Lately, in CO...

I haven't posted any pics recently, so here they are.

Nana and Pop and Auntie Wendy and Uncle David came to visit July 21-22
Zach liked Nana's Crocs
A kiss for Auntie Wendy
Cheesin' in the back yard
Uncle David helping with breakfast
Sumo turned 3!
Dad and Zach before they went to light off a few Roman candles on the 4th of July
"Dad, you need to wear a helmet!"
"Now you need to put another wheel on this bike before you can go anywhere."

A Thief!

Oh boy! Well, Zach stole his first kiss today!

Our neighbor Ella (18 mos.) and her mom, Theresa, were over for some blueberry pancakes this morning. Between romps through the house and onto the deck, Zach found an opportunity to plant one on Ella's lips!

Of course the camera wasn't handy, and you can't request a repeat performance of a first kiss...

Uffdah!

It's HOT, HOT, HOT!

This morning at 9am, our outdoor thermometer read 94 degrees!

By 11am, it said it was 103 degrees!

Those numbers are probably somewhat inflated from being in a hot box, but they sure FEEL right.

15 Months Update

Mom finally got my 1-Year photo taken (I was 15 months old by then!). You can check out some of the pictures at the link below.
http://mystudio.kiddiekandids.com/viewshare.asp?c=0100813437U2KXQJZ

While I'm online, I'll share a little of what's going on in my life these days:

I'm
- FULL of energy! (Mom clipped a cartoon that talked about trying to bottle the energy of a 2-year-old as a source of renewable energy...)
- starting to climb - end tables, dresser drawers, coffee table, window sill, magazine holder...
- consistently using my 3-syllable word "Dah-boo-dee" (the definition is my secret)
- weighing in at 24 lbs 7 oz., and measuring 32 inches tall
- extremely outgoing! No one's a stranger, so I'm eager to meet new people in airports, grocery stores, church, the playground, wherever. I like to come up from the side and bend over, looking at you from my upside-down/sideways position!
- a water-lover, all of it: rivers, pools, baths, puddles, sprinklers. In a week, I start swimming lessons!
- terrified of the vaccuum cleaner.
- a kid with 8 teeth, right now. 4 on top, and 4 on the bottom.
- growing my vocabulary. My most recent word is "duck," which I first said one morning upon seeing my mardi gras duck necklace from Ella (thanks!). But I also know: Daddy, Mama, book, dog, shoe, "aboo" (balloon), ball, bus, and "uck" which I say when I get my diaper changed. Oh, and "DAP!" which I say as I throw something, hit something, or am otherwise, generally mad! And on the diaper changing table, I often say "uck" when you open my diaper these days...all Mom and Dad's "ucks" have finally sunk in.
- fascinated with belly buttons. I'll point mine out, then come look at yours, poking my finger in as far as it can go before you say "ow!" Sometimes when Mom's lying on the floor, I look for hers and then "zubert" (to quote the Cosby show) her tummy. That's pretty fun!
- currently wearing #4 diapers.
- able to climb out of the bathtub now. So I really have to be watched. I fell out once, though, and haven't done it again. The floor is rather cold and hard.
- trying hard to get the King Kong, "ah-ah-ah-ah-ah" chest-pounding down. Right now, when Daddy shows me how, I pound my privates instead of my chest...
- working on my 's' sound - when I say "bus," my 's' comes from somewhere way back in the back of my mouth...
- calling all big vehicles right now "busses." Trucks, delivery vans, etc. I still love motorcycles, and do the BabySign whenever I hear them.
- such a kisser! If you're lucky, my mouth will be closed, but I'm often a fairly sloppy kisser. I kiss people, stuffed animals, and animals in books.
- still a dog-lover! I squeal when I see them in passing cars, or while on a walk.
- experimenting with breakfast. I love to put pieces of fruit (or whatever's available) into the yogurt container Mom's feeding me from. But then, when she gives me my next bite, I have to scrutinize it before opening my mouth to be sure whatever I just put in the container has not gotten onto the spoon.
- terrorizing the cat. I'm faster these days, so every once in a while I end up with a fistful of Sumo fur!
- funny with the cup: I sip, sip, sip, and then say "ahhhhhh...."

Come visit me!!

Catch Up - July 2006

Some of these have been on here before, but if you'd like to see what you might have missed, click the link above.

Happy 4th of July!

Short-less Cheese

Zach is thrilled with his "loaner" from Ella - a noise-making vaccuum cleaner!
He appears to have figured out the camera too, as his poses get cheesier and cheesier.

Cousin Kurtis' Visit

Kurtis flew in from San Jose on Saturday, June 24th and stayed with us just overnight until 4am Sunday morning, when I drove him to meet up with Brad Peterson's group on their way to Buena Vista for camp. It was great to catch up with Kurtis, even for the short visit! Zach and he got along very well! And while our Saturday night wasn't wild and crazy, we did enjoy a short hail storm, burgers and malts at Johnny Rockets, and a heckuva movie - Underworld...(I enjoyed the first two more than the last).

B's

Zach's Breakfast shots:
Baby in Bug Pjs and a Blue Bib, eating Bananas and Bread.
He seems to be taking quite a liking to bread, like his mama!

Auntie Duggan

They look like the family, huh?






First Smoothie - Blueberry, yum!





Jason and Jennifer were in town to see if Denver would be a good place to live. Zach and I met them in Boulder for lunch. We hope they move here!!

6/10/06 Baby Pool

We had 3 weeks of 90-degree temps, so it was time to get a wading pool. Zach had a great time!

HOT HOT HOT

It has been HOT HOT HOT here. One day poor Patches wouldn't come out from under the deck. So finally I coaxed her out, and decided to give her a "trim."

("Butcher" is the word Scott uses, which is actually - unfortunately - somewhat accurate; after I was done, I noticed I'd cut into her skin in two places. :( She's such a good girl that she never even wimpered, just continued to purr and enjoy the "grooming."

If you want to turn me in to the ASPCA...

Happy FATHER's Day!

Morning Hoops

On June 10th, Zach spent some time working on his game.

BIG TIME EXCITEMENT

1 hour of a sitter watching Zach = $5.00

2 adults and 1 kiddo under age 2 at the Splash waterpark = $15.00

Endless enjoyment watching the trucks paving our neighborhood = PRICELESS!!

Zach's 3-Syllable Word!

Boy, is our child brilliant! Not even a year-and-a-half, and he's already using a 3-syllable word:
"DAH-boo-dee"

I bet YOU don't even know what it means.

(We're still trying to figure it out ourselves, but he sure likes to say it. Over and over and over again, "Dah-boo-dee, dah-boo-dee, dah-boo-dee, dah-boo-dee, dah-boo-dee, dah-boo-dee, dah-boo-dee, dah-boo-dee...")

Sage Advice for Summer

Stop to smell the flowers.








Stay cool.

PA Wallace Mini-Reunion

We traveled to Penfield (via Pittsburgh) PA for the Memorial Day weekend to meet Zach's Great Grandma and many Great Aunts and Uncles and cousins. Below is a brief accounting of the trip. For more (way too many!) pictures, you can click on this post's title.)

Waiting (patiently) to board the plane. Zach actually did very well traveling. On the plane he napped a bit, and got antsy, but did not scream. He was grateful it was only 2.5 hrs!

We got into town late Friday night, after driving from Pittsburgh to DuBois (another 2.5 hrs!). Grandma and Grandpa met us at the hotel, we got some groceries and then crashed. The next morning we headed over to Great Grandma's for lunch. She has a beautiful, big back yard that kept Zach thoroughly entertained - large sticks, golf clubs, pinecones, and room to move and groove! That evening all of the Wallace siblings (Grandpa's generation - 6 of them!) and Great Grandma attended an annual reunion for students who graduated from a local high school. Uncle Jack was the master of ceremonies. We (pictured below) headed to Luigi's, a fun Italian restaurant, for dinner, then drove around town, looking for a Dairy Queen and enjoying the beautiful, old architecture of the East.

After dinner, back at the hotel, the cousins bonded before bedtime.

Sunday was the Big Day. Wallaces from near and far gathered at a shelter at Parker Dam and enjoyed a beautiful day, BBQing, swimming, paddle-boating, fishing, playing all sorts of yard games and enjoying good company. There were 50+ Wallace members present.

Zach enjoyed the water until we decided he was too cold to stay in.

He LOVES trucks these days - notice it on his shirt?! He was quite the entertainer at the picnic. The water was like gravity, pulling him forever down.

On our drive back to Pittsburgh Monday morning, we drove through Punxatawney to see Phil. He was having a siesta, so unfortunately we didn't get to chat. Maybe next time.

Monday night we had dinner down at the Station Square, enjoying the skyline, fountain, music, and dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe.
We departed early Tuesday morning, and arrived home safely. Zach was a wonderful traveler coming home. We tried to "make friends early, rather than enemies later" by offering our airplane neighbors earplugs. One took us up on the offer, but gave them back after the flight, saying, "There was no need for me to have these. He was great." Still, while he did a great job traveling, I think he was easier when he really slept the whole way at 2 months old!

First Ice Cream Cone!

Wednesday, May 24th - Zach's first cone was a wonderful, sloppy experience at Belmar's Ben & Jerry's with friends Theresa and Brian and their daughter Ella. His sugar high didn't last that long, however, and by the time we turned into our driveway (10 mins), he was out cold! (Wish we'd gotten a pic of the cone...)

What's Up?

Here are the week's highlights:

Monday - Katherine and Shelly came over to show Mom pictures from Kat's trip to Australia. I did my best to make noise, throw food, and grab the projector and computer cords when possible. Mom and Dad put me to bed so they could watch Grey's Anatomy's season finale!

Tuesday - Mom and I hung out during the day, running errands. We did walk around Clement Park and play at the new playground there. I watched as Mom fed a duck family (daddy, mommy, and one baby) and a rather forward goose. The goose kept coming closer and hissing. We saw a blue heron and a pelican too!

Wednesday - Mom went to afternoon yoga while I napped.

Thursday - Shelly met us at Clement Park in the morning for an early walk. We saw dogs, had Starbucks and generally enjoyed some good conversation. Soon hopefully I'll get to meet her baby-to-be Lawson. I can't wait to show him the ropes.

Friday - I had my FIRST experience in a swimming pool!! Dad and I went in. Mom took pictures (I'll ask her to post them soon). The water was a little chilly, so after 20 mins, my chin was quivering. But it was FUN! I'll have to sign up for some swim lessons soon, so I can swim out to the raft this summer in MN. After our swim, we came home for dinner. Dad put me to bed as Mom headed out for a 9:15pm softball game. (She said they won, though she didn't hit worth a hoot.)

Saturday - I got up early, and romped around the house as Mom and Dad got ready for a day trip to the mountains. We headed to Breckenridge, getting into the car at my naptime. Unfortunately I woke halfway there, so I didn't get all the sleep I needed. I tried my best to go swimming in the Blue River, talk to dogs and a chipmunk, and eat sand. But my efforts were mostly thwarted. We had lunch (chicken fingers, fries, and a nutrigrain bar for me) at the Breckenridge Brewery, then walked Main Street and played at the park. The weather was a little chilly, so we decided to go swimming at the Silverthorne Rec Center instead of hiking. I had a great time in the kiddie pool, though I did do a face plant that made me a little timid. Mom and Dad went down the big slide, while I did laps.

Sunday - Today, we're busy cleaning and weeding and playing in the hose. It's 91 degrees - or was at last check, so the AC is on in the house. I'm slathered up with sunblock.

What's new with YOU?