Woohoo! Zooey turned 1 year old today!! Here are some photos from the family party we had today. She did pretty well...she was in a pleasant mood the whole time and didn't get cranky until after the guests left, which, in my opinion, shows great consideration and maturity.

Below: Zooey is chatting with Grandma Janelle.

Here's the robot "cake," which is actually assembled from a bunch of cupcakes and iced repeatedly to fill in the gaps. It turned out reasonably well, I think, except for a slightly disjointed shoulder joint which I couldn't seem to do anything about. I figure he's one of those post-apocalyptic robots who got injured fighting a band of psychotic oil thieves. Oh, the things he's seen, man. The things he's seen.

Here's the whole table set-up. (Thanks to Aunt Emily for the awesome robot plate! She must be psychic because I'm pretty sure I never told her the theme of the party.)

Zooey with her very first present, a little velvety car that her dad and I got for her. She hasn't figured out the rolling part yet, but she likes to chew on the wheels.

Zooey and her stash.

And now the obligatory birthday cake event. Here's Zooey eagerly awaiting her dessert.

...and here she is halfway through the cupcake...

...and here she is afterwards. Notice the blue fingers and the glazed expression. Sugar rush in 3....2.....1.....

She then had the energy to ride this sweet rocker and giggle for about 30 minutes.

From left to right, Grandma Jan, Grandpa Jerry, Zooey, Grandma Janelle, and Papa Joe.

Taking a minute to pose with Mommy.

Guess who just graduated to the Big Girl Bath? And yes, she's still wearing her Transformers party hat.

That's three tiny steps for Zooey, one giant leap for . . . um . . . Zooeykind.

(Cue confetti)

So I've fallen behind a bit on the holiday photos. I posted Thanksgiving photos on Christmas, and now, several weeks after the start of the new year, I'm posting our Christmas-related photos. The best I can say is, sorry about that. Looking after a baby is exhausting, and most evenings I'd just rather play Dragon Age: Origins than mess around on the computer.

So yeah. Anyway, here are some fun holiday pictures, yo, beginning with this cool one of Zooey having a conversation with her Great Grandma Vaughn.

Here's Zooey in the high chair at Grandma Jan's and Grandpa Jerry's house, waiting for the Christmas grub and for the eggnog that, sadly, would never arrive.

Hanging out with Grandpa Jerry on Christmas Eve.

And opening presents. "Hooray, this is just what I wanted!"

At home with her stocking and the toys that came in it.

Here's one at Grandma Janelle's and Papa Joe's house. This present must have seemed like a mountain to Zooey.

Between presents, with bow.

Here's one with the fabulous rocking horse that Papa Joe picked out for Zooey. I have a feeling she's going to LOVE this when she gets a bit older.

"Thanks, Great Aunt Sheryl!"

All decked out at Grandma and Grandpa Vaughn's house.

None of these presents can compare with the simple bliss of Grandpa's watch.

Here are a couple of shots of Zooey wearing a gorgeous poncho knit by my Aunt Judy.

Here's a good one showing the poncho from the back. See the adorable hood?

This has nothing whatsoever to do with Christmas, but I'm including it because it's awesome. Over the holidays we paid a visit to our local Habitat Restore place, and in the back was this fabulous door, set in a frame just like in Monsters Inc. It made me want to buy it and put it in my house just the way it is pictured, only with the addition of a few pink flower decals, like in the movie.

The Family in Black. Here we all are in our Johnny Cash shirts, because when it comes down to it, we're all walking the line. (Except for the baby. She can't walk yet.)

And now the last one. Have you ever eaten so much that you just couldn't stay awake any longer? I know someone who has.

Okay, so not all of these are strictly HOLIDAY pictures, but sue me. They're cute.

Here's one from a few weeks ago. Seems like every time I try to snap a picture, Miss Z makes a beeline for the camera.

We thought it'd be fun to let Zooey play with one of the saucepans, so she'd have something to do while Mommy and Daddy were preparing meals. Guess what she did with it, first thing? Hmm...it's shiny...it must be a hat!

This is just a cute picture of Zooey wearing a corduroy jumper that my Aunt Judy made for me when I was a baby (*sniff, sniff). Still looks gorgeous!

Here is Zooey on Turkey Day eagerly awaiting her food. This was shortly before she ejected her pureed turkey dinner out through her nostrils. Ouch!

Zooey tickling the ivories (with a little help) on Turkey Day.

These days, the old way of carrying around a pacifier just won't do. Now is the time for innovation. Now is the time to think outside the box.

Here's Zooey balancing upright. And with the striped pants, doesn't the coat look a bit like a flamboyant pimp coat? All she needs is a jewel-encrusted cane.

Helping Daddy wrap presents. We call this one, "I love it when a plan comes together."

Here's Miss Z trying out the rocking horse my Uncle Joe made for me when I was a kid. Still in working order, apparently!

Yes, she does have a proper bathtub. But it's so much cuter to see her in the sink. So there.