Profile

My sweet boy's profile makes my heart skip a beat. It is one of the many things I love about him. His forehead that sticks out just a touch, his lips and perfect little nose, and those lashes! Mercy, those lashes! Some girl's heart will swoon someday.

This morning I was holding him and he was smiling at his daddy, I just had to snap a few pictures.

Good news, the last two mornings he hasn't had brown spit up! Even after sleeping through the night!!! God is good!

Happy Friday friends!

Picture overload

As promised, here are pictures of our moving day, Gavin meeting his Auntie Erin, and a few other randoms.

Gavin practicing his preaching skills on Grandpa.

Gavin's First Home

All packed up and ready to go.

The bain of my existence 

 A little (quick) story on this lamp. This lamp was Jason's favorite lamp to read by in bed. It went with him to college, to our first apartment, and to our town home. The lamp's journey ended last Saturday at the door of our new home. Matching bedside lamps, here we come!

To be fair, we had a trash can that I picked out that was the bain of Jason's existence, the kind with the pedal and flip lid. Let's just say Jason went to war with it every time the trash needed to be taken out. It would get stuck on the rim, tear the bag, and make a mess. It too, ended it's journey at our new home's door step, or rather the dumpster...

Okay, onto more fun pictures.

Gavin's "Auntie" Erin holding him for the first time EVER!

So happy Erin is back from Georgia!
We missed her so much!

Gavin's face in this pic makes me giggle.
I think he was awe-struck by the beautiful Kayla! 

Someone has found his fingers, and they now trump his pacifier.

My sweet sister-in-law, Amanda, and her kiddos came over to our place to wait for the
washer/dryer delivery man. I came home to my first "flowers" in our new home!
Thanks Robert & Riley!

Pretty much sums up the exhausting, crazy, wonderful life we have right now.

 Sorry for the over abundance of pictures, but I had to get them on here!

Getting Settled

If Gavin sleeping through the night is any indication of how much he likes the house, then I'd say he loves it! He slept through the night the past two nights. Yesterday morning he had more brown spit up, but this morning he didn't have any! Happy mama this morning!

As of yesterday, we officially have every "piece" to our home. Our washer & dryer were delivered last night! Can I get a "Hallelujah"? Man, having a baby with reflux means lots of dirty clothes, bibs, and burp rags. We were down to one clean burp rag, and were getting very creative with his outfit choices. As of this morning, all of Gavin's clothes are clean!

Sadly, this blog has lost some of it's luster due to the lack of Gavin pictures. I had been posting them from home before we moved, and since we don't have internet at home, I do my blogging at work. Gasp!!! Oh, calm down...I do it all during my lunch break. :) Hoping to bring my camera and cord tomorrow to put up some pictures of the littlest man in my home.

To sum it up the week thus far has been great! We even got to open the windows to let the spring air fly through. I have joked that Gavin will never know what outside is like since its always cold. It looks like we may have a turn in the tides here, folks! Fingers crossed!

Dreaming of putting my feet in the grass, and possibly a lake sometime soon!

Coffee anyone?

Let's close our eyes and pretend we are having a coffee date, shall we?

Okay, so maybe don't actually close your eyes, but let's pretend for the fun of it.

I'd order my favorite summer drink, Starbucks Iced Caramel Macchiato. We would sit down, and of course I would want to know all about what is going on in your world. No doubt many of you are busy just like we are!

Here's what has been going on in our town called Craziville. Population 3.

• We packed up all of our earthly possessions in a U-Haul on Saturday morning, and headed up north a little ways. Thank heavens for the helpful crew we had with us! In the time that it took me to grab some lunch for the crew, they already had the contents of the garage in the U-Haul, and started on the furniture. Total time to loading time: 1.5 hrs. 
• As soon as they had everything in the truck we (my mom, sister, dad & I) got our townhouse cleaned up and ready for the final walk-through. Much to my excitement, we aced the walk-through. Not a single thing wrong! I'd compare this to seeing a bright red A+ on a much dreaded final exam. Why is this so exciting? Well, Jason said whatever I get back from the deposit, was mine for decorating money!!! Target, HomeGoods, and local thrift stores...here I come!
• It took the guys about 1 hr. to unload everything into our new garage, and by 2:00 we were completely finished! Time to start unpacking baby!
• Earlier last week, Gavin had been spitting up brown gunk in the mornings. We noticed that it is only when his tummy is empty. So if he sleeps through the night, he has brown spit-up. Talk about our "but-ummm..." baby. Oh, how I want him to sleep through the night, but I HATE seeing that brown spit-up. We took him in, and the surgeon who did his esophagus repair wasn't concerned. Basically, we need to keep an eye on it. If he gets a fever, is extremely fussy, spits up the brown stuff more than just in the morning, or if his spit-up is reddish in color, we have to go back in. Praying that it goes away!
• Our Memorial Day weekend was spent unpacking. Which is much harder with a little one in the home! Shocker, right!? There were breaks taken to play with him, feed him, change him, or just cuddle with him. But really, can you blame me?
• Big news...we dropped Gavin off at his new daycare provider this morning. Does that ever get easy? I trust her, but it is still hard and I want to know how he is doing at all hours of the day!
• This morning we became a car-pooling family. We drop Gavin off at daycare, Jason drops me off at work, and then he goes to work. Seems to be a good idea, and with the gas prices (ouch!) we had no other option. I, however, am struggling with not being able to jet off to our home for my lunch break! Hello cubicle lunches.
• Tonight I start playing in a sand volleyball league. Which, I'm not going to lie, makes me a little nervous. I haven't played for a year or so. We'll see if I can move tomorrow morning, and if they invite me back to play next week.

Well friend, that is life as I know it right now. It is crazy, but I love the craziness. 

Coffee date again soon? Have a great Tuesday!

Praying for OK

My heart is so heavy for the mommies and daddies, who's little babes are still missing. It aches for the arms of parents that won't reach far enough into the rubble to touch their sons, their daughters. Breaking for families who's homes full of memories were leveled, the kiddos who lost their teddies in the destruction of the tornado, and for the weary rescue workers searching as hope fades.

However, the strength of the OK residents is astounding! I keep hearing over and over, that they just want prayer. Something I know quite a bit about. So many reached out to us, asking what they could do to support us with Gavin's rocky start. Prayer. It is powerful. It doesn't cost you a dime, but it will bless others richly. Without prayer, hope is lost. Without prayer, the piles of rubble (literal or figurative) are insurmountable. Without prayer, peace is a far off dream.

To hear the news reporters saying they will be praying, is not common. So many of the stories are heart-wrenching, but even those without faith seem to find hope and peace in prayer. Can God bring beauty from the rubble that is strewn throughout OK? Absolutely. It will be a long road, and no doubt heart ache will be ever-present, but we know that beauty comes from pain. Even if it is small, even if it takes many years. It will come.

"If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land."
-2 Chronicles 7:14

God, be with the people in OK. Heal their broken hearts. Bring them hope. Turn their hearts to you, for you will be their strength in this time of weakness and pain.

I am praying that I never forget where we have come from.

December 2012
So many tubes, wires & IVs.

 And where God has brought us to.

May 2013
Surgeries behind us.

Today I'll be praying for survivors in the school & surrounding homes, for healing to being, and hearts to be turned towards God.

I'll hug & kiss my little boy even more (if that is possible), take time to appreciate my husband, and love bigger.

This life is uncertain, but I know for sure that God cares. He hears our cries, and He is with us. Here and in OK.

Guess what!?

Gavin slept through the night last night! Like all night, not just the "6 hours" that qualifies sleeping through the night. He slept from 8:00pm and is still asleep at 5:30am. I had to check on the sweet boy a couple of times to make sure he was alright. First time mommy, can you tell?

Who knew that adding one feeding of soy milk to his diet at the evening meal would allow him to sleep like this! I'm thinking we should have done it sooner! I actually had to get up because I got enough sleep, and couldn't sleep any more. Cause for celebration? I think so!

Look at this cutie. Who could resist this handsome boy?

Home Sweet Home (almost)



This Saturday we spent our day getting our new home ready for Dupay invasion. Lots of dusting out cupboards from construction, as well as planning out the perfect spot for everything.



Front door. Could use a little landscaping!

I didn't get a ton of pictures, but here are a few of the place. There are more on my phone, but I can't figure out how to get them onto the computer. Oh technology...how I hate & love you.

Our first meal - spaghetti. Fancy shmancy, right!?

We refer to this as Gavin's "Heaven on earth"
The boy love lights!

Our trooper. He spent 2 hours in that carseat while we cruised the
aisles. Boy did we do some damage! You're welcome Home Depot.



Our back yard. Can't wait to have the sod put in so I can walk,
barefoot, through the green grass!

 

Now to get moved in!







5 Months

Not sure who is responsible for these last 5 months flying by, but whoever it was, could you please slow down the time clock. Mmmm-K? Thanks.

 

I can't believe that our little boy turned 5 months old! We are only 1 month from 1/2 a year! I know, I know - stop breaking things down into time chunks, and just enjoy it. Done! Here are a few pictures of our little sweetheart.

 

 

Thanks for loving me little man, because I sure love you!



Whirlwind

To say these last weeks have been a blur would be the understatement of my life! 

We have had a couple Doctors appointments for Gavin.

Gavin's MRI

Home inspections

Gavin's Dedication

Packing to move

Gavin's Surgery

Gavin's Recovery week

More packing

Cleaning our current home, which thanks to my wonderful mother, went so much faster!!! She is the queen of cleaning and packing!

Gavin turned 5 months old. Where did the time go?

and Finally today.... 

We became Homeowners! So exciting. I can't even tell you! The feeling of "adulthood" is complete. It was the last piece of our puzzle, if you will. Now onto filling our new house with love, laughter, and tons of great memories!

Our wonderful realtor, Tim Kindem. He sold us our first home!
Would recommend him to anyone!
http://www.timkindemrealestate.com/

Still can't believe it! I'll post pictures soon of the place. 

We are just so thankful for all that we have gone through in the last year. The highs, the lows, and the in-betweens. All of it has been exactly what the Lord knew we needed. Just at the right time!

Introducing...

Let me introduce you Gavin's new friend, his puppy. He is yet to be named, but I am thinking Grover is a good choice. Hmmm...we'll let Gavin decide.

 

Get ready to be overcome with cuteness!

 

Gavin's new favorite toy.

Thanks for the puppy Auntie C!

Great hugger! Look at the grip he has on him.
That puppy isn't getting away anytime soon.

 So are you overcome with cuteness? I thought so!

Gavin's Vacation at La Casa de U of Minnesota

Okay...so his stay in the hospital hasn't been a vacation, but it may seem like it to him. Here are a few pictures of his stay so far. We are expected to go home tomorrow. More of the medical stuff is at http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/gavindupay. I can only post so many pictures on Caring Bridge, so I'll put them here instead!

Surgery Day

Thank heavens for Grandma cuddles!
She kept him calm while we packed up for the hospital.

 

Our sweet boy

Supporting the Huskers

Sleeping before surgery. Like my space PJs?

Going on 9hrs of not eating.
We had to get a picture to prove it!

Grandma Sue comforting Mr. Gavin

 1 1/2 Days after surgery:

Gavin loves his Sophie! Thanks Megan!!!

When are these people going to put clothes on me!?!

Captivated by his Bob the Builder balloon.
Grandpa & Grandma Hoops picked him out.
Thanks, I LOVE IT!

Face

 

 The many faces of Gavin:

My Favorite! Shocked!

Sweet boy, loves tummy time.
Okay...loves may be a little extreme.
He tolerates tummy time.

New obsession - Teething Rings

Sweet and innocent.

Wild about the WILD!
He is a dedicated fan, even when they lose.

Gavin's Dedication

On May 5, 2013, we dedicated our little Gavin to the Lord. I realized that being a mom, you tend to take pictures of others...not remembering to take them with your son. Oops...
Here are the few pictures I took.

There were 11 children dedicated to the Lord on Sunday! ELEVEN!

Gavin's Godparents

Three of the babies dedicated were in our small group!
So glad we get to go through parenting with these guys!