Zach at 5 years, 11 months, and 11 days

Last year I wrote up a post about Ben, and I had intended to do a piece on Zach as well, but anytime I'd start to ask him questions he'd blow me off and tell me he didn't want to answer them. The other day he very sweetly sat on my lap and, even after a long interruption, he came back and we picked up where we left off.

Here are some of the answers he gave me about his favorite stuff at the moment, with a mix of my observations about his quirky personality.

Favorite colors:  It's probably pointless to ask Zach what his favorite color is because it changes just about every time I ask him, but this time he answered black.

Favorite foods:  Zach loves peanut butter and chocolate (Nutella) sandwiches. He will likely have a smear of his sandwich contents on either side of his mouth by the time he's done. Zach is also a huge lover of pancakes. It's usually his standard answer when I ask him what he wants for breakfast.

Favorite toys:  Angry Birds. Angry Birds. Angry Birds. I really thought by now he would have moved on to something else, but the people over there at the Angry Bird factory know how to really suck the kiddies in with all their variations of Angry Birds they've come up with. Thanks Joy for introducing Zach to his obsession and my nightmare. :)

Favorite places to go:  This was an easy answer for Zach. He loves going to Grandma and Grandpa's house. I suspect it's not just because he loves them, but because of all his cousins' cool toys that he loves playing with.

Favorite people:  Zach is sweet and loves everybody, but when asked this question he immediately said his cousins: Elisabeth, Jarom, and Brenton. I asked Zach if Ben was one of his favorites (as Ben was standing next to us) and he said no, after which Ben started to poke Zach.  Hmmm can't imagine why Zach would say no!

Favorite game:  Little Big Planet and PBS Kids online games. The boys now have a whopping two PS3 games, the second being LBP which we got the boys for Christmas. It's amazing how good Zach has become at playing the game, and I'm kind of glad we don't have any other games for him to become fixated with. He tends to get sucked into the game and will dance and hop around the room as he throws his arms in all sorts of interesting directions as though his body movements are those of his little sack person in the game.

Favorite movies:  Rio, Star Wars, and Wall-E.  Despite my age, Zach could probably answer more trivia on Star Wars than I could. I think he's learned as much about the movies from various books than he has from the actual movies.

Favorite animals:  Lucy (our new puppy), Ulli dog (Joy & JT's German Shepherd), Skoog (Carrie, Bobby, and Archer's yellow lab), and Max their cat.

Favorite books:  Elephant and Piggie & Pigeon books by Mo Willems, Dr. Seuss books, and the Peter Rabbit stories by Beatrix Potter. Zach also enjoys a book called the Town of Zack by Dava Savel in which a little boy is in search for some piece and quiet from his 3 little sisters (triplets). At the end of reading this story to him, Zach would say how much he wanted 3 little sisters of his own. Amused we asked him what he would name these little sisters of his. He told us he would name them Flopsy, Mopsy, and Cotton-tail.

Zach has such an outgoing and expressive personality. He's often all over the place, but that's part of what makes him who he is. He has no problem striking up a conversation with anyone. His gift of gab is not always appropriate, but I've learned that it's okay to open up a little more and connect with people. Accompanying that gabbing is Zach's lack of a filter....which has caused me a good deal of head shaking, red faced moments. There's no telling what kind of information he'll share with the world. Usually he'll just start in with whatever is swimming through his head. As I was typing this, Zach came bouncing over to me to tell me what was going down in whatever imaginary game he's playing at the moment...something to do with Zurg, Sparks and Angry Birds bouncing around and winning medals.

In the midst of all Zach's gabbing, he fires off a lot of questions which he'll often answer himself before the person he's asking has a chance to respond, but then he'll continue to ask more questions and even more questions about the answers he gets to his questions. Zach is that kid in the theater who can't sit still and refrain from asking a hundred questions about the movie he's watching (unless he has a mouthful of popcorn).

The way Zach speaks is often as entertaining as some of the random things he says. He has this lip pout action when he's talking and all the while he's talking, you can see the wheels in his head turning while he's thinking about anything and everything and his eyes darting around and taking in his surroundings. His shifty little eyes freak me out a little sometimes and I'm amazed by what he's able to process, especially when we're in the car. He's kind of like a camera with his ability to focus in on details which Darius and I don't see without some searching or will often miss altogether.

Zach has a fantastic imagination when it comes to imaginary play. I like to hear him change up his voice when he's playing several different characters, and his accompanying sound effects are quite impressive. He likes to call his shooting sound effect "puming," since that's the closest word to the sound he makes, so it's a word that he often uses to describe his scenarios.

Zach has a tender heart and loves little babies and he loves girls (all ages)! I don't know how it began, but Zach thinks he needs to find a girlfriend, someone to love him he'll tell me. We were at Subway one night and there were a couple of girls sitting with their dad, and Zach thought they were pretty and told me that he was going over to their table to tell them that, and more or less get one of them to either be his girlfriend or marry him. I told him to go right ahead. He squirreled around a little, hiding behind the chip racks and a cardboard display, and maybe he confessed his love under his breath, but by the time we were all getting ready to leave, he fell apart and started sobbing about how he didn't get a chance to tell them what he needed to and proceeded to tell me that now he would never get a girlfriend and get married and have babies. This was a full blown meltdown with very real tears and a very distraught little boy. Fast forward to an errand after Subway and we come across a young girl in a shopping cart with her mother. I nudged Zach and said that she was a pretty girl, hoping to make him feel a little better. He spoke right up and told this little girl about his debacle at Subway, and that she was pretty but not as pretty as the girl(s) at Subway. Yup...he's got a little bit to learn still about wooing the ladies.

I love this little kid so very much. I love his enthusiasm and how excited he gets over the things he's passionate about. I love his funny facial and body expressions. I love listening to him talk and the interesting vocabulary he'll use. I love his sweet kisses...the ones where he puts his little hands on my cheeks and puckers up his lips (his sweetest kisses he calls them). I love, love, love, his monkey hugs...the kind where he wraps his whole body around you and squeezes tight. I love his sweet little heart and his love and concern for others.

Zach is very much is own person. A few weeks back he woke up and the first thing out of his mouth that he said to Darius was, "I'm unique!" That pretty much sums it up. He's unique and we love him so.

ZML

There are many adjectives that describe Zach. Some that immediately come to mind are loud, talkative, animated, imaginative, enthusiastic, and affectionate. I think it was the first day we dropped the boys off at the Child Development Center at the Y, and Darius told me when he checked in on the boys that one of the staff members had told him, "Zach knows a lot of words." At first I was a little worried about what all those words were exactly. Zach is a sponge and will repeat everything he hears, good and bad. Upon clarification, we were told that he was just a very talkative little boy and liked to chat with everyone. What I wouldn't give to be a fly on the wall to hear his take on life when we aren't around. His talkative nature also means that he's a blabber mouth. If you are trying to surprise someone or don't want something repeated, Zach is not the person to discuss things with. He is also our naughty-word policeman. The oh-my-gosh face he makes when he hears "stupid" is priceless.

I suppose it shouldn't come as a surprise that Zach is also very social. I guess that goes hand in hand with being very verbal. He likes to be around people and often shouts out hello and strikes up conversations with total strangers wherever he goes. At the grocery store about a month ago he invited a couple and their young son over to our house to play with all his toys. When we're at the playground, there's a night and day difference in his demeanor when there are kids around as opposed to no kids. When other kids are present he runs around after them, is very animated, and borderline crazy.

Zach's social nature also means that he's often an extra appendage when we're at home. It's not enough for me to be in the same room as he is. He likes me to be right beside him. As I started writing this post at the desk in our living/dining room, I wasn't more than 15 feet away from him, but he kept begging me to come and sit and cuddle with him on the couch. At night he usually wakes up after a few hours and seeks me out. I know the time is coming where I need to wean him off of sleeping in our bed, but for now there's nothing sweeter than sleeping between two little snuggle bugs.

Growing up I've been told by siblings, cousins, and friends that I was animated and imaginative, so I guess it makes perfect sense that Zach has those traits as well. When Zach is expressing himself, he uses all of his body. When he talks passionately about something his lips pucker out, his mouth opens wide, his eyes are round and darting, his limbs are all over the place, all the muscles in his body twitch, and if he's sitting it's not long before he jumps up in excitement. When he dances he does some very interesting things with his body. When he loves you, and gives you one of his spontaneous hugs, he squeezes you with every ounce of his being. Those hugs are super special.

When Zach plays he's very good at using his imagination. I love to sit outside his room and listen to him pretend to be multiple characters. He uses different voices and goes from a regular voice, to a high squeaky voice, to a low menacing-sounding voice. The things he has these various characters saying is often super random and very funny. Zach is also passionate about dress up, and his latest costume addition is a Darth Vader mask and cape (the cape he calls his flag). Mike, Patti, Dylan and Emma gave each of the boys one for their birthday, and when Zach put his costume on for the first time, he ran around their house singing Darth's theme song with great gusto.

Zach is very honest with his feelings and will tell you just what is on his mind. He definitely wears his heart on his sleeve. He's also becoming very skilled at guilt trips and has some pretty adorable ways of trying to convince you to give him what he wants. Lately he tells me in the sweetest voice, "But Mommy, you're my best friend......" followed by why it is I need to do what he wants me to. On the flip side of that sweetness is also a very sour side. He's as passionate about his tantrums as anything else, and it's not a pretty sight! He told me for the first time about a week ago that I was a bad mommy. I know he's only reacting to a moment and doesn't mean what he says, and it helps that he tells me dozens of times in a day how much he loves me. I hope he knows just how much I love him too.

There is never a dull moment with Zach. There's no telling what interesting things he'll say in a day, and he always keeps me on my toes. Every day he brings a smile to my face, and even when he wakes me too early for my liking, I can't help but smile inside when he tells me good morning and says it's a beautiful day.