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PhotoBooth is a fun little application that Apple includes with all Macs. It uses the computer's built-in camera to take either still photos or video. The fun part of the app is the filter section. There are a number of distortion filters that you can turn on and watch your face pinch, balloon, and otherwise scramble as you move your head about in front of the camera. This afternoon I showed Gavin the simple fun that is PhotoBooth. The video is a recording of Gavin and me goofing around as we see our distorted selves on my laptop screen.

While Gavin napped one afternoon over the weekend, Daddy built Gavin a sand table. How lucky is Gavin to have such a handy Daddy?

Woah, Dad! This is so much fun!

Last weekend, we went to Boone to visit Gauntie Faye and play in the mountains. After arriving around noon on Friday, we explored Faye's property a bit. Here, Gavin walks down her driveway with Daddy and Auntie Beth.

We were beginning to think Gavin would be content to not even leave Faye's mountain all weekend! Stone driveways are the tops, man!

Enjoying the view out back... This is the same porch a crawling Gavin explored almost a year ago.

On Saturday, we went to Grandfather Mountain to see the animal habitats. Where are the deer, Gavin?

Checking out the black bears...

Then, we headed to the Linn Cove Viaduct, admiring a waterfall along the trail...

I had to snap a shot of this classic Blue Ridge Parkway view again... The trees were much greener than they were last October.

Taking in the view...

Gavin helped Daddy plot our next trail. We hiked around a delightfully mucky and wet Price Lake.

Back at Faye's, Gavin had a chance to try out the trekking poles.

See ya in a week, 'rents!

Tired from his hike around the house...

Smile, Gavin!

The little guy was all tuckered out for the drive home...

Yesterday, Gavin left his teenage months behind. We have a 20-monther now and he's definitely still growing and changing all the time!

Here is Gavin's fake pouty face which he discovered will elicit laughter so the little comedian often sticks out his lower lip for a few laughs.

It isn't enough to give one high five. If Gavin gives one, he has to high five everyone in the room.

Wednesday is the highlight of Gavin's week. Shortly after we return home from our daily morning walk, he runs back to the front door and tries to pull open the handle. Somehow, he always hears the garbage truck before Mommy or Daddy do. Gavin and Daddy sit on the front step and wait for the garbage truck to pass by and dump all of the cans from the cul-de-sac across the street into the compactor. Nothing during the week thrills him more.

Reading is still one of the bookworm's favorite activities. He'll read almost any book these days and has recently been hooked on the Berenstain Bears and the Messy Room. He'll often crawl onto a chair with a book and flip through it on his own.

Gavin says, "uuuuuh, boom!" whenever he stumbles, falls, or drops anything. He even said this while watching the garbage truck this week saying, "uuuuuh," as the first can was lifted up and then, "boom!" when the contents finally dropped into the truck.

Gavin loves watching movies of himself. He instantly recognizes his blog when I'm working on the computer and runs over to sit on my lap so we can scroll through all the pictures and movies ... again and again! He loves watching movies of himself on Daddy's iPod in the car.

We've given up waiting for the Great Two-Year Molars Eruption of '09 which seemed eminent months ago. So, we're back to bottle weaning and seem to have successfully switched to a straw for drinking bedtime milk. Now, only the morning bottle is left to go.

Gavin is quite the stair climber. He doesn't like to crawl backwards down the stairs anymore and prefers to walk facing forward. He can even walk a few steps down without holding onto the wall or railing for balance.

Knocking on doors, windows, or any other solid surface has become a habit lately. If someone arrives at the front door, he'll run over and knock on it. Someday we'll teach him that the person arriving is the one who knocks!

Gavin has definitely been... how shall I say it... feisty lately. He's quite the drama king. This, too, shall pass... ;)