G-man update

My friends who had children before me, constantly tell me that the changes that happen between ages one and two are phenomenal.

I have to agree. We’re not even halfway there and he does something new every single day.

Not the new things you notice in the first year. It’s more than, “oh look she/he can hold their head up a half inch higher than yesterday!”…not that those moments aren’t special, they are!…but unless you’re a parent of that child, a lot of those moments go by unnoticed.

Not so much once they get past a year of age. The changes are apparent to everyone who knows him. New words come out of his mouth everyday. He walks instead of crawls. He runs instead of walks. He reacts to your commands. He has hit that point of wanting to be just like mom/dad.

And it rocks. It really, really rocks.

Don’t get me wrong. It also gets more stressful. They learn words like, “me, no & mine” and they learn that throwing a tantrum in a store is the easiest way to get their parent to realize that they don’t want to be there…

But, it’s fun. All of a sudden you can wrestle, giggle, laugh & play right alongside him. He’s smart, can already outwit me, and loves to be the center of attention.

Remember how he called Casey, “Ne-ne?” On Tuesday, Gavin decided that nope, Casey was now going to be Dada. Cute? Yes. A little heartbreaking? Yes! I was secretly hoping that Casey would keep that nickname for some time.

We’ve lost count of how many words he knows. If he is interested in what you’re talking about, he’ll repeat nearly everything you say. If he’s not interested? Prepare to be ignored.

He’s moved out of his highchair and into a booster seat. It took me a day or two to get used to seeing him across the table, sitting like a big boy in a kitchen chair!

He’s broadened his taste, and is eating more new foods all the time. His into trying the new stuff…well, at least for now. That could change by lunchtime! But his favorites are sausage patties, hot dogs (with ketchup), chicken nuggets, green, black & red kidney beans, and oranges…and oh yea, potato chips with french onion dip!

One of my favorite traits of his? That he wakes up just like his mama. I am not one that can bounce out of bed. I don’t hit a snooze bar once, I have to hit it three times or more. And if there isn’t an alarm? I tend to lay in bed for a half hour (at least) before slowing dragging myself out from underneath the covers. And Gavin is the same exact way. He does best if you let him talk to himself & slowly wake up in the morning. If you do so, he tends to be up and ready with a smile on his face…if you wake him early, or get him right when you hear him…expect a crabby child. So, in the mornings, I often hear him and know that I have at least a half hour until he really wants to get up. And two days this week we both laid in bed until 9 a.m. HEAVEN.

He’s shy around strangers…for about five minutes, and then he’s the best of friends. He loves all the kids in our neighborhood & runs straight for them if he sees them playing outside. Especially 11 year old Morgan, who pulls him around the cul-de-sac in his wagon and comes over just to hang out with him.

He doesn’t identify animals with their names, but by their sounds. We take a dirt road to a local shopping center (yes, you read that right) and along the way there are several farms. The second we get on that road he yells, “MOO!” from the backseat, knowing he’ll see cows along the way.

He’s big into grabbing your pant’s leg, or hand to drag you around. Loves to march, march, march around the room. Has figure out that pushing “this” button on our old digital camera takes a picture. Doesn’t like being outside without a hat. Loves to find things on the ground and put them in the trash can…whether it’s garbage or not. Says hi with a wave to people walking/riding their bikes past our house and says bye with a wave as he heads off for a walk around the cul-de-sac. Calls bikes, “butts.” Something we’ve been trying hard to correct :) Has figured out that candy is good stuff. Loves watching Little Einsteins during his vest treatment.  Has a major addiction to shoes. Would be ok being outside 24/7…even in the rain. Isn’t a big fan of sharing his toys. Obsessed with dogs, big or small. Doesn’t last more than five minutes, without a snack, in a shopping cart.

And that doesn’t even sum it up. He has quite the personality. And we’re loving every minute of it!