6 Months Old!

Gavin is officially 6 months old! And boy did those 6 months fly by. He is such a good baby and I truly cherish every moment as his mommy.

Gavin reaching for a friend at a wedding

Gavin is such a little ham lately. He can be so silly at times that Matt and I just crack up! He started "growling" about a month ago and does it pretty often now. He will put a lot of effort into his growls - tense face, hands in fists, legs tight, feet flexed - it's really a big deal. Then he'll shout "Eeeeehhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!" and wait for Matt or I to shout it back to him. This can often go on for quite some time. He usually only does it with us, but he recently did it with my dad (his Grampa C) and it was pretty humorous. I managed to catch a good "growl" on video (please excuse us adults growling in the background!):

Gavin with Grampa

I want to start keeping track of new things Gavin can do each month, because someday I hope that he will want to look back at this and enjoy reading at what age he began doing things.

By one month:

• Had good neck control
• Very sweet and happy baby

By two months:

• Rolled over from tummy to back
• Began sleeping through the night
• Began smiling
• Favorite sounds include the vacuum cleaner and the blow dryer
• Began finding his voice

By three months:

• Could sit supported
• Followed objects with eyes

By four months:

• Began laughing out loud
• Would reach for objects

By five months:

• Could eat rice cereal
• Could grasp toys

By six months:

• Sleeping about 9 hours per night (Yes - he is sleeping through the night again after a brief rough patch!)
• Shows interest in toys and other objects
• Plays with mom and dad by "growling" and being silly
• Loves the bouncer
• Enjoys "tummy time"
• Likes to feel everything
• Turns head when name is called

I love you, Gav!!

Sleep Issues

Once again, it's about 10:00 p.m. and I am waiting for Matt to return from the side job. Yesterday, he didn't get home until almost 4 a.m.! Then, he left this morning shortly after 9 a.m. I don't know how he's doing it - I would be a walking zombie. While he was gone today, Gavin and I had more mommy/son time. It was so nice to be home with him again all day. I really cherish this time.

On another note - I'm wondering what is going on with Gavin's sleep lately. He has always been a great sleeper - sleeping through the night since 6 weeks. For the past few months he has been sleeping at least 9 hours a night. However, since I have returned to work, he hasn't been sleeping through the night. Last night, he woke up 2 or 3 times between 8 p.m. and 11 p.m. and then woke up again about 4 a.m. after Matt got home. When I go get him, he's usually crying (which he didn't used to do when he would wake up) and he'll act like he's hungry, but then he'll latch on and go to sleep again. So I'm confused. He already woke up once tonight, about an hour after I put him down. I'm really hoping this isn't a trend, because he was doing so well. I just hope he sleeps through the rest of tonight...

Back to Work

Hanging out with Mommy

I started work on Tuesday, which is the reason for my lack of blogging. Returning to work has drained me of all energy, since I'm waking up at 5:00 a.m. instead of 7:00 a.m. I want to make sure I get in plenty of time to feed Gavin or pump if I have to, eat breakfast, and make it to work on time (something I have always struggled with). So far, I was able to do it, but when I return from work, I just want to spend time with Gavin and not on the computer. And, by the time Gav goes to bed, I'm ready for bed as well.

Finally enough hair for a mohawk!

Before I returned to work, while Matt was working a side-job, Gavin and I spent the day at my in-law's house. I think all the fun with Grandpa and Grandma S wore Gavin out! He fell asleep on the car ride home with his hand still clinging to his toy!

After my little tire mishap, my mom-in-law offered to take Gavin and I to Ikea a few days before I returned to work to pick up that darn headboard. Luckily, they still had some so we were able to get it, but I was quite discouraged by the lack of helpfulness from the Ikea employees. I even had to return something before I left the store since they sold it to me without all the hardware (it's a long story). Overall, I am excited to have the headboard, but my mom-in-law and I were not very impressed with the Ikea employees. We agreed that Gavin was the least fussy out of the three of us that day.

Happy to be going to Ikea (we had no idea what was in store for us...)

Since I have returned to work, my sister has been watching Gavin. She will come to our house everyday and stay until Matt or I return from work. She has been wonderful! The first day was a little rough for her and Gav, since it was new to both of them. But they have both adapted well and I am so thankful to have a great sister who is so good with Gavin. It helps ease my mind while I'm at work, knowing that he's in good hands.

Returning to work has not been easy, because I miss Gavin terribly and, since my mom and I worked for the same school district, being there makes me miss her even more. I am also still breastfeeding, so I have to pump at work, which is not fun! However, it is important to me and I want to continue doing it as long as I can. (Well, to an extent. I watched a YouTube video today about a mom who was still breastfeeing her 8-year-old daughter and it was very, very disturbing.) My original goal was 6 months, but I think I can go a little longer.

I'm going to try to create a new routine so that I will have time to blog regularly again because I really enjoy it. Right now, it's about 10 p.m. on Saturday and I am waiting for Matt to return home from his side-job. He left early this morning and is still working! He worked last night until almost 11 p.m. and tonight he says he will be even later. My poor husband!! He is such a wonderful husband and father. He is working this side job because the money is great and it will allow us to save up a little extra for Gavin's first Christmas. What a guy!

This is a picture I took of Gavin today during our first full mommy-son day together since I returned to work. He is absolutely precious and I love every moment with him!

Phew! What a Day!

I realized recently that I haven't been shopping with Gavin by myself yet. Part of me is very nervous about being on my own with him while trying to shop. However, I was bound and determined to do it today. My brother is an amazingly talented interior designer in Hollywood and he is in the process of helping me design my house. Well, one of the pieces that he selected for me is a beautiful wall-mounted headboard from Ikea. Unfortunately, it has been discontinued so they only have a small number left in the stores, but I really wanted it because it really is a beautiful piece. The closest Ikea is about 30 minutes away and being that it was a large headboard, I would have to take my husband's giant, lifted truck to pick it up. But, like I said, I was determined to get it done today. (Bad idea....)

So, I hoisted Gavin's car seat up into the truck and hit the road. I began driving down the highway and passed by a shopping center that my mom and I used to shop at often, which sparked some major emotions. So as I'm trying to hold back the tears, I hear this pop and the truck goes swerving all over the highway. I was able to slow it down and get it to the shoulder, but it was scary. I was pretty shaken up over the whole thing but had to compose myself for Gavin. Luckily, we have AAA, so I was able to get a tow home. However, Gavin and I were sweltering on the ride since the tow truck did not have air conditioning! Gav was quite a trooper through the whole thing, though. Geesh! What a day. Here is the damage I did to the tire:

And, of course, two new photos of my sweet boy:

5 Months Old

Gavin turned 5 months old on Sunday.  The time has absolutely flown by!  I have to return to work on September 1, when Gav will be 5 1/2 months old and I am not looking forward to it.  It will be nice to see all of my coworkers again, but I will miss Gavin terribly.  Luckily, my sister will be watching him during the day for us, so he will be with someone I love and trust, which is nice.  I just can't imagine leaving him with a stranger.  He is such a good, sweet baby.  The older he gets, the more playful he gets.  He has such a wonderful personality.  He absolutely cracks me up because he can be so silly sometimes.  It has been awhile since my last post, so I have tons of pictures to share of all the fun things we have done lately, but I'll try to keep the descriptions short, as I know I tend to be bit wordy!

My mom had bought Gav some thermal pj's that she thought were so cute.  He was finally able to wear them on a cool night and he looked so adorable.  I just wish she could have seen him in them.

Gavin being silly

One of the new outfits Grandma S bought for Gavin during our big shopping day (so cute!)

Hanging out in the spa at Grandma and Grandpa S' house

This Hurley hoodie outfit was another one that my mom had bought for Gavin and he looked so grown-up in it!

We went to visit friends of ours that we met during our honeymoon cruise in 2006.  They have an adorable baby boy who is exactly one week older than Gavin.  We hope to visit each other often so our boys can grow up together.

Here we are on a cruise in 2007 with the same couple.  They are in the middle and Matt and I are on the right.  This was before the babies.  :o)

We visited Mamaw and Papaw recently and had a great time.  Gavin enjoyed playing the piano with Daddy.

We finally tried rice cereal mixed with breast milk for the first time.  Gavin seemed anxious to give it a try.

"Yum... this is pretty good"

"I wanna help with the spoon"

"I love rice cereal!"

Making one of his many silly faces

We went to visit some friends this weekend and Gavin held onto his car seat toys with both hands during the entire trip!

I love my sweet boy!

"Oh, Mom, please no more kisses!"

Matt's brother and his wife are currently in Ethiopia picking up the newest addition to their family - an adorable baby girl named Adia who they have adopted.  Check out her blog here.  It has been a very long journey for them and early in the process they made these onsies to help raise money for the adoption.  We are anxious for their return and can't wait to meet our new niece!  Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers for a safe trip home.

Like Father, Like Son

Matt's mom recently emailed me some pictures of Matt when he was 4 months old and it amazed me to see how much Gavin looks like his daddy.

Time to Relax

The past few days have been pretty relaxing.  It's always nice to have some relaxing days sandwiched in-between busy ones! Gavin even took some time to hang out in the sink.  He's almost a perfect fit!

He also wanted to catch up on his reading, but I don't think he noticed his book was upside-down!

Yesterday, we spent almost the whole day shopping with Grandma.  We had so much fun!  She bought him tons of cute clothes and managed to catch some great shots of him throughout the day.  She put this together to describe his feelings during our outing:

I guess shopping with Mommy and Grandma isn't that bad after all!