Playing in the rain!

Gavin loves water! He doesn't care if it is a tiny mud puddle, a bathtub, Two Mile Park, Franklin YMCA, or rain pouring off his house. The first round of swimming lessons will end on Monday and we are already geared up for the next round, which will start the following week. We are also very excited because Carter and Aunt Kami will be joining us! Hopefully we will be able to carpool some and have great conversations on the way. Can't wait to see both boys splashing and having fun together.

Gavin stayed at Grandma and Grandpa's twice in the last week (bachelorette party and mommy and daddy's anniversary) and while there one evening Gavin got to play in puddles after it rained. He had a blast splashing until there was no water left. He would move on to another rock and smack only to find out that not all rocks have water in them. He wouldn't get discouraged he just moved on until he found one that was full of the wet stuff.

Again this week when it rained and Gavin was lucky enough to have 2 Grandma's at his house for a visit, and of course playing during a rain (even a little thunder) was A-OKAY in their book. Here are some shots of Gavin enjoying a good rain (quickly followed by a warm bath)!

Here is how it started...Gavin's love for puddles that is.
Spending the day with Grandma and playing after a good rain.

Oliver, our Chesapeake Bay Retriever who is supposed to be a water dog, only ventured off the porch when his toy was thrown and needed rescued. Ollie just couldn't believe that Gavin was out in the inclement weather by choice!
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First BIG booboo

Gavin took a big tumble on a concrete porch and ended up with quite the mark. He didn't cry a ton when it happened or when it was cleaned. He is a tough cookie! He does resemble Gorbachev despite the fact it is on the opposite side. Gavin is healing well and has taken a few dive bombs since. I think this is the first of many big booboos for this boy!







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Great big house...now what

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Well we have this great big beautiful house and I have no clue how to start decorating. I am trying to hang pictures and decide what my decorating style is like, and this is sure a whole lot harder than I imagined. We have all this space and I have no clue where to start. I'm sure I will look back in ten years and think "holy cow where did all this stuff come from" or " how did we fill this house so quickly". But for right now it is wide open with possibilities.

We did make a purchase for our living room recently... new couch and love seat! Gavin really enjoyed helping mommy and daddy set up the new furniture. He is very proud of his ability to get on and off all by himself and to push on the cushions. Notice I said new furniture and I didn't mention expensive. We really wanted something that looked nice but didn't cost a ton since it would be drooled, climbed, and played upon. Needless to say the new stuff is a hit with our little monkey.

Helping daddy put the legs on.

Well, we still need tables and pictures and our fireplace put in but it is a start!

Father's Day

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We celebrated Father's Day with a trip to the Pittsburgh Zoo and had a blast! We saw many great animals. I would have to say that Gavin's favorite was the Lion. He was roaring and making a lot of great noises that really grabbed Gavin's attention. It was a hot day but a ton of fun. Gavin napped through the aquarium and really enjoyed his first trip to the zoo. Afterward we ate dinner at Smokey Bones...yummy! Great dads, great company, great day!

Gavin and Carter hanging by the camel at the zoo...after naps! :)

Checking out the gorillas with Grandpa!

Lunch and a break with daddy

In the elephant house with mommy!
Pretty funny picture of mommy but awfully cute of Gavin!

Summertime!

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I have always enjoyed warm weather and time off from work or school but this summer is better than ever. Despite my complaints about Gavin waking up too early, I truly enjoy my mornings with my boy. Our day starts about 5:15 or even as late at 6:15 on a really good day. I normally try to snuggle him in our rocking chair or bring him to our bed for a little more rest, rarely does he fall asleep, but just staying in bed feels better. We like to have our breakfast together around 7am. Gavin loves blueberry waffles, English muffins, Kix, cornflakes, cheerios, and fruit. As long as I don't include eggs or oatmeal we do pretty well.

For the first few weeks of summer Gavin and I are participating in Waterbabies, a swim class for wee ones at the Franklin Y. We have had 2 classes so far and it has been a blast. The first class Gavin was a bit sceptical and acted afraid and clingy in the pool. I can guarantee is wasn't the water temperature as they keep it about 92 degrees...I'm not exaggerating at all. Gavin is comfortable since that is just about what I set his bathtub for each night. Miss Carol, the instructor, is so kind and gentle. There are about 6 other kids in his class who also attend with their mommies. Our second class went much better he was super eager to get right in the water and even kicked his feet when I said the word. He wanted to drink the pool and took in a little too much a few times but he will learn. Gavin would really like to figure out how to blow bubbles but for now he is happy with licking the water and smiling his devilish SMILE. Gavin is the youngest all the way up to nearly 3 years old. We have learned how to get in and out safely, kick, reach and pull, jump in with a TON of help, float on our back with mommy's help of course, and to swim after cool pool toys. We have 6 more classes left and hopefully I will come away a lot more comfortable with Gavin in the pool and hopefully Gavin will love the water and start to become part fishy. What a great class for new mom's and their toddlers!

The rest of our days contain a lot of play in and outdoors. Gavin likes to eat dirt and rocks, walk in the grass, ride in the stroller, and play toys on the front porch. One of his all time favorite outside activities is playing with our dog, Oliver. He enjoys holding dog toys and having Oliver run up to him, he laughs so hard he nearly falls over. Oliver seems to equally enjoy this game and attention. Ollie is dealing with hair pulls and wild pets, and Gavin is dealing with a big stinky dog kisses now and again. I believe this to be a wonderful friendship and partnership in mischief. (Going to try to capture this play on video to share.)

Indoors is fun too! Gavin is almost always walking now and rarely drops down to crawl. Occasionally if he needs to "bust a move" after something he shouldn't have he will get down and go, go, go but mostly he is on two feet these days and getting quicker and quicker! By fall I think out new favorite game will be CHASE. He loves his cozy coupe and new birthday chairs. He is so proud to be able to get in and out of his new chairs on his own. We have a tent set up by the big window upstairs and it is so fun to hide inside. Gavin enjoys talking on his phone or really anything you can hold up to your ear and pretend to be like mommy and daddy. Of course beating on our printer and climbing on top of it whenever mom turns her back is still HUGE fun, lil stinker! Gavin is a busy boy and has a bit of a temper when he doesn't get to do things his way....there is no way that he got that from Kevin or I.

His stubbornness carries over into meal time for sure! If it comes on a baby spoon you might as well not even bother. He loves meat, cheese, fruit, bread, cereal, or really anything he can pick up by himself. He looks at you as if to say, "I can do it me self!!", with total attitude. Vegetables are not something that Gavin would really like to have anything to do with. I haven't found a way to consistently get him to eat any veggie. He might like peas one night and the very next they are the most repulsive thing he has ever experienced and he will let you know about it. My new plan of attack may sound disgusting but I have full faith that it will be successful....mixing veggies with fruit! Thanks to a dear friend (Nikki) and mom (Wendy), the plan is to mash canned vegetables (no salt added) with soft fruit like banana, strawberry, or maybe even pineapple. I am confident that this will work; wish me luck!

Gavin has always enjoyed a good nap between 10-12 but that schedule just doesn't work for mommy. Since swimming and other activities occur between those hours I have been working on changing when Gavin naps to after lunch or a quick nap in the AM and long one after lunch. It is actually starting to work! We have had rough days with no nap or falling asleep in our lunch but today has been our biggest success (the reason why I have actually been able to blog)! Gavin ate lunch at Grandma Wendy's after playing with his favorite cousin, Carter, and fell asleep before we passed Aunt Kami and Uncle Josh's drive, which is about 2 minutes in the car. This was at 11:30 and it is now 2 and he is still asleep.

One long wonderful nap= a well rested happy Gavin and calm, cool, collected mommy who actually had a few minutes to herself.

Well, before I run out of time I will post this blog and clean up before my buddy is up and ready to go, go, go! Thinking of all of our friends and family and hoping to spend some quality time with you this summer! Hope your days are full of sunny fun like ours!

Tubby time (pre haircut)

Check out that MOHAWK! Yes, Gavin had an awesome hawk and still does even though it has been trimmed. Gavin's hair seems to be coming in the through the middle and gradually the sides are catching up but for most of his life of nearly 13 months he has been able to ROCK THE HAWK. I thought I would shared for it won't be long till his hair is all grown in. Since these pictures were taken Gavin has stopped using the bath chair and is now a free man in the tub, which he loves more any any other part of his day. Also since these were taken he has had his first "hairs cut" and boy does he look handsome and mature. Okay welll she really only trimmed the curls in the back and the wings on the sides but that was plenty for a mommy who things her boy is already growing up too quickly. Hair cut pictures and video will be forthcoming!

Birthday!

What a difference one year makes! So hard to believe in the blink of an eye Gavin turned into a little boy! His party was a great celebration of his wonderful first year. Here are some pictures to capture the day.