Football Carnival

Our good friends' son is in a youth football league and they recently held a carnival-type fundraiser at a local park.  We took Gavin down to enjoy the festivities and we had a wonderful family day!  I didn't take my camera, but luckily, my phone takes really amazing pictures, so I was in luck.

After spending some time in the bouncer, Gavin shot some hoops

Jason took Gavin through the blow-up obstacle course

Getting a high-five from Daddy

Blowing Mommy a kiss

Eating a strawberry shortcake (well, just the whipped cream - Gavin spit out the strawberries!)

Gavin sat so nicely while getting his face painted - everyone was so impressed!

Gavin and Daddy

Gavin and Mommy

30 Months Old

My sweet boy,

You are now 30 months old!  I don't even like saying that because it sounds so grown-up.  You are already such an intelligent, fun, loving boy; people are always astonished when they learn that you are only 2 years old.  You continue to amaze everyone with your incredible speech and brilliant ideas.  You are also a complete ham and you make us laugh everyday.  In just one short month, you will be half-way through two-years-old and three will be just around the corner.  So, my soon-to-be-two-and-a-half year old, here are some new things and cute stories about you this month:

• You can now recite almost your whole alphabet!  You kind of merge E and F, skip J, L is more like "ewe" and skip M, but other than that, everything sounds great!!  Considering just a month ago you were skipping 10 letters and now you're only skipping 2 - that's amazing!!  I am so very proud of you, Gav!!

Kicking it in the back seat

• After your bath one day, I did something for you and you said, "Thanks, Mom."  (Yes, "Mom" - not "Mama" or "Mommy," it was just "Mom" - I felt like I was talking to a teenager!)  So I smiled at you and said, "You're welcome, son."  You stared at me for a minute and said, "You have nice teeth."  Ha ha ha!!  What a funny thing for a 2-year-old to notice!

Playing in the water

• We keep a large water jug with a spout in the fridge and one day you told me that our water was in a "gas tank."
• Whenever we thank you for help with a project or a chore, you reply with, "Anytime."

Making Mozzarella Sticks (with cauliflower)

• You were singing along to the song, "If I Die Young," by The Band Perry and I said, "Good singing, Gavin."  To which you replied, "Thanks.  It's my favorite song."  It really is a beautiful song, but probably not one I'd imagine my 2-year-old would select as a favorite.  Maybe I should start playing nursery rhymes in the car?

Making Peanut Butter & Banana Muffins (with cauliflower)

• You love going to the Kid's Club at the gym while Daddy and I work out, and one day, you were anxiously waiting for Daddy to take you.  He told you to wait a minute while he checked his e-mail and you said, "Daddy, you're being ridiculous."  Really???  What 2-year-old says, "Ridiculous" and uses it the right context??  I'm baffled.

Making Banana Bread (also with cauliflower)

• You love to help me in the kitchen (not that I'm in it all that often).  However, based on the pictures I took this month, you would think that I'm quite the cook.  In reality, I am desperately trying to get you to eat more so I purchased Jessica Seinfeld's books, Deceptively Delicious and Double Delicious which involve pureeing veggies and "hiding" them in the meals.  I was so excited by this idea that I actually spent three days in a row in the kitchen.  This was a record for me.  And having you there with me made it more fun and I think most of the meals we have tried have been successful.  There were few that we won't do again (such as the chocolate pudding with avocado that you threw up - twice), but for the most part, the recipes seem to be pretty good and you really enjoy helping.  (A future chef, perhaps??)

High-five from Daddy

Watching the ball...

So proud!

"Did I make it?"

Happy to have your turn again!

Daddy showing you what to do

You beat me by 18 points!!!

Me and you!  Love you to pieces, Gav!!

• You are a very active child and love all types of sports, including bowling.  So, we took you bowling for the second time in your two-and-(almost) a-half years and you had a great time!  We had so much fun bowling as a family and look forward to doing it again.  However, I am such a terrible bowler, that you actually beat me!!  {I'm so embarrassed...}

Daddy and I just absolutely love you to pieces, Gav!  You are truly the most wonderful son and we are so very thankful for you everyday.  You make our lives so much happier and we are excited for what the future holds.

Love you to pieces, forever, Gav!!

Tom's Farms (Again)

It may seem like we go to Tom's Farms an awful lot, and, well, I guess we do.  Most recently, Gavin and I met one of my best friends, Courtney, and her godson there for fun-filled day of pizza, train rides, and maybe a few bumps and bruises.  Of course, the first thing Gavin noticed when we pulled up was the giant Lightning McQueen blow-up slide which he had to go on.

After about 15 minutes, I heard Gavin crying at the top of the slide, but I couldn't see him because he was in the middle.  So, I flung my shoes off and took off scrambling to the top of the slide as quickly as I could (which I'm sure was quite a sight because that slide was definitely not made for adults).  Once I got to the top, I found that another child (also named Gavin) was trying to push my Gavin down the slide because he apparently wasn't moving quickly enough.  Soooooo, I decided that it was time to move on to another attraction.  From there, we took a spin on the carousel, where Gavin was happy to have his choice of the horses since he was the first in line.

Then, we waited for the train and the boys were very excited.  I tried to get them to pose for a few cute shots together and it started off pretty adorable.  However, when Courtney and I tried to get them to shake hands they went in for a hug instead and that's when disaster struck...

Both boys ended up with a few bumps, scrapes, and bruises from the fall, but Courtney's godson definitely took the brunt of it.  Both boys immediately began crying and it was pretty awful.  The poor kids!  We felt so bad!  And I know it must look really bad that I was snapping away when the poor little guys were falling down, but please know that it happened really fast and I happened to be holding down the burst button on my camera so it would take several shots at once.

Things did end up getting better, though, once we were safely on the train.

Courtney and her godson

Me and Gavin

After we left Tom's Farms, we ended our day by enjoying the beautiful community pool at Courtney's house.  They have a really cute kid's area where there are little shallow pools and water that spouts from the ground for the kids to enjoy.  Gavin loved it and overall, we had a wonderful day!