Don't forget the dwarven Zest for Battle trait; another +1 on most saves, for a total of +5.
Zen Archer does a good job by itself of making one invulnerable by having great saves.
One rule of thumb that I always follow is this: Don't spend things you cannot buy for things that you can.
You can buy wands. You can even buy your level ranks in UMD. You can't buy progression in Levels of Monk, and access to your higher level abilities as a monk. Stick with monk and buy the spells you need.
Zen Archer does a good job by itself of making one invulnerable by having great saves.
One rule of thumb that I always follow is this: Don't spend things you cannot buy for things that you can.
You can buy wands. You can even buy your level ranks in UMD. You can't buy progression in Levels of Monk, and access to your higher level abilities as a monk. Stick with monk and buy the spells you need.
This is very true. Wand DC is 20. Take Dangerously Curious trait and have cha 10 (actually kinda painful to make it that high...) and keep ranks maxed and you'll have 4 + your level bonus in it. I would dump cha to 7, play a Half-Elf w/ Skill Focus (UMD) and the trait, and just deal with the failure chance until 10th level, where it should be nigh automatic (10 ranks +6 feat +1 trait +3 class skill bonus -2 cha = +18, you need a +19 for autosuccess).
I don't value pre-fight buffing much. Probably because my GM likes to keep me on my toes, and I only get one round if I am lucky. Of course, your mileage may vary.
If you have a wizard buddy, I would buy a Cracked Vibrant Purple Prism Ioun Stone or two and have him cast the spells you need in them. They can be stored until you need them, so he doesn't have to do it every day.
As for progression, delaying levels is even worse for slow progression because you have to wait even longer for your good stuff to happen. Ki points are better than spells for you, and delaying your levels slows down the number of Ki points you get per day. Your bonus feats at 6 and 10 become 7 and 11, your BAB suffers meaning you will hit less.
Of course if you just want the flavor of it and you find that you are already outshining your party members, feel free. The Zen Archer is a very powerful Archetype. I'm currently running an 18th level one and he does just fine. He is human and still only usually misses saves on a 1 or 2. I really don't think you will have a problem there.
Anyway, this is probably better advice than I can give you right now, I found it very informative.
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For Mage Armor, you barely need any UMD. All you have to do is roll a ~16 or above before you roll a 1 - you get as many tries as you need. Alternately, hand it to a wizard and have them buff you. Shield and Gravity Bow are more tricky since they have a much shorter duration, but tbh, it's probably not worth giving up a level in Monk for them.
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I play a dwarf Zen Archer, 25-point build, currently level 8. I have seldom cared about my AC, because the Zen Archer is usually well out of the fray, peppering the bad guys with arrows from afar. The one spell I would wish for is Abundant Ammunition. When I take damage, AC seldom matters; I am usually the victim of area-effect spells. I usually take half damage because I make my saving throw.
If you were playing a melee monk, then I would recommend Empyreal Sorcerer for the spells and the ability to use arcane wands without ever needing to make a UMD check.
In any case, take Improved Precise Shot as your sixth-level bonus feat! Being able to ignore most cover and shoot into melee without penalty is worth more than any other ability I have.