Happy Birthday to our Tator Tot!!

Once upon a time, almost 5 years ago now…. We were in Wyoming at the annual Shoopman Family Camp over the 4th of July. All of our kids were there and Kolby and Abbie were just toddlers and Baylee was a baby just ten months old. We all had a great time!

We were all having such a good time we hardly noticed that Robin seemed a little preoccupied. But, we went to town shopping and I noticed her slip something into her cart and try to bury it beneath her other items. I saw what it was, but since she was trying her best to hide it, I didn’t say anything. But I did get a little excited!

Once we got back to the house and before we all left to go our separate ways, Robin and Travis called a family meeting for our little family. It was then we learned that we were being blessed with a new little grandbaby to join our family! While Travis and Robin were surprised that this could happen so soon when they had to try so hard for Baylee, we were overjoyed! A short (or long) 7 months later, Taylor Maddison Shoopman joined our family! She was such a contrast to her brother and sister. While they had such fair complexions, Taylor had the more olive undertone of the Greek side of her heritage. While they had blue eyes, Taylor has hazel/brown eyes like her great grandma. We immediately began thinking of her as our Greek throwback baby!

Taylor drew a tough spot in her house. She was the baby, but she was not too far behind her sister so it was like she was the SECOND baby and her brother and sister didn’t pay her much attention. She learned early on how to handle the situation though and get the attention she wanted from them. When her brother or sister would be playing quietly with their toys, Taylor would go up to them and grab whatever it was they had and run as fast as she could laughing all the way! She MADE them play with her! Plus, you know what they say....by the time the third one comes along, you let them juggle knives!

Taylor has always had such a sweet disposition! She was such a calm and snuggly baby. Happy to entertain herself and do her own thing. And oh what a chunk she was! She was also the first of our grands to actually be born with hair you could see! We were so excited!

Taylor has some pretty amusing (not so amusing to her parents though) personality ‘quirks’. For awhile she was DEATHLY AFRAID of water and/or taking a bath! She would scream and fight the entire time. Then one summer, we got them a fun little pool and convinced her it was a ‘magic’ pool that wouldn’t hurt her at all. At first she played just on the outside, then one day, she got in and now she loves swimming!

She did the same thing when it came to riding horses. Her mommy was excited that she might actually have a little princess she could keep in the house and play make-up with, but her daddy went to work showing her that horses are fun and now you can’t get her OFF the horse when she rides with her Daddy! But, she does still love to play make-up and dress up with her mommy!

Taylor knows how to have fun!

Since Kolby and Baylee are both in school all day now, Taylor enjoys being the only one home all day with mommy. They do lots of fun stuff together but her funnest thing is to sing and dance along with Hannah Montana!

I can’t believe she is FOUR already! Where does the time go?! Happy Birthday to our sweet Tator Tot!! We love you!