Can you believe??

We have ANOTHER tooth.  That makes *9* teeth! 

In other news, Z pulled up today and tried to stand by herself...for about a second and then fell forward into me.  She's trying!

Oh, and if you are planning on having Z around anytime soon, be sure to move anything you don't want her touching that may be 3 feet off the ground or less.  She'll get it, try to eat it, or otherwise do something you might not want with it (rip, crumble, throw, slobber)...Just a warning!!

Pictures and Development update!

Look ma, I'm standing...ALL BY MYSELF!


Oh NO! Can't let go yet, I guess!


This is MUCH more fun!


So you like my new helmet??


See how cute I look??

Btw, that "helmet" is the bowl the hospital gave us that they used to sponge bathe her with! She just recently discovered it and after Noah put it on her head a couple of times to just fool around, she tries to put it on...or gives it to us to put it on her! It's actually come in handy a couple of times. A couple of times she'll fall and actually hit her head (not hard, don't worry) on the side of the coffee table, and with the "helmet" it's kept her from getting upset. Do the same thing without it on her head, and she cries!

Zoe has been on a tear lately! She is crawling fast, everywhere, and is getting into EVERYthing. She's helping us "clean" our house, by pulling everything off the shelves and tables! Zoe has been pulling up on every piece of furniture and us any chance she gets, and is starting to figure out that thing called cruising. It won't be long now where she won't be so timid and does it ALL the time. She's even attempted to let go of things, but she usually just falls at this point. OH, and we're SO glad she's figured out how to "fall". She sticks her butt out and just tries to crouch as low as she can, and then lets go. Good girl!!

What else is she doing? If she scratches or pinches us, it hurts...we've been saying "ow" even if it doesn't, and Zoe will repeat it...too cute.

Oh, the biggest news? We HAVE to get the gates this weekend. Zoe has been able to pull up on one step, but this morning, pulled up on two and got onto the landing between steps...and tried to go up further! Yikes!! She has NO fear.

Food wise, she's eating all kinds of new things. Zoe has discovered ham and hot dogs (all beef Ball Park Franks, no dairy/soy in them), loves peas, chick peas, bread (When Pigs Fly sourdough), blueberries, oyster crackers, and rediscovering old favorites in the form of finger foods. She's decided she doesn't like for US to feed her, so finger foods it is! She still loves her oatmeal, and if we can't get her to eat a puree, if we mix it in there, we can usually get her to take it that way. What a big girl!!

Oh, and she's been telling me how EXCITED she is for Christmas.

Santa!

Santa took some time out of his busy schedule to come visit Zoe and Cousin Jacob at my parents' house this weekend.  We had matching Santa outfits to show off for Santa.  The babies did great!  Zoe was tired, Jacob was hungry, but they were troopers. :) I think Zoe looks like a little elf!

Zoe was quick to show off her new skills--pulling up and telling jokes.  She's quite the ham, and let's you know it!  She was also trying to "play" with Jacob, but I don't think he's as receptive as she is to it.  She did offer to try to help him roll over from his belly to back by grabbing his pants.  Too bad we didn't get a picture of that!

Anyone for Bowling?

I just put Zoe's head circumference into a growth chart percentile calculator on BabyCenter...

Our baby has a head circumference over the 95th percentile! Soooooo...her weight is in the 25th, height is in the 50th. How does this girl get her head off the ground? No WONDER her torso is so strong!

Although, if you think about the family, it's no real big surprise. Yes, I'm talking about her Daddy, Unka G, and Auntie Jill.

Imitation is the finest form of Flattery, right?

Then, I'm SO flattered. Zoe has been imitating, but nothing new lately. However, she JUST started imitating when someone says "ow" (her daddy thinks she's making fun of me!). She's also started waving a little more when someone else waves. :) VERY cute, indeed.

New sound? Breathing in and making a sound at the same time...kinda like screech but not too loud.

New discoveries? the bathroom and all of it's fun spots. We are keeping that door closed more often than not these days.

New love? Watching the weather on the news. She could be knee deep in her toys and as soon as this comes on, she STOPS and stares. Maybe she has a thing for Pete Bouchard. Who knows!

Puuulling, Sliding, Tapping, Turning, too...

That's the first line of one of Zoe's favorite toys, a Fisher Price tool bench that Auntie Darcy got her (you can see a picture of it in the Thanksgiving pictures). Anyway, she LOVES this thing and "dances" to it by bopping her head up and down and tapping her foot on the floor. She'll also drag it around the floor flipping it so it's face down on the floor. Good times.

BIG NEWS! Zoe pulled up today. YIKES! She's been pushing up when she's on her knees so that her feet are flat on the floor but that she's still got her hands on the floor too. But, today, she got on her knees, put her hands on my leg (which was on the floor), pushed her butt up into the air and then grabbed onto the top of the coffee table and was standing alllll by herself. Of course, she needed a little help getting back down, but that's okay.

So, I think we're going to finally put the mattress on the lowest setting this weekend.

Our baby is growing up!!

Drum Roll, PLEASE!!

Zoe had her 9 month check up today (at 9 1/2 months old). First, she did WONDERFULLY! Second, we found out from her GI dr that it would be okay (even with the possibility of an egg allergy) for her to get a flu shot (it's cultured in an egg culture, so those with egg allergies need to be aware!). She got her flu shot, and I think she was more upset at being put on her back than getting the needle! What a good girl!!

AND the big news!! Ba-du-bump, ba-du-bump!! (that's my attempt at typing a drum roll!)...

17lbs 12oz (25th percentile)
28 inches long (50th percentile)--this makes her no longer proportionate, but that's okay!
45.1cm head circumference (I don't know the percentile, though)

WOOOHOOO! The dr was VERY happy...from weight check at the pediatrician's (this does not count GI dr visits), she has jumped from the 10th to the 25th percentile in her weight! WOOHOO!

No WONDER she isn't fitting into her clothes and busting out of everything we put on her!!

Decisions, Decisions...

As a lot of people know, Zoe has been eating her morning cereal made with Neocate, a hypoallergenic formula that is broken down to the amino acids (building blocks of protein, if you didn't know). This is the smallest part a protein that the formula can be broken down, the most specialized form of formula. You can't even get it in the store...so needless to say, what we are about to announce is something that has taken a lot of time and energy for us to think about.

We've decided to wean Zoe from breastmilk to the Neocate. This was not an easy decision to make. I was having a hard time pumping to just keep up with Zoe. So, we kept trying to get her to take the formula in a bottle (not a simple feat because it's just not the same as what she's used to). Then, a couple of weeks ago, she just took it. Maybe Zoe just got used to it, or maybe she was hungry enough to take it. Regardless, she finally started taking it in a bottle, not just in her cereal. Trust me when I say how difficult this was to GET her to take it (at first we wanted her to be able to take it just in case I wouldn't be able to keep up with her). We flavored it different ways, had Noah try to give it to her, have me try to give it to her, had her daycare provider, Laura, try to give it to her. We tried different bottles, sippy cups, and even on a spoon, with and without a little cereal. She just WOULDN'T take it for the longest time.

Needless to say, taking the Neocate has made our life a little easier. It eased the stress I was feeling about not being able to keep up with Zoe (I'd been able to pump enough for one bottle for Zoe in one session at work, and while I was there, she'd take 2 bottles....do the math!). As she took to it more, we came to the decision that to ease my stress at work from not having enough time to do my work and to pump, not being able to get enough for Zoe, all of it. So, we started transitioning Zoe so that she takes 2 bottles of formula while at day care, and then I nurse still morning and night.

Instead of it alleviating my stress, it actually got more stressful. I won't go into details about how, but I was having a difficult time with it. So, after doing this for a couple of weeks, we, I, came to the decision to completely wean Zoe to the formula. Know the saying, "if momma ain't happy..." well, this is a sad decision to make, a difficult one, but I kept stressing about the half and half situation we had...this takes the guess work out of it. I was constantly guessing about the foods I couldn't eat, and if what I was eating was okay for Zoe, and it killed me whenever we'd go back to the doctor's office and wonder if there is blood in her stool or not.

We've also been told, because this is such a specialized formula, it can help her stomach heal so tha it can eventually take those proteins eventually (dairy, soy, and possibly egg). So, that's made this decision a lot easier to handle. And, with everything I've read about the formula, it can help reduce the spit up too. So, let's hope that it does what it is supposed to.

Unfortunately, there are not any over the counter alternatives. There is one other amino acid based formula, but that's it.

Fortunately, we have been able to get a few free cans from some generous people. I was pointed to a website where you fill out a short survey, and then they send you a free can of Neocate. They've filled out the survey and have sent us the can. It's definitely made this easier. Zoe is going to be on Neocate at LEAST until she's a year, and probably longer. And, if it's not Neocate, then there are toddler versions, if she's not on milk, at that point. (if anyone is interested in the survey to help out, go to www.testforallergy.com. It's easy and you won't get stuck getting 202384 emails after!)

This has not been an easy decision for me, but to have a happy baby, you must have a happy mommy. Stressing out is not going to make a happy mommy. So, this past week, we've dropped the night feeding, and this weekend, we'll be dropping the morning feeding so that she's on Neocate 100% of the time. It makes me sad to know that I won't be nursing Zoe for the year that I had planned, and I also think that if we hadn't had the health issues develop and having get rid of the milk stash I did have, I'd be feeling much differently, and we probably wouldn't be weaning at this stage.

While this is a difficult decision and does not come without some "what ifs" and sadness, I have a lot of solace in the things that the neocate can do for Z. I really hope it lowers the amount of spit up even more and help her stomach heal faster. Never did I think we'd be here at this point, but then again, we never thought we'd be dealing with an allergy, either!

Happy 9 Months!

Can you believe it's been NINE months since our baby entered the world on that cold day in February?? She's informed us she will be spending her day playing with her friends at day care, playing with her toys, crawling, getting into the cat food, eating her food, drinking her bottles, screaming (happy screams), and talking everyone's head off. :)

For everyone's information, the good results of the drs visit the other day mean a LOT of things: 1. Zoe is in the 25th percentile in her weight (and height). This is up from the 3rd percentile when she started seeing the GI dr! 2. I've been given the okay to have soy lecithin and soybean oil (read your packages, those are in a LOT of foods). 3. Zoe is now proportionate. While her weight has increased, her length growth has slowed a bit, so she's now in the 25th percentile in each. She's still on the little side, but she doesn't look nearly as long or as thin as she did.

Zoe has enjoyed showing off for her Uncle Nick and our financial dude who both came up to visit on separate occasions this week. She's showing off all of her new skills--talking, clapping, crawling, dancing, and tormenting the cat! She even scored a cool stuffed turkey named "Gobble" from Uncle Nick.

That's all, folks. Have a great weekend!

New Tricks!

Z is a crawling machine! She is everywhere...she just does NOT sit still. It's amazing the energy that kid has. She's crawling, scooting, rolling, sit up, lay down, slide over, pick up a toy and wave it around, tell us something, scream something at us, and do it all over again.

Today, she managed to crawl THROUGH her exersaucer.

She also has spent a good chunk of the day "clicking" her tongue. She loves it when you repeat it.

She also has a "mean face". She will scrunch up her face like she's all mad at you and then breath really fast in and out through her teeth. Again, repeat it, and she is all smiles. She loves it! :) She's not mad; it's just a new trick!

Z also is playing so hard she'll 'pant'. I don't think she's really out of breath, but it's cute to see her work so hard.

She's getting faster, and has gotten close to getting that FUN new toy, the cat's tail!! Peanut has NOT been amused. Z is also focused completely on trying to catch Peanut. So far, Peanut is still faster. :)

Zoe is starting to push onto just her knees to try to play...that's a problem because she's not too sturdy like that yet! I have seen her push onto her feet, but she usually collapses right away. Hands stay on the ground the entire time.

We've discovered a couple of favorite commercials of Z's...The Friendly's commercial with the soccer mom singing with the soccer team in the back. Whatever she's doing, she STOPS and just watches it. Then, when it's over? Back to playing. That one and a Ford truck commercial. Both have a lot of singing and music in them...what a freak we have for a daughter!

Oh, and Z has this dancing pig. You press its snout and it vibrates and plays some music. She starts to dance to it. We'll try to get it on video. This has been able to get Z to smile when she doesn't feel like it (I know, amazing, but she DOES have times when that's true!!).

Kick it to the Curb!

Whatever Z might have been battling, getting used to daylight savings time, an upset stomach (she'd been spitting up a lot), who knows what...but it appears to be gone. She's spitting up MUCH less lately, her fussies have gone away, and she's a happy-go-lucky Z again.

Maybe it had something to do with sleeping almost fourteen hours last night. That's right...14 hours. She was SO tired last night, I put her to bed (hoping it was a nap, but knew it probably wasn't) at 4:30. She was OUT like a light and didn't wake up until 5am. However, she babbled away for a little bit and fell back to sleep until I woke her up at 6:15...I wonder how long she would have slept without me waking her up??? I hate doing it, but I have to do it to feed her before I go to work.

Hopefully, this is the start of improved napping at daycare (her napping's been all out of whack, too, poor baby)...hopefully, she'll sleep just as long tomorrow morning! :)

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

From our Ladybug to you....

Z had a Halloween party at day care today...she was one of *2* ladybugs there (there were only 4 kids in all!). When I picked her up, she was in a great mood...apparently she really liked hanging out in her costume and playing around in it. After, we went to Noah's office to show off, and that she did! She played with all of Noah's friends, let people hold her, and showed off how well she can sit, scoot, roll, and one other NEW SKILL.....

Z has CRAWLED. She crawled a couple of steps, twice. THEN, she crawled at home again, without the costume on. Apparently, having a padded belly made it easier to try this new skill!

We'll try to get more costume shots tomorrow, maybe even outside if the weather is as nice as we hope for. Our baby is growing up!

HI!

Z waved "Hi" for the first time today. As we were waking up her Daddy this morning, we were at the foot of the bed and he reached up and waved to Z, saying good morning...she put her right arm out, hand outstretched, and slowly brought her fingers closed toward her and then opened. She's done it a couple of times since then, too...TOO CUTE!

New Firsts!

Today, Z had a couple of firsts--

First time in her "big-girl" bath tub....a blow up tub shaped like a duck that fits inside our regular sized tub. She wasn't so happy about the change, but when she realized that it still means she can splash in the water, she was ALL for it! We'll get pictures the next time she's in it!

First time eating chicken....the other night, I made chicken in the crock pot with some apples and a little apple juice. It was REALLY good, so I pureed the extra breast I had cooked up, and Z gobbled it up and wanted more!! I'll up her chicken amount when we know it doesn't bother her!

Just checking in!

Just wanted to check in on what our little Z is doing. She has gotten FAST with the army crawl. This morning, I was getting ready to leave for work, and I was in the kitchen. She was in the living room. The next thing I know, she's at my feet. Then, this evening, I'm in the kitchen cleaning up, and we hear Z squawking from the living room. We both look over, and where is she? UNDER the coffee table and on her way out on the side near the kitchen! What a silly girl!

Well, we never made it to Plymouth Plantation..the weather was just too gross for it. Another time! It's not going anywhere, and I'm SURE we'll be able to get there soon enough!!

Sleep has gotten better and better. Now, when we put her down for a nap or bed time, as long as she's sleepy enough, she'll go right down, with hardly a peep. Sometimes, if she isn't tired enough, she'll let us know as clearly as she can...but normally, that isn't a problem!

She continues to love going to and being at day care with Miss Laura and the other kids. I got to see what it was like to drop her off and her Daddy got to pick her up on Wednesday (I had training to go to). When I pick her up, most days, there are 2 other kiddos there....lately, they've been giving her kisses good-bye and even hugs. It's very cute to watch. They're very excited to see her come, yelling out her name, and just laughing and jumping up and down. Don't worry, Miss Laura is VERY good about keeping Z safe from these over-excited 18 month old and 2-3 year old kids...sometimes they just don't understand that Z is so much smaller and younger than they are. She, on the other hand, LOVES seeing them. She laughs, has a HUGE smile on her face, and even will reach out their faces when they get close to give her kisses (on her cheek). They don't mind. And, she can PINCH when she wants to.

What else? Zoe is getting more and more talkative...babababa, dadadada, mamamammamama, and any combination is almost always coming out of her mouth! That and the sounds that make her sound like Howard Dean making those "Yeeaaaahhhh" sound...yeah, Z's a little nutty. We'll keep her though. She's developing quite the personality!

Birthday Parties and New Skills!

Today, Zoe had her first birthday party to go to, outside of family. My friend C's youngest daughter, A, turned 4, and we were invited as Zoe B___ and family. And so it has begun...we are no longer known as Amy and Noah but as Zoe's parents. That's okay. It's a nice label to have.

But, I digress. We got there, and Zoe took a little bit to get acclimated and meeting everyone. When she was comfortable, C wanted to hold Zoe, and then G (A's older sister) got to hold her, too! I wish we had gotten a picture of that, but we forgot the camera was with us. Ah well. That just means we have to get together with them more often to get more pictures!

Zoe spent some time creeping and rolling around on the floor, playing and chomping on her new favorite snack, Cheerios, and telling everyone all our secrets! At one point, she was on the floor with a little girl who was 5 days younger than her...they played very well together and shared their toys with each other. This little girl is already crawling, but we're sure Z is not far behind that!

The newest thing that Z can do is go from laying on her belly to SITTING UP. She's done this a few times today, and has just been moving all over the place. WOW! What a big girl we have!

Right now, Z is sleeping in the spare bedroom in her Grandma and Grandpa B's house. We're here so she can show off all her new skills, and possibly get a visit to the Plymouth Plantation. It's a big busy weekend with lots still to do!

I knew I'd come up with some more developments!

Zoe can clap and make sound when she claps...she gets better EVERY day.

Zoe LOVES to stick out her tongue and shake her head (not at the same time, though) and get you to do it....she'll also repeat it when you do one of those things.

I told you yesterday that Zoe has figured out how to pick up her gerber puffs....well, today, she has figured out how to SHOVEL them in her mouth like some eat popcorn. We're going to have to watch her. I thought most would be in her lap when I picked her up, but I only found 3 wayward puffs! What a piggy!

So, do you think it's time for the Big-girl Bath??

We think it's FINALLY time to get Zoe out of her baby bathtub and into the big-girl bathtub. Yes, we know lots of babies don't make it this far in their baby bathtubs, but our Z is not like lots of babies, if you haven't figured that out yet!


Oh, and to keep from getting indecent pictures, I DID cover Z with a face cloth...Gotta keep things decent!




This is what she looked like on that FIRST bath in the tub...my how things have changed!!

New Developments

In the land of Z, I realized that she's doing ALL kinds of new things, but I haven't listed what lately.

• Zoe sleeps 12-12 1/2 hours a night, pretty much straight through now (YAY!)
• Zoe is putting herSELF to sleep now...we put get her ready for bed, rock and read her a couple of stories, and then put her down with (usually) very little protesting...she's usually sleeping by the time we get downstairs!
• Zoe gets up on all fours for a few seconds...today she was lifting a knee like she knew what she was supposed to do next, but didn't quite know how to get all the parts moving!
• Zoe is just about able to sit up on her own...but she will get distracted and fall back (her Daddy would say that is just like Mommy)
• She likes to push herself backwards (I keep trying to get video of it, but when I pull out the camera, she just stops to smile pretty)
• She has had butternut squash, sweet potatoes, avocadoes, apples, applesauce, bananas, carrots, and green beans. The only thing she REALLY has had an issue with has been the carrots. All of the food is homemade. Her favorite, I must say, are the apples and applesauce.
• She's figured out how to eat those Gerber Puffs (sweet potato flavored ones are the only ones lil Miss Sensitive Stomach can eat), and LOVES them. Go pinscher grasp!
• Favorite toys at this point? Her hair brush, water bottle, nesting cups, and anything she can throw off her exersaucer!
• She's discovered the wonderful crinkle of plastic (including bags, so those have to be kept out of her reach).
• Zoe loves to play on her Daddy's computer...she loves to do what HE does (pound on the key board)
• She continues to be mesmerized by her friend in the mirror. Today, in a feverish fussy time, her friend was the only thing that got her to stop crying!!
• Zoe loves to tell us about her day, her dreams from nap time and bed time...it's usually VERY fun stuff she shares!
• And, I think we're close to dropping that third nap (much to my chagrin!)
• FINALLY--She has, with the most recent weight gain, officially outgrown the bassinet portion of her pack 'n' play!

I'm sure there's more things that she's doing on a regular basis. I'll try to remember to update this as soon as I know more!

Look at the changes!

These are some things I had made up that I've used as signatures on a mommy message board I'm on. The first was done shortly after Zoe was born, the second one was this summer, and then this third is the most recent. I go to a website and submit the pictures, then this is what I get. When I get my new computer, I'm going to learn how to do it myself...they just use photoshop, and we have a copy of photoshop elements...I can't wait to play!