Lena's First Zoo Visit

Portland's famous 51 year old elephant Packy and calf Lily pace the cage together in front of Daddy, mommy, and 20 month old Lena

Oregon Zoo, meet Lena.

How in the world did Kathy and I manage to hold off on baby Lena’s first visit to our local zoo until now?  Like many essential children’s dream destinations… you know, Disneyland, Sea World, Enchanted Forest, the mini-golf course/shooting range in Yemen… it’s debatable whether or not at Lena’s age she would appreciate (or even be aware of) the kid-friendliness of it all.  So we waited.

On the exact day that Lena turned 20 months old, the wait was over.  Lena finally set foot inside of P-Town’s manmade approximation of a natural habitat.

And by set foot, I mean Lena was walking!


Readers of my two earlier Garth's Blog posts, “Breaking News: Lena’s First Steps” and this month's “Lena Gets Moving” are aware of Lena’s late but impressive physical progress.   Check out the adorable video clip of Lena strutting her stuff at the bottom of this post.

In my travels around the globe, I’ve already encountered most of the zoo’s animals in the wild... with ordinary black bears standing in for polar bears, of course.  But the thrilling part here was watching Lena see them for the first time!

Here are some photos of Lena taking in the sights, sounds, and smells of the Oregon Zoo:

Lena looked like a natural sitting behind the wheel of the zoo's resident Jeep Wrangler.

But did I mention that Lena was walking?  The video below (readers using Internet Explorer will need to switch browsers to view this video) showcases just how far Lena advanced in her first week or two of mobility:

Whack the “play” button above for a video of 20 month old Lena showing off her newly discovered walking skills at the Oregon Zoo.  She’s already bursting at the seams with confidence!

Coming next Wednesday on Garth's Blog...

Part 1- This month's attempted visit to China!

Lena Gets Moving

Update: Additional, mostly new photos were added on 5/11/13!

The room fell silent as Lena unexpectedly walked a record 10 steps during our student ministry outreach event last night.  This morning, she took around 30 steps away from her bedroom door!  And her new walking skills were the center of attention this afternoon at the L.A. Fitness "Kids Club" during my workout.

Ever since taking her first steps a few weeks ago (video clip here), Lena has been dominating the floor of every room she lands in.  After all, her earlier attempts to walk have already been drawing crowds for the past 19 months!

Here are few previously unreleased photos from the long journey of Lena getting up and moving:

We're not going back to the very beginning (that would be 9/10/11!), but we have to start somewhere.  At 6 months old, Lena strengthened her neck muscles enough to lift up her head...

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...Then, we propped 8 month old Lena up against a step in our living room...

...And Lena soon developed the core muscles to sit up on her own!





Next, Lena learned to climb up the step in our sunken living room...







...And then, for the first time, she bouldered her way back down!









I'm so glad that I had my camera handy as Lena bravely navigated her first stair!















Then, Lena had to figure out how to crawl...

At 16 months old, we fully expected Lena to be walking already. She continued to try new things, though, like when she tackled the stairs of our rental house in Sunriver.

That same weekend in Sunriver (The story of Brent and Cheryl's wedding is here and here), Lena mastered the art of letting go with one hand while standing.



Lena eventually learned to briefly stand on her own, to bounce while standing, and to take a few steps while holding onto the hand of a grown-up.


As most readers know by now, this all led to Lena's big, long awaited moment last month:

The day Lena took her first steps!

We're taking Lena to the Portland Zoo tomorrow to celebrate her turning 20 months old.  Now that she's occasionally on her feet, my load just got 24 lbs lighter!

Coming next weekend on Garth's Blog...

A photo-filled Mother's Day tribute to Kathy!!

Video: Breaking News- Lena's First Steps!

Minutes after our first glimpse of Lena's first steps, our 19 month old shows off her hands-free walking skills to Daddy!

Good things come to those who wait.  And wait.  And wonder when baby steps towards progress will turn into actual baby steps.

Kathy and I have waited 19 months for this day, and it's finally here!  Our family and friends have been walking Lena around by our fingertips for months.  All the while, we've been fending off requests from Lena's pediatrician to schedule appointments with a neurodevelopmental specialist.  Nah!

What took Lena so long? Was she too tall?  No, but her 34" height DOES place her in the 95th percentile of 19 month old babies.

Did she lack physical stamina?  No way. She always has energy to spare!

The most likely reason that we're just now witnessing Lena's first steps is... Lena finally decided to show the world what she can do.  Watch out, world.  It's on!!

Sometime in the next few weeks, I'll dedicate an entire Garth's Blog post to previously unseen pictures of Lena getting ready for what happened this evening.  In the meantime, enjoy a video of this God-given historic occasion:

Hit the "play" button above for a video of a momentarily fussy Lena showing off some of her first baby steps this evening!

Coming tomorrow night on BlogSpot...

Home from Colombia, Leaving for Switzerland!

And then...

Milan, Italy!!