Yesterday, we got family pictures taken, so I thought I'd post our favorite of Luke. He did remarkably well, though he did tire of the experience after about 25 minutes, as you can see here:
We got in line at 12:20. By 1:00, we were #2... but Santa took his milk and cookie break until 2:oo p.m. Drat! Luke was a trooper though, as you shall see...
12:20 - Let's do this!
1:20 - Still excited! A little waiting can't hold me down!
1:30 - Sleeping in heavenly peace...
1:56 - On deck! 
2:05 - It's official... 
We wish you all a Merry Christmas! More pictures to come in the next few days... or, perhaps more likely, within the next week.
I turn three-months old, and all I get is a nasty cold?!? This stinks!!! 
Luke taking part in tummy time. It's not his favorite, but we try to get him excited about it. Great success, as you can see here. = \
Here's Luke bundled up to go to Sandra's Friday morning. This may be my new favorite picture. How adorable is he?
Lastly, our big boy holding himself up in his Bumbo seat! So strong! 1. Gratuitous hooded towel picture, because how cute are these? I think Brooke Shields might agree that people have babies not only for German engineering, but also for hooded towels. (If you haven't seen the latest Volkswagen commercials, you will have no idea what I'm saying.)
The little pumpkin is officially three months old tomorrow! Stay tuned for new pictures soon...
*Sigh* Look at that sweet boy! Whoa! That means Luke nearly gained half of his birth weight for all of you math whizzes out there. : ) Of course the little man was raising hell (hates the nudity, as I've mentioned before) so we re-diapered him and headed to the exam room.... where Exorcist Baby appeared.
Dr. Scott enters and, as if on cue, Luke volcano barfs all over his brown velvet blanket (so much for warmth) and himself. Epic stuff. The next few minutes were kind of a blur between Luke's screaming and Dr. Scott's rapid-fire instructions, but in a nutshell, Dr. Scott determined that between the fluid in his ears (we didn't know!), his congestion, his rash on his arm and legs, and his nighttime fussiness, Luke might have a milk allergy. So I did make that trip to the pharmacy - to buy soy formula. So there you have it. My kid is on soy formula. We go back in two weeks to get his ears checked... and get those infamous shots. So far, the formula seems to be helping his congestions, fussiness, and rash. He's spitting up a little less... but that spit up smells like green beans. (Soy formula smells like green beans, which used to be a favorite food. Not so much now, I'm afraid.) Ahhh, the adventure that is parenthood...
Later that week - November 20 - was our four-year anniversary! So hard to believe. We celebrated the way any hip couple would: watching Survivor between diaper changes and feeding frenzy, dining on Chili's to Go (fancy!), and dressing Luke up in his fleece bear suit. (If you study his mouth closely, you can see the spit up making its way out. Seconds later, a white, pastey, green bean-smelling substance made its way all over the cute bear suit.)
All kidding aside, we cherish our anniversary more than all the others we've had. I think Jeremy would agree with me when I say that this was our best anniversary yet, because we have our little Luke. Our gratitude for his safe arrival and continued health is limitless.
Ideally, with some time off this week, I'll be able to take and post more pictures and videos. In the meantime, I wish you all a very blessed Thanksgiving. Hug and kiss your kids and cherished your loved ones!
My return to work has been great in many ways but so difficult in others. The toughest part is that during the work week, I miss Luke's peak happy hours (usually 9:00 a.m. to noon) and see him during his fussiest period: the 7:00-10:00 p.m. Scream Fest. I called my mom Wednesday night convinced Luke didn't love me or know that I was his mom because he hadn't smiled at me in days. She assured me that, contrary to what I thought, he didn't smile nonstop from the time I dropped him off to the time I picked him up. I guess the good part of all of this is that I definitely treasure the time I do have with him, especially this weekend! I basically didn't leave him alone all day Saturday, and I caught some pictures of him smiling this morning. (Well, I guess more accurately, this is on his way out of a smile... it is tough getting a picture of a squirmy kid!) He is all kinds of happy... until he realizes how long it has been since he last ate, and then he raises hell. I did not get a picture of that for you, though his mopey, pushed out bottom lip face is the cutest damn thing I've ever seen.... is that wrong for me to say?
A few more things. I took some "nudes" of Luke so you could see his hysterical tummy. I think his torso is shaped like an upside-down cupcake: narrow ribs and then POW - big ole gut. Hysterical! He's also getting lots of fat rolls on his arms and legs. So precious!
Also, Luke's new favorite is his mobile! This has been a godsend during Scream Time, as he listens to his music and zones out, watching his dragonflies "fly" above him and/or stare at his bumper pad. You can also see him in his Halloween outfit. I know, I know - we're no fun for not doing a costume. But most are sized 0-9 months... that would swallow him! We'll save the fun for next year when he's more into it and can trick or treat and get something besides the all-formula-all-the-time diet he's on now. 
Luke says, "I love Mummy." And Mummy loves Luke. : ) Happy Belated Halloween, everyone! 
As you can see, he's not missing any meals. : ) 
Hello there! It's been a while, but it has been a busy week since Jeremy had to go out of town for work and I've been flying solo. Thankfully, he is home safe, arriving in time to celebrate two momentous occasions: Luke's one month "birthday" and his own 408 month birthday! (I'll let you guys do some math to figure out his age. =D) Obviously, most of this post will be dedicated to Luke, but I do want to give some love to some deserving folks:
These next couple are pictures I took. Cathy suggested I take a picture of Luke at each month with the same teddy bear next to him so it's easier to gauge how much he's grown. While Luke is pretty strong, he doesn't exactly have great head control, so these aren't great, but here they are:
And my personal favorite:
Off to check on the little man now... hope this finds everyone doing well and having a wonderful weekend!
It is hard to believe that our little Lucas James is already three weeks old! (It is just as hard to believe that I still haven't finished unpacking our bags from the hospital, but that's not important.) Today Honey and Grandfather visited him, so he got all decked out in his Aggie gear. As most of you know, my family is die-hard Aggie, and Grandfather purchased Luke his first Maroon Out shirt at last weekend's A&M-Miami debacle... I mean game. The smallest shirt they sold was a Youth Medium, and that's just fine for Luke, right? See for yourself...
Luke was sorely disappointed this didn't come in his size. With luck, by the time Luke will be able to fit into this shirt, the Aggie football team will actually be a contender in the Big 12. I can dream, right?
I didn't either until Friday, when we had Luke's first doctor's appointment! (Before I proceed: Maple Syrup Urine Disease, or MSUD, is a defect in how the body metabolizes amino acids. It only occurs in roughly 1 of 200,000 newborns in the U.S., but there is an increased risk in Mennonites. Please know that I mention MSUD only to begin my blog in a creative, engaging way. The Roberts family does not trivialize MSUD, and we apologize to any readers, Mennonite or otherwise, afflicted by the condition.) 
Luke is awake much more these days (and, praise God, during his parents' more natural waking hours), and it has been so much fun watching him take stock of the world around him. I think he is finally starting to notice Hannah when she comes over to sniff him. We can't decide whether she's thinking, "I want to make sure my brother is here and safe," or "Oh s--t, he's still here." (UPDATE: based on the giant dump she just took in Luke's room, it appears that Hannah feels a bit underwhelmed with being second fiddle.) Luke tries to win her heart by wearing puppy gear as much as possible. I took a picture of him today in this adorable getup, complete with his puppy slippers. (Thanks to Stephanie B. for the slippers. Steph, he kept them on for about five minutes, which is quite impressive for footwear.)
Luke is getting better at zeroing in on us when we talk to him, and he's even started making little coos every now and again. Here he is at one of his first attempts at "tummy time." He's not quite doing one-armed push-ups just yet, but we're working on it.
Here's Luke on his first walk. I wish I could say he had a rapturous encounter with the outdoors, but, like his mother, he seemed unimpressed. (More likely: I think being in the car seat resembles being in the womb. He just balls up and sleeps. This has made for some noiseless car trips... so far anyway!)
Well, Lucas James is making it abundantly clear that Mom needs to stop blogging and start snuggling before we take a bath and watch the Cowboys-Packers game, Dexter finale, and Emmys. It's a big night around here!
Hugs to everyone... we'll write more soon!
Having kids of your own provides you with a sudden, piercing insight of how much your parents really love you and would do anything for you. [Seriously... I may need another Kleenex. Dang hormones! =D] I know I'm speaking for Jeremy as well when I wholeheartedly thank all of them for their help over the past eight days. Whether they cooked for us, picked up around the house, took care of Luke while we took much-needed naps, answered their phones when we needed advice, and just did a million other things... our parents have been godsends, and Luke couldn't be luckier to have them in his life! 
Most of you know this already, but Lucas James Roberts joined us on Wednesday, September 3, at 12:51 p.m. He weighs 9 lbs (yes, 9 lbs) and is 21.5 inches long. 
