A new addition to the family

We're happy to report that, at 3:03am on Monday, October 8th, Clara Emma Franklin Zander was born! She weighed in at 8 lbs. 15 oz. and is 21.5" long. Mama and baby are both doing great, and Molly is super proud to be a big sister. Here are a few pics, more to come...

Reading

Pa & Nana came up for dinner this afternoon causing Molly to go on strike for her nap. (when Zach went in to her bedroom to try to convince her to sleep, the actual quote from Molly was: "I just want to play with you guys.")

(disclaimer - this photo was actually from one of the last times they visited, but was just found on one of the memory cards. Kind of like in the "old days" when you'd finish off a roll of film and find pictures you'd forgotten about. )

Wish List

as Zach noted before, we're in pretty good shape in the "baby things" department. However, there are a few things that we enjoyed last time but don't have this time, either because we borrowed them last time, wore them out, or didn't find out about them until later. And don't forget, we really love used items, hand made gifts, food, and phone calls!

(Note: You can use the comments field to anonymously let us know a gift has been bought. Then we can take it off the list. )

kid camping gear We've got at least two exciting camping trips planned for this summer (one to Slide Ranch & one with Molly's preschool) so I'm looking ahead to getting Molly geared up. She fascinated with sleeping bags & adores our headlamp, so I imagine she'd be thrilled to have her own of either of these things. Sleeping pads and pad couplers are also on our list to buy or rent.

fuzzi bunz (size Large) We're phasing out of the diaper service (thanks so much everyone! I can't believe how generous you all were!) and in to washing our own. When we did this with Molly we started using these lovely fleece "pocket" diapers. We're doing it again with Clara, and hoping to expand our collection a little bit (so we don't have to do laundry as much). They're available on eBay, and on many many diaper websites. They're a tad expensive ($17.95 new) , but just one will go a long, long way! (and yes, Clara is already fitting into size Large. They're a little loose, but they work well)

[August 11, 2008 - lots of changes...]
[Updated October 1, 2007 - clarified diaper service, carseat stroller, & how to tell if a gift has been bought]
[Updated October 2, 2007 - more direction on clothing, per request]
[Updated October 3-21, 2007 - removed items given, added diaper service number, added night-light]
[Updated February 18, 2008 - removed items given/got, added fuzzi bunz]
[Updated February 21, 2008 - added camping gear]

Little Farm Fair

We went to the Little Farm Fair this weekend & Molly got to check out a real tractor & drive a real fire truck ("Actually, I think it's a fire engine" she says) with a real fire fighter. She was a little confused by the ear protection, but game enough to try it.

coming soon... a ficus?

So less than a month until our party of 3 becomes a party of 4! Molly is doing a good job taking care of mama, and is very excited about becoming a big sister. sometimes she thinks it will be a girl, sometimes she says it will be a boy, and the other day she even said it was going to be a plant! regardless of the gender (or species) she thinks it should be named Molly.
Some folks have asked us about gifts for the new baby. we're not having another baby shower - thanks to Molly's stuff we're nearly set in the baby supplies department. Instead we've "registered" again with ABC Diaper Service - you can call them at 510-549-1133 and sponsor any amount of clean cloth diapers for the little baby-to-be (ignore the note on their website about 4-weeks minimum. That's just for initial startup). Please make sure you ask for the account listed under Zach Franklin, and ask them to send us a note so that we can thank you!

[Updated 10-1-07 to clarify no minimum diaper service required]

dinosaur teeth

this is Molly in her dino towel, just seconds before this dinosaur realized that it hurts to brush teeth that are just emerging through the gums ...

(we were wondering if it was preschool, the impending baby, or just being a two year old that was causing her to be so clingy this past week. then we played dentist this morning and I discovered the new molars. ouch! poor girl's got a lot going on right now!)

opa with a pillow-full of molly