Little Red Wagon

A few weeks ago, Kyle and I took Zachary shopping for his first birthday. WHAT?! How did this happen already?! Anyway...we had kinda been looking around at different places and things over the last few weeks and had basically decided to get him something he could use outside so that we could do more outside.

So off we go to Toys R Us, or We B Toys (as Kyle likes to call it) and begin the extravaganza. Of course, we have to stop every 3 minutes to remind Kyle that we are shopping for Zachary-not him! We brought Zachary along so we could "test" things out on him and see how he liked it, because, hey, he won't remember seeing it in the store! Anyway, we found one of those Elmo Live dolls that talks and laughs and Z LOVED it. But it was 50 dollars. For a toy he MIGHT play with a few months. And, not an outside toy. Just couldn't justify that. So we went to the section of BIG toys for outside and there it was-the perfect little, Radio Flyer, red wagon. It was a plastic one with flaps that fold up and down to make it a two-seater. It even had seatbelts and drinkholders. Fancy. Best part? It was marked 20 DOLLARS DOWN! We took Zachary for a "test-ride" around the store, and he had a blast. So, we decided that was it. Unfortunately for us, the store decided that was not it, as the display wagon was the only one they had left. And that was the last day of the sale price. Off we left VERY sad. Until...hey, we live in a big town. With another We B Toys across the city. Quick call the store #2 and whadda ya know? They have exactly ONE red wagon left! HOLD FOR MOSES, PLEASE! The wagon was now ours again, WITH the sale price!

So, if you know me well at all, you know I am horrible with surprises and have no patience to wait for them. So one afternoon a few days later Zachary was being kinda cranky, so I suggested to Kyle that there was no sense in that wagon sitting in the box in the garage when this kid could be out riding it! I twisted his arm far enough that he drug the box out of the garage and began putting it together (with Zachary's help, of course!)

Helping Daddy push the wagon outside for the very first time!

This is relaxing!

I think he likes it!
(Sorry, these are not our best shots, but our Internet has been down, so you're getting to see the 'ol cell phone shots!)

So, now the wagon walk has become a new ritual at our house. Since Daddy is at work 5 nights a week, Mommy and Zackie (and Daddy when he's off!) are now going on wagon walks after dinner and before "Wheel" comes on. (He LOVES Wheel of Fortune! He is like mesmorized by it and will play quietly while it's on. It's a good winding down activity for him, and it allows Mommy to get some stuff done before bath and bedtime.)

A Deep Breath & Baby Steps

So, I have failed again as a Blogger and gotten WAY behind. Don't say I didn't warn you!!! But with the BIG birthday approaching, I know I will KICK myself later if I do not capture these precious moments before they pass me by.

So, last week I'm at work when Kyle calls and says, "Guess what Zachary just did?" And not even thinking I'm like, "What?" "He took 2 steps all by himself!"

HOLD UP!

Didn't he know he was NOT supposed to tell me that?! Isn't there a Daddy manual somewhere that says that you do NOT just tell a Mommy she missed the beginning of a MAJOR milestone in a childs life, and when the baby does it later in front of her, you act like THAT was the first time?! Huh?!

Anyway, I was kinda crushed the rest of the day. But at the same time, I'm glad his Daddy was there to see it (and his Papa Wilkerson) and not just some stranger at a daycare. Luckily for Kyle, Zachary delighted us again by taking another TWO WHOLE STEPS ON HIS OWN!

Thankfully, he has not just started taking flight after that, and has only taken some here and there. I'm glad he is taking his time, because this Mommy is NOT ready to let her baby grow up so fast!

Okay, so this is NOT the day he took his first steps...but you can at least see him standing by his big boy self!

Moses Family Beach Pictures

Wednesday night was our last night at the resort. Chattanooga has a big summer festival every year called Riverbend and cops are not allowed off days during this time. Riverbend started on Friday, and we didn’t want to try and make the trip back in one day with Zachary. Before we had even left for vacation, we had all talked about doing the traditional family beach pictures. You know, wear matching outfits of khaki and white, take a gazillion shots of the family sitting by the sea oats…well, cheesy as it may be, it was probably one of the best moments of the trip. It was very special to have all of the Moses family there and watch the boys playing in the beach. (By the way, this beach was a different one that you had to pay to get into, but it wasn’t crowded at all and the sand was beautiful!) This time, we let Zachary play more in the waves and he LOVED it-he got soaking wet in his clothes and didn’t even care! Obviously we took about a million pictures, but these are some of my favorites.

The Moses Family

Our little Moses family.

It's so much fun watching the waves. Such special moments.

Soaked and lovin' it!

What are cousins for?!

Matthew is enjoying every bit of it! And Zachary's eating the sand, AGAIN!

Walking in his Daddy's footsteps. :)

Beach Baby, Beach Baby There in the Sand...

Sunday night we had dinner right by the beach, so naturally we took the boys to see a quick peek at the ocean. But the real beach fun came on Monday. After lunch, we brought Zachary down to play in the sand and water. Of course it was quite crowded, so he was a little intimidated by all of the people and we didn’t spend too much time in the water because of that. He did; however, enjoy playing in the sand (and eating it, too!)

The sand is so much fun!

And tasty, too!

First time in the ocean.

For once, a good picture of the two of us!

It's a Hard Rock Life!

Tuesday night we headed down to Broadway at the Beach to go eat at the Hard Rock Café. I have actually eaten at this one before a few years ago with my brother one vacation, but no one else had been to this one. Thankfully our wait was not too long, and we were seated, much to Zachary’s delight, close to one of the many TVs they have around the restaurant playing old music videos. We all had a great dinner and enjoyed all the time together as a family!

He looks like he is playing the piano!

Watching music videos!

Love that grin!

New Experiences

On Vacation, Zachary got to try several new things for the first time. Some are just small snippets, but I still want to have memories of them, so I’m writing them down.

On Sunday after Zachary’s wonderfully long nap, we decided to try the kiddy pool again. I’ve been to lots of resorts growing up, but let me say that this resort (Plantation Villas in Surfside Beach, SC) has one of the best kiddy pool areas I’ve ever seen! Normally there is always a small kiddy pool right next to the big outdoor pools, but at this one the kiddy pool was completely by itself. They had one big pool that started at 6 inches and eventually graduated to 18 inches, perfect for little babies. Across the way was a great set-up for kids Matthews age. They had all sorts of gadgets and gizmos that sprayed and dumped water over an area that was about a foot deep of water. Then, in between and around ALL of this was the lazy river, my personal paradise for the week. It was 3 feet deep and they provided tubes for you to float around in it. Well, Zachary loved the water-it was like a glorified bathtub for him! He spent some time splashing, some time floating in his tube, and we even took a spin on the lazy river with him (also a great nap-inducer!) Seriously, can someone come build me a lazy river in my backyard?!

Down at the kiddy pool area.

Just floatin' in the water!

Kevin, Jamie, and me floating in the lazy river.

Monday night was another night full of new experiences for Zachary. We met up with some of Grandpas friends who were also on vacation in Myrtle Beach at a restaurant called Thorny’s. The food there was great and we let Zachary try his first French fry, which of course he LOVED. Also, this place had a separate play area in the restaurant, which Jamie and I quickly called on the Daddies to take the boys to play while we waited for our food. Why doesn’t every restaurant have one of these?! When we went to go tell them dinner was ready, I found Zachary playing with a big truck! I couldn’t believe he was big enough to play with something like that! Well, guess what Daddy went and bought him that night? You guessed it! He loves his new toy!

Playing with his truck in front of those mirrors!

After dinner, Kyle, Zachary, Grandpa and I went to Dunkin Donuts to get sandwiches, I mean, donuts. While we were waiting, we walked around the store which had all sorts of games and play areas, kinda like a mini arcade or sorts. I walked passed one of those quarter pony rides and thought, I wonder if Zachary would like this? So I popped in a quarter and put him on to try. Wish I would’ve had about 20 more quarters because this boy loved it! We rode it twice! And he looked like such a big boy sitting up there, it made me sad. I thought I would need to hold onto him the whole time, but he held onto the handle all by himself, no problems. It just made me realize that he is really growing up quickly, and no longer a little baby who needs me for everything anymore. :(

He looks so serious, but I promise he was having a blast!

Not really a new experience, but always an experience, Zachary cut a tooth on vacation. I believe it was Sunday night, the night after all those GREAT naps. He went down no problem but then woke up after about an hour just wailing. We went in a few times and loved on him and after about the 3rd time gave him some Motrin and Orajel (we weren’t sure if it was his gums, but it was worth a try). Well, we didn’t hear from him the rest of the night, but in the morning we found a new tooth. So, I guess you could say that cutting a tooth without loss of sleep was a new experience…for Mommy and Daddy!

Vacation, All I Ever Wanted...

I am finally back to blogging again…after a week away at the beach! Last Fall, Kyle’s Mom and Dad decided to take the whole family on a vacation together and we decided to head to the beach! We wanted to go to Charleston, SC, but were unable to find a condo available, so we found one at Myrtle Beach and decided that was close enough!

We left last Friday morning and traveled half of the way to North Augusta, conveniently where my Mom and Dad live. So it worked out perfectly to break our trip up by staying there for the night, and of course my Mom and Dad were thrilled to see Zachary. He was very excited to be out of the car for awhile and was right away busy crawling and seeing what fun new things he could get into. That night we had a traditional English roast lamb for dinner, which we don’t get very often because I don’t know how to cook it. After dinner we had one CRANKY baby because Zachary is not a very good car sleeper and therefore had not slept much throughout the day. He went down to bed no problem in the pack-and-play, but woke up after 45 minutes just screaming. I think he was scared because he didn’t know where he was (or teething, or a combination of both). So we played the cry-it-out, go in and reassure game for about 45 minutes and finally he went back to sleep (and thankfully slept ALL night after that!) I was so worried he would not sleep good on this trip after we were sleeping so good at home. Unfortunately, Mommy and Daddy slept horribly (my Mom and Dads guest bed is just NOT big enough for the two of us!). But, my mom had fixed her delicious coffee cake for breakfast in the morning, so it was all good! Then it was back on the road again and straight on until Myrtle Beach! (Well, minus a few gas, lunch, and diaper changing stops).

Zachary driving to the beach!

We checked into our resort Saturday afternoon and again, Zachary was ready to get out of the car and play! He was quite enthralled with the sliding door mirrors on our closet and that kept him busy until everyone else arrived! He was sooo glad to see his Grandpa and Mom-Mommy, I think it made him feel more secure about the new place. By the time everyone got settled in, Matthew was ready to hit the pool, so we took the boys down to the kiddy pool to splash around before dinner. Unfortunately, Zachary was not so ready to go…he was SO sleepy. He just cried and cried, so we came back up and Mom-Mommy was able to rock him to sleep and buddy, he crashed! We eventually had to wake him up for dinner (and so he would sleep that night—which he did ALL night, no problems. Hooray!)

Our resort-it was wonderful to go out back in the mornings and see all the geese and turtles in the morning-so relaxing!

Our bedroom at the resort. Did someone say jacuzzi?

Sunday morning we were all very tired, especially the babies, so we decided to have a devotional worship at the resort (we had bought crackers and juice at the store). It was probably a good idea we stayed in, too, because apparently Zachary did not get enough sleep and took a 3 hour morning nap! Wow! What a great start to vacation!