April 23, 2003

Thirty-seven weeks. I woke at midnight because my bladder was telling me it was time to go again! As I stood up, I felt a surge of wetness and my first thought was that I must not have made it to the bathroom in time! It wasn’t long before I knew that my water had broken. I opened up my What to Expect When You Are Expecting book, because all of a sudden I couldn’t remember the part about your water breaking.

I shouted from the bathroom for what felt like forever before Kelly finally heard my voice. In no time, we were off!

We had taken a birthing class, we had packed our bags, but at once, I felt the anxiety of wondering what the next several hours would be like.

Twelve hours later we had the most beautiful baby I had ever seen! Connor Kelly Zierse made his way into the world!

Kelly and I were of course nervous first time parents. We hovered over him and watched him sleep. Watching to make sure his chest was rising and falling. I would put off taking a shower until daddy came home because surely, I couldn’t leave my infant in his crib! I remember the first time we called the pediatrician after hours because we didn’t know how to help his congestion. I remember just wanting to hold Connor forever. He was such a good baby. He was happy, easy going, a great sleeper, and a great eater.

It has been six years later and you have brought us so much joy. You are such a delight. You are eager to learn and you love to help. Katelyn is so lucky to have a big brother who is always willing to help her and play with her. Carson is so lucky to have a big brother who sets such a good example for him. You are a great friend and making friends has always been easy for you. You have such a great imagination and you are always putting it to good use!

Happy birthday Connor! We love you!

The Happiest Place On Earth!

We just got home from a fabulous time in Disneyland! Disneyland is definitely one of my most favorite vacation spots. I have many fond memories from my childhood vacations, my first days as a married person, and now I love being able to take my own children here. These are some pictures highlighting our time here!

So, this is the safety picture you see on the seats of various rides. Carson and I were getting buckled up on the Matterhorn when he said to me, "mom, the rules are sitting, no dancing!" He said it so seriously that it gave me a good laugh. When the ride came to a stop, Kelly told Carson to hurry and undo his seat belt so he could dance. Carson unbuckled it and began a little dance.

We were lucky enough to have my mom join us. It was fun to have Grandma with us to enjoy the good times. It didn't hurt to have an extra set of hands to help out! Connor enjoyed being Grandma's partner!

Waiting at The Tower of Terror. This is not one of Connor's favorite rides, although Kelly manages to get him on it every time. He said that Disneyland is the happiest place on earth, except for the Tower of Terror.

Carson loved his map and had to have one at all times!

There are lots of things I love about Disneyland. Most of them have to do with food (go figure,) but because I do plenty of walking and pushing children in strollers for 3 full days, I feel entitled to a few goodies! Churros (or "churrios" as Connor calls them,) funnel cakes, pineapple whip, and that bakery by Splash Mountain are some of my favorites! Surprising as it is, food isn't everything, I also love the FASTPASS and the parent exchange (can't remember what it is called exactly, but if both parents want to ride, but one needs to stay behind with a younger child, you can swap places when the other one gets off. It is pretty convenient!)

But the things I love most of all, are seeing the excitement on the kids faces when you enter the park. Then the anticipation in their eyes as they eagerly tell you what they want to go on next.

Being together and creating lifelong memories, makes all the lines, sore feet, crowds, and late nights worth it!

Funny Things

A quick conversation with Connor last night:

Connor: "Mom, you're going to have another baby?"

Mom: "No!"

Connor: "Oh, you just ate too much?"

Yes, Connor. I have been eating too much my entire life!



My brother introduced me to these funny LOLcats. There are some pretty funny ones. If you have lots of time to spare, go to http://icanhascheezburger.com/ for some laughs! These are some that I liked.

Easter Photos

Here are some pictures from our Easter celebration! One of my favorite things about Easter is going to church and seeing all the children in their new Easter clothes. Because of this, I have always looked forward to and enjoyed a reason to buy new clothes for my children. Even in my 29 years, I still enjoy getting a new Easter dress for myself! Although, this year was a bit disappointing with no luck in finding anything I liked!


Here is my attempt at getting a shot of the kids in their new clothes. Katelyn wanted nothing to do with it! She was mad at Daddy because he didn't want her sippy cup or blankie in the picture. She did manage to grab the blanket anyway!

Here is a happier girl!

I have some cousins that live about an hour away. They were so kind to invite us for dinner and to have an egg hunt for the kids. We had a great time! Here are the older kids waiting for their turn to hunt!


Connor didn't get too many eggs because he had to open each one that he found to see what was inside!


We had the youngest kids go hunt for the first minute or so to get a head start on the older ones. Carson is off on his way!

It was a great evening with great food and great company. Now I just need to get rid of the candy and FAST!

By the Numbers....

(Thanks Heather for the fun idea!)


24: Number of doses of Tylenol with Codeine given to Carson.

7: Number of boxes of Jello consumption.

5: Number of times of waking in the night to Carson's tearful sobs.

1: Gallon of ice cream that Carson himself has eaten.

18: Number of meals Carson was served ice cream.

5: Number of loads of bowls and spoons I have washed due to Jello and ice cream intake.

256: Ounces of apple juice we have gone through.

Infinite: Number of times Carson has asked when his throat will feel better.

25: Number of dollars we have spent on prescriptions.

5: Number of days Kelly was home before returning to work today. Yes, it has been a long day!

6: Number of days Carson has watched Noggin, nonstop!

29: Number of years I will be on Saturday.

10: Number of days until we go to DISNEYLAND!!

I Heart Shoes!

Watch out Kelly,


We have another girl who LOVES shoes!!

And this picture because it is so cute. I can finally do something with Kate's hair. YAY!!

PS....don't mind my ever changing backgrounds. I have found a couple of really fun sites and can't decide which I like best. So for the time being, I am playing musical backgrounds!

Get Well Soon....

Today was a big day for Carson. He had to have his tonsils removed. He was such a brave little man! He wasn't scared at all. The last couple of days have been spent gearing him up for this moment. We told him that he would be asleep and not feel anything. We kindly warned him that it would be sore for a few days and we reiterated that he would be able to eat ice cream and Popsicles for every meal! I think that part excited him.

Kelly was the lucky one who got to take him to the surgical center. I don't like things of that nature. Anyway, while he was gone Kate and I walked to a nearby party store for some balloons and a stuffed dog (or Sadie, as Katelyn calls it.)

Here he is resting on the couch trying to give me a smile. His request for when he got home was for some juice and to watch Star Wars.

Katelyn was being such a helper! She kept going up to Carson to give him hugs and kisses. She even brought him his juice and tried giving him a bottle of water. It was pretty cute!

Feel better soon Carson!