One year ago, little z-boy was born...

...and today he's a big one year old!
yep, a full year has gone by and this boy has changed a lot!
We love you Zion! You make life so much fun.











As soon as Zion woke up, we popped in his room to videotape him and sing happy birthday to him. He wasn't fully awake when I handed him a balloon (his favorite toy right now!) and put a blueberry muffin topped with a candle in front of him. He just stared at it and then stared at us like we were crazy! I thought he would grab for the candle, but nope. He was content to gaze at it until I blew it out.











"I don't know what you guys are making such a big deal about...










"...but this thing you're callin' my birthday muffin sure is tasty!"

Zion loves the beach!
Well, maybe he loved the sand more than anything else. Just thought you all would want to see these pictures from our trip to San Diego.










Nothing like a nice cold apple juice on the beach in the morning.
















I was excited about the idea of getting a picture of Zion standing on a surfboard, but Zion was more interested in playing in the sand. I guess I'll have to get that picture next year; although next year, the challenge will be trying to get him to stand still!





'







Relaxing on the beach.











"Come on dad! It's time for a serious game of volleyball."

Pictures from San Diego!
The first 4 days of our trip was spent at surf camp (which I'll share about in another post!) and the weekend was spent with Jeremy's family. Jeremy's brother, Jonathan and his wife Sandy live in San Diego. Jeremy's parents, Joyce and Gary also came out from K.C.
I have lots of pictures to share and I wanted to start with ones of the family. Here we are celebrating Father's Day at a local cafe in Cardiffe after a long, hard day at the beach. I love how Zion is sitting up so straight like he's a little adult.


A closer look at the fam: Aunt Sandy, Gramma Joyce, Grampa Gary, and Uncle Jonathan












Zion loves hanging out with Uncle Jonathan...

















...and Aunt Sandy!













"Hi!" This is Zion's newest feat--waving to everybody and saying "Hi!"--from the moment he wakes up until, well, until he gets cranky and tired.










Grandpa and Uncle Jonathan and Zion playing in the ocean.
I would show more pictures of our day at the ocean, but I can't find them right now!

Pictures from our trip to Colorado.

Our first stop was to visit Jeremy's cousin Jennifer Stiner and her husband Brad (and baby Corben due to arrive in a few weeks--sorry Jen, if I spelled his name wrong!) Jeremy's Aunt Shelly and Uncle Randy Collins were also there to see Jennifer and Brad.




Next stop: Cheyenne Mountain Zoo where Zion got a REALLY close view of the giraffes!












Zion and Jeremy enjoying the scenery at Garden of the Gods on Memorial Day.












Me and Zion going for a stroll through Garden of the Gods.

















Zion hangin' with the Rodda girls in Evergreen, Colorado. 17 month old Savannah on the left and 3 year old Stella on the right!

May 31st: Zion gets his first haircut. Aunt Brenda had the privilege of cutting his precious uncut locks while we were visiting her in Colorado!

"I love getting my hair styled! It's a great stress reliever!"

"Yes, I like what you've done, but leave some length on the top. I like to give my hair a little volume with my styling techniques."
"Aahh!! It feels good to get that extra weight off!"

HAPPY






















MOTHERS'





















DAY!

Zion at 9 months.
Ah, sweet baby! This was taken the day after turning 9 months on April 26th. Oooh, I love those squishy legs.
6 month old Zion
3 month old Zion
3 week old Zion

Remember this? I couldn't wait to get rid of it!
But this...I'm loving every second of it.

AHHH!!! Finally!! I can share my pictures! It has been an exhausting 2 months trying to recover photos, get my camera to work, and get my crazy computer to upload these photos.
I suppose by now, no one but me, Amber and Joyce even know this blog exists! I guess that makes it easy on me, huh?
Not really, I still am doing my best to record this munchkins every move.
Zion was 7 (maybe 8 months?) when I took these pictures of his first pincer grasp practice sessions! He loves his veggie puffs, but getting them to his mouth is not so easy!
"Hey mom! Doesn't it make me look so cute? Can I get a nose ring?"

I love these pictures!!! Jeremy and I took Zion for a walk at Mill Creek Park. It was early on a Monday evening and cloudy, but it looks like a bright summer day! It kind of looks like we're in a studio with a background drop of the plaza, but I promise we were there. Doesn't he look cute with the fountain shooting off the sides of his head?
Zion loooves the J.C. Nichols fountain!

This boy is sooooo cute! Even when he's sleeping!

THE NUTCRACKER

THE NUT

This little nut woke up at 3 am crying; well, really, whining. So, I went in to check on him. There was just enough light from the hallway that I could tell he was lying on his stomach. His little, no, big head was bobbin' around and I could tell he was half asleep.
I said "what's wrong baby?" which apparently startled him enough that his half asleep noggin went careening into the ocean wonders musical thingy. The impact made a noise just like a cracked nut. The next noise was Zion's ear piercing scream. I picked him up and ran into the bathroom to check out the damage. The poor little guy's eye looked swollen and then I noticed a pea sized knot appear at the corner of his eye.
I ran downstairs with him to get his boo "bunny" elephant ice pack. I seriously thought he was gonna have a black eye. Surprisingly, he let me strap it to his head, swaddle him in a blanket and rock him to sleep. I kept worrying that he might have had a "fraction of a second" concussion. Thus, I put him in bed with me for the rest of the night. I was worried about him but also laughing as I grabbed the camera to record the incident! In the morning, the knot was gone and thankfully there was no black eye. Not sure how I would have explained a black eye!

Hi Grandma Connie! These pics are for you. I just wanted you to see how much I love this new game you brought me.

How can so little...
...make such a big mess? Little Z was constipated, so I tried giving him prunes. I managed to get one spoonful of prunes in his mouth. He the proceeded to stick his chubby hands in his mouth and remove the blob of pureed prunes and then violently wipe them up his nose, eyeballs, and forehead. He literally got prunes in his eye which made him furious, which led to big tears and snot (click on the picture for a nice view of the snot bubble that puts the finishing touch on this image)
I think that's a smile?