origin of my name

...did you wonder where my name, Zoe Elizabeth, came from?
Mommy & Daddy had a hard time agreeing on names for me initially when Mommy was first pregnant, but completely agreed upon Zoe because it meant Life in Greek. Elizabeth was for my Mommy's Great Aunt Betty. However, the name Zoe dates back further than Mommy & Daddy had suspected:


The following is from www.Wikipedia.com

Zoe (in Greek Ζωή, meaning "life"), (c. 978 - 1050) was Empress of the Byzantine Empire with co-rulers November 15, 1028 - 1050, and reigning Empress from April 19 to June 11, 1042. By the time she first married, she had turned 50. Despite her advanced age, she married two times more, to supply Byzantium with capable emperors. It is said she was stunningly beautiful and one person even commented that, like a well baked chicken 'every part of her was firm and in good condition. She realized her charms and meant to keep and use them for as long as possible. With typical Byzantine ingenuity, she had many rooms in her chambers converted into laboratories for the preparation of arcane ointments. Thus, she was able to keep her face free of wrinkles till she was 60.

Zoe was one of the few Byzantine empresses born into the purple (that is, as the legitimate child of a reigning emperor). She was daughter of Constantine VIII of the Byzantine Empire, who had become co-emperor in 976, and sole emperor in 1025. He reigned for only three years between December 15, 1025 and November 15, 1028.

Before dying Constantine had married Zoe to his chosen heir Romanus III Argyrus, the eparch of Constantinople, on November 12, 1028. Constantine hoped that Romanus would help his daughter to control the government, but Romanus proved to be an unfaithful husband and an ineffective emperor. He was found murdered in his bath in 1034. Zoe immediately remarried, even before his body was removed from the bath. Zoe's second husband was Michael IV "the Paphlagonian", who reigned until his death in 1041.

Her next co-ruler was her adoptive son Michael V Calaphates, nephew of her second husband, whose short reign lasted only into the next year. For two months in 1042, Zoe shared the government with her sister, Theodora, until she could find yet another husband, her third and the last she was permitted according to the rules of the Orthodox Church. Her choice fell upon Constantine IX Monomachus (reigned 1042-1055) who outlived her by four years. Zoe died in 1050.

move over bananas!

...cuz Sweet Potato is where it's at!
I just love my Sweet Potato food - I even went "Mmmm" when I first tried it!

Mommy says that apples are next - but not until Saturday.

day four of schedule

...success again for me!
It seems this new schedule is working perfectly for me...and Mommy couldn't be happier. She's still getting used to the rigidness of it all (as she tries to schedule other activities around it), but she's still hopeful that it will work.

Today is a semi-relaxing day for Mommy. She teaches later this afternoon and the gutter guys from Empire are here making the gutters, but she is finally seeing things get done which makes her a happier Mommy. August has been a very busy month for us! By Wednesday things should really start to settle down for us.

nap time #2

...so today I took only one afternoon nap.
Mommy was surprised to see me sleep on Nana & Papa Brown's bed for 2 1/2 hours! Maybe somedays I'll take one afternoon nap, and somedays I'll take two. Now we'll see if I try to take another afternoon nap after my dinner and before bath time. I bet Mommy & Daddy keep me super occupied so that doesn't happen!

Tomorrow my Grandma & Grandpa Martin are coming over to babysit me while Mommy teaches. I can't wait to spend some time with them!

new routine

...and then Mommy created a daily routine for me.
She was reluctant to create one during the first few months of my life. Since she is home with me every day and breastfeeds, she didn't care when I decided to feed or sleep. However, now I'm eating solid foods twice a day (I love bananas) and I started not going to sleep at night like before. So, Mommy decided Thursday night (at 3am) that I would have a daily routine - naps and all - hopefully making a more happy and content baby.

Here's the routine (start times only):

8:00am/8:30am = Wake up
10:00am/10:30am = Settle down morning nap
11:00am/12:00pm = Lunchtime w/solid food
1:00pm/1:30pm = Settle down afternoon nap
4:00pm/4:30pm = Settle down afternoon nap #2
5:00pm/5:30pm = Dinnertime w/solid food
7:00pm/7:30pm = Bath time
8:00pm/8:30pm = Bedtime

Mommy feels that she'll be able to feed me lunch & dinner even on music teaching days. The second afternoon nap is one she's hoping to delete at some point. My naptimes are usually 45 minutes long - sometimes a bit longer (1 hour) and sometimes a bit shorter (30 minutes). She's hoping to increase the 1 o'clock nap to 2 or 2 1/2 hours. Of course this will come with time.

How is the routine going you ask? Well I'm on my 3rd day of it - and I'm right on schedule! Afterall, Mommy made the routine to fit what I was already doing. It's just a much more focused day than before.

more new clothes for me!

...and once again I'm growing out of clothing!
Mommy says that I'm growing out of things quickly again. It seems that everything will fit one day and the next everything is too small! We went to Babys R Us on Tuesday to get a few items for feeding - I'm on cereal twice a day now (soon bananas). While we were there Mommy bought a few items that she said were so adorable. The only thing is - baby clothes are just like big people clothes. Just because they say 6/9 months doesn't mean that every brand fits the same way. I'm a thin - long bodied little girl. Many of the pants have too wide of a waist. It's a shame - since Mommy had to take some things back to the store. I even got a few new things in the mail today from Baby Gap. Mommy doesn't know if the jeans are going to work - a waist issue again. It's too bad more baby pants aren't drawstring. Those are the best! It's pretty cool that I'm growing though - and with all the hand-me-downs I can't wait to wear all of them.

5 months tomorrow

...but today I went to the pediatrician.
My stats are as follows:
14 pounds 15 ounces
25 1/2 inches long
16 1/2 head circumference

I'm still following the 50th percentile in both height and weight. Just perfect, I think!

I'm so excited. I get to eat cereal 2 times a day - for two weeks. Then, Mommy & Daddy get to add new foods to my diet. Like I said - can't wait for the sushi!

happy birthday papa ray!

...today my Papa Ray is 87 years old!
I'm not even a year old, so it will be something to live 87 years! Think of all the adventures...
However, by then I'm sure the world will be a much different place to live - afterall, Papa's life has been full of inventions, technological advances, and fashion changes. Personally it's hard to believe that the world could be different than it already is - but then again I've only been a part of it for 5 months!

oh happy days

...and just like that I have another happy day.
I hope everyone's summer has been as fun and adventurous as mine.

rolling over both ways

...and then I finally did it!
Yesterday I rolled from my back to my stomach 6 times! Mommy got to view the first 3 times, but when Daddy came home from work he got to see me perform my new little trick!

We had a great weekend. It was fun to just relax with Mommy & Daddy - and they enjoyed the time to themselves too. Saturday we went to a party at a friend's house - Shelly & Doug. They were so excited to see how I've grown. My best friend, Emma, came over Friday, Saturday, and Sunday to see me! I am really lucky to have a great friend like Emma - and she is family too!

yellow outfit

...so Mommy made sure to take a picture of this cute yellow outfit!
It's getting small in the legs, so she made sure that this outfit from Nana was photographed before it was too late!

We spent time with Mommy's friend, Chris, yesterday. Miss Chris used to teach voice lessons at Mommy's studio. Mommy and Miss Chris shared stories of the past few months, and Miss Chris even changed my diaper! She's really talented ;)

I have so many clothes for fall and winter! Aunt Kelly gave Mommy more of Emma's old stuff on Wednesday. Mommy can't wait to see me in a few of the outfits - won't be long now. I was 14 lbs and 9 ozs at the Mother & Baby Support Group on Tuesday. This was also without a diaper - the pediatrician weighs me with the diaper. So I've definitely been gaining weight! Must be all that yummy breast milk - AND the rice cereal that I'm getting at 8pm every night.

orange teddy

...my friend, the orange teddy, I love him so!
I grab at him, suck on him, and love him every day. In fact, I roll over while looking at him. He is such a great friend, and soft & cuddly too!

I am smart

...research shows how smart I really am!
Take a look at this website:
Newsweek

mini vacation

...and then we went on a little vacation!
Saturday Mommy, Daddy, and me went to went to the Marriott at the Renaissance Center in downtown Detroit. Grandma & Grandpa Martin babysat me while Mommy & Daddy had a lovely dinner all by themselves. It was such a beautiful room with a wonderful view. There I am with my favorite teething ring on the King sized comfortable bed. Aren't I just the cutest!?

And this is our amazing view - or at least part of it...

What a great Saturday.

Then yesterday we visited with Lois, Jeremy and their son, Logan. Logan was in his mommy's tummy when I was in mine. Lois & Jeremy met my Mommy & Daddy at their Birth Preparation class. Logan is 4 days younger than me - but he is really tall! What a busy weekend!

zoe squared

...so there is another ZOE!
Yesterday Mommy & Daddy had some friends over - Jaime, Michele, and Zoe - from the West Coast. Actually all of our names are the same: James, Michelle, and Zoe! How silly is that?! The other Zoe is originally from China - and she came to America the same week I was born! It's just way TOO coincidental! She is older than me by 8 months, so she's walking already. I'd love to be able to crawl...not too much time left!

Anyway, today my Grandma & Grandpa Martin are babysitting while Mommy & Daddy have dinner - their 3rd time away from me (not counting the aborted date last Saturday). Mommy, Daddy and I are spending the night at a hotel! Of course this will be my second time spending the night at a hotel - but it's always exciting to have a mini-vacation.

first foods

Yesterday I tried my first bit of cereal. I had rice cereal from Earth's Best Organic. I was really excited to taste the new flavor - even though it was mostly breast milk (1 Tbs cereal/4 Tbs milk). It was also fun to sit in my high chair and get fed by Mommy & Daddy. Daddy was certain to take lots of video of me eating with a spoon! I'm getting closer to being just like Mommy & Daddy - soon sushi!

teeth, please come in

...and then I started cutting teeth.
I know it's part of life, but I wish the tooth wouldn't keep coming in and going back out. Two bad nights of sleep for Mommy & Daddy, but at least I'm feeling better today. We even had to miss the Martin Family Reunion yesterday because I was so cranky. I missed seeing Grandma and Grandpa Martin and cousins Tim and Teri. But I'm sure we'll get together again real soon.

Last week was really busy, and Mommy wasn't able to help me write on the computer like she normally does. So much was going on for Mommy - flat tire, door ajar light that wouldn't go out, broken "s" key, and other crazy things happening all week.

This should be a much more fun week. Tomorrow Mommy and I are visiting with friends of Mommy's from her old music studio. Jennie and her children TJ and Maggie are meeting us for lunch. Mommy and Jennie will be able to talk and Mommy can return some maternity clothes that she borrowed from Jennie. And on Friday we have a play-date with Monica and her son, Asher. Mommy and I met then at the Mommy & Baby Support Group at St. Mary's. Besides a few errands here and there, it should be a much better week.