EASTER 2010

Easter this year was SO MUCH FUN! Gavin loved coloring eggs and gathering eggs at the two Easter egg hunts we went to. Friday morning we colored eggs with our good friends Treasure, Madison and Jackson. Then that afternoon we went to the park and had a ward Easter egg hunt and played on the playground. It was so fun to see Gavin run excitedly from egg to egg (it took him a little bit to figure out what was going on, but once he got it he didn't want to stop, especially when he realized there was CANDY in the eggs!) Then Saturday we had another Easter egg hunt (our second annual hunt) with our friends the Youngs, Clarks and Niederhausers. The Nieders have a great little grassy area by their house and put on the BEST easter egg hunt with fun things like chips, bubbles and such! Then the boys went to the Priesthood session of conference while the girls got dinner and saved spots at the Easter Pageant at the temple. Two funny stories: 1.) While waiting for the pageant to start Gavin was rolling around in the grass and picking it up. At one point he tried to make me eat the grass. I told him "Mommy's don't eat grass! Who eats grass?...Cows eat grass and what do cows say?" And Gavin answered "moooo!" Then I told him he was a silly boy and he said "I silly!" It was so funny and the first time I had heard him refer to himself. 2.) Before the pageant starts the actors walk around in their costumes and greet people. One teenage boy was walking around with a real baby lamb in his arms and he stopped at our row to let Gavin pet the baby lamb. While he was at our row the lamb said "baa" and Gavin was all excited. Then when they brought animals up on the stage during the performance Gavin saw them and got SO EXCITED and starting yelling "BAAA" and that continued the REST of the night. It would be dead silent and there was Gavin yelling "BAA!" Jason and I couldn't help laughing, but we felt sorry that Gavin was ruining the mood of those spiritual moments for the people around us with his baa-ing. Easter morning was really low key. Thanks to Potter and Nana and Papa and Niece for the Easter gifts, Gavin loved them! Josh and Dani came over for breakfast and to watch conference. Before I went to work that afternoon we had a YUMMY honey ham dinner. What a GREAT weekend!

LAKE HAVASU

The second weekend of March, my family flew in from Texas and we drove to Lake Havasu for my Grandpa Stan's (my dad's dad) 80th birthday bash! The whole family was there (like 90 people!) and we all stayed at this resort and slept in trailers that was actually about 20 min away from Lake Havasu (being spring break that was probably better ; we were afraid of all the scantily clad college students anyway!). The resort was awesome with a covered kids playground, putt putt golf, covered swimming pools, golf carts to get around, wave runners and boats for rent. The resort was right on the Colorado river. Grandpa and grandma had rented 2-3 golf carts, 2 wave runners and a boat. So we had tons of fun playing in the river even though it was a little chilly. Gavin LOVED putt putt golfing and generally being out side to throw rocks and run and play in the water. It was so fun seeing family we haven't seen in years! Matt was in all the action, hanging out with cousins. Jason, Mom and Dad enjoyed golfing at a really nice golf course nearby with some of the other adults Saturday morning. We had a blast, Happy Birthday Grandpa Stan!

Phoenix Zoo

My mom came at the end of February and also in March with my sister Sam and brother Matt for spring break. Both of those times we took advantage of the BEAUTIFUL weather and went to the Phoenix Zoo. Gavin absolutely LOVED the zoo!!! He is big into animals right now and we have been working really hard on learning all the different animal sounds.

In February we took my friend Treasure's son Jackson with us. The boys got to feed the giraffes which was really cool. Jackson loved it and Gavin was really excited until the giraffe's big head was inches from his and then he got a little skittish.

Me, Jackson and Gavin looking at the cool animals. Every time we have gone to the zoo all of the animals have been easy to see and active, which just makes it more fun for the boys.

The monkeys were really fun for the boys to see because you got to get SO close to them!

In March we went again to the Zoo with my mom, Sam and Matt and...DADDY!! Since Jason didn't come the first time, my mom and Jason took Gavin to feed the giraffe's again. This time he wasn't scared at all ! (maybe cause he was with Daddy)

This Tiger kept "ROARING" for us while we were in line to feed the giraffe. Gavin thought that was the BEST! The picture below it is Gavin watching the tiger.

These monkeys were grooming each other right next to the glass. Gavin watched them FOREVER! I had to pry him away with promises of more cool animals.

Matt, Sam and Gavin at the zoo. It was so much fun going with them. They are so good with Gavin (except the whole letting Gavin fall in the lake, j/k Sam!)

Mr. Rhino here was playing with the ball on the pole there. It was really fun watching him move the ball up and down with his horn. See, we get to see EVERYTHING at the zoo! Thanks mom for the year pass, we've already been back and plan to go next week too!

By far, Gavin's favorite part about the zoo is petting the goats. This video has Jackson in it as well. They loved brushing those goats and I LOVED seeing them have so much fun!

COLLOSSAL CATCH UP PART 4

RANDOM FUN FROM JANUARY AND FEBRUARY

Gavin has really changed over the last two months. His personality has really come out and he is ALL ENERGY!! He runs, jumps, plays, laughs and discovers the world all day long. Jason and I have to watch what we say because Gavin is mimicking everything! The boy is a talker!

BALLOONS!

Gavin LOVES balloons! The day after we came home from our Utah visit I had minor surgery. Here is Gavin rolling around on the ground with the Get Well balloons he and daddy got me.


OUR LITTLE CLIMBER

Gavin is a PRO at stairs. We no longer have to keep the gate up because he is strong enough and has figured out how to tear it down. Here is Gavin taking a little rest on the stairs before more mischief I'm sure! :) Launa came to spend a week with us at the end of January which was tons of fun. One night she let Jason and I go out on a date while she stayed and watched Gavin. About 10 minutes after we had left we get a picture sent to our phones of Gavin sitting on top of the piano! In the split second that she had turned around, Gavin had climbed up on the piano!


ROCKS + RAIN = GAVIN AND TONS OF FUN!

In January we got a LOT of rain. It turned all our grassy areas in the community to lakes. Here is Gavin and I throwing rocks in the water by our house. Gavin still LOVES the outdoors (he can't get enough, the kid could live outside and be in hog heaven!) and LOVES rocks and LOVES throwing anything he can get his hands on.

COUCH POTATO

Gavin has discovered TV and movies. I guess it was inevitable with us exposing him to the Signing Time videos since he was 6 months old. But he communicates really well through signs and so I have to take the bad with the good. But Gavin wakes up every morning wanting to watch a movie. His favorites are Toy Story & Toy Story 2 (he calls them "Buzz and Woo-ee"), Kung Fu Panda (he calls it "Po"), Ice Age (he calls it "baby" after the "where's the baby" game that Diego plays), Mickey's Clubhouse (he calls it "mouse") and My Friends Tigger and Pooh (he calls it "pooh"). He also LOVES the chair Jason and I got him for Christmas!

BUZZ, WOODY AND THE RACES

Here is Gavin with his best friends Buzz and Woody. I loves to race in the house. He starts at the front door, runs around the kitchen and ends up back at the door. He loves to have Mommy, Daddy and Sugar join him. Although he is such a cheater because he starts running and then yells "GO!"

OUR SILLY BOY

What a cheeser! Here is Gavin saying "cheez" and smiling for daddy and the camera during dinner! What a ham! Daddy took like 10 pictures!

FORT GAVIN

Since coming home from Utah Gavin has made the area between the bathroom and the coat closet and behind the playpen his little FORT! (Side note: We used to use the playpen for time out, but can't anymore now that he just climbs out of it! Actually the kid climbs on EVERYTHING! The week after getting home he started climbing out of his crib. We were SHOCKED when we heard a big "THUMP" and then there was Gavin coming downstairs after we had put him to bed! That first night (Sunday) we had to lock the door to his bedroom and wait until he fell asleep on the floor by the door to put him back into the crib. The next day we had bought a crib tent that keeps them in.) Back to the FORT: he brings toys to his little fort area and then drags either Jason or me or both to sit on the ground next to him and just hang out. Then he YELLS at the top of his lungs for "PUPPY!" to join us. Gavin gets so upset when Sugar gets bored and leaves the fort. He's up like a flash and yelling for her again to come back! It is so funny. Here is Gavin playing with his toys in his FORT.

OUR BIG HELPER

Gavin has become such a BIG helper! In the first photo he is helping daddy put the leaf to the table away. I think he even grunted a few times acting like it was heavy to carry! hehehe. The picture above is Gavin helping Mommy vacuum. Apparently I don't vacuum enough for him because almost everyday he gets out the vacuum for me and then gets really upset unless I actually vacuum the family room. The other day we were eating in the family room on the couch. I was done and at the sink doing the dishes. Daddy had finished but was still on the couch with his plate. All the sudden, Gavin goes over and takes Daddy's plate from off his lap and brings it over to me in the kitchen! We were both terrified he would trip and fall and cut himself. But he made it safely, with a little grunt at the end I might add. He also loves to throw things away for you!

YUM! PUDDING!

Here is Gavin eating chocolate pudding for the first time. Do you think he likes it? I can't tell.