Q just got home from work, and when Zoe saw him, she yelled “yea, yea!” over and over and jumped up and down throughout the kitchen. It was a terribly cute sight, and I’m sure it made Q feel pretty good!

-M

Elena is from Chile, so Zoe has picked up numerous Spanish words throughout her time at daycare. Her use of Spanish doesn’t surprise me anymore, but I was impressed to discover that she can translate, too. This morning, as we were getting ready, she pointed down and said, “zapatos!” “Right,” I said. “And what’s another word for zapatos?” “Shoes!” she said with a big smile. Curious whether she could do English-to-Spanish as well, I picked another random word and asked, “Do you know how to say ‘moon’ in Spanish?” “Luna!” she said – and I just had to reward her with a big squeeze.

-M

Zoe’s Grandma and Grandpa left yesterday morning – but not before spending lots of bonding time with her. On their itinerary these past few days: a lot of playing, tickling, walking, baking and, of course, picture-taking. Here are some of the best pics from their trip.

(Thanks for coming, guys. Zoe misses you!)

-M

Zoe has become a big fan of my nighttime stories. Her favorite seem to be the adventures of Princess and Panda which, oddly enough, are a lot like the adventures of Zoe. In last night’s story Princess and Panda went to bed and woke up early. Instead of coming in and waking up Mommy and Daddy, they stayed in bed and played with their toys until Mommy and Daddy came to get them…Well, this morning instead of coming in and waking us up, Zoe was sitting on her bed playing with her stuffed animals! Nothing like the power of a good story.

Jon Q

I once mentioned that food is the best way to get to Zoe’s heart. This was proven yesterday, yet again, when Grandpa shared a snack with Zoe and was treated to a sweet thank-you kiss.

-M

Just when you thought it was safe to go back to bed…the 3:30am wake-up call comes along! Although getting woken up at 6am sucks, putting her into bed with us and sleeping until 7am is nice. However, nothing is fun about getting a visit at 3:30am. We had to gently explain that it was too early and put her back to bed. After about an hour of story telling, she finally fell asleep and luckily there was no 6am visit. Hopefully, she’ll be on a nice routine by the time Poppy comes along.

Jon Q

So, I think I spoke too soon when I said my worries of Zoe waking us up early were unfounded. For the past two mornings, Zoe has gotten up and come into our room VERY early – before 6. Needless to say, I’m exhausted – and I hope we can re-train her to stay in bed until at least 6:30!

Yawn.

-M

Zoe has some new playmates around the house: her grandma and grandpa arrived from Madison last night for a visit. They’ve already gone on several walks and played with lots of toys and books… Here she is playing Legos with Grandpa and enjoying a pre-nap story with Grandma.

-M

It happened. After a week-plus in her new bed, Zoe finally figured out she’s able to get out on her own. (At first, she would just sit there and call/cry for us when she woke up in the morning – like she used to do from her crib.) Just before 7 this morning, we heard the squeak of a door opening and watched as Zoe walked into our room and, without a word, climbed into bed with us.

I was always sort of dreading the no-crib phase; I worried that Zoe would constantly get out of bed, walk around the house and/or wander into our room at odd or early hours. Though she could still wind up doing this, I’m feeling okay with what has happened so far. I got to stay in bed longer than usual, and the three of us got to snuggle for a few minutes. It was a great way to start the day!

-M

It was a chilly, rainy weekend, and the three of us spent a good chunk of our time just relaxing and hanging around the house. Yesterday morning, though, Q had some projects to do in the garage – and he enlisted the help of Zoe and her “baby dog.” Here they are, hard at work.

-M

Feeling ambitious, Zoe and I walked down four flights of stairs (from her doctor’s office to our car) the other day. As we were heading down, Zoe suddenly stopped and started kicking out her back leg – somewhat resembling a male dog about to go to the bathroom. “Zoe, what are you doing?” I asked her, and she grinned back to me. “I dancing!” she said, and continued kicking her leg. Needless to say, it took quite awhile to make it all the way down.

-M

This is Zoe’s third Valentine’s Day and to keep up with tradition (check out past ones) we thought we’d post our favorite photo of Zoe with a rose. However, this year we can’t decide which one of the photos from this morning’s photo session is the cutest. Help us decide… and of course, Happy Valentine’s Day everyone!

Jon Q

Picture 1?

Picture 2?

Picture 3?

Picture 4?

I just came across a draft of a post that was never put up. It was an updated best/worst list (I did the first one when Zoe was just three weeks old), and it was written when Zoe was six months. It was a really fun thing to discover, and I thought I would do yet another update – to see how (or if) my views on parenting have changed.

Best thing:
then: seeing Zoe – who greets us with smiles, giggles and flailing arms/legs – in the morning.
now: cuddling with Zoe just before bedtime. (It’s usually the only time she wants to be held.)

Worst thing:
then: not being able to sleep in, ever!
now: same, though I’m grateful Zoe wakes up a little later (7 vs. 6 or 6:30 AM) these days.

Best moment:
then: tie: meeting Zoe for the first time (at delivery) and seeing her smile for the first time.
now: I don’t think anything can beat when they plunked Zoe on my stomach in the hospital.

Worst moment:
then: learning Zoe was going to have to stay at the hospital for an extra few days (because of her platelet problem) and, later, having to watch her get her blood taken repeatedly. (ouch!)
now: same. Luckily, we haven’t gone through anything as painful since.

The one thing I do that all the parenting books told me I would do:
then: frequently check on Zoe to make sure she’s still breathing.
now: same. I still listen for her breathing sounds before I go to bed each night.

Best advice:
then: time goes so fast – so savor every moment you have with your baby.
now: same. It really *does* go fast!

Worst advice:
then: none (thankfully!)
now: same. I think I tune out the bad (or stupid) stuff.

Thing that no one tells you about parenting:
then: parenting is 90% instinct. Despite not knowing much about babies before having Zoe, a lot of things just sort of came to me. (So much for all those parenting classes!)
now: same. I was really clueless about kids before Zoe, but now I feel like an old pro. :)

Cliche that has proven most true:
then: after just a short period of time with your child, you can’t imagine your life without her. (I keep asking myself: what did I do with all my time??)
now: same (I definitely have a hard time remembering my pre-Zoe days), but also: time goes so fast. I’m still amazed at how much Zoe has grown and how fast two+ years have slipped by.

Thing that has taken me most by surprise:
then: how quickly you adjust to your “new life.” And how great it really is.
now: how happy the smallest of things can make you. Zoe said “I love you, too” in response to my “I love you” the other night, and I practically burst with happiness.

-M

Zoe received her first Valentine in the mail yesterday, and she was super excited to discover stickers inside. (Thanks, G&G.) Here she is playing with her little gift.

-M

Though Zoe remains excited about her new bed, she’s having a little bit of trouble staying in it. Ever since the switch, we’ve found her curled up on the floor (often several feet away from her mattress) at some point during the night. Zoe has always been an active sleeper, and she must be rolling or wiggling her way off the edge of the bed. Though she looks awfully cute on the floor, here’s hoping that she’ll stop wiggling around and start staying put sometime soon. If she doesn’t, we may never be able to get that mattress off the ground!

-M