This evening, through many tears, we successfully gave Gavin his first hair cut. The curly q's were becoming too unmanageable so a trim was in order. Here is the "before" photo complete with curls hanging over his ears and bangs getting too scraggly and long:

And the "after!" We have just a little more trimming to do tomorrow, but couldn't bear to cause Gavin anymore tears tonight.

Tooth #7 can be seen trying to poke through in this shot at the bottom, stage right position.

Gavin can show this one to his wife some day to prove he once had a thick head of hair. ;)

Gavin experienced the wonderful shopping frenzy that is Black Friday today. Gmummy was up early for Penney's door busters, but Gavin and Mommy joined her at the late hour of eight o'clock at Triangle Town Center. After finding some deals inside the mall, we headed to the outside commons where we were pleasantly surprised to find bright orange leaves still on trees and Gavin stretched his legs for a while.

Here, Gavin demonstrates his "don't shoot, Officer, I'm innocent" walking style.

This is so much more fun than riding in that stroller, Gmummy!

I have a leaf now. I am perfectly content.

Bee-you-tee-ful autumn trees still strutting their stuff.

A-dor-a-ble Gavin strutting his stuff.

Walking + leaf = Happy Gavin

I love this photo of my son and my mommy. :)

So many leaves. So little time.

The day was far from over. From the mall, we headed to Babies 'R Us, met up with Aunt Kristen for lunch at Sweet Tomatoes, and shopped some more at Bed Bath & Beyond, Lowe's, and Target. We finally returned home at two. Gavin was an excellent shopper, as usual!

Gavin's first Thanksgiving yesterday began at Gmummy's house. Before any turkey was eaten, we were already planning the next day's big shopping trip.

Gavin was quite impressed by Aunt Kristen's ambitious shopping plans.

He quickly became exhausted just thinking about all the shopping to be done. Lightweight.

After his nap, Gavin checked up on Kristen finishing the side dishes in the kitchen.

Gavin was given some cooked carrots and turkey but wasn't impressed.

Instead, he told us all that he thankful for. I'm thankful for Mssrs. Sucky and shoes for walking and Monkey and bamboo coasters and shoelaces and Burt and Mommy's necklaces and zippers and peek-a-boo...

After dinner, I wanted to get a family-of-three photo. This would have been perfect if not for the minor fact that it's completely out of focus.

Here, the focus is better, but our dear son is acting like a looney toon and there are major hair issues going on.

This is the only shot in the bunch that's completely in focus. It's also my favorite :).

After our turkey lunch, we headed to GGma's and GGpa's for dessert. Gavin watched A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving for the first time, too.

Gavin has long enjoyed knocking over a carefully-stacked tower of blocks. He added a new twist tonight by celebrating each time with a crazy double-armed hand spasm.

When we bought Gavin's first pair of shoes months ago, we settled for form over function with a pair of really cute boat shoes from BabyGap. Now that he's walking everywhere, Gavin needs a pair of properly-fitting shoes so that he gets off on the right developmental foot, so to speak. As such, we visited the Stride Rite store at Crabtree Valley Mall yesterday to have Gavin's feet sized.

Daddy says this device is called a Brannock Device, if you've ever been curious. Yeah, neither was I.

A few tears later (Gavin has issues with strangers touching his feet, apparently), we left the store with a pair of 5 1/2 Wide dark brown Natural Motion System Tumble Hook and Loop shoes.

Gavin tested them outside of the REI store at North Hills.

Mommy and Daddy particularly liked this shoe style because they worked well for both play and church. Here, Gavin looks more like a three-year-old as he models his new shoes (and brand new outfit!) after church this morning.

No more pictures today. You'll have to talk to my agent.

Made of synthetic rubber with an extremely high coefficient of friction, these soles feature lateral grooves and staggered nodules to provide optimal traction for hiking in the woods or chasing a feline around the living room...

Here, Gavin breaks into his best impression of Gene Kelly dancing on the table in Summer Stock.

You gotta dig, dig, dig, dig for you dinner! Diiiig, brother, diiiiiiiig!

Mommy, stop singing. You're embarrasing yourself, though not as badly as with your dancing in that last video.

OK, Gavin. I'll stop now.

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We woke up this morning to the sight of snow falling. After breakfast and bundling up, we took our native Floridian out for his first romp in the snow. He must have been too cold to romp, but he didn't have an altogether horrible time, fearful though he seemed that we would try to make him eat the snow.

Isn't Gavin's excitement just bubbling over?

Muddy helps clearn the snow off Puddy.

Gavin's first snowball throw needed a little more practice.

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Mommy tries to teach Muddy to dance with her, but his only move is solo bum bouncing. Typical guy, he doesn't know what to do with his arms.

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Election Day has come and gone, and gone with it are all the negative attack ads that turn otherwise annoying commercial breaks into abysmal pits of dispair. The Discovery channel broke for commercials as I was firing up the video editor to work on some footage shot last night, and I realized that I no longer have to leap for the mute button on the TV remote. Then I wondered, "What if our little ray of sunshine decided to run for public office one day?" According to the TV, there is always something bad to say about everybody - what unkind words could possibly refer to Little Mr. Perfect? I couldn't think of any offhand, so I did what the pros do, I made some up, and added supporting video from my library.

Mommy has played in the church handbell choir since she was in middle school so it was natural for handbells to ring at an important occasion like Gavin's baptism last spring. We played a new piece written by our extraordinarily talented director, Michael Helman, that wasn't published yet back in May. The beautiful Aria is now hot off the press and includes the following dedication:

What an honor to have an original piece of music dedicated to our little guy! I don't think we could thank Michael enough for such a unique gift.

An MP3 of this gorgeous piece is available on the publisher's web site: Listen to Aria

I wanted to take a picture of Gavin holding the sheet music, but figured he would wrinkle it beyond recognition, eat it, or a combination of both, so here's a vintage photo of Gavin with Michael taken on one of our last days as Floridians in June.

Today, the Triangle felt winter for the first time of the season. It was COLD and reports of snow flurries were widespread. Around three o'clock, I noticed a few stray snowflakes flying around outside my window so we quickly bundled up Gavin and brought him outside for his first snowfall. It turned out to be a complete bust, but we still took some pictures during the few minutes we braved the chilly air. Gavin's first snowfall will have to wait for another day.

OK, snowflakes. My tongue is ready...

Isn't snow supposed to be white, Daddy? This doesn't look like snow to me...

I guess I'll just sit here and wait for the snow... Hello? ... Snow? *crickets*

My cheeks aren't completely frozen. See, I can smile a little...

I can't wait for this snow to come all day. If the snow isn't going to come to me, I'm going to crawl until I find some...

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While compiling software for Gavin's backend system (stuffing diapers), I was explaining to our son the objects and methods involved, as a matter of course. The apple of our eye chose that moment to learn to immitate speech, moving very close to saying his first word. I ran to get Mommy, disavowing all blame, and asking her to stuff a few diapers so we could capture the scatologically precious moment on video.

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Our son is officially capable of bipedal locomotion. While he prefers to keep a hand on a wall or furniture when walking, he often allows his curiousity to propel him into the few areas of our apartment not cluttered with furniture or baby contraptions. Given temporary leave from his living-room-filling playard, you'll see him here transitioning from cruising the recliners to striking out on his own to have a chew on Barnabas the blanky. In the next scene, he grows bored watching Mommy cook and leaves our redneck-baby-gate (don't worry, we're going to Babies-R-Us this weekend) to find Monkey and Patrick the Pup for a friendly wrasslin' match. With all this walking going on, we'll probably be shopping for shoes this weekend, as well.

Last night, Gavin was walking, cruising, and crawling all over the apartment while playing his version of hide-and-seek-peekaboo. Hide-and-seek with a ten-month-old requires the little seeker to actually see where hider has gone so that he can follow. Daddy crawled around on all fours and hid around the corner. Gavin then chased after him and giggled after finding Daddy in the hallway. Daddy crawled behind the recliner. Gavin followed and laughed when Daddy came into view and yelled, "Peek-a-boo!" Then, Daddy got really creative and went into the bedroom, shutting the door behind him without latching it. Gavin crawled to the door, pushed it open, and rolled on the floor with laughter when Daddy's face emerged from the other side.

Next, it was Mommy's turn to "hide." She hid around the corner, behind the recliner, and on the other side of the bedroom door just like Daddy. Then, Gavin crawled into the bedroom leaving Mommy and Daddy in the hallway. His parents looked at each other in mild confusion as Gavin shut the door behind him. "What is he doing?" they asked. Curious to see if he was getting into mischief all alone in the bedroom, they gently nudged the door open until they saw Gavin's giddy face peek around from inside the bedroom and laughter ensued. Gavin had decided to change roles and become the hider!

Mommy and Daddy laughed for a while after that episode.

In case you're wondering ... No, the photo that began this blog entry doesn't have any connection to the story told thus far. I just really like the photo so I wanted to post it first :). That photo is from Sunday afternoon when Gavin played around in the leaves outside.

I'm so happy that Gavin will be growing up in an area with real seasons. Not to criticize Gavin's birth state where there is little change from season to season except for the number of tourists on the roads, but there's something wonderful about the way the outdoors change throughout the year north of the Sunshine State. I have so many wonderful childhood memories of playing outside in the New Jersey autumn leaves and can't wait to watch Gavin grow up enjoying each new season.

I can walk on my OWN, Daddy!

Charge!

Yesterday, Gavin waved "bye-bye" for the first time. For a while now, we have been waving his hand for him whenever someone leaves. While Daddy was holding him last night when Gmummy and I left for handbell practice, Gavin lifted his hand on his own and shook it at us! I wanted to run over and hug him because I was so proud, but that would have confused him since we wouldn't be going bye-bye then!

If you notice Gavin wearing just one sock in photos nowadays, please don't hold his parents responsible. Gavin insists on pulling off one sock all the time. Just one.

For the past few months, Gavin hasn't been a great eater. He drinks plenty of formula each day for the nutrition he needs, but he's been rejecting food except for baby cereals and the occasional bowl of applesauce. We would try feeding him at lunch and dinner but only got a spoonful or two down before things would get unpleasant. Several days ago at dinnertime, we sat him in his highchair as usual and started feeding him a bowl of strawberries and kiwi, something he refused just the day before, and he scarfed it down like he hadn't eaten for...well...months! We tried yogurt this week and he gobbled that right up, too, and he's consistently eating applesauce again. I'm beginning to wonder if he's heading for another growth spurt!

Gavin is becoming a better walker every day. He walks all over the house while only holding on to one parent hand for a little balance and he's so fast. Unassisted, he can take several steps at a time.

Weekend activity with the Highsmiths has fallen into a predictable pattern over the past few weeks. Autumn Saturdays are all about college football ... for Mom, at least. Gavin supports the team by spending a few hours in the pasture with me, but has little interest in what's happening on the television and plays the entire time instead.

He has a great gum-chewing Bobby Bowden impression, though.

Here, he finally looks interested in the game ... but it was a commercial break.

Football? Gavin has more important things to do, like work on his truck.

Daddy doesn't help my plan to convert Gavin into a football fan by climbing into the pasture with us and reading a book ...

... and watching a movie. The Seminoles won again this weekend without much attention from Gavin.

This Sunday was extra special: it was Gavin's great grandparents' 56th anniversary. Gauntie Faye was in town to help celebrate. Daddy created a terrain map of the area where her new house is being built and Gavin helped to point out the landmarks.

After some tasty desserts, we returned to William B. Umstead State Park to enjoy one of the last weekends of beautiful fall foliage.

Many of the leaves in the area are already dropping and by next weekend, most of the bright colors will probably be gone.

Gavin was content as long as he was able to chew his teething toy the entire time.

Ah, yes. We have really enjoyed autumn this year!

We may officially have a walker! Gavin has been taking one or two unassisted steps for the past week. Tonight, just a few minutes ago, he was pushing his truck and ventured away for five or six steps in a row! He covered about four feet until he dropped on his bottom.

Gavin's favorite letter is D. All day long while I'm working I hear, "da da da DA DA da...da da... da da da..." in the living room.

Gavin enjoys dancing. Sometimes when we play a song, he'll start bouncing up and down. This week we discovered one of his favorite songs to dance to is the REM song from yesterday's standing video.

Gavin's current favorite napping position involves sticking his rear end in the air...

Nothing can transfix him quite like running water. This is a common scene whenever we get the tub ready for his bath:

And a few more photos from tonight's bath...

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Like the truck-driving, standing is something I've been attempting to capture for some weeks now. He's been standing for awhile, but it took me a number of tries before I finally got everything right (camera angle, lighting, standing incentive). I set out to shoot a video that illustrated Gavin's ability to stand unassisted for short periods. Since I took so long in recording his standing, he is not just standing, but already stumble-step/walking in his first standing video.

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Gavin has been driving his truck more often in the last couple weeks. He finally sees it as a way to move faster than mere crawling allows. Fast enough, indeed, to menace his hirsute siblings.

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My expedience in successfully documenting our son's growth is inversly proportionate to his ever increasing independence. This video shows a couple takes that didn't make the final cut for my trucking themed video. They are representative of the last six trucking videos that I never even bothered to import from the camera.

Today, Gavin observed the wonderful democratic process we call voting. He accompanied Mommy and Daddy while they voted for the first time as North Carolina residents. Daddy held him while filling in the bubbles on his ballot and feeding the sheet into the optical scanner.

I had hoped to get a few pictures, but the law prevents taking photos at the polls. My alternate plan to find a large collection of roadside campaign signs was thwarted by rain all day long. So, I had to settle on giving Gavin my "I Voted" sticker to wear for a few shots when we returned home.

This afternoon, the three of us went to William B. Umstead state park to hike two loop trails. The leaves are getting more gorgeous every day here and we want to enjoy the lovely weather and beautiful surroundings while they last.

Every hike begins with plotting the starting point on the GPS...every hike with Jeff, that is.

We found the trail head and were off!

This stream is a little messy, Daddy. Can I get down and help clean up all those leaves?

No? OK, I'll just enjoy the view instead.

Just don't try stealing my whistle...

I mean it, buster. I've got my eye on you!

So many pretty colors...

The little guy tuckered out before we had a chance to let him explore on the ground. Oh, well. There's always next week!

Gavin went trick-or-treating at his great-grandparents' and grandparents' homes last night for his first Halloween. This is how the evening transpired...

Here you go, son, your great grandparents door...

Is my hat on straight, Mom?

Pillage, and then burn, right Dad?

Oooo, pirate booty! A Police Commander rubber ducky to be me first mate!

Thanks GGma! I mean, er, aarrrrrgh, I won't make ye walk the plank this time, but I'm keeping my eye on you!

Oh, many a fine and bountiful voyage will I have with Comdr. Ducky by my side! We'll sail the high seas of the living room, waylaying many a diaper bag to steal the precious cargo of pacifiers!

 Here ya go, Son, same routine: the cuter you are, the more candy we get.

Come on, Mom, free candy!

Arrrrrrr, hand over all your loot!

Atta girl, Aunt Kristen, fill 'er up!

Mommy said to you Reeses Cups are my favorite!

Gavspar holds court in the living room, belting out his version of a pirate classic, "Yo ho ho and a bottle of formula."

Wouldn't you give this cute little feller all of your candy?

Gavspar finally relaxes his tough pirate exterior and allows himself to be cuddled.

Arrrrrgh, hoist me all the up to the crow's nest, Grandpa!