Luke's Birthday Party

Mason's buddy, Luke, had his birthday party this weekend. It was also the first time Mason had been in the pool. We had a fabulous time!

Luke digging into his Birthday Cake

Mommy & Mason in the pool

Adam easing his way into the water with Mason
Mason & Braden enjoying their floaties


Desiree & Abigail

Look at that smile
Luke playing with his bat

We caught Mason sleeping this way the night before

He was trying to untie my bathing suit

Getting ready to leave for the party
Mason in his swim trunks
Marissa setting up the pizza

Happy Birthday Tom!

One of our good friends, Tom, celebrated his 28th birthday today. We normally get together with Tom & Desiree for dinner and The Office every Thursday night, so it worked out well when we invited them over for supposedly "another Office night."

Adam finished work early, so I was able to bake a cake for Tom and cupcakes for the kiddos. Everyone piled in our kitchen and when Tom & Desiree arrived, he was totally surprised. We ate pizza, hung out in the backyard, played horseshoes and games. Hope you had a happy birthday Tom!

Happy 1st Birthday Luke

Lukey,

Happy 1st Birthday! I have only known you for a couple of months now, but you made my move from Texas so much easier. Immediately, you welcomed me into the church nursery and soon after that into your play groups. Everytime I come over to your house, you share all of your toys and we have so much fun playing and talking. I can't wait for your party this weekend. Thanks for being my friend.

Your buddy,
Mason

lets be honest

Mostly, I blog to keep everyone informed about our family. Let's face it, Mason is the star of this blog, and he should be. He is just so darn adorable. But occasionally, I feel the need to voice the thoughts in my head and this is one of those moments.

It's 12:53am and I am sitting here in bed wide awake. I have a hard time falling asleep, and it doesn't help if I have something on my mind. Adam, on the other hand, can fall asleep in 30 seconds flat, trust me, I've timed him. Anyway, just recently I was reading Kelly Sherill's recent post and every time she is brutally honest about her thoughts and feelings. It doesn't matter how good or hard life seems, she always writes her true emotions. I respect that and find that hard to do at times. But tonight, I am going to try to do just that.

I have always had self esteem issues. There, I said it. Now, I know must girls struggle with this, but I would venture to say that everyone struggles with this in some form, but few really admit their true thoughts or feelings. For some reason, I am willing to share mine with you tonight. I'm not writing this looking for compliments, but in hopes that anyone that reads this blog and is struggling with the same thing will realize they aren't alone.

My self esteem issues go all the way back to my childhood. If you don't know, my mom married young and my biological father, Danny, was 10 years older than my mom. He wasn't a very good man and treated my mom horribly. After 6 years of an unhappy marriage, they divorced and she was left to raise two young girls all by herself. Danny had nothing to do with us and the only help my mom received was from her family.

I was six years old when I met my Dad, Greg. I still remember that day vividly. We met him at the park and we played on the playground all day and fed the ducks at the pond. Afterwards, we went to Pizza Hut for a late lunch. I knew he was special from the beginning. He treated my mom with love and respect and he wanted to spend time with Christina & I. Two years later, my mom and him were married. Not long after that, we began discussing adoption. I couldn't wait until my name was legally Tabaitha Coverston.

The process took a little over a year. We had to go to counseling to make sure that this was what we wanted. The state had to track down Danny, to turn over his legal rights as our father. They never did find him, but after a certain amount of time had passed, it was time for Greg to become legally our father. We dressed up and went down to the courthouse. The Judge asked us if this was indeed what we wanted and then the lawyers filed the paperwork. That weekend we celebrated with our family. Every year, we still celebrate our Adoption Anniversary. It will always hold a special place in my heart.

Why the back story? It is just part of the reason I have self esteem issues. I have this amazing, wonderful father who I adore. He has been there for me and supported me in my hardest times and most importantly, loved me unconditionally. I couldn't ask for anything more. But it still bothers me that Danny has had nothing to do with us all of these years. I don't understand how a man can turn his back on his own kids. Like I said before, he wasn't a good man, but as a parent, I couldn't abandon my children.

I have no earthly desire to meet him. Why would I want to meet a man who never seemed to care for me? The best thing that happened to me, was my father coming into my mom's life. He leaded us as a family and always placed God first in his life. Our family was his second priority. I respect and admire everything about him. People that don't know the whole story, even tell me that we look alike. I can see some physical similarities, but I think we resemble each other more in our personalities.

Even though I have an amazing father, I still have abandonment issues. In the back of my mind, I always feared that my Daddy would leave me, just like Danny did. I know he won't and I talked to him about my fears a few years ago. This is just a root of my issue with self esteem. Notice I wrote "a root" instead of "the root."

God knows everything about us. He made us perfect in His site. How come we can't see that? I have a hard time appreciating the body God has given me. I am so judgemental about everything about my outward appearance. God thinks I am gorgeous, so why don't I feel this way?

Growing up, I wouldn't say that I blossomed until college and I don't mean my chest. In college, instead of gaining the freshman fifteen, I lost about twenty pounds. I was never overweight, but as a teenager, I didn't have a stick figure. I didn't diet to lose the weight, it just came off. My self esteem was higher, but I still obsessed about my looks.

Now that I have had a child, my body is not what it used to be. I eat well, most of the time, I just don't have the energy to run and exercise like I used to. It's hard for me to appreciate my body, when all you hear about or read about are the celebs who just had a baby and immediately look perfect again. I know they have the money to hire a personal trainer, a nanny to watch the baby, and a chef to cook their meals, but it doesn't help someone who wants their old body back and it seems so easy for everyone else.

This isn't a pity party, this is me expressing what I feel and what I am working on in my life right now. I am trying to attack this now, so that my kids have a high self esteem and don't have the same self image issues that I have. Hopefully, when I have a daughter some day, she won't struggle with these same issues the way I have. So if anyone else is struggling with self image, know that I will be praying for you.

Memorial Day Weekend

I always enjoy three day weekends and I enjoy them even more when they turn into four day weekends for Adam. Friday evening, our Sunday School class had a Progressive Dinner. Since it was a holiday weekend, there were only 7 couples, but it was so nice to get together and hang out and not have to worry about the little ones running around or trying to feed them. We had appetizers at the church, salad at Crystal & Don's house, dinner at our house, and dessert back up at the church. Everything was so delicious.



Yesterday, our class was challenged to do a service project within our community. We decided to hand out bottled waters at one of the many parks here in Bakersfield. Originally, we were expecting warm weather, like the weekend before. Even though it wasn't incredibly warm, it was perfect park weather and there were a number of people enjoying the gorgeous day.



Tonight everyone is getting together to watch "The Princess Bride" at Ben & Selena's house. They have a projector and set it up outside, while everyone gets lawn chairs or lays blankets on the grass. We chose "The Princess Bride" because it is a classic and some people have never seen it.



I don't think that I have mentioned that Mason now has his two top teeth, bringing it to a total of four. Also, the doctor weighed him last week and he was 25lbs. We finally have his 9 month checkup this week. Dr. Shah is a hard man to go into for his well visits. He has a partner, and she is good, but I would rather see Dr. Shah. I didn't think Mason was in any rush to get his shots.

Tomorrow is Memorial Day and I want to thank all of the veterans and soldiers for everything they have done and continue to do. Many women and men have lost their lives, while serving our country. They chose to serve our country with honor and pride and unfortunately some people have forgotten this. Please pray for their families tomorrow and continue to pray for all of our troops all over the world.

May 13-19th

The last time I updated everyone on our trip to Houston, was right after we arrived. It was a fantastic week and for me, it was so incredibly busy. Everyday, Mason & I were traveling around trying to make sure that everyone got to see him. I tried to give him a little normalcy with his naps, but that didn't always work out.

Adam joined us late Thursday night and we were all up bright and early Friday morning. Mason didn't sleep well and I could tell he wasn't feeling well. He had a temperature and I knew we needed to make a trip to our old pediatrician before the chaos of the weekend began. Dr. Lentsch fit us in early that morning and of course Mason had another double ear infection. The boy has never had just one ear infection at a time, he likes to double his pain. She gave him a shot instead of prescribing antibiotics, since we would be flying home in 3 days. By that evening, he still had a temperature and you could just look at him and know he wasn't feeling well. Luckily, my parents watched him while Adam & I drove out to Kingwood for my friends rehearsal dinner.

Saturday morning, I woke up at 3am because Mason was having such a hard time sleeping. I didn't want to wake up Adam, so I took him downstairs and gave him a bottle to get some fluids in him. It seemed to do the trick and I put him back in his pack-n-play, only to have to wake Adam up now. I had to drive Adam to his parents at 4am, so that they could drive up to Waco in time for David's graduation. When I got back to my parents house and walked in the bedroom, I could tell Mason had poopied, so I tried to change his diaper without waking him up, but that didn't go so well. So again, we went back downstairs.

Thirty minutes later, my mom comes downstairs to let the puppies outside and she could tell I was having a hard time getting Mason to go back to sleep. She took him and rocked him and he was at peace immediately. After a little talking, she told me I needed to get some sleep and at that moment, I burst into tears. I was so exhausted from the last two days and the fact that my baby was sick and there was nothing I could do to calm him down made it worse. She took care of him, while I tried to catch a couple hours of sleep. After getting about an hour of sleep, I said my goodbyes and drove out to Kingwood to get ready for Larissa's wedding with the rest of the girls.

Larissa was a stunning bride. All day, she bounced with excitement, knowing in just a couple of hours she would be Mrs. Wesley Teasdale. It was a beautiful ceremony and we had a blast at the reception. I was so honored to be a part of her day. I was so fortunate that my mom and dad were able to watch Mason the whole day. I don't think I would have been able to get through the weekend without them. Thank you!

By Sunday morning, Mason was 100% better. I woke up to him peaking through his pack-n-play and standing up to give me kisses. I was so relieved that he was doing better, but I was exhausted. We spent the day with our families and enjoyed some home cooking. We hated saying goodbye, but it was time to get back to our routine. Mason slept the entire flight home on Monday. The time change didn't effect his sleeping habits and it was so good to be back in our own beds.

PS. There won't be any picture updates for awhile. My computer is having some major issues and I will be using Adam's laptop until it is fixed.

Hiding Place

If you don't know, I tend to let my emotions get the best of me sometimes. I am the person that wears their heart on their sleeve. What you see, is what you get! I'm not good at hiding my emotions, trust me, I have tried. Throughout the day today, my eyes have been flooded with tears, my heart is aching and my mind is racing.

This morning I posted about Stephen Curtis Chapman's family. I have never met them and most likely will not have a chance, at least in this life time. But we have a connection, a spiritual connection. They are brothers and sisters in Christ and their family is hurting right now. My heart is hurting right now, just thinking about everything they are going through. I cannot even imagine the sorrow that has devoured their family.

I am reminded that our time is short and you never know what tomorrow will bring. People hear this all the time, but whether you have kids or not, it hits home. This family has ministered to families all over the world and right now, their family needs to be ministered too. The only way I am able to help is through prayer. I once heard that if you have a burden in your heart, then it's God's way of telling you to set it free.

Urgent Prayer Request

I promise to update later, but right now this is more important.


Please, please pray (right now!) for Steven Curtis Chapman and his family. Details are still in process, but it appears that one of his sons was pulling into their driveway last nightand did not see his sister (5 year old Maria..adopted from China) in front of him. She was struck by the car and killed.

A Mother's Love

The flight to Houston went very well yesterday. Mason didn't sleep but maybe 30 minutes out of the 3.5 hour flight, but he was so well behaved and not as squirmy as I thought he would be. I could feel the humidty the minute I stepped of the plane. As I exited the gate my plane arrived in, I was greeted by my Daddy. My Dad works for Continental and was able to surprise us at the gate. We met Mimi down in baggage claim and everyone was so happy to be together.

Saturday night, my parents hosted a family gathering. Some of my family from Carrollton came down this weekend and I couldn't have been more excited to see everyone. I made sure to take a ton of pictures! The best part of the night was spending time with my nephews and watching all of our family love on Mason.

I had a fabulous Mother's Day. Mason's pack n' play is next to my bed and as I opened my eyes, he was standing in the pack n' play and just watching me. He gave me a great big smile and a kiss. Afterwards, we went into Mimi and Granddad's bedroom and opened presents. Mason surprised me a beautiful beaded artesian bracelet. I wore it all day!

I enjoyed spending the day with my family and catching up, watching Mason play, and taking pictures. It is so good to be at my home away from home. I am enjoying myself in California, but this will always be my home.

I have had many titles in my life, but nothing is more fulfilling than being a mommy. My mom has set the greatest example growing up of what a wife, a mom and daughter look like. Those are tough shoes to follow, but because of her love, I am the women and mom I am today.

Granddad & Mimi with Mason at lunch today

Mason on the way to lunch
He wanted an appetizer
The night before we flew home, I got the sweetest picture of Mason sleeping!

Texas our Texas...

Tomorrow I will be in Houston! We leave bright and early at 6:30am from LAX and arrive at IAH around 11:30am. I can't wait to see everyone. At the moment, I'm trying to figure out how I am going to pack all of my stuff and Mason's into one suitcase. In case you don't know, the airlines have changed the rules regarding checking luggage effective May 5th. You are now allowed one free bag to check and the second bag is $25 each trip. It is still free to check car seats and strollers, thank goodness.

I'm a little nervous about flying this time around. Mason will be sitting in my lap during the flight and I'm concerned he won't want to sit the entire 3.5 hours. Luckily, it is an early flight and he normally is asleep that early. Hopefully he will just continue to sleep the rest of the flight.

It's going to be a very busy week for us. There are so many people I want to see, while in Houston. Fortunately, if I don't see everyone this trip, I will see them at the end of June when we come in for David's wedding.

My good friend, Larissa, is getting married next Saturday. I met Larissa through Adam, when we first started dating. Larissa and Adam both attended Baylor and became friends their freshman year of college. Over the past three years, Larissa and I have grown close and now talk more than her and Adam. Her dad is the one that got Adam the job with Nalco.She has been anxiously awaiting this day for so long and I can't wait to be a part of her special day.

David, Adam's brother, is graduating from Baylor the same day as the wedding. I hate that I will miss it, but at least I will get to see him that evening at the wedding reception. I am so proud and happy for David. He has accomplished so much over the last few years and now he is finally done with school.

leaps and bounds

As of lately, my posts have been brief or just pictures. We have been pretty busy around here with play dates, enjoying our backyard, and hanging out with friends. This week we are preparing for our trip home to Houston. I can't wait to see all of our family and friends. Mason & I will fly in on Saturday morning and Adam will join us the following Thursday. It will be a 10 day trip and it won't be long enough.

Everyone will be so surprised at how much Mason has grown. It's one thing when you see him in the pictures, and another when you see him face to face. He is looking more and more like a toddler every day. He currently weighs 23lbs and is 30 inches long. His size hasn't changed much since he was 6 months, except that he has thinned out.

Mason is crawling up a storm, climbing the walls and pulling himself up on everything. He even can takes steps if he has something to hold onto. I remember when I couldn't wait for him to crawl and now I miss the days that he stayed in one place. He will be walking before I know it.

Mole Hunting

The other day, we looked out our backyard and saw a huge ant hill. I can't stand ants and immediately went to the store to get stuff to take care of the problem. We were having our Sunday School class over that Friday for a fellowship and we wanted to spend time outside. I didn't want anyone to get ant bites all over their feet or legs, so I was hoping that if I treated the lawn on Tuesday, they would be gone by Friday. After walking toward the hill, I looked closely and noticed it wasn't an ant hill, but a mole hill.

Adam wanted me to double check that we had a mole problem, by looking up pictures and information online. Even though I knew without having to look it up, I decided to please him. Yes, it was definitely a mole hill.

We have never had to worry about moles before. How do you get rid of moles? We decided to flood them out. Our friends Tom & Desiree came over to help. Tom & Adam took the water hose and shoved it way down in the holes. All together, we had 7 holes. In 2 days, this mole had dug holes all over our backyard. We had just been out there the weekend before doing yard work and never came across any holes in the ground or any hills.

The guys thought the mole would surface to get away from water that was flooding his new home. To be prepared, they each had a baseball bat in their hands. It was a hilarious site and Desiree and I could not stop laughing. The mole never surfaced, we think he must have drowned.

I did manage to capture a few pictures of the guys getting ready to whack-a-mole.