She's Here!!

On July 31st (yes that was 2 1/2 months ago -- give a new mother a break!) at 8:08 am, our darling Rylee Elizabeth entered this world at 7 lbs 14 oz and 19 1/4 inches. She was screaming before Dr. Krum could get her out fully! (Apparently C-section babies have a harder time clearing out the lungs of goo and crying helps this process)

She is named after my maternal grandmother - Mary Lee Zerngast and Chad's paternal grandmother Beth Martin.

We really love using the name Lee because it also includes two very important women in our lives Leigh Anne Rathbun and Jessica Lee Espinoza. It truly means so much that we could give them Rylee as a name sake.

The Elizabeth (or as Emily Farr calls her Rylee "A Little Bit" Martin) portion of her name also ties her back to my mother's maternal grandmother, Elizabeth Burkhart and my father's maternal grandmother, Elizabeth Collins.

So Rylee will have a sense of family and love with all those strong amazing women whose names she carries.

Target Has Everything

Somehow or another in this blog that is supposed to be detailing our son's life, I forgot to mention what has been one of the biggest moments in his long three year life. His recent trip to Chuck E Cheese's. He has been to Chuck E. Cheese's before but for someones birthday party.

This trip was special. It was his celebration for staying dry in his underwear for a week and filling up his potty chart with green stickers. Green stickers symbolize the poop in the potty successes. Let me say that Chad and I were thrilled that he filled his green sticker quota.

So on June 21, 2008, Zachary celebrated being potty trained.

Then he went back to Ms. Carries.

At Ms. Carries, he has to wear a pull up until he is dry for a week including during nap time. Chad and I didn't count nap time. We just put him in a pull up and let him sleep. It is 50 / 50 if he stays dry. We aren't as worried about it.

But now I feel like we have to revise this official potty trained date. He is not staying dry at Ms. Carries. When he is with us, he is always in underwear and is 99% of the time dry. Even at outings -- he tells us he has to go to the bathroom 50 times during dinner, we smile and take him. I am convinced that if he is wet at Ms. Carries (not at nap time) that he is taking the easy way. He doesn't have to go to the bathroom because the pull up lets him pee and play at the same time. Sigh. So we are stuck.

If we send him back to school (TLC daycare where he went for a week while Ms. Carrie was on vacation), then he has to wear underwear - WAHOO! But I am not ready for him to leave the security of Ms. Carries so he has to wear pull-ups -- sigh. Notice I said I am not ready for him to leave -- but that is a whole other post that will indicate how much I need therapy!

So as I debate whether or not to leave June 21 as a date for his baby book, I have a story that makes me giggle to share.

My huge 9-month preggo belly is making things a little more difficult. Last night as I am trying to bathe my son, I would get out of breath. Horribly out of breath. I would have to stand back up or hold on to the side of the shower to try and catch it. Zachary becomes concerned that I keep standing up and asks what is wrong. I tell him I am out of breath to which he said:

"Mommy you need to go to Target and get some breath."

Well, it IS a SuperTarget.

Interactive Learning with a Creative Munchkin

Zachary and Chad play this game that only boys play. It is a wrestle / climb / trap kind of thing. Essentially Z will jump on Chad and climb all over him until Chad "traps" or holds him down (in a very gentle manner of course!) with a leg or an arm over Z.

Then Zachary can only be freed by answering a little piece of trivia -- this is how he makes it educational! Chad will ask -- how many toes do you have? or What color is a banana?

This past week Zachary showed us his creative side and I am too proud not to share.

One time Chad asks "what animal roars?" -- your thought? A lion? Mine too. Zachary's? A Dinosaur.

Another instance -- Chad asks "what animal has a long neck?" Your answer -- a giraffe? Exactly - mine too! Zachary's? A llama!!!

He really is brilliant isn't he? I am not just a biased mother?? OK maybe not ready for MENSA but you have to give him points for thinking outside of the box.

Two More Instances of Cuteness

1. Zachary has been going to a true daycare facility this week while Ms. Carrie is on vacation. He has been loving it saying things like -- Best School EVER -- GREATEST day ever! So he seems to have acclimated despite my hesitation. So I was driving him home and we went by a truck on those huge tires and Z got excited.

"Look at those tires Mommy - those would work on Miles' car!" Miles is Ms. Carries youngest son (who is about 20) and Z really looks up to him. This comment is the first time he has mentioned anything about Carrie's all week. So I ask him:

"Oh yeah, Miles. Do you miss Miles?"

He said "I do. I miss Miles. I miss Ms. Carrie. I miss Olivia, Emma, Kylie, and Sofie. I miss Jayden."

I didn't want to point out to him that actually Emma is the only one left of that original crew still at Ms. Carries so I just said "You miss them huh?"

He said "Yep. They're my boys."

2. Zachary is very aware that baby sister is growing in Mommy's tummy. He was (as he calls it) a "good sharing boy" and covered baby sister (aka my stomach) with his precious no one else can touch it blanket. I was stunned - both Chad and I looked at each other impressed that our son would share such an important item in his world.

Then to put it over the top for me, he got a Teddy Graham cookie and stuck it in my belly button to share with his baby sister.

The Entertainment Continues

A few funny moments brought to you by Zachary James Martin:

* One evening Zachary tell us he wants to watch "the dirty show." Chad and I are looking at each other with raised eyebrows like what have YOU been watching with our son. So we ask what is the dirty show? He said the dirty show from today. That's when it hits me -- we had the TV on Discovery and there were two or three Dirty Jobs shows in a row. Good to know he likes muck better than smut!

* This past weekend our friends the Hards came over for lunch and Zachary had a gross running nose. Kat saw him dripping and asked if he would like a Kleenex and he turned to her and said "Yes I would -- it doesn't taste so good." We did say come over for lunch!

* Zachary now pulls his socks up to his knees...by the way he is not Zachary he is now Mr. Incredible and those aren't his socks, they are his superhero boots.

* Bed time stalling tactics include: Drinking all of his water so he has to have more fresh water, he needs his ceiling fan turned on (or off depending on what it is doing when he goes to bed), he is scared of something random, has to go potty, or wants us to know that his toy is over there. Sometimes he only calls us in to tell us "I awake!"

The Most Beautiful Song

When Zachary was little I sang him this little song:

I love you Zachary
Oh yes I do
I love you Zachary
That is true
When you're not near me
I'm blue
OOOOOh Zachary
I love you!

I sang it over and over. When we were driving some where and I couldn't hold him while he cried I would sing it -- just doing stuff around the house I would sing it. He calls it the "Zachary Song." Sometimes he will interchange Zachary for Mommy or Daddy -- making my heart melt. But for 3 1/2 years now that is his song.

So I asked him the other day since he has a Zachary song what would Baby Sister's song be. He immediately said the Lightening McQueen song. I thought he misunderstood so I said "you have the Zachary song (I sang it here for him) so what will be Little Sister's song." And like I was crazy he said "Lightening McQueen song!" He then sang to his little sister the Sheryl Crow song "Real Gone" from Cars. When he was done he looked up at me and smiled with such pride. You know what -- his little sister did a dance when she heard her brother. Moments like these make a pregnant woman cry...

How not to search at a library

Zachary loves the Frisco Public Library, especially the children's section. The previous visit, the board book section had lots of favorites on the front row. Y'know- the classics: Thomas, Max and Ruby, monster trucks. This visit, a lot had been moved or checked out. So- I told Zachary we will have to go over to a catalog terminal to search. When we walk out of the children's section towards the terminal, Zachary starts yelling, "Max! Ruby! Where are youuuuuuu?" Hmm the books did not respond...