Happy Memorial Day

Today I was called off work (the first 8 hours at least!), so we decided to head to the park for a picnic! We picked up Salsa Chicken (Yummy Mexican) and headed to Kevin Moran park in Saratoga (So we could take Shadow, Grandma and Grandpa's dog...they are out of town). We sat in the sun and G crawled around...and loved it. He of course loved his picture taken...such a smiley boy for the camera...and you can see he is giving me kisses in some pictures. He also go to play in the sand, which is his new favorite thing to do. We have to watch him VERY closely, as every 2 or 3 minutes he will eat a big handful of sand. Someone once told me that once they eat it and figure out that it does not taste good, they will stop. YEAH RIGHT! Every chance he gets, he eats it. Over and over. He does not mind the taste or texture, in fact I think he really enjoys it. Funny little guy!

Sick Baby?

Today has been a LOT better than last night. Gavin woke up last night multiple times and cried. I knew he sounded different, and knew he must be getting a little cold. Poor thing had a snotty nose and seemed like he was miserable. He just cried until I held him. His nose was too stuffed up to nurse, so he just cried and cried every time he tried to eat. Finally Derek went out to a 24hr CVS to get some Tylenol at 4am! We were out because of the stupid recall...and I never replaced it! Anyways, Derek got home and we gave him some Tylenol...and by 6am Gavin was exhausted. He FINALLY fell asleep in my arms while singing "You are my sunshine" as we watched the sun come up...

I was up ALL night with him crying, so I called in sick to work. First time I have had to call in because of a sick baby...and I am SURE not the last!

Today Gavin has felt a LOT better, almost seems like he is back to himself. Minus the snotty nose. He has been a happy baby as long as he is held and given a LOT of attention. We managed to make it out for a walk and picnic at the park. Gavin loved that he got to eat a few french fries:)

"Da-Da"

Tonight we headed to Taqueria Telaquepaque, our very favorite Mexican restaurant. Derek and I have been going there for quite some time, and Gavin has been with us a lot too...but this time was different because we got to sit Gavin in a high chair (because he is a BIG boy now, and will not sit in his car seat!) AND we got to feed him some good old chicken tacos! I just picked out the chicken, rice, pinto beans, and avocado, and Gavin was in heaven. He quickly started to shove all the food in his mouth and was laughing while doing so. Of course we had to laugh at this, it was pretty funny! I would say that he ate quite a bit, and probably would have had more if we sat there longer.

On the way home, Derek got Gavin to say "da-da" on command, over and over. It was the first time that he has done this! So now he is saying "da-da" on command and waving hi and bye-bye on command. Highlight of my day was looking in my rear view mirror and seeing Derek's big smile while getting Gavin to say "da-da." It was so sweet. I love these boys so much:)

A day in the life

Gavin and I had a pretty busy day today. Here is how our day went:

6am-Gavin awake for the day. Derek got up with him so I could sleep another hour. NICE!

7-9am-Nurse, eat breakfast, play, read, listen to music, crawl around, put laundry in, walk around, fold laundry, sing songs, play with tupperware, prepare part of dinner, pack diaper bag for the day, change diaper, play in bedroom, play in our bedroom, play with Arnold.

9am-Nurse and nap. I catch up on email/blogs/work email.

11am-G wakes up and we head to library story time. Gavin crawls around the room as all the other babies sit in their mom's lap...Gavin gets into the librarians toy box BEFORE its time, and starts shaking the rattles. Oh well! We stay at the library for stay and play afterwards. Gavin keeps crawling up to a lady (someones grandma) and wants to be held by her! So cute, and she is in heaven. I just laugh. Then G puts his head DOWN ON HER SHOULDER! For those of you who know Gavin, this is very rare...he never sits still! I think he misses both of his grandma's!

12:30-Home, nurse, lunch, play, more laundry, phone calls, finish dinner so it is ready for later, attempt a walk but it is starting to rain, listen to music, watch 2 minutes of baby Einstein, crawl around the house, chase me around the house, play with blocks.

2:30-Nurse and nap. I get a bunch of phone calls made about the back yard (We need someone to come demo the cement pad that was left under the spa...) I find someone and he says he will come later to do an estimate. I also start ironing and sweep the floor full of Gavin's mess from lunch.

4:15-Gavin awake, we leave to go to Raj's house. (Raj is Gavin's friend from my mom's group) We get there and G gets to play with Raj, Aiden, Patrick, and Brent. They are all born within a few months of each other. While the babies "play," us mom's get to chat:) It is nice because they are all in the same stage...and its fun to see them interact!

5:55-Get home, meet the concrete guy (who was waiting), chat with him, go inside and nurse G, fix dinner, eat dinner just the 2 of us (Daddy was working late), play around the house, finish ironing, play with tupperware, do dishes, Gav chases the big red ball around the house, bath, and stories and singing.

7:30-Nurse and G goes to sleep! Right as this happens, Derek walks in the door. We relax, have a drink, and watch TV:)

Nice day with G, now I am tired!

*The last picture is Gavin waving bye-bye! He will wave hi and bye-bye now...it is SO DARN CUTE! He also will do it at inappropriate times, like when HE wants to leave...he did it to the cement guy because he was getting fussy and hungry...so he started waving at the man! HA! The man was like "I guess he wants me to leave!" haha!

Grandma and Grandpa

We had Grandma and Grandpa over tonight for dinner. Gavin LOVES spending time with them...they are so great to him! We had wild tilapia topped with organic squash and carrots, quinoa, and watermelon! It was pretty good, and Gavin liked it too! This was his first taste of fish...but I am pretty sure all he cared about was the watermelon!

Lil' Romeo

I know, I know, I can't believe that I put this shirt on him either. I am not sure where I got this, but I was going through Gavin's clothes today to put away all the 9 month clothes and get the rest of the 12 month stuff out. 12 MONTHS! I can't believe that either! When did my little baby get so big? Anyways, I had to out this shirt on him. Add the cutest smile you have ever seen and it is priceless:)

How To

Here is Daddy teaching Gavin how to install a dishwasher and disposal. As you can see, Gavin is a really big help;) He is in heaven getting to "work" with dad's tools:) I think he is most happy about getting to spend time with his dad.

Sneak Peek

Here is Derek putting in the new dishwasher...with Gavin's help of course! This is a little sneak peek of our great new kitchen...I want to wait to do before and after shots when every last bit is done. Everything Gavin ever needs to know about this stuff he will learn from the best:)

9 Month Check-Up

Today Gavin had his 9 month check-up, and everything went very well. It was at 2pm, Right when he needed to nap, so I ended up having to wake him up...NEVER fun to wake a sleeping Gavin! He was a little grumpy at first, but as soon as he saw that I brought a snack, he was fine! Haha go figure!

We saw a new doctor, Dr Singh, because Gavin's primary doctor is on maternity leave. Dr Singh was VERY nice and very experienced. He took the time to read up on Gav's history, and came in knowing everything from birth on up...it is not a lot to know, but it is still nice not having to explain the milk protein allergy from start.

We talked about the possibility of introducing dairy to my diet to see if Gavin has outgrown the intolerance yet. I am still not sure if I want to do this, as everything is going so well. I guess we will see...Cheese pizza does sound so good right now! Hopefully he does not have a bad reaction, as most babies outgrow it by about 9-12 months.

Dr. Singh also ordered a CBC (complete blood count) to check his blood levels. It is routine at this age, and I also was a little concerned about the bruises on his lower legs. His CBC came back completely normal, some of the levels even a little high, which is just perfect! (this proves that my breast milk is all he needs, and he does not need extra iron).

Sr. Singh said that Gav is right where he needs to be, and doing just great! I love to hear this:)

Here are the 9mo stats:

weight-19.8lbs (27th percentile)
height-29.5in (85th percentile)
head circ-46.3 (76th percentile)

I was a little bit shocked that he was not over 20 pounds...he feels SO heavy to me! Haha! Dr. Singh said that this is about the age where breastfed babies start to thin out as they are on the move and not requiring as much milk...but by no means do I think that G is "thinning out" ! ! !

Here is what Gavin is up to:

-Sits completely unsupported.

-Stands while holding on to furniture, lean forward, bends, rolls, and stands on his own for a few seconds. Craws EVERYWHERE.

-Picks up very small objects, transfers from each hand, and everything ends up in mouth. Gav has some GREAT gross and fine motor skills!

-Says Dadadadada...not on command, but babbles it all the time. Also babbles Babababa. Sometimes he will wave Bye-Bye.

-Loves peek-a-boo. Sometimes he really gets scared though, and startles easy...he gets this from me!

-Crawls toward me when he feels like I will leave him or is uncomfortable with others. Definitely separation anxiety when he is away from me.

-Eats table foods, mostly everything we eat. It is a great way for us to eat healthier, because I want him to be healthy!

-Drinks water from a sippy cup with meals. He holds it on his own now, this makes him look SO big!

-Loves to chase balls around the house...and Arnold. He LOVES animals.

-Loves to listen to music, and loves to be sung to.

We Miss You!

Oh I always get so sad the first few days we get back from our trip to Cincinnati. Gavin and I had so much fun with everyone, and I really wish we did not have to be so far apart. I do this every time we go back...and it NEVER gets any easier. If anything, as the kids are growing up, it just gets harder. Thank you Grandma, Grandpa, Erica, Scott, cousin Griffin, and cousin Annabel for spending the last 2 weeks with us and showing us such a great time. We miss you guys...Lots of big wet slobbery kisses from G!

Together Again

Today we got home from our little vacation, and Gavin was very excited to be home! He was even more excited to see his Daddy and Grandma Dayle:) He charged around the house, like it was a brand new place, and he loved the open space in the brand new kitchen! Yep, we have a BRAND NEW KITCHEN! Derek (and Grandma & Grandpa) worked VERY hard while we were gone to completely re-do our kitchen! It is SO nice. I feel like I am dreaming!

Gavin refused to take a nap this afternoon because he was so excited to be home. He was a very happy baby and even stayed up until 8pm (11pm Ohio time!). He had a few wake-up's in the middle of the night, and cried, but soon realized that everything was OK and fell back asleep.

I will post pictures of the new kitchen as soon as it is all done. There are still a few little things to be done...until then, Gavin and I will be doing a LOT of cooking in our gourmet kitchen:)

Butterfly Show + Last Day

Today we went to the Butterfly Show at Krohn's Conservatory. Griffin and Gavin loved to look at all the butterfly's and see them fly around. Gavin of course wanted to eat them, so we had to be very careful not to let him touch! The boys also loved to look at the waterfalls and all the plants...and Gavin even picked a few...oops! It was so fun to spend the day with Grandma, Erica, Griffin and Annabel. I wish we could be together all the time! It was a perfect last day in Cincinnati:)

{Gavin 9 Months}

Dear Baby Gavin,

I am going to call you baby Gavin because I am scared that I will not be able to do that much longer! You turn 9 months old today, and we get to celebrate it in Ohio with your family here. You have been having a really great time here...you especially love to spend time with your Grandma and cousin Griffin. It makes your mommy get a little sad because she wishes that we were closer.

You are now a professional crawler, and you pull up on everything. You go very fast and sometimes (most of the time) you get ino things that you are not supposed to have. You have learned that it is not very fun being told "no" so now you whine and cry when you dont get your way. Uh oh! You love to bang your arms on everything, and "talk" to whatever you are playing with.

You continue to drool all over everything, so much that you have a rash on your neck and chin. We try to keep it dry, but the drool is non-stop. You also still eat everything, all the time. We cannot take our eyes off of you for more than 5 seconds. I am pretty sure you have consumed a leaf, dirt, bugs, string, paper, and countless other "things" that you are not supposed to eat. If it is on the ground you will try to eat it. (yes, we vaccume and sweep all the time, you will find things even after the house is clean!)

You are 9 months now, so you like to eat mostly table food. We give you whatever we are eating, so now I really have to make sure that WE are eating healthy:) You have now had whole wheat pasta, turkey, rice noodles, raisins, potato, cranberry sauce, apple sauce (the Jarred kind) and you have had your first few tastes of fast food. I know, I was not planning to give you fast food, btu we were out and we had it...so we gave you some! The first was a french fry and chicken from Wendy's. You liked it. Ok you loved it. The next was Skyline spaghetti and chili. You loved this as well. We are on vacation, I figure its ok!

You are about 20 pounds. Maybe more. You seem pretty heavy to me! We will see soon as you have your 9 month appointment when we get back home in a few weeks.

You are still nursing about 5 times a day, and I am so happy about this! This time we spend together is so special to me. I was so foucused on exclusively breastfeeding for the first year, and now that 9 months have passed, it seems like one year is coming too soon! You also get to drink water from your sippy cup and you get really excited, but then you choke on the water because you are too excited:)

Being away from Daddy and Grandma for this long has been hard. On you and your Mom. You get to talk to him on the phone each day, and you smile so big. Then you look around for him, and then you try to eat the phone. Surprise surprise.

Summertime

Summertime at Grandma's house involves:

1. A hose on a hot day.
2. A naked baby and naked toddler.
3. A puddle to splash in.
4. A backyard swing.
5. Dirt, leaves, and rocks to play with. In Gavin's case, to eat.
6. Rice crispy treats for dessert!

*Notice how Gavin is crawling on the driveway. He crawled on his hands and feet, like a monkey. Not sure if it was because it was rough on his knees or because it was cold and wet. We were laughing pretty hard!

Cincinnati ZOO!

Today we decided that it was a good day to go to the Cincinnati Zoo! The weather forecast said a chance of rain, and 80 degrees...so we thought we would chance it. It turned out to be a beautiful day (minus the humidity) and it was nice and sunny!

Gavin's favorite was probably the cat house. Since he has a cat (and LOVES him) I knew he would like to look at the kitty's. He just studied them the entire time we were there. The next place he liked was the insect house (Griffin's favorite). He would just study the bugs that moved around...and occasionally he tried to grab them. Griffin even go to "pet" a little hissing roach (I know, sounds nasty, and it was...but Griffin thought it was cool:) We got to see polar bears, black bears, monkeys, gorillas, birds, elephants, giraffes, insects, turtles, and an armadillo. Gav especially liked watching the armadillo because he ran so fast!

We at lunch at the zoo...any guesses where??? Yep, Skyline! Gavin had his first taste of a coney. Of course he liked it, and Griffin? He ate an ENTIRE cheese coney himself:)

After lunch we headed to the train. Gavin was getting a little bit bored of being held or in the stroller, but as soon as we got on the train, he was mesmerized! Both him and Griffin LOVED the train, and just watched everything we would pass by.

At the end of the day (for us that is 1:30pm) Gavin fell asleep in the stroller while eating his snack. It was really fun to take them to the zoo! Thanks Erica, Griffin and Grandma:)

LaRosa's Love

Tonight we ordered LaRosa's for dinner. LaRosa's is one of the best places to get pizza and spaghetti in Cincinnati. G had never had spaghetti before...and of course he would not stop eating it! The pictures show just how much he liked it! Griffin of course loves it, and had an entire bowl full!

First Taste of Skyline!

Here is Gavin enjoying his first 2-way. I was not sure he would like the chili on the spaghetti...who was I kidding?! This boy will eat anything. He loved it. I am pretty sure that I ate this over 10 times while I was pregnant. I have eaten it my whole life! As his Grandma says, Gavin is a "true Cincinnati boy!"

First Mother's Day

Today we celebrated Mother's day by just hanging out at home. We woke up and Grandpa made us Brunch. Then we spent the afternoon just relaxing and napping. After Gavin woke up from his nap, we headed to Lunken "Land of Make Believe" where we got to play with cousin Griffin. Gavin and Griffin got to swing and play...and of course Gavin tried to eat leaves and sticks. Ahh! He loves to eat everything and its a full time job just watching him!

For dinner Grandpa made a very yummy Turkey dinner. It was delicious. All dairy free, and perfect! We were so spoiled! We also got to open our Mother's Day cards that Derek sent. He overnight shipped them so that we would get them in time. It was so sweet. We have some really great men in our lives:)

Celebrating my first Mother's Day was very special to me. Being a mommy to Gavin has been a dream come true. No other way to describe it, Dream Come True. I love this little man more than life itself. Pure joy when I see his face. Thank you God for giving me a chance to be Gavin's Mommy:)

Griffin's Firetruck Birthday

Griffin had a firetruck 2nd birthday party and everyone had a really great time! There was a real firetruck and Griffin got to sit in the front seat...he was in heaven. We unfortunately arrived an hour late because Gavin was taking a nap during the first part of the party...and we NEVER wake up a sleeping G!

I still can't believe that "baby G" is 2! He is such a big boy now, says so many words, and does so much. He is such a sweet and sensitive boy. He will give you hugs and kisses. He will pat you on the back if you are sad. He will "help" you do whatever you are doing. He will repeat ANY word that you say. He knows the word "no" and is not afraid to use it. He is gentle with Gavin, and shares with him. He is just getting so big so fast...It really seems like yesterday that I was flying here to Cincinnati to surprise Erica when she went into labor with Griffin...While it is SO exciting to see him getting so much bigger...it also makes me a little sad that my Godson Griffin is growing up so fast! ::sigh::

We got to see Gavin's Great Gma and Gpa, Great Uncle Beth and Great Uncle Eric, and all of Gavin's "cousins." (Wiley, Jack, Calvin, and Daniel) There was a lot of little ones at the party, and Gavin had a blast crawling around. Griffin had a firetruck cake, and right after he blew out the candles, he stuck his entire mouth in the cake...we all laughed, so Griffin thought it was hysterical! It was so cute!

Happy 2nd Birthday Griffin!

Today is Griffin's second birthday, and we asked him what he wanted for his birthday dinner. He said "Pi-Pu" which means pizza...So we headed to Mio's Pizzeria for dinner! It was so nice because we got to walk there from Erica and Scott's new house!

Don't worry, Gavin and Griffin did not consume any beer during these pictures! Gavin LOVES to suck on everything, including beer bottles:) And of course Griffin wanted to do what Gavin was doing:)

Fun in Cincy!

Gavin and I have been in Cincy for almost a week now, and he has been SO busy! Since we have been here Gavin has had SO much to play with, look at, and people to love...he has not been able to sit still! His "schedule" of nap time and bedtime is a little off (this always happens when we travel) But he has been in a pretty good mood even with less sleep! We have been hanging out at Grandma's house, going to the park, going on walks, playing with all of Griffin's toys, and much more! Griffin is so sweet to Gavin, lets him play with his toys, and even gives him kisses:) Gavin sure thinks he is a "big boy" along side Griffin...It is so cute!

We have been staying at Grandma and Grandpa's house, and Gavin sure gets a TON of attention! He loves to give Grandma kisses and play peek-a-boo with Grandpa:)

Little Traveler...

My little traveler and I are headed to San Francisco airport in an hour! I am hoping that he does as well as he always does with the big travel! He said his goodbyes to his Daddy this morning, and it made me so sad! G loves his daddy so much, and WE will miss him! BUT Daddy will be pretty busy renovating our NEW KITCHEN, so we are all excited!

Thanks Grandma for taking us to the airport! We sure will miss you! We promise to call so Gav can "talk" to you:)

Fun Saturday

We started our Saturday off with me sleeping in!!! I did not sleep very well last night, so Derek hung out with G while I slept in a little later than normal...I got to sleep to 8 AM! Ha, kinda funny that 8 AM is sleeping in...sheesh, when did I get so old!

I woke up to G riding around in his car...He LOVES to be pushed in this thing!

After Gavin's morning nap we decided to head to the cabinet place in Sunnyvale to order our new kitchen! We finally decided on what we wanted, and ordered the cabinets and granite! They will get here in a week, so Derek will get started while we are gone. After I nursed G in the car, we wanted to eat lunch, but did not feel like driving somewhere else (OK, Gavin did not feel like getting BACK in the carseat), so we just put G in the stroller and walked over to Costco for lunch:) I know sounds gross, but its my favorite place to eat sometimes:) Why? Yes, because I get to eat a hot dog:) (absolutely NO dairy in those!) We sat on the patio and ate in the sunshine...while Gavin feasted on carrots, banana and puffs.

When we got home, Gavin and I walked over to the park to meet my friend Angie, and her daughter Kaylin. We were only at the park for a little while, and left to come home so G could crawl around (He can't really do at the park because it is wood chips and he eats them the entire time!) So Angie and Kaylin came back here so G could play without eating everything he is not supposed to:) Kaylin was so so adorable...she is a little over 3 months and so sweet...she fell asleep in Angie's arms while we were talking:) I snapped a picture of her and Gavin got so excited and started crawling towards me and fell off the step in the kitchen...right on his poor face:) Poor boy, he will learn soon!