she's here!

Eden Joelle Zenz has finally arrived. She was born on Wednesday, August 22, 2007 at 12:02 p.m. after a whirlwind labor and delivery. She has, of course, been blessing our lives immensely the last two-and-a-half weeks. Mercy is a wonderful older sister, regularly giving Eden kisses and hugs and saying, "O-tay, Edie" (It's okay, Eden) when she cries or even makes any sound at all. Andy and I are soaking up every moment with our two precious little girls. We've been taken care of so beautifully by our family and community here as we adjust to life as a family of four. Andy's parents and sister were in town the first week of Eden's life. My sister Amy came to visit over Labor Day weekend and my parents (and Amy again!) will be here next weekend. What a joy it is to share this sweet newborn girl with loved ones. Here are some (okay, a lot of) shots from the last few weeks with Miss Eden...or Edie Jo, as we sometimes like to call her.

Moments after Eden's birth.

First kisses from Daddy.

First sister pictures.

Hi, beautiful.

Ten perfect toes.

Adjusting to life outside the womb.

Not a huge fan of the first bath.

Andy, Mercy, and Eden.

Learning how to hold the non-baby doll.

Getting a bit more comfortable.

Hi, Eden.

Family photo before leaving the hospital.

Sisters' hands on the trip home from the hospital.

Andy bonding with his girl: he is 30 years old and she is 30 hours old at the time of this photo.

Welcome to the Zenz clan, Eden.

Hitting the trail with Mom, Dad, and Anna Zenz.

We love to hike!

Check out those dimples! (photo by Anna Zenz)

Love this shot (also taken by Anna).

Yet another great shot by Anna.

Visit from Aunt Amy.

Stretch!

The look-a-like outfits begin...

At the time of this photo, Mercy is just days away from turning two and Eden is two weeks old.

Lovely.

soon and very soon

My husband, the extremely talented photographer, has captured some pretty sweet moments this past week as we count down the days until we meet baby girl #2.

a day in the life of mercy isabel

Here are a few shots of Mercy’s everyday activities lately.

Our friend Ramin brought over an inner tube the other day because he knows Andy loves to tube in Boulder Creek. Mercy helped herself and decided to have a little party in the tube.

She can’t seem to get enough of her cooking set these days. She serves us up all kinds of treats and even enjoyed her own real sandwich while snacking on a pretend tomato during lunch today. She actually took the time to cut up the sandwich into tiny little pieces with her pretend knife and then use the pretend cutting board as a plate while she ate every single bite!

Mercy’s been sleeping like a champ in her toddler bed and is completely fine with the fact that her “old” crib is for the baby. It’s fun to watch her climb into bed on her own, especially on days when she’s soooo ready for her nap and doesn’t even need prompting to start her nap.

we love water

We went to the Boulder Reservoir the other day with our friends Natalie, Lauren, Isaiah, Meggan, and John. We whooped it up and relived fond memories of growing up near lakes in the Midwest. Mercy thoroughly enjoyed herself in the sand and Andy thoroughly enjoyed repeatedly throwing Mercy’s little squealing body way up into the air as they played in the water.

mercy and her buddies

Mercy had a blast at Andy's birthday party. Here she is with some of her friends...

Special moment with Mercy and her friend Jaydn.

Mercy hanging out with her buddy Colton.

Our friend Kelley checks out the action at the batting cages with Mercy.

Mercy joins in on Ramin and David’s conversation.

The lovely Tara Swanson with Mercy.

fun parks are for 30-year-olds

To celebrate Andy's birthday, we went to a fun park nearby with some friends

(Andy’s goal was to not feel 30).

Go-Karts! Will Mercy enjoy it?

Andy certainly does.

It’s confirmed. Mercy’s a fan.

A big one.

andy is 30!

For Andy’s 30th birthday (Finally! I’m no longer alone in the 30s!),
we had a little Zenz party when Andy got home from work.

Andy and Mercy blow out the candles.

Quality time on the couch.

the blessing of girlfriends

My dear friends threw a baby shower a few weekends ago for Karin and me (we’re due the same week). It was such a special morning full of great conversation, fabulous food, prayer, and adorable baby gear, of course. The new baby and I were spoiled immensely by the girls’ generosity. Thank you, beautiful ladies, for such a wonderful time together!

The girls--front row from left: Shauna, Karin
Middle row: Julie, Katie, and me;
Back row: Jenny, Meggan, Jen, Amy, Nat, and Mandy

Love that Julie and Nat so much.

My wonderful friend Meggan.


- Fellow prego buddy Karin.
Some of the women from our Bible study at a recent girls’ night out.
From left: Kelly, Meggan, Nat, Karin, me, and Amy.

loving our friends

This past weekend we got to spend time with our dear friends from Michigan––Terry, Sue, Amanda, Chris, and Kaitlin. We stayed in a cabin with them in Estes Park and had a great time catching up. Then Mercy and I were able to visit with my good friend Johanna and her three kids as she was in town. What a fantastic couple of days we had with treasured friends!

Sue, Amanda, Kaitlin, Chris, Andy, Terry, Mercy, and me

Rocky Mountain National Park

Andy & Mercy at the pool

David, Renee, Johanna, Sam, and Mercy enjoy a book together.

new family video

Here's the latest Zenz family video! This one covers May and June 2007 and features the Zenz extended family. We stayed with Andy's parents for a week and then Andy's brother Aaron and his family came to visit us for a week. It was so fun to see the cousins getting to know each other better and to have some quality family time together. The video also has a tribute to Andy's recovery from his bike accident in May and a quick section that features Mercy's buddy Jase. Enjoy!

making family memories

Sister/Aunt Amy was in town this past weekend and we enjoyed every moment together!

Amy and Mercy having some quality playtime together.

Four weeks to go!

Amy took some photos of the three of us...

...and the two of us.

Love that boy.

Sisters!

more summer fun

We've had a great past week full of all kinds of adventures. Mercy helped Andy put together her new toddler bed, Andy went backpacking with a friend to Crater Lake, and Mercy got to visit our good friend Brady at his beautiful garden here in Boulder.

In on every bit of the action with Daddy.

Andy checks out the amazing view at Crater Lake.

Taking a break from working in the garden to strike a pose with Brady, though Mercy does seem to be a bit more concerned about her purse than anything else.

Helping Brady pull some clover.