The Musical Elf

Merry Christmas!!

My New Basketball Hoop With My Stander

Christmas Elf Playing the Alligator
Christmas Morning

Christmas Dinner

Merry Christmas everyone!! Zachary has had a very eventful week. Last weekend he seemed very lethargic, didn't sleep very well Friday night, and was very stuffy on Saturday. Monday was his one year pediatrician appointment, and at that visit we learned he had an ear infection. After picking up his amoxicillin, and heading home for some rest, we decided it was not in Zach's best interest to fly to Arizona that night as we had planned. So the short trip to Grandma and Grandpa's had to be postponed, and plenty of rest and time spent at home were in order. The good news is he improved greatly with each day through the week, and was close to his old self for Christmas. He enjoyed opening his gifts from Santa, and hasn't put the drum stick down yet! Mommy's musical talents have definitely rubbed off on Zachary. We enjoyed a quiet day with just the three of us, and our turkey dinner when Zach decided to start to eat corn kernels from his tray, much to the surprise of Mommy and Daddy! The week ahead should be fairly low key, we do have Zach's one year head MRI on Tuesday to track the size and progress of his fontanelles and to ensure his shunt is still functioning properly.

We wish you all a very Merry Christmas, and a healthy and prosperous New Year!!

Love and God Bless - Brian and Kimmie

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ZACHARY!!!

Mr. Argyle
Opening Mommy and Daddy's Birthday gifts with Fiesta for my 1st Birthday!
With Mommy at Chili's for my birthday dinner
With Daddy at Chili's for my Birthday dinner
Check out my new upper teeth!
Flying back to Colorado after Thanksgiving
With Grandma Cindy at my birthday party
My 1st BIG birthday cake!
Grandma and I
This cake is GOOD!
Hey Mommy, can I frost your hair?
Mommy and I after cake
Opening my presents
At the Spina Bifida Association of Colorado's Christmas party
All of my SB friends and I with Santa!!
I didn't know Santa would scare me, but I still managed a picture or two!

As you can see, Zachary just turned one!!! We cannot begin to express how blessed we feel and how blown away we are that an entire year has gone by already. It has been an unbelievable year filled with hope, faith, uncertainty, and most importantly LOVE! Zachary has been nothing short of a true blessing in our lives, and we are so grateful that the Lord has given us this gift of life. We are indebted to so many of you for all of the love, support, and minor miracles that have been performed for us this year. Our most heartfelt THANK YOU goes out to each and every one of you! May the Lord bless YOU as much as he has blessed US, now and in the future! Merry Christmas!! Love - Brian + Kimmie

Gobble, Gobble!!

11 months old with Fiesta
Check out my new hat!!
On the way to Mimi and Papa's
I Love my new stander
Nana's lap feels just right!
Four generations of Nolan's
Papa's lap feels pretty good too!
Happy early birthday Zachary!
Zach loved this rocking chair that belonged to his Great Great Aunt (over 100 years ago)
Standing time with Daddy
Playing with all the cousins
Having a chat with Nana during dinner
Nana and all the great grandchildren (Evan, Ashley, Zachary, Carrie, Jack)
Zach's Thanksgiving dinner
Zach took to Pat right away!

We are back home after a week back east at Mimi and Papa's for the holiday. It was great to see all of our friends and family again! The trip out was much more eventful than we had hoped. After being turned around in mid-air and heading back to Chicago, we finally arrived in Providence after 1am, and arrived at Mim and Papa's after 3am. Zach did great during the flights, but after being woken up for the transfer to an unexpected third flight, not really sleeping on the way to Mimi and Papa's, and having to sleep in a new place, he was very unhappy, which we had to expect. After much effort, and plenty of holding by Mommy and Daddy, Zach finally went down at around 5:45am. Being as scheduled as he is, he woke up at 8am (6am Colorado time) and was ready to feed and begin the day. After two very much needed naps during the day, he was right back on schedule, and ready to greet Nana for the first time, and Aunt Peg after a six month hiatus. He opened up Nana immediately, even calling out nanananana for her, and she did a wonderful job of feeding him and smothering him with Love.

Tuesday night Zach had several guests over to the house to meet him and celebrate his upcoming birthday. He was anxious to rip through the wrapping on his gifts, and to taste a little birthday cake. Zach has also enjoyed reading through the books he received as well!

Wednesday was picture day with all of the Zurliene cousins, then a quick trip to Nana's for some more lap time, and back to Mimi and Papa's for dinner. Zach had a great time playing with all of his cousins, and they were all kind enough to gather round and keep Zach happily occupied with his toys. That night Mommy and Daddy headed out to Westerly to catch up with some of Daddy's old friends. It was great to catch up with so many of them, several of which he had not seen since moving away from Rhode Island.

Thanksgiving morning, we all headed out to the Iacoi's house to see even more of Daddy's old friends. They have been coming to Joe and Angie's house for fifteen years on Thanksgiving morning, and it was great to see everyone and meet the new additions to their families. It was also fun for everyone to meet Zach, and for him to get a big Italian blessing before heading back to Mimi and Papa's for turkey. Zachary was napping during our dinner, but he was able to enjoy his own Thanksgiving "feast" shortly after (turkey, rice, and squash baby food).

Friday was time to pack up and head home. Our flights were very uneventful this time (just how we like them), and Zachary did a great job throughout the trip. He fell asleep during both flights, and we returned home at about 7:30 Friday night. It's been nice having a couple days to settle back in and prepare for the week ahead.

At this time of year we take time and give thanks for so many things, and for us it is the success and improvement of Zachary and his health. We Thank God for Blessing us with such an amazing child, and one who continues to amaze us each and every day. We are thankful for all the blessings in or lives, for family and friends, and for the opportunity share this journey with all of you. Our Love, and Blessings to You All - Brian + Kimmie

Healthy and Happy

@ the CU vs. Texas A&M Game w/ Mommy
Mini Chris Farley
Enjoying the Club Level @ Folsom Field
GO ROCKIES!! (next year)
Daddy's Birthday Dessert
The Moose is Loose!

Last week's visit to the spinal defects clinic went very well. All of the doctors and specialists were very pleased with Zachary's progress to this point, and all had overly positive things to say after examining him. We even went home with a new stander for Zachary, one that is much newer, nicer, and more enjoyable for him to be in. Our only real concern at the clinic, Zach's strange poops, weren't really resolved from the doctors there, but we set up an appointment with the gastrointestinal docs further down the road. (almost on cue, the issues Zach was having cleared themselves up by the weekend, so we'll see about keeping the appointment.)

On Saturday, Daddy's work was hosting a tailgate and offering club level seats for the CU vs. Texas A&M game, so Zachary had the chance to experience his first sporting event, and his first large crowd. He did wonderfully. He really enjoyed all the new sights and sounds, and was very cheerful throughout, even without a full morning nap. We enjoyed the great food, the first half of the game, and meeting Avery, the 4 month old daughter of one of Daddy's co-workers. By the end of half time, it was time to head out, and Zach promptly crashed in the car seat for the ride home. He had a great time, and slept soundly afterwards.

The only real downer over the last week was Zach developing his first real runny nose (pretty exciting huh?) We're not sure if it is due to a cold, or just the result of his latest round of teeth coming in, we're leaning towards the latter. He's having a tough time breast feeding properly without being able to breath through his nose, and he's had a little trouble sleeping as soundly as he usually does, but hopefully it will pass quickly, or the teeth will break through, and we can have our little happy guy back. Our Love to You All - Brian + Kimmie

Clean Cut

10 Months Old With Fiesta!
He Loves to Read the Paper!
He Also Loves Lights
Ready for the Snow!
Getting His Fill

Before the Haircut
During the Haircut
Concentrating
Nice Faux hawk!
The Handsome Man After His Cut!!
Still Excited About His Haircut!
Happy Halloween!
Daddy's Pumpkin
Mommy's Pumpkin
Landon, Haley, and Zach
Lunch With the A-Team!

Things have been busy as usual here in the Zurliene household. Since our last post we marked Zach's turning 10 months old, enjoyed well over a foot of snow here during the week, took Zach to have his first official haircut, and celebrated Halloween with our little frog.

Starting Tuesday night and lasting until mid-day on Thursday the snow kept falling here in Colorado. When all was said and done we had 14 or 15 inches on the lawn, Mommy had two snow days out of school, and Zachary stayed home with her as well. We saw a little glimpse of Zach's infatuation with snow during our last small storm a few weeks ago, but with this storm we really noticed that he loves to stare out the window and watch the snow fall. When we bundled him up and took him out for a few minutes he couldn't wait to put his hands it it and try to catch some flakes on his face.

Saturday we took Zach to Lollilocks to have his hair cut for the very first time. He did wonderfully. He did not fuss at all, and it seemed his only real concern was getting his arms out from under the smock so he could put them down on the armrests. It didn't take long, especially with the small amount of hair that actually needed cutting, but he looked fantastic when it was all finished, and it seemed to perk up his mood as well. He hasn't stopped talking or laughing since!

Last night Zach attended his first Halloween party at the Crain's house. He and Haley had a great time in their costumes, and playing telephone throughout the night. After a little more than an hour at the party it was time to head home with our little exhausted frog. Zachary had a great time at lunch today with our friends the Henkle's, but was really tired this evening at church. He has had some trouble adjusting to the end of daylight savings, so hopefully he can get back to his old schedule in short time.

This week we are back into our three month doctor visits. Last Tuesday we met with the orthopedic surgeon, who looked over Zachary's feet and was thrilled with what she saw. She said they look great and passed on X-rays until his next visit after the first of the year. This Tuesday we will be at the spinal defects clinic for the day, meeting with the team of doctors and specialists again to check on Zach's progress and plan for the next few months. All-in-all he is doing great, so we are hopeful that the day should run smoothly and the outlook be overly positive, God Willing. We will keep you all posted. Until then... Love, and God Bless - Brian + Kimmie