The Healing Power of a Smile

I apologize for the delay in posting an update to Zoe's blog. We have all been sick over the past week and it's been rough. I got the cold first and had a lot of congestion. Then I gave the cold to Jeremy and Zoe last Sunday. They both stayed home last Monday to take care of each other. Tuesday we all went back to work and Zoe went to daycare. On Wednesday I felt sick again so I made an appt with my new family doctor. I have tonsillitis. Yuck. When I picked Zoe up from daycare that day, Ms Rita told me that she had several poopy diapers. It wasn't even 2 weeks ago that I took her to the pediatrician because she went 15 days without pooping! Well, poor little Zoe caught a gastro-intestinal virus and had diarrhea for a few days. Although she's still a cutie, this pic was taken when she was sick. I can see how sad and miserable she feels. Thursday and Friday Zoe and I stayed home to recover and rest. It was wonderful being able to spend extra time with her. We are all finally feeling better! We are looking forward to our trip to Colorado later this week. Our plan is to leave Thursday night and drive overnight so Zoe's sleep schedule won't get all screwy. We will spend the weekend in Colorado Springs at Grandma Linda's sister's house. We are looking forward to sharing Zoe with Grandma Linda on the long drive and seeing all our other family. She's found her hands finally! I often find her awake in her crib or bouncy seat watching her hand as it opens and closes. She can also grab her feet or socks. She doesn't know what to do with them once she's grabbed them but she'll figure it out. Her hands and fingers are constantly in her mouth. Usually gagging herself because she sticks them so far back in her mouth. I don't see any teeth yet but the slobber has begun! I've uploaded a ton of new pictures to the flickr account. Here are just a few of my favorites.... This was taken on January 6th on a day that was unnaturally warm. She's getting chubby rolls on her legs. This was during a play session on the floor with her old playmat. She got a vibrating moose for Christmas and she's surprised when it vibrates! You can see the legs of the moose in the upper left corner of the picture And this is what she is doing almost all of the time now! Finally, I have two new videos. She's actively playing with her toy bar on her bouncy seat now. Enjoy her laughing and making noises in the first video

Life is just getting better and better

So now that we've had a chance to relax and the holidays, I have some time to post. We had a wonderful Christmas and enjoyed seeing everyone. Zoe hit 3 months old on December 26th. I was finally able to post some new pictures and video. Here's a pic on Christmas Day with Zoe and her cousin Breanna. Miss Zoe was very unhappy about the wardrobe changes. She's just started sticking her bottom lip out like this. It's so funny to watch! Zoe also has enough head control now that she can sit in her Bumbo for 10 minutes. Another recent change is the new facial expressions. This one is the face she gives us when we show her something she's not so sure about... She has the sweetest smile Here's another face that makes me laugh. This is her surprised face! Her new playmat has a leaf that's made of crinkly material. If you touch it, it sounds like a plastic bag. She loves the sound but always seems surprised when she hears the sound.

And now for some new videos... Here are some of Zoe's milestones as listed in the What to Expect The First Year Book: By three months, your baby..... should be able to: -on stomach, lift head 45 degrees yes .....will probably be able to: -laugh out loud- yes but she's not sure yet of what she's doing -on stomach, lift head 90 degrees yes but she shakes while doing this -squeal in delight no -bring both hands together no -smile spontaneously-YES! -follow an object held about 6 inches above baby's face and moved 180 degrees -from one side to the other, with baby watching all the day-yes .....may possibly be able to: -hold head steady when upright yes -on stomach, raise chest, supported by arms yes -roll over (one way) Almost!! -grasp a rattle held to backs or tips of fingers no -pay attention to an object as small as a raisin .....may even be able to: -bear some weight on legs when held upright no -reach for an object no -say "Ah-goo" or similar vowel consonant combination no -razz (make a wet razzing sound) no -keep head level with body when pulled to sitting yes thanks to Aunt Sharon showing her how! -turn in direction of a voice, particularly Mommy's- yes

Merry Christmas

As we celebrate Zoe's first Christmas we will be thinking of you and wishing that you could join us. We will see you soon! We hope that you have a blessed Christmas. This year we got a gift beyond our expectations!

Sunday December 16th

This week Zoe will be 12 weeks old. And next week she will be 3 months old! She's been such a cutie pie lately. She's begun making more new noises and has shown us HUGE smiles. She's holding her head up so well that we'll probably start letting her sit in her Bumbo seat soon. She still hates tummy time but she's pushing up off the ground much better. She went to daycare for the first time on Friday. I wanted to give her and Rita (her daycare provider) a chance to get to know each other before I return to work. And, this gives Mom a chance to learn how to drop her baby off without leaving with tears streaming down her face. I did cry on the drive away from the daycare but it wasn't too bad. She did great and really enjoyed watching the other little kids. The daycare provider I found is an older lady that watches kids in her home. She's liscensed and keeps the kids in the same age range so they can grow up together. Zoe is the youngest of her kids, they range from 6 months old to 13 months old. Zoe has developed the most beautiful eyelashes. Her dad also has long think lashes while her mom has puny sparse ones. There's no doubt who she got the eyelash gene from!

Zoe recently had her 2 month Well Baby appointment. She was 11 lbs 12 oz and measured 23 1/2 inches. The doctor was very pleased with her health and development. Zoe was given 4 shots at the end of the visit. She cried and cried after getting them. After a rough night of her being very fussy and crying, she woke upn a happy mood on Wednesday. I was able to get some video of her 'talking' to me and of her looking out the window cooing. My usual method of uploading videos isn't working so I'm trying youtube for the first time. Let me know if you have any problems viewing the video.

2 Months

Hope this picture of our cutie pie and her dimple make you smile! Zoe turned 2 months old last week! We can't believe our little baby is already 2 months old! She's getting so big! Both Mom and Dad have had the privledge of being shown beautiful smiles by Zoe. I think she's learning how to laugh as well. She's begun chewing on her hands at times when she's not hungry so I think that means she's learning to put things in her mouth. Oh no!!

We put up the Christmas tree today and she seems facinated by the lights. We'll get pictures of her in front of the lights soon. I'll have more pictures posted soon. I've got a bunch to upload when I have a few moments. She has her 2 month check-up on Tuesday and we have a photo session scheduled on Friday. It should be a busy week.

Here are some of Zoe's milestones as listed in the What to Expect The First Year Book: By two months, your baby..... should be able to: -smile in response to your smile yes -respond to a bell in some way, such as startling, crying, quieting yes .....will probably be able to: -vocalize in ways other than crying (e.g. cooing) yes -on stomach, lift head 45 degrees yes but it's a struggle .....may even be able to: -hold head steady when upright yes for short periods -on stomach, raise chest, supported by arms yes -roll over (one way) no -grsp a rattle held to backs or tips of fingers no -pay attention to an object as small as a raisin hard to tell -reach for an object no -say "Ah-goo" or similar vowel consonant combination no .....may possibly be able to: -smile spontaneously yes -bring both hands together no -on stomach, lift head 90 degrees no -laugh out loud no -squeal in delight no -follow an object held about 6 inches above baby's face and moved 180 degrees (from one side to the other), with baby watching all the way yes

November 24th

It's time for a new video of Zoe! This was recorded Thanksgiving morning. As you'll see, she loves taking baths! She alternates between relaxed floating and playful splashing.


Last weekend we drove down to Texas to visit my family. Zoe did pretty good on the drive down there but she was ready to get out of her car seat long before we got there. Aunt Leaf finally got to meet her little neice.

We had a nice lunch last Saturday and Zoe got to meet her Thomas Great-Grandparents.


After lunch, Mom and Dad went to Waco alone to watch OSU beat Baylor. Zoe stayed at Grandma's house and had a fun time with her Aunt Sharon, Aunt Leah and Grandma Mary.


We had a very nice Thanksgiving. We spent several hours at Zoe's Great-Grandparent's house. Good food and even better time spent visiting with family.
On Friday morning, the ladies all decided we would meet at 4 am to shop. Zoe did great bundled up in the wrap. Linda, Jennifer, and Brianna were fun shopping companions! We didn't take any pictures of our crazy selves. Here's a pic of Zoe and I on Thanksgiving morning. She truely is a blessing!