And We're Off!

Let's mark this date down:  12 months old July 8, 2011 Gavin started walking!  We went from taking 1 step last week to 2 or 3 steps this morning to 5 right after that to 9 or 10 when we were waiting to get our pictures taken!  This boy is on the move.  The photographer for his pictures today said she had never had a little kid be on the move so fast and so much!  That's Our Boy!  If I am sure of anything... He is going to keep me BUSY!  or Shall I say keep Miss Amy very busy starting in August!  I am sooo excited that I got to see him in action today and so happy that I was not at work.  It was very fun to see him think he was sooo funny learning to walk.  He certainly doesn't mind if he steps on toys, falls, slides on the tile, etc.  Soon, very soon, he is going to be running... it seems as if he already is so that he doesn't lose his balance.

 As much as these pictures show Gavin liking the boat, he will only tolorate so much of it... he does not love his life jacket, nor does he love water.  He will go in it .. maybe a couple minutes at a time, but that is about it.  He does not really like the baby pool, or water table yet.  Even his baths right when we are done cleaning him... he wants out.  I am sure its just a phase.. but we still spend lots of time on Gigi and Papas boat!

Lets think about all the things Gavin loves since his first birthday.
*He loves his bubble mower, any and all trucks, cars, etc.  He likes to make the Vroom sound while moving them along the floor.  He is learning to say tractor.  It sounds like Tr - Er.  At least he is doing 2 syllables.
*He is starting to pay more attention to Cody.... chasing him with his walker toys, crawling after him, etc.  he thinks Cody is soooo funny.  (we will have to have a plan in place very soon about cody.. maybe locking him up will be the best choice.) 
* He still loves music.... usually this will make him start to shake his hand up and down and bounce... if he hears anything he will start to do the shake the hand thing to let us know there is music on.
*He has been waking up in the middle of the night (well usually around 3 am for a couple of hours... not crying.. just playing and talking to himself and maybe a little fussy ...)  Lets say it's really fun! 
* Words: Bubble, light, flower, tractor, bath, more, dog, ball, ba ba, ma ma, da da, hi, bye bye, eyes, toes,
*He is able to find and point out: eyes, mouth, nose, toes,
*He knows sign language for : more, milk, and all done!
* We are drinking milk finally.... but we are still working on actually holding the sippy by hisself (why would he want to hold it if mommy will? ) 
* He got tubes put in his ears on July 5.  It was actually a very easy process.. just very made right after the 7 min surgery and then by the time we got home and took a nap.. we were right back to ourself.. laughing and playing! 
*He eats like a machine.. eats a whole lot... really at each meal and snack time. Still not drinking soo much milk a day.. On a good day he will take 10 ounces of milk.. Some kids take 8 ounces every time they eat.....
* He is still a very happy, snuggly little boy. 
* He loves to have mommy and daddy chase him and then roll over begging for us to tickle his belly.
* He L.O.V.E.S mulch, dirt, flowers... we have a water table and pool and he won't play with it.. only wants to go to the mulch and dig....
BOYS WILL BE BOYS!  Here we show what he does every day with the dirt and mulch........ Gotta love him.. why do boys instantly know what to do and play with dirt... I guess they really are wired to play with trucks and dirt...

We love you Our Big ONE year old .... XOXOXO mommy and daddy!

1 year of laughter, 1 year of fun, 1 year of love to grow on!

Dear Gavin,

The first year of your life has flown by, with this I never want to forget all of the little everyday things that have gone by so fast!  This is my attempt to try to remember as many "little" things about your first year of life.
        Your original due date was June 26th.. you were exactly 2 weeks early.  I woke up and knew that you were starting to come so we called the dr and they wanted us to come in to get checked out.  As I was getting out of the car at the hospital my water broke.... 10:45 am.  It all went so fast after that... started pushing around 1 pm and you were born at 3:20 pm.  I even made the comment while pushing.. this isn't as bad as I thought!   You were perfect!  A slight cone head, 7 lbs 3 oz and didn't cry very much.  You had dark dark hair and dark skin.  You had many visitors at the hospital and daddy and I really didn't know what to name you Braxton, Gavin, or Carter.  You are such a Gavin!
       The first week your daddy took off work and we got to enjoy you to our selves!  We got to bond and figure out your little schedule.. eating every 2 hours.  you also were not gaining any weight so we went to the doctor 8 times in 2 weeks.  You ate from a special bottle and took expressed breast milk.  you always had a problem breast feeding and when you ate from a bottle you always had it dribble from your mouth.  (this continued for 3 months until we FINALLY figured out from my lactation classes that i went to every week for 12 weeks ... that you were tongue tied -which led to getting your tongue clipped) After the tongue clip, you breast fed until your first birthday... while still taking bottles.
      You always slept very long stretches.. we would wake you up after 4 hours to eat, then you quickly turned to every two hours, routinely until you were 8 MONTHS OLD... Mommy went back to work when you were 3 months old.  You went to daycare with Miss Amy and Mr. Jon.  They have 6 pug dogs and 8 kids at daycare, of which only one other is a boy.  You were the youngest by 8 months.   You had a very strong neck and would always try to lift your head.  You were a very happy smiley baby.  People always commented that you looked like a little man and that you looked like daddy.  Mommy always thought you had her eyes though.  You lost your hair quickly and didn't have much, and still don't have much.  But you do have curls in the back!!!!
*Bed time is 7pm and you nap really well you go to sleep easily.. we don't have to rock you to sleep first.. 
*Once that tongue got clipped -- you eat like a machine!  lMommy home made your food and did organic foods... you love fruit and really haven't disliked anything!  Just recently you want to feed yourself and not want to be spoon fed. You say mmmmmm when you like things and recently smack your lips.
*first word was da da, followed by ball, bath, ma ma, dog, light, uh oh, puff, hi, bye bye, ba  ba -- recently you are trying to repeat what we say with same syllables.. flower, light, etc.
*You have always loved baths - recently wanting to play more, stand up, and crawl around in the tub. you get really excited when we say bath, and throughout the day you will crawl in the bathroom and say bath?
*You love going around the house looking, picking, and playing with things you are not supposed to.. cords, computers, tupperware, cody's dog bowl, drawers, cabinets, EVERYTHING... once we say your name, you look back at us and smile
*You love to have us chase you around the house and roll over for us to get your belly
* You had 8 teeth by 10 months of age
* You have had 5 ear infections in 4 months
*Your favorite toys are anything that light up and make sound.... YOU LOVE music and dance (wave your hand) and sometimes try to sing with us
* You love your paci and have learned to put it in your mouth at a very early age.  You play with it in your crib to keep you entertained if we are not sleeping.  You roll around, throw it, and bang it on the crib.
* now that it is summer you are such a boy- play in mulch, dig in dirt, and crawl with your legs extended so your knees don't touch the grass., and being outside looking at flowers, birds, watching cody run around, observing nature.
*Favorite songs have been: wheels on the bus, happy and you know it, itsy bitsy spider, skiddery mrinky dink,
*at a early age you have been interested in fans and lights.  even walking through lowes looking at fans gets you sooooo excited.  Ooooooooo.. and hold up your hand is how you usually respond.  You find them whereever we go!
*You like to give mommy kisses ... sometimes your toys and daddy get them too!

*You are a snuggly, cuddly little boy!
Gavin, watching your joy for life, your wonder of how things work, your evolving personality, and contagious smile makes our day fullfiled.  We can't wait to hold you, play with you and watch you grow every single minute, hour, and day.  I know you feel our love for you and are comfortable and happy as a child.  I hope that as you grow up you feel secure, loved, and keep your playful happy go lucky personaltiy as you have had this whole year.      So much to look forward to and see your personality come out even more!!!
We Love You Gavin Jay!

Jesus loves me this I know... Gavin singing away

Whenever Gavin is upset Josh and I sing to him to try to make him smile.  Usually this works.  We started singing every song in the book and he was just enjoying himself, so we switched it up and sang Jesus Loves Me.. and at the beginning Gavin is upset, but then in the middle he starts singing along with us!!! Tooo Cute!

So today we were on a car trip home from visiting Lima, OH to see Aunt Jill Graduate College!  On the way home Gavin was very fussy all of a sudden for no reason (that I knew of).  I was chalking it up to getting his molars.. which by the way we have been working on for a good month now... and I felt them today under his gums on the bottom!!

Gavin 11 months old!

 The Rauch's

 Aunt Jamie and Uncle Kirt... they win the best picture of the day! And we are sticking out our tongue all day the past two days... not sure what that is all about.

Mimi.. I was showing her how I clap my hands

 Nanny and Pap

Now that you are 11 months old you:

Words you say:  da da, ma ma, baa baa (bottle), bath, uh oh, puff, ball, book

You cruise around furniture and crawl everwhere and pull up on anything,  You also like to open cabinets and pull out the tupperware.

Bath time:  you like baths again, but you will not sit in your seat, you want to touch the water and try to taste it while it is coming out of the faucet.

You are sticking out your tongue as of recently...

size 12 month and 18 month clothes

Food:  you like to feed yourself, and eat ALOT of food...

Naps:  you still nap twice a day, about 1.5-2 hours each time.  Still go to bed around 7 and wake around 5:30 am.

LOVE YOU GAVIN!

10 months old!

So my precious love, today you are 10 months old.  As I sit typing, in the quiet toy filled living room, you lay sleeping, I think of all the ways you are a big boy!

** you have 8 teeth!  (the 8th tooth just popped out 2 days ago!)
** You stand up and pull up an most things, even the water jug on the floor you can stand up using a little help from it.
**You are starting to realize that drawers open... and you really like playing in Cody's water bowl.
**Last week at daycare you had fish sticks and chicken fingers... the things Amy feeds are by far more interesting then what I give you.. but Amy is guiding me to treat you more like a big boy!  You still don't have your "pincer grip" down pat, but you sure do find a way to shovel all the food into your mouth (and in your lap and on the floor)
** You just started dancing to music.  Well bouncing up and down, shaking your head, and moving your arms around. too cute
**You really enjoy books..   Touch and feel books!  esp. dog books.  (not just eating them, but genuinely looking at the pictures and getting a kick out of them)

** You love your tunnel and fort with balls.
** You say Dada and Boos (for balls)

**You love  your new swing outside!! Fun

**You still love being outside, but recently with warm weather and shorts on, you are noooot so sure about crawling in the grass with your bare knees touching it.  You Will try to crawl with your legs fully extended or holding one leg up in the air.  We'll have to get used to shorts pretty soon here..

 So inquisitive and always wanting the camera...

** You love the endless game of throwing things off of your highchair and watching it hit the ground.  Then of course we give it back to you to do it all over again.. Cause and Effect!
**As of lately you are not so much loving bath time.. (you are fine when we clean you, just want to be done right afterwards)

Mommy and Daddy love you very much and can't wait to start every day (even at 445am) with your sweet face.  You learn so much as each day goes by and we are excited to see what fun you bring to our day.  We cant wait to rush home and get you from daycare and spend those precious few hours before you go to bed playing, laughing, and cuddling with you.  I am not sure what we did before you... but you have forever changed our lives you sweet, adorable, happy baby boy! Even your Cody dog loves you and follows you around all day long too.  (what did he do before you came?)  You're 10 months old .... slow down!!!!!

Someone decided to pull up and stand now!

So Just this evening Gavin decided that he would PULL up and STAND UP on the couch.  He did it when I wasn't looking the first time.  These days we have to pin him up in the living room so that I can keep him in one place.. he hasn't been tooo happy with this.. So when I was starting dinner he started to go to the ottaman (the blocker that keeps him in the living room)  he decided that he really wanted the newspaper that was on top of it.  I looked over from around the kitchen and noticed him standing up holding onto the ottaman and eating the newspaper!  He decided to do it two more times when daddy got home.  We are excited for Gavin to be learning soo much and even happier he did this at home for us to witness for the first time. 

I am not sure that he knows what to think of it.. He falls backward because he doesnt' understand the concept yet.. but I am sure there will be plenty of boo boos and crying to follow.  Here is a video of him seeming to be frustrated while standing up!!!

Here is another video of Gavin being cute talking and studying his ball.  He is very into observing and trying to figure things out.  His other new thing is to throw balls.. He likes to throw codys toys as well.  (too cute.. must be because that is all that Cody ever wants to do.. play!)  He will also go around and bat at the ball and chase it around the house... literally around the house. (from the kitchen to his bedroom)  He did not cooperate when we tried to get it on video.. but it is still cute.

and 9 months later.....

Gavins 9 month stats:

Height: 28.5 inches   60%
Weight: 22 lbs  74 %(He did have a very full diaper with # 1 and 2 while being weighed and he weighed 21 a week earlier)
Head size:  45.4    53%


He has been a very good boy!  Although lately Gavin has decided that napping and at night time it is fun to pull up on his knees and crawl around in his crib.  He will sit there and talk to himself and bang on the crib for 30 min or more. He will do this usually 2 times a night / early morning. It is always entertaining watching him on the video monitor ... especially when he gets his head right in the camera as if to say... ya I see you! But not so fun at night or early am.

Gavin has been having fun crawling around the house (and by house, I mean.... GOING EVERYWHERE) He for sure has the house mapped out and knows where all the corners and turns are.  He knows where our bathroom is to crawl and look in the mirror, where all the cords are that he can try to pull, and even where his books are in his bedroom in a bin.  (just today he crawled into his room, went straight for the book tub, and pulled one out..... SOOOOO adorable!)  He likes to crawl OVER, UNDER, and THROUGH anything that he can.  chairs, people, toys, highchairs, etc.  and he will do it continuously... does this mean he is going to be climbing      ohhhh say his crib, shelves, and cabinets? Time will tell I am afraid.  He loves to try to grab cords, (the one in our house that is out), Cody's water bowl, and reaching for plants.  He really keeps himself busy with things that he shouldn't have and are not per say..... toys! 

His little personality sure is coming out.  He still is a VERY happy baby although he will tell you exactly what he wants and demand for it.  He bangs to get your attention and when he wants more food.  He cries if you take something away and rubs his head on the ground or you while crying.  He is very DETERMINED.  If you block his path from something he will work very hard at trying to push his head, or arm through a different way.  And if he can't he will fuss and cry.  You try to revert his attention to something else.. NOPE he doesn't forget.  Josh likes to describe him as Ornery and feisty.  He loves watching how things work and being outside. He just laughs when he pulls on the pine tree and the branches move up and down.  Today I opened the front door to go outside, and as soon as he heard the door, he started kicking his legs and making noises!

the first word award goes to..........

well as much as it breaks my heart and makes my heart happy... Gavin has possibly said his first word during his bath tonight.  DA DA.  (but he doesn't attatch meaning to it yet)   we also think that he has previously said ball.  But we just arn't really sure. 

Here you can check out two of his FOUR teeth!  (two more about to pop through.....)

 Just a little AIR GUITAR to keep us entertained !  LOL

Here he is adjusting his tie.  : )

My little man is going to be pulling up before I am ready.  He is just growing so fast! Who knew time would fly this fast?