29... Again

Dear Kate and Riley,
Well, it happened. Whether I wanted it to or not, I knew that all of this counting down to your brother's birthday was going to lead very quickly to another birthday. And I'd officially like to call it my second 29th birthday.

It wasn't as bad as I thought. The day of was pretty uneventful, our friends watched Zach while we went out to dinner which was fun, I really cherish being able to eat a meal in peace these days! Then the next day Dad took a half day off work and we headed out to Palm Springs for the weekend. It was fun even though we had a pretty NOT fun 4:30 am fire alarm at our hotel. We spent an hour outside and were let back into our rooms around 5:30. I thought that for sure after being awake for an hour in the middle of the night Zach would sleep in but no such luck, he was up at 7:30. We did luck out the next day though and he slept until almost 9!

We stayed at the Renaissance which we had never stayed at before but it was fun and nice. I loved that they had a kiddie pool just the right size for Zach and they had a "beach" at one end of the pool with sand and stuff (although I thought it was funny that we would drive out to Palm Springs to be at the "beach"!). We ate lots (too much) of yummy food, I went shopping all by myself (heaven) and we went to the Children's Museum which was also really fun. It was a great weekend and I didn't want it to end. Zach is so much fun to be out and about with, I love that he gets so excited over things. I felt like he knew he was on vacation and was just excited and fun the whole time.

Lovin' the kiddie pool and all the free plastic cups he could destroy

Checking out the water fall

We went out to dinner and there was live music outside. Zach danced and EVERYONE watched! He's such a ham. Another proof of Daddy's looks, mommy's personality!

Children's museum
I wanted proof I was there, even if I am making a funny face.

Zach's favorite thing at the museum, a big magnetic wall with tins on it that he could take off and put back on. Over, and over, and over. I think he might have stayed there all day!

Happy Birthday Zachary!

Dear Zachary,
I don't think your sisters will mind if this one goes out to you...

I can't believe that a year has passed. I don't know where the time has gone but I like to think that I have cherished every moment of it. Zachary, you brought light and hope back into our lives during our darkest hour. You gave us a reason to press forward. You helped to fill the hole in our hearts and the great void in our arms. You taught us that we would feel joy again, true, deep and sincere joy. You showed me a whole different side of your dad, you helped me to fulfill my greatest dream. From that first high pitched scream that will forever be burned into my memory as the sweetest sound that I've ever heard you had my heart. Through the ups and downs of that scary scary pregnancy you showed me to have faith again. Never a day goes by that I don't thank Heavenly Father for entrusting us with your precious spirit here on earth. You teach me something new every day and nothing makes me happy like your fully belly head thrown back laugh or your chubby little arms around me. You will always be our rainbow baby, the promise that we received through the clouds. You will always have your precious angel sisters watching over you and two parents who couldn't be more grateful to have you in our lives. We love you chubby bunny.

Love,
Mom

One year stats:
Walking, jabbering non stop, saying "uh-oh", making monkey sounds, loving books and cars and climbing on EVERYTHING and anything, asserting independence, picky eater, great sleeper and all around cutie.

Zach and Addie shared a party on Saturday with a few freinds

Mmmmm.... cake

San Diego Zoo AND Sea World!

Dear Kate and Riley,
What a week! Our friends who had the great Disneyland tickets had also scored free tickets to the zoo and Sea World! They all had to be used by today though so we had a busy week. The dads couldn't go so we got a few other moms together and headed down to San Diego TWICE for different adventures.

I love the San Diego Zoo. It is probably one of my favorite places. We grew up with passes so we got to go a lot. If we lived closer I think I would get passes and take Zach once a week, I really love it that much. My favorite things are the monkeys. I knew Zach would love them too since he is really in to monkeys right now. I was right. He liked the monkeys a lot. He also really liked the elephants. It was a HOT day (around 95!) so it was a little uncomfortable but I'm glad we got to go.

Sea World was more fun than I thought. I didn't know if Zach would like any of it because I knew he wouldn't like to sit through shows and I wasn't sure what else there was to do. I was surprised that this was probably the place that ended up being the most fun for him. He liked the tanks where he could see the dolphins swimming around. He LOVED the aquarium. He just grunted in excitement the WHOLE time we were inside, he loved being right up against the glass and watching the fish. He also loved the splash park playground thing. I made the mistake of thinking he wouldn't get too wet so I just left him in his onesie instead of putting on his swimming suit. Well, you'll see from the pictures that I was wrong, he totally got soaked! But he loved it so that was ok by me.

Zach has been totally spoiled on his birthday week, too bad he won't even remember. It could be a long time before we get to do all the fun things we did this week again. He still has his birthday party on Saturday to look forward to and his actual birthday on Sunday! Thanks again to the Bowens for hooking us up with all the free tickets! We owe you guys!

Love,
Mom

Zoo

Sea World

Disneyland!

Dear Kate and Riley,
Let the birthday celebrations begin! What a fun surprise when our friends called us Friday night and said they had scored FREE tickets to Disneyland! I hadn't really had the intention of taking Zach when he was so young but when its free how could we resist? Besides, what better way to begin the birth-week celebration!? So Saturday morning we headed off to Disneyland thinking that since it was free we wouldn't feel bad to only stay a few hours. Zach and his friend Addie held up really well though and we didn't end up leaving the park until 9! I have to admit it was more fun for the parents than the kids but I do think Zach enjoyed people watching (and BOY was there people watching, we came on Gay Day '08!), running around, and the few rides he went on.

I found out the hard way that the body just isn't quite the same post kids. I hadn't been to Disney in over three years and well, lets just say that a roller coaster has a different sort of effect on me than it used to. I did make it through space mountain, tower of terror and California screamer, but not necessarily with the joy that they once held for me. And although I did not pee my pants, I am pretty sure I came dangerously close. I love Disney at Halloween time with all the cute decorations and it was the perfect day for Zach to wear his cute pumpkin sweater that I scored at last year's post Halloween sales for super cheap (and I remember thinking at that time, "he'll NEVER be this big!"). It was a great day all around and the best part was that we were able to apply the cost of our tickets to annual passes and got them for about the cost of coming to Disney one more time so I'm sure there will be many future Disneyland trips (at least in the next year).

Love,
Mom

My English Teacher dream come true

Five Silly Monkeys! (see his hand, he's doing the motions)

Dear Kate and Riley,
If there was one thing I looked forward to when I thought of having kids it was reading with them. Some of my best memories of my childhood are of being read to. Mostly by my dad. We loved it when he read Dr. Seuss to us. I was so excited for the chance to share my love of reading with my own kids.

I was disappointed, to say the least when Zach seemed to have NO interest in books (hmm, maybe he has my temper but he seems to be dad in every other way!). All he ever wanted to do was EAT the books. I kept trying though and recently he's finally discovered a love for books! His favorite book is the Five Little Monkeys book. He does the hand motions and everything and he loves the book because it has little monkey faces on it that he can feel. If I start singing the song he will stop whatever he's doing and bop up and down and start doing the hand motions. It is just my favorite thing when I find him with his books or when he brings a book to me and will sit in my lap and snuggle while I read to him.

On Monday I found him on the landing of the stairs where I had piled all the books we had brought to church on Sunday. he sat back there for at least 20 min just reading his little books and talking to himself. It was the cutest thing!

Love,
Mom

Oh hey, what are you doing here and why are you flashing that thing in my face?

Nothing new...

Dear Kate and Riley,
I always feel bad when I don't write for a while but nothing much has been going on around here! Zach is getting faster and faster and has apparently decided he is too big for his mom to carry him around any more! The problem is he really isn't THAT fast and he gets distracted very easily so a simple walk to the car would take him 20 min.! Instead I usually let him walk for a minute and then pick him up. He proceeds to kick and scream all the way to the car. Can the terrible two's start at 11 months? Tantrums are getting commonplace around here, they can happen for any reason but mostly getting into the carseat, getting dressed, getting his diaper changed and having anything taken away from him (like knives that he always seems to grab any time the dishwasher is open). I'm not really sure if an 11 month old can be disciplined but it is definitely teaching me patience as I try to keep my cool with all of his screaming. Grandma Janice tried to tell me that he is just like me but I refuse to believe that I was anything but a completely pleasant child!

We have been having a heat wave here and I have to say I'm just kind of ready for fall. We go to the playground at the mall a lot because it is nice and cool but I'm ready to go to the park and do other outdoor adventures without having to get really sweaty! We are planning Zach's birthday party (less than 2 weeks!) and that's about all that is going on around here!

Love,
Mom

First Haircut!

Dear Kate and Riley,
We've been talking about it for a while, well pretty much every time I try to comb Zach's hair and have to tuck it behind his ears. I know it may not have seemed long but messy hair is my pet peeve and I love a clean cut look! So we decided to take Zach to the mall for his first hair cut. I used to make fun of people who would shell out money just so their kid could sit in a rocket ship but I can assure you it is WORTH the money to have him occupied and have no clue what was going on around him. He was so happy to sit in that ship and play with the toys and the lady was so good at just moving around with him and letting him turn this way or that, it would have driven me nuts! I like the results but just one more way he is growing up, he looks so OLD now!

Love,
mom

before...

during (loving the rocket ship!)

after!
(ok so it doesn't look that different on camera, but I swear it does in real life!)

11 months!

Dear Kate and Riley,
How can your brother possibly be 11 months old!? Where has the time gone? It seems like we just brought him home from the hospital yesterday. He is So much fun right now but he is into SO much mischief. If he can't destroy it, he doesn't want to have anything to do with it. Getting things done around the house while he is awake is pretty much impossible. But he is really cute while eating dog food, splashing in the toilet, unfolding clean laundry and writing with highlighter all over my coffee table! He is walking really well, he's still about 50/50 walking and crawling because he is still much faster at crawling. Mama and dada are staples, we're working on baba and I think he's pretty close to Bella. He has his own little version of "Uh oh" which is more like uhh uhhh uhhh but I know what it means! He has decided to assert his independence in many ways like spitting out green beans and deciding when he will and will not nurse. For some reason he will NOT walk in front of the real video camera so I had to sneak in a video with the cell phone so sorry for the poor quality. We love our little guy and can't believe he'll be one next month!



love,
mom

Pirates and First Steps!

Dear Kate and Riley,
What an exciting weekend! On Friday afternoon, just out of nowhere, Zachary let go of the toybox and took two steps all by himself! I screamed and cheered and he looked at me like, "hey, I must have just done something pretty cool but I'm not quite sure what!" I kept telling myself it was just a fluke and he wouldn't do it again but sure enough that afternoon he would take two or three steps to me at a time. By tonight he was up to seven steps at a time. It is so exciting and also pretty sad as I realize how fast he is growing up. We tried hard to get a video this morning but Zach was camera shy. We'll try again tomorrow.

We also got to go to the Tall Ships festival in Dana Point on Saturday. It was cool to see the ships and something we'll definitely have to do again when Zach is a little older and not so terrified of pirates (although the pirates we saw were pretty scary so I'm not sure when that will be!).

Our good ole friends at Huggies sent us coupons this week that said "your baby is 18 months!" Its hard to believe you'd be that old (by your due date). I used to get so mad when I got those things in the mail but now I am sort of glad to get those little reminders. I made some hair bows this week with my neighbor and put one on Zach along with his pinkie binkie (its the backup one we got from a friend). I was just being silly but he looked so cute as a little girl I just had to wonder if its how you would have looked.

Love,
Mom

Dad will probably be mad about this picture, Zach as a girl.
Have to wonder if you would look like him!

Tall ships

Scary pirates! Zach wouldn't take his head off my shoulder, they were so scary!

Labor Day Weekend!

Dear Kate and Riley,
We went down to San Diego for Labor Day weekend at Uncle Adam's. Zach loves swimming in their pool and we had fun hanging out, roasting marshmallows and spending time with cousins. Zach was so brave this time, he loves "jumping" (aka falling) off the edge of the pool to mom and thanks to Addie's life jacket he also got to go off the slide for the first time! I can't decide if he LIKES going off the slide but he never cried, he just hated the life jacket and the fact that it made him float with his face in the sun.

We also got to spend a little time with Jessica, Clint and Owey when we went to say goodbye to Keri and Rick. We are sad that Keri and Rick are moving to Colorado, we will miss them a LOT. We wish we had more time to let Zach and Owie play, they were so cute but seven at night was just not prime time for either of them!
Love,
Mom

"Jumping" to mom

First time on the slide

Slide with dad

Being "rescued" by Uncle Adam and Dad

Mom, Zach, Keri, Jess and Owie
(yes that is a Diet Coke bottle Zach is sucking on, NO it is not open!)

"Pregnancy Loss"

Dear Kate and Riley,
This is a beautiful post written by the woman who founded and runs the MISS foundation. She talks about the use of language and how it affects people's perception of things. She mentions the term "pregnancy loss" often used to describe a stillbirth, a term that I, too have come to hate. I like how she ends her post...

"In more than 13 years of working with bereaved families, I have never had a parent of a stillborn baby say, "I am so sad that I lost my pregnancy."

That is not, most often, their reality. They say simply, "My baby died, I lost my beloved child." And so it is."

I am so glad that there are people out there working with families and working to change misconceptions.

Love, Mom

Pictures!

Dear Kate and Riley,
We love Megan! My cousin, Megan, is an AMAZING photographer! She did our engagement, our wedding and we've been lucky enough to have her around twice this year to take great pictures of Zachary. We are so lucky to have such a great photographer in the family, we just wish she lived closer. Luckily she loves to visit California so we should be able to bribe her out here again some time.

Hansen Family Reuinion

Dear Kate and Riley,
Its been a long time since I've written anything because its been a busy few weeks. Zachary had swimming lessons for two weeks, we spent a week recovering and getting ready for our reunion, then we spent a week in Carlsbad with the Hansen side of the family and we are finally home (and almost unpacked after a week!). I thought things would calm down once we got home but we are just trying to soak up every minute of summer and have been at the beach or the pool every day.

The Hansen family reunion happens every two years and at the last one I was pregnant with you. It is hard to believe how much has happened in that two years. Zach loved playing with Summer and Ali and for the first time I held both of them at once, we snuggled on a chair for a little bit and I had a wistful sort of 'what if' moment and really missed.

Zachary is getting so big, he did great at the beach, loves the water and especially the sand. He is standing now and I know he is going to take off walking any day now. We mostly just hung out at the beach all week, Dad did a little golfing and Grandma and Grandpa did a little babysitting, which was great! I'm already excited for the next reunion, I wish it was sooner!

Love, Mom

The "original" Hansens, Alisa, Kent, Grandpa Ross, Marsha, Kathy
and Grandma Great and Grandpa Great

Vampire Baby!

Dear Kate and Riley,

I think THIS is what happens when you read the Twilight books while pregnant. Like one of our friends said, its a good thing vampires are "in" right now. As you might be able to tell, it was more than a little bit of a struggle this morning to try to get a picture of BOTH fangs at the same time.

Zachary turned 9 months old this weekend. Besides growing fangs he has also learned how to pull himself up on just about anything and everything and is very pleased with his ability to stand. He doesn't "walk" along the furniture yet but I know its coming soon. He is getting into trouble and messes everywhere and mom has learned her lesson not to turn her back for even a second as she learned when he took a little tumble about half way down the stairs last week (luckily I caught him half way down). He is the star of mommy and me swim class along with some of his friends and even blew some bubbles last week, in addition to swallowing about half the pool.

Love,
Mom

Off Topic...

Dear Kate and Riley,

Ok, this has nothing to do with you or our family or anything but Grandpa Ross found this blog, accused either me or Aunt Jenny of writing it, and I have to admit that I just wasted Zachary's nap time reading it and laughing so hard I just about peed my pants. I thought some of our friends might get a kick out of it.
I especially enjoyed the intentional misspellings of their/there/they're and improper use of apostrophes since those are the two things in the blogging world that drive me nuts!

Love,

Mom

Like Father, Like Son

Dear Kate and Riley,

Sunday Zach got to wear his first tie ever for church. Dad and I found ties on sale for $.99 at an outlet on our drive to Utah a few weeks ago and I have to say they were a great purchase (we have ties to fit him until he's five now!). When I got him dressed in the morning I had to bring him downstairs and sing "I hope they call me on a mission. When I have grown a foot or two (or five!)"
Although I get sad about not having my girls here to dress up pretty and put bows in your hair, I do love dressing Zach up, especially when it makes him look just like daddy!

Love,

Mom

Zach and daddy, matching for church. You can see Zach's "fang" in this one
his teeth seem to be coming in a little out of order!

So grown up!