A Few of My Favorite Things

With my return to work comes rushed mornings and chaotic evenings.  I'm trying to capture every moment we have as a family in the hustle and bustle.  Here's a list of some of my favorites:
~The look in Gavin's eyes when he sees me, especially when it's paired with kicks of excitement and a huge smile
~Talking with Brennan about his day while we have our family dinner
~"Talking" with Gavin
~Our nightly "family hugs"
~Listening to Adam read bedtime stories to Brennan
~Snuggling with Brennan while I sing him bedtime songs, sneaking in as many kisses as I can
~Watching Gavin drift to sleep as he nurses before bedtime, holding onto one of my fingers
~Snuggling with Gavin and giving him kisses before putting him in bed

3 Months Old!

Our not-so-little Gavin is 3 months old!  He's growing and learning every day!

~I've returned to work and Gavin has joined Brennan at the babysitter's house during the day.  Despite countless attempts and numerous different types of bottles, he does not like to drink from them!  In his four days at the babysitter's house, he's drank between 2.5-4.5 ounces during the entire day!  While we're not sure how much he drinks while nursing, it's most certainly more!  The babysitter reports that he's happy during the day unless she's trying to feed him, but has started to fight her less when she tries to feed him.  He's definitely hungry when Mommy gets home from work!
~He's sleeping through the night, typically sleeping between 10-12 hours.  He has started to wake up earlier since Mommy's return to work--perhaps due to wanting to stock up on food for the day?!
~He typically cat naps in the morning and takes a longer nap in the afternoon.
~He enjoys talking and "singing", attempting to repeat the sounds others make.
~Gavin has quite a bald spot on the back of his head.  With his long, dark hair, it's pretty noticeable!
~He enjoys kicking on his activity mat, but also enjoys snuggling.
~We made two attempts at his 3 months pictures.  At our first attempt, the photographer was running late and didn't do much to engage him.  We got a cute picture, but wanted to try again to capture his adorable smile.  We tried again the next weekend.  While the second portrait studio was also running late, we were able to get another cute picture.  He didn't give any big smiles at either appointment, but we were able to capture a few adorable pictures!
~We're starting to wonder if he's going to be a thumb-sucker.  He doesn't like pacifiers and has been mouthing his fists and fingers more regularly.

Master Negotiator

Brennan is becoming quite the negotiator!  Like most parents of toddlers, we frequently use "First/Then" or "If/Then" strategies and incentives for positive behavior.  At times, Brennan likes to negotiate the terms of these tactics.  For example, instead of being able to watch one show, he asks "How about two shows?" or we ask him to eat a particular number of bites of his food, he'll respond "How about ___ bites?"  Sometimes this plan backfires for him because he suggests a higher number!

In other news, he's able to count to 30 independently.  He has been able to verbally spell his name for awhile and is now able to verbally spell Gavin's name.

Gavin has found his fists and is more talkative and smiley every day!  He sleeps 10-11 hours at night and takes several cat naps (20 minutes-1 hour) throughout the day.  We're still working on him drinking from a bottle.  He doesn't enjoy it, but will drink...eventually...sometimes.