Gavin's Birthday

My big boy is FIVE YEARS OLD! That is just crazy to me. I have a five year old! I love everything about my first born. He is amazing!

We celebrated his birthday with family while we were in Michigan for Thanksgiving. This picture is my attempt to do a cake in home made fondant icing. It wasn't a total disaster but next time, I'll be able to do MUCH better. Gavin loved it, so that's all that matters!



Since we already celebrated with all of his cousins, we decided to just do some cupcakes or a small cake at home and give him one gift from us. I asked Gavin what kind of a cake he wanted. He told me he didn't want a cake and that he wanted yogurt "crush cups" instead. FINE BY ME! He is so funny!

What's wrong with this picture?

(sorry for the poor quality. My camera battery was almost dead.)

Gavin and Charlotte were playing in her crib together one afternoon. Charlotte bumped her head and started crying so I pulled her out. I brought her into another room to let her play and then I started doing something else. A few minutes later I noticed that it was just too quiet. I went back in her room to find Gavin asleep! He must have been REALLY tired. I had to move him a few min. later b/c it was time for Charlotte's nap. It was so hard to get him out of the crib, he would NOT wake up at all. He was so out of it. I put him in his bed and he ended up sleeping longer than Charlotte!

Nerf or Nothin'

If you ask my nephew Jonas what he wants for Christmas he'll tell you, "It's Nerf or Nothin". He saw that on a commercial for a nerf gun or something. On Thanksgiving Day my sister Kimberly bought a bunch of nerf guns for us to play with. Everyone LOVED it, kids and adults alike.

First Snow!

When it started to snow the other day, Gavin was so excited! I took him outside for about 10 min. to play. Charlotte was napping and we were all sick, but I couldn't deprive him of enjoying the first snow fall this year. He was pretty mad later on when he realized that it was not staying on the ground! I keep telling him he'll have lots of opportunity to play in the snow in the weeks to come!

Down and Out

Ever since we came back from our Thanksgiving in Michigan we have been SO sick. Gavin, Charlotte and I were all stuck in the house for a solid week. Poor Charlotte had the worst of it. I even took her to the doctor like a paranoid 1st time mom! I was worried that she had an ear infection or something. I never had to deal with things like this when Gavin was a baby. He was so HEALTHY. Well, that and he wasn't really around other kids all that much. In the end, Charlotte was fine. No ear infections. We had lots of runny noses, lots of coughing and lots of sore muscles. We all stayed in our sweats pretty much the whole week.Above is a picture I took of "My Cold Caddy". I pretty much carted it around to which ever room we were in. I was having to literally PIN Charlotte down to spray that saline in her hose and then suction away! She did NOT like it. We are on the mend now. Gavin and I are fine now and Charlotte is doing much better!

Rejoice!

Today we are rejoicing in God's goodness! This has been a highly anticipated day for the Dobbertin's! Baby Jayne gets to go home!

No more hour long commutes to and from the hospital for Jason and Katie!
No more juggling babysitters for big brother Will!
No more leaving Jayne every night to go home!

God has done so much in this precious little life already! We are singing praises to His name all day long! I am so Thankful for everything He has done in and through this family over the last month. What a great God we serve!

*sorry for the repeat picture! The only other one I have is on my phone and I haven't gotten it off yet! But I just have to show this beautiful little face!

Red Crayon

The day before Thanksgiving I was cleaning, doing laundry and packing in preparation for our trip to Michigan. On one of my laundry runs to the basement, I discovered that a RED CRAYON had found it's way into our dryer. Not what I wanted to see. I was pretty bummed out about it and was frantically spraying the clothes with oxy clean and throwing them into the washer to rewash them. Not everything got crayon on it, but a lot of stuff did, including some of Gavin's clothes. I was struggling to have a good attitude about it so I thought I'd go upstairs, tell Gavin and we would laugh about it together. It's no big deal. It's just clothes. Right? I started telling Gavin the story and was just waiting for him to start laughing. Instead, the kid burst into tears and was being super dramatic about it. Turns out, that was just what I needed! I was laughing so hard at him and I even broke out the video camera to document his drama. He was not too happy about it, but I couldn't resist. There is just something so funny about my big old five year old boy crying about red stains on his clothes. Most five year old's could care less! What a goober.

Gavin talk

Quotes from my hilarious almost five year old!

- While looking at Ryan's face he said, "Dad, why do you have a web in your nose?" Time to trim the nose hairs, Ryan!

- When he found out that we missed church while we were in Michigan he said, "I bet all the kids said, 'This place is NO FUN without Gavin!'". We are working on a big dose of humility these days . . .

- If Gavin eats a good dinner we usually have a snack before he goes to bed. One night he did not eat a good dinner so he did not get his snack. When he woke up in the morning he said, "Mom, why is my tummy making music?"

- Charlotte was in his room bugging him and he yells out, "Mom, can I have some alone time?"

- His new favorite quote from the movie UP, "I thought you were dead." He says this to Charlotte a lot. It's weird.

I just had to share this picture. At Cubbies the kids were supposed to dress like what they wanted to be when they grew up. When I asked Gavin what he wanted to be he said, "A dad." Then he changed his mind to "a Starbucks boss." It was so cute!

Reading

When I started teaching Gavin with this book, I thought we would do it every day. Well, that hasn't happened. There were many factors that stood in our way:

- our trip to Michigan
- a few busy days
- unable to renew the book from the Library due to someone placing a hold on it!

I ended up purchasing the book and we have completed 21 lessons. Gavin read these two sentences the other day: "See the ram sit." and "The ram is sad." It has been so fun watching him learn and get so excited when he can read words. I am officially recommending this book to one and all!!

My New-to-me Car

In the great state of Illinois, your car is required to pass an emissions test every few years. Apparently, if your check engine light is on it will not pass that test. Our van wasn't exactly a clunker, but we were tired of pouring money into it. It was just a matter of time before it died all together. It was time to start the hunt for a new car. Ryan was NOT up for getting another mini van. They are very hard to drive around in the city and don't even get me started on parallel parking. So, we settled on this cute little wagon.



Even though I would have loved to have a volvo station wagon (I am aware that I am a dork), I am happy with this car. It was a great deal! My first day running errands with it was somewhat of an adventure. It happened to be raining and I had to be out of the house all day due to new windows being installed. When I had my van and it rained, I could get us all in and close the door and then buckle Charlotte and get situated. I could literally roam around in the van at my leisure. Not so much in the new wagon. Let's just say, I got wet! But it was all good, I'd rather be wet and able to run errands than break down on my way to the grocery store!

God is Good

What a whirlwind these last two weeks have been. It all started last Wednesday when our five day old niece, Jayne was admitted to Children's Hospital in Detroit MI. I hopped on the train w/ the kiddos on Friday morning to head out there and be with the Dobbertin's. Jayne went through a lot these last two weeks (not to mention her mamma and daddy!), but God is so good and he answered so many prayers. Jayne is still in the hospital and is still recovering, but we are praising our Great Big God (as Gavin would say) that she is breathing on her own, nursing effectively, and doing all of the things a two week old should be doing. Still, there are some concerns and we are still praying. Please join in prayer with me for this baby girl that God loves more than we can even imagine. We need to get Jaynie girl home!

How old am I?

Because Ryan and I head up the children's ministry at our church, I am constantly telling people who are my age and older what to do. It seems VERY strange to me. I don't really like being "in charge". But, it is what it is and it is necessary. Well, the other day I was thinking about this one person who is my age and was wondering what they thought about me and taking direction from me. I started comparing my life with theirs and the differences between the two. I stopped and then started cracking up at myself. This person is a freshman in college and is 18 years old. 18 years old!!! I am 28. That is a 10 year difference! I never understood how older people could say that they still feel the same age in their mind, it's just their body that seems old. Now I understand. Apparently I feel like an 18 year old freshman!

Bored?!?!?!

My almost five year old (you know the one with one hundred and one half million toys!) told me that he was bored the other day! Bored. Are you kidding me? First I asked him where he learned that. Of course he doesn't remember. "He just knows it." Then, I did what any mom would do. I put that kid to work! Let's just say I don't think he'll be saying that EVER again. If he does, my work load will be drastically reduced!

Numbers

Gavin's new favorite number is "one hundred and one half million". I don't have the heart to correct him. I love it when he says it, which is at least twice a day. It cracks me up!
Here's a picture of Gavin and a sea dog - his favorite boat. We think it goes
one hundred and one half million miles per hour!

Content

My husband is the most content man in the entire world. I really love and admire this about him. I honestly have never met someone as content in life as he is. This does pose a problem when it comes to gift giving. He never says what he wants! I have the hardest time coming up with something to get him for Christmas. When ever I do think of something good, I realize that it usually benefits me as well. Last year I got him a really cool coffee maker. He loved it and definitely uses it on the weekends. Most evenings though, he is prepping the coffee for ME in the morning. I am at a total loss this year as to what to get him. He doesn't really even have any hobbies. I realize that Thanksgiving isn't even here yet and I have plenty of time but if you have any suggestions I would greatly appreciate it!

Christmas is coming!

The first week in November I usually devote to cleaning my house REALLY well and decluttering. I do this to make room for all of the Christmas clutter!!! I usually put our tree up once the house is clean. I hate to say it, but I am actually procrastinating this year. I LOVE LOVE LOVE my Christmas tree but I just do not have the energy to to keep Charlotte away from it this year. She is so determined and I KNOW the tree will be a huge hit with her. I think she would even be able to pull it down on herself. I'm not quite sure what to do about it!

Reading

Wow! Teach your child to read in 100 easy lessons is NOT going like I thought it would. Gavin does not really like it at all! I don't blame him. It isn't fun. I didn't think I would have to be so forceful with him about it. That really caught me off guard. I also thought that we would do it everyday, but we are already two days behind! It IS getting better. I was really encouraged after our lesson today. I have figured out that I need to repeat one or two more times than the book recommends before Gavin can get it. Once I do that, he seems to do fine. I am also trying to figure out the best time to have our lesson. Tomorrow I'm going to try it first thing after our morning chores and see how it goes.
On the upside, it is working!!! He can already put together and read words with the sounds he knows. I am pretty impressed by the whole thing. I think with in the next couple of weeks, when it becomes more routine he will do better.

Trick or Treat!

Gavin had a BLAST trick or treating. At every house he would say, "Thank you! and Happy Halloween!" It was too cute. It was a bit chilly out, so Charlotte only did a couple of blocks with us. Ryan took her home half way through and I went back out with Gavin. We had a really fun time. At some houses the people were trying to give me candy, too. I was like, "no no, I don't need any!" It was pretty funny!

Shout out!

Here's a shout out to all my stay at home mommy friends! Seriously, click on this for a
REAL TREAT! I loved it and I know you will to!

Me and my fantastic kiddos!

We were spooked!!!

Two days before Halloween, we were sitting at home minding our own business when the doorbell rang. Ryan went to the door and there was a orange gift bag with black and orange tissue paper in it. He brought it inside and we found a bag full of candy with a note that said:

The Phantom GHOST has come around
To leave these goodies you have found.

And since the GHOST has gotten you,
Please read closely what you must do.

First, post the GHOST where it can be seen
On a door or window until HALLOWEEN.

Then no other GHOST will visit again.
Be sure to participate, it makes you grin.

Next, please do your part, you have only one day
So that everyone else has a chance to play.

Make two treats, two GHOSTS and two notes.
Now that's the gist. And take them to families that many have been missed.

Deliver after dark, when there's barely a light.
Ring the doorbell and run! Then stay out of sight!

And last but not least, have fun ... And try not to be seen.
And share in the spirit of HALLOWEEN!

We thought it was pretty cute.

9 months!

Our little Miss Mae is 9 months old. *sniff, sniff* What a joy she is to have around!

Computer Savvy

I just recently started allowing Gavin to use the computer by himself. He loves this website called Starfall. It teaches letters and beginner reading. It also has games, which Gavin recently discovered. It's great for when I jump in the shower or just need a few minutes to myself during the day. It's also another thing he can do without being "bothered" by his sister!

Gavin

Gavin is cracking us up, as always. He is ALWAYS talking. He talks just to hear his own voice. He asks questions that don't make sense or that he already knows the answer to. I think that the following routine happens almost every day: "How old am I?" "How old is Charlotte?" "How old is no one?" "Does God have an age?" Just today I said, "Gavin, please stop asking me questions." He looked at me and said, "What? You don't want to talk to me?" That was a dagger to the heart!

One of his new favorite things is numbers. He loves them and is trying to understand everything about them. He wants to know how many of everything there is. How many stars, how many people in a room, how many cars he has, how many pieces of chicken are on his plate. It goes on and on. . . The other day he was counting and I heard the number Fivety five. Yeah, that's right, fivety five not fifty five. It was too cute!

Gavin has also been very interested in the gospel lately. He is really asking good questions (and some funny ones). I can see God really working in his little heart. Everyday he is talking about sin, Christ on the cross, his heart and even Hell. In church they were going over the wordless book. Gavin told me, "first your heart is black, then it's red, then its white and then it is green." He told me what each color meant, too. Of course he thinks that your actual heart turns those colors, but at least its a start! It's so fun to watch his mind piece everything together.

I am thanking God daily for the gift He gave me almost five years ago!

Driving the boats at Navy Pier

Google Reader

I think we are all using google reader by now to get updates on the blogs we follow. If your not, you should be. It's such a time saver and you don't miss any posts on the blogs you love to read. I signed into my google reader today and I had a few extra minutes to poke around. I clicked on the recommendations tab. MY GOODNESS! Google reader apparently knows me better than I know myself! It is pretty much up to date on most of my interests. It recommended blogs on children's ministry, crafts, crochet, preschool, breastfeeding, cloth diapering, pregnancy, and news in and around the city of Chicago. I am amazed.

Reading

Yesterday I started teaching Gavin how to read. I probably should have done this awhile ago, but he just wasn't interested. Things have really just started clicking with him. He is soaking up everything I am willing to teach him. I got this book from the library called "Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons." It's fast, simple and claims it is guaranteed to work. If that's true, I should have a reader on my hands by February 1st. I'd love any feedback if you've used this or know someone who has. I've heard some good things about it and am very excited to try it! I'll let you know how it goes!

Charlotte's new love

Charlotte's new favorite thing is pulling all the books off the shelf. She loves to look at them and eat them and even rip them. I try to keep her confined to the board books, but every once in awhile she will break into Gavin's section and try and rip out pages. She really seems to like looking at the pictures. Gavin didn't want anything to do with books until he was much older. Charlotte will even sit for a little while and let me read to her, until she decides she's rather eat the book, of course.

Keep Away

Sometimes I feel like my days consist of one big game of Keep Away from Charlotte. She is eating paper out of the garbage can, ripping pages out of books, eating any tiny morsel she can from the kitchen floor, the list goes on and on. I had to ban Gavin from getting the Lego's out. There were just too many close calls. This did not go over too well. It really stunk for me too b/c Lego's can occupy this kid for hours. Well, the other day I had a great idea. The one place Charlotte can't get to is up on my bed. I spread a bit blanket out over the top of the bed and put the Lego's on it. That way, Gavin can play up there all he wants with out being bothered by our little destroyer! At the end of the day I just gather up the corners of the blanket and put it on the floor. It is also great motivation for me to make my bed everyday!

Charlotte

What a FUNNY girl we have on our hands. I don't quite know what to do with her sometimes. She's a stinker, that's for sure. Gavin was such a timid and obedient little guy. He just did everything we told him to with no questions asked. When it was time to eat, he ate. When it was time to sleep, he slept. If we told him not to touch something, he didn't. Charlotte does NONE of those things. I have to admit I was a little skeptical of those mom's who said things like, "I would NEVER be able to get my kid to do that . . . " Now I know.
This little girl will have nothing to do with her baby food. This stinks b/c I have a pantry FULL of it. She just wants what we are eating. It sure it easier, I just wish I would have know it before I stocked up on all of this food.
She is a good sleeper. However, sometimes I will lay her down for her nap and then 10 min. later I will hear her playing in her crib. I peek in at her to find that she has turned on the light (her crib is near the switch) and is standing up in her crib just cracking up at me.
She has a hard time with the "No" word. I'd like to say that she doesn't understand. But I'm pretty sure that's not true. She just thinks she can do what she wants!
She is taking after her big brother in the fact that she is on the move in a big way. She has been walking along the furniture for some time now. I just hope she doesn't walk any time soon. We will really be in trouble! I have a cute video of her cruising down the couch, but I can't get it to upload. It is taking forever! This picture is of her walking down the train table undoubtedly trying to get something she isn't supposed to have!

Five in a Row

We ended up NOT sending Gavin to preschool this year. After all that heart ache over where to send him, I just didn't have peace about it all when it came down to it. I also wasn't ready for the hastle it would create in our lives. I did start doing the Five in a Row curriculum with him at home. We LOVE it. Gavin is so excited about it. Everyday he wakes up and says, "Are we doing school today!?!?" It is fun. If you don't know about it, it is a curriculum that is based on children's books. You read the same book every day for a week and your lessons are based on the book. Our first week we read "The Story About Ping" by Marjorie Flack. Our lessons were about China, ducks, counting, things that float vs. things that sink, and where the sun rises and sets. We put everything we did in a lap book for review. We are past the first book, but Gavin is still talking about Ping and looking through his book quite often! Here are some pictures of our lap book.

Volcano's

Gavin absolutely LOVES volcanoes and everything to do with them. He has been asking and asking to make one with baking soda and vinegar. I was really dreading the paper machete. Then I found this idea online that made one out of poster board. It only lasted for two eruptions, but we had a great time doing it. I am thinking about buying him a plastic kit for his birthday or Christmas. Below are some pictures of Gavin painting it. I did take some video but I never got around to editing it. Maybe one of these days. . .

AHH!

I can't believe how long it's been since I've blogged! I love my blog. I miss my blog! I really dislike being so busy that I neglect it. I'll try and update anyone who cares about what we've been up to.

I'll start with our trip to DISNEY!!!! We went with Ryan's folks to Florida last month and spent a week at Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge. We hit the Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom. It was AWESOME. We loved every minute of it. The weather was perfect. Not too hot, not too cool. Gavin, of course had a great time. The pool at our resort had a little splash park for small kids. It was perfect for us. We could have just spent a week at the pool. There were even a few small water slides! Here are some pictures from our trip (if you haven't already seen them on facebook!)

This was at Animal Kingdom. That is the tree of life behind us.

This was the view outside of our hotel. There were LOTS of animals for us to watch all day and they had African Guides everywhere to educate you about them all. It was really fun.

The Cinderella castle behind us. Gavin was in half of his Peter Pan costume - they had a trick or treat thing if you dressed up.

This in on the balcony of our rooms.

Gavin came off the water slide running to do it all over again (repeat about 50 times).

Wicker Park

So, our church launched the new campus in Wicker Park last weekend. It went REALLY well. We have about 570 in the service and about 40 kids in the Children's ministry. I'd say that's a success. We are SO excited to have our church in the city. When we moved here we went to church after church in the city and never found one that we loved. It has been such a desire for us ever since we moved here and now it has become our reality! I was super nervous about the children's ministry. I was having trouble sleeping and even eating! How silly of me! God was there, guiding and protecting HIS ministry. I am so thankful that He has used our family to spread the gospel in our city!

So, everything did go pretty well, but I just HAVE to share this story. Of course, there had to be an . . . incident that made our first service memorable. Let me set the background for you:
We have started this new check in software throughout all of our campus'. It is crazy. Parents are able to come in, swipe their fab and check their child in on a touch screen computer. Then, a name tag prints out for the child and a tag for the parents with a matching number for security purposes. So, this new family came and I was getting them all set up with their fab and what not. Well, I forgot to give her child a pager number. Wouldn't you know it, that that child decided to have a horrific case of diarrhea that night. It was all over the floor and everything. Of course, I was feeling my failure big time! I couldn't believe I didn't give this lady a number for her child. We had no way of contacting her in the service and her child was contaminating all of the other children in the nursery! Well, luckily (not luck, it was God) one of the nursery workers actually knew where the lady was sitting and was able to go and get her. Yikes! It was pretty crazy. I can laugh about it now, but at the time it was NOT FUNNY! But like I said, something had to make my first day of Children's ministry memorable! Now I have a great story to tell!

You can check out some pictures of our first service here.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!

So, I am always evaluating what I use and what I waste. I feel like I do a pretty good job of taking care of this planet that God has entrusted us with, but I know I can always do better. I always turn off and unplug things when not in use, I recycle everything I can, I cloth diaper etc. etc.
Well, here is one way I've decided I need to do better:
I am the wet wipe queen! I live in an 850 sq. ft. apartment and I have at least three tubs of wet wipes placed strategically around the house. I use them for everything! I also have them in the car and in the diaper bag at all times! I use them to clean the kids up after dinner. I use them if something gets spilled in the living room, I even use them to wipe down the sink in the bathroom if I'm in between cleanings. It's horrible, I know. So, I stashed a bunch of washcloths next to Charlotte's bibs in the kitchen and I've been grabbing kitchen towels to clean up spills and messes. I've stopped using them in the bathroom for ridiculous wipe downs (don't you just hate that bit of toothpaste that gets left in the sink?). I am still going to use them for diaper duty (the intended use) but I hope to drastically reduce my wet wipe usage from now on.

What ways are you working to reduce, reuse or recycle?

Gavin

This kid keeps cracking me up. On one of our trips to the Library he was convinced that he wanted to get some books in Spanish. I couldn't talk him out of it, so I decided to humor him. So, we bring the books home and the next day he asks me to read to him. So, I break out my best accent and go to work. Gavin was looking at me like I was speaking gibberish. I thought he was going to say that he didn't understand it. Instead, he looks at me and says, "So, can we speak Spanish now?" I was cracking up. He totally thinks he can speak Spanish. I need to get this kid a tutor before his desire fades. I would love to have a bilingual little boy! Of course when he is older I am sure he would teach Charlotte and they would use it against me somehow!

Family Update!

Ryan has been so busy with work and church, I think he is a bit run down. He unfortunately has bronchitis. He got some med's and seems to be getting better. He of course, has not missed a day for work. I think over the last five years at Starubcks, he's called in sick ONE time. He's been speaking at Starbuck's rally's all over the place - Illinois, Milwaukee, and even Boston via Skype! He's pretty much "Mr. Starbucks" lately. The picture below is of him speaking on the big screen in Boston!



Charlotte is a maniac. Yesterday she started pulling herself into standing position (sigh). Gavin taught her to click her tongue. It is really cute. One day in the car he was doing it to her and she just started doing it right along with him! She is pretty much crawling normally now, no more army crawl. She says 'mama' a lot but seems to think it means, "feed me"! She is eating so much! I just can't believe how much difference one month can make. Last month I was reading all of the stuff Gavin was doing at her age and she seemed to be doing none of it. Now, she's doing all of it and more! She's still our easy going girl!

New Tricks

Gav is still a big hoot. His new obsession is speaking Spanish. He has a little buddy who is bilingual and Gavin REALLY wants to be able to talk to him in Spanish. He just can't understand why I can't teach it to him! He had a play date with his buddy and his mom taught Gavin a little bit. Now Gavin says, "I speak a little Spanish!" He still adores his baby sister. He frequently tells me that she is HIS baby. He seems to be growing up right before our eyes. Everyday he is trying new things and becoming braver. His coordination is amazing to me. You should see this kid at the park!


Me, I've just been so busy with Church. Recruiting new volunteers, making schedules, buying supplies, learning new computer programs, etc, etc. This week is our BIG week. We start AWANA on Wednesday and on Sunday our new campus launches!

Well, that is our family update and what we've all been up to. Sorry to bore you!

Catching Up

It hasn't been ALL work and no play, around here. We have been busy, but we have been able to do some fun stuff, too!

Over labor day we went to Michigan and spent some time with Ryan's brothers and their families. We had a fantastic and relaxing weekend.


Jason and Will



Ryan giving Jenna a ride on the 4 wheeler



Jordan holding Charlotte - it's hard to believe that Jordan was Charlotte's age when I met the Dobbertin family!



All the bigger cousins - Charlotte and Will are missing



Charlotte was getting a little snuggle from Will - it was too cute!


That's what we did over labor day! I hope you all had a relaxing weekend as well!

Neglect

My poor blog has been neglected! I have missed it, but have NO time for it. I am squeezing it in today as things are settling down around here, sort of. Our church is launching a new campus IN THE CITY, and Ryan and I are heading up the Children's Ministry. On top of that, we are still doing AWANA. Ryan is the "commander" again and I am his trusty secretary! We officially launch the new church campus next Sunday and AWANA starts up this Wednesday. So over the next few days I'll be attempting to update everyone on what's been going on with us. We're still here, don't give up on us yet!