After dinner this evening, Gavin planned a familiar game of soccer in the back yard.

Now this is an interesting development...

Interesting, indeed!

Oh, and it sure is fun!

He got a bit wet!

Enough fun and games...

Time to get some real work done.

When taking photos while assembling Gavin's Cozy Coupe, I said "smile!" to get him to look in my direction. As odd as it may sound, I apparently have never said this when photographing Gavin. I'm always trying to capture him naturally without posing so I've never really tried to get his attention much. Well, I learned that he knows the word smile because he immediately turned to me and gave me a huge, cheesy, open-mouth grin.

He gets the opening-the-mouth part down better than the smiling part!

He totally melted my heart into a thousand drops when he smiled for me like this. I said, "smile!" a few more times during the car assembly process but didn't want to overuse the word so that he'll continue to do it for me!

I especially love seeing him smiling like this lately because Gavin's going through a rough time of teething again. For the past two weeks he has been super clingy and is chewing on everything! We haven't explored his mouth yet for visual confirmation (although it looks like a second molar is visible in the photo above), but his behavior indicates quite clearly that Gavin's second set of molars are fixing to break through.

Still catching up on the weekend's blog entries since I ran into camera issues on Saturday night! The horror!

June 20, 2009: A day that will forever be stamped in Gavin's childhood history. On this day, he first visited Toys R Us!

On Saturday, Gavin went to Toys R Us in Cary with Mommy and Gmummy. Mommy's dear friend Arlene gave him a house-warming gift card so it was the perfect chance for him to roam the aisles and aisles of toys. I had no idea what to get him, so it was a great opportunity to let the kid walk around the store and pick his own gift!

We stopped in the Fisher Price aisle where Gavin was intruigued by familiar friends from home. Mommy, what are Tow Truck Driver and Damsel doing here?

They must be lost. I'll take them home with me where they belong.

More Duplo sets are always tempting...

Daddy would have been more interested in the MythBusters science kits than Gavin was.

A remote controlled tarantula? Who thought this would be a good idea?

He liked the Jeep, but it was a tad steep for our budget and we thought Daddy would be jealous if his son got a Wrangler before he did!

Around the corner, we found the perfect toy: a classic red and yellow Little Tikes Cozy Coupe! This is actually the special 30-year anniversary edition (and boy did it make Mommy feel old to see her birth year on the box as a "classic!") with a smiley face on the front.

As soon as I saw it, I realized it was the perfect toy. Gavin LOVES cars right now. He is never more excited than when he's carried through a parking lot and can see all of the cars, pointing and saying, "bah!" to every single one like it's the first car he's ever seen. Forget it when a car actually drives by. Gavin's face lights up, he points and says, "voom voom voom!" Here he's practicing his vooming...

Gavin enjoyed a test drive in the store and couldn't wait to get it home. Ah, yes, the first car is always the most memorable, isn't it?

Back home, we assembled the car in the living room.

After spreading all of the parts on the carpet, Gavin found the chassis and sat in it. He recognized that part immediately and knew exactly how to sit!

As I put each part on - the axles, the wheels - he wanted to get right back in and sit again.

Finally, Daddy took over and quickly finished because it was taking Mommy forever!

When assembly was complete, Gavin sat in the car in the living room. Just sat there. For a half hour! He just wanted to be in his car!

After dinner, we took his car outside but he wasn't really happy there. He shares his mommy's opinion of heat and the bright blinding sun. So, we brought the car back inside.

And he continues to sit in the car ... in the living room. He couldn't be happier! Gavin's first trip to Toys R Us was a huge success!

Every day is Daddy's Day for Gavin since he's lucky enough to have an amazing daddy to stay home with him, but Sunday was Jeff's second official Father's Day.

Gavin got Daddy exactly what he wanted - a Camano coffee mill. He's such a smart and considerate boy! Now Daddy's home-roasted coffee tastes even better, he says. I never got a photo of the coffee mill, but here's Daddy enjoying a variety of cakes...

Like every other day, Father's Day included quite a bit of reading time.

And, of course, talking to Grandpa down in Florida...

We spent another lovely evening in the back yard tonight. Gavin dressed in a new football uniform given by Daddy's English friends, the Hurlocks (Thanks, guys! It's adorable!). I simply can't call it "soccer" when he's wearing the English flag!

Gavin, it's called FOOTball!

Gavin used to love kicking his toddler-sized football. Tonight, he wouldn't consider it but had a great time when Daddy helped.

Future World Cup champion...

This evening after eating dinner, the three of us did something quite normal and routine for most suburban families that we found incredibly wonderful: We lazed around the back yard and cut the grass! Ah, yes, it's so nice to actually have a back yard of our own now!

Gavin even has his own lawn mower.

But he'd rather help Daddy push the real mower!

Oblivious to other mowers in the yard, Gavin cuts his own path...

Of course, nothing is more exciting than a hole of dirt.

This was the most adorable picture of "brothers" touching hand to paw about 0.487 seconds earlier...

He always returned back to Daddy and the mower...

Until next time, Gavin will be out clearing the fields...

Daddy was teaching Gavin how to nod, "yes," yesterday. Several times, Daddy said "yes" while nodding his head. Then, he put his hands on Gavin's head to make him nod, too. Gavin quickly caught on. Now, he's constantly throwing his hands on top of his head every time he wants to communicate, "yes!" It appears that he was focusing on the wrong motion in the lesson.

Do you want to go outside and run around, Gavin?

Yes!

After he returned home from an afternoon with Gmummy today, he walked into the kitchen and asked an inquisitive, "hmm?" as he touched the refrigerator handle and looked up at me.

I asked, "Do you want milk?"

Gavin threw his hands onto his head.

"Or do you want water?"

Gavin patted his thigh, "no."

The boy may not be talking much, but he's certainly communicating!

Gavin put another 1,600 miles on his car seat during an extended weekend in Florida where we celebrated Aunt Cindy's wedding. We rolled out of Raleigh early Wednesday morning and drove straight through to Sanibel in one day. Gavin was an excellent traveler and barely even slept, taking just an hour-and-a-half nap. He played with his back seat buddy (either Daddy or Gmummy), read books, and watched the landscape rush by his window. He only fussed once for several minutes late in the day when he wanted something we weren't letting him have.

Thursday was spent with family on Sanibel while Mommy went to work in Naples. Gavin met his Guncle Mark for the first time and had fun playing with his grandparents. On Friday morning, we took him to the lighthouse beach. He wasn't too keen about his first visit to the beach back in December so we wanted to make a trial run before Sunday's planned post-wedding beach party. He loved the beach! We didn't stay long so he wasn't wearing his new swim trunks which is a shame in hindsight since he slept through the beach party two days later and didn't get to wear them.

Gavin enjoyed contemplating the vast gulf, all of the creatures that call it home, and why Mommy can't seem to buy shorts that don't slide off his rear end.

If I pose for you and give you one decent shot, will you please put that camera away for the rest of the day?

Friday afternoon, Gavin met more family members when his grandparents hosted a family brunch. He met Gauntie Jane who instantly won his heart by playing peek-a-boo with a chair.

He played with Lincoln Logs with Grandma but couldn't understand why they wouldn't snap together.

It's easy to entertain this kid. Just put a hat on your head and he'll laugh for hours as he repeatedly snatches it off.

Hilarious raspberries from Auntie Beth...

No, Gavin isn't going to enjoy Beth's long visit to Raleigh this summer at all!

Everyone converged on the church Friday night for the wedding rehearsal. Gavin and Gmummy helped me scout photography locations.

Saturday was wedding day. While all the adults were doing boring things like dressing up and posing for photographs, Gavin had great fun playing with the ring bearer, Franklin (Uncle Chuck's nephew), and Isha, the son of a friend of Beth's. He loved chasing the big boys around the reception hall, giggling the entire time.

As expected, Gavin wasn't thrilled to pose for family photos.

He managed to remain still for at least one of the extended family shots. From left to right (with their relation to Gavin): Gavin, Mommy, Aunt Cindy, Uncle Chuck, Grandpa, Grandma, Daddy, Gauntie Jane, Guncle Joel, Aunt Beth, Guncle Mark, Great-Gauntie Minnie, and Linda and Lou (Grandpa's cousin and her husband).

And, of course, the happy newlyweds: Aunt Cindy and Gavin's new Uncle Chuck.

On Sunday, we went to church and then headed out to Bowman's Beach for a post-wedding party. Gavin fell asleep when we reached Sanibel and slept in a tent on the beach. Storm clouds started brewing so we had to leave early before Gavin woke up and he never had a chance to wear his brand new swim outfit. (photo by Aunt Cindy)

We started the trek home in the afternoon, sleeping in Brunswick, Georgia for the night before finishing the trip on Monday. Gavin was a dream to travel with again despite a rough start on Monday when his tummy spilled after choking on a pancake while eating breakfast in the car. We immediately pulled off the side of the road and stripped the poor kid down to his skivvies right there in the grass beside I-95 in the swampland of southeast Georgia. He actually enjoyed the experience by watching the trucks pass by and pointing to each one smiling while Daddy removed his soiled clothes!

Gavin spent the rest of the ride napping and reading his books, mostly Richard Scarry's Busy Town and Cars and Trucks and Things That Go. He holds those books in his lap and can page through them for at least a half hour each, examining all the pictures and "reading" out loud!

This month's birthday post comes a day early because Gavin is spending his 17-month birthday in a car for 14 hours driving to Florida. Aunt Cindy is getting married on Saturday!

Gavin moo's whenever he sees his Fisher Price Little People cow. He always skips the vowel, though, and says, "Mmmmmmm!" with much gusto!

Gavin finished his four-month-long Kindermusik class on Saturday. Since early February, we've been singing, dancing, exercising, and playing instruments at Kindermusik class every Saturday morning. Gavin liked the drums, soft jingle balls, and any dance that involved throwing him in the air best.

Gavin can mount his ride-on toys all by himself now (maybe he's had a growth spurt?). He rides his pony, Tonka truck, and Buzz-Buzz and they sure do move fast over the wood floor in the new living room!

One of Gavin's favorite pasttimes is watching movies of himself on the iPod.

He chases the cats now. For a while, Gavin has run after the cats and as soon as they dart away, he's content with his hunt. Now, he follows the cats when they run away and chases them down the hall, around furniture, and under tables until they find a place that only a cat can fit so he surrenders his hunt.

In just a few days, Gavin successfully learned how to descend the stairs on his hands and knees. He learned how to crawl up stairs at Kristen's and his grandparents' homes many months ago, but always wanted to descend by simply walking down (which, of course, doesn't work with his short legs!). Crawling down feet first was one of the first priorities after moving to our new two-story house.