Can I just get in the tub already?

This video is from mid-June, so he's not quite 10 months old. I think I've always said that Luke not only doesn't fear bath time, he loves it. He needs it even, as you'll hear.

Have a wonderful week!

Story Time

This is from two months ago - July 5, I believe. We're still at our old house, and Dad is reading to Luke. Or Luke is reading to Dad. Hard to tell, really...

*Sorry for the grainy quality. I'm still figuring this file re-sizing thing out. Ugh...

My newest trick: "Bye Bye!"

Back in the Swing of Things...

Well, it's officially a school year again. If I had written this post on Monday or Tuesday of this past week, it would have been full of despair. I was (and heck, still am) tired and kind of feeling depressed, like did I even have a summer? But after a few days back in the swing of things, it's been much better, though, of course, the best part of my day is getting to see this little man's sweet face!

Nothing too special about these pictures, but I just wanted to get some posted. Below, Luke is "walking" - the only walking he's done so far is with the assistance of furniture - and gnawing on his finger. I think he's got some back teeth coming in, poor thing. I think it is so merciful of God that we forget how painful teething must be. Yikes. : ( But anyway - look how tall Luke is? I can't wait to find out at his one year appointment how tall he is. He's started drinking whole milk, by the way. As you can see, it has agreed with him. : )

This is from yesterday - Luke found Dad's work computer. I appreciate that, "WHAT? I'm not doing anything!" face. It's one we see a lot, actually...

"Hey! Who's that good looking kid I see?"

"It's me!"

I'm very much hoping to have a video-rich post soon. We have several really cute videos from the summer that I haven't had a chance to convert to smaller files so they can be posted here. So, look forward to those - along with a FIRST BIRTHDAY post coming up sometime Thursday or Friday! I can't believe how quickly it has passed!

O-R-E-Noooooooooo!

Luke's interest in baby food has been fading, so I've been trying out "big people" food with him. We've had great success with french fries (duh), Nilla Wafers, and, to a small extent, breads. I'm baffled by two things I love that he has not cared for: mac and cheese and Oreos.

At first, he gives the tiny Oreo a chance. "Hey, this seems cool," his little face seems to say...

...but a quick feel of the unfamiliar texture, and it's rejection time.

So Oreos are more like Ore-Nos to Luke, but he quickly realizes that unlike the skin-toned Nilla Wafers, these cookies make a cool mess...

"Hey Mom, check this out!" (and check out his big ole hands!)

So that was last night's dinner. He ate a few bites of some reliable favorites, and, as per usual, got ticked off at being in his chair.

From there, I carried him upstairs and started his bath. I even cleaned Oreo out of his little belly button. Think I may wait a while before I try those again! Post-bath, Luke climbed 11 of our 16 stairs....! I wanted to get a picture of that, but the camera was not at hand, and I didn't want to risk him falling down 11 stairs while I was fetching it.

Off to accomplish as much as possible in my last 2.5 days of summer vacation. : ( Have a great weekend, everybody!

Goings On at Goldenrain

I’ll begin with an apology: I know I’ve said I’d post house pictures. But I also know that I’m a perfectionist, and I’d rather not post anything until I have things just-so. So please be patient. Or just come visit if you want to see things badly enough. : )

It’s so hard to believe that we’ve already lived here for almost three weeks! It’s been a whirlwind, but in the best of ways. We’re just loving the new place. We’ve got more room – room we didn’t know we were missing until we had it. The layout is great and feels so much more open than Espinosa. I think I’m even noticing some toning benefits to the stairs, which were (and still are) exhausting at first, particularly with a 22-pound “free weight” on my hip. That said, the extra space is BRUTAL when it comes time to vacuum. (It’s a chore I already hate, and I don’t think the extra real estate is going to warm me up to it.) The only hiccup has been a minor (but since contained) ant invasion brought on by our torrential rain of late. Otherwise, we’ve had a great move-in experience. I couldn’t have gotten settled without the help of my parents, Granny, and “cousin-in-law” Becca, each one offering help getting this place looking and feeling like home. Thank you all so much!

Some of our best friends came to visit the new place. Last week, my best friend Heather came by with her precious girls, Kylie (4) and Sadie (~18 months). It was so nice of them to visit, particularly since our new digs are significantly farther away from their Plano home. Here are the three checking out Luke’s playroom. That’s Kylie seated in the back; Sadie standing; and Luke, the only one not in a dress. : )

We had a great time playing, eating pizza (there is an iFrattelli’s just minutes from the new place. It is so good!), and visiting. Kylie even pointed out the first of the ants… humiliating for me, but quite helpful, actually. : ) Thanks for the visit, Marek Ladies! We are so thankful for you all! (You too, Marek Man, Scott. We'll have to get you here soon, too.)

On Saturday night, we were treated with a visit from two of Jeremy’s best friends, Jeff Colvin and Bobby Blunt. The Colvins (Jeff, wife Laura, son Judson, and daughter Caroline) and Blunts (Bobby, wife Emily, and son Beckham) brought us dinner (the delicious, nearby, and apparently world-famous Main Street Barbecue – so good!) and thoughtful housewarming gifts. We had such a great time catching up and watching our boys play together. Judson is just over 2-1/2, Beckham will turn 2 in October, and Luke 1 next month – it’s so funny to see how, right now, they’re at such different ability levels. Give them a year or two though, and they’ll be a dangerous crew! Here are some highlights.

First - I cannot tell you how big of a kick Luke got out of watching the “big boys.” He was in hog heaven.

Luke was also interested in baby Caroline, who is not quite a month old. He just ripped her blanket off of her. Sorry about that, Jeff and Laura!

Here's sweet baby Caroline.

Story time with Uncle Bobby. (That’s Judson in the car pajamas, seated; Beckham standing in the bug jammies; and Luke, sitting… with Beckham’s sippy cup.) Look at those handsome little boys!

We just feel so blessed by their visit, and by the visits and well-wishes of all of our friends and family. You’ve all made our new place feel like a home, and we’re so thankful for you all!

Luke has been remarkably patient in his playroom while I’ve written this, but I think he’s realizing he’s alone, and so he’s now voicing his displeasure. (It has been the Summer of Mama. I think we’re both going to have a hard time on the 17th when I go back to work!) Have a great week, everyone!

11 Months Old!

So hard to believe it was just eleven months ago that Luke entered the world. His 11/12 birthday gift? Finally losing the Chicco seat (pictured above) and moving up to the spage-age Britax seat. Woo hoo!

In case you're wondering why I didn't go with the traditional "bear and chair" pose - this is how that went:

I'll have some house pictures and more in the next couple of days, but I wanted to commemorate this special day. I love my little Luke!