Welcome to Toddlerhood...

Since turning one, Luke has morphed into a toddler...and it seems to have happened overnight. It's been a little hard to get used to. I feel like he's a whole new kid in some ways. For one thing, he's a walking pro. Ever since our trip to Tampa in the beginning of April, he's been walking circles around us. It' so much fun, but boy, is it a game changer. All I do is chase him all day long! He's also been working on the rough draft of his own Declaration of Independence. He wants what he wants, WHEN he wants it, and heaven help you if you don't give it to him or help him get it. He wants to go outside all the time. He wants to climb all over the couch. He wants to figure out how to climb out of the corral and how to climb into the pack n' play. He wants to get down and walk around the grocery store. And worst of all, he believes there is absolutely no reason he should ever have to lie still to have his diaper changed. Last week our friend Devan came over to bring the Stinker a birthday present. It was a super fun Jeep with big Legos and a little driver dude that attached to it. Luke, Devan, and I sat on the kitchen floor playing with it for a while until Luke decided he wanted to go cruise the living room. Since the living room and kitchen are attached, Devan and I could stay seated on the floor while we chatted and still see the Big Man. At one point I noticed that Luke pushed aside the corral and headed toward the TV. I thought to myself that I'd finish my sentence then hop up and go rescue the Wii remotes and DVD player from Luke's inevitable death grip. As soon as I finished what I was saying I looked at the TV, sure to find the Stinker wreaking havoc on our stuff....but he wasn't there. My eyes began to scan the rest of the room. What I saw was like an episode of Mind Freak or something. As I looked out over the back of the couch, I could see not only Luke's head, but also his entire torso. In a split second of utter confusion, I thought to myself, "How did he get so tall?" I then realized something was wrong and jumped to my feet. This is what I saw...

The Stinker had climbed up onto the coffee table in a matter of about 1.5 seconds and was standing in the middle of it, holding 2 different remotes with a look on his face (not pictured) like, "Aww yeah....How do you like me now!!!" He was SOOOOO proud of himself. After a near heart attack on my part, Devan and I laughed hysterically and then took a few pictures.

At Luke's one year check-up, the doctor told us we needed to turn his car seat around. We had been thinking we'd leave it rear-facing for a while since it's so much safer, but the doctor said that since he's so big and has no room for his legs when facing backward, we needed to turn it around now. That was fine by me, so I had my handy hubby take it out and reinstall it facing forward. Luke's first trip facing forward like a big boy was to the airport to pick up my sister, Anne. It was SO much fun for both of us. Actually, I may have been just a wee tad more excited about it....but Luke liked it, too. I took the passenger seat headrest down so that he could see out the windshield, and he had fun looking at all the big cars and trucks on the interstate.

All buckled and ready to go!

Woo hoo!!! He struck this hysterical pose all by himself. I guess he was excited.


Mommy's new view of the Stinker.


Checkin' out the view of the front of the garage.


Whoa. So much cool stuff to look at.


Happy boy, laughing at Annie.
I love being able to turn around and see my precious Big Man looking at me!

Luke received lots of cool presents for his birthday. He got an awesome school bus in the mail from Phil's sister Emma, Luke's Auntie Em. He LOVES his school bus, especially after we figured out that it sings a song and flashes its lights!


Playing in the kitchen with his new bus.


He pushed it all over the place.


It can carry all sorts of important stuff.


Playing with the bus is serious business.

Daddy and Lukie smiling and singing along with the school bus.

Luke also got a very cool lawn mower from Phil's sister Joanna, Luke's Aunt Jo Jo. He is so funny when he pushes it around because he tends to want to push it with just one hand, so it doesn't really go in a straight line. He loves to push it around, though, and when he plays with it outside, we plug in the bubbles so that it blows bubbles as he mows!

Mowing in the garage.


Making sure that corner gets mowed.

My parents, Flipper and Pops, sent us some money to buy Luke some much needed sports equipment for his birthday. Anne and I picked out a golf set, a basketball hoop, and about 42 different balls for Luke to play with outside. Here he is working on his golf game.


I think I'll go with my driver for this shot.


Luke decided there was no need to stand up to play golf.


Can I help you?


Once again. Golfing while seated.


Using the clubs to bang on Mommy's car. Thanks, Big Man.


The basketball hoop was more of a mystery for Luke. We'll have to work on that one with him...


...But Daddy had fun playing horse with Annie and our neighbor Katie.

In other news, the weening process has been going really well. Luke's lactose intolerance has gotten so much better, and he seems to have outgrown it! I am now down to nursing only once a day and will soon be phasing that out, too! We've worked up to 3 oz. of whole milk mixed in with 6 oz. of formula for his two bottle feedings, and we'll keep upping the milk-to-formula ratio every few days until we get to all milk. I can't wait to have formula off my grocery bill!! As nice as it has been to drop the nursing, I still can't get used to seeing him feed himself a bottle!

Doesn't he look so big??!!

And speaking of big, the Big Man is king of big messes!

This isn't even his best effort, either.


No matter the mess, no matter the trouble that he seems to go looking for, we couldn't love our little Stinker any more than we do. He is an absolute delight and the joy of our lives. WE LOVE YOU, LUKIE LU!!!