3 months!

Today, July 29th, Luke is 3 months old! He has gotten so big--and heavy! When I weighed him yesterday he weighed 15 lbs, 14 ozs. What a chunk! He is such a good boy and makes both Phil and me laugh all the time with his funny faces and silly sounds. We are absolutely in love with the little stinker and can't imagine life without him. It's amazing how much he has grown up and how quickly! Here are a few new things that our big boy is doing these days:

~ He has discovered his hands... he now holds them together against his chest, like he is about to say his prayers.

~ He has finally figured out how to suck his right thumb--sideways! I need to get a picture of this. It's too cute.

~ He has learned to roll over from his tummy to his back. It's not my favorite of his new tricks because he sleeps on his tummy, so now he likes to roll onto his back and then cry when he can't get back onto his tummy to go to sleep.

~ He is STILL obsessed with his feet and will stare at them whenever he gets the chance.

~ He laughs now, but it is the funniest sound. It's almost like he's clearing his throat or something. It's hilarious.

~ He has gotten super-fast at breast feeding and only takes about 5 minutes on each side. Mommy is delighted! It's waaaaaaaay better than the days when it took about 20-25 minutes on each side.

~ He can hold his head up pretty well now and can sit in his Bumbo seat for a good while before getting tired of holding up his huge noggin.

~ He loves looking at books and will look from one page to the next and really study the pictures. I am hoping that he'll always love books, since Phil and I do!

~ He watches our lips when we talk and tries so hard to mimic what we do and say. His best talking time is right after he wakes up.

~ He has discovered the TV and could stare at it forever...we're in trouble!

Here are some pictures of Luke, the 3 month old!


SO cute!


Happy boy in his big boy seat.


FEEEEETTTT!!!


I sat him here to take his picture sitting up like a big boy, and he was mesmerized by the TV instantly....


...and then when he saw the camera he started acting silly. He looks like he weighs 16 pounds, doesn't he?!

Flipper and Pops

Luke got to spend some quality time with his grandparents while we were in Tampa. He is definitely the new favorite in the family! Flipper (my mom) and Pops (my dad) were so thrilled to have him there and would have been delighted if he could have been awake and playing with them all day long. They watched him sleep on the video monitor and any time Luke would take a while to fall asleep or stir in his sleep, my dad would claim that Luke didn't want to be sleeping, he just wanted to be up playing with his Pops! Every time Luke woke up from his naps, Flipper would start looking outside to see if any of the neighbors were home to show Luke off to! We also made a trip to my parents' office so that everyone there could meet the perfect grandchild that they have heard so much about. We had a great time with Flipper and Pops and seeing them with him was such fun for me.

Cuddling with Flipper.

Busy being spoiled by his grandparents.

Enjoying being spoiled by his grandparents.


Talking to Pops.



Two good-looking guys in brown stripes!

Surprise!

Last week I took Luke to Tampa to surprise my grandmother with a visit from her great-grandson. Grandma doesn't fly anymore, so she had not yet been able to meet him. She was SO surprised and practically yanked him out of my arms when I walked in the door! It was so much fun to share him with her and so sweet to see how much she loved being with him. Some of the best memories of my childhood are spending time with my Grandma and late Grandpa, so it was important to me that Luke got to meet my Grandma. Hopefully he will have lots more visits with Grandma in the future and be able to make his own memories with her!

Grandma and her great-grandson right after we surprised her.


Doesn't he look humongous on her lap?


I love this picture...I wish it weren't blurry!


Grandma learns just how fast Luke can chug a bottle!


Luke also got to meet lots of other family members while we were in Tampa -- Aunt Kate and Uncle Jim, Aunt Debbie and Uncle Dave, Aunt Carol, and my cousins Amy, Mallory and Trevor. He was such a charmer and cooed, talked, and smiled for all of them. It was so much fun, and I was so glad that we could see so much of the family in one trip!
My best friend, Paige, and her 9-month old daughter, Finley, got to meet Luke for the first time, too. It was so cool for Paige and me to be together with our babies. Paige and I grew up together and have been friends all our lives. It was almost surreal as we walked the 50 yards from my parents' house to Paige's parents house, as we have done one million times, but this time with our babies in our arms. It was the kind of thing we used to dream about when we were kids, and now it's real!
Also, as a special treat, we got to attend my mom's book club, which meant that nine or so of Luke's biggest fans got to ooh and aah over him for a while. They surprised me with all sorts of books for Luke, many of which were their kids' favorites. It was so sweet of them and so special that they would do this for us.


Luke being loved on (fought over!) at book club. Can you tell Isabel didn't want to give him up?

Just another day in the life of Luke...

Watering the lawn with Daddy.

Helping Daddy with the computer.




Continuing to be obsessed with his feet...


...until we cover them up so he can't see them!

Bath time. Can you tell he likes it?

Relaxin' in his tub... it's a hard life.

Just hangin' out...

Looking so slim...ha!


Mother-son conversation.


Such a big boy holding his head up!

This is his usual look when the camera comes out... he's not amused.

Big silly boy...

Today (July 7th) Luke is one day away from being 10 weeks old. I weighed him today, and he weighs 14 pounds, 4 ounces! My mom told me that I weighed 14 lbs. when I was 4 months old! I need to ask Phil's mom if she knows how much Phil weighed at two months. Luke is obviously eating well and thriving, and I am so thankful!

He has started making a new face all the time, and it's just a hoot. It makes him look like a little old man without his dentures. It cracks us up!

Luke's favorite new funny face.

Just cute pics...

Here are some cute pictures for those of you who are always begging for more pictures!

Luke after his bath in his snuggly towel from Flipper.


Flying on Daddy's legs.


Flying high and looking sleepy.


Whale booty!

Sucking his thumb...always the left one. Will he be a lefty?

A New Toy...

Luke got to play in his "play gym" for the first time today. (It's not really a gym...that's just what these things are called for some reason.) It has a bird that hangs down and flaps its wings and sings a song. Luke was mesmerized at first, then actually started smiling at the bird! It was too cute. After some time looking up at the bird, I turned him over onto his tummy so he could play with the mat, and he practically tipped himself over trying to look up at the bird again. I didn't get that on camera, but I got plenty of other shots of him enjoying his play gym. Thanks Kelly for giving us this new toy!!

Not sure what to think of the bird at first...


Smiling at the bird...unfortunately, I got more of the bird in the picture than I wanted to!

Another smile for the birdie.

Daddy getting in on the fun.

Precious boy.

Ooooh...a butterfly!

Fourth of July Weekend

We had a great 4th of July weekend! Our friends Tito (David) and Stacy came to visit us with their son Jax. Jax is 16 months old and just adorable. He loves to play and run around, and found little Luke to be quite interesting. Unfortunately for Luke, Jax was most intrigued by Luke's eyes and wanted to poke them constantly. I am sure that was just Jax's own version of the friendly fist pump. We managed to keep his fingers out of Luke's eyes, but it wasn't easy! We loved having Tito and Stacy here and spent countless hours trying to convince them to move to Indy....with no luck. Oh well. I guess absence makes the heart grow fonder. Thanks Tito and Stacy for coming all the way here and spending time with us. Your friendship is so special to us, and we were touched that you would come to see us. We had a blast and can't wait to see you again!

Luke, Phil, and Jax playing on the couch.


Tito and Stacy.


Jax with his Daddy.


Phil and his new friend Jax.


Luke in his 4th of July outfit from Katie.


Our little firecracker talking to Daddy.

Smiling!!

Finally! We have been trying to capture Luke's ADORABLE smile on camera FOREVER....finally, we got a few good ones. It is even cuter in person, though, I have to say....