Gavin is 6 months old!!!

Gavin is having a pretty busy week! He went to the doctor on Wednesday for another round of shots. He cried for a minute or two, but he was easily consoled. Besides some mild fussiness, he was fine the rest of the day.

He is in the 75th percentile for head circumference (17 10/16") and height (27") and in the 60th percentile for weight (17-13 1/2 oz). He can roll over both ways, he can sit on his own, he can babble your ear off, and he's even trying to pull up into standing! I think he may start to crawl soon. He's starting to lunge forward from sitting. Right now, he gets a face full of floor, but soon he'll get the hang of it. He's doing lots of other things, but it's just too much to list. I think he's starting to smile for the camera...

Thursday was his official 6 month birthday. To celebrate, Gary bought him a card and three presents. He wrapped the presents really loose so Gavin could open them himself. As expected, Gavin had more fun with the wrapping paper than with the actual toys. He got some onsies, a milk and cookies coin drop thingy, and a sippy cup with his name on it!

He's doing really well without his sleep suit. The first night was rough, and he cried...a lot. The second night was much better, and he seemed to actually like sleeping on his stomach. I did go to get him up the second morning and found that he was sleeping in a puddle of urine, spit up and had a poopy diaper!!! Poor baby!! I guess sleeping on his stomach caused him to spit up and his diaper to leak. The solid food probably caused the poopy diaper. I bought a bigger size diaper and the third night was great! I did wake up three times to make sure he wasn't sleeping in peepee again. He wasn't. He looks so stinkin' cute in his pajamas!

Ode to my sleepsuit...by Gavin Gerard

Dearest sleepsuit:

Tonight we will part ways...forever. This is a bittersweet moment for me because of our love/hate relationship. I fought so hard at nap time and bedtime to keep you off of me only to fall fast asleep as you enveloped me in your puffy, cotton warmth. I resented you for holding me back...well, on my back. But, as I toss and turn in my bed tonight, I realize that being on my stomach sucks! I hated hearing how I resembled the kid in A Christmas Story, or a starfish, or a cotton ball, etc.

You were such a part of me for so long, half my life! But, I have outgrown you...literally. I'm not the newborn you once knew. I'm an infant now, and I must move on to bigger, better things. So, goodbye, sleepsuit. Thank you for all the good times we shared. Thank you for keeping me warm, for keeping me safe and for helping me sleep through the night since I was 10 weeks old.

Arm-itis...

I heard my niece use the term "arm-itis" when she came in to visit Gavin a few months ago. I think Gavin may have a case of arm-itis. I started to notice it last night when Erica, Matt and Saylor invited us to dinner. We were so excited to see them and to get out of the house. It was Gavin's dinner time, too, so we brought his cereal to dinner with us. We sat him in a highchair for the first time ever, and he did so well...at first. Once the novelty of it wore off, he started to really act up. He could not be calmed by spoonfuls of oatmeal or squeaky toys. The only thing that calmed him was to hop in mommy or daddy's lap! He then proceeded to have a mild fit because we were not giving him the yummy fajitas we were eating. The night ended as it usually does, with a bath, a story and a bottle.

I went to bed just as exhausted as Gavin and didn't give arm-itis another thought until we went to Target today. Gavin is sitting up so well now, so I thought I would bust out the shopping cart cover for him to sit in. That was fine for about 15 minutes. Again, the novelty wore off, and the boy began to cry. He was distracted by his toys for a little while, but when the whine turned into a howl, I had to pick him up. I felt like if I didn't, I might be stoned to death by the other patrons. He immediately stopped crying. I finished throwing the rest of the stuff I needed into the cart and raced to the checkout counter. I had to put him down in order to load the groceries onto the belt. Gavin had a meltdown. After about a minute of crying, and several Target employees trying to make him stop crying, I had to pick him up. By this time, I'm loading overstuffed Target bags into my cart with one hand and holding the boy with my other hand. To make matters worse, I accidentally dropped a giant, glass jar of spaghetti sauce on the floor at Target! Oops. So, I left pushing the cart with one hand and holding Senior Grumpy Butt in the other. It may be time for a little tough love. While I may never go back to that Target, I have to get him used to riding around in the cart, sitting in a highchair and anything else that might come our way while we're out and about.

Love sick...

Saylor came over to play the other day, and for the first time, Gavin and Saylor took a mutual interest in each other. Saylor is a lot more mobile than Gavin (she's 2 months older), so she was the aggressor most of the time :). My favorite part of the day was the conversation they had... it's great that Gavin throws up at the end...it's like Kyle and Wendy from South Park! Never mind the video, I'm an idiot and can't get it to upload to the blog...you'll just have to take my word.

My next favorite moment was when Saylor crawled over to Gavin and they gave each other a giant hug before toppling over!

That day was filled with other fun activities...Gary put the high chair together and we all ate dinner together in the formal. Gavin LOVES to eat and drink from a big boy cup! He squeals in delight when he sees his bowl (and starts to get fussy if you don't get it in his mouth fast enough). He's doing so good with eating. He gets more than half in his mouth and in his belly. Good job!

And, we took some shots of our boy in the bathtub. He is sooo scheduled. If it's 7:05 PM, and he's not in the bathroom, he starts to get fussy. He is immediately in a better mood once you start walking towards the bathroom, and he hears the water running. I recently took out the mesh "hammock" in his tub, so he sits up like a big boy. Only problem is he doesn't like to lean back to let me rinse his hair. And he tries to stand up in the tub. He's starting to splash around and play with the toys in his tub, too.

The luckiest...

I am the luckiest girl, really. How I have been blessed with this life is something I'll never know. And to think, it started almost 6 years ago with a boy and a girl...

I have the most wonderful husband who not only listens to me but wants to talk about everything...his day, his feelings, his dreams! He's sensitive, kind and funny. AND he's handsome! AND he's an exceptional father! And, he adores me...what else could a girl want?

I have the coolest dog, too. He can do all those basic commands every dog knows, but recently I've taught him to help me with the laundry. When I carry clothes from our room to the laundry room, he walks by my side just in case I drop something (I always drop something). Jack happily picks up said dropped item and brings it to the laundry room. Today, I dropped two things. He went and got the shirt that I dropped and then came back with a sock! Isn't that cool?! In October, he is testing to become a therapy dog. We still have a lot of work to do, but his biggest fault is that he LOVES people. I'll take it! I think that makes for an excellent therapy dog. And he loves us. He and Gavin are going to have sooo much fun together!

Then there's my boy. I get teary just thinking about him. He's so cool. He changes in little ways every day. He's starting to sit up on his own and grab for stuff. He's becoming so aware and fascinated with the world around him. Some funny things he's doing lately:

1. When Gary takes a sip of water, Gavin has to have a sip, too. He opens his mouth in anticipation and then loudly slurps water out of Gary's cup.

2. He's learning how things work. The other day I was feeding him, and he grabbed my nose. I let out a loud "HONK". He pulled his hand back and looked pretty stunned. Then, he slowly made his way back to my nose for another honk. He must have done that 12 times!

3. He flirts. If I carry him anywhere, he always finds someone to flirt with him. Yesterday, he smiled at a lady in the checkout line at TJ Maxx. I heard this woman making the weirdest noises and looked back to see what was going on. Gavin had a huge smile on his face and was smiling away!

4. He reaches for Gary. When Gary holds out his arms to pick him up, he reaches out for his dada.

5. He laughs. That is the sweetest sound ever!

The list could go on and on and will probably change every day. I just had to take a minute to sit down and reflect on how cool my life is. I love it!!!