sweet progress!

day #2 without a bottle and its going very well! I gave up on the sippy cup and started teaching him to drip from a regular cup and water bottle. Went back for another round of sippy cup action (I have a out 10 different kinds from our pre-trials) and no problem. He just has to learn to tip his head back now! Sweet progress, even if its just a sippy cup!

also happy to report to the world that doesn't see my facebook posts, gavin is taking steps as of my yard sale on September 18th! I was working hard and so was he, I missed those first steps. Figures! Luckily his second mom, my sister Michelle was there encouraging him on. She is his therapist, not Ryan. haha! I wouldn't call it walking but he will take about 4 steps to treats in your hand, the nearest table, or tv. Progess!! I am starting to believe he hit a big milestone and is overcoming some of his roadblock. He climbs up on the couch like a champ and is now attempting to climb over the back of it and fall to the ground. Sheesh. I think its all Ryan's fault from teaching him to dive off the bed into Ryan's arms. We've got a dare devil on our hands people. Now just for that speech! If no progress by his next Dr. Appt in November we might be heading into some intervention treatment according to the MD.

vacation, part 2

It's horrible when you finally get around to posting about a vacation and you're already in desperate need of another one! Seriously, Ryan's schooling is going better than I expected (well its still harder for him that expected, but I'm fairing it better than I thought). That being said, I CAN'T WAIT FOR IT TO BE OVER!!!! It is a blessing I know and will bless our family and Ryan's career for the next 30+ years, but I sincerely hope he takes me seriously when I tell him I need a break after this stint. We find out in October when the practical portion of his education will take place. It is some time in 2011 and will be in Austin, Texas. I still haven't decided if Gavin and I will join him. Hum...2 months in a large city away from family and probably without a car and with a 2 year old OR a sweet vacation in Mexico? Hum...indeed! It would cost us a few grand for us to go with so I'm debating using the dinero for a vacation and saving. We shall see!

So back to the last vacation... I had promised pictures of the aquarium. It was fun and made me even more excited for years to come when we take our kids to theme parks, aquariums, zoos--you know the drill. So here they are!

Please excuse the horrible pics I was taking them sans the flash so that you could actually see the aquarium in the background. I think the pic of all 3 of us is one of the very very few we have so far so even though there is a shadow over my eyes, it will go down in history.

vacation, part 1

How many bosses demand that you take time off? Not many I'm guessing! Well, Ryan had about 340 hours of paid time off accrued and his boss kindly suggested that if he could he should take a week off. We've been saving up on time off for when we move to Texas next year for 9 weeks for his clinical work for his schooling. We need 360 hours!! That is so much, but with a mortgage to deal with while gone plus rent to live in Texas, the $$$ adds up fast. His bosses are so good to us really and assured him that if we needed to borrow PTO when the time came it would be fun. What boss lets you go in the red for PTO? Seriously! I am so grateful that they value the hard work and determination Ryan has to do a stellar job. He really does want to be the best PT ever!

So, without much hesitation the week was scheduled. Ryan is in the midst of his post-graduate schooling (one of many phases of post-grad work I'm sure in our lifetime) and let me tell you it is putting the heat on! But, surprisingly I am feeling closer to him that ever and it is helping me to trust in his love for me more and feel more confident in myself as his wife by helping him to know how much I appreciate his hard work and that we are here to support him. It is still challenging nonetheless. He had a one week mid-semester break from school so thankfully the week off from work was able to coincide with school too!

Ryan decided we should be spontaneous so when we couldn't go to Mexico due to Gavin's lack of a passport (won't happen again) we headed to San Francisco. I must add for remembrance sake that I have been under a good deal of stress, as well as Ryan and so the thought of San Francisco freaked me out. If you don't already know about my love/hate relationship with San Francisco, click here and here. I wanted cool and calm beach, but I knew Ryan was more interested in the city, so I booked the trip without a final yes from him. However, my stress didn't vanish and when I told him about it, well, to make a long story short, it ended in a disagreement. We were both so overdue for a vacation that we had no juice to give. We can both be stubborn!! So, I packed the bags for Gavin and I (while Ryan was determined to stay home). He had good intentions but I was stubborn and wasn't going to waste the money I'd spent on reserving the hotel. The car was packed and Gavin in his seat and we still weren't talking. I decided to go in and ask if Ryan was sure he didn't want to come and while I did so he was praying to overcome his stubbornness and promised the Lord if I asked that he would accept the invite to go with. Thank you Lord our wills gave in and we ended up on our vacation together instead of apart.

We stayed in Fisherman's Wharf area so it was really easy to walk places and thank goodness for GPS we didn't get lost nearly as many times as normal. We hit up the Exploratorium (something Ryan has wanted to do for awhile). I laughed more than I thought and really liked learning about science stuff.

At age 30 Ryan is still obsessed with muscles. In fact, Gavin was wearing a "muscle shirt" the other day and Ryan couldn't stop talking about how good of deltoid muscles Gavin has. He has also started introducing Gav to his protein shakes. Oh help me now!

@ the Exploratorium-- The power of the mind. It really was quite difficult to drink from the toilet especially because of the water sitting in the basin. Freaky!

Gavin was seriously a delight to have on the trip and he did wonderful. He slept in the bathroom (is that gross?) so that we could shut the door and watch movies after he went to bed. One night he stayed out with us until 9:45 while we drove across town to try SF's best pizza. He ate really well, which has been a challenge for him, and took most of his naps on the go. I think his favorite time was at the beach, which actually was all of ours. We drove up the coast from SF to go to Muir Beach but there was no parking so we went a little ways further to Stinson Beach. It was beautiful! Ryan convinced me to go under all the way in the ocean and it was quite refreshing. Gavin loved playing in the waves and couldn't get enough. I felt so much joy seeing Ryan and him having fun that I know I would never experience if it weren't for that kid. I simply LOVE BEING A MOTHER!

Stinson beach. Beautiful beach and great for boogie boarding, skimboarding, and young kids!(that's Ryan and Gavin just out past the sand castle. ryan is bent over holding Gavin's hands).

At breakfast one morning at Denny's. We were racing his car down the table to him (the table was not level) and he couldn't get enough of it.

Honestly, i think it turned out better because of the disagreement. Ryan has promised the Lord if he did go that he'd have a "go with the flow" attitude. So, he did, and he did a great job at it. So no matter how stressed I got he would keep calm. His nickname for the weekend became "Flow". In fact, I was "Go", Gavin was "With" (because he has no choice in the matter) and Ryan was "Flow". He says he actually really enjoyed having that attitude and I know in the end it helped me to relax too.

I told Ryan that for me, a vacation includes a little fun, laughter, relaxation and good food. This was it for me! The beach was something I had wanted and because of Flow, he made it happen. I got my relaxation and we did things a little out of norm and enjoyed laughing and playing around like we were kids again. I really believe laughter to be the best medicine for the soul!

check back soon for part 2! I'm admiring the entire chocolate coconut cheesecake from The Cheesecake Factory that just arrived on my doorstep! Oh dearest husband you know how to fill my love tank! hahaha!