Gavin's First!

Actual Birthday

 We woke up in our hotel and grabbed a quick breakfast with Daddy before he headed to his conference for the rest of the day.
My goal for the day was simply to have fun - Gavin's kind of fun. Which means low stress and very little time in the car.
We spent a large part of the day at the most awesome park, and I let them get as dirty as they pleased.

We went to Chick-fil-A for lunch and played some more. Then Gavin napped in the stroller while Jenna and Liam perused the toy isles at Target. They each got to pick out a bath toy for Gavin, we picked up some mini cupcakes, then back to the hotel. Paul had a short break before dinner so we all went and played in the hotel pool.

Then dinner at the hotel restaurant, cupcakes, bath time, and bed.

Party!

Because we were out of town on his actual birthday, we decided to do cake and presents the Sunday after we got back, which happened to be Father's Day. We figured that was pretty perfect since Gavin was born on Father's Day!

We did cake right after his afternoon nap, which might not have been the best idea. He wasn't in a super-happy mood, and cried when we sang "Happy Birthday".

But all was forgiven when we finally let him have the cake! He took a few bites, then had a blast destroying the rest and throwing it all on the floor.

Happy Birthday to our crazy silly Gavin!!

NACC

Sunday after church we packed up the car and drove to D.C. for the week. Paul had his NACC conference at the University of Maryland this year, so we came along. We knew Paul would be busy most of the week, but just the thrill of staying in a hotel was enough for the kids!
We wanted to stop at the D.C. temple on our way in, but traffic was worse than we expected and we had to get the kids out of the car and some food in their bellies. We kept saying how grateful we are to live close, but also not have to drive in that traffic everyday anymore. Can't say enough how much we are loving Charlottesville!

Monday was Gavin's birthday! But more on that in the next post...

Tuesday we got to meet up with Paul for a day in D.C. We visited the same sites and museums we always have before, basically because we already know they're the best for kids. There's so much to see in D.C., but we figure we'll get to see it all as the kids get older. For now, we have fun when they are having fun!

Since our hotel literally shared a parking lot with IKEA and kids eat free on Tuesdays, that's where I took the kids for dinner while Paul finished up some meetings.

Wednesday we went with Amy to the National Zoo. The weather was perfect, the crowds were light, and we had a delightful time!
The gorillas were putting on quite a show for us, and ended up being Jenna's favorite of the day.
Liam absolutely loved the pandas, and Gavin was pretty content to be along for the ride.

We finished the day off at our favorite park, then pizza at the hotel, baths, and some crazy jumping on the bed!

Thursday we drove up to Baltimore to visit with Rachel and her little girls. First we joined their play group at a bounce house place, then went back to their house to chat and play.
Rachel was so awesome to feed and entertain us for the afternoon, even though they had just bought a house (!) and had to pack up everything in just a week!

That night the whole conference was going to the Nationals v. Rays game, so of course we tagged along! I had hoped to get a picture of Gavin similar to the one of Liam two years ago, but he wasn't having it. It was still a fun family excursion (despite the rain delay, horrendous parking fees, and tired baby boy).

Friday we headed home, but not before a "quick" stop at IKEA. This was our car for the 2 1/2 hour drive home (poor Jenna, she's behind Liam):

And now our home is one step closer to looking like an IKEA catalog!

Saturday Paul had to work, so we recovered from our trip and began preparation to leave again in three days. I just love the summer!

Last week of school

Monday I took the boys to toddler time at Bounce n Play once more before summer vacation and before Gavin turns one, and therefore no longer free.

Tuesday was Jenna's last day of first grade.

In the afternoon, the boys and I made cookies and brought them to her last day celebration. Each of the kids got to share a book that they wrote, and then recite a poem for everyone. When it was Jenna's turn, Liam ran to give her a hug and then stood with her while she read her poem. All the parents couldn't help but "Aaaw!", it was so darling!

We went to Red Robin for dinner, then took a walk around the mall and rode the carousel.

Wednesday we celebrated the beginning of summer break at the beach! There's a lake just minutes from our house, and we recently found out about this fun little beach - the perfect size to take the kids for a few hours! And it's so close to the airport, so Liam was excited every time a plane flew just overhead. I can't believe we didn't know about this gem last year. The kids are really excited to bring dad back with us soon!

 Thursday we recovered at home. There are two girls Jenna's age on our street that each come over to play all the time. The three of them got together to do experiments with Jenna's chemistry set.

Friday we went to check out a local splash pad park. It took me forever to actually find it (GPS was confused...) and then it started raining as soon as we got out of the car! But we were already in swim suits so we played anyway, and soon the rain passed and we all had a lot of fun.

a new hobby

For our May Relief Society activity, we learned all about gardening and then were sent home with a squash seedling. I've wanted to start a garden for years now, and since this house has a garden plot with good soil and netting all ready to go, I really had to excuse not to jump right in!
Here's Liam helping take care of my new little baby (before we finished weeding):

We went out on memorial day to pick out some seeds, and a couple seedlings. We're now patiently awaiting the arrival of our zuchinni, bell peppers, green beans, kale, and strawberries.

They really are like my new little babies: I think about them every day, I want them to grow big and strong, and I'm surprised at how fast they do!

In other news:

-I had my first experience picking up a sick child from school. Poor little Jenna had thrown up in the hallway on her way to class in the morning. When the school nurse called, he said that the ordeal was "pretty spectacular". I can only imagine poor Jenna, the kids around her, the teacher who witnessed it, and whoever had to clean that icky mess...

-Lately Gavin has insisted on feeding himself, which makes for extra messy mealtimes!

-We're excited now to start the season of sun, swimming, parks, and popsicles!