15 Months

This month has been a trying month for the Cromwell Clan.  Poor Gavin has been sick, practically the entire month.  He was such a healthy baby for the first year of his life that we were spoiled.  After he hit the big One Year mark, he has battled croup, pneumonia, and then an extended bout of the stomach flu.  He has been a trooper though.  He only lost a pound through it all but grew over an inch since his 12-month checkup.  He is "talking" up a storm.  We can only understand about 25% of it though. He can say words like ball, duck, dog, bi-yah (Tobiah), pease (please), biggie, papa, dd, and we can't forget the most popular word..."NO"!  I don't think talking will be hard for G to pick up on.  I think his problem may be with patience...both traits-from yours truly :). G-man has been testing his boundaries a little more lately.  He understands things that are "no-touches" and "hot" but sometimes it takes a little motivation from us in order to drive the point home.  He has also started to running, screaming, and throwing himself on the floor.  These are usually followed by a quick spat on the bottom and then finished with Adam politely saying, "I just don't think I did these things as a child."  All I can do is smile :). 

Gavin has really started paying attention to the TV (not sure if I like this.)  The only time he gets to watch it is when he is having his milk in the morning and afternoon.  He loves a show called Wild Photo Adventures.  It is one of Adam's shows about photography.  The host takes pictures of wild life all over the East Coast.  They have some great music they play throughout the show.  It is always the same songs but there is something about the tunes that just move Gavin.  He has now learned how to climb on top of the coffee table so that he can get up close and personal with the animals.  He evens stands up and dances a jig from time to time.  

He uses the diaper box to give him a couple of more inches to climb with...smart cookie

Saturday morning with my boys, watching Wild Photo Adventures, while sipping coffee and eating "O's"

During the few days that Gavin was well, our friend Elena came over to play.  Gavin loves to play with his older friends.  They teach him tons of new games and give him new ideas for his toys.

Gavin was the King of the Land (in E's robe)

Elena was playing the drums for Gavin's big entrance...while riding in the chariot (aka basket)

Hail to King Gav!  I think Gavin was more impressed with E's drumming abilities.

While Gavin napped, Elena decided to build him a castle with a garage for his truck.  

She did a great job!

I decided to include these next pictures, more for me, than for a good story.  My baby is growing up too fast (tear, tear). We were trying to go on a "quick" walk through the woods with out bringing the Kelty (huge backpack) that seems to take longer to get into.  So instead, we busted out an old favorite...hoping that Gavin would be able to fit.  NOPE! Not even close!  Can't blame a mom for trying to keep her kids small :).  You can tell by his face he was NOT happy having to "suck it in."  We ended up going back to the Kelty after we took more time switching than we would have originally.  

Although this month was a bit of a challenging one, we still endured with more blessings than when we started.  We have an amazing toddler on our hands that will continue to give us a run for our money.  And we can't wait!