Zaida's First Halloween

Zaida had a good day today. After her photo shoot with her cute little bear friends, she anxiously awaited for her Daddy to come home.

We decided to show off our sweet little cub to a few friends ... she made it to the first house, then promptly fell asleep! What a cutie!

Then after a couple more visits we came home to begin a new family tradition ... we watched "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown". Only a few minutes into the movie and she zonked out again!

So, after that was over, Corey and I decided to watch "Young Frankenstein" --- only a few minutes in and lo & behold, HE zonked out!

Now I just hope I can get some sleep ... wish me luck!

Trick or Treat!

Here I am all decked out in white,
Protected and warm this Halloween night.
Papa Bear, Mama Bear, baby bear too,
All bunched together like toes in a shoe.

That's me in the middle, with the big happy smile,
My first Halloween is just my style.
Gotta go now, and get all my treats,
While I wear out my mommy's and daddy's feets!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

P.S. Thanks for the adorable poem, Daddy!

Lil' Miss-chievious

Typical Work Day

Normally Zaida will either be hanging out on her floor mat in my office ...

... or I have set up shop somewhere else, like the bed. We have a whole operation going this day - the work computer on the right, the personal computer on the left (with webcam so Quinn can check out the little girl) & PLENTY of toys.
Most of the time Zaida is pretty content to hang out for a while as long as she can see Mommy.
Here is my ingenius way of keeping Zaida occupied while trying to warm up her little fingers! She surprisingly didn't mind it as much as I thought she might.

The Next Stage

Well, since I brought it up in my last post ... I thought I would fill you in on my work situation. Even though I was hoping to not have to work, things have worked out alright on that front anyway. In order for me to continue working, my conditions were that I would only work part-time (the minimum amount to keep my benefits & insurance coverage) and I needed to be able to work from home. To my surprise, my previous manager contacted me & offered to create this new position for me. Besides being very flattered, it just made sense for our current situation. It was a tough decision --- and one that Corey and I struggled with for months! But, ultimately having the ability to stay home with my baby & still be able to make a little bit of income - well, we'll see how it works out.

So, I have now worked for the bank for almost 7 years - crazy how time flies! Here is the boring part ... feel free to skip this if you don't care about business jargon. :) Since moving back from Minnesota, I have worked in the Corporate Trust department. I worked for three and a half years in the leverage lease group. Then I moved on to the Risk Management department about a year and a half ago. So, now my current position is being the liaison between these 2 groups. It's a pretty comfortable transition for me. Which, to be honest, was a big selling point for this new position too. I'm pretty hopeful that this will work for our family. But, of course, Zaida's always my top priority!

It's so strange to me because I really was determined that I was not going to work when we had kids ... I have read the book "I am a Mother" by Jane Clayson Johnson probably 4 times now. (It's an AWESOME book about the importance of motherhood - I would totally recommend it! I honestly have never felt so empowered or so proud of being a woman.) I thought that if she could give up her lucrative career then I could give up my little measly one ... but Corey and I prayed about it & I got an answer I wasn't really expecting. I just hope that I have enough courage & faith to follow the path the Lord has prepared for me.

Our nighttime routine

So, this is pretty much our nightly routine ... I'm awake while these 2 get cozy & cuddle each other to sleep. Most of the time I don't have the heart to wake them up ... so about an hour after I've gone to bed the little sleepy heads drag themselves upstairs to bed.

Zaida's sleeping most of the night. She's always been a really good sleeper though. Lately she has been sleeping from about 11-6. Then after about an hour (eat, diaper change & a little cuddling) she will go back down for another couple of hours. We're pretty lucky! And, it's a good thing too ... Corey and I do not function well if we don't get our sleep in. And, with both of us working - I just can't imagine if we didn't get a good night's rest!

Zaida had a little lamb ...

Big picture day

Today I took what I think is approaching a crazy amount of pictures for one day. (don't ask!)

My mom & I went out to lunch and shopping. When my mom is around, the baby is with her. She sure loves the little chica! Mom - just you wait until she is big enough to give you zerberts on your neck!!!

I knit a pair of little slippers for Zaida & I had her wear them today. I think they look pretty cute!

Another rare moment - Paxton coming to check on the baby! What a good dog. He's really starting to watch out for the baby. When she cries he will come and get me - even if Corey is taking care of her! :)

Corey decided to have some goofy time with Zaida ... he gave her a bandana, put her hand in side her toys & then it was sleepy time. I can't tell who is more sleepy Corey or Zaida!

Sunday nights at the Wheeler's

Traditionally Sunday afternoons & nights are spent at the Wheeler's home. Mom always makes a wonderful Sunday dinner for us ... and we certainly appreciate and look forward to it. (Let's be real folks - I'm not much of a cook!) This past weekend Quinn didn't make it ... so Zaida had to keep his chair warm. She didn't quite fill it up like the big guy does, but she tried!

I think she is wondering how she is going to eat all that ham --- it's bigger than her!

After dinner story with Grandpa Cliffy ... she was more interested in eating Old McDonald's animals than singing about them!

Cheese!

Things are looking up ...

... and so am I!

While on her belly, she is getting really good at picking her head & chest up. She tries so hard to crawl (especially if the remote is the target). She will kick her legs & try to catch something to push off of. She won't push up on her hands or pull her knees under her yet, but I imagine it won't take her too long to figure that out.

Wore myself out!

Zaida wore herself out today. She was in her jumper for quite a while the other day. She was spinning the little balls on it, looking up at the trees & jumping to start up the music and lights. She might be ready to drive soon, too. Look at how she is hanging on at 10 & 2! She jumped and jumped so much that while I was changing her diaper, she fell asleep! What a sweet baby!

Sitting up!

Zaida is now almost sitting up on her own. While sitting in her bouncy chair she is able to sit up enough to grab on to her little spiders. She's already working those abs! She is a tough little one ... she will often try to sit up while laying down. And if she is sitting, she can easily throw herself up & over onto her belly/face. I know that I now have to strap her into her swing/bouncer all the time now.
My mom's friend gave Zaida this little booster chair. She's not so sure about it yet ... she likes that she can sit up to see what's going on. But, it makes her so frustrated when she drops her toys and she can't get them again.
Within the past couple of weeks she has gotten quite feisty. She’s got a little temper on her, too. If she drops her toy or if she can’t quite get it into her mouth she will just throw her arms out and scream & cry. Of course, I don’t help any cause I will go over and comfort her. I thought at first that maybe she was poking herself in the eye or something, but I now know that she just gets frustrated. It surprises me that she is already so stubborn. She must be a Wheeler!

Pretty in Pink

This is a cute little outfit some close family friends gave to Zaida. She wore it to church last week. She really is one of the most stylish little girls!
This week she has started making what Corey calls a "tugboat" sound. She will blow bubbles & she makes super funny faces, too. I caught her in the middle of one of her sessions. She really is super silly!

Aberdeen

Last week we made another trip up to Aberdeen to visit my grandparents. Meme & Papa light up when they see the little girl. She's quite a bit bigger than the last time they saw her. And, she's much more squirmy too ~ so it was a little more difficult for them to hang on her.
She kept smiling at her Papa ... he was touching her feet & she would tug them away. Apparently, she got her super ticklish feet from him! He was trying to get her to move her arms around & she was imitating him. He was so proud! Meme just kept telling her how much she loved her & that she was her girl. Mem always tries to trick us into leaving without her, too. It's so great that Zaida gets to see her great-grandparents. It's amazing how much joy she has brought to our family!

Busy Day!

This was a busy day ... we had to go into my office, then once we got done working we stopped at Grandpa Cliffy's office. Zaida likes to visit because everyone in the office wants to see her & gives her tons of compliments. And she gets all sorts of treats! I think this is my favorite outfit of hers lately. This is the vest that I knit for her. She doesn't fit into the pants anymore, but I think it looks adorable over her jeans. Then that evening we went to go watch Uncle Quinney in his flag football game. Zaida loves football. She's a Wheeler! It got a little chilly, so she's sporting a hat that I knit for her. What a cute baby!