Long time, no post

It has been over a month since I posted last. So much has happened in five short weeks. Some good and some not so good. I am not going to ponder on the not so good and am choosing to focus on the good. I am thankful for so much right now and I think it is important to be grateful for what you have.

I recently had a photo session with a wonderful photographer who I can honestly call a friend now. I wanted to have some pictures taken of Gavin for our Christmas card and I wanted to have a picture taken with my mom. I couldn't have been more happy with Beth's work.

We are taking Gavin to a train depot today so I will post more pics soon.

Gavin's Birth Story

I know I am around two years late in posting this, but I didn't become a blogger until Gavin was a few months old. I have become horrible at keeping up with his baby book so I really wanted to jot all of this down before I forget. And to be quite honest, I am having major "baby fever" and I wanted to take a walk down memory lane. Enjoy!

Gavin was due on July 5, 2008. I had a feeling that I was going to have a "big" baby. Gabriel was 10 pounds and I was 8 pounds. I had mentioned this to my doctor a few times, but she always told me that it didn't matter how big Gabriel or I was. She only did two sonograms in her office during my entire pregnancy so she really didn't have any idea how big Gavin was getting. All I can say is that I was "huge!" I don't have many pics of me pregnant but here are a few from Gavin's baby shower. My four best friends threw me an amazing celebration.





Here is a picture taken two weeks before Gavin was born. It was father's day and I was as big as a house. Please note that I was wearing the exact same shirt the day I checked into the hospital to have Gavin.



I had my doctor's appointments scheduled for Thursdays since my mom was off on those days and she went to almost every appointment with me. The sunday before my due date I started to develop a rash on my belly. I thought it was from the chlorine in the swimming pool since I went "wading" every chance I got. On Monday the rash seemed to get worse. I called the doctor and they told me I could use calamine lotion to help with the itching. By Wednesday I was absolutely miserable. I called the doctor and they had me come in that afternoon at 3:15. My cousin Marissa took me since my mom was still working and Gabe was finishing his last job of the day. At this time I honestly thought she was going to just send me home with some lotion since she said she wouldn't induce until after my due date. It was only July 2. Apparently my blood pressure was really high so she sent me straight to labor and delivery. I was only 2 cm dilated. They hooked me up to the fetal monitor and I had my third sonogram in the hospital. My doctor finally wanted to see how big our little guy was. I still thought I was going to be sent home so I told Gabe to go ahead and finish his job. At that time he was still working for a company, so I wanted him to work as much as he could before the baby came. My mom arrived shortly after I got settled in my room. She was so excited she could hardly contain herself. The sonogram showed that Gavin weighed 9 pounds 12 ounces. I nearly rolled off the bed when they told me. My doctor came in around 6:00 and told me that she didn't think I would be able to push out a baby who weighed almost 10 pounds. At this point I was so miserable from the rash, which was diagnosed as PUPP,that all I wanted to do was have a baby. She recommeded a c-section. At this point I couldn't get a hold of Gabe. Apparently his last job was bigger than expected and he was in the attic where his phone didn't have a signal. I was so worried about him because he wasn't answering that my blood pressure started to rise again. My doctor was going to perform a c-section at 8:30 like it or not. She was worried about preclampsia. We were finally able to get a hold of Gabriel and he was at the hospital literally minutes before they rolled me into the operating room. My whole family, with the exception of my dad were in the waiting room. My dad really wanted me to hold out until Thursday since that was when he was coming back into town. Everything went really fast after this point. I remember getting the spinal and laying down. Gabe was there before I knew it and Gavin was out. I don't remember him crying, but they brought him over so I could kiss him. Gavin was born at 9:03 pm on Wednesday, July 2, 2008.





I was taken to recovery where I couldn't see Gavin for four hours. They finally brought him to me at 1:30 am. I had lots of visitors and I wish I remembered more from those first few days, but I had a severe allergic reaction to the spinal so all I really remember is being in a lot of pain with a lot of itching.
Once I got home I felt so much better. Gavin was mine and we savored every minute of him. I can't believe it was over two years ago that I had him. He has made my life complete and I could not ask for more.




"I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him." 1 Samuel 1:27

Together at Last!

As I mentioned before, I am blessed with two beautiful stepdaughters. Due to circumstances beyond our control Gavin had never met them until last weekend. Gabe and I were really excited and I couldn't wait to see Gavin with his "sisters". I took Friday off and we drove to Fort Worth. I was worried about how Gavin would do during the long car trip, but he did great. He even slept part of the way. We met the girls Friday night for dinner. Gavin seemed to take to them right away. The next morning Gabe went to his youngest daughters football game while Gavin slept in. He had stayed up pretty late the night before and I wanted him to be well rested for the rest of the day. Yep, you heard me right, Gabe's youngest plays flag football. I thought the fact that she is the only girl on the team is pretty cool. I am sure Gabe was a very proud father that morning.




Gabe and the girls came back to the hotel to pick us up after the game. The weekend before was his older daughter's birthday so she got to open her gifts before we headed to lunch. Gavin was so excited to see his sisters again. He sat on the couch with them and posed for some pics, which he never does. It was so nice to see the three of them together.





After the mini birthday party we then headed out for some lunch. I just love this picture. Gavin wanted to hold both of their hands.



After lunch we headed to Ripley's Believe it or Not in Grand Prairie. It was so much fun! Gavin did so well in the museum with his sisters. They had a wax sculpture of everyone and anyone. They also had a mirror maze and some lazer obstacle that Gabe LOVED. We all had a blast.












Gavin cried so much when we had to drop off the girls. He was instantly in love and I couldn't be happier. We are planning another trip for November and December. I can't to see what the future holds for our awesome family!

Back to the Grind

I am officially back to work. It has been a rough couple of weeks getting back into the swing of things, but I know I will get into a nice routine by September. Gavin has also went back to school. He is at a new MDO and did great his first week. Gabriel drops him off which makes things a lot easier for me. He cries for a little while but stops fairly quickly. I have really been slacking on my postings because things have been crazy over here. I don't have any pictures of Gavin going to school, but I promise I will make Gabe take some this week. However, I do have one of Gavin lounging in his new recliner courtesy of Grandma Sonya or Ma as Gavin likes to call her :)

Stepmom

I think the word stepmom has many different meanings. I also think the word has gotten a bad rap as well. What is the first thing you think of? The evil stepmom from Cinderella right? Luckily, Julia Roberts turned things around for stepmom's all around the world when she portrayed one in the movie. Here is the official definition: A stepfamily, also known as a blended family or reconstituted family, is a family in which one or both members of the couple have children from a previous relationship. The member of the couple to whom the child is not biologically related is the stepparent, specifically the stepmother or stepfather. The reality is that in this day and age blended families are extremely common. I have lots of experience with this since I come from a blended family. I have a stepmom, a stepdad, and stepsisters. Just like any other family we have had our ups and downs, but we stayed true to the "family" part of it and love eachother unconditionally.

Two and a half years ago I became a stepmom. Things were complicated and I will skip most of the details, but I finally got to meet my two beautiful stepdaughters this past weekend. I have never been so nervous. I compared knocking on their door to the feeling you have right before you get on a roller coaster. I was excited, nervous and terrified all at the same time. We had an awesome day and I am literally counting down the days until we see them again. Gavin has two amazing sisters and I am so excited for their bond to develop. He is one lucky little boy and I am one lucky "stepmom".

From this day forward I vow to be the stepmom that I know I can be. I know there are going to be ups and downs, but in the end I know we will get through it. I have faith that God has led me down this path and put these two beautiful girls in my life for a reason.

All your children shall be taught by the Lord,
and great shall be the peace of your children.
—Isaiah 54:13

Two year photo shoot

We had Gavin's two year photos done this summer. I found a wonderful photographer through a friend and I couldn't be happier with the results. Gavin is mover and a shaker and Elizabeth from Snap Happy Portraits definitely knew how to handle an energetic little boy. We started early, but it was still really hot and humid so please excuse my "bad hair day".

Monogram Maniac

So I have officially become a monogram maniac. I not only get my stuff monogrammed, but I also get Gavin's things monogrammed. I love that they can monogram in any color or any font. There is something extra special about having your name or initials monogrammed on your belongings. I have also been able to find some awesome deals on etsy.


This little bag is what got me started. A gift from my sister. I have been using it a lot lately. Small, but not too small. I have a larger one that I use as my teacher bag.


Can you believe I bought this tote at the dollar tree for 1 dollar. I should have bought more. The inside is lined with plastic so I used it a lot this summer as a pool or beach bag. I had it monogrammed at a local store.


This was my first blogger giveaway win. I got to pick out what colors and font I wanted all for free. I won it on First Comes Love giveaway blog.
I can't wait to take my coffee to work in this cute little cup.


Gavin's first preschool nap mat. It has a blanket and pillow attached that are easily removed for washing. They sleep on cots at school so this will just go over it. I bought this on etsy at Kute Kiddo.


Another etsy purchase :) Can you see the theme here? Camo galore. He also has a matching backpack that I haven't pictured. This little lunch tote is the perfect size for his lunch and is insulated to keep his food cold or warm. I bought this at miss priss and co.

Like I said, Monogram Maniac!

Catch up

It has been a while since my last update and I have no excuse :) I am still enjoying my summer at home with Gavin. The first two weeks of July were jam packed with activities and the last two weeks have been pretty quiet. Gavin will start a mom's day out program this week. He will be going two days a week until the end of August and then he will start his normal three day a week school for the new school year. That will be two schools in the span of a month. I am a little worried about moving him around so much, but a lot of schools don't offer a summer program and I really think he would enjoy playing with other kids his age during the week. Other than that we are slowly trying to get back on a schedule since the new school year is rapidly approaching. Goodbye to the nights of staying up until two in the morning reading or watching tv and the mornings of sleeping in until 10 :( I will leave you with some great pics of Gavin holding the latest addition to our family (his cousin). He LOVES babies. He wants to hold baby Cruz every chance he gets.

Barnyard Bash!

So I officially survived Gavin's first "real" birthday party. I say this because for his first birthday we did something really low key with just immediate family. This year we went all out, or should I say, I went all out :)

I started planning this party back in January. My goal was to buy a little each month so that our pocket book wouldn't feel a massive dent. This meant that I had to pick a theme 7 months ago. Gavin wasn't really into just one thing back in January so I decided on a "barnyard bash". Little did I know that he would soon become obsessed with "trucks".

We had the "barnyard bash" at the clubhouse in my dad's neighborhood. They have a wonderful playground and a great air conditioned facility that is an absolute must in SA's 100 degree heat. The menu consisted of hamburgers and hot dogs. I really wanted to make the cupcakes for Gavin's party and I found some really cute ideas on the Internet. I made pig and rooster cupcakes that came out really cute and were super easy.




I ordered the cake from one of my fellow teachers who makes the most delicious cakes. Since I already had the pig and rooster I wanted the cake to have a cow theme. She did an awesome job.



I wanted the party to have the full barnyard effect so we hired a petting zoo for the main attraction. We had pony rides, baby pigs, chickens, a sheep and a goat. Gavin wouldn't touch the animals, and I barely got him to ride the pony. So much for my grandiose idea of him galloping away into the sunset :)







In keeping with the theme and trying to incorporate his love of trucks I was determined to find green and yellow "john deere" tractor pinata. Who knew that finding the perfect pinata would become such a task. I finally found one and Gavin loved it.




It was so nice to be surrounded by family and friends on a very special day. Gavin is so lucky to have so many people that love him. He has THREE great grandmas and TWO great grandpas. Can you believe that? He also has two grandpas, and three grandmas. He is definitely going to look back on these pictures and realize just how lucky he is.







Gavin had a blast and the party was a success. It took a lot of work and tons of help but in the end it was all worth it. I am already planning next year's party ;)