For Fellow Fans of "The Office"

Luke can finally wear his Dunder Mifflin onesie, even though it's kind of big (TWSS). Hooray!

Home Movies

Jeremy is continuing to fine-tune his low-budget movie-making skills. This week's installment includes teasing our dog with food, and Luke's first Dance Party . . .

Soy Boy

*Sigh* Look at that sweet boy!

Luke had his two month appointment on Tuesday. Actually, "two month" is a bit of a misnomer; after all, he was 11 weeks old on appointment day - isn't that nearly three months? Anyway, my mommy friends had prepared me that the visit would be traumatic because Luke would get so many shots. I called in a half-day sub so that I'd have plenty of time to go to the appointment, take Luke to Honey and Grandfather's, go to the pharmacy to pick up some Infant Tylenol, and reapply my make-up since I figured I'd end up crying along with Luke.

Well, best laid plans...

Things started normally. We stripped Luke down so that he could be measured and weighed. Check out our growing dude!

• Birth length and weight: 21.5 inches long; 9 lbs


• 11 week length and weight: 25 inches long; 13 lbs, 6 oz.

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!

Blogging: A Great Way to Procrastinate!

Hello readers! I hope this finds you all doing well. I couldn't help but notice a lack of comments on the previous post, and I think I know why. It's because it said Luke endorsed Obama, isn't it? Two things on that: 1)Jeremy wrote it, not me; but more importantly 2)I would hope that our blog can be a place where all who love Luke, regardless of political affiliation, can come together in the name of truth, justice, and the American way. So I ask you: can we put politics aside and focus on Luke's off-the-charts cuteness?

Yes we can. : )

And now... levity! Six weeks grades are due tomorrow, which means I am drowning in essays and behind in lesson planning. UGH. I'll try to get some essays graded while I wait for this photo to upload...

Here's Luke at his first wedding. Our good friends Tracey and David got married last Saturday. We had a wonderful time! Luke was very well behaved, though he only made it to "Dearly beloved" before he started "speaking up" in the ceremony. He loved the lights at the reception, and he even did some dancing! Our computer is too lame to upload the video at home, but maybe JRo can take care of that this week at work. We'll see...

We also have a great video of Hannah trying to get some sausage off the counter. Again, I'll have to get JR to add that from work. Well dang... this has turned out to be kind of a lame post. I'll do better next time.

*Sigh* I guess this means I should grade now. Have a great week!

A Message from Luke

Luke endorses Obama . . .

More Milestones

Luke is two months old, and big sister Hannah is three years old! That's 21 in dog years, and, to celebrate and to cope with the new stress that has entered her life over the past eight weeks, Hannah broke into our liquor cabinet. Here she is dealing with her massive hangover. (Please note that I'm kidding. I don't let my dog drink. It's just a funny picture.)

Here are a few attempts I made at taking his monthly milestone picture in his glider next to his bear. I couldn't keep him from slumping over (though I tried two days, as evidenced by his different outfits), but you get the idea. The good news is that his slumped poses highlight his "Buddha belly." Luke is still a hearty eater and, though a semi-frequent volcanic barfer, he's clearly keeping enough food down to stay plump.

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!