Lots Going On: Lake Trip/Sydney Eats Food for the First Time/Jayda Gets a Cast/Jacob's B-Day. Warning: This is a long post!

Needless to say, there has been a lot going on around the Paschal household lately. For starters, we recently got back from a week long vacation on Lake Conroe. We rented out a large house, along with all of Jacob's side of the family, and stayed out on the lake. We had SO much fun! The house we stayed at had lots of fun toys to play with. One of the first things we opened up was the super cool inflatable water slide. Jayda absolutely loved this water slide and all of the cousins had a blast playing on it. Even some of the adults, myself included, tried it out.

The big fun water slide.


Jayda climging up the ladder and ready to slide!


Jayda sliding down with Caitlyn!


They also had some really neat large inflatable rafts that we put out in the lake to play on. They were pretty neat. We just hooked them up to the dock and floated around out in the lake. We had lots of fun jumping and sliding off the rafts into the lake.

Jayda getting ready to jump off the raft into the lake. She probably did this 100 times!


Having fun swimming out in the lake!


Sydney chillin out by the lake with Nanna!


On the saturday that we were there Pawpaw rented us a jet ski to play on. We had lots of fun riding around on it!

Me, Jacob and Jayda going out for a ride on the jet ski.


Kyle, Karen and Caitlyn on the jet ski.


Jayda's first ride ever on a jet ski with Uncle Kyle!


On sunday and monday we rented a ski boat. We had a blast taking the boat out tubing and water skiing. The kids absolutely loved the tube. It was so much fun! Jayda kept saying "Go faster, go faster!!" when she was riding the tube. Gotta love the little dare devil!

The girls ready to go out on the boat.


Katie and Lourdes taking a ride on the tube.


Jayda climbing up and getting ready to ride.


Daddy and Jayda going on the tube.


Justin got Sydney to laugh a ton by making this loud, silly sound. She was cracking up so hard. We'd never heard her laugh that hard so we got lots of pics and video of it. It was so sweet and hilarious!


Katie getting some air on the tube.


Everytime Jayda went out in the boat she constantly ate doritos, the whole time. It was pretty funny. By the time we got off the boat she would have cheese all over her fingers and face and we'd have to make her go swim in the lake to wash off all of her doritos!


Sweet girl all ready to go out on the lake.


Got the boat loaded down for an evening ride. Too bad they ran out of gas in the middle of the lake (because the gas gauge was apparently broken) and had to get towed back home, hehe!


A little brotherly love.


Jacob trying out the knee board.


Jayda jumping to me off the side of the boat. This was one of her favorite things to do!


Katie and Jayda out riding around.


Me doing a little water skiing.


Klint out on the tube.


Jacob skiing slolom.


We got home from our lake trip last wednesday and just chilled out for a few days. We were all so tired from all the excitement, so it was very nice to be home, even though we really missed everybody. While we were at the lake at some point (I think when we went to get ice cream at Marble Slab after turning in the boat) we let Sydney have a taste of ice cream. She absolutely loved it! She kept dive bombing the ice cream cone with her face and wanted more and more. It was so cute! So ever since she tried that ice cream she started putting her tongue out, all the time, like she was looking for food. The night after she had the ice cream I was eating a banana and she started trying to do the same thing that she did with the ice cream. She got a little bit of banana and like it too! So after that I knew it was time to start her on baby cereal! The friday after we got home Sydney tried oatmeal cereal for the first time. I mixed it with formula and she really didn't know what to think of it. At first she was face planting the spoon and trying to gobble it up (think she thought it was that ice cream again), but once she actually tasted it she kind of backed off. She made some really funny faces and I eventually came to realize after about the 3rd feeding that she really didn't like it. I switched the milk I was mixing the cereal with from formula to breast milk last night and she seems to like that better. She is still not a big fan of the cereal, but at least she did not gag on it last night. We will have to see where this goes. I'm thinking we may need to move on to fruits and veggies soon. The one good thing about it is that Sydney has been sleeping very well since we started her on cereal. She has been sleeping all night from about 8 p.m. and not waking up until 10:30 a.m. I feed her a few times during that time span, but that is still a long time for her. She has also been napping very well. I keep thinking that she's going to stop sleeping so well and that she's just catching up on rest from our vacation, but she's still been doing it. Not sure if the cereal is causing this or if she's going through a growth spurt or what, or maybe a little of both, but it sure is nice!!

"Ok Mommy, I'm all ready for some food!"


"Hmm, I don't know if I like it or not."


"Ewwww, I don't think I like this cereal stuff Mommy!"


Last saturday we headed to huntsville to spend the 4th of July with Jacob's parents and grandparents that were coming into town. We arrived later saturday afternoon and went to eat at Golden Corral for dinner (Jacob's papaws favorite place). We got to meet up with Nick Aranda and his family as well as Nick Moore for a few minutes. It was so fun getting to see them and their two sweet little girls, Kayla and Myah! On sunday we woke up to have a good 4th of July, or so we thought. We were hanging out that morning and I was upstairs feeding Sydney. All of a sudden I heard Jayda start crying really bad downstairs. I went down to find out that she had fallen over while putting her shoes on. She was apparently putting her shoes on and went to stand up, kind of wobbled, fell over and caught herself with her hand/wrist. Little did we know that something had really happened when she fell. We thought she'd be fine and no big deal. However, for the next couple of hours she kept complainig that her elbow was hurting and wouldn't use her arm at all. I gave her some tylenol and we put her down for a nap. After she woke up she was still saying her arm hurt and not moving it. I tried to move it around a little and she would not let me and cried really bad if her arm moved at all. She kept on crying and we finally decided we needed to take her to the ER to get it x-rayed to make sure it wasn't broken. Jacob, Jayda and Jacob's dad all headed up to the ER while I fed Sydney then followed shortly after. Jayda was such a trooper and a big girl at the ER. She wasn't scared and just sat with Jacob the whole time. The Dr. wanted an x ray so we took her on back. That was the worst part of all! They had to move her arm all around and rotate it to get the right pictures. Rotating it was what hurt the most and poor baby just cried and cried. Jacob and I felt SO bad for her! We finally finished the x rays then waited to see what the docs thought it was. While we were waiting for the results we saw our friend Nick Moore, who's an EMT, bring someone into the ER. It was so nice to see a familiar face in such an unfamiliar and not fun place. He was so sweet and even got Jayda a popsicle. He also let the grandparents come back for a little bit to see Jayda. It was so nice and such a blessing to see him there! They finally came back and said they thought there were 2 small fractures, one near her wrist and one near her elbow and the one at her wrist was what was causing the pain in her elbow. Hmm, ok, not sure that makes since, but ok. They went ahead and put a splint on her arm and gave her a sling to put it in. The splint worked well to keep her arm in place, but the sling was a disaster. She hated it! She didn't want it on at all and would fuss constantly if she had to wear it. We got back to Jacob's house that evening and were supposed to have a 4th of July bbq dinner and watch fireworks/celebrate Jacob's bday a little early. We had some bbq and sang Jacob happy bday, but it was all a little surreal after all of the stress from the day. We passed on fireworks that night and went ahead and stayed in huntsville one more night. We came home on monday (thanks Oma for driving us home since Jacob took our car back early monday morning for work). Unfortunately the dr's office was closed for the holiday so I couldn't even call the dr. to see about getting Jayda a cast, or doing something with her arm until tuesday. I called her Dr. first thing tuesday morning and they referred me to a bone and joint clinic here in Sugar Land. On tuesday afternoon Jacob's mom and mammaw came to meet us and we headed to Jayda's appt., not knowing what they would say. After the Dr. looked at Jayda's arm and the xrays he concluded that she may or may not have a break because in children the cartlidge in the elbow does not show up on a xray, it just looks like blank space. We would not know if it was broken until 10-12 days after it happen and if it was broken, new bone would start growing and that would then show up on the xray. So, the doc said we needed to go ahead and cast it in case it was broken, somewhere in her elbow, and then go back 10 days from the 4th when the accident happened and they will do an xray through the cast to look for new bone growth. If there is new bone growth, the cast will have to stay on for a couple more weeks, if not the cast can be taken off and then we'll know it was just some sort of sprain or twist to her elbow. Funny thing is that when they took the splint off to look at her arm she moved her arm all over the place, rotated and twisted it and everything she said it didn't hurt at all. But, her elbow was still swollen. So, who knows? Oh, and the 2 small fractures that the ER docs thought they saw, yeah, those were just her growth plates!! Wow, not too sure about ER docs! Anywho, now we are just waiting to go back in next wednesday to see if there is any new bone growth. We are REALLY, REALLY hoping that she didn't break it and can get the cast off!! We are supposed to go to Galveston with my family next weekend and Jayda is supposed to have a pool party on July 24th for her bday. If she still has the cast on, she can not swim at all and can not get it wet! Please pray for us that her arm is NOT broken!! Whew!

Jayda sporting her new pretty pink cast, that she got a daddy's bday!


Amidst the fiasco with Jayda's arm, we got some really cute July the 4th pictures of Sydney. Jayda actually had a matching dress that I wanted to get pics of them in together, but poor thing couldn't lift her arm up to put on the dress because it hurt so bad. It was so sad because she wanted to put it on so bad and take pictures with Sydney, but she just couldn't. That is actually when we finally decided we needed to go to the ER!









Jacob's birthday was this past tuesday. On monday Jayda and I went out to find him a birthday present and ended up getting him a Wii. I thought it would be a great gift for him, since he always likes to play it at other people's houses, and fun for him and Jayda to play together. We gave it to him a little early the night before his bday. He was super excited about it and we finally got it hooked up last night. We had fun sword fighting each other! My mom was also with us on monday night and gave Jacob some neat UT stuff including the longohorn version of monopoly, yay!

Jacob opening his bday presents with the girls.


Jacob opening up his new Wii from all of us for his bday!


On tuesday night, Jacob's actual bday, we went out to eat at Taste of Texas to celebrate. We both LOVE that place and thought it would be fun to go there. The food was amazing, as usual, however we think we'll leave the kiddos at home next time. It was nice having them there with us to celebrate, but Jayda would not sit still and Sydney would not stop crying. It was fun, but not a peaceful dinner that's for sure. Still glad we did it though!

Jayda and Daddy at Jacob's bday dinner at Taste of Texas.


Jacob holding Sydney during dinner, she was out like a light, finally!


Whew, we made it through dinner, now for some yummy cheesecake!!

We Love Our Daddy!!

This past weekend was Father's Day and let me just say, Jayda and Sydney sure do love their daddy, a lot! Both of those sweet girls do not ever seem to get enough daddy time. Jayda asks for daddy every morning when she wakes up. That is actually the first words out of her mouth every morning. I always tell her that daddy is at work and he'll be home tonight and she always says, nooooooooo, I want Daddy!! Kind of our morning routine, can you tell? And, then when Jacob gets home every night Jayda runs up to him and says "Daddy, it's the weekend!!" Most nights poor daddy has to tell Jayda, actually no sweetie, it's not the weekend yet. She wants it to be the weekend so bad because she knows daddy is home on the weekends and that is when they get to play. It's so sad and breaks Jacob's heart everytime! But, when it really is the weekend Jayda gets SO excited and yells/dances with excitement. Although little Sydney can't talk yet, you can obviously tell just how much she loves her daddy too. Every time she sees him she gives him the biggest smile ever and loves for daddy to hold her. She actually laughed for the first time ever at Jacob! At night when I'm awake feeding her and Jacob is still sleeping she just stares at him. It is the sweetest thing and I always tell Jacob he's got a secret admirer.

So, this past Father's Day weekend was fun because we got to celebrate what a great daddy Jacob is, as well as with my dad and Jacob's dad. We went to Huntsville on saturday morning and stopped by Jacob's parents house for a little bit. After we hung out with Jacob's parents we headed over to my parents house. The girls both took good naps and then Jacob, Jayda and my dad went to the city pool. We hadn't been to that pool yet and had been wanting to go for a while. Jayda had a blast playing in the pool. She has been taking swim lessons for the past few weeks, plus mommy has been working with her and this past weekend she just started swimming on her own! I am SO excited about this! She can kick her legs and move her arms and come up for air. It is not real pretty yet, but she can do it. So, that is what she practiced all afternoon at the pool with Jacob. She would jump in and swim to him and then swim back to the wall. She was so proud of herself and wanted to do it over and over. She has been very motivated to learn to swim by herself because one of our neighborhood pools has a big slide, but you can not go down it unless you can swim to the side on your own. So, of course miss Jayda is bound and determined to swim on her own so she can go down that slide! Anywho, when myself, mom, and Sydney finally got to the pool after S woke up from her nap Jayda was completely exhausted from swimming non stop for 2 hours! I don't think I've ever seen her that tired, ever! Sweet girl. That night my mom fixed my dad his favorite dinner for Father's Day, Chicken A La King (have no idea if that is the right spelling, but oh well). It was very yummy and we were all so worn out we went on to bed pretty early.

The 4 of us after swimming at the pool.


On Father's Day morning we woke up and first thing went to get daddy donuts for breakfast. Jayda was super excited about going to get donuts! After we got back and had donuts we gave Jacob and Dad their Father's Day presents. Jayda had helped me pick out Jacob's presents, so she knew what they were for several days. She did so good all week and did not spoil the surprise! She kept telling Jacob that she had a surprise for him, but that she couldn't tell him until Fathers Day. She was SO excited to finally give him his presents! We got Jacob a new bathroom bag for traveling, some work out shirts and a new pair of Nike Shox.

Jacob with his 2 girlies on Father's Day morning.


Jayda giving daddy his new shoes!


Jayda with Oupa while he opened his cards.


Later that afternoon we went over to Jacob's parents house to celebrate Father's Day with Pawpaw. We enjoyed some yummy bbq and hung out with the family for the afternoon. We had a great Father's Day and so glad we got to spend it with our dads! We love you Daddy!!!

Jacob and Sydney on Father's Day!


Jacob and Justin with the girls!




*Sydney had her 4 month shots done last tuesday. I always take a picture of the girls on the changing table after they get their shots, so here it is.

Sydney @ 4 Months!

Little miss Sydney Anne turned 4 months old on June 11th. It is so hard to believe that she is already getting so big! It seems like just yesterday that I had her and we brought her home from the hospital! Sydney is doing very well at 4 months. She has gotten into a good routine these days, so that really seems to help. Right now she is taking a short nap in the morning, usually around 9 or 10 a.m. for about 45 minutes. Then, she takes a long nap after lunch time around 12 or 1 p.m. for about 3hours. She usually takes one more short nap for about 45 minutes around 5 p.m. She goes to sleep at night around 8 p.m. and sleeps until about 8 a.m., and wakes up only once at night to eat (usually around 5 or 6 a.m.). It is so nice having her in a good sleeping routine because that way we can do things when I know she's going to be awake and in a good mood. It also really helps that she is sleeping so good at night because then mommy gets sleep too and we are all much happier when mommy gets sleep!! She is still chomping down on anything she can get her hands on, but has no teeth yet. I'm thinking that is probably going to happen any day now. The other day she rolled over from her tummy to her back, but has not rolled over from her back to tummy yet. She is liking tummy time a little better these days and will stay on her tummy for about 5 minutes before she starts fussing. She would much rather be on her back so she can look around and see everything that's going on. Sydney absolutely loves her big sister Jayda, no surprise there. She smiles at her all the time and watches everything she does. Jacob and I keep saying she is going to be running around following Jayda and copying everything she does before we know it! Sydney has a very sweet personality and smiles all the time when we talk to her. She is pretty laid back, unless she is hungry or tired, and then she will really let you know! Sydney is also very observant and watches everything. Even though she is so small, I don't think she misses a thing that goes on in our house! Sydney also seems to like the water, guess it runs in the genes. She has always liked her baths and now she also likes the swimming pool. She just relaxes and floats around with us whenever we get in. Last night Jacob was taking her around the pool and she was kikcking her little feet like she was trying to swim. It was so cute! We are having so much fun with Sydney already, can't imagine wheat it will be like once she starts crawling around and walking!!

*In addition, Sydney had her 4 month well check today and weighed in at 14 lbs, 12 oz (75th percentile) and 24 " long (50th percentile). Sydney hated getting her shots! She was actually crying pretty bad before they even gave her the shots because she was mad about the oral rotavirus vaccine. Thankfully, she only cried for a minute and with some loving from mommy and big sis she was fine.


Jayda was showing Sydney and Sara a game on my phone and they both loved it. Too bad we couldn't get a pic of them both looking up at the camera!


Jayda loves to dress Sydney up in hats, this is just one of many!


Sydeny getting dressed up by Jayda, again. At least she likes it this time!


And Jayda had to dress up too, of course!



My sweet little girls all dressed up together!


This was Sydney in the morning on the day she turned 4 months.


What a sweet smile!


Little Sydney Pea!


LOVE this picture, Sydney at 4 months.


Sweet sisters posing for mommy.


Jayda with her cousins Andrew, Cecilia and Molly at Aunt Cheryl's pool party.


Jayda playing in her floatie at Aunt Cheryl's house!


Jayda all dressed up for church in her patriotic gear. Yes, I realize it is not July the 4th yet, but Jayda recently got this dress from Oma and just HAD to wear it. So, I figured we could go ahead and get some use out of it!


And Sydney went ahead and wore her patriotic gear too!


Jayda having fun eating lunch at Joe's after church on Sunday.


Mommy and the girls!

It's Pool Time!!

So, our neighborhood pool recently opened and since Jayda is quite the fish, we have been going down there a lot! She looooves to swim and has been having a blast. She actually just started her first swim lesson this morning. I feel kinda bad since I of course could teach her, but I figure it would be nearly impossible to do while holding onto Sydney at the same time. Plus, I think she'll listen better to someone else than her own mommy. Hopefully we have success with the lessons and she can start swimming for real soon! Mommy would be SO happy! Anywho, I've been taking a bunch of pool pics lately and wanted to share. Enjoy!

Riley and Jayda playing in the baby pool at our house.


Sydney's first time at the pool and in her swim suit.


Mommy with the girls all ready to go swimming!


Little sweet pea got worn out at the pool and had to take a nap with daddy!


Jayda swimming around in her "yellow boat", aka baby float!

Jayda at dinner the other night.


Oma came to visit us last weekend and took us out to dinner at BJ's Brewhouse, yummo!


Me and Jacob at dinner. Can you tell we don't get out much??


Sydney's first ride in the yellow boat. For about one moment she kinda layed back and looked happy, like this, but it quickly passed. We thought it was the floatie making her mad, but then realized it was that darn hat. Once she got the hat off she was perfectly fine and loved the water!


Jayda floating around in her new pink floatie! She loves this thing because she can swim around the pool wherever she wants to go "all by herself", with one of us close by of course.


The little bit out for some pool time. Thought this was such a cute pic.


Sweet little girl!


Trying to entertain Sydney with boxes while I unloaded groceries from the store. Actually kinda worked for about 10 minutes. She likes to look at colorful things like pictures, boxes, t-shirts etc.


And now she's had enough. "Get me out of here momma!!"


I didn't even mean to dress them alike this morning, but I put Jayda's swim suit on her for her swim lesson, then put Sydney in her monkey outfit. After they were both ready I realized they were matching and had to get some cute pics before we left the house!


LOVE, love, love this picture of them together!


Sweet sisters!


Cracks me up when Jayda tries to hold Sydney like this. Sydney now weighs 1/2 as much as Jayda and is getting to be a big little baby.


Little sis watching big sis play in the water.


Jayda playing at the splash park this morning!


Jayda getting a back massage, haha!