Friday, April 24, 2009

21 months







Gavin has been quite the handyman lately. He goes bananas over Levi's tool box. Gavin thinks a screwdriver is the best invention EVER. We know just what to get him for his 2nd birthday!

Caillou is his absolute favorite cartoon.

List of words: bible, sky, key, boo-boo, pee-pee, poo-poo, yuck, chicken, apple, banana, eye, hi, bye bye, no, go, night-night, Carrigan, Momma, Dada, Nana, PaPa, Madi, uh-uh, uh-huh, uh-oh, Thank you (loosely) all gone, ball, Bubba, car, bath, cookie, hey, out, wow, book ... Those are all I can think of at the moment. He also says animal sounds and knows all body parts.

Gavin isn't really into toys these days. If he can push or climb on something, or just plain run around, he is a happy camper.

He is OBSESSED with ears! When he is tired, relaxing or going to sleep, he is playing with someone's ear. It drives Levi and me NUTS!

Gavin is still set in his ways about drinking. He is picky about what liquids go in each cup.
Bottle = milk
Straw cup = water
Regular cup = water, orange juice, sweet tea
Juice box = apple juice
NO SIPPY CUP

At no time is there any exception to this rule.

Thursday, April 23, 2009

6 Months Old!


Since Carrigan has been born, I frequently get asked in one form or another, how stressful and "run ragged" my days are. I usually reply that yes, I am busy, but I have easy going little ones. Almost every time, that person goes on with a story about how hard it was when own children were babies or a story about how awful a friend has it with two babies close in age.
The truth is, once we got past the first two months of constant feedings and little to no sleep, it has gotten easier and easier. Carrigan has Gavin to entertain her and that takes away most the work!
Before we found out we were pregnant with Carrigan, my plan was to wait until Gavin was 3 to get pregnant. I wanted to be able to enjoy Gavin with no interruptions. But my goodness how God knew what was best for our family!
Gavin spends most of his days only coming in contact with immediate family. I am not the most social person and Gavin is extremely shy. hmm.. wonder where he got that from. I have been so sad at times that Gavin had no official "friends" to play with. So early on in my pregnancy I started telling Gavin that God had given him a friend. Each month as Carrigan grows, Gavin becomes more and more aware that she is a playmate.
Just a few mornings ago Levi and Gavin were up a little earlier than Carrigan and myself. I woke up to Gavin going in and out of the room, throwing Carrigan's favorite toys on me as if to say, Come on Carrigan, wake up and play! That was such a fun way to wake up! Oh and just the other night I heard Gavin say, Night Night, Carrigan. If a heart can smile, mine did!

When Levi and I were dating I told him one day when we have a girl, we are going to name her Carrigan. He said okay. Ever since I had been waiting for her. I still can't believe she is here. Happy 6 months, pretty girl!



A few Carrigan facts:

She is sitting up like a pro.

She has TWO teeth!

She LOVES Elmo! Gavin got an Elmo Live for Christmas and we now keep it in the car for fussy moments. Any time Elmo is on, she is a happy girl!

Carrigan isn't the difficult baby I thought she might turn into. She is perfectly happy and content.

She will now fall asleep in the car. Thank you, Lord!! She still needs to be swaddled for naps and at night.

From day 1 I said I would nurse her until she got teeth. The problem is, she won't take a bottle. Any suggestions????

She makes the sounds: mama, buba, hi ( I know she isn't really saying the words!) and she pops her lips together. That has to be the cutest thing!

She only wants to be held by myself, Levi and NaNa.

Carrigan is a mover and a shaker. When she stands in your lap she will bend her knees and "jump" while squealing. Any time she doesn't have a toy in one hand, she is patting it on something or someone. She will also grab ahold of her ExerSaucer and rock it back and forth as hard as she can. She is so fun to watch!

Her hair is coming in quickly. It is quite a bit thicker and more coarse than Gavin's was. It is wavy, if not curly.

Her eye lashes (they are black, long and thick. They touch the top of her eyebrows!), and shape and color of her eyes are her most commented feature. Gavin's was his hair as it was blonde and stuck straight up at this age! When I took this picture Levi said, "Make up a long story."
I had no idea what he was talking about, and obviously he was faking sleep in the picture.

Then I realized he meant when I post it on the blog, come up with a sweet story about how Daddy put his little girl to sleep. Ha... perhaps I blog too much if he sees every picture as a blog post? :)

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Riding Along...

Riding along in my automobile
My baby beside me at the wheel
I stole a kiss at the turn of a mile
my curiosity running wild
crusin' and playin' the radio
with no particular place to go


If there is any possible way for the two of them to be any better, I couldn't tell you what it is. To me, they are perfect.Soon enough I will be hearing them both yell, "MOM!!!" during a situation such as this. For now, I thoroughly enjoy their blossoming friendship.







Sunday, April 19, 2009

Sleepy Head

When we put Carrigan in her swing, she now wants to hold onto the tray and sit as forward as she can. Levi finds it adorable when she falls asleep like this. This video is probably boring to anyone besides Levi and myself, but I know he will be watching it the next time he has to stay overnight for work.

And in some big time Carrigan news... she is teething! Two days ago I saw a little hole in her gums and was afraid she had a sore. Today on the way home from church I saw her two bottom teeth are coming in. I can actually feel them! It is so sad to me that she is growing up so fast!!!!!

Monday, April 13, 2009

The sniffles and sneezes on Easter

This year we unfortunately weren't able to go to Easter Service or do the usual fun activities. Just as Gavin started getting better, Carrigan got the sickies. Neither one of them needed to be out of the house so we stayed in and took care of sick babies on the rainy day.

The day before Carrigan got sick I got a few pictures of her in her Easter dress. A couple of weeks ago Gavin threw my camera and broke the lens. He broke an expensive lens that if can't be fixed, may take a while to replace. We do have another lens, but you have to be across town just to get the entire face in the picture. Okay it isn't that powerful, but I needed to back up farther than I felt comfortable since Carrigan is still a wobbly sitter-upper. In a few days when it dries up outside and is a little warmer, I will get the rest of the pictures of my two lovelies.

And by the way, I am now sick along with Carrigan, and Gavin still has a runny nose and cough. Its been a fun couple of weeks, let me tell ya! Her precious face should be in magazines!

Nobody gets between me and my chocolate!

Gavin and Carrigan received a package of goodies from Grandma and Grandpa for Easter. The moment Gavin opened the box he knew there was chocolate and that it was HIS chocolate! This video also cracks Gavin up every time he watches it!

Friday, April 10, 2009

Sitting Up!

Here is proof that my baby girl can now sit up! Well, until a sneeze comes along and knocks her over, that is!




Update on Gavin: His fever has stayed around 100, but he has had a terribly awful cold this week. Levi and I took him to the doctor yesterday morning where they did more tests. So far we have gotten negative results from flu, RSV, and strep tests. They tested for whopping cough yesterday, but it takes a few days to get a result. In the mean time he is on a medication for Bronchitis as a safety precaution.

His cough is causing him to gag and throw up. He also has a very hard time swallowing foods without gagging. Until today, he had been nothing more than a lump in my lap. Today he has walked around and gotten into some toys. It is a happy sight to see!

Monday, April 6, 2009

Emergency Room - Part 2

At 10:00 p.m. we arrive to the ER at Ar Children's Hospital. The room is packed. It is hot. It is loud. We find a spot in the corner and Carrigan starts crying. It takes and hour and a half to see a nurse. No matter what I do, Carrigan still cries. My poor baby wanted her home and her bed.

Around midnight we finally get to see a doctor. Gavin's temp has stayed low, but because it was so high they want to check for the flu and do a chest x-ray.

Around 1:00 a.m. both Gavin and Carrigan fall asleep. At 1:30 the nurse comes in and says they are ready for his chest x-ray.

And here is where I will undoubtedly cry while typing. Gavin is exhausted and finally asleep in my arms. I am shown the device that will keep Gavin still for the x-ray. You know that plastic tube that vacuums to the bank teller? Imagine putting your child in that with their arms straight up and their head strapped.

This is obviously not Gavin, and the experience is worse than this child is making it look. There is also lots of tape and straps involved.

Not only was that impossible to watch, but here is my sunburned baby, asleep in my arms, being taken from me by a stranger at 1:30 a.m. to be tortured.

Yes, it was torture.

I was supposed to go back to the waiting room, but, to be frank, "Make Me" I stood watching through the window by the controls. That was the hardest thing I have ever watched.

He was too small for the first tube. They didn't lower him enough in the second. What should have taken 5 minutes or less took an eternity.

I held back my tears (and nasty words to the people who couldn't do it right the first time) until we got back to the "room"

Poor Levi thought they had given me bad news when he saw my reaction after returning to the room.

After all that, we are told the x-rays show he has a cold and this is probably a virus, so continue Tylenol. We got back home at 3:15 a.m.

My child deserves to never return to a hospital until his wife has their first child some day.

Gavin is still far from well, so we ask you add him to your prayers and thank you to those who have been praying.

A fabulous day turned ugly - Part 1

My niece Madi spent the night Friday and Saturday was beautiful. The kids had donuts for breakfast then we went outside to take my new stroller for a test stroll. I love, love, love it!

After our stroll, I couldn't find the kiddie pool, so I filled the largest pot I could find up with water and we enjoyed the weather on the deck.

Carrigan enjoyed her first picnic lunch with us.

All the sudden Gavin started fussing and I realized it was an hour past nap. I took him inside and thought he felt warm. His temp was 101.8, so I gave him a dose of Tylenol and he fell asleep.... 30 minutes later I hear, "Momma" It was strange. I wasn't even sure it was Gavin. He was still asleep, (I assume) but his eyes were open. His hands and eyes were shaking. I slowly wake him to make sure he was okay. After that, he doesn't go back to sleep.

By 6:00 p.m. he was begging to go to bed. That is a bit early, so I took him and Carrigan out for another stroll. By 8:00 he is in bed, and I check his temp again.

It is 105.

We immediately put him in the bath and give him Tylenol. In the bath we notice he had gotten too much sun and was red on his shoulders and face. After his bath his temp is only down to 104.3. I call the nurse and she advises us to take him to the ER. My sister pulled into the drive way as we were putting him in the bath, so Levi and I were able to pack like mad men a bit easier.

At 9:00 p.m. we load Gavin and Carrigan into the car and head for Ar Children's Hospital.

Wednesday, April 1, 2009

Hello April....

We've been waiting for you. On a completely unrelated note: I have begun giving Gavin dessert after his meals to boost his calories. He is more than enjoying his brownies, pudding, cookies, sugary cereal, and Cheetos. I am excited to see if it helps at his next weigh-in!

A not so rare EBDBSB

*Emergency Blowout Diaper - Bathroom Sink Bath*

We are happy campers in a park