11 month update

We have had quite a bit of snow this month! This snowstorm brought us 28 inches of the white fluffy stuff. We took Zach out for some pictures, but there wasn't much he could do in it!

I have had something new to report the last 10 months, but this month, Zach has just been improving on his already aquired skills.  He hasn't conjured up the courage to take his first steps but he walks very steadily holding onto one hand.  He still enjoys feeding himself, and we have begun to give him his own utensils to explore. 

He is content playing on his own for up to an hour at a time, and his favorite thing to do is flip through books.  He has taken a special liking to "Pat the Bunny" and loves playing "peek a boo with Paul" and putting his finger through "Mummy's ring."  He ate the cover off the book, but still loves it!

He has been very much into whatever mommy or daddy has and gets quite frustrated if we have something that he can't have. Usually it is food and we can share...he is certainley not a picky eater! We have been working on the transition to whole milk and have been putting this in his sippy cup.  He it taking to it well, although he never drinks much from the sippy cup (We have tried 5 different kinds...guess he'll do that in his own time).

Next month is the big BIRTHDAY!  I can hardly believe it has been a year already!

First snow of the season

Thanksgiving 2009

We are thankful for all of our wonderful family and friends this year.

We travelled to Wake Forest, NC for Thanksgiving this year and spent the holiday with my father's side of the family.  Zach got to meet his Great Uncle Scott, Cindy, and cousin Julia and Bennie for the first time.  We had great weather, so we had my dad take some photos outside for our holiday card.  The food was great, the company wonderful, and we had a fabulous time.  Zach did well with all of the excitement and handled being passed around the room like a trooper.  He also slept VERY well on the car ride home!

First Tooth: November 17, 2009

One day after turning 10 months, he popped his first tooth!

First Haircut with his Pop-Pop

 

Pre haircut..."I'm not so sure I'm going to like this!"

"Get me out of here!"

My handsome little man

10 month update

Crawling, pulling up, and crusing.  That sums up this month in a nutshell!  Zach is into everything. He's a big boy too.  At his 9 month wellness checkup ( done at 9.5 months), he came in right in the 50th percentile for both height and weight, weighing in at 19.9lbs and 29.5 inches.  STILL NO TEETH...but we can see the makings of them starting to form in the bottom of his gums.

Although he's been pulling up in his crib for quite some time, lately he's become a pro at the art of standing.  He has mastered the athletic endeavor of pulling up on a wall with nothing to grip.  It is facsinating to watch as he braces himself with this hands and shimmies right up.  He's cruising around any and all furniture, window sills, and walls with good speed.  He has a walker/rider toy that he enjoys pushing around the house (although we pull him up on it since he can't stand on his own yet).

Zach's favorite activities this month include flipping pages of books, tearing things apart, laughing at Abby, singing "la, la, la" with his tounge, crawling and cruising. He prefers feeding himself to being fed.

He's a very happy and content baby. He babbles a lot, and now says momma and dada (although we still aren't sure if he recognizes them as us yet). 

ONE YEAR AGO:

I can hardly belive that I started this blog about a year ago.  So many things in life have changed. I'm no longer a scared excited expecting first time mom.  I'm confident in my parenting abilities and settled in a very happy new routine.  Adam and I are eternally grateful for the love that Zach has brought into our lives and the fulfillment we fill with our expanded family.

October in Pictures

Zach's 9 month update

Do you think he might be going for the lizard?

Not a chance!

Time flies when you're having fun! This past month has been a blast. Zach's quest for independence has been fulfilled with his new mobility. While he certainly enjoys our presence in the room, my little guy usually wants nothing more to do with us than to be a bystander as he explores his world. Does he come when he is called? No. Does he look at me when I call him then turn the other way to try to find yet another electrical cord to pull out of the socket? Yes.

At nine months his favorite activities are crawling to electrical cords/sockets, pulling books out of the bookshelves, dancing with mommy and daddy to Yo Gabba Gabba, upside down time on the exercise ball, running around the house in his walker, and crawling to Abby for a good mouth full of fur!

He's a great sleeper at home (not daycare) and usually sleeps 11 hours at night. He takes two naps a day that last on average a combined 3-4 hours.

Other Milestones:

Zach still has the cutest, gummiest smile. No teeth yet, and no real indications of teething. He's quite the eater though, and has recently become a pro at the pincer grasp and feeding himself. He's not always keen on mom or dad trying to give him baby food. He much prefers to put puffs/bread/cheese/pancakes in his mouth on his own. Abby is all too happy to clean up the scraps! While he isn't too picky of an eater, we haven't tried to let him eat too many foods on his own as he can only gum them.

Zach is mostly weaned. This past month he has showed little interest in nursing as I apparently don't produce as quickly as his bottle. He just doesn't have the TIME for me now that he can get around! I didn't think I would be sad to give it up, but I am. I nurse him only once day now for his last feeding of the evening before bed time.

In other news:

They weren't kidding about this being a bad cold/flu season. I have had to take every third day off of work for the last three weeks for another Zachary fever. He keeps picking up something from daycare and running 102-103 fevers for a day or so afterward. Argh. I was so spoiled last winter when he was hardly sick. But, the more that I think about it, the more sense it makes that he is sicker now than he was last winter. Now that he can actually crawl to toys to put in his mouth that other kids have put in their mouths...he is picking up way more viruses.

One last thing:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM/Be Be! We love you very much and hope you have a great one!

My boys

"They call him Flipper"

Our son thinks he's a dolphin.

Road trip to Chapel Hill

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We had a great time in Chapel Hill with Tante Hinda, Mara, Brandon, and his father and brother!

Zach's new dance? It's called the "Limp Leg Crawl"

Time to baby proof

Zach started crawling today 9/24/09 at just over 8 months and 1 week old. Pictures or video to follow!

8 Month Update

Zach man is eight months young! While I was certain I would have more to report, everything has been pretty much status quo this month. He still isn't mobile (except in his walker), and mostly gets upset when he is placed on his stomach. Zach enjoys sitting and reaches so far out to grab the things he wants, that he ends up balancing on his feet and hands (think Yoga's Downward Dog). If the object is beyond his reach, he simply gives up and tries to entertain himself with something else.

Zach babbles and "OOOOhs" quite a bit, but mostly sticks to "Da, Da" (of which there is no association to Adam yet). Every now and then he will throw in a "La, la" or a "Ba Ba," but those are few and far between. I sometimes call him my little "Flipper" because his cackle laugh reminds me of a dolphin.

We started feeding him three meals a day this week. He usually has yogurt for breakfast, cereal and a fruit or veggie for lunch, and cereal and a fruit or veggie for dinner. He eats 6-8oz of food at each sitting and still gets about 28oz of milk or formula a day. I was SO tired of pumping at work all day, so I have continued to breastfeed him for his morning and nighttime feedings, but he drinks formula during the day now.

Zach wasn't a picky eater to start, but has begun to turn his nose up at some foods. Meat dishes are not his favorite, nor are some of the green foods (other than Avocado, which he loves). When he doesn't like something, he raspberries it out of his mouth. After several bouts of "raspberries" and food, Adam and I subsequently begun wearing aprons when feeding our little man.

UVA vs. W&M football opener 2009

Tribe Wins 26-14!!!

He must think that mommy can't drive!

This is how I found Zach sleeping in the car after a trip to the market. I hope it's no reflection on my driving skills!

Surf's up!

Alright, so my munchkin is 7.5 months old and can't crawl yet, (not even army crawl), but he's getting ready to "surf"...must be the Va Beach genes.

When he doesn't nap at daycare....

When he doesn't nap well at daycare my poor baby is so exhausted that I have to put him down for a nap at 5:00pm and wake him up by 5:45 so he'll go to bed before 8pm!

Pikkolo Fun

Zach's 7 month update

Mr. Personality is now 7 months old! I feel like I repeat myself month after month as I say how much he is growing and becoming more like a little boy. I just find it so amazing how fast little humans develop.

Milestones:

Zach man is starting to talk more. He is babbling and trying out consonants. In a blow to dear mom, he mostly says "Da Da." It thrills Adam to no end! Zach also continues to love blowing raspberries and has started to make clucking noises with his mouth.

Zach still can't seem to figure out how to crawl or move around much more than rolling. We do plenty of tummy time, but he just gets frustrated when we put objects out of his reach. He'll figure it out someday! We have a walker that he spends about 15 minutes a day in, and he is a PRO at getting around in that thing. He LOVES the independence of being able to get around on his own.

Even though he can't crawl, little man is starting to pull-up. He will hold onto my shirt and pull himself up to a standing position. He doesn't do it often...mostly because he can't crawl to things to pull himself up on; and because he needs to start from a sitting position. Since he can't pull himself into a sitting position on his own, he can only pull up on things that are VERY close to him (mainly Mommy).


We had to go to the doctor last week for a fever and rash. The doc thought he had Hand Foot and Mouth Disease, but I think he got it wrong because he recovered in less than a day. One fun thing about going to the doctor though is that I get to see how much he weighs. 3 days before his 7 month birthday, Zach weighed in at a whopping 17lbs 9 oz.

Maymont Park

Adam and I took Zach out with ALL of his grandparents to Maymont park this past weekend. Maymont is a beautiful park/zoo in Richmond with a small petting zoo and other animals (including bears). The weather was warm and VERY humid, but we toughed it out and had a great time. We had a late lunch together before trecking back to the Boro'. We timed the adventure around Zach's sleep schedule and he did great. The trip is 1.5 hours each way and he didn't cry at all. What a relief!

Here are some pictures from our adventure. Zach LOVED feeding the goats!

Vegas trip

Venetian St. Marks Square
Lake Mead

My summer break came and went in a flash! Adam and I decided to end our summer vacation in style with a trip to Las Vegas. We had a great time taking in the sites and sounds of the city. We also had some lovely meals, nice pool time, and fantastic company.

Adam's new associate, James, and his wife, Jessica, joined us on the trip. We both have young children (their daughter Alyssa is 10 months old) that we were leaving as a family for the first time. In typical fashion, only the Mommy's shed tears!

We took in three shows during our visit. We saw Cirque de Soliel's "O", Jerry Seinfeld, and Penn and Teller. While the shows were fun, the highlight of the trip was our Jet Ski adventure around Lake Mead. We rented a car, made our way down to the lake, and jet skied right up to the Hoover Dam. It was AWESOME!

The one thing we didn't do? Gamble! That's right...Adam and I were there for four days together and we didn't gamble a penny. Casinos aren't my thing. I don't go for smoky rooms and bright lights with non-stop sound. SENSORY OVERLOAD. Adam stayed a few extra days after my departure (Jess and I flew back without the boys) for a dental conference and managed to play few hands.

Zach had a great time with his G-Ma while we were gone. He went to the park, took rides in his Mutsy, and played and played. With the exception of one afternoon nap, he slept well and was on his best behavior. She enjoyed bonding with him, and I know he did too! Babies are a LOT of work, and we are so grateful that she volunteered to watch him while we took a little couple's time together.

6 month update

I am posting this a little late due to a computer malfunction that caused me to delete the entire finished post right before I was ready to publish.

Six whole months...Whew. Zach is half a year old and I am amazed at just how far he has grown developmentally in this short period of time. My little baby is turning into a little boy!

Milestones:

Zach is sitting up unassisted now for brief periods of time. He seems to know how to gently fall to his side when he wants to get at something, but occasionally THROWS himself backwards with great force. So even though he can sit up, we still keep a pillow behind him to prevent injury.

He's making every effort to crawl, but can't seem to get the arm part down. He currently crawls with his legs while simultaneously trying to push himself with his head. It takes an awful lot of effort on his part to move anywhere in this fashion and he usually gives up pretty quickly when his efforts are futile. He has recently started to get up on all fours and rock back and forth, so I'm sure he'll get the hang of it sometime in the next couple of months. We'll be needing to baby proof soon. I'm getting myself ready for the chase.

As far as babbling goes, he doesn't do too much of it. He still Ooohs and Ahhhs, and has thrown in a couple of consonants such as Da da or Grrrr. He much prefers to spend his day blowing raspberries at his father and I (these are especially fun during meal time).

Zach is eating well and hasn't had a negative reaction to any of the foods we have introduced. He hasn't even refused a food on us yet. We have moved him to stage 2 foods, and he is currently eating turkey, chicken, sweet potatoes, green beans, peas, carrots, oatmeal, rice, and most fruit. We tried the puff cereal, but he's not quite ready to gum those down. He eats twice a day now and has started using a sippy cup at meal time.

A few days away:

We will be leaving our little man for the first time this month. Adam's mom is going to care for him for 3 1/2 days while we head to Vegas for our first vacation sans Zach. I've left him with his dad for a day and a half, but I know I'm going to miss him dearly. I'm especially not looking forward to pumping while away from him for all that time. I am excited about getting away though and this will be good for our marriage, good for Zach (who I know will have a great time with his G-Ma), and a great way to end my summer vacation.

Family Vacation July '09

It's been a while since our last post. In that time, the Salzberg family has been on VACA! We took Zach to Turks and Caicos for a week and had an amazing time. We went to an all inclusive Beaches Resort and enjoyed fun in the sun for 8 days.

The island of Providenciales was beautiful. Adam and I snorkeled, sailed, surfed (on an artificial wave machine), swam, and held hands on the beach. We signed up for a special night tour where we were able to see the sea light up with glo-worms. They had a special bio-luminescence that allows them to light up a few days after the full moon to mate. They were surprisingly large and very cool to watch. Zach joined us in many of our activities enjoying his first swim in the ocean, first encounter with Elmo, many trips to the pool, and first taste of fruit smoothie!

One of the best amenities of the Resort was the daycare. The Sesame Place day care was open from 9am till 10pm every evening and the staff were great! We were able to drop Zach off when we wanted alone time and Adam and I were able to reconnect as partners (which can be hard to do when you have a little one). We took Zach to daycare for each meal, and would pick him up in the afternoon for quality time time with us. Everything worked out splendidly and we would definitely consider doing another vacation like this one in the future (maybe Club Med next time).

Spending time with Adam's parents

Adam's parents came to visit this week and we had a great time hanging out with his mom at the C-ville Market and strolling the downtown mall. We also had a lovely day on Sunday, taking in a picnic at Pollak Vineyards followed by a leisurely afternoon at home grilling out.

We don't get too many pictures of Zach's grandparents...so I thought I would share one we took!

So far this week....

After an early morning feeding, Zach can't wait to hang out with Daddy.

Poor Abby feels left out!













"Pick me up Mom! I don't want to go for a ride!"

First Father's Day

Picnic at Pollack Vineyards
Blue Mountain Brewery Tasting

Adam decided that there was no better way to celebrate father's day than to have a picnic at one of the local winery's followed by a tour/tasting at Blue Mountain brewery. Living only miles from the blue ridge parkway and skyline drive, we are lucky to have such an amazing backdrop to picnic in. The weather was nice, the alcohol and food good, and the company wonderful!

Adam is an incredible father. He's kind, gentle, and caring with Zach man. He is a devoted father and husband. Zachary and I are both lucky to have him in our lives!

Zach Update:

Our little man has been under the weather and "VERY" clingy. He's been running a low grade fever for the past few days and has a terrible cold. He made our father's day outing more difficult than normal, but it was understandable. Poor thing just wanted to be held all day.

Ok, it may sound selfish, but I am sort of enjoying his illness. Zach loves to be carried in the Bjorn, but always wants to face out. With his sickness, he just wants to cuddle up close and hold me...It feels sooooo good.

I do hope he gets better soon though. He's been waking himself up at night coughing and then crying for attention. We put a humidifier in his room and hope that helps clear him up some. Let's hope tonight goes well!

ps. Dad, I love you and miss you. I wish I could have spent the day with you too! You are truly the best!!!! Can't wait to see you in a couple of weeks.

Wordless Wednesday

Thanks Gloria! He's ready to go for a run now!

Mom Jeans

We have all made fun of the term "mom jeans" at least once in our lives. It refers to the hideous over shot of a waistband pulled up under the nose of a woman you mockingly call "mom".

Well, I get it.

It seems that after I had Zach I was left a little "thick" in the middle. If I wear my pants at my hips (like the kids are doing these days) it hits me right in the heart of that "thickness" (read: belly fat) and results in the dreaded muffin top. Not pretty in the least. However, if I hike my pants up to kingdom come, it creates a more streamlined uni-chub, which somehow results in making my mid-section look less terrible.

I fear that this may be the start of my regrettable fashion era. 20 years from now Zach will stumble across a picture of me with my pants hiked up under my chest and beg, "Mom! Your pants!!" Necessary evil, Zach; necessary evil.

I'll continue on my slim down quest. But in the meantime, I might not be as hip. My apologies in advance, Zach. You were still worth it.

5 Month Update

Wow! 5 whole months. Zach is becoming more and more of a little person every day. Adam and I can hardly believe how different he is from just 3 months ago. His personality is beaming through and I must say that we have been blessed with such a happy little guy. Gone are the days of hours of crying, pooing, eating. On to laughing, playing, and exploring. Although he is quick to voice excitement when he is happy, and grunts when he is bored/mad, Zach is mostly a quiet and content little guy (for the time being). He has not yet started to babble, and can go most of the day without making much of a peep.

Zach loves his mom and dad and smiles each time we give him a grin. His latest fascination has been with Abby. He will watch her walk around the room and laugh at her when she puts a stuffed animal in his face. Abby tolerates it for the most part and has been a wonderful big sister.

Milestones:

And we thought he would ALWAYS hate tummy time. WRONG! Zachary is rolling both ways with confidence. He voluntarily rolls to his tummy and props himself up on his elbows checking out the world around him. He still has some reflux problems, so he tends to spit up when he is on his belly, but he's a happy spitter and doesn't seem bothered by it in the least.

As you can see from the picture, he found his feet this month....and boy are they tasty! He also happened to find his man parts and goes for them the second we put him in the bath. Toys do not deter!

We are working on sitting up without assistance, but he has only managed to master this for about 15 seconds. He tends to prop himself up with his arms before falling to one side.

Zach LOVES his Jumperoo and has mastered his exersaucer. He is still too short for the jumper, but we put a big thick book underneath and he goes to town, laughing all the way!

YAY! We are no longer slaves to the Bjorn (although he still loves it)! We purchased a stroller this month and the little man has taken to it quite well. He hates his car seat so he always complained in the snap 'n' go. The stroller has lumbar support and fits him just right. We took him for a 2 hour stroll through C-Ville and we hardly heard a peep of complaint.

Little man eats solids once a day. We have tried rice cereal, oatmeal, pears, bananas, peas, and sweet potatoes. He only eats about two teaspoons of food, but has started to enjoy it, and the mess it makes!

Looking to the Future:

He hasn't started teething yet and we are hopeful that it doesn't start on vacation! We got his little passport in the mail and are off to Turks and Caicos in just three short weeks. This will be our first vacation and we are SO excited. We can't wait to share pictures.

A REALLY SHORT VIDEO

Can't you tell that Abby LOVES Zach?...Or is that the other way around?

After naptime

This is how I get greeted when I go to get him after his naps!

Car Sick?

So today was our first case of projectile vomit. Whoo hooo! We were traveling to daycare and POOF....he lost his "cookies" err...Milk. It's a good thing we have leather seats because it made clean up a lot easier. He was covered in vomit and I had to take him into daycare looking like a big lump of cottage cheese (poor guy). The staff promptly changed him for me and gave him a sponge bath. We took his temperature and it came back normal. He also seemed unfazed by the whole incident and happy as a lark, so I decided to leave him and go to work.

Daycare checked in with me at lunch and informed me that he seems to be doing well. He was extra hungry (I would be too if I had nothing in my stomach) so they gave him his emergency formula reserve.

On the upside of things, it's great to work at a vocational center. They seem to have everything you ever need! I was able to wash his clothes, blanket, and carseat cover at work in the cosmetology dept.

I can't wait to pick up my Zach man this afternoon. I hope he stays ok!

20 Weeks Old today

Hanging out at daycare at 20 weeks old!

Thanks for the outfit Melody! He looks so handsome!

Almost Summer '09

Zach got all dressed up in his very cute swimming outfit (thanks mom and dad) and I took him for his first swim (May 30, 2009). I can't say that he loved it, but he also didn't hate it. I think he didn't quite know what to make of it. The water was still a little chilly, but the weather was quite warm and the pool felt great. Zach didn't cry at all when I put him in the water but he did catch his breath the way most people do when they step into something cold! He never smiled, but I truly think he enjoyed himself because he proceeded to fall asleep in my arms as I was swaying him from side to side in the water. He took a ride in two different floats and played with Be Be for a bit before wrapping up his first swim.

I bought him these great sunglasses. They wrap around his head and velcro in the back. He wasn't so happy with me putting them on, but he adjusted as soon as I took him outside and he realized that he didn't have to squint. We've tried them a few more times and now I think he actually looks forward to having them on for walks in the Bjorn!