HAPPY EASTER everyone! We have been sick all week. I woke up Tuesday night with no voice and a scratchy throat. James was also sick and went to the doctor. Luckily it wasn’t strep throat. Zachary has a cough and runny nose too. Good news is that we’re all on the mend – should be much better after this weekend.

We read lots of books. We went to the park for fresh air – Zachary really likes the swing and playing in the sand. And get this … he is walking lots again! He loves to walk – he’ll grab onto your finger and lead you around. If you pick him up, he’ll cry and fuss because he wants to come down and walk by himself! We counted 54 steps and then just stopped counting because he could just keep walking and walking …

Saturday, we went on an Easter egg hunt at a park. Zachary got 3 eggs total. The other kids were so fast, but we started Zachary off on the other side of the park so that he had a chance. It takes a long time for him to walk to an egg and pick it up … and once he had one, he was satisfied. He’d just look at it and turn it over, while the older kids filled their baskets. He’d only go to the next egg if I took the first one of of his hand.

Last week, Zachary’s friend Alex came over to play.  We also went to Suhani’s house for dinner – Indian food, my favorite!

We also went to Karen’s baby shower. Zachary tried to show off his new trick – holding a toy palm side up. But of course, it fell and the little girl was not impressed at all.

This weekend we went to Tristan’s 3rd birthday party at the Fun-ky Monkey, who is a 2nd cousin to the more famous Chuck E. Cheese.

Of course, we took Zachary to the park and gym a few times this week too … we’ve been going to brunch after the Sunday morning gym class.

A few interesting developments. Has anyone noticed that Zachary has gotten orange? It’s not my camera – he looks orange in real life. I wonder if its because his diet consists of many sweet potatoes and carrots? He’s also decided to stop walking. His record was 17 steps last week … and lately it’s been 1-2 steps. In place of that major milestone, he has a new trick. He can stick a finger in his nostril and then into his mouth. He makes his mama proud.

Zachary is walking!  Finally! I thought for sure he was going to walk earlier because he was crawling at 6 months and cruising at 7 months. Also, he has a smaller head (20th %ile) and  I read that babies with smaller heads tend to walk earlier because they have an easier time with balance. I also read that babies usually focus on physical or mental skills .. and with Zach’s below average verbal skills, I thought for sure he was a more physical baby. I guess the poor communication skills are a result of having 2 engineers for parents.

Anyway, this week he went to the park, the gym, and a playgroup.  Enjoy the pictures!

Happy 11th month to Zachary! By this time last year, I was already on my disability leave and waiting at home for him to arrive.

It was a very busy week. Of course, he went to the gym numerous times. On top of that, James took him to a playgroup at the park. He’s definitely getting good at playing – he thinks it’s hilarious to hold a block in his open palm. His block towers are also getting taller. And the biggest news of all this week – he’s starting to “talk.” He says wa-wa-wa-wa! No walking yet though.

On Friday, we visited a friend who had twins in the beginning of February – and they just found out the twins are identical. They are so lucky – the babies are both so precious. My cousin Patt also had a baby. Baby Gannon is adorable, and I can’t wait to see him in person at cousin Jerry’s weddding this summer!

We went to Train Town in Sonoma with Zach’s grandparents. We took a train ride to a petting zoo, and then Zach went on a carousel. Unfortunately, he was too short to ride even the kiddie rides, so we didn’t stay that long. His grandparents bought him a train hat as a souvenir. We had lunch at the Sonoma Cheese Factory and walked around afterwards. Then we just spent the rest of the weekend with Zach’s Grandparents (stayed overnight), where Grandpa was able to entertain Zach with his model trains. On the way home, we stopped by the Jelly Belly factory and had lunch there. A horribly dry and over-priced burger in the shape of a jelly bean.

Sunday, I ended the eventful week by going to Sara’s baby shower. She’s expecting baby #2 at the end of this month. I also found out my friend Erin is 13 weeks pregnant with her first baby – CONGRATULATIONS to all the new mothers!