Happy Mothers Day! Three Generations of Ada!

About a week ago, Coco decided she wanted to wear her black and white "princess dress" for the day. She's worn it several (more like a hundred) times, but for some reason, on this particular day, I had the bright idea to dress up in black and white stripes as well. I thought it would make for a fun little Mummy and Me photo shoot, and since my sister who's taken all our Mummy and Me photos is with us riding out the pandemic, I quickly roped her in. I just wanted a few photos that I would eventually share, and in about 10 minutes or so, we were done. 

Cruise Vacation - Costa Maya, Mexico

Hola!

How was your weekend? Mine was pretty good - I got a chance to really rest, and so I feel pretty refreshed today. I know it seems like our Family Cruise 2018 series will never end, but I promise, I have just 2 more posts after this one. I'd like to share some photos of the ship, and all the food we ate :D But in today's post, I'm sharing photos from our very last stop on the cruise with Royal Caribbean. We docked at Costa Maya, Mexico (remember our first Mexican stop in Cozumel?).

Cruise Vacay - Roatan, Honduras

We're continuing with the cruise vacation posts today, and this time our stop takes us to Roatan, Honduras. To be honest, if it wasn't for the cruise, it would never have occurred to me to visit Honduras. It's just not simply a country I had ever considered going to - mostly out of ignorance, I guess. But it proved to be our favorite stop during our week long Caribbean cruise on Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas!

Autumn is Here

Hey you,

How are ya? I hope you had a nice weekend. I was going to continue my cruise vacation posts today, but last weekend, we went to a local pumpkin patch at Berry Farms, and the photos were too nice (in my opinion) that I could not wait to share them! Fall or Autumn is my second favorite season (after Spring). I enjoy seeing the leaves change color - the yellows, oranges, browns and reds of fall are so beautiful to behold. And it also helps that Sweater Weather, and Fall fashion, happens to be my favorite to see. Knee-length and thigh-high boots paired with dresses or jeans, oversize and chunky sweaters over leggings, and layering with crisp leather jackets... LOVE!

Cruise Vacay - Cozumel, Mexico

Hi there!!!!

Last week I shared photos from our cruise stop in Nassau, Bahamas. Today, it's time to see my 1 and a half'th favorite stop in COZUMEL, Mexico!!!!!

Cruise Vacation - Nassau Bahamas

Hey there!

How are ya? And how was your weekend? I hope it was great. Mine was sooooooo unexpected, but I won't address it here. From today, for the next few posts, I want to share about my family cruise vacation to the Caribbean in September. We traveled on Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas, for a 7-night cruise. We had 4 stops in total, visiting the Bahamas, Mexico and Honduras. It was a very memorable trip, and today I'm going to share a few short stories and some photos.

Unfortunately, I didn't get as many photos (and videos) as I thought I would. But the few ones I have, I'm very happy to share.

Old Love and New Love

Today I did something that I haven't done in a long time. When you go through a particularly tough time, like I've mentioned a few times, you can begin to lose yourself. When you laugh, the laughter is mostly hollow. When you smile, it doesn't quite reach your eyes. You subconsciously carry a weight on you that makes you slouch. You slowly stop doing the things you used to enjoy. You forget or lose the will to do the things you used to love. I stopped writing. I stopped twirling. I didn't want to play with makeup anymore. I can't even remember the last time I listened to Flavour! *hang on, I'm about to play my favorite song of his - Destiny*

Something is brewing - Tea With Cubes

If you follow me on Instagram you may have noticed my teaser about something brewing. Well it's time to reveal what it is!

5 Baby Shower Tips| My Baby Shower Photos

Baby showers are one of the events most looked forward to during a woman's pregnancy. From having one or two or more parties thrown for her, to the baby shower gifts she'll receive, the baby shower is an important event. Typically they are planned and hosted by the mummy-to-be's family and/or friends. These days, baby shower themes run from Parisian to Hawaiian Luau to a Tea Party like mine. Check out the photos below and some helpful tips for hosting a baby shower.

BERRY VLOG - Pregnancy Reveal

When I found out I was pregnant, the very first person I told was Cakes. Then we proceeded to tell our mothers, who were both understandably excited. I considered telling my immediate younger sister, but came up with a plan to reveal all as a Christmas present! I wasn't sure if I could really hide my pregnancy and keep it a secret for basically a whole month, but I did and the pregnancy reveal video has been making waves and causing tears all over. If you haven't seen it, make sure to grab a tissue :D

Mother's Day

Today's Mother's Day in America and while I was originally going to put up a post about motherhood, and all the joys surrounding it, my heart is going out to the multitudes of women who have lost children. It's when you're trying for a child and having difficulties like we did, that you realize just how many women have gone or are going through the same thing. Not just trying to conceive but those who have miscarriages, and even lose infants or small children. Because of our African hush-hush culture, most women don't talk about these things. It's the advent of social media and a few courageous women who are bringing a light to these matters.

I will not lie and tell you I haven't had scary thoughts about my pregnancy - every bad story I hear, makes me a little nervous. I thank God for family and friends that continually pray and have faith though.

Anyways, on this Mothers Day, I want to send thoughts and prayers to any woman near or far, who has dealt with loss of their children. I cannot imagine the amount of pain. I cannot put myself in your shoes. I don't know why God allows such things. But I can say a prayer for you from the bottom of my heart.

Dear Lord, God Almighty and All-Knowing. I humbly come into your presence and ask for your special grace and comfort to these mothers who have grieved or are grieving. I cannot imagine their pain, but You know their pain and are the only one who can give them true comfort. I pray that you wrap them in Your arms and let them know that even in the darkest of times, YOU ARE! You are there with them, and You are watching over them, and their blessed angels who are now with you in heaven. Give them love, give them peace, and turn their tears into dancing. I pray that you put a smile on their faces and give them cause to give you glory. May they be that woman in Psalm 113:9 - Happy Mother of Children. This is my prayer, and I ask for all of this in Jesus' name. Amen.

Happy Mothers Day to You.

BERRY VLOG - Mama Berry Chit Chat

Tomorrow is Mothers Day in America, and I thought it was a nice time to share this chat I had with my mum about Motherhood and Pregnancy. I know you guys will be distracted by my mum's dazzling beauty :p My dad really picked well. I hope you enjoy the video!

I hope you have a lovely weekend!

BERRY VLOG: Conversations With My Grandpa - Episode 1

Hey there,

I mentioned in my midweek post that my siblings and I chatted with my grandfather, and he told us the reasons and meanings behind our names. If you're already subscribed to my Youtube channel, then you got the notification already. If you're not subscribed, whyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy not?!?!?!?!? Please subscribe, if not, I'll hide #BabyCocoa's photos from only you when I share them :p

Anyways, check out the first episode of my Conversations with my Grandpa below.

I hope you're having a great weekend so far! YAY, May is around the corner and you know what that means... my birthday is in exactly 1 MONTH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What's In a Name?

I'm the kind of person that always wonders about people's names and the reasons behind those names. I'm also the person who notices names of companies or brands and tries to figure out why their brand names were chosen. For instance, driving around Nigeria, I would notice a store called Mex Solutions and deduce (correctly or not) that the owner of the business was named Emeka, and he provides solutions of some sort. Or I look at people's email addresses and wonder how they chose them. I have a former friend who gave herself a nickname along the lines of Psycho or Crazy. I eventually had to cut her off because she was in fact a little on the psycho side, and our friendship was more toxic towards to me.

Before Cakes and I met, he already knew how many children he wanted and had a name for his first child. When he told me the name, I was just like "NOPE. NOT HAPPENING TO MY CHILD. AIN'T NO WAY!" And let me tell you, I stood my ground, so much so that he even started wavering at a point and we decided to come up with different names for our future children. Fast forward to a few weeks before I even found out I was pregnant, and God spoke to me - long story short, He told me the name Cakes originally wanted came from HIM! I'll share the details eventually, but when I say God works in mysterious ways, I don't mean just because our friends hooked up and got married through us. God really works in the background and the revelation is all the more powerful!

When my siblings and I chatted with my grandfather, he told us how he came up with each of our names - according to the circumstances and situation at the time, he named all his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. I really can't wait to hear his chosen name for #BabyCocoa

Have you guys asked your parents why they named you whatever your name is? And if you have children, what inspired the names you gave them?

P.S. I have 4 names on my birth certificate, plus one extra that my mum nicknamed me as a baby. If I'm in a place with my immediate family, grandparents, and friends, it's possible to hear 4 different names for just me! Well, my inlaws gave me a name, so if they're there, it could be 5 different names. And that doesn't include my Itsekiri name, Misan, which I LOVE!!!!!

BREAKING NEWS!!!

Okay I'll admit it, I haven't been on my best blogging game. Going from posting 4 to 5 times a week regularly, to just managing 2 or 3 a week. It's time for me to realize my shortcomings. I did mention while thinking about taking a blogging break that I considered shutting down the blog. The response I got made me realize that I would be doing you a disservice if I went silent forever. So I've decided to try a different tactic that will ensure that I'm posting constantly and keeping you entertained.

Japanese Hibachi Dinner at Shogun

Two weeks ago, Uncle Cakes turned 70, and to celebrate, the family decided to head to Shogun Restaurant. It is a Japanese restaurant not too far from home, and they have different offerings from sushi to hibachi grill food. Cakes had never been to a Hibachi restaurant before, so I thought it would be a nice treat for him.

FUN FACT: My sister and her hubby got engaged one night after having dinner there. I think.

God Works in Mysterious Ways

In 2010, I was in my late twenties, working an okay job in Atlanta and wondering whether I should move back to Nigeria. You see, I left Nigeria at 15 years old and I didn't know what it was like to experience Nigeria as an adult. Lots of young Nigerians like me had moved back and seemed to be having these great, awesome lives. I really wanted to find out what opportunities there were out there for me, so after praying for a bit, I made the decision to move back right after my sister's wedding and my birthday in 2011.

DISCOVER GEORGIA - Ponce City Market

HEWU! I can't believe I didn't put up any posts last week! As in, the days were just going by and I didn't touch my laptop once! Ndo. Pele. Ma binu. Forgive me por favor and per favore! I promise I'm not becoming a lazy blogger. *hides face*

Okay, so y'all know I like to travel (see all my travel posts here), and part of traveling is exploring your own neighborhood and surrounding areas. There are lots of things and places to see in the Metro Atlanta area, and whenever I can, I like to go a-looking and exploring like Dora.

Berry Thanksgiving Weekend

One of the best things about the Thanksgiving Holiday is the food! Yes, I said it. The food makes me happy thinking about it... although a few days later, I'm lamenting about the amount of weight that comes with so much eating. In our family, a lot of activities are centered around food. Have I ever told you that most Sundays, after church, we have lunch together? My sister, her hubby and kids come over and we all "break bread" together. Everyone (myself included) helps out in one way or another - either by prepping the ingredients, cooking, setting the table, clearing up or doing the dishes.

BERRY VLOG: How to Be More Grateful

Exactly a week ago, the US Thanksgiving holiday was upon us. It's typically a day with lots of food, family, friends and fun. Even when I lived in Nigeria, I made sure to be here in Atlanta for Thanksgiving - so that I'd be in Lagos with Cakes for Christmas. I've had a hard time being grateful lately, so I took it upon myself to come up with a list of ways to infuse gratitude into one's life. Tammy, my most frequent vlog guest was home for Thanksgiving and shared some tips as well.