Zach and "Big Kid Food"

Ok, I know I am partial, but Zach is so cute these days. He has decided that he likes to eat "Big Kid Food" Aka... he doesn't like it all cut up and torn up. He likes to eat an entire apple on the core, or a whole bread stick, or as you can see from these pictures. Corn ON the Cob. :)

I actually have found it's not as bad as I first thought because he only has teeth in the front, He can't actually chew, so if he had a large item, he takes little bites and he eats a lot more. Weird, I know.

Look at how adorable he is... The corn is almost as big as he is.

Updated Pictures

Zachary is doing some of the cutest things now. He's starting to come up with games on his own now, I don't know where he learns some of this stuff, but it cracks me up, and the more I laugh, the more he continues. Some days I think he would do anything to see me laugh. :)

His new favorite word (Kinda his only discernable word) is Ball.... so he walks around the house saying Ball, Ball and throwing down whatever ball he has at the time. Then, he refuses to pick the ball up till you pick it up and throw it back to him. Then he will pick it up and say Ball, Ball again and continue in the same cycle all day long.... Here are some pictures of him with his Tennis Ball

This is Zach deciding that it was funny to put his favorite blanket over his head. I think he kept doing it because I couldn't stop laughing. As soon as I turned around from my computer and saw him like this all I could picture was this time in 3 year old Mothers Day Out when we did a nativity scene, can't you just see my little shepherd boy now??? I think he would be perfect for the part.

We have been extremely sick this week. I think if I have had 3 hours of sleep in a row in the last 7 days it would have been a miracle. Zachary is over the sickness and on to teething. The doctor said when we went in on Monday that he was getting his 1 year old molars, so that even when he started to feel better, he might not be sleeping through the night. (Way to be encouraging, right?). Zach has had his fingers in his mouth all day chewing on them towards the back right side, so I think hopefully... we will get these teeth in and go back to our sleeping routine.

It's all a blur...

Wow! I know it's been a long time since I have updated the blog. I promise I am working to get better at this. Life always gets crazy this time of the year, and although that is not really an excuse I am just asking for a little grace.

I have recently come to the realization that life with Zach isn't going to slow down anytime soon. Actually I have found that the older he gets the faster he moves and the faster I have to react. :) I have also found that while I am learning to keep up with our new pace, my camera is still lagging behind. It seems every picture I take turns our blurry because Zachary decides to move before the picture can take. I think I need a new camera with a faster speed for Christmas. (hint, hint...) Here is one of my recent favorites, and a few blurry pics to illustrate my point.

My Baby is Walking

Since he was like 2 weeks old, Zach insisted on standing on our laps rather than sitting. He's always on the move, and his favorite spot in the house is the living room where he can move around all of the couches. He's been starting to stand up on his own, but as soon as he realizes it he sits down because he was afraid of falling.

Then today... I went to pick Zach up after dance from his Grandmother Schisler's house only to find that my baby had started to walk and I missed it. He did however show off for his mommy and take a few steps (about 3). He then also showed off for Daddy when we got home and took several more steps. I also was able to get him walking on video, so as soon as I figure out how to transfer it to the computer I will try and upload a video. I can't believe my baby is starting to walk at 9 1/2 months!

Also, one last thing. I wanted to say congratulations to our friends Travis and Desty Ellis. They welcomed Kailyn Marie Ellis into this world this afternoon at 2:53pm, she weighed 7lbs. 7oz.

A Quick Update

The last few weeks have been a little crazy around here, so I apologize for not updating the blog sooner. I actually tried to update last week and I got all my pictures loaded, and all my comments made and then I logged into my other gmail account and it closed out everything and all was lost :( I was really frustrated by that point so I just gave up.

Zachary is growing up so fast. He is quickly turning from a baby into a little boy. The other day he decided that the fireplace looked entertaining so within about 60 sec. he crawled over to the fireplace, crawled up on the hearth, opened the doors and was standing up inside the fireplace when I found him.

Now before you call DHS on me, I was in the kitchen making cookies for Monday night football, and I was watching him play quietly by the couch. THEN... I walked over to the oven to check the cookies and that's when he made his escape. As soon as I walked back over to the sink, there he was inside of the fireplace.

I know these pictures aren't of him actually inside the fireplace, but I pulled him out of the fireplace before I decided to take a picture and I didn't want him to get back in and get his clothes all messed up. I am also posting a picture of my burned cookies. In all the cleaning up I forgot that I had put my cookies back in the oven and they got a little dark.

Here is Zach, He was excited that he found a new place to play.

Here are his nicely soiled hands :)
and here are my dark and crispy cookies.
Zachary also got a new haircut last week. He loves the bottle of gel.
He also loves playing with the comb. I love this picture I think he looks like he's singing.

Almost Crawling

Yesterday morning we decided to give Zachary a haircut. He hasn't been feeling well, and he's just been wanting to lay around and be held. We decided to take the opportunity and use the lack of movement to our advantage. He didn't need much cut off just a little trim in the front and around the ears. Jonathan took on the role of barber and here is our end result.

This is the view from the front:
















Here is the top view. I can't believe how thick his hair has gotten.















What you see him playing with is his new favorite toy. He's decided that he likes anything electronic (i.e. remotes, computers, keyboards, cell phones) and I have decided that a calculator looks a lot like a remote and he can't tell the difference. I have this blue calculator that I got recently and I decided to give it to him one day instead of the remote (After he pressed some buttons and I couldn't figure out how to work the TV) He loves it! I know he's going to be a math genius some day just like his dad :) Ha! how funny is that. When was the last time you saw a 7 month old playing with a calculator?

CRAWLING:
So, yesterday we saw Zachary actually "move forward" when he tried to crawl. He's been rolling over and reaching for stuff but yesterday was the first time he actually went anywhere. Today he moved almost 2 feet so I think our days of Zach staying in one place are almost over.

Here is Zach crawling for the first time















Here is what happens when he gets tired

Bedtimes & Busy Schedules

Ok, I think we are on a good path to a schedule. Zach is starting to go to bed about 8:00 and sleep till 7:30 or 8:00 in the mornings. I have been trying to be disciplined about his feedings and nap times during the day and I think it's helping, but I am not a disciplined person so this is stretching me.

We have been looking at all we have to do during the fall semester and my schedule is starting to fill up. I am hoping to start a fitness class at the church as well as a Bible Study so we will just have to see how busy life gets. I am ready for Zach to start playing with other kid's his age. I think he needs to learn how to share :) he's so used to having everything that he wants, that he's a little spoiled. Hopefully he will have a little more time in the nursery this fall and he will get used to the idea of sharing his toys.

Recently I have decided that I like the idea of using coupons and rebates to save money. I do the usual clipping coupons from the Sunday paper, but I have also started looking online for deals, and signing up for email newsletters to receive coupons. Here's a great deal that I got from Gymboree today. They are having a 30% off sale on Thursday, and if you spend $50.00 then you get $25.00 off a $50.00 purchase. :) I love sales! I think the link below should work, if not email me and I will forward it to you.

Deal of the Week:
http://recp.rm05.net/servlet/MailView?m=1175148&r=Nzk3MDg5MjY0MgS2&j=MTIxNTU1MjQ1IAS2&mt=1

Not Ready for Bed

So, as I sit here Zachary has decided that he is not ready for bed yet. It's 9:20 and my 7 month old baby is playing quietly on the floor while I check my email and update this blog.

We've been traveling a lot this summer and last week in Destin his schedule got all messed up. He was going to bed by 9pm and sleeping till almost 8am before the trip began. However, now he doesn't want to go to bed till 10 and he wants to wake up twice during the night. Last night he cried for about 2 hours as I listened from the other room. I am trying to let him "cry it out" but I lay awake constantly trying to decide if I should just feed him so that I can get to sleep. I am just taking it one night at a time. He did sleep till 7:30 this morning so there is hope that he will be back on schedule soon.

Tomorrow Zachary and I are going to visit his great grandmother in Ft. Smith. We don't get to see her very much so it will be an exciting trip. Hopefully I will have some pictures to share after we get back!

Well, I am off to bed. Zach is finally asleep and I am hoping for a good night's sleep!