Saturday, April 17, 2010

Strong genes

I'm just sayin'.

It wasn't me.

Me and my Gramma Donna.

One year old.


Thursday, April 15, 2010

It's my party and I'll cry if I want to

Luke has been getting his fourth bottom tooth for the last week, and has been super crabby. I think this contributed to his "not quite right" demeanor at his birthday party last weekend. That and he seems to be suddenly allergic to strawberries, something I only surmised after several episodes of hives.

Overall, he did pretty well, interacting with the other kids, playing with the plethora of balloons, and picking at his cake. He didn't cry when we sang 'Happy Birthday' to him, and I managed to slide the cake away from him before he burned his fingers when trying to grab the lit candle.




The big sisters wanted to help with every step, especially the cake eating part.

The funniest part of the festivities came when he decided he was done opening presents, wanting to play with my pen instead. A fairly loud tantrum ensued, including a "head on floor" crying fit.


Ainsley looks on in confusion.

Saturday, April 03, 2010

Happy Birthday, Baby Boy!


Dear Luke,

I'm torn on this whole you turning one thing. I love the fact that you are getting to be such a big boy, and that you are learning so many new things every day. But you are my baby, and I'm not ready for you to grow up yet!

You are such a joy to us; full of smiles, curiosity, happiness and wonder. You wake up each morning, pleased to start the day, and play quietly in your crib until your sisters or I come and get you. You greet us with a smile and "talk" to us, telling us what a good night's sleep you had. You especially love it when Kate comes in first thing in the morning. You laugh and laugh at her, as she dances and makes silly faces at you. You have her wrapped around your finger, and I often find a dozen or more toys in your crib, all gifts from her to make you happy.

Music has recently become a favorite thing for you. You have always loved Are You Sleeping?, but you are now starting to hum/grunt songs, trying to get others to sing to you. And, of course, you turn everything into a drum, with your BAMBAMBAMing. As for talking, you say "dadada" a lot, and I have heard you say "mama" several times. Your dad swears you said "ehfant" (elephant) the other day. You also say "ah duh" (all done) and "nigh nigh", and sign for milk, more and all done. And of course, you are teaching your mama about boys: your latest favorite sound can best be described as a machine gun burst of fire, "cah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah". I think it's adorable, but I'm not so sure your father agrees with me.

You started walking a few feet between your dad and me when you were about 10 to 10 1/2 months old, and you gained confidence enough to walk on your own when your dad was in Afghanistan right before your birthday. Now you motor around like a true toddler, and are even figuring out how to navigate the stairs. This, of course, means that you are rarely satisfied with riding in the stroller, which is often challenging for us. You are headstrong, and I wonder if you will perhaps be our first child to actually go through your "terrible twos" (as opposed to your sisters who were/are definitely terrible during their threes).

We are constantly amazed by how much you eat. I am learning that when eating at a restaurant, I need to order as much for you as I would order for Claire, because you will usually eat all of that, and sometimes more. You love bread, cheese, hamburgers, strawberries, kiwi, and yogurt. You aren't so keen on vegetables, unless I feed them to you from the baby food jars. You also love sweet pickles, and have been known to eat several slices at one sitting. You drink well out of a straw sippy cup, but love to try to drink out of a cup like the rest of us do.

You are fascinated by the pool, and love it when we warm up the hot tub and go swimming. You walk around and around on the bench seat, splashing and trying to take toys from your sisters.

I love you, baby boy. Happy birthday!