All About Gavin (3 Years Old)

Everyone knows that Gavin is adorable. My hairdresser can't believe I haven't started him in modeling. She thinks he would be the perfect Gap baby. His eyelashes and curls get him a lot of attention. Girls like to ask him if they can have his eyelashes. He just looks at them like they are crazy. He has this sweet, innocent look about him that gets him out of a lot of trouble with Zane and me. He can also switch on the silly boy act and makes us laugh so that we soon forget whatever naughty thing he just didn't.

Here are some things you may not know about Gavin.

He is super stubborn and independent. We worked on potty training for a loooong time! He finally started wearing underwear full time when I bought him a stool to stand on so he could go by himself. Because of the stool, he decided he wanted to and was good to go. Now he will only go potty when he wants to and fights me if I need him to go before we leave for somewhere.  Gavin likes to do everything by himself and gets very angry when he can't or I won't let him. Stubborn plus independent equals Temper Tantrums!!! Gavin has definitely hit the terrible threes.

Gavin loves the David books by David Shannon. I think he can relate.

Gavin is a little obsessed with poop. This is a little too much information but he likes to blow kisses to the toilet before he flushes it telling his poop that he loves it. I have always wondered how a person decides to become a Proctologist. These doctors were probably kids like Gavin.

Gavin is really tiny. He weighs 27 pounds (20th percentile) and is 35.75 inches tall (10th percentile). It is hard to find pants for him. We were at Pump it Up last week and the poor kid's pants kept falling off. This must have annoyed Gavin. Another mom came up to me and handed me Gavin's pants since he had decided to just take them off and run around in his underwear!

Gavin is a super picky eater. If he is eating yogurt, he will pull out any chunks. He has a hard time trying new foods but has lately shown a little more interest. His diet consists of pancakes, Green Smoothies, and peanut butter sandwiches. He does eat a few unhealthy things like hot dogs and Mac and Cheese every once in awhile and lately has started eating foods with sugar. He now loves chocolate. 6 months ago, he would rarely eat dessert with us. He doesn't like cold food like ice cream but this summer he started eating popsicles. Dallin loves the fact that Gavin is so picky. We offer food to Gavin and when he doesn't eat it (especially desserts), Dallin is right there to offer his services. Gavin does like to eat weird food like vinegar, lemons, salt, and play dough.

Gavin loves music and he loves to play with toys. He is very imaginative and likes playing by himself (yay!) while singing the whole time. He is a good singer too. I can usually recognize what song he is singing. He loves Primary songs especially "I Love to See the Temple." Gavin's favorite toy is definitely his Lightning McQueen cars but he loves his new castle too.

 Gavin enjoyed being part of our preschool last year. He thinks Dallin's friends are all his. He especially loves art time and play dough. He can also make a huge mess when participating in an activity!

Helping with the volcano at preschool

Gavin is getting to be much more daring. Last year he rarely went on the slip and slide (he really doesn't like cold water) and this year he is a little crazy.

Gavin loves babies and dogs. He is really kind to kids younger than him (this is Gavin with his cousin Ellery.)

He loves Lili and is a big helper.

Gavin is a really clumsy kid. He has had a few black eyes and usually has a scrape on his knee or a cut somewhere. He runs into walls quite a bit...

Gavin is quite the character. He likes to pretend to be the Hulk and last Sunday he decided he was Goliath. We have a musical version of David and Goliath that he likes to watch on Sundays. He was cracking us up with his "swords" in the underwear (toy nails)

that he would pull out yelling "I am Goliath."

I know I would be scared to fight him. (The running around in underwear is typical for Gavin. He has a hard time pulling up his pants after going potty, so he will choose to just take them off instead.)

God knew what He was doing when he brought Gavin to our family. We love this little boy!

Date with Grandma

 I'm not sure how it started. Maybe my mom has always had a secret desire to go to Build A Bear and so when the oldest grandchild turned three, she used this as an excuse to go.  Or maybe my mom feels that turning three is a really big deal. Whatever the reason, the three year old birthday has become extra special because you get a date with Grandma at Build A Bear. My parents are spoiled and have many of their grandchildren living close by. This makes it hard for each grandchild though to have one-on-one time. This makes it all the more special to have Grandma pick you up and only you and take you to somewhere mom hasn't taken you to (Build a Bear), then you get to go to the pet store, then lunch, and finally a ride a the carousal. What a fun date!

In these pictures, Gavin doesn't look super excited. I suspect he was a little overwhelmed/confused with everything.

Picking out his doggy. 

 My mom said that Gavin didn't get the heart thing at first. My mom helped him rub the heart on his heart so it will be full of love, on his head so that it would be smart etc. Then Gavin caught on and picked another heart and did it himself. He would have kept going with more hearts, but my mom stopped him. His doggy has extra love because he has two hearts.

 

Gavin loves his doggy Spot and takes great care of him.

 Gavin picked out a stuffed dog because he really, really loves dogs and would be the happiest boy if we brought one home. (Sorry buddy)

I told my mom to skip the lunch thing since my super picky eater wouldn't eat it. Gavin does like walking around the food court and getting samples. Apparently a piece of chicken on a toothpick is yummy but not on your plate. After getting his "lunch", he enjoyed a ride on the Carousel (my mom said he enjoyed it at least...).

I'm so glad Gavin got this special time with Grandma. He had a great time and felt so special! Thanks Grandma!

A Big 3 Year Old Birthday

 Gavin turned the big 3 on June 26th.  About a week before his birthday, Gavin clued in something exciting was going to happen. He kept talking about what kind of cake he wanted (he went through every super hero and Cars figure) and blowing out candles. He enjoyed every minute of his special day and loved the attention.

 Gavin loves toys and has a great imagination. It is fun to buy toys for him and see how creative he gets with them.

This year he got the Imaginext Castle and a couple of accessories. This was the best present ever! The boys were entertained by it for an hour and half straight. My boys never play together that long without it turning into a wrestling match.

My sister Haley took the boys to our weekly summer movie that morning then everyone came back to our house for lunch. After a good nap, the family came back over for grilled pizza and cupcakes.

Zane and I usually design a special cake for each kid, but with move going on, there just wasn't time. Instead I made cupcakes with two color frosting. They were yummy!

Gavin loved the frosting at least!

So glad this sweet boy is in our family!

Float or Drown?

 If there was a choice between floating and drowning, Gavin just might choose downing simply because he is so stubborn and refuses to float! Just like we did with Dallin a few years ago, we started Gavin with Ms. Gail for swim safety lessons. Ms Gail is a brilliant teacher. She can accomplish what I wish I could when I was co-teaching middle school. She has the right amount of firmness and the right amount of love. When I co-taught, either one teacher was the disciplinarian and the other was the fun teacher or vice versus. There was only one teacher that I taught with that we could find the right balance together. Ms. Gail has that balance. She can push Dallin like no one else and keep his focus. She is hard on him and yet he loves her.

Gavin is a whole different type of kid. He spent the first two lessons crying the whole time for me until on the third I got in the water with him. I knew he wasn't scared of water he just was uncomfortable being away from me. From then on he was fine having a lesson by himself.

Gavin got the reward for being the most stubborn kid Ms. Gail has ever taught. He hated to roll over because he was focused on getting the toy to the "castle" and didn't want anything to get in his way even if it was breathing! Every time Ms. Gail made him roll over, he would cry like it was the end of the world. Another teacher that subbed for Ms. Gail a few times would stop pushing Gavin as much and treat him very gently. Ms. Gail though recognized that Gavin could do everything she was asking, he just didn't want to. Again, she could push him like no one else. At the beginning of our session, I thought there was no way Gavin was going to pass his swim test in the same amount of time as Dallin and that I would have to sign him up again and that wasn't possible with our move. Because of Ms. Gail though, he did it and surprised us all!

The swim cap protects Gavin's hair and keeps it out of his face. He looks so cute in it!

Gavin loved to chase Ms. Gail around the pool with the noodle.

In this video, you will see how stubborn Gavin can be. He turns around in circles looking for something to grab onto before he finally chooses to float. At one point in another lesson, Ms Gail had all her helpers get out of the water, pulled the castle out of the water, so that Gavin was the only one in the water and was forced to either float on his back or drown. Thank goodness he chose to float!

Swim test: On the swim test day, Gavin came fully dressed including shoes. He had to show Ms. Gail that if he fell in the water, he could float on his back until he reached the side and could climb out. I didn't catch everything on the video, but Ms. Gail is pretty rough on the kids. While they are floating, she will come by and toss them in the water again. It shocked Gavin, but he came up floating again (very angrily!).

In this video, Ms. Gail asks him four times (I didn't include all four times on the video) to jump in the water, float on his back to breath, then swim to the castle.  At first I thought Gavin didn't understand the instructions or that he had selective hearing. Really, I think he just wanted to do things his way.

We are so proud of Gavin and hope that if there is ever an accident, he will remember what he was taught and choose to float!

Dallin's First Swim Season

 I love swim team.  I was on my neighborhood swim team growing up and although I definitely wasn't the fastest swimmer (although my mom said my freestyle strokes were the prettiest which really doesn't win you any races), I learned how to swim all four strokes, got exercise, and hung out with friends. My butterfly isn't anything to brag about, but it impressed Zane which is probably the only time I have impressed him when it comes to a sport since I lack any athletic abilities. Dallin's favorite things in life are swimming, food, and friends so I was excited to try Dallin on our neighborhood swim team since it covered all three!

The excitement soon ended though on the day of the try outs in April.  Dallin hadn't swam in a pool since last summer.  At the end of the summer he could swim the 25 meters by himself although I was usually in the water with him encouraging him.  This was the requirement to get on the team.  Swim across the pool without touching the lane ropes. Unfortunately for us (but great for the rest of the city), we had an unusually cool April and the unheated outdoor pool was very cold the day of the tryouts. I didn't think this would be that big of deal because Dallin is daring and loves being in the pool. I learned a few things about my son that day though.  Dallin really hates cold water.  He is very sensitive to it and on that day of tryouts, nothing was going to entice him into the pool (and believe me I pulled out a few incentives to get him to do it.) I asked him if he wanted me to just throw him in and he said yes I think jokingly and then backed out saying no. I heard the yes though and threw him in. This method of getting Dallin to do something has worked in the past because usually he is playing some sort of game by pretending not to do something until I push him to do it. This was not the case here. Dallin screamed, swam to the stairs and hopped out.  A temper tantrum began because Dallin wanted to swim to get his reward but really didn't want to swim.  I chalk this experience up to one of my worse mommy moments and Dallin let me know he would never swim again the rest of his life. Coach Brandon told us that Dallin could come to rookie camp the next week and swim all week and try out again. I looked at the coach like he was crazy since Dallin was definitely not acting appropriately and if I was the coach I wouldn't want him on the team. Coach Brandon laughed and said let him try it out. I love Coach Brandon. I hope we are lucky and always have a coach like him.

Dallin had a great time at rookie camp because tons of his friends were there and then we got the great news that if you came to rookie camp you made the team and didn't have to try out again in the freezing cold water.

We tentatively showed up to the first day of practice and Dallin joined the team while I went to a parent meeting.  Half way through practice Dallin came to find me saying he didn't want to swim. That night Zane and I debated long and hard (because we needed to pull him out of the team soon if we wanted our money back) about whether we should try swimming this year or wait a year.  We both knew that Dallin would love it if he gave it a chance (hanging with friends and concession stands on Saturdays during the meets is like heaven to Dallin).  We just didn't know if he would give it a chance. As a parent, it is hard to know when to push and when to wait until they are ready. Dallin is teaching me this lesson over and over lately. In the end we decided to push knowing it could be a great experience for Dallin. The next week was rough at swim lessons. Dallin only went because of the reward he was earning if he practiced. By the end of the first week though, Dallin loved it and was excited to go to practice. This is the only activity that I have ever put Dallin in where he cheered every time I told him it was time to get ready to go. He practiced 5 days a week and cheered every day.

Three important lessons learned:
1. Dallin is extra sensitive to cold. He isn't just using it as an excuse not to do something. He really hates being cold.
2. Dallin struggles with new situations. My super social kid really struggles to act appropriately and participate if he is put in an unfamiliar environment.  I started learning this lesson when I put Dallin in a large afternoon TaeKwonDo class a few months earlier and started car pooling with another mom.  This lesson was reenforced with swim team and now I got it! When I put Dallin in science camp last week, we prepared and handled the situation completely different and Dallin was successful.
3. Dallin needs to know where I am at all times. He gets anxious if he can't find me.

Our experience with swim team was all uphill from that first day. Swim team is a great sport because even if the team doesn't win or you don't win your event, you feel like a winner if you beat your time or in the beginning for Dallin, made it across the pool. Thank goodness Dallin wasn't competitive at all and didn't notice what place he came in. There were enough 6 and under boys to have three relays so Dallin got to swim in the free relay each week. This was a lot of fun for him. After one meet, I told him his relay was really close to getting 3rd place (out of 4 teams). He ran back to our camp telling everyone he almost got third place! Another time I told him he got second place in his heat and he thought about it for a second and said, "First is the worst and second is the best though." So right. Dallin was just excited to swim and get ribbons. Some teams handed out heat ribbons right after you raced and then you could earn time improvement ribbons after each meet. Super reinforcing for Dallin.

Dallin at his first meet sitting at the ready benches. Waiting and down time is really tough for Dallin. This is when mischief usually happens. Swim team gave him lots of practice at waiting and except for two incidents, Dallin handled it great.

Getting ready to swim.

 Dallin never really mastered diving off the block. He can do it off the side but gets worried about water in his goggles so he just jumps in. During practice he would actually yell "cannon ball" as he jumped in. He can be so silly.

The first few meets Dallin figured out he didn't have to worry about swimming across the pool because he could grab onto the lane ropes.  He would pull a Lindsey (my little sister who used to hang on the lane ropes and wave to the crowd) and grab onto the ropes, look around at what his friends were doing, smile for the camera etc.  He was DQed in his first meet and swam a 1:36 in free style. He refuse to swim backstroke because he wasn't very good at it yet and was scared.

The next meet he swam backstroke without using his arms and rolled on his front to check to see how far he had to go still. He only swam it because he wanted something from the concession stands.

Since Dallin would ask for food from the concession stands every Saturday, we would set goals for him to accomplish in order to get one treat.  Right before the 3rd meet, Zane told Dallin that if he would swim without touching the lane ropes then we would take him to get ice cream as a family. That did it. The next meet Dallin did what we knew he could do all along and swam across the pool.  We were really excited. 

From that meet on Dallin was on fire making improvements each time.  Soon he was swimming with either rolling on his back to breath (which is fine for free style) or breathing to his side. During divisionals, Dallin swam a 47 second free style and a 1:03 backstroke using both arms and legs and staying on his back.  Huge improvements!

This is what the boys did while waiting for Dallin to swim. Within a few meets, Dallin had met a couple of new friends on the team and then he would hang out with them. He is always the social butterfly.

 This is what Lili did during meets.  She received a lot of attention!

This is a real swim team dad!

Dallin never liked to wear a swim cap during the meets, but each week the coaches gave out a Seal of the Week swim cap and Dallin got it one week. Super proud moment!

Here is Dallin at his last meet. You have to look past the officials to see Dallin in the last lane.

Reasons I love swim team:
1. After having swim practice five days a week for all of May and June with swim meets on Saturday, you get to be a very confident swimmer with great endurance.
2. Swim team helps you get to know people in your neighborhood better.
3. Swimming is great exercise!
4. With all the ribbons and trophy at the end, swimming is a very positive and motivating sport.

Looking forward to next season!

Lili at 6 Months

May was a crazy month for us with preschool ending, the start of swim team for Dallin, and swim lessons for Gavin.  Lili was a champ through it all.  She caught naps when she could and handled the hot weather while watching the boys. At Lili's 6 month appointment she weighed in at 12 pounds 2 ounces and was 24 inches tall.  She is still under the 2nd percentile, but because she is steadily growing the doctor isn't worried. She is just a tiny girl.  Although she looks like a 3 month old, Lili acts like a 6 month old baby.  She rolls around and really likes to move. She loves her bouncy toy, grabbing onto things including blankets, your shirt, fingers or anything she can get her hands on. Lili is very popular where ever she goes because she is such a cute, sweet baby.

Lili wearing the dress my mom made me for my blessing day.

With Grandma on Mother's Day wearing the dress she made for me

Lili loves this toy and can spend a long time in it before getting bored. In this picture, she discovered the mirror and really liked looking at herself!

Lili catching a nap at a swim meet.

Ready for Memorial Day

Lili has never enjoyed toys before now because she was such a sleepy baby.  During month 6 she became alert and ready to play!

 

Hanging with her brothers.  I love watching the relationship grow between the three of them. These boys love their sister!

 Giggling Lili

Snuggling in her blanket

 Lili's "I don't want to take pictures" face

 Lili does smile, but when she sees the camera light, this is the face I get.  Still cute!

Lili had an accident this month that really scared us.  While at swim practice, I put Lili down in her car seat which was in her stroller.  I didn't buckle her in because she was a little fussy and I knew I would have to pick her up again. In the couple of seconds that I turned my back to watch Dallin swim backstroke, Gavin came over to play on the stroller (without realizing Lili was in it) and pulled the handle down.  Lili flew out of the stroller and hit the ground. The next little while was crazy emotional as I got her calm and checked out any injuries.  I am convinced that she had an angel watching over her because she had no bumps and didn't suffer at all from the fall.  I on the other hand was an emotional wreck the whole night.  That incident on top of getting the news from our lawyer that Lili's adoption finalization was getting pushed back a few months because of a problem (a long story but hopefully everything will get worked out for us to finalize in a few months) was a lot to handle without a flood of tears! We feel very blessed that our little girl is healthy and doing so well.