Not his Halloween costume!!

A picture is worth a thousand words. As I was getting dressed this morning, so was Landon...dressing up like me, that is. Yes, that would be not one, but two of my thongs he put on.

The big dilemma is, do I let him wear those out to run our errands? (I probably would, if they weren't my thongs.) Heeeheeee!

Follow the toddler!

Never a dull, boring moment with Landon near. Our boy is so happy-go-lucky, full of belly laughs, screaming giggles, and ear to ear smiles!! Ohhhh, we just can't get enough of him. From morning to night Landon is full of energy and life....you just can't have a bad day when he is around with his contagious toddler fun.

All his energy has been translated into a cardio workout for us, daily. That's right, we rarely, ever, sit down......he keeps going and going and going and we LOVE every second of it!

Scorpion King

Ugghhh...scorpion season can end at any time. Thank goodness for pest control. This massive creature was near death, twitching it's revolting body, but Scot finished it off with his car and now I'm off to set it on fire....just to send the message to it's fellow creepy crawlers: "NOT WELCOME!"

That's our boy!!

Sushi night for the Z's....As most who know us, know we love food and we are making every effort to expose Landon to a variety of cuisines. Just as Scot and I can't get enough of sushi, neither can Lando. We headed out to Ra at Kierland, Friday night. Loud, hip-hop music blaring, people roaming everywhere....just the place Landon wanted to be. Thinking this was mingling hour, he walked up and down Kierland, talking to strangers, petting the dogs, intrupting happy-hour conversations, and getting his groove on to the music. Quite the social butterfly! Dinners consist of his usual, shrimp tempura, edamame, and California rolls. Feeling brave and no longer a novice in his sushi dining, his palate became tempted by mom and dad's rolls. He was quick to grab a Crunchy Calamari Roll, dip it in the eel sauce, and yumm, ate it right up! He quickly claimed the calamari rolls as his own and placed them on his plate. Such a proud moment for his sushi loving mom and dad!

Back on the blogging saddle....

Here I go....to give you the Cliffs Notes version of our activities. Hours and hours have gone into planning the baby shower of the century, with my mom. My oldest bro, Vince and his leading lady, Melissa, are thrilled for their upcoming arrival of baby Chloe this November. My mom and I had been planning and scheming for weeks to make this shower special for them. They arrived from Connecticut and it was as if they had never left.....well, until the day I had to say "good-bye", then the tears started. Landon's cousin and our first niece, and I feel like, we will miss out on so much, until we see them again. I had to pack in all my unsolicited labor and delivery and baby advice, as I will miss out on all the crucial nosey sister moments. Needless, to say, I miss them and am so thrilled to meet Chloe....I just know I'll be her favorite aunt!

Outside activities are under way with the arrival of great weather. There is no way a week will go by, without some park time. Our boy can't get enough of it. He is being a little too daring, wanting to play with the big kids on the 4 story jungle gym elevation. Yikes, mom and dad still a little nervous to let him tackle all the big kid adventures.... jumping off of the 4 story jungle gym or the massive rock climbing wall. We'll work our way up to that!

So what's Landon into these days, you ask? Barney, Barney, and more Barney. We can probably recite every song the giant, purple dinosaur sings, and name each character with our eyes closed. He loves the show, so naturally, as good parents do, we limited the amount of Barney Lando can watch. Sure we may get a brief tantrum or two, but sitting in front of the TV all day watching imaginary dinosaurs, when you are under two....needs limitations. OK, so it's not Barney all day, Landon is all boy and we can't get enough of him. Cars, trucks, trains, dirt, you name it, he's into it. Still heading to gym class every week, and I notice each week he it getting so much older. He follows along to his teacher's instructions, grasping everthing she says, and his memory is unbelievable.

This is the great month of Halloween and the Zee fam is in decorating mode this week. October starts our favorite time of year and we can't wait to see Landon's reaction to all the decorations and, of course, getting into trick or treating. His friends from Little Gym are coming over this year, along with his Uncle Anth and Aunt Kori....we plan on making a big deal out of trick or treating now that Landon is getting older.

Here's a few randoms from September, as we dive right into October.....

Hangin' at Fairmont's LV Bistro, one of Uncle Anth's restaurants.

Bowl head!

Grandma introduced whipped cream, and now he can't get enough!

Mom in a box...

A vicious game of hide and seek this evening turned into Mom in lock down. HeeHeeHee!! These are the most fun of times...just being totally goofy with your family.

P.S. Yes, the Zee's still exist. We have been a little behind on blogging, but I do vow to post, this week, what we have been up (gotta wait for a day off).

Bath Time with Landon Van Gogh

Zee Bathroom Gallery now showing impressionist painter, Landon, creating his newest watercolor masterpiece. He creates the world's most revered and expensive works of art. His fantastic creations are appreciated by his parents and his reputation is growing amongst the artist community and is an important contributor to toddler art. Amazing work!!

Dusty the Vacuum

Some things you just can't live without.....

Zee Summer Camp Day

The Zee fam had an endless amount of activities today.....it felt like a day of summer camp. To start our morning off, Lando slept until 8:30. Yes, 8:30, which never happens with our boy, but he had a late night dinner party. Landon had dinner plans with his friends from The Little Gym and their parents...teppanyaki! A highly recommended dinner excursion with toddlers. They were mesmerized by the chef, the flames, and immediate food service. They were entertained until the end of cooking...then it was Landon signing for "more" and the kids wanting to go play outside.

So, back to summer camp day. We started the morning with Beasts class at The Little Gym....18 kids in this class. Yikes. Landon followed right along with the older kids, jumping, swinging on the bars, walking on the balance beam, and sitting patiently in line waiting for his stamp. Our little gymnast, is gaining so much coordination, flexibility, and learning how to follow his teacher's instruction.

The afternoon was movie time...Happy Feet. Landon is quite in tune with others emotions. Case in point, the poor lil' "special" penguin, Mumble, tugged at Landon's heart strings. Each time Mumble was teased or made fun of, Landon got such a sad face and would almost cry, until we reassured him this is a happy movie and to watch Mumble dance. It did little consoling him and eventually he had enough of the sad story line and left the room.

It's not movie time, without popcorn and fruit snacks.


The start of Landon's concerned face for Mumble.

On to the next event: swimming. Landon has learned to swim. Well, with floaties, that is. He jumps off the beach step or side, kicks and paddles all over the pool, laughing as he goes!! Next step, weaning off the floaties!!

Otter Pop on a hot day, a must...with a hot daddy!


Floaties on and ready to go!


1, 2, 3....


...jump!


Kick, kick, kick


Seriously, he is just the cutest thing!!!

These are the days...

So excited to see a little morning , monsoon rain. Landon and I headed outside to enjoy the cooler morning air. Splashing in the puddles and catching rain drops is a great way to start the day!

Aunt Bella

Pretty cool for Landon to have an aunt only 8 years older.....they can relate easily! Aunt Bella came for a play date today and Lando was thrilled to find her when he rose from this morning nap. From the moment she entered his day, he grabbed her hand and led her from one activity to the next.....from a vicious game of hide and seek, to tag, to playing sharks in the pool. Whew. She tuckered him out and he loved every moment with her.

We laid him down for his nap and the first words out of her mouth were, "Can we go wake him up now? I'm bored." Since when did big sis become chopped liver and stop being cool to hang with? I replied, "I'll play with you. Do you what to play hide and seek again?" Her response, so casual, "You don't squeal when we play." Really??? Guess, I'm boring and dull until I take up squealing like my 19 month old.

Mini- Family Reunion

Just returning home from Albuquerque, New Mexico, and the trip was just what we needed. A reminder of the most blissful thing in life.....family!! My cousin Lee, eloped to Ireland earlier this year, with his lovely bride, Tiffany. One thing my family loves is a great wedding and following that is a fantastic reception. So that they did. The reception unofficially started on Friday, as family flew in and gathered at Aunt Holly and Uncle John's home. Scot and Landon met many of my relatives for the 1st time, whom I haven't seen in many, many years. Wow, how life has gone so fast. We are all just the same, just seem to have aged....crow's feet forming, grey hairs growing, and have many more life lessons under our belts. We all tried to sum up "what we've been up to" in a matter of minutes, share all our stories, and reminiscing about growing up.

Landon, of course, charmed the hearts of everyone in the room. Oh, he is such a social butterfly and flirt. He was winking at all the ladies and with that little one eye blink, the hearts just melted, following by cheers for more, which he willingly granted. The reception was all about Landon, he danced with anyone near, giving hugs to pretty girls in dresses, and just "working the room". Ha!!

We stayed in neighboring hotel rooms with my bro, Anthony and his girlfriend, Kori. Landon quickly discovered that Uncle Anthony and Aunt Kori's room some how much more exciting. The room quickly became titled the "fun room", as Landon would cry every time Scot or I had to take him to our room. Needless to say, if he wasn't sleeping he was walking across the hall to the "fun room" to hang. Mom and Dad are now not the most exciting things in his life. :(

Leaving today was bittersweet. We were so grateful for the short time we spent with everyone and so sad to leave. Wishful thinking for another mini-family reunion in the near future.

The bride Tiffany, 2nd from the left, and obviously the groom, Lee, in the middle.


Hanging with my cousins, Maggie, Jackie, and Jake.


Girl talk with Kori, Aunt Holly, Aunt Barbara, Mom, and Nannie.



Uncle John passing shots....Swedish caraway infused liquor. Yikes!


Cheers!



Awww!


Landon just getting the party started with Grandma and Papa.


Hanging in the "fun room".


So irresistible!

Marketing Major, perhaps??

Landon just can't get enough of commercial jingles. His 2 favored musical commercials are "FreeCreditReport.com" and the "Cox" commercials with the little blue and white astronaut-looking guys. When the music starts he will run to wherever he hears it in the house, dancing, smiling, and signing for more. We relented yesterday and downloaded them on You Tube.....watched them until we had the songs memorized and now I hear it in my sleep. He absolutely can't get enough of them and we love watching his crazed excitement over it!!

Dada's Day.....

Father's Day is such a special day for Landon and I to recognize Scot. To watch Scot grow from being a boy (we met when he was 17), to a strong, amazing man, to now and watch him be the father he always wanted to be and the the father I always wanted to parent with. He is so attentive, caring, patient, and loving. He fits into the Daddy role with such ease and comfort. He is a strong role model for Landon with his guiding touch and sensitive words. I am so proud to watch him and to have him by my side!

We started Scot's day off with the breakfast cuisine of his choice, my special French Toast recipe. Secondly, the day was Scot's choice of events. What does the "worlds greatest dad" decide on......The Children's Art Museum! This has quickly become one of our favorite places to take Landon. The 3 stories is filled with wonderful entertaining activities and the adults get to feel like a kid again too. Landon ran from room to room to room, playing, painting, riding, anything he could try, he did. Eventually his little legs just said "enough".

That evening we had a great dinner with Scot's family at Grayhawk Golf Club. Family time is such a wonderful gift and I am thrilled we have our family here to spend time with. The day was perfect!!!

Stop Right There!

Landon turning 18 months last week was a real "wow" factor for me. Can't we just stay right there? He is just becoming such a big boy and seems to be growing out of the baby phase, I'm thrilled he still loves to give cuddles when he wakes up. He is at a constant steady jog, so capturing him in a great photo has become increasingly more difficult. Here's a little update on our little man.

Landon has started this "dress up" stage, absolutely hilarious. Yesterday he refused to wear any other shoes than his cowboy boots. He insisted on wearing them to his gym class. Luckily, there was enough distraction for me to get them off before his class began....but his gave everyone a good "oohh and ahh" at how adorable he is, arriving in his baggy shorts and boots.

Headband vs. sweatband vs. toddler Village People?

Yes, that would be my elastic headband that added the perfect top off accessory to his "I'd Rather be Naked" t-shirt.

He is totally into drawing, more specifically he loves to use coloring pencils or pens. He gets very serious when his paper and pencils come out. He gets into the artist position, talking to the paper, and very carefully makes his masterpiece.

Landon has made friends with a few specific stuffed animals, he has become increasingly attached to them and wants to take them on all his travels around the house, in the car, in his highchair, and tries to out them in the bathtub. If he is not carrying one or all of them, he's dragging it behind him by the arm or Mom carries them for him. Oh, don't forget his tiny blue lovey -blanket that he has been carrying with him too.

Just waking up this morning and his 3 stuffed friends are by his side.

He has 3 good friends from The Little Gym, well 4, if you count his teacher, Miss Rachel, that he absolutely adores. His interactions with other toddlers has expanded immensely. He is understanding how to pretend with toys, developing the concept of sharing, and really knows who he likes to hang with. His new class has several other kids, but Landon and his 3 friends stick to their group. Can cliques start this early? Scot and I invited his friends and their parents over for a BBQ and Landon was thrilled to have his friends at his house, showing off all his toys.

Lan is teaching Cash and Brody how to drive.

The park is always a big hit. Gets a little stressful for Mom and Dad, because Big L thinks he is a big kid and insists on going down the 12 foot slide at max velocity. We hold our breath and he giggles!!

Sliding with Dad and swinging with Grandpa...the father-son trio (Scot and his Dad are 2 big kids at heart).

Landon is growing, learning, and moving at super charged speed! His mischievous smile makes our heart melt and his big, belly giggles fill the room with excitement. We just can't enough of him!!!