Zeb- The Icing On Our Cake

      Today our baby boy turned one year old. This past year just flew by. It seems that the more children we have, the faster they grow (or maybe it has something to do with me getting older). Mixed emotions, of course, have gotten the best of me. It seems that my little ones go from this

to this in a matter of minutes. I just want to hold on, but… time waits for no one.

     Zeb has had quite a year. He had a bit of an exciting arrival, which has seemed to become a norm with my babies. Each labor and birth has had some interesting twist to it. For the second time, I didn't know I was in labor (I didn't know with Bliss either), so it was just a God thing I was at the hospital both times. It was an answered  prayer, because I was terrified I wouldn't make it to the hospital. But the reason I was sent there this time was kind of scary. God's plans are perfect though. You can count on that!

Zeb also didn't have a name when he was born.
Getting him dressed in real clothes helped us decide though
We should have done that sooner!

     Zeb had a mohawk when he was born, and over the next few months, lost all of the hair on his head except for his mohawk. Then, one night, when he was five months old, it just fell out overnight. It was so weird! I am glad we got some pictures of it before it fell out though. I will have to locate them and post them on here. When his hair started growing back, his Mohawk grew in faster and is yet again longer the rest of his hair. Ha!

     A couple days before he turned a month old, he developed a high fever (105.1), and was taken by ambulance from our pediatric clinic to Children’s Hospital. After staying for a few days, we found out he had viral meningitis which had developed from an enterovirus. Poor tiny darlin’ had to endure way too much poking and prodding while he was there.

Here is one my sweet friends that came to
 visit Zeb while he was in the hospital.

     For the next month, after getting out of the hospital, we had a difficult time getting him to eat. My milk supply all but diminished and we had to syringe feed him formula because he rarely took a bottle. It was a nightmare. We were so afraid for our little guy. I am so thankful, though, that through prayer, a great lactation consultant, and a very supportive pediatrician, Zeb recovered well and I was eventually able to get back to exclusive nursing. He had some sizable setbacks with his weight, but today on his birthday, he is close to 21 pounds. He is actually a little bit of a chunk!

     It took months for Zeb to get completely healthy again. I had to keep him home and away from germs for weeks at a time. Every time we would take him to the doctor for a check-up, he would be sick again within hours. It sounds crazy, but I promise it’s true. When he went a couple of weeks without getting sick, we would get him out. Then he would get sick again. Back to house confinement we went. He was over seven months old, before he finally got over the hump. We are so thankful! We thought he might have a type of immune deficiency. But, with the exception of recurring ear infections, he is pretty healthy now.

 

     Here is his first Thanksgiving. His oldest brother takes great care of him.

 

    And here is his first Christmas. This wasn't actually Christmas Day, but close.

 

     And here is his first Easter.



     He hit all of his milestones at an appropriate age. Well, except for rolling over from his back to his tummy. He was walking before he did that really well. Ha! Ha! I’m not sure what that was all about.

He crawled with both hands on the floor, one knee on the floor, and a foot on the floor with one knee up sort of walking with it. When he started walking, it was so funny. He walked like a dinosaur. He kind of walked in a squatting position with his bottom out and his chest forward. He has slowly but surely straightened out over the past few months.

 

This was toward the end of May.
 He wasn't walking yet; just standing.

      Zeb is a happy baby for the most part, but definitely knows how to have a tantrum. You'll see some pictures of that later on in this post.

Having fun in the water at the park across from the zoo.

     He likes to be close to Momma when I’m around.

This was on Mother's Day

      Zeb likes music, and it makes him dance. I love to watch little babies dance!

I think he's hitting that last note on the National Anthem
 here. Ha! Ha! I see a tooth or two there. Now he has six.

      He likes white noise when it’s time for bed, and prefers to be laid down and left alone to sleep. Doesn't this look comfortable?

      He also enjoys wrestling with his brothers and sister. We try to make sure they don’t play rough with him, but it is difficult when Zeb laughs the whole time.

    Everything goes in his mouth and we are constantly digging stuff out. We didn’t have to do this with the others.  I have always been really strict with my babies and what they eat and when they eat it. I am very much a rule follower. Well... Zeb isn’t. As much as I have tried to keep him from it, Zeb has stolen food from his siblings (and his mom and dad) and put them in his mouth before I could get to him. He is quick! So, I couldn’t tell you his first table food like I can with the others. I know it’s not a big deal to many, but it is to me.

     Today... he had a little cake. With all of my others, their birthday was the first time they had cake, or any sugary dessert for that matter. Well...not this boy. But, like a champ, Zeb still managed to give me some good cake pictures even though it wasn't a surprise to him.

 

     He was upset because I was trying to get some pictures before he dove into the cake.

 

     He quickly got over it though.

 

      He really enjoyed himself.

 

   See the smile?



 

     The cake tasted like a dream.

     And he was happy!  I will say that he has never had this much cake or this much fun with cake before!

 

    Of course, things got a little messy. 

     Oh, the things this boy does to my heart!

 

     Present time! Here is one of them. He LOVES balls, and is a natural soccer player. Yes, I know this is a basketball, but he really enjoyed kicking one around at a family get-together this past Labor Day. So... that's what we got him. He liked it!

    

     Anyway, this was kind of Zeb's first year in a blink. I love the plans God has for me, and do not take it for granted. I am so thankful Zeb is a part of that plan.

      Now Zeb would like to say "Bye! Thanks for reading a post about me!"