It's been a while....

Pictures first!

Lots seems to have been going on since I last posted at Easter. The most significant being the loss of a family member. I won't get in to details to protect the privacy of those closest to him. Continued prayers for his close family and friends. He will be greatly missed.

Changes to "my path in mommyhood" include the recent development of the husband being given first dibs on job opportunities out of town. The work in our local area is slowing down and he was chosen to go do these other jobs. Pro's= he still has a job; a bit more income for working out of town; lastly- a bit less mess in my house Monday-Friday morning (haha). The con's= i don't know how good I'll be at being single mommy to G; who knows what the poor little boy will end up eating! I also know it will affect G and he'll be wondering where his Daddy is and why he gets to see him for a couple days and then he's gone again. This will occur for approximately two months.

Which brings me to something else that I cannot- NOT- mention: the loss of the family member I mentioned above resulted in a single mother of three. My situation cannot even begin to compare and so I slap myself each time I think about whining about my husband being out of town Mon.-Fri. for a couple months (I'm slapped again).

On to little Mr. G's happenings:

The kid continues to stretch his independence muscles; making it a lot of fun for my ever stretching reserve of patience. Somehow, each day God equips me with a new queue (what a weird word) of patience. I do enjoy watching my little guy test limits at times; it's hard not to smile or laugh but stick to teaching him some healthy limits.

Language development: we THINK he's added a new sentence to his repertoire: "I want that," sounds more like "ah ahnt dat." Certainly he is always asking "wasss dat?" So far most of my efforts to teach sign language is NOT paying off :( I'm the only one trying to consistently reinforce it, so it makes sense.

Little G loves to tell our dogs what to do. Apparently our disdain and, more often than not, annoyance with the dogs has rubbed off on him and he usually addresses them with a stern voice. Sorry to say the dogs are definitely animals now and dethroned from their previous higher status.

Most recent check-up for G was right at his 16 month birthday, stats: 70% weight and 80% height with an average noggin. No real concerns or issues to be too excited about so it was a great visit. He did have to get booster shots---ouch! He takes a chewable flinstones vitamin with added iron because his iron was still a bit low. He thinks this is his morning treat and I'm just happy he doesn't protest.

I've found a no-cry way to brush his teeth! After letting him "brush" (aka suck the training toothpaste) off it for a minute in front of the bathroom mirror, we move on to the changing table and it becomes a game. I "tickle" his mouth and teeth with it and it's an all out giggle fest--WORKS FOR ME! :)

Potty training is on the horizon- or at least the first attempts at potty training. He now usually grabs his crotch when he pees (or has peed) and is less ok with being in a dirty diaper for any period of time (I can empathize with that). I have not yet bought a portable potty for him but probably will just so he becomes familiar with it over time. What am I in for?? I can imagine a huge poopy mess---gahh!! Wrangling the child while changing a diaper, while also trying to keep poop off my hands is already crazy!

Lastly, we took a vacation to the beach last week. We were there for my Godson (yay- I'm a God mother) George's baptism this past Sunday but was fortunate enough to make a trip out of it because his parents rented a condo for the week before. Ahhhh....I love the beach and time off from work! Gavin didn't mind the beach and was waving the water towards him; he wasn't too keen at first on the sand all over him. He definitely enjoyed all of the helicopters, planes, birds and people and dogs to watch. Another precious, priceless moment of mommyhood: sitting in my chair at the water with Gavin in my lap having a snack; he's laid back on me and we're just sharing a quiet moment enjoying the view----LOVE IT and I'll cherish it forever. I will let him cuddle with me as long as he wants to; soon the day will come when cuddling isn't cool. (I may then hold him down and give him embarrassing kisses just to prove a point.)

Oh---I have to give props to other blogs that I find and stalk; here are a couple:

The Pioneer Woman this woman is awesome- four kids, cooking up yummy stuff, lives off the ranch--wow!

MODG This blog is absofreakinlutely hilarious (with some profanity). I only wish I could be as humorous as this Momma; however, I do not envy her placenta pill adventure-----ewww. Just read the blog.

That's all for now- come back to visit!