The Beaver and the Bear

Two of Zackary's first birthday presents were Oregon State Beaver shirt's from Laura and Mandy, friends I went to OSU with. So last Saturday for the game (that we lost) we wore our Beaver shirts and represented. We cheered when they scored! Apparently our cheering wasn't enough for them to win. We will see this weekend. But he looked so cute. I loved the shirts!

Zackary loves Winnie the Pooh now. When we visited my Dad last month they had a Winnie stuffed animal there for him and he loved it. He had never been into stuffed animals and then all of a sudden he fell in love for this Winnie the Pooh that my Dad and Kathi had. It was so funny. He would lay on him and cuddle and give hugs real tight. So when we got home I remembered that my sister had bought him a Winnie and Tiger from Disneyland and when we showed them to him he grabbed Winnie and was so happy. So here he is doing his new daily hug, cuddle, something with Winnie. Ben and I laugh every time we look at this pic!

The Spoon

Zackary is learning how to use a spoon. It's adorable. Ben realized it when he went to give Zackary a spoonful of his food and just left the spoon in his mouth. Zackary reached up and took it out and put it back in. We have been practicing this now for awhile but these past couple of days he has been really figuring it out. I put the food on his spoon and put the spoon in his hand. He then eats the food and makes sure there isn't any food left on the spoon and then puts it back in the container holding the food. So cute. He's getting it!

Happy First Birthday

Our little man just turned one year old. Wow how time sure does fly. I remember him at 1 minute old like it was yesterday. The first 5 months were so hard for me they lasted forever but the remaining 7 months of his first year went to fast. He had such a fun time at his park birthday party. So many of our close family and friends were there and it meant a lot to Ben and me. The support I have felt from some has been wonderful and what helped me get through my struggles and also enjoy sharing in the joys. So thank you. He loved looking at his cake but when it came time to eat it...well that didn't go over as well..he just got the yummy frosting all over the place...and I thought, "good boy...sugar bad!!!" My Dad pointed out that I was wearing a white shirt too (not smart mommy) so we quickly cleaned the hands and passed him off to Ben!


Zackary I am doing these blogs to not only share my moments of you with others but for a journal to one day print out and have a memory of all the important milestones of your life. Because it's been a year since I had you I wanted to write about you being born. I went into labor on September 10, 2008 around 11PM. My back had been hurting really bad those past couple of days and know where I laid at night could I fall asleep. So I was on no sleep for over 48 hours. We had decided to rent a movie that night to get my mind off of my aches and of course your Dad fell asleep in the middle of it but I watched the movie 21 and it worked, for a second I forgot I was 39 weeks pregnant. At 11PM I woke up to go to the bathroom and afterwards a little water leaked out. I thought, "hum, what's that, strange but whatever" and went back to sleep. Around 2AM it happened again. I woke up your Dad and he said call the doctor. So we called and she said it could have been your water breaking you have to go in to the hospital. So we packed up and arrived around 3AM and now being September 11th!!! We were excited but at the same time didn't really think it was my water breaking because I had no contractions at all. More than anything we were tired! So they checked me in and laid a pad down in case it happened again and the nurse could look at the fluid. Sure enough 5 minutes later I felt it again and she said yes your water is breaking-slowly. I was only dilated to 3. They started monitoring you with a strap around my belly. Man I instantly got real nervous. My heart was racing, my stomach churning. We called your grandparents and Baba and Jedo and Grandma Goddard were on their way...Grandpa Goddard to come visit later. Then started the waiting process (which actually went by fast). I tried to sleep...but I was way to excited. I was going to hold my little sweet baby in my arms for the first time, something I had only dreamed about. Around 5-6AM the nurse tried to put a IV catheter in my arm. It didn't go well so she got another nurse, and then another nurse. The third one finally got it in after much ouchy pain. The nurses had rounds around 7AM and after that the pitocin drip was started to induce me by making my contractions start. Well, they started and soon after I got an epidural...which was lovely. It took awhile for it to kick in and I kept pushing the button for more and the anesthesiologist came and and would also give me more. He said you were pushing against my spine and labor would be really painful without some medicine. I became very numb from my bellybutton down and then although I wanted to relax I couldn't because the medicine was making me shake and some other family members were arriving and saying hello! I still hadn't seen an OB by now but the nurses were doing a good job. Although the monitor kept falling off which was bothersome cause we couldn't monitor your heart well. At 8AM I was still dilated to a 3. At 10 and 12 same...dilated to a 3. The nurse said she'd be back in 2 hours and at 2PM I was dilated to a 5! I think I had finally relaxed a bit and you were getting ready. And around 3:20 she checked again and I was at a 10 and fully effaced! You were ready! The nurse said lets practice pushing, your doctor is here at the hospital delivering another baby, so I can go get her after we practice. I said, I don't need any practice, trust me...but she didn't and I practiced pushing and she yelled stop...and got the doctor! HA! So Dr. Lee came in and 15 minutes later you were in my arms, crying, small, warm and blueish...but oh my gosh we thought A BOY!!! And then we said it...out loud to others (cause your name was a secret)...Zackary Padraig. It was you, me, Dad, Grandma Goddard, nurse and Dr. Lee in the room and they all helped me a lot with the pushing. You nursed soon after they cleaned you up and checked you out...7.8 ounces 21 inches long...of just purity! I had a feeling everything was going to be alright and it was. You were born without a hitch.

You are such a joy to me and your Dad and SO many others. We love you and wish and pray for many more amazing years of your life and celebrations of you at your birthdays. Happy Birthday Muffin!

To Jedo's and Baba's

Last weekend we visited my Dad and Kathi up north. They were so sweet and had tons of toys for him to play with all cleaned and ready to go...which he loved them all. He crawled all over the house exploring and seemed very happy (minus the ever lasting pain of teething). They own chickens, dogs and two cats. He must be used to Bentley because he didn't really seem to interested in the animals. Their Yorkie got into his face a lot but he would just try to push the dog aside, so funny, like it's a toy!

He went through each toy learning how it works and how he could use it to stand up!

He played really well with Jedo. They sat on the floor a lot together smiling, laughing, building blocks and Zackary knocking them down! Zackary also fell in love with the Winnie the Pooh. Luckily we have one for him at our house too, but he had never been into stuffed animals until this weekend. He would hug pooh and lay on top of him, cuddling...so cute!

So it's hard to see in this picture, but I actually caught on camera his first 10 second stand without holding onto anything. We were all screaming, and he was looking at us like, "what, what did I do, what's going on." It was so funny. I couldn't believe we ALL saw it. I love witnessing the milestones taking place in my muffin man!

As we were packing to venture on home he crawled into his suitcase and just sat there. Isn't he precious in his pj's!!!

On our way home we stopped for a break and had a photo opp. One week away from his 1 year old birthday. You can do so much now. Feeding yourself (doesn't last long though), you know your bib when we ask where it is, and your head, and all our names. You are not liking vegetables as much right now but I just have to start becoming more creative with how we are cooking them, but fruit, well that's another story! You'll eat any fruit. You have four teeth (the top two came in this past week) and have two more coming in on the top too. You like to go on walks in your stroller, like to crawl in the sand, run with mommies help from the waves, swing, flip the pages of your books, babble still only saying DaDa,and NaNa, listening to your elvis prestley CD in the car, and you are very attached to mama right now-which secret between us, it's perfectly ok with me!!!!

Little All Star

Well I have been incredibly lazy about keeping up my blogging. I need to become better at it. It is challenging for me because I am so tired at the end of the night when I usually post something and I just fade into bed and feel entirely to uncreative. But I am determined tonight to post some. Zackary is just growing leaps and bounds. As you can see above he is standing and has been since probably beginning July...but is very quick at it now. All he does is crawl, stand, play, and explore every room in its entirety. We finally baby proofed and that has helped with the cupboards. He loves balls still, any and all. It's funny cause we got a diapers.com delivery in a big box that he throws his toys into and sits with them in it and plays for a good while. We play peek a boo a lot, and hide and seek. He walks Bentley with me in the morning around 7 (an hour after he's woken up). The we eat at 7:30, and soon after 9 he's down for a nap. He get's a snack at 10 (breast milk-am trying whole milk, not going so well), lunch at 11:30, nap at 12-1, snack at 2:30 (yogurt and fruit usually), dinner/bath at 4:30 and bedtime ritual starts at 5:30 with bed at 6. He loves his routine and it is easier for me to arrange my day accordingly!

In this picture he crawled under our bar stools and stood up and could not for the life of him figure out how to crawl out. It was so cute. He finally got frustrated and we helped him, but got to capture those moments, you know!

We were playing peak a boo in our bed covers and he was loving it!

Two weekends ago we had a friend in town, Kristina. She has been very supportive since the beginning and recently moved to another state. So we loved having her stay here and hang with us for the weekend. The first time Zackary ever belly laughed she was over sitting right next to us on the couch and she caught the moment with me. It was so special and I think that minute of pure, raw laughter will bond us together forever. Zackary loves her too, they had a lot of fun playing! He still has a really hard time with other people holding him, so it makes me feel good when he has a good moment sitting in someone else's lap.

Playing, Swimming, and Great Grandma and Me

Zackary's Great Grandma (Eleanor) turns 90 this week so the family celebrated her birthday today. We played a trivia game about her life to see who knew the most and it was interesting learning new facts about her growing up. Zackary had a great time playing with my cousin's kids and just watching everyone. They look so cute together in the picture huh? So surreal... a 90 year old and a 11 month old together...reminds you to enjoy each moment best you can cause they fly by!

Zackary started swim classes this past week. Great Grandma came with us for support and he loved having her there. He got ready for his class (see the cute speedos...love it!) and sat on her lap watching all the children in the pool. When it came time to start class he just had a blast and fit right in perfectly. He kicked and learned to float on his back, and we played humpty dumpty and fell into mom's arms in the water, and tried holding our breath. He had a good nap after that class! They say it's really important for children to learn at a young age how to hold their breath and turn over and float on their back in case they ever fall in a lake, pool, etc. So we are learning! And it's summer so it's a fun activity for us to do. Our music classes are over, doing swim now, hum...what class should we try next?

He was watching every move going on in the pool...patiently and skeptically waiting his turn.

His new favorite thing to do over and over is flip through pages of books and then throw them all on the floor. It's so fun to watch. He really is looking like a toddler to us in this picture.

Our Family Trip to Illinois

Ben and I just braved our first trip with Zackary on a plane and man it was so worth it. We flew to St. Louis for a 10 day vacation in Illinois. Not only did Zackary flourish when we were there but so did Ben and I. It was nice staying with his parents. They were very supportive, and our permanent babysitters for 10 days. Ben and I were able to go out with some friends and spend a day in St. Louis for a wedding that all his friends were at. Zackary loved all the family surrounding him while we were there and became a more sociable young boy. He slept a lot, and ate his solids really well. Here he is with Grandma. They look so cute in their blues.

About a month ago I taught Zackary how to kiss and he has mastered it. He loves giving everyone open mouth cheek kisses. It's so cute. Here he is giving Grandpa one! We were able to visit Zackary's other great grandma which was very special. She lucked out and got a kiss as well!

Zackary loved baby Leah! He would stare at her and give her some kisses too. It was adorable! She is the most beautiful baby. Ben's sister and brother in law are great parents. We went over to visit them one day and Zackary decided that his favorite room in the whole house was Leah's room. Aunt Maggie got all her toys out and he had a ball playing with them and investigating each one. Ben and I decided that maybe we needed some new toys for him.

It was so much fun seeing Zackary interact with all of his second cousins. He loved watching them and showing them all his new tricks. He can pull up now and is determined to master it. He is clapping, waving, taking things out and putting them back in, and so much more. He just found his ears sticking one finger in them to see what happens.

Below is a pic with Aunt Maggie, Uncle Derek and Ben at the park. We had some good times. Can't wait to go back.