Awana

Our Awana program ended last night. I was sad that it was over for the summer, but glad to not have the time consumption anymore. Well, at least for a few months anyway! We had our awards ceremony last night and I was shocked at how proud I was of the clubbers. I felt like a proud little mamma! Here is the video that we showed at the ceremony. The kids loved seeing themselves up on the big screen. It was cute to hear them laugh when their picture came up!

Bathing Suit Woes

Well, summer is fast approaching and I know you are all searching for the perfect swim suit. If you go to http://landsend.com , you can make a virtual model of yourself and try on suits on line. It is fun and it is a good way to see what you look like in the different kinds so suits. Just a little tip!

Busy, Busy

I have been very busy this last week. I have been so motivated to get things done. I decided to babysit this summer for the family that I used to Nanny for before Gavin was born. I am super excited about it, but I know that it will be so busy. I have planned out our dinner menu for the whole summer and have started to compile shopping lists for each week. Before I start to babysit I am going to make a TON of meals to freeze so that I can just pop 'em in the oven when I get home. I am super excited about it. I love making lists and being organized. I also made out a schedule for the summer for the kids. We are going to keep busy and have tons of fun. I am excited. So this week I have been making lots of bread to freeze. This is my "new" thing as of late. I usually make waffles and stuff for Gavin in big bulk sessions and freeze them so that I can just pop them in the toaster in the morning. That way I know exactly what is going into his little belly. Well, lately I have been complaining about the expense of GOOD bread. So, I decided to stop complaining and start being proactive about it. I have a break maker, so its pretty easy. I just started thowing the ingredients into an there you have it, a delicous, healthy loaf. So, I started on Saturday and I have made about five loaves so far (they take about three hours to bake). Today I am going to make some pizza dough. I am pretty excited about it. It will be an experiment!
I also decided to stencil Gavin's room last week. I knew what i wanted to do in there, but I couldnt find the right stencil, so I just ended up making my own. It was so cheap, and I already had the paint for it. I think that it turned out so good. I have been putting it off for some time, but in the end, it took me about 45 min. from start to finish. I dont know what i was procrastinating for so long.
Well, I have several projects that need to be completed before I start my summer job, so I better get to it!
Sorry about the long post, I usually hate reading others people posts when they are long and about nothing in particular . . . I just didnt have much to write about!
Here are some pictures of Gavin's room.

Easter

Gavin was lucky enough to be able to get three easter egg hunts this year. Ryan's brother and sister in law, Jason and Katie, did an egg hunt for all of the cousins. It was insane. THey had 150 eggs for about eight kids. Needless to say, I confiscated most of that candy! My mom also had a hunt for Gavin and Jonas. It was cute. She put match box cars in the eggs. They loved it. Gavin pretty much dominated the egg hunt, although I think that Jonas must have come out on top b/c I think that we only brought home one car. I dont know how that happened . . . On Saturday, before Easter, we decided to give Gavin his Easter Basket and do a little egg hunt of our own before the maddness began on Sunday morning. He was so funny. I put him in the bath tub and had Ryan hide the eggs while he was in there. THen we put a trail of m n m's (Gavin's absolute favorite candy) right outside the bathroom and into the living room. He devored them in about three seconds. He was running around like crazy finding the eggs. Then he discoved some gifts that we had put on the coffee table for him. We got him Happy Feet, which I would NOT recommend (you live and learn) and some sponge paints and other fun things for him. Anyway, I took video of the whole thing. So, here it is, the whole point of my post!

The Boys on Easter Morning

Coloring Eggs on Good Friday

Jonas, Mason and Gavin on Easter Sunday

Herb and Ryan as kids - oh, I mean Jonas and Gavin on Easter Sunday

And just so you all know, I lost the battle. Gavin got the haircut. Actually, it was a compromise. Ryan didn't buzz it, just took about two inches or so off. I know, it was a little out of control, but you can't blame a mamma for trying to hold on to her baby!
This is a before picture from the other day at the park.

This is during the haircut. He actually sat pretty well.

Here is the after shot. THe front still looks pretty long, but it actually got trimmed up quite a bit, although, as you can see in the picture above, the back got the most cut off.

I hope you all had a good Easter celebration and looked beyond the fun of coloring eggs and egg hunts. I hope that your week was focused on Christ and the sacrofice He made for us. We had a great Easter. The best part was on Sunday morning. I was getting Gavin dressed and I told him that we were going to church and he said, "Church, Jesus Story!" I about cried. I am so thankful that Gavin is being penetrated with God's word at such a young age. I personally went and found each of his teachers on Sunday and thanked them for imparting Truth to my two year old! It was amazing to see that he already knows why we go to church! I can't wait to hear all about your Easter Celebrations!

B-Ball

Chillin' out maxin' relaxin' all cool
All shootin some b-ball outside of the school . . .

Thats for all of you old school Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air fans.

We have this really nice school one block away and they have a great playground for Gavin. But all he really wants to do is play some ball with the big boys! He is so serious when he tries to play. I hate to break it to the poor kid that there really aren't any good b-ball players in the family (unless being a starting guard in Jr. High counts). He should really stick to soccer and baseball. He just isn't aware that height is not one of our strong areas. Well, I guess there's always hope. I mean, there was Spud Webb who measured in at 5'7" and there is Nate Robinson who is 5'9" . . . We'll see. I guess I wont be so quick to crush his little dreams.

Anyway, here are some pictures of this past week at the park!





I had to throw in this last one of Gav on the swings. His face is so funny. I am not sure what he was doing/saying. Oh, and yes, I am aware that my child is in desperate need of a haircut. Its an ongoing battle in my house how his hair should look. I like it long and cool and daddy wants it short like a preacher boy. We'll see how it comes out in the coming days/weeks. I am sure I will post the event, if it occurs.

BLog Worthy Events

Okay, so before I said that there haven't been any "blog worthy" events as of late. Well, some how all this had slipped my mind. I had some more pictures still on my camera that I hadn't unloaded yet. Anyway, I have a new nephew - Mason Keith Mack. He was born a few weeks ago, but here are some pictures of us visiting them at the hospital. Jonas and Gavin were hilarious. There were both jumping off the walls and going crazy in that little room. My dad ended up taking them for a walk, the only problem was that they both had to sit in Gavin's stroller. oddly enough, they both loved it. Jonas is crying in the picture because they stopped, not b/c he didnt like it.






Another blog worthy event just happened last night. Gavin got his first real bike. You know how dads are, they always have to go big. Well, this was no exception. We skipped right over the tricycle and went for the two wheeler with training wheels. It really is the cutest little bike. Gavin can't ride it yet, but he is figuring it out little by little. It is funny to see him on the bike. He seems so small. But Ryan is convinced that he will be able to learn how to ride it. We will see! Here are some pictures of the event. I will try and post video later (when a certain two year old isn't jumping on my back!!).

I've been in a blogger lull lately. We have been so busy with the mundane that nothing seems blog worthy. Ryan has been working a lot of late nights. I have been busy with HigherGround (children's ministry at church) and Gavin has just been busy doing 2 yr. old stuff (potty training, play dough, cars, trains, getting dirty). He is talking non stop all of the time. Most of the time driving us crazy. He says the same thing over and over and over and over again. His mouth always seems to be running. I have no idea where he got that from!!! :)
Here are some pictures of my sister in laws baby shower. She is due in May with their first baby. These were the last pictures I took on my camera. I know, not really blog worthy, but hey, its something new to look at!

 

 

 

 

Mamma's New Toy

Ryan and I have always gotten the free cell phones that they give you when you sign up for the service. We have alwasy shared a cell phone and never had our own. Well, this time was different! I was very excited. SInce Ryan works for Starbucks Coffee Company, we get a pretty big discount on our bill and on any products that Verizon Wireless has. Ryan was able to get the Razor for free, which was pretty nice and i was able to get my phone, the Cherry Chocolate phone made by LG. I love it! It is a phone and an mp3 player! We got a really good deal on it (about 40% off of what everyone else would pay)! So, here is my new phone! Yeah!

Ideas Please!

What do you feed your toddler (or yourself)?
I am getting tired of feeding Gavin the same things, and I think that he is getting tired of it too. I need some more healthy (key word) snacks and meal ideas so lay 'em on me!
Thanks everyone!

Gavin and Daddy

Random Pictures

Just thought I'd share some random pictures from the last few weeks. Gavin is VERY hard to take pictures of now. He is so busy all the time! I just can't believe how he never stops moving!

This is Gavin in a rare moment. He had just woken up from a nap and was still a little bit groggy, so Daddy layed down with him on the couch for a while. It was so cute, I had to snap the picture.



This morning, Gavin tried on Daddy's shoes and was walking around in them for while. It was so cute and such a classic little boy thing to do. I have a picture of my brother when he was Gavin's age in my dads boots!

My mom bought Gavin this tent for his birthday. It is supossed to go over his bed, but it fits a twin bed and he has a toddler bed. We wanted to set it up anyway, and Gavin loves it. It takes up most of the remaining space in his room so we get him dressed in there, change diapers in there, and play a lot in there. If i can't find Gavin and daddy, they are usually hangin' out in the tent!

Painting

Gavin was so funny while he was painting. He loves to paint, but we always use a paint brush. This time I told him he could use his fingers and he was shocked. It was pretty funny. In the end, he really didnt like it. He kept wanting me to wipe his fingers off. He has inherited high standards of cleanliness from me, but he takes it to another level, if thats possible!

Laughing Gavin

Sledding

We took Gavin sledding for the first time the other day. By the time we got there, the hill didn't have much snow left, but we still had fun anyway. Gavin didnt exactly LOVE the whole experience, but he got used to it after a few runs. He just liked playing in the snow more than the actual sledding.

Toddler Bed Video

We finally did it!

We moved Gavin to his big boy bed. It was kind of sad for me. I try to stay in a constant state of denial about him growing up. But it gets hard to ignore when we cross these milestones! I have some video that I will post later on, but here are the pictures for now! He was really excited when we were putting it together. He was saying, "My Bed" "Night, night" "My bed". It was cute. He "helped" Ryan put it together and just loved it. Well, that is until he actually had to sleep in it! At bed time he was a little apprehensive about the whole thing. I ended up sitting with him for a few minutes becasue he asked me to rub his back a little. He got up one time, but I quickly put him back in. He fell asleep fine and this morning it was the same routine. I hear, "Mamma!, Mamma!" The cute little buy wouldn't get out of his bed until I came and got him! I was so glad. I was worried that he would want to get out all the time. He did great at nap time today. He went right to sleep! So, it was almost a seemless transition. So far, any way!

Video

I was organizing my pictures on the computer today, and I came across this video from Thanksgiving. We were at my sisters house and well, you'll see what Gavin did!

Happy New Year!

Well, good bye 2006 and hello 2007! I love starting a new year! I love wiping that slate clean, opening up a fresh new calendar and penciling in important dates, anniversary's and birthdays to look forward to in the coming year! I bought a new planner today and oh the joy that filled my heart as I opened it up and looked at the first week of the year! I am a dork, I do realize this. No need to remind me, if that's what you are thinking of doing. I am a planner. I plan almost every hour of every day. I love having a schedule and sticking to it!
Last year Ryan started this new tradition of picking one word to work on as our New Years resolution. Last year the word was contentment. This year, our word is PATIENCE! Definitely something we both need while dealing with a two year old. It really struck me on Monday that I had a two year old. His birthday came and went so fast and then Christmas rolled right by after that and I never really had time to reflect on what happened. I was driving by myself on Monday and just thinking about things and I could not get over the fact that I HAVE A TWO YEAR OLD. That amazes me. I mean, this is who I am, the mother of a two year old! Anyway, patience is something that neither Ryan nor I received from previous generations. It does not come easy to us and we are going to have to work HARD at achieving it. So, keep us accountable.
My other resolution this year is to read at least one book every month. I read a quote today that said, If you read for 15 minutes every day you can read 25 books in a year! Surely I can read merely one a month! My book this month is Small changes for a Better Life, by E. George. I love reading her books and they always challenge me. So, if you have any must reads for me this year, let me know! And keep asking me how it is going!
What are some of your New Years resolutions?

Merry Christmas

This past week was a whirlwind! It went by so fast! Our Christmas started off on Thursday. Ryan suprised me by getting tickets to see White Christmas at the Fox! It was so fun and I loved it! Then on Friday night we hosted the Starbucks Christmas party. We had a good time and a lot to eat! On Saturday we decided that we had better start our Christmas shopping! We were a little behind with moving and the birthday party and all that. We didn't have too many things to get, so it wasn't too bad. Then on Sunday Ryan and his three brothers went to the Lions vs. Bears game downtown. They had club tickets and got to eat at one of the restaurants inside of Ford Field. That evening we celebrated Christmas with Ryan's enitre family. There is alwasy TONS of Food and TONS of presents. Ryan's mom loves to shop so we all get a big pile of gifts to open. We alwasy have fun with Ryan's family. Everyone seems to get pretty rowdy! We woke up on Christmas morning and Gavin was thrilled to have more gifts to open! I am not even sure he cares what is inside, just unwrapping them is enough fun! After opening Gavin's gifts we went to Starbucks for breakfast and our daily coffee fix! We hung out there for a little while and saw some of the regulars. Then we headed up North to spend the afternoon with my family. We spent most of the day there and got home around 5:00. We hung out for awhile and put some things away, but then we were all in bed by 9:00! We were so tired! I hope that you all had a very merry Christmas! Here are some of the pictures in random order.

Gavin and Grandma opening a present - The movie Cars

Ripping into a gift (notice Gavin's super cute outfit from his Grandma)

This is the back of the sweatshirt! I thougth it was so cute so I had to get a picture!

At my paretns house ( we look so tired!)

Gavin and his Grandpa - "Mack" is what G calls him

Opening gifts at our house Christmas morning.

Family portrait in front of my mom's tree!

Are you kidding me mom? not another picture!

Elmo - Mania

Gavin's Party was a hit. Elmo was everywhere! He had a good time and got lots of Elmo stuff. Here are some pictures of our big day!

The Cake!

We made cupcakes too with Red frosting, mini marshmellows for the eyes, an orange jelly bean for the nose and used black icing for the mouth! They were cute, but somehow I didn't get a picture of them!

Gavin loves to brush his teeth. Grandma Mack got him an electric Elmo toothbrush!

I made this giant ELmo so all the kids could get their pictures taken with him! It was fun to make and super cheap and easy!

The Roumayah's got Gavin this Elmo giggle chair. He LOVES it. He sits in to watch his Elmo videos! It's too cute!

Cake boy! I can't beleive he didn't throw up after all the junk he ate!

This was one the cake table! I did a photo shoot with Gavin and Elmo awhile back. If you look closely, you can see the cupcakes on the corner of the picture!

The party favors went over well. I got these plastic Elmo cups from Party America for 86 cents each. Then I made each kid a coloring book by printing pages off of the Sesame Street website. The cover of the coloring book is a picture of Gavin and a poem that read,

" Thank you for sharing in Gavin's big day,

You made is so special in your own little way.

I hope you had fun as Gavin turned 2!

And alwasy remember, "Elmo Loves You!"

Then I stuffed the cups with a small box of crayons, candy, a bracelet and nail polish for the girls and a bouncy ball and a plastic bug for the boys!

The party was fun and I am suprisingly not sick of Elmo! I had so much fun creating this party for Gavin. It is so fun giving your child something that they love, even if it is just one day full of Elmo! I have more pictures to come!