The Holidays and More

Zach - Of Note

Fireman Sam shirt and train set

• Biking - he can ride it! Link to video. 
• He continues to be athletic - climbing that rock wall and jumping off onto the mats.
• They have taught Zach to put on his "listening ears" at daycare. He can't continue to go to the big kids' class if he doesn't listen. 
• Zach loves Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood, and I love it too. Ugga mugga!
• On a 60-degree December day, Rick's snowman that shivers was shivering, and Zach didn’t think he should be. He wanted to tell Rick and in the end we walked back to the house to tell Daddy. :)
• Sean's mom recognized Zach at Kidz Plaza, and she called her husband to bring over Sean. They had a blast! Zach and Sean are calling each other their best friend. 
• We took care of Emily and Andrew's cats, Bob and Toffee. He insisted I take my shoes off and him too, and he put them on their shoe rack. So cute. 
• We walked past a dentist's office, and he said the girl was being brave (b/c she wasn’t crying). He remembered that he had not been brave; AKA, he had cried when he went to the dentist last. 
• We rode his tricycle to daycare! On this trip I accidentally dumped him off his tricycle as we navigated from sidewalk to road. I kept apologizing, and he kept saying, "It's okay, Mommy.
• Zach took his keyboard to music class and shared it with the class.
• He has been using the potty all by himself for weeks now. Everything (well almost, we won't go into details). All. By. Himself! 
• He is also getting really pretty good at playing by himself for stretches. 

Bye Bye Pacis and Bye Bye to Our Good Little Sleeper

• Whether it's pacis or him turning three, the doctor said we might want to try for a shorter nap (1 hour) and longer sleep at night. With the holidays, it's felt like our schedule has been off, but he's basically sleeping from 9pm to 6am, and that's tough. On weekends we get the benefit of his nap time, but they seem to be less than two hours most of the time as well. He doesn't really seem tired or overly cranky, but his sleep has been a challenge for sure. 
• The clock glowing green and rewards aren't seeming to motivate. We have implemented stickers for good behavior, and that's been good in general, but not really helping with sleep. 
• He now gets in bed with us most nights. He's scared when he wakes in the middle of the night. :( One night I took him back to his bed, and he wailed, "Mommy, Daddy, Mommy, Daddy." Then his clock glowed green, and he stopped and came running to find me. 

Zach's Words & Songs

• Trying to head out to Clemyjontri one afternoon, I told Zach we had to hurry, and he then took it and ran with it, “Mommy, hurry, it will only get colder!” 
• He continues to express his feelings: "I'm angry," "I'm mad," "I'm frustrated," etc. "I'm not going to play with you anymore." "You're not listening."
• He sings a lot now. He knows "Jingle Bells" and "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" from music class. He also knows "Let It Go" from Frozen, not sure how....
• “I have something to tell you.” “I have a question.” “It’s a surprise.”
• Meatless pouties, not patties
• At Whole Foods, Zach wanted to buy Frank a roll of wrapping paper as a "treat." He called it a mat. The next day he found more rolls of wrapping paper at home, and he called them "rolling caps." No idea. 
• I made pasta one night, and Zach and because it was pasta, Zach said, “Thank you, Gamma.” He said, “I want to call Gamma to thank her.” So we did. 
• One morning Zach said, "Sharing rocks." So funny. 
• Many mornings, when Zach wakes up, he asks, "Am I going to daycare?" Depending on the day, we answer, and if it's Monday, he usually wails. I don't want to go to daycare.  
• He also loves to tell us that he wants to go to Clemyjontri and the vehicle park.
• "Delicious blueberries" 
• Zach has been so sweet giving kisses and hugs and saying, “I love you so much.” He even kissed Mikayla goodbye on the cheek one day recently. 
• He busted out, "my pleasure" and said he learned this in music class!
• On a windy day, he called the win "naughty." 
• Zach has been asking that Frank and I "Make a Zach sandwich" in the mornings. (That is hugging him between us.) Really adorable. 
• He often says, “That was a fun day. I love to spend the day with Mommy and Daddy.” 

Christmas

• We took Zach to Solace's Brewing Sip, Shop, Santa event. As soon as we arrived, Santa was available and Zach asked for a "truck." A few minutes later he realized he hadn't been specific enough, so we went back, and he asked for a "garbage truck." He really wanted to see Santa's sleigh, and Emily Rogers told me he thought he would get the garbage truck immediately! 
• We got our tree on a cold night and enjoyed the fire pit!
  
• Zach loves the snowman night light from Auntie Em!
• A Fort family tradition is trash at our Christmas Eve Nosh. Zach kept saying, "I want garbage."
  
• Zach got some many good things. One of his favorite items...his flashlight. A blessing and a curse as he tries to use it without shining it in his or other's eyes!
  

Susan & Frank

• We went to see the Turnpike Troubadours! The crowd was so into it. Very fun!
• Back to Ocelot for a date night and Hallal Chinese in Ashburn. Kinda weird, but fun. Good to see Emmy! She loved her Tempting Trail Mix.
• Hike up to Big Schloss and Mexican for lunch.

  

  View from Big Schloss

Good Food

• Frank's beef brisket. Has it only been a month? We've made it many times. Tasty
• Croutons made from the delicious, dense, dark bread that Emily brought back from Raleigh. Yum!
• Wild Hare Cidery's bread and sundried tomato spread. Yum!
• Seared chicken with coconut milk, mushroom broth, ginger, beets, and spinach. Serve with rice and add soy sauce, lime juice, and hot pepper sauce. Yum!

Visits with

• The Sip, Shop, Santa event was a group gathering with Patrick, Jen, Thora, Emily, and Andrew. We ended up at Ocelot afterwards, and it was so wonderful and festive! They had a huge tree with lights; it was cozy lighting, warmth, and good beers. On a Sunday night, there were lots of kids, and Zach got his dump truck eventually and slid around the floor, showing a few younger boys (Harvey and Blaze) how it’s done. 
  
• Met Morgan for an early dinner at a Peruvian place, and we go free Pisca Sours! It was good to see her. 
• Met Jen, Lee, and their daughter, Emma, at Taco Bamba. Lee, Frank, and Emma played a good game of hide and seek with Zach. 
• Dinner with Aliana and Emily!
• Call with Sofia
• Lauren and her new husband came to the family Christmas Eve nosh. 
• Zach spent the weekend with Gamma and Bob
• Sam's birthday party allowed me to get lunch with Mary Kay and go for a walk with Jaclyn before seeing Julia, Sam, Todd, Trish, and Kate!
• Zach, Auntie Em, and I went to Wild Hare Cidery on New Year's Eve. We sipped cider, had their delicious bread with sundried tomato spread, and played hide and seek. Zach knew that a hare was a rabbit. Amazing. 
• Christmas with the Fittons - everyone seemed well. Zach competed with Sam to drink beverages (Z - milk, Sam - wine). Heidi counted for a game of hide and seek. Grandad's house was pretty great for hide and seek!
  
• Dinner at Penni and Tommy's; the weather was not frigid, so we ran around some blocks with Zach. Zach enjoyed playing downstairs as per usual, and rolled around on a balance ball. 
• Happy hour with Auntie Em

Fun Stuff (Personal & Professional)

• We all went to dinner together at Mod Pizza one night after converging at Childtime. That was fun. Zach did really well!
• Gallup's Leading High Performance Teams training was really great. I was inspired that this is what I really want to do more of!
• SCORE's holiday lunch was fun. A good table with Erin, Stephanie, Jessica, Kathryn, Jenifer, Doug, Raubia, Susan, and Andrew.

Susan and Emily before
Miss Saigon at the
Kennedy Center

• Checked out the SCORE Women’s Committee LinkedIn Group, and it reminded me of this great video on "assuming good intent and giving feedback." 
• Published my Onboarding Blog Post on LinkedIn after some great editing by Morgan. Thank you!
• Talked with Heather from the Gallup training around recommendations for professional development, and she recommended SHRM, Ideo, and Lynda and/or Tableau for data visualization.
• Training and Development project; conversations with Resa, Emily R., Kati, Susan B. to prep. I created an outline of an Onboarding Program in Articulate Rise for fun!
• Books: Enjoyed Expecting Adam by Martha Beck