Baby's First Christmas

A Christmas posting would not be complete without some pictures of our little angel:

IB curious about all of her gifts under the tree!

A gift from Mommy to Isla Beth & Daddy: Trust Me I'm A JEDI onesie. Daddy was thrilled!

So, please allow me to explain why my child is wearing a pink "TRUST ME I'M A JEDI" onesie. My husband is an avid Star Wars fan...I mean almost to the point where its ridiculous...I think he holds George Lucas personally responsible for the scenes that were deleted from the original movies that didn't make it on to the new DVDs...& yes, he knows every deleted scene & can quote every movie. Ridiculous yet incredibly impressive & endearing. :)

We hope your Christmas was surrounded by lots of love & loved ones...blessings as we approach the new year!

White Christmas

I'm struggling with where to begin this blog as I sit here on this chilly & wintery-white Christmas morning in Montana. I'm looking down at the most incredible gift I've ever been given, our baby girl Isla Beth. Born Isla Elisabeth Glen Brake on October 21st of this year in Missoula. Isla is Scottish in origin...pronounced eye-lah. I think the name we picked serves our little one well...as she was born with a head full of copper colored hair. Isla also derives from Islay. Islay is the southernmost island of the Inner Hebrides, an archipelago off the west coast of Scotland. Isla is a Scottish river as well. J & I love Scotland & we thought what could be more fun than naming our daughter after a place we could take her to one day. Elisabeth of course is from Joel's late sister, Elizabeth. And Glen from my father, Glenn Terrell.

We spent a wonderful 4 full days in Georgia this week. My Mother went to great lengths to assure we had a restful & laid-back visit. It was all of that & then some. IB (that's our nickname for Isla Beth) was spoiled as she was passed around from my Mother to my Father to my Brother to my Aunt Janice to Granny to Grandmother...you get the picture! Needless to say, she was pretty annoyed with her Mommy & Daddy when we got back to Missoula & had to put her down to actually get some work done. Her Uncle Penn is convinced she is going to be what we in the Northwest affectionately refer to as a "festival baby." This refers to the outdoor music scene in which the occasional organic & hippie population flock. Penn realized this when the only option to calm his fussy niece was to dance with her to the likings of Widespread Panic & various other "jam bands." Will our daughter be a "spread head?" Stay tuned!

I'm going to try & be a little more consistent with my blogging. Its not easy with a 2 month old I've learned to sit down & accomplish anything that may take longer than 5 minutes...unless of course our little pumpkin is napping. :) I guess my largest problem is I have so many writing routes I could take with blogging that I find it stressful. I have SO many ideas! I'm starting to get over feeling like a blogging narcissist...so I believe this will help. I keep thinking what is so unique about me??...about my little family that anyone would want to read it?? Isn't blogging just a cesspool for narcism?? Not always. When I think of writing as if I was sharing a story between me & my mother or me & close friends...that helps.

Our main goal & objective is to share our story with the ones we love...those dear friends & family who have helped shape the people we are today. This isn't the typical Christmas blogpost I know...but I'm hoping it will serve as a springboard for my future writings.

Merry Christmas...we're grateful to God for our newest addition, Isla & for all of you...

Maggie

Maggie

I couldn't help but introduce our newest addition, Maggie. She is a Portuguese Water Spaniel & moved in with us from Butte, MT in April. She & Moses are SLOWLY warming up to each other...& every once in a while a light scolding is necessary when Maggie wants to play a little too rough with Mo. However, she is full of personality...a delight...we couldn't help but fall in love with her.

Here is a little fun history on the Portuguese Water Spaniel for those inquiring minds...

The Portuguese Water Dog once existed all along Portugal's coast, where it was taught to herd fish into the nets, to retrieve lost tackle or broken nets, and to act as a courier from ship to ship, or ship to shore. Portuguese Water Dogs rode in bobbing trawlers as they worked their way from the warm Atlantic waters of Portugal to the frigid fishing waters off the coast of Iceland where the fleets caught saltwater codfish to bring home.

In Portugal, the breed is called Cao de Agua(pronounced Kown-d'Ahgwa). Cao means dog, de Agua means of water. In his native land, the dog is also known as the Portuguese Fishing Dog. Cao de Agua de Pelo Ondulado is the name given the longhaired variety, and Cao de Ague de Pelo Encaradolado is the name for the curly-coat variety.

A calm, intelligent breed of fine temperament, rugged and robust, with a pro-fuse non-allergenic, non-shedding, waterproof coat and webbed feet, he is an ideal outdoor dog, capable of limitless work. He stands 20 to 23 inches (17 to 21 for females) and weighs between 42 and 60 pounds (35 and 50 for females) - a variation explained for by the fact that small dogs were more practical for small boats, and larger dogs for the larger boats.

Our One Year Anniversary Adventure

Joel & I chose Sedona, Arizona to spend our one year anniversary & it did not disappoint. I scoured the internet for weeks pre-anniversary looking for great deals (btw I love researching, sifting through tripadvisor reviews, bartering with hotels, etc. I must take after my mother...I might come back as a travel agent in my next life). I came across a fantastic little B&B called Adobe Grand Villas. Since our anniversary fell on Sedona's off-season, we scored a terrific deal.

http://www.adobegrandvillas.com/

Antiquities Villa

I included the website & highly recommend this B&B. The villas are just an accompaniment to the ambiance of romantic Sedona.

Hiking Devil's Bridge with the belly

I am SO very grateful to many of you for your prayers & encouraging words during the first few months of my pregnancy. Fortunately, I felt amazing throughout our entire anniversary trip. We started off in Denver & met up with friends & family for the U2 concert at Invesco (Mile High) stadium. I don't think I could possibly convey how amazing that concert was. Joel, of course, is a U2 concert veteran (this was his 4th or possibly 5th U2 musical experience). We were surrounded by loved ones & that made the experience all the more special.

Joel & I squeezed some baby shopping in during the latter part of our Denver trip...boy oh boy was that fun! My husband gets all the credit for tracking down this hip little baby boutique called Firefly Furnishings.

Firefly Furnishings Cherry Creek North, Denver

We purchased our Capretti crib in snowdrift, a Storytime Series Benji swivel/glider chair in apple green & a Relics changer/dresser in a deep midnight blue with a distressed finish (I loved the finish because it gives the piece a little more of a vintage feel). Joel & I also picked out the paint color for the nursery (fortunately, I was successful in deterring him from bright orange--his favorite) & we went with a spiced vinegar (close to what I would consider "latte" or "medium sand"). Who knew picking out furniture & paint colors could be this fun? We had a ball brainstorming & attempting to put into words a vision that was unique to us.

Grand Canyon South Rim

Truly an amazing & blessed year.

Much love to you all,

Bay-Bay!

"O.K. update your blog." Thanks Linds! Yep, that's Lindsay...my dear friend since freshman year of college at Alabama. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't thrilled beyond measure that she is marrying, Jeff...a residency mate & friend of Joel's. I guess it was already written in the stars that we would be lifelong girlfriends even before our paths crossed Bid Day on the Alpha Gamma Delta lawn. I'm blessed to call her my friend...

Ahhh...the joys of early pregnancy...unrelenting nausea...excessive saliva (I nearly spit on a patient's son while introducing myself at a home visit...lovely)...seemingly much smaller bladder...I wouldn't trade it for a second! Mmmmm...smell the sarcasm yet?? Well, we are 9 wks & 1 day today...its not like I'm counting or anything! In all honesty, J & I are thrilled that we have been so immeasurably blessed with this little addition...only our creator could concoct such a miracle. We're definitely in for a trial run with this first one. Joel has never changed a diaper...I have intermittent questions travelling through my brain such as: how many times to babies eat? what time do babies go to bed? organic cloth vs. regular diapers?? TBD!

Baby Brake 9 wks

We pray all of you are well & sending lots of love across the miles!