Illyria's first flight

On October 9th, Illyria Providence Garmon -- snug in her sling and next to her mother's heartbeat, at age one month old -- embarked upon another adventure: her first airplane ride.  Most importantly, she was headed to Georgia to meet her grandparents and great-grandparents who were so excited to meet her.

Elijah's mother has always been there for every one of my children's births, and I kind of missed not having had her present for Illyria's arrival.  With her own daughters expecting and her mother needing care from her too, I didn't see how she would have been able to visit, so I thought I would take Illyria there myself.  The idea of presenting Illyria to the Georgia Garmons came to Elijah, who after having spoken to his grandmother, felt impressed to ask me if that would be something I could do.  He really wanted to brighten his grandmothers' day by having Illyria visit with them, even for just a few days.

I'm so glad we went!  We were able to visit Grandma and Granny everyday, and they loved it.  It made them so happy to hold a little babe in their arms.  Mama and Papa got to enjoy her at home, too.  We also visited with church friends, family members, former neighbors, and old friends of Elijah's.  I was so happy I got a chance to visit with Aunt Rita and Aunt Joye, as well as Granny's niece, Shelby.  Seeing Jon, Elijah's old chum from school days, and his family was a big plus.  We were there for five days, but, boy, I thought I visited half of Cedartown!  And Illyria was a real Georgia peach throughout the whole stay.  She earned her Georgia Belle title fair and square.  :)

On the way to Grandma's

My favorite spot in the whole property.  So serene, so beautiful, so full of memories!

Illyria was blessed to receive one of Grandma's last handmade quilts.  This one is very special in that it was made with left over scraps from all of the other quilts that Grandma has created throughout her life.  What a special gift! Priceless!

Granny hadn't lost her touch. Illyria loved being held by her.

See what I mean :)

What a blessing to have such wonderful and sweet ladies as family!

Illyria is sure feeling snug and comfortable on papa's shoulder. I guess all of my kids used to love sleeping on his shoulder. Special papa magic!

I hope Illyria inherits Mama's tender heart and calming personality.

My favorite picture -  so much feeling in it that touches my heart beyond words.

Four generations of strong, sweet and happy women! What a heritage for Illyria!

The only thing worth stealing is a kiss from a sleeping child. ~Joe Houldsworth

"I love these little people; and it is not a slight thing when they, who are so fresh from God, love us." ~Charles Dickens, The Old Curiosity Shop

Wow!  September is out, fall is in, school is in full swing, Illyria is one month old, and love abounds in the Garmon residence.  I can't believe it has been just a month since I gave birth to this beautiful child, and so many things have happened.

In the beginning of September, Gillian and I attended a Shakespeare play in Berkeley.  I had given birth three days before and I felt great physically, but a bit down emotionally.  Illyria was in the hospital, and this play was the perfect distraction in not allowing me to feel really depressed.  A Midsummer Night's Dream is a fun play in which Shakespeare was able to express his feelings about the fickle nature of men  through comedy and satire.  I love reading it, and this production did its beauty justice.  Gillian was a bit shocked at the outfits and somewhat risque acting, but all in all this was a mesmerizing play and we had a charming evening together.

Illyria stayed in the hospital for over a week.  Those 9 days were so hard on all of us - not having our little angel home made us all cranky. But Illyria got better, and happiness entered our home.  Since then, Illyria has been loved, kissed, changed, dressed, played with, fought over, and adored immeasurably by her siblings, parents, grandmother, and friends.  There isn't any little girl out there more loved than our Miss Illyria.

 As soon as she got home, I made arrangements with my friend to have her pictures taken while she was still newly born.  My friend and I had fun picking out background materials and colorful headbands for Illyria.  She did sleep the whole time through, as well as managed to pee and poop during the photo shoot.  But it was all worth it!

 

With pictures out of the way, and with Illyria feeling great, three days after she arrived home Gillian and I took Miss Illyria with us on a fun outing to Sacramento.  My friend Amy and I had planned to take our older girls to a fun conference for women and girls, and since Illyria was feeling so much better, we decided to go and enjoy ourselves.  What added to the fun was the fact that ten other friends from my ward were joining Amy and me in this spiritual and inspiring two-day girls' week-end.  We made a party out of it, and all of us had a wonderful and relaxing time.  Illyria was an angel, and loved all the attention she got from everyone.  Who wouldn't want to hold a two-week old baby newly arrived from Heavenly Father, still with the glow of her Heavenly home!  Her first outing, to Sacramento nonetheless, was a great success.

My kids' favorite thing to do with Illyria, besides covering her with kisses and hugs, is showing her off at church to all of their friends.  Of course holding her during Sacrament meeting is Elijah's privilege; he still has the calming touch, and that girl goes right back to sleep when he holds her.  Very tender!

The one person that loves to hold Illyria but has to fight with my kids over keeping her to herself is my mother.  She isn't one for sharing, so when she has Illyria she hogs the baby, and that doesn't go too well with my kids.  I've had to break a great many wars between the grandma and the grand kids :)

One of the perks of homeschooling Gillian is our Friday field trips.  Last Friday, we took Illyria for her first taste of San Francisco.  It was a bit cold, but she was a trooper!  We strolled and drove all over San Fancisco from the Fisherman's Wharf to Golden Gate Bridge to the Palace of Fine Arts.  We ate good food, saw great sights, and enjoyed San Francisco's cool weather.  My mother came with us, and although I was glad she was with us, it is very hard for me to maintain an intelligent conversation while trying to keep two different topics going in two different languages. Good thing I'm teaching Gillian Albanian.

I have to say that although all of my kids are really great with Illyria in changing her diapers, holding her, and loving her, James has shown himself to be very tender and willing to do whatever it takes to make his sister happy.  When he holds her, he sings to her, and when he comes back from school  he runs straight to Illyria and kisses her on her nose, his signature kiss for his sister.  I love seeing James, and all of them, share their love and care with their youngest sibling.

 Here are a few more pictures of my one-month old babe.  Isn't she beautiful?!