Faces & Games

As you will soon see in the pictures below, Luke is developing more and more personality - the different facial expressions that he makes are growing as well as the sounds that he says and the things that he understands. He also likes to play more and more games both by himself and with me, Landis, and his mammaw. Luke loves to...

-play with leaves
-be chased around and around the couch - he laughs out loud when you sneak up on him and tickle him
-climb in and out of things - his baby bathtub (without water), the cabinets, and plastic storage containers
-dance - especially to his Christmas songs
-eat big people food - I am now able to mash up different things that we eat for dinner and feed him what we are eating
-YOGURT, puffs, and lil crunchies!!
-take about 10 steps at a time and then it's back to crawling
-hold a book in his own lap and turn the pages - he has a Brown Bear book with sliding peek a boo pages and he loves to slide the window by himself
-turn a light switch on and off
-put items (his blocks, rings, and rattles) in and out of bowls or any other containers he can find - I love to watch him carefully take one ring out of one bowl and place it in another bowl so carefully - watching him "work" and "think" is a highlight of my day
-try to eat paper and books - I really have to watch him because he will literally try to "eat" his books (I guess it's more teeth coming in)
-play with the weirdest things - for example, when I take the trash out, he loves to try to play with the trashcan lid - he also loves to play with splenda packets - of course, he never does this unsupervised
-to carry things around the house with him - he will carry one block around the house for an hour at a time
-any kind of peek a boo - under a bowl, behind the curtains, behind a cabinet door, shower curtain
-to look at the Christmas tree (but doesn't care to touch it or the decorations) - I'm proud of him for this

Last, but not least, he LOVES to call the police - let me tell you this little story - after I got home from work one day last week, I was sitting on the couch snuggling with Luke talking to him about his day (he had my keys in his hands). All of a sudden, the house alarm starts going off. I get up, push the code, and try my best to figure out what caused the alarm to go off - it wasn't even set. About 1 minute later, three cop cars pull up in front of my house - I think to myself, "Wow! That was a fast response to the alarm!" With Luke in my arms, I go outside to meet the police. When they see me, they look distressed and say, "Are you okay?" "Is there anyone in the house trying to hurt you?" Me, confused, says, "No, I don't know why my alarm went off." The police then tell me that a signal was sent from my alarm that I was being "held up" - obviously, I'm fine I say. Then, the police look in the hands of my adorable 11 month old and say, "Does your key chain have a panic alarm button that is attached to your house alarm?" Oh MY GOODNESS!! YES, IT DOES!!! Questions answered - thanks, little dude, you hit the panic button and all of a sudden, we have the entire police dept at our house. The police officer laughs and says, "I guess he wanted to see the police officers in their uniforms today." We all laugh and send the officers off. So, needless to say, Luke will not play with my keys anymore. :) A big THANK YOU to the Thomasville PD for their quick response (in case I was really in danger) and for their kindness and understanding.

Alrighty...enjoy the pics...as you look, notice how much more expressive Luke is getting and also how much he looks like his daddy - it's amazing!

He's dancing inside the bucket!!! :)

"I'm a tough man. I climbed in here by myself." (that definitely looks like his daddy - just a tadbit arrogant) :)

This face is after I told him "no" for messing with the vent cover - I think he is telling me off in baby language.

Have a great weekend! Happy shopping!

A Perfect Thanksgiving

i hope you enjoyed the pics above. im posting from the car on my phone. there are several things i cannot do so please ignore the all lowercase post.

the first three pics were taken on thanksgiving night at a friends house. that is tanner hoover that you see luke playing with. the rest of the pics were taken at creeksid park last sunday. it was a gorgeous day so luke and i played on the playground and then played in the leaves. as always we had the best time.
now, on to todays post. luke, landis, and i have had the perfect thanksgiving. we started our holiday on thursday morning with luke and i cooking in the kitchen while christmas music played in the background. luke made his own music with the bowls and spoons on the floor while we both sang and danced. then, when the pumpkin spice muffins were in the oven. i gave luke the opportunity to lick the bowl, but amazingly he didnt want to have any part of getting dirty.he put one finger in the bowl, made a squished up face, and pushed the bowl away. it was cute. after lukes morning nap, we went to my mamaws for lunch and stopped by carolyns house for a little while. by then luke took his afternoon nap while i decorated the front porch with the christmas decorations and lights. i was also able to get our christmas cards ordered and months worth of video put on a dvd. ivebeen very proud of my nap time accomplishments this weekend. our perfect thanksgiving continued yesterday. we took our time around the house just playing in our pajamas together as a family for hours. i thoroughly enjoyed sitting in the floor playing with blocks, books, peek a boo, and whatever else we could think of. it was just perfect. we finished our day by eating lunch as a family and then shopping at the apple store. landis got himself an early christmas present. now, this morning after i cooked a big breakfast for me, landis,, luke, and donnie, we are headed to raleigh to see my aunt sheila, uncle larry, and cousin, andrea and her two boys. i cant wait to see luke, emmitt, and mason play together. when i picture holiday times in my mind, i always think of sitting around with family laughing and making memories and i can honestly say that we have had some quality time this thanksgiving. i sure have enjoyed my time off of work adn have enjoyed my many blessings. we plan on finishing the weekend up by hanging out with the gang tonight at tricias and then church and tree decorating tomorrow. what a way to spend a hoilday. i hope you and your family had as much fun as we have had. let the christmas season begin. i sure am in the mood. f.

11 Months!

Luke says..."I'm 11 months old!!"

Yes, that's right...today, Luke is officially one month away from the exciting one year birthday celebration. I ordered his invites for the big day this morning. I can't believe how amazing this year has been...full of blessings and great memories!

Here's a quick update of Luke's newest accomplishments...(I hear him playing in his crib after finishing his nap...so this is going to be quick)!! Speaking of playing in his crib after napping - he has a habit of taking a "stinky" after his naps - he goes to the very corner of his crib, sits perfectly still, and does his #2 business...it's quite funny to watch on the monitor.

Luke is now...

-taking 6 steps at a time

-waving "bye, bye" and "hi there" on command consistently

-copying any kind of sounds we make - "vroom, vroom" like a car, "woof, woof" like a dog, fake sneezes, fake coughs, and these adorable vibrating sounds with his fingers and lips

-he loves to throw things down and watch us pick them up

-he loves to knock things down - like a tower of rings or blocks - he makes a serious looking tough face when doing this

-he will give you a kiss - a wide open mouthed one (like a fish)

-it is so cute to watch him eat his puffs with his fingers and then drink his juice - he looks like such a big boy

-he is starting to climb things - he is told no frequently for trying to climb the entertainment center - and, he will climb into his little red car all by himself when he's ready to ride - so cute!

-he loves yogurt - we let him eat a yogurt as a snack each day

-he continues to love music - he dances (a.k.a-does knee bends) all the time

-he continues to love to read - no matter how wound up he is, he will sit on my lap and read for 30 minutes at a time

So...that's it for the 11 month old adventures...see you next week...here are some pictures

This was at the Thomasville parade yesterday - he had a blast! I couldn't believe he sat there with me, my mom, and Lexi for an hour and a half.

Lexi, my sister/niece, turned 8 on November 13th...we celebrated at the Mexican restaurant..check out the pics and the great hat!

The next pics were taken at an old playground close to my house...he loves to climb and slide, play with the grass and leaves...and play peek a boo...

Here's Luke in his high chair eating puffs

Here he is playing with a puzzle...

And getting into the frig....

The last two pictures were taken by my friend Ashley when she visited a few weeks ago...

Just Me and You

I am so blessed...beyond words....to have my little guy, Luke, in my life. There are many days/nights that I ask myself what I did to deserve this joy of being a mother. I enjoy my time with me, Landis, and Luke...but often, my most special times with Luke come when it is just me and him...I know that there will come a day when Luke is grown and I am looking up at him that I will long for these days when I was holding him in my arms...to help me remember, this blog is dedicated to recording these memories of just me and you, Luke, my precious baby boy...

Just me and you...at bath time...I love to feel the sprinkles of water hit my face as you splash us both while we sing, "Splish, splash, I was taking a bath, at home on ---- night." (whichever night it may be). I love to watch your sweet smile as the fish and crab blow bubbles while I fill them up with water and squirt them at you to make you laugh.

Just me and you....on Sunday afternoons...taking a "siesta" in the big black chair...with you on my chest...while daddy snores on the couch and football plays in the background.

Just me and you...reading book, after book, after book...in the rocking chair on the front porch and in the glider in your nursery....in both places, I love to watch your face light up as you look at the characters in the books...you love to watch the faces of the "babies" in the pictures and you love to show me your ears when we get to the ear page...one of my favorite afternoons ever was a chilly afternoon in October when you fell asleep all bundled up with me rocking on the porch for a quick late afternoon cat nap. I just held you and looked at your sweet face as the traffic drove by...so sweet!!!

Just me and you...bouncing around like crazy during our "giddy up horsey" rhyme with some extra tickling sessions and upside down play...I love to hear you cackle when I tickle your upper thigh and belly. That gummy smile is the sweetest ever.

Just me and you...shopping...at Wal-Mart, Babies R' Us, the mall...you love to smile and wave at the people who come up and talk with you...you are already such a flirt.

Just me and you...swinging at the park...I love to hurry home in the afternoons on pretty days so we can go swing at the park...watching you relax in the swing while listening to that sweet humming sound you make just makes my day.

Just me and you...snuggling in the mornings when you first wake up....you brighten even the darkest, dreariest mornings by snuggling with me....I love the way you put your head against my chest, look up at me with that tiny grin, and then put your head back down as I sing, "You are my sunshine...my lovely sunshine...you make me happy when skies are gray...do you know, Luke, how much I love you? You are my sunshine everyday." I hope you sing this same song to your sweet boy one day...

Just me and you...exploring Barnes and Noble...I love to watch you knock the trains off the track onto the floor...I love to chase you around as you cruise from shelf to shelf exploring that big new world...

Just me and you....riding in your red car while I push....I love to hear you make the sound that a car makes...you are super cute when you wave to the cars..."Hi there" we say....

Just me and you...the sweetest boy I know...and, such a blessing from God...

Enjoy the new pics below...

Luke at the mall playing on the cars...

Riding in his car...all bundled up...

Playing in the tunnel...

Playing in his diaper...

Getting into the drawers...

Playing in the bath tub...

Have a great weekend! Visit again soon!

Toddy