Gavin's First Halloween

You might say Gavin is a little bit too young for Halloween. Perhaps. But he's not too young to be dressed up in cute outfits so that we can take gobs of pictures celebrating his first halloween. Here are a handful of pictures of this "first"...


We went to the Fall Family Festival at our church. Gavin dressed up like a horse, although some were sure that he was a giraffe and others call him a cow. I guess they missed the mane running down his back. Besides you can't expect too much from a $10 WalMart costume. Tony and I didn't have the energy (or forethought) to be creative with our costumes.


Gavin likes people and is soaking in everything around him so he enjoyed the evening. He skipped his early evening nap in order to not miss a thing. We paid for it though-- he screamed all the way home, obviously beside himself with exhaustion and overstimulation. A little bit of rocking and swaddling and he slowly recovered but mom made note for future occasions such as this one-- be careful not to overstimulate. Live and learn.



In other news, Gavin is enjoying life. He's pretty easy going and now that we're working on a regular routine he's fussing less and less at his sleepy times. He's even sleeping more and more at night which we consider a miracle. As organized and planned as I like to be I never thought I'd put my child on a schedule. But now I fully appreciate the beauty of a schedule and what consistency means to a child. Hopefully my other anal tendencies will not be passed along. There are some that might not be as helpful.

Please nevermind the droool in this picture. It's one of his favorite pass times. He's been drooling for several weeks, but lately some of his behaviors are making me wonder if he's beginning to teethe. I'm hoping not, but we'll see.

Gavin has been thrilled lately with one major discovery-- his hand. In the pictures below you'll see him admiring his new friend. In fact, I have tons of pictures showing his adoration. (Notice also in the horse/hay picture above.) Whether he's in our laps, under his play gym, on the changing table, he's often entertained by watching his hand move up and down, open and close, turn this way and that way. It's quite comical. Makes me once again want to crawl inside his little brain and hear what he's thinking. It's so cool to watch him learn and figure things out.

Parenthood is great. And you might ask me (as many have) if I have yet to miss working. The answer is a big fat no. Yes, I had a good job and I miss the paychecks, but I have the greatest job on earth. And I'm hoping that I can stay home for a long time. No that's a lie. I'm hoping to stay home forever. So, we're praying for God's provision and enjoying each day I have at home.

Gavin will be three months in a week. My how time flies. Stay tuned for his three month photos.

"My Papa Dressed Me"

I realized the other day that Tony wasn't dressing Gavin in the morning. So, I made sure to give him permission to dress Gavin however he liked (unless I put an outfit out).

This was Tony's first creation. He picked his favorites from Gavin's wardrobe and put them together. Makes me smile and imagine the outfits Gavin will put together in the future when he is given freedom of creativity.

Maiden Voyage to the Pumpkin Patch

That's right. Maiden voyage (since we've been in Sequim) for all three of us. For some reason, the Pumpkin Patch just didn't have much appeal before Gavin arrived. But this fall Safeway pumpkins were not going to cut it. Even Tony got into it. We got dressed in our coordinating fall colors, made sure we would be warm enough and took the long journey about 1.5 miles down the highway.

Having spent most of life in Southern California, Tony and I were excited to experience a pumpkin patch where they actually grow the pumpkins with the background of vibrant fall maple leaves. (It was the site of last year's corn maze, but apparently they've rotated crop locations.)

Gavin enjoyed it too. He loves the outside and since it was near his nap time, he was quite mellow. It was a good thing we went when we did (last Saturday). The cute little pumpin outfit from Gramme just barely fit. I don't think it will last until next Friday. Gavin is getting bigger by the day.

So Irresistibly Cute!

I'm trying not to gush too much, but have I mentioned that we're enjoying Gavin's new conversation skills? So much so that we had to get it on videotape. The following video was taken by Tony during Gavin's first diaper change of the day (a typically happy time). As you'll see, Gavin seems to be enjoying himself as much as we are.

Truth be told, this stuff makes us melt and smile from ear to ear. It makes me want to stop time so that he never grows up, but I know there is more fun to come as he gets older.

Gavin is 2 Months Old!

On Monday we "celebrated" Gavin's two month birthday. He's now at least 12 lbs. 4 oz. and 24 inches. His long and broad torso give the impression he'll have a stocky build, but his Papa is convinced that his legs will catch up. If his long feet and toes are any indication, we'll have a very tall boy one day.

Gavin has become very playful and we now enjoy conversations (he coos and we coo back and then he coos again). He loves our morning songs and is wide-eyed soaking in everything. Tummy time is not his favorite yet, but I think that's because his legs are so strong that he gets frustrated when we pushes and moves forward with his legs, but his head and arms mostly stay in one place. It's pretty funny to watch, but we're still trying to help him strengthen his arms and neck.

The weather is cooling down quite a bit here and we're trying to figure out how to dress our baby for cooler weather. He pretty much cooks any time we put him in a sweater or sweatshirt (especially in his car seat) so it will be tricky to figure out how to keep him cozy but not overheated. As for mom, taking neighborhood walks is sometimes quite chilly. I'm going to have to locate some earmuffs and maybe eventually a ski mask (fashion obviously not the goal here).

Expensive Jewelry

Gavin apparently already likes to accessorize with expensive jewelry. So much so that he got worked up with a fever so that he could get another hospital anklet for his memorabilia collection. 48 hours in the hospital brought Gavin two anklets because the first one was a little too big and was falling off. But thanks to insurance (I think) the anklets won't be as expensive as paying out of pocket.

Long story short, Gavin developed a fever and some loose stool that registered on the "do lots of tests to protect your infant in case of bacterial infection" scale. So he and I stayed in the hospital Friday and Saturday nights while we waited for results of various different tests. (Thankfully we were given great care again and assured that Gavin would be okay.)

I was so heartbroken having to hear his new screaming cries and to witness a drastic change in mood. He quickly learned that being set down and feeling cold things on his body equalled pain or discomfort. Mom was the only comfort for Gavin but thankfully his fever broke Saturday afternoon, he started acting a little more like himself and Papa's visit was a highlight for Gavin.

We came home on Sunday night, no evidence of bacteria, no more fever. Probably just some version of the flu. Praise God! Gavin's pretty much back to normal, although he seems to be sleeping more. Whether it's a side effect of the flu/hospital or a change in his sleep patterns I'll take it for as long as it lasts.

Growing and Growing and Growing

Here are some recent photos of our little guy. He's growing fast. I look at other babies around town and can't believe how small they are-- seems like Gavin was never that small.

He continues to entertain us with his coos adding new sounds and talking for longer and longer. He loves bath time and loves to stand. He's had such strong legs since the beginning that we joke he'll walk before he can hold his head up. One of the best discoveries in the last couple of weeks was to find he's ticklish in his belly. He doesn't giggle yet, but I'm sure that's around the corner. For now he wiggles and smiles.

His first bottle. Once he discovered that the strange new thing in his mouth was offering mama's milk, he had no hesitations and enjoyed a full meal. This is hopeful for mama and papa who look forward to going out on a date in the future.