29 Weeks

He's Incredible. 

(It's okay to be biased.)

28 weeks

Well, the sweetest of sounds came out of my big guy this week.  His first word.

What was that long awaited, much-treasured word?

Mama.

I got a mama out of my big boy, and of course it was music to my ears.

Hooray for Luke!  I'll take as many of 'em as you can give!

27 Weeks

Oh my goodness.  The wonderful things we are doing this week.  Luke can now sit up, all on his own, with full dexterity.  I no longer have to worry about him falling over, he's mastered the concept. 

He is growing like a weed.  At 6 months, he weighs 18 pounds even, and his "little" head is still floating somewhere waving down at the 99th percentile far beneath it. 

He is happy all the time - with the exception of the five minutes immediately before he goes to sleep, when he cries and tries to tell me how he's totally not sleepy, mom, before his eyes roll backwards and he drifts off. 

Luke is still rocking the nine month clothes, and at this point, we can't even attempt anything less. 

We love, love, love that sweet baby. 

26 Weeks

25 Weeks

That little smile has returned this week!  He's back to himself, with no teeth to speak of (go figure).  I'm getting very excited to see what this little chunky monkey weighs! 

He is coming along with solids.  And stealing our hearts little by little each day.

24 weeks

It has been a rare sad week for Mr. Luke.  A week filled with few hours of sleep and lots of tears.  That's not his MO, which has me suspecting that his teeth are bothering him. 

When there isn't crying, there has been LOTS of singing.  Oh my goodness, so much singing.  I'll take it.

Solids and the fourth child.

Its one of my very favorite parts of the first year.  

Solids.  Oh, they're so stinkin fun!  

In our house, a baby always begins solids on carrots.  I'm not really sure why, exactly.  Probably because we're creatures of extreme habit, so we like to carry on in a consistent fashion.

Whether it's 2010 or 2017, beginning solids means a trip to Whole Foods and a reunion with a few faithful old friends.

It should probably be noted that even my hand blender is tired and thinks we'd better not have any more kids.  This baby, which has prepared virtually every meal all my babies have ever eaten, is definitely on its last legs.  

But still managed to get the job done!

My favorite part of beginning solids is the faces.  Both from the parents and the tiny baby.

That's it.  That's the face.  Why would you do that to me?!

A few more...

Oh yes.  Carrots is a success!

And, because we can't resist a good trip down memory lane...

Her bib sums it up:  Happy.

23 weeks

We've had a fat guy, little coat conundrum around here for the past few weeks.  One which I've finally caved and remedied by putting him into 9 months clothing, even though he's only five months.

But really... it was time.

It's hard to believe just how quickly he's growing up.  I just adore this baby.

Next up: Solids!!

22 Weeks

 My fancy guy.

Five months old (yesterday).  

Love, love that bow-tie boy.

21 Weeks

20 weeks, stats and updates

So this definitely should have been in my post last week, but Mr. Luke weighed in at a whopping 16.13 lbs at his four month check up. Almost four pounds heavier than my last child at this age, but still smaller than his brother.  And, also: Leah.

His ginormous head is off the charts.  They stop measuring at the 99th percentile, so that's where he officially ranks.  In reality, it sits fairly high above that growth arc.

He sleeps so well through the night.  I'm such a lucky momma.  He falls asleep easily between 6:30 and 7, wakes to eat when I go to bed between 10:30 and 11, and usually sleeps until around 2.  It's fantastic.

But, to reassure you that there are no perfect humans, his nap schedule sucks.  This child cannot get over the 45 minute sleep cycle, and would currently prefer to take 5-6 naps per day and still be cranky at me after each one.  You know... because 45 minute naps suck for all involved!

I keep thinking he is going to pop a tooth or two, but so far, he continues to be a drooly, mouthy hot mess of gums.  But, he does give amazing kisses, so we'll forgive him.

He is rolling.  His favorite place to sleep is on his side, so long as he doesn't accidentally roll onto his stomach in his sleep.

He's just my favorite tiny person.  I love that chunky monkey so!

19 Weeks

18 Weeks

We've been having some very unusual weather for Colorado at the beginning of August.  Cool.  Almost cold.

But, wherever there is Luke, there is always sunshine!

Our little guy is one heck of a wiggler, as you can probably tell from the background of his photo.  He's practicing sitting up on his own, and has amazing control of his body.  He loves toys, and handles them beautifully from whatever surface they are on right into his mouth.  He is also coming to enjoy tummy time for brief periods of time.

This week, I introduced a few of our "big kid" toys like the bouncer and high chair.  It's nice to give him a few places to go besides my arms.  Unlike big sis Livvy, he's pretty happy to check them out.  That's a nice change for me, too, what with him him being so much heavier than Liv!

17 weeks

My little sunshine boy.  I'm going to go out on a limb and say that he weighs somewhere close to 17 pounds.  You know, for the record.

16 Weeks

15 weeks

I can't decide.  Option A: 

Or Option B:

Either way, I'm a happy, grateful mommy.

14 weeks

13 Weeks

Boom.

12 weeks and updates

Some important updates from week 12:

1) Giggles.  Oh, the giggles!  Delicious, delightful belly laughs that make sunshine overflow in my living room.  They're the greatest.

2)  Yes, it is 12 weeks later.  As of a just a few days ago, the swelling in my abdomen from my surgery has finally gone down.  Hooray!!  Three cheers!  Now if I could just get the sore feeling three inches above my incision to subside, we'd really be in business.

3)  Luke means "light-giving."  In the Bible, he is the "beloved physician." I have no words to describe just how accurate that is for our sweet little boy.  He brings light and life and healing after a difficult year, tough pregnancy and a spring that was just beyond words. It is the perfect name for this precious little boy.  We are SO, so blessed.

Happy 4th of July!

11 Weeks

Smiles and sunshine.  That's what he brings to this busiest season of my life so far.