biggest blessing I have ever been given, and something I will never fully be able to express in words.  I am so fully aware of the honor it is to be at home with you every day, taking care of our home, preparing meals, doing laundry, sweeping the floor for the third time in one day, and I am filled with joy and thankfulness.  This is what I dreamed of and this is what I was made to be.  Your mom, and your daddy's wife.  I couldn't ask for anything more fulfilling than those two things, even on days that don't go my way and are tiring and frustrating.  They humble me, and bring on a whole new sense of gratitude.  I love you.

I'm thankful for bundled up walks to the park!

Colossians 3:15  And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful.

Psalm 34:1  I will bless the LORD at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth.

Psalm 28:7 -The LORD is my strength and my shield; My heart trusts in Him, and I am helped; Therefore my heart exults, And with my song I shall thank Him.

Zaylee in Action

Our little girl happens to think she is capable of almost anything when it comes to climbing and standing.  She has a habit of standing up and letting go of the object she is holding tightly to and thinks she will magically stay high on her feet!  Oh this girl makes my heart jump :)

She is so adorable when she does something new, and is filled with so much pride for her new accomplishments, especially ones involving successfully placing her food in her own mouth! 

And she fell :)

Some days, we both get bored at home, but she keeps both of us entertained for the most part!  Thankful for her, and the privilege to be with her every moment, even on the boring, lonely days. 

Number 2

Just a quick note to myself: 

Now that Zaylee is loving food, she is also filling her pants with more substantial number 2 business.  It is sometimes a bit hard for her to work it out, and it's the saddest thing to watch her struggle.  As sad as it is, it is also one of the sweetest moments of the day.  She looks at me with a red face as little grunts come out of her cute little self, and she puts her arms out towards me as if to say, "help me mama!"  I scoop her up, and she digs her sweet head into my chest and pushes against me with all her might.  We snuggle like that for as long as it takes for her to push that poopie out, and then gently rest her head on my shoulder with relief that it is finally over.  I just love it.  Its both the sweetest and most entertaining thing to watch her work so hard at this process.  I just can't get enough of this little girl.  She fills my heart with so much joy I don't know what to do with it all.  I mean, seriously, I'm admitting to loving her stinky butt.  That is real love!  And those feet.  Oh how I could smell them all day!  :)  Motherhood is the BEST thing I have ever done, along with marrying Paul. 

My Little Pink Leopard

Halloween.  It has never been something we fully participated in amongst our family, but with all the little ones that have entered the family, trick or treating has become a fun event.  Living inside a youth camp, we never had kids ringing the doorbell saying, "Trick or treat!"  I personally didn't start trick or treating until I was in middle school, and even then, my costumes were simple (hippie, cheerleader, bears fan).  I was truly just out there to get as much candy as possible.  Now that my parents live in a neighborhood, we get to see all the kids come to the door and pass out the much desired candy.  It is always a good mix of tastefully cute costumes, and the ones that you wish the parent's wouldn't allow there little ones to wear.

 This year, our little lady was an adorable little pink leopard.  It was a hand me down from Kendrick, and I can remember getting all excited with Erin when we put her in it for the first time four years ago!  It really is crazy how fast time goes.

We were joined by the McKendrick crew and Theoharis clan.  Spiderman, a pink butterfly, an adorable lion, a cheerleader, a soccer player, and a sleeping puppy (Rems took an extra long nap!) all hit the streets around Grandma and Grandpa D's house.  It was a fun walk around the neighborhood, with an extra cold breeze but warm sun easing the sting.  The streets were lined with piles of crunchy leaves, kids were running wild in their disguises, and Cohen, the lion, was just the cutest thing you ever did see.  All the big kids took turns carrying Zaylee's basket up to the door and always made sure to get her some candy since she couldn't do it herself.  They all take such good care of her, and it's so sweet to watch them love on her.

We are always happy to have Aunt Jenny with us!

 When we got back to the house, we heard screaming as the Bears had just come back for the win!  The kids dumped out their buckets and took inventory of all they had accumulated from our short walk.  It was a happy moment indeed.  Paul had been sick for the better part of the weekend, so he was able to enjoy the game in peace and quiet.  He was happy to see us return and got some good snuggles from his baby girl. 

 
It was another great weekend with family, good food, and memories made.  One of those memories being Aunt Jenny getting her nose pierced.  She has been wanting it since last summer, but finally was able to do it and in the company of little Zay!  Oh Zaylee, how I hope you NEVER come home with a tatoo it will break your father's heart.  A nose stud he can handle, but please no ink! 

Extra Snuggles

Yesterday our sweet Zaylee had a first, but this one wasn't the kind we get excited about.  Our little lady experienced her first bout of sickness.  The dreaded stomach bug.  She woke up as per usual, knocking on the crib and talking.  When I walked in her room, she was all smiles and hopping on her cute, little knees, but from there all went a whole lot differently than the norm.

We were sitting in her room with sleepy eyes staring at one another as she ate her breakfast, and right about the time she was finishing her eyes got wide and out came a waterfall of milk.  Again.  And again.  We were both soaked from head to toe.  She was dazed for a minute, but then seemed to be fine.  No crying or fussing.  I ran a warm bath, and she couldn't wait to get in and splash around.  After she was all clean, lathered in lotion, and dressed in comfy, sick clothes she was ready to lay back down.  She slept for 2 1/2 hours, and woke up talking and seemingly herself.  I nursed her, and all seemed fine.  I carried her on my hip to the kitchen to start preparing Paul's lunch, and she seemed to be holding the milk down just fine.  Within a few minutes, the kitchen floor was showered.  Pressure washed would be more accurate I suppose.  It was so sad to see her little body heaving so forcefully.  After lunchtime snuggles with Dad, and yet another 2 hour nap we tried the process over again, ending similarly but with a small change.  This time around, instead of small smiles and a bit of activeness, she laid in my arms for the better part of an hour just staring up at me and occasionally touching my face with her soft hands.  Just as we were getting comfortable on the couch wrapped up in a blanket, the vomiting started again.  Poor baby!

After yet another outfit change for both of us, I noticed she had yet to urinate for the day.  This concerned me as it had been 9 hours since her last wet diaper, and with her small, little peanut self she could get dehydrated quickly.  I called Grandma D for the third time, and she suggested I call our doctor and see what they would recommend.  In to the doctor's office we went.  Paul came home a few minutes early and joined us.  It was a new doctor to us, and we truly enjoyed him!  He was a firm breastfeeding advocate, didn't suggest medication except as a last result, and was so sweet with Zaylee.  She on the other hand, didn't seem to think so as she started crying when he went to touch her.  For being sick and miserable all day, those were her first tears, and for that I was thankful.  Once he stopped poking at her, she calmed down and for the rest of the appointment she stared him down making sure she was safe in my arms!  Paul is always so sweet with her, and she truly settles right down when he sings to her in French.  If I could bottle up those sweet moments, I most definitely would!

When we returned home, I nursed her a bit and we watched her to make sure she was keeping it down.  She did, and seemed to be feeling a bit better.  The color started returning to her face, and her eyes lit up a bit more.  As we were getting her into her pajamas, Paul had her laughing so hard as he kissed her bare belly.  I guess after a day of mostly silence, she needed a good belly laugh!  She went down for the night at 6:30 without a peep.  I fed her before we went to bed in hopes to hydrate her a bit more, and at around 3:30am I heard something coming from her room.  Sure enough, Zay had thrown up a bit in her bed.  I snuggled her for a while and back to sleep she went.  Today she seems 90%, and woke with a very wet diaper.  For that I was thankful!

The one plus side to a sick baby girl is the amount of extra snuggles this Mom received.  Oh how I love her so! 

Just for Fun

She was having fun with Dad while I made dinner, up until I got the camera!

Loves exploring her toy basket.

And Paul thought my twine balls were a stupid gift :)

Her facial expressions crack me up!

Showing me the paper in her mouth that I was trying to finger sweep out!

Got it!

Couldn't quite reach the toy she was going for...haha

She thought it was pretty funny too!