Five Months!

 Zach is continuing to grow and keep us on our toes (and he isn't even walking yet!) He is constantly moving. When he is on the ground, he flips over right away and is a.l.w.a.y.s. kicking his legs. He looks like a little swimmer who is not in water, and is not going any where. He is so full of life and loves being around people. He smiles whenever people interact with him and will laugh and 'talk' to them. Zach has really started to explore his surroundings and LOVES grabbing everything. It is now impossible to eat dinner with him sitting on our laps. Hopefully pretty soon he will be able to sit up in a high chair and join us at the table. He has started to say his first word. We are not really quite sure if we can call it his first word, because it is not always intentional. The word: HI and HEY. He will say hi if someone says it to him several times and there has been many times where he has said HI to get someone's attention.  Life is great with our little boy :)

Here are some things that happened in month four:

• I am really liking 'real' life things. Don't get me wrong, I still enjoy my toys, but I like touching real stuff and playing with objects found in everyday life. I like touching and crinkling paper, playing with plastic measuring spoons and cups, etc. 
• I like going on little nature walks around the deck and the yard. I enjoy looking at all the colorful flowers. Mom will let me feel different things, such as soft leaves, grass. One time she even let me feel the flowers and was teaching me the word 'gentle' but I still picked one, so we gave it to Gramma. 
• I went on my first trolley ride downtown with my Mommy, Nana and Aunt Jen! The trolley started driving pretty fast and it got windy. It was the first time I really experienced wind and I had a pretty intense look on my face. 

wind in the face look

• I am ticklish, especially under my armpits!
• I have officially met all my cousins!
• Went to the Biltmore several times, of course!

 future Allegheny Gator?

• One of my new favorite games is to sit in my bouncer and have my mom dangle a blanket or some type of cloth near my feet. I love to kick and make the blanket move. I am so strong that I really get bouncing. Mom says that it looks like I am going to catapult myself across the room. 
• I am in a big grabbing phase. And not only grabbing but wanting to put anything in my mouth. I can no longer really sit on someone's lap at the dinner table because I try to grab the food. At church, I try to grab the Bible when it is open. I grab drinks that people are drinking and water bottles. I grab books that are being read to me.   
• I watched my first Baby Einstein. I was only interested in it for about 5 minutes. 
• I am becoming quite the chatter box. I 'talk' all the time. I have even maybe said my first word(s). I can say 'hi' and 'hey.'
• My mom is OFFICIALLY a Stay-at-Home Mom! 

 

• I had my second round of vaccines. I did really well, only cried for a couple of seconds and not too hard. 

• I love being sung to. Mommy and Daddy are always singing me songs. If I am ever fussy, the song to get me in a better mood is, "This Little Light of Mine."  
• My hair is really starting to grow in. It is brown and oh so soft and fuzzy.

• I am also growing facial hair.... just kidding! ;)

• Mommy, Daddy and Grandma got me a new toy. It is called a Jumperoo and I love it! I initiated it correctly by having a huge blowout the first time I was in it. Mommy now calls it my pooperoo. Silly Mommy!

• I went to the Fish Hatchery and to Looking Glass Falls.  

• Watched my first Panthers game with my daddy and grandpa. I also got to wear my jersey for the first time. 

• I tried my first food: rice cereal! I liked it and did a pretty good job eating it. The only problem is that I am such a little explorer (no pun intended for those of you who attended HHS!) and I cannot sit still. While my mom is trying to spoon me food, I am leaning over the side of my Bumbo trying to grab anything.  

• I celebrated Gramma Linda's birthday!

• I had to say good-bye to my Gramma Linda. She moved up to Ohio. I am going to miss her SO MUCH! She always knew how to make me smile and had so many special conversations with me.   

Statistics:
Weight: 17 lbs. 4 oz. [estimate]
Height: 28 inches [estimate]
Nicknames: Zachy [and any variation with Zachy in it: Zachybaby, Zachyboy, Zachypoo], babylove
Likes: Sergei (formerly known as Sophie but renamed to a more masculine name) the Giraffe, real life objects: measuring spoons, plastic cups, water bottles, mirrors, jumperoo, singing, mommy's waterbottle, being outside
Dislikes: Being in the car
Clothing: 6-12 months/ 9 months. Diapers: Size 2

Milestones:
First experience with rice cereal: 9.9.13
 

5th Month Pictures

 A Note from Mom:

Zach, you continue to keep my days so busy and full! I enjoy having you around so much, whether it is going to the grocery store or watching me cook dinner, so going out and doing special things, like walks around the lake or at the Biltmore. You are becoming so interested in life and your surroundings. I love watching you get your excited face as you feel a new leaf for the first time or as you listen to paper crinkle. You are such a special little boy and we love you oh so very much! 

 

Almond Joy Brownie Bites

My mom has been out of town for a few days tending to my younger sister who had knee surgery, leaving my dad a bachelor for the week. We have been over there a couple of times to keep him company :) One of my dad's favorite things to do this summer (along with ours) is to go to the Biltmore Estate on Friday nights. During the summer, the Biltmore has "Fridays after Five" where bands come and play at Antler Hill Village. It attracts a HUGE crowd, where the lawns and tables are filled with people picnicing, sipping on wine and eating ice cream. The last "Fridays after Five" was last night and we thought it would be fun to get my dad out of the house and go to the Biltmore. Summer finally decided to show up (it isn't raining too much after the most rainy July in recorded history) so we thought it would be fun to pack dinner at eat there.

I spent the day preparing Chicken Bistro Pasta Salad, a fruit salad and decided to make a fun dessert for my dad. My dad's favorite candy bar is Almond Joy/Mounds. I came across a recipe on Pinterest (where else?) for Almond Joy Brownie Bites. I pinned it with my dad in mind. Yesterday was the perfect time to make them.

I actually tried to make them on Thursday night, and was trying to plan ahead. I had all my ingredients and started the first step. I had the brownies made and were baking away in the oven for the first part of cooking. While they were cooking, I mixed together the coconut and the sweetened condensed milk. While mixing it I noticed that it was an orangy color, and my baking instincts were telling me that something was not right. I looked at the can of condensed milk and the expiration date said July 2010! Yikes! Since this house we are living in is on the market, we are trying to use up all the food in the pantry and freezer. Well, lesson learned, I should have checked the expiration date BEFORE I started baking. I tossed the coconut mixture in the trash. Since I didn't have any more condensed milk or coconut and it would have ruined the brownies to have them sitting out while I ran to the store again, I decided to just bake the brownies the rest of the way through. My hubs went out to the store the next morning and bought the ingredients once again, and I started all over again.

In the end, they turned out exactly how they should have: safe to eat, decadent to look at and very tasty! We had a fun night at the Biltmore, soaking up the last official weekend of summer on a gorgeous night, listening to Oldies (dad singing along to them, of course!), eating the Brownie bites and enjoying time with family :)

Recipe: Almond Joy Brownie Bites