Outside

News of the week - 7th tooth has broken through, bottom right

Life is better when you can get outside and play! Luke and I have done a great job of continuing to get fresh air and have fun through the winter, but today was definitely a wonderful hint of what the coming months will bring.

Long walk at the lake with the dogs, home to play for over an hour on the deck while we listen and watch birds, eat cheerios, laugh at the dogs antics, try to keep the cheerios for ourselves :) and just enjoy the warmer weather.

I love these pics. My camera battery was going, going, gone, but I got a few of him at his post. I placed several pine cones along the railing that he can reach to get his attention and then watched carefully as he tried to eat them. Of course...




Take it from me. He had a good day. He was simply getting p'd off because he really wanted the camera. It was enough of a distraction that he didn't pay attention to STANDING UP!

Luke, I love you - Mom

11 Months

Standing up! How do I do this walking thing, mom?

I little mechanic work in the morning...

He maneuvered his way from the couch to his car this morning. Does he look proud of his hard work or what?

I went to make sure he was covered up this morning during his nap and walked in to see this..Where is Luke?! The side of his face was uncovered so I just put another blanket over his bottom half.

Laughing with Luke while I try to pry the phone back from his grip.

What? Can it possible be true that 4 weeks from now Luke will be celebrating his first birthday? Absolutely incredible!

We have had a great weekend. Spent lots of time with friends and family. Friday, Steve worked a game so I enjoyed my dad's homemade pizza which was delicious! Luke and I enjoyed the evening at Gma's and he slept really well Friday night which started the weekend off right:)

Saturday, Gma Susan and Gpa Paul came by for a nice visit (Thanks for the K-Cup drinks!) before their trip to DC.

Saturday, we had Franciene and Andy over for some friendly Wii competition. It was a few hours of pretty much non-stop laughing. Luke was AWESOME during the visit he just did his thing, enjoyed the company, watched us act goofy while playing games and had fun watching Franny and Andy.


Loving being held my Franny. They became fast friends...

Andy wasn't quite sure about holding a baby, but Luke was pretty comfy.

What are you guys doing...watching us bowl. He was happy to be in the middle of the action most of the time -

- he did take a break to the play pen with his bottle. It didn't last long but it was cute to check him out just chilling while he chugged.

Steve did the bedtime routine so that I could meet a couple of friends later Saturday night and it was nice to catch up with them. I was still home by 10...my late nights are pretty much over, I think!

Today has been great. Cold, but sunny. We went to Harbaugh's and Luke ate half of my blueberry pancake (no syrup) some banana that they kindly cut up for him and some eggs. He also enjoyed our traditional biscuits and gravy appetizer. He was great at the restaurant. He just loves to watch everything happening around him and it always really happy to be out in the world. After breakfast he helped Daddy get a new pair of shoes and really enjoyed tearing all of the paper in the shoe box to shreds.

We are off for a drive and to see if my parents are home so that we can harass them for a bit...

Hooray!

I just got the word that the school board approved my request for a second year leave of absence! I am so THANKFUL and FORTUNATE to be able to be home another year with Luke.

Yeah! Yippee! Woo Hoo!
Yeah! Yippee! Woo Hoo!
Yeah! Yippee! Woo Hoo!
Yeah! Yippee! Woo Hoo!
Yeah! Yippee! Woo Hoo!
Yeah! Yippee! Woo Hoo!
Yeah! Yippee! Woo Hoo!
Yeah! Yippee! Woo Hoo!

This pic was taken in August - I just like it and don't have any recent pictures of the two of us together. I need to give Steve a big thanks, too, for being so supportive of my attempt to get more time with our kiddo. I promise to branch out and make some different (and hopefully tasty!) dinners for you babe!

Yeah! Yippee! Woo Hoo!
Yeah! Yippee! Woo Hoo!
Yeah! Yippee! Woo Hoo!
Yeah! Yippee! Woo Hoo!
Yeah! Yippee! Woo Hoo!
Yeah! Yippee! Woo Hoo!
Yeah! Yippee! Woo Hoo!
Yeah! Yippee! Woo Hoo!

Successful Surgery

I had to do emergency surgery with a needle and thread on Luke's love, George, today. He was coming apart at the seams under his left arm. In order to avoid loss of stuffing or Luke ingesting any of that wonderful fuzzy stuff, I fell back on my amazing seamstress skills. We will be lucky if the stitches hold for a week, but I will just keep an eye on him...as you can see he survived the procedure and kept a pretty happy face the whole time.

It felt like spring this morning so Luke and I took the dogs on a walk at a park that I have never been to. It is in the middle of town and looks like it will make a fun picnic/exploration spot in the spring/summer as long as the ticks aren't too bad. We also ran to the coop for more teething tabs. He is keeping a smile on his face while the next couple of (bottom, I think?) teeth work their way through, but we keep these tabs handy and he likes taking them.

I have a couple more home improvement projects floating around my head so we spent some time at Lowe's this afternoon looking for ideas and options. Luke, as you can see, was in a total trance as we strolled through the lighting and ceiling fan section. He wasn't crazy about being in the cart, so I would hold him for a while and then he would want down or back in the cart. I think he just wanted to run around on his own!

Had THE BEST time with him tonight while he took his bath. He is really excited to stand up and practice his shaky walking in the tub. Make sense, right? Water and slippery surfaces = great practice arena for learning to walk. I help him do it anyway, and he realized he could grab the shower curtain and pull it over to cover my face so we played a major game of 'where's mommy' and when I would appear around the curtain he would just giggle like crazy. He stopped playing before I wanted to be done :)

I am 99.9 % sure he said 'bye-bye' while bathing, too. Whatever, I am just going to say 100% sure and give the boy some credit! I was looking for his green cup that we use to pour water over him during the bath and asked him if the cup went 'bye bye' and he looked at me and repeated it! It was really exciting - I can't IMAGINE what it is going to be like when he is talking. I repeated it a bunch and he kind of did again. We will keep practicing ;)

Changing subjects to another example of how Grandma's know best. Here are the Valentine's treats that Luke got from his magnificent and so in love Gmas.


Susan got him the duck (go Gift Garden!) This thing has a button that, when pushed, sets the duck off at an amazing waddle while it plays "Camptown Races" Couldn't be more perfect coming from her and Gpa Paul! It is pretty entertaining, Luke always smiles when he sees it or when he picks it up by the head and it QUACKS loudly. The pic has a bit of Luna's head in the left corner - I am pretty sure she is interested in hunting some duck and bringing it home for dinner.

My mom brought him the 'love monkey', which now lives happily in his crib. He is a new buddy to George and a close second place finisher in the cuddle up and go to sleep lineup. Too cute!

The pic with Luke in it was really hard to get without him looking away or having a cranky face on. It is really difficult to photograph him these days because he WANTS THE CAMERA so he will realize it is out...reach for it...not be able to get it...meltdown for a few seconds...get happy again...REPEAT. Hopefully, it is a routine he outgrows.

Steve is home early from Freshman Orientation so I am signing off...

For the Alberici Folks...

Talked to Uncle Glenn yesterday about how Gma Susan was noticing that Luke has some definite Glenn-isms. He will throw his bottle when he is no longer interested and he pulls his bib when he is done eating as in "Bib Off". I told Glenn about these things and he said, "well, he better have some Glenn-isms, I am his godfather" so cute!

He also told me that he and his co-workers would like a few more stats so here goes:
At 10 months old:
21 pounds
29 inches
eyes are now brown
Babbles A LOT (ba ba, ma ma, da da)
LOVES his Goerge doll
naps once a day
on the brink of sleeping through the night regularly - like Uncle Glenn (11 months)
can stand on his own
wants to walk - gets lots of practice - can hold onto the couch/windowsill, etc...and keep his balance
still gets 3 bottles a day
eats 3 meals a day
loves to be outside
Is an averall GREAT kiddo!

Likes Pizza! Here he is with as much crust as he can fit in his mouth...I played tennis yesterday morning, came home starving and had a pizza delivered for lunch...yum yum

Switching gears...here is a picture of our first bulb blooming (remember me talking about getting about 100 bulbs in the ground in the fall...at least one worked!) Yeah! Spring is headed our way :)

Here, too, is my Valentine treat for Steve. Luke and I got up so Dad could get a little more sleep and made some great M&M cookies. I am not the craftiest person, but I can bake some GOOOOOD cookies and I can arrange them into a special message.

I am going to take a nap now - Life is good and I love, love, love my family! Thanks mom and dad for the coffee and treats this morning and thanks in advance to Paul and Susan for watching Luke while I take Steve to a V-day movie.

Moments

Last night I went to my second hot yoga class. The teacher is amazing, and the class is great for a number of reasons. She gets the room really warm 85-90 degrees, and you are continuously moving. I leave with more energy than I come with AND I am warm for a little while.

At the end of class last night, the teacher was leading us through the final relaxation and said "Everything that you have done, everything that has been done to you, everything that you have said, everything that has been said to you have all led you to this moment" What an idea to ponder at any given moment...

I have heard that quote lots in my head since last night and no time more importantly than when I came home and saw Luke and his dad doing the bedtime routine.

Great week so far...

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We have been LOVING the warm weather this week. These pics are from Monday afternoon when he hung out on the deck while I picked up the back yard. He loved it. We took a long walk when Steve got home, too which was such a treat and such a reminder of spring/summer fun!
(New)windows :)have been open, we've gotten to play outside and it is easier to pick up and go when you (I) don't have to bundle us both up, etc...When it is warmer out, I seem to get lots more energy, too. Oh wait, maybe that energy has come from the fact that for the past THREE nights Luke has sleptthroughthenight. That is all I am going to say about that, lest I jinx his streak.

Monday, Luke had lunch with Gma Jackie and Gpa Paul. We both very much enjoyed the company. Luke liked eating black beans and avocado. He is eating lots more these days which is fun to watch. It is interesting to try and plan meals for a 10 month old, but so far he seems to be liking everything okay. He is very good about 'saying' when he is done. He will keep his mouth CLOSED and wave away any attempt at getting something in his mouth. I appreciate those cues. Meals are done then - he is learning not to overeat (or be overfed)-good stuff.

This post is going to be all over the place because Luke is at my feet pulling himself up repeatedly on the computer desk drawers and playing with my camera. Every once in a while, he gives a shout out to Da Da, which is just very cute.




Pictures are of the quick bath I gave him Monday. Steve is probably right about it being his last bath in the sink (it uses so much less water than the tub baths!). He was pulling up on the handles and having a blast turning the water on and off...not to mention going for the utensils waiting to be washed in the other tub.


I also couldn't resist getting a couple of him napping yesterday. Loved him snuggled up with George. The shoes made me smile, too. We visited with Claudia yesterday. Her 2 year old grandson likes George, too. Luke brought him a George doll like he has so now Connor in Texas will have a bond with Luke in Illinois. Claudia and I both loved that.

Lastly, here are some shots of him getting one step closer to following Star out the doggie door. He was rolling around having a great time while I made dinner last night and when the door stopped his progress, he proceeded to study the flap and stick his feet and hands through it. Star wouldn't come near the door when he was laying there. Luna, on the other hand, walked right over him and then watched to see what he was going to do next.



It is only sprinkling now so I am going to frontpack my little monkey and take the dogs out for some fresh air before he downs his yogurt and banana for breakfast.

Bond, Luke Bond

My son is a master with the cell phone already. Last Friday, I played tennis in the morning so he spent some quality time with Gma Susan and Gpa Paul. On the way home, I handed him my phone and he smiled big.

Only later as I scrolled through my recent calls did I see that he had saved his own contact, M, with a real phone number and he called the number and had a 30 second conversation with someone? some machine? who knows...My googling has only shown 996 to be an exchange to call Canada so hopefully my phone bill will not be out of whack! I will keep the contact in there, though, because I think it is pretty funny and pretty cool. He really loves the cell phones, but I am now at a point where I have to really keep my eye on him b/c he will make calls, he will answer calls, etc...

I checked out Holidays on Ice by David Sedaris yesterday. His stories make me laugh out loud so this morning I was reading a couple out loud to Luke. He listened like I was reading Dr. Suess and just looked at me with curiosity when I would take a second to laugh and then continue reading. Becca, if you are reading this, thanks for introducing me to the Sedaris stories...

Busy

The snow has all melted, but I knew my posts that are picture-less are no fun!

We have been busy the last few days. We got new windows! Yippee! They are great, they change the whole look of the house, they are great, they are great...you can tell I am in love :) Luke and I got to spend some of Thurs. with wonderful Dianna. We had a great lunch together, she and I actually had a conversation which I so appreciated. I mention this b/c she was happy to meet Luke but he was really well behaved and happy to talk to the tables around us (ba ba ba ba ba) and Dianna didn't make the whole lunch about Luke. We just caught up and talked about all kinds of things so the time was very nice, and Luke DID have fun, too!

Steve was out of town Fri-Sat so Luke and I visited with a Angie and Skye Friday night. Skye is 2 1/2, and Luke wasn't quite sure what to do around her. She was excited to have company and screamed a few times, each of those times causing Luke to cry :( so it was interesting to spend time with another kiddo. By the time we ate a little dinner, she was trying to make him smile and he just kept staring and soaking up her tricks. On the way home, I saw Gma Susan and Gpa Paul driving so they got to come by and give Luke some love before he went to bed. He had a great time wearing and then taking off Gpa's hat.

Saturday we went out with Gma Jackie and Gpa Nick for coffee at Panera and stayed longer than we thought we were going to, so Gma and Gpa bought Luke a couple of their kid yogurts and he enjoyed breakfast out. We also took a great trip to Kinkaid to enjoy the SPRING TIME weather. Yeah...windows were open, heater was off during the day, and you could taste spring in the air this weekend. YIPPEE! Even though the ground is now a big soggy mess (which the dogs seem to enjoy??) the snow is gone and I will take muddy paws over goosebumps any day!

We were happy to have Steve home last night. He surprised us and got here early. He was really happy to get to see Luke before he went to bed which was super cute. Today we just did a couple of things around the house and enjoyed some quiet time together.

Ma Ma

Luke said mama repeatedly today, and he said it like he knew what he was saying, who he was talking to, etc... I love it!

Yesterday when I would say it to him he would smile and shake his head 'no' which was quite amusing.

There really is something new every day with a baby. He is incredible in this humble and non biased mama's opinion.

Groundhog Day...

Also known as Gma Jackie's favorite holiday.

Phil Says Six More Weeks!

Phil's official forecast as read February 2nd, 2009 at sunrise at Gobbler's Knob:

Hear Ye Hear Ye
On Gobbler's Knob this glorious Groundhog Day, February 2nd, 2009
Punxsutawney Phil, Seer of Seers, Prognosticator of all Prognosticators
Awoke to the call of President Bill Cooper
And greeted his handlers, Ben Hughes and John Griffiths
After casting a joyful eye towards thousands of his faithful followers,
Phil proclaimed that his beloved Pittsburgh Steelers were World Champions one more time
And a bright sky above me
Showed my shadow beside me.
So 6 more weeks of winter it will be.

6 more weeks of winter...but Spring IS coming. The sun is already noticably out later - yeah!

Good doctor's visit today -

21 lbs - 40%
28.5 inches - 33%
48 cm head measurement - 81%

No wonder he is going to walk instead of crawl. How could he possibly be expected to hold that head up and crawl around :) Actually, he is doing a new backward creep around the house now, so who knows what he is going to do next.

2006/2009 - Steelers win!!!!

The Steelers won the Jan. before Steve and I got married which was very exciting. They have won AGAIN this year which was Luke's first Superbowl...Even more exciting!

Yeah Steelers - and an even bigger "yeah" for Uncle Glenn. Luke (and his parents) love you :)

This jersey is the best birthday present Steve will ever receive.

It is 5:30am, and I am the only one up!

Perhaps there is something to be said for a bedtime routine? Luke ate a big dinner last night (no bottle at a normal 5 or 6 pm) He had 1/4 grilled cheese, some banana, about 8 noodles from our dinner, some carrot soup (that even Steve likes) and some graham cracker, instead! Meal times are certainly messy now, but it is enjoyable to see him eat and to see him willing to try anything :) His favorite thing to do right now seems to be to squish bananas in his hands and see what happens. I am pretty sure that even when I am 90 (positive thinking) and I smell a banana, I will be reminded of holding him post-meal, and I will smile.

Anyway, I AM UP watching the men's Australian Final - go Federer! - and enjoying the quiet. Luke had a bath at about 6:30, then pj's, some bottle and we went straight to his room for books and snuggle time before bed. Luke doesn't snuggle unless he is really exhausted so I enjoyed reading some Berenstain Bears stories and Goodnight Moon to him while he tried to repeatedly roll off of me and the futon while tearing pages from the books, of course. He burns a LOT of energy just getting ready for bed :) He took a little more of his bottle and I laid him down with George at about 7:45. Never heard a peep, and he still hasn't stirred. He has also dropped his afternoon nap, so perhaps that will lead to more consistent nighttime sleep.

We have had a great time over the past week. Steve was home Tues-Fri because of the weather so we all stayed in most of the time and played and ate and napped and enjoyed being together. Snow days force you to throw away the to-do list and chill, I like to call it forced laziness, and we all enjoyed it. I am not as productive about house stuff when Steve is home b/c I would rather be near him so last night after Luke went to bed, I actually got some of the floors mopped and laundry folded.

Steve is reading Outliers, and I enjoy when he discusses what he is reading with me. It is an interesting book about success and factors that help create a successful person...it is also Star's favorite. I got it from the library but she ate a corner off of it, so now we own it! I guess she knew Steve would really enjoy it. The dogs now know what "yogurt time" means...they stalk the area for anything that drops and look forward to licking the container clean. Mom and Dad took me to Panera on Wed. for coffee, and when they dropped me off, Dad got stuff for a minute. LOTS of people got stuck the last couple of days. I drove for the first time today since last Monday. Steve prepping to go out and clean off the cars and look at the driveway. It was a challenge and a workout to get the cars out. Lots of breaking ice under the snow and the dip at the end of the drive complicated things just a tad...good job Steve! Thanks mom and dad for the shovels :) Hey, Dad, where are you going? The photo at the top is of Luke going after the camera while we looked out the window at Daddy. Yoga baby! Luke doing a great Cobra pose...He was doing this when he woke up from a nap the other day. Steve was loving it and called me back to his room to see his adorable head looking through the crib bars. He is really proud of this move, too. He looks up and just SMILES, like hey look what I can do! My little monkey with his little monkey...love this. I am online now ordering the original seven Curious George books for his birthday. Yeah, I am a little ahead of myself, but his birthday is NEXT month. It is now 6:30, Nadal is up 6-5 in the first set, and my babe is stirring. I hear him trying to kick his way out of the crib.

Happy FEBRUARY! Spring is coming, the Steelers are playing in the Superbowl tonight and, oh yeah, LIFE IS GOOD!

Videos are of our walk yesterday at a trail in Crab Orchard Reserve. So pretty and peaceful with the snow on the ground. I made it 45 minutes with Luke in the frontpack which pretty much makes me an Olympic athlete :) We walked every day even with the snow which was good for everyone. The air tasted good and the sun felt even better!