Happy Halloween!

There are three things I've learned never to discuss with people: religion, politics and the Great Pumpkin. - Linus from "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown."

When I woke up this morning I felt like I was a young kid again awaiting the arrival of dusk for trick or treating! I was so ecstatic to bring Jayden for the first time, especially decked out in his handsome penguin tuxedo!

We had a house full to wish us on our scary way! Jayden's buddy Ethan came over to go trick or treating with him. Is this not the cutest penguin and pirate you have ever seen?

We also had his Auntie Em and Nana Arnold....

As well as his Grandma, Grandma Cathy, Memaw and Pa....

What a spectcular night with my family and my little penguin!

P.S. My favorite part of th enight was when we were walking through the neighborhood and people were yelling, "There goes THE Penguin!" He was such a hit at the block party last Saturday that everyone remembered him!

Jayden’s First Pumpkin

Last year Todd and I purchased our first pumpkin together at The Cabbage Patch in Clermont. Naturally I wanted to bring Jayden back to the same place this year. We walked behind Jayden and watched his face light up as he checked out all of the pumpkins.

 

"This Pumpkin's just right Daddy."

After J found us our perfect pumpkin, we loaded him and our pumpkin up an headed home. When we got home, he was very excited to go on the porch with his new pumpkin!

Halloween Block Party

How fortunate are we that we live in a neighborhood that throws holiday block parties. I was so excited to bring Jayden to the Halloween block party on Saturday, but I was very apprehensive about how he would react to his costume. As you saw in my previous blog, Jayden’s costume is a cumbersome penguin suit. Todd and I tested the head piece on him during the afternoon and he actually giggled while he had it on. (I just crossed my fingers that he would have the same opinion later that evening.)

When it was party time, we threw J in his costume and headed out the door as quickly as possible. (Hoping that once outdoors he would be distracted.) He was even more precious in his costume than I could have imagined. When we arrived, we put him down and he waddled around all night loving every moment! He was the youngest at the party and proceeded to be the hit of the party with his personality and costume!

Here are a few pictures of our Indian Shores Spooky Halloween Party…..

 

(Trial Run)

Pumpkin Patch with the Chapman Family

Last Sunday we took a little trip to the town of Celebration so our Little Guy could hang out at a pumpkin patch with his buddy Xander. We always have so much fun with Xander and his mommy and daddy. The boys had a fabulous time investigating all of the “orange toy-like objects”!

We had an amazing time, excluding the small mishap of Jayden’s foot getting stuck in a wooden pallet. (Daddy saved the day and pulled up the board to get J’s foot out!) The décor was picturesque and the photo opportunities were priceless!

Here are a few pics to make you smile….. 

P.S. Check out this famiy's house that was turned into a pirate ship for Halloween!



Trick or Treat

Last year Jayden was suppose to be born and home enjoying his first Halloween. However, our little guy had other plans! So this year is going to be his first Halloween! I wanted him to have a costume that wasn't the typical animal, so I searched high and low. Then I saw it.....a penguin!! One of Jayden's favorite books has penguins in it and whenever his Daddy says "Penguins" he giggles! So to me it's perfect! Here is the picture of the costume I found..... (Of course our baby will be just as cute!)



Jayden's 1st Birthday Party Theme

Many of you know how much I love planning and coordinating parties and events. So why would you expect anything other than me starting my planning process four months out! I checked blogs, websites, party stores and after an entire month of deliberation I found THE theme! SAFARI!!!!!!!!!


I mean who wouldn't want a safari theme for their 1st birthday! I found the most ideal invitations that I am using as my inspiration. Now that I sent them out, I can share them with you! (We have many surprises that we're keeping from everyone until the party!) Hope you love it as much as Jayden and I do....he whispered to me that it's the best invitation he has ever had for his birthday!!

P.S. The party is at out house! Many of our guests were

uuncertain because of the Park Management Warning!

Love the authenticity of this invite!

Inquisitive

Inquisitive: Given to examination or investigation.

It seems that of late, Jayden is more inquisitive than he has ever been.  He is tireless in his endeavor to discover new things and places. I love watching him explore the house and it seems that his favorite discovery room is the kitchen! I somehow always catch him getting into “trouble” or delving into the deep dark realms of the cabinets!

Now that he is walking, he is even more committed to becoming the Christopher Columbus of the Shappard household!

Meningitis

Those who are close to me know what my family has been though this past mouth. In a nutshell, I caught viral meningitis and was admitted to the hospital on Thursday, September 8 after an exhausting night in the ER. I ended up staying 9 days in the hospital due to several complications. My heart rate was in the low thirties and my spinal fluid was leaking from the spinal tap they performed to determine if I had meningitis.

The pain I was in is indescribable and was made worse by the poor pain management of my doctor and hospital. (They finally got it right after the 5^th day and my angel Dr. Fairchild!) Giving birth to Jayden was by far twice as easy as having the brain swelling/headaches from the meningitis coupled with the spinal fluid leak. When they had me on the heart monitor and the pain was insurmountable, it was the first time in my life that I contemplated death. I could see the unknown future in the eyes of my family. I honestly am not sure if I would have made it if I didn’t have my amazing husband, family and friends who helped me through this difficult part of my life. I love you all from the depths of my soul.

While in the hospital, one of the hardest things was not being able to see my little guy. Thanks to Daddy he kept the following pictures coming so I could see him growing right before my eyes!

 I apologize for the delay in the blog posts, but this virus has kept me off my feet! I have spent the past few days catching up on my blogging and I have now uploaded and backdated my posts from August 28 – October 1. I did not like post dating them, but I wanted to keep the posts and stories of Jayden’s adventures in order. So please forgive me and read the backdated posts at your leisure!