Mother's Day & Abigail's Shower

Yesterday we got to celebrate two wonderful occasions. Mother's Day and Abigail's baby shower! I co-hosted the shower with Jessica's Auntie Roxanne and it was a lot of fun! We had a loose theme of a Mother's Day tea, so almost all the guests brought their moms and it was a lot of fun. Abigail slept through almost the whole thing and was a little angel when she was awake.

But before I get more into the shower. We went to visit GG yesterday morning to deliver her Braden's handmade card which she loved!

It was nice to be with all my "mommies" on Mother's Day, other than my MIL but we did give her her card the day before so it was nice to do that. Then it was off to Beaumont for the shower!

Jess and her mom:

And me obviously making a silly face or noise to try to get Braden to smile...

And me and my handsome little man! I'm just so happy he looked at the camera! And here's a look at Mother's Day's past. Sad I couldn't keep up with the flower frame, thanks a lot Picnik!

Happy Mother's Day!

I had an absolutely wonderful weekend! For the third year in a row, me and my Mom have celebrated Mother's Day at the Rosebud Mercantile for their brunch. Three years ago the whole family was there and I was pregnant - but didn't even know it yet! Then last year with all the shenanigans of the Clarks being sick and seeding and whatnot, me and Mom and Braden were the only ones to make it out. And this year, everyone was there but Craig because he was working. I hope that we can carry on with this tradition for a very long time!

By this point he had been running for at least 45 minutes straight - so tired!

Very serious Braden & Mom

Laughing at his Gram!

The Rayton Crew. Danika - 3 years, Twins - 5 months.

Chaz & Mom, this picture cracks me up!

Laura & Luke (allllllmost 3!)

I feel so blessed to be able to call myself a mother. I had my worries before we got pregnant if we were even going to be able to. I had my worries when I was pregnant if he would make it to the end and be healthy. I had worries being a new mommy...but the worries are truly disappearing and it is the most rewarding and challenging job I've ever had, and wouldn't trade it for the world.

I got up this morning as Jay let me sleep in, he got Braden up and had a big pan of eggs scrambled up and sausages coming out of the oven! I leaned over Braden in his high chair and gave him a big smooch and thanked him for making me a mommy. Jay gave me a look and said, "hey!" And I replied, "thanks to you too, Jay!" And then he said "halfsies?" :)

I also got amazing news times 2 this week. Two of my friends who battled infertility and had miscarriages and IVF along the way, who both successfully gave birth to baby girls via IVF pregnancies last year...ARE BOTH 10 WEEKS PREGNANT NATURALLY!!! Isn't that just amazing?!?! I could cry tears of joy for them both. It was a complete shock to both girls and I couldn't be happier for them. What blessings!

I thank God everyday for my little boy, and pray that we will be able to give Braden sibling(s) in the future. I love you Mom and Grandma and Brenda very very much, you've helped shape me into the mother that I am and the mother I want to be. I hope all my mommy friends have had a wonderful day with your babies!

Happy Mother's Day!!

Oh and a wonderful first Mother's Day it was! Firstly, Mom graciously babysat for us for a few hours last night so Jay and I could go to Darcy and Megan's for some fresh Alberta beef BBQ (yummy!)...and then Braden FINALLY had a good sleep again last night. He slept for 7 hours, ate quickly, and then slept another 3 and was up after 8AM - lovely!!! Then, we went to church this morning and headed over to the mercantile for lunch which was very nice. We were going to go to Royal's art gallery this afternoon, but we decided to head home because Braden was having a nap anyway, and still is! So here we are on our first Mother's Day:

We could hardly get his hands out of his mouth (as per usual these days) to take a picture! But he looks pretty cute still! I got these beautiful tulips at Costco...Happy Mother's Day to me, from me!

Yesterday, Jay decided to trust the dogs (silly, Jay!) off leash at the same time in the yard, and sure enough they disappeared within a few minutes. Well, it didn't take long before they both came home...and this is why:

This picture does not do poor Taz justice! Ray had to take him into the vet yesterday and he had over 100 quills removed, mostly from inside his mouth! Some were even hidden in his gums, poor guy! Luckily Kihei only had 5 quills. We think she has mastered the art of teasing the porqupine enough just to get a few and then leave. Taz...not so much! There must be a fairly naked porqupine out there somewhere...or at least one with a bald patch!

I hope you had a wonderful Mother's Day to all my mommy friends, and especially my own Mom and Mother-in-law!

Braden is 1 Week Old!

Can you believe it? I sure can't. He's grown so much already. I can tell he's filling out in his cheeks and I put him in his coming home outfit today, and it's getting small! Braden and I are doing really well together. Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about Jay, but being a Daddy to a newborn...there's not too much he can do to help us out at this time. Jay gives Braden his bath every night...that's their thing, and Jay burps Braden for me sometimes. But feeding is going really well and he's such a content baby. He even put himself to sleep today for the first time. He wasn't sure if he wanted to stay awake or fall asleep, so I laid him down in his bassinet and he decided he'd snooze for 1.5 hrs! I'm a very proud Momma!

Daddy burping Braden.

Well, my dad and Grandma T came to visit Braden today and pick up mom to take her home. Mom stayed with us this last 6 days and it was so nice to have her here! She did all my laundry, cleaning, cooking, and dishes all this time and it is so, so, SO much appreciated. It gave me a really good headstart to mommyhood and most importantly - time to catch up on my sleep. So we are officially a family of three on our own now!

Tummy time on Mommy's baby blanket.

So thanks to my mom so much for helping us through this first week!