Gavin's First Haircut!

Gavin got his first hair cut today!  We only trimmed the extra long wisps of hair to even his beautiful locks.  They were getting quite long!  He did a great job and entertained himself by playing with toys.

Before:

After:

Mr. Sensitive, Update

We continue to battle with Gavin's sensitive skin, especially around his mouth.  Since he's working on cutting teeth, he's almost always mouthing items.  This leaves a wet area around his mouth, causing it to be red and chapped.  We continued with our regular regimen of lotion and prescription steroid ointment, but it wasn't getting better.  We tried Neosporin, different lotions, Vaseline, humidifier, etc. with no luck.  When Gavin started to be bothered by his skin, such as rubbing it on our shoulders, and it becoming very chapped we decided to make a trip to the doctor's office.

The doctor explained that it was his eczema, aggravated by his teething and possibly starting to become infected.  She gave us an antibiotic and suggested trying around with new lotions to find the best combination.  She anticipated that the antibiotic would start to show improvement within 4 days and to call if it didn't.  Current weight: 18 lbs 5oz.

5 days later: Gavin's skin started to look better, but then started to look bad again.  We called for another appointment.  This doctor thought that his skin wasn't infected and said we didn't need to continue with the antibiotic again.  He recommended using the steroid ointment twice a day until the area healed and applying Vaseline every 30-60 minutes since he's mouthing objects so frequently.  While we're tired of using steroids without great results, he explained that we need to clear the area first and then just maintain his good skin.  He also said we could call a local dermatologist and anticipates that Gavin will grow out of his sensitive skin.  He explained that Gavin has 3 factors working against him: Dry, cold air; Teething; Introduction of solids--all of which can cause eczema flare ups.  Current weight: 18lbs 15oz.   Out of curiosity, I also cut peanuts/nuts out of my diet.

We tried the pediatrician's recommendations.  We continued to antibiotic for a few more days, just in case.  Gavin's skin responded quickly to the new regimen and was beginning to look great.  The sporadic dry areas on the other parts of his body cleared quickly and his face was improving.  Unfortunately, the red spots returned again on his face again.  Although, he doesn't care for having his ointment or Vaseline on his face and usually tries to wipe it off.  We'll likely call the dermatologist soon and have Gavin's 6 month well baby check up at the end of the week and can discuss his skin yet again.

6 Months Old!

Our sweet Gavin is 6 months old!  He has a wonderful personality and is such a joy!  We sang Happy Birthday to him at 5:24pm and received a beautiful smile and giggle in return!

~Our "little boy" isn't so little!  He fits comfortably into 12 month clothes, especially shirts due to his long torso
~He's a very proficient sitter and enjoys looking around his environment
~We've started to introduce foods.  Gavin loves his food and is a fairly neat eater! We introduced rice cereal first.  Based on smelly gas, we suspected that it gave him an upset belly.  Next, we introduced oatmeal, which he seemed to digest a bit easier.  He's also had squash and loved every bite!
~Gavin is quite grabby!  He'll go for anything within reach!
~His favorite song is "The Wheels on the Bus"  It's almost guaranteed to result in a smile and giggle!
~Gavin takes two naps a day, ~9:00am and ~1:00pm.  Naps are normally between 1-2 hours.  If he doesn't fall asleep when nursing, he does a great job of putting himself to sleep in his bed.  He has been waking up once a night again.  He usually goes back to sleep easily after eating.
~He hasn't rolled over yet, but is starting to show some interest in reaching for toys out of range while on his back
~Gavin does well during tummy time, but wants to be entertained while exercising
~We love his smiles and giggles!
~Gavin is a talker!  He babbles frequently, using a variety of sounds, pitches, and volumes.  He even babbles something very similar to "Ma!"

Happy Valetine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day from our little cupids!

3 Year Stats

Brennan had his 3 year check up shortly after his birthday.  The doctor was pleased with his development and growth.  Our next well check up is at 4 years!  Unfortunately, we were back in the office 3 days later due to a high fever....

Weight: 37 lbs (95th percentile)
Height: 39.25 inches (approximately...they had to re-measure him and they didn't write down the second, more accurate measurement.  90-95th percentile)

Some things he can do:
-Talk.  A lot!  He can talk in lengthy, complete sentences with correct pronoun usage and carry on a conversation.
-Count 1-30
-Identify upper and lower case letters
-Identify numbers 0-10
-Use his manners, including please, thank you and you're welcome
-Pee in the potty.  He's doing better about telling us when he has to go, but also does a great job of waiting to go until we take him
-Jump
-Puzzles.  He loves puzzles!  He has an impressive visual memory and quickly memorizes where pieces go.  Our highest piece puzzle is 30 and he puts it together in a handful of minutes.
-Dress himself
-Sing to himself.  He frequently sings while playing with toys.
-"Read" to himself.  He memorizes his stories and will read to himself.  It's neat to listen to him!
-Orally spell Brennan and Gavin

Why?

We're definitely in the 'why' stage with Brennan.

Why are we in the 'why' stage?

Because it's a typical stage of development in children.

Why is it a typical stage of development in children?

.....

Brennan is definitely a curious young man, wanting to know "why" for many, many, many things. 

1st Tooth!

Gavin has his first tooth!  He did an excellent job and didn't seem overly bothered by it.  He actually seemed more bothered after it cut through.  Mommy noticed that it was very close to cutting through while giving him a bath, but couldn't feel it.  Just a few minutes later, Daddy felt it!

He cut his second tooth a few days later!  His skin around his mouth is occasionally chapped from having his fingers and toys in his mouth frequently.

He now proudly sports his two front, bottom teeth!