This is for You Nana

My grandmother quite sweetly told me tonight that she knows how busy I am because my blog posts are few and far between. Interpreted, get to posting Abbey! Okay, so Nana even though tonight I filled you in on what's going on, this one's for you.

I know it's not good to wish time away but I feel that since tomorrow starts off September it has to mean fall is here (in 90 degree temps) then Christmas and thus half the school year is just right around the corner. Blame my poor attitude on fatigue. I know it will get better. It's just right now, there's not enough hours in the day to get things done, so I'm a little sleep deprived.

Now that the miniature violin has played a melodious tune for my whining, I'll move on. Gavin is saying more words every day. Lately he's added the following words: eat, read, more, banana, nim for vitamin, hide and shark. While he's his own person, I see so much of me in the ways things have to be just right. If I'm not closing the kitchen cabinets, he's one step behind me letting me know the "door" needs to be closed. He is also a creature of habit. The way we get him up in the morning has to follow the routine and instead of wanting a glass of water like a regular kid, he has to have vasoline rubbed on his nose and the dry skin on his knee before he goes to bed. When I blow dry his hair after a bath, he has to brush my hair with not just one but two brushes. If you give that kid a ride in his car or fly him around the room, he'll remember it and that will be your role every time he sees you.

I also see a lot of his daddy in him from his smile to his playful nature. Gavin will sweetly tease and "chase" is his game of choice. He also has his daddy's charm and astonishing good looks. Speaking of D, he has been working hard for his money. We are cherishing all of the time we get right now.

As we head into fall (fingers crossed) I'm really hoping a more calm season of life will ensue. Nana - thanks for keeping me on my toes. Love ya'.

Lest I Should Forget

Today, God granted me a second glimpse at my baby. We have a full-fledged toddler running around the house, so sometimes it's hard to remember those infancy days. Gavin has never been much of a snuggler. Sure, I could hold him up until about the time he turned one when he took his last bottle, but he could pretty much care less that I ever rock him to sleep. The fact that he's so willing to just go right down in his crib and stay there for 12 plus hours is a blessing. However, I miss those snuggle times.

This afternoon, he was overly tired and it wasn't even quite his nap time. I think like his daddy and I, Gavin is feeling the effects of getting in the groove of school starting. I laid him down and he started crying hysterically. I thought it was because Eyore was in his bed (he has a small circle of animals that are allowed in), so I took the sad, gray animal out. That made matters worse. It seemed like no matter what we did, he wouldn't calm down. I ended up holding him and singing.

He almost instantly stopped crying (it's not because of my singing voice), but he still had those little cry hiccups that you get from crying so hard. As I sang a small repertoire of songs I used to sing to him, he gently stroked the hairs that had escaped from my pony tale and would rub the top of my arm with his hand. I noticed that his hand is slowly changing from a chubby baby hand into a slender little boy's. I sang to him until he drifted off with only the occasional hiccup. As I did, I thanked God for one more glimpse at those days that went all too fast.

Truthful Tuesday

1. I have a class full of 17 wonderful and energetic five year olds.

2. I am too tired to do a full blog post. See item number 1.

3. I fell asleep on the couch working on things for the past two nights only to finally go to bed early in the morning. Again, see item number 1.

3. School supplies are fantastic- especially a brand new pack of crayons.

4. I love it when Gavin wants me to hold him like he's a baby after he gets a bath even if he just thinks it's a fun game.

5. While we appreciate the overtime, I am so glad my hunny is getting home at a decent time this week.

6. I am having a hard time keeping the flowers watered since by the time everyone is fed and taken care of, it's dark. Watering in the dark is not easy.

7. I feel guilty when I don't water. See item number 6.

8. We are so blessed that Gavin has people who love him and take such great care of him while I'm at work.

9. My husband speaks my love language when he makes me coffee in the morning without me even asking.

Laughing 'Til It Hurts

My abs hurt. They hurt really bad. Abs, really? No, who am I kidding. Okay, something resembling my stomach hurts. Want to know the cause. Meet Shan, Wendy and Jennie. That's me on the far right.
We had a reunion of sorts last night over dinner. I had not seen the glowing mom-to-be Shantel since high school and it had been over a year since the rest of us were all together. Although Wendy and Jennie are lucky to get to see each other fairly often. I've known these girls since third grade and you would have thought by the amount of laughing, we hadn't skipped a beat. We caught up on life's events, misunderstood stories which made them even funnier, oohed and ahhed over Shan and Wendy's sonogram pictures (clearly their babies are advanced), and reminisced about my mom's brownies. Jennie and I may or may not have traded potty training stories.

While we have all married, have had or are having kids and are well into our careers, there were still traces of the little girls who used to spend the night together, play volleyball and do the homework my mom dished out - it was a lot (just kidding mom!)

Recently, I came across a photo of the four of us together while searching through some old photos at my parents' house. I wish I had a picture of when we were little girls (those were probably at the bottom of some boxes), it's of the last reunion we had sometime during high school.
We have made plans to get together more often than every ten years. Let's hope so because I just might get those abs after all without doing a single crunch.

Here Fishy Fishy

The Last Day

Although the last official day of Summer is more than a month away, my summer ended today. Tomorrow embarks the 4th year of me as a banker/PR Specialist turned teacher. So, Gavin and I made the most of it. We had a mother/son breakfast date at Chick-Fil-A. I was trying to do good by just having a fruit and yogurt parfait, but someone had to have some. That left me no choice but to enjoy one of his chicken mini biscuits. Oh the sacrifices mothers make.

We then headed to one of our favorite stores, Target, and found some sweet deals (I'm sounding a little like Napoleon Dynamite). Then it was home to get in a leg workout and I think because Gavin went down for a nap later in the day, he slept for an extra long time. I had planned on us playing outside, but his extended nap time allowed me to get some things done around the house instead. We had a nice visit with the cousins and then it was on to family swim time, topped off with dinner from the grill.

We really made the most of this last day, but that got me to thinking. Shouldn't we live every day as if it could be our last? Every day I should be taking a mental note of the sound my baby's feet make when he runs in the house. And every day, I should stare just a second or two longer at my husband's face. While school may be starting up, I have to remember to really and truly live life since we are never guaranteed our next breath. You would think I believe my own philosophy since I was out sweeping the front porch like it wasn't going to happen again until next June.

Mild Mannered Weekend

I am so thankful for a mild weekend seeing that it is leading up to a busy week. Believe it or not, the summer officially comes to an end for me this week as I head back to work. To say it flew by is an understatement.

We mostly stuck to the house this weekend, but we did meet up for dinner with two of our favorite people, Pris and Kris, at the Greek restaurant Niko Nikos. The food was delicious although Gavin was more interested in playing with Kris. Afterward, we headed to the little park by the Menil.

Most of us took turns on the swing.

Gavin and D chased away the birds.

Kris had to use his mad catcher skills.

And Gavin and Pris bonded.

While bonding they came upon this cute creature.

I was also able to snap a few pictures of my hat wearing, mouse carrying little boy.
We all deserved a sweet treat after being in 90 to 100 degree weather at 6 in the evening, so we headed to Amy's Ice Creams and one of us may or may not have climbed up and down on the bench for half an hour because of a sugar high.

It will probably be quiet on the blog front for the next few weeks as the Moore household adjusts to new schedules and long workdays. Until then, I'm going to look at these sweet cheeks for a few more moments.

A Pirate Can Still Love His Mama

Home is Where the Dogs Are

So this will be the last of the San Diego pictures or will they? Ashley and I are hopefully swapping pictures. Ash- yours should be in the mail this week. Just think of it as your personal trip down memory lane via the 21st century slide show. So let the tour begin!

The first house is off the coast of La Jolla. My tour guide told me it was thought to be the home of someone in the oil and gas field.
This next house was also on La Jolla.
These two were in the Hollywood hills. I love the greenery!
This one can be found in Beverly Hills.
I've saved the best houses for the end and of course all of those came from the island of Cornoda. Just a little background information, the dirt cheapest fixer upper house sells for about $1.2 million. Not exactly chump change.
While these houses are super lovely, we all know it's the people (and the dogs) that make the home. Meet Zeus and Romey, Nick and Ashley's dogs.
Thanks Ash for an absolutely incredible time. I'm so glad to call you a friend and know that we have one of those friendships that picks up right where we left off no matter the span of time or miles. I think I still hear the faint sound of two giggling girls playing cards and talking about boys for hours on end.

Creative and Dramatic Play

I had every intention of posting the last of my San Diego pictures, but instead I have a few pictures to share from today. I'm trying to drink in every minute of this summer because all too soon it will be time for teachers to return to school. Gavin and I are having a lot of fun creative play time but I did want to include some structured activities (although to him he doesn't know the difference).

I decided to pull out the play dough. Lately he's been really interested in learning colors. I had him first match up the mini tubs of play dough with the corresponding balloon color on a mat. Then we just popped open a tub of play dough and went to town rolling balls, cutting it in half and spooning it into bowls.

For the past week, he's been moving colorful pompoms from one bowl to the next with spoons and tongs. My translation: I have him improving his motor skills. His translation: Mom is letting me play with a fun toy.
Since those were nearby, we worked on matching the color pompoms to the right color balloons. He probably was successful 50 percent of the time, but he kept getting hung up that there wasn't a brown or pink pompom to put on the balloon. I may have to die some of the white ones.

This cast of characters was also broadening their skills.
From left to right: Bear with no eyes (Old Bear), Mickey Mouse, Boober (from Fraggle Rock) and the Lorax (whom I call the Larynx just to bug D).

Gavin lined them up for story time. It's amazing what that kid remembers from just one time. Earlier in the day while he was "reading" a Winnie the Pooh book, I got out his stuffed Eyore, Tigger and Winnie the Pooh and lined them up to "listen" to the story. (I wonder if I can add in anymore "quotes?") Anyways, he remembered that and before long, I think he had a stadium full of willful participants.
Tigger must have cracked a joke from the looks of this next picture.
I have a few more have-to things I need to accomplish in this next week, but I'm hoping to mainly focus on being in the moment with this little fella.