Higher and higher!

Gavin climbed our steps for the first time today!  Previously, he hadn't shown any interest in tackling them.  He has attempted to climb onto Brennan's bed and the mini-trampoline, which are higher steps.  He was in the basement with me, crawling around while I was moving a load of laundry.  I looked at the stairs and he was on the first step!  I immediately went to the stairs and was there for possible support.  He quickly climbed the entire flight of stairs without assistance!  He climbed them again two other times today.  We recorded him, but are having technical difficulties with posting the video.

Speaking of higher, Brennan counted to 50 yesterday--his highest yet!  He was counting objects in a book and kept going and going and going...

So Big!

Sorry for the direction of the video.  It's too adorable to not share!  He's also starting to play Peek-A-Boo with blankets!

10 Months Old!

Sweet Gavin-boy is 10 months old! 

~He loves being mobile!  He can crawl quickly, using a variety of crawls depending on the floor surface.  He travels the fastest for electrical cords, puzzle pieces, and patio door blinds (i.e.: things he shouldn't have).  He also likes to crawl to air conditioning vents.  Want him to crawl even faster?  Chase him exclaiming, "Hey! Hey! Hey!".  This is also guaranteed to get a belly laugh.
 ~He also likes to pull himself up, especially on Mommy/Daddy, the mini-trampoline, Brennan's bed, and his crib.
~Gavin enjoys giving kisses and high fives.
~While it seems that he may only be repeating us, he's clearly said "Up", "Hug", and my favorite, "Mama!"  We're anxiously waiting for him to say them intentionally and meaningfully!
~He continues to enjoy eating, gobbling up all purred food we offer.  Gavin also enjoys Puffs and Mum Mum crackers.  He's successfully eaten tiny pieces of soft fruits (pears, bananas), but hasn't mastered Cheerios yet as he usually ends up spitting them up.
~His smile is full of pearly whites--8 teeth!  4 on top and 4 on the bottom.
~Gavin goes to sleep around 7:30pm and wakes between 5:30am-6:00am.  More often than not, he wakes up once over night.  He could very likely put himself back to sleep, but he goes back to sleep easily with a diaper change and quick nursing session.  I suppose I'm a softy, as I assume that his cutting teeth or eczema is bothering him when he wakes up.  He's a full-time belly sleeper, usually using one of his blankets as a pillow.
~Speaking of eczema, we continue to battle with his flare ups.  We've had a few appointments at the dermatologists' office and he's been prescribed several creams/ointments.  We declined using a cream that has been "black boxed" due to possibly causing cancer, despite the dermatologist assuring us that she would feel comfortable using it on her infant.  We also made an appointment with a pediatric allergist, wondering if an allergy is preventing his eczema from being controlled with medication.  The earliest appointment for new patients is mid-August and we're on the cancellation list, allowing us to go in if someone cancels their appointment.  He's a trooper with his skin, although it does seem to bother him at times.
~Gavin is most attracted to noisy toys.  Upon picking up small toys/objects, he'll immediately shake it to see if it makes a noise.
~He also likes to "dance", bouncing when he hears music.  He continues to like bouncing on beds, the mini-trampoline, etc.
~We're working on introducing sippy cups.  We've removed the valve on cups and he'll get excited when he gets a drink of water.  He usually chews the cup when given with a valve.  He also likes to play the infamous I-drop-and-you-pick-up game with sippy cups.

Ready, Set, Go!

It didn't take long for Gavin to master mobility and he now crawls very quickly!  Sometimes, he'll crawl on one knee and one foot, typically when he's not on carpet.  He also "monkey crawls" on his hands and feet.  He consistently "monkey crawls" when he's transitioning from carpet to tile/hardwood.

This video was taken about 2.5 weeks after beginning to crawl:

Mr. Memory

I've heard people say that kids remember everything.  They aren't joking.  Brennan's memory impresses us daily!  A few recent examples:

~While putting puzzles together, he can place pieces in the correct spot even without the adjacent pieces in place.  His biggest puzzle is 48 pieces, which he can assemble within a few minutes.
~He's a whiz at a 28 picture memory game on our tablet.
~Since the weather is warming up, we're visiting our local parks again.  On our first trip of the season, we told Brennan we were going to the park.  He questioned if we were going to the park with the "blue steps and the red slide" or the park with the "brown steps and the tunnel slide" 
~While on a walk around the neighborhood, he was identifying numbers on mailboxes.  He read one of the addresses "6063", reading from bottom to top.  We continued walking and explained that you read the numbers from top to bottom.  Without seeing the numbers, he replied "3606!"
~While on another walk, he pointed to a house that previously had a "skeleton on the front door"...as a Halloween decoration.

Although, this is also the child that when asked what he did at the babysitter's house, he consistently replies, "I don't know!"

9 Month Appointment

Gavin had his 9 month well baby appointment today.  Current stats:

19lbs 1/2 oz
29"
44 cm head circ

He's happy and healthy!  The doctor was pleased with his milestones.

Just in time for his appointment, Gavin's rash around his face broke out again.  It looked wonderful just a few days earlier!  We reviewed our current and previous treatments.  She recommended applying the Desonide steroid treatment again for 5-7 days.  We haven't been using the cream since weaning him off after the dermatologist suspected that his skin became "addicted" to it.  She also prescribed an antibiotic cream, also to be used for 7 days, in case it was becoming infected.  We're also continuing with frequent Vaseline applications to serve as a barrier against wetness from teething.  If this regimen doesn't work, we'll go back to the dermatologist.   His little thumbs are also becoming red from chewing on them while teething, so we're also applying Vaseline to them while he sleeps.  Adam and I are beginning to suspect that his skin may be more chapped than an eczema rash, or maybe a combination.

9 Months Old!

Our sweet Gavin is 9 months old!

~Gavin is officially mobile!  Once he realized the perks of mobility, he took off.  He transitioned from sitting to his belly more gracefully and intentionally.  Then, he learned to move from his belly to sitting. Within a few days, he was crawling!  Just a handful of days later, he was able to crawl further distances and with more fluidity.  He's most interested in going after things he shouldn't have, including Brennan's small toys and electrical cords.  He's very proud of himself!
~He's showing interest in pulling himself up on objects, especially Mommy and Daddy.
~He loves to eat!  He eats a combination of store bought and homemade purred food.  We've introduced Cheerios a few times, but he doesn't completely mash them before attempting to swallow.  We'll try again soon! 
~Gavin has 5 teeth--3 lower and 2 upper.  Based on gnawing and drool, another isn't far behind.
~He enjoys babbling.  Some new sounds including ga and ma!
~Gavin loves to bounce!  He bounces in your arms, on the floor, on his bed, etc.  He also enjoys sitting on the mini-trampoline and bouncing!
~He enjoys giving wet, open mouth kisses...and we love getting them!
~Gavin is quite an easy going young man!  He typically goes with the flow with wherever we are and whatever we're doing!
~He's inconsistent about sleeping through the night, sometimes getting up once.  The easiest way to get him back to sleep is a diaper change and nursing.  We suspect teeth and itchy skin are the culprits.  He also has difficulty going from belly to back, leaving him "stuck" if he doesn't want to sleep on his stomach.
~Gavin's skin quickly fluctuates from broken out to clear.  We haven't been able to pinpoint why, but hope we can find the answer and solution soon.