Lucas at 16 Months

OK, so I know I said this a month ago, but I can't get over how fast everything is going by! It has been a very busy month again. We traveled to Maryland to spend Christmas and New Years with Ben's whole family. We stayed with his family for the first time ever, since we had always stayed with my family before. My mom and dad moved to Augusta, Georgia earlier this year. It was really fun getting to spend time with Ben's brothers and mom and dad. Lucas got to spend a ton of time with them, which they loved.  Lucas and I got to visit with a few of my friends from home, and even got to meet my friend Alyssa's brand new baby, Henry! He was 9 weeks old when we saw him and so cute. Lucas did not like Mommy holding another baby. haha.

We were also able to drive up to Syracuse, NY and see all four of Ben's grandparents, his aunts, uncles, and cousins. Ben's grandparents aren't able to travel anymore due to health issues, so we were really excited to be able to bring Lucas to them. My mom and dad drove up to Maryland for New Years, so we got to see them a little bit too. Lucas was so excited to see his MiMi. His whole face lit up. I can't wait to see them this Saturday in Disney!

Lucas continues to surprise us in all that he is capable of, already. He is talking more, interacting more, and able to do more. For example, his first time using two words together was January 8th. I was sitting in my chair, finishing my dinner, and he wanted me to come help with his bath. Ben does bath time, but Lucas wanted me to join. So he said, "Mama, down!" He says "down" whenever he wants to get out of anything. His high chair, a swing, your arms, etc. He also gave me a high five the other day, then held out his fist and said "pound." We had taught him how to "Pound it" a while ago. He told Ben to "sit." next to him at his new playtable, which he loves. He is really starting to be able to understand what we are telling him and respond. It is so much fun watching him learn and be excited by the world!

We have met a few new friends that moved onto our street this past week. Two little boys who are both just about to turn two. The funny part is that Lucas looks the same size as them, even though they are 8 months older. He is so tall!

Lucas still loves snuggling, and I still rock him before his naps and bedtime. But he normally doesn't fall asleep until I put him in his crib. He just relaxes and winds down while I rock him. I enjoy that time with him because I know there will be a day in the future when he doesn't need or want me to rock him! He is growing up and acting like a big boy, but he is still my little baby.

My favorite thing that Lucas does now is give kisses. He blows kisses whenever he tells anyone goodbye, which is funny when it is the cashier at WalMart. But he gives us kisses on the lip with a big smack of his lips now. Yesterday, I had a headache and asked Lucas to kiss my head so it would feel better. He leaned over and gave my forehead a kiss! He is too cute.

Lucas at 15 Months

Wow! I can't believe it has already been a month! A very busy month. We are getting things ready for the holidays, as well as dealing with a sick boy. Lucas got a cold the beginning of this week, and is definitely on the upswing. But he still isn't himself, so it has been a little stressful. He is much more clingy and fussy, which I understand. I am not very happy when I don't feel good and can't breathe through my nose.

Lucas has tried to throw away the Nose Frida and the saline spray several times. He hates when I suck his nose out, even though it makes him feel better! So I think he wants to get rid of them! For those of you who don't know, a Nose Frida is a disgusting, gross invention that you use to suck the snot out of your child's nose using a tube and your mouth. If you don't have a baby who can't breathe, can't sleep because he can't suck his binky, and can't eat because he can't breathe and nurse at the same time, you would NEVER consider using it. But, if you do have a sick baby, you will LOVE this thing because it works about 93769 times better than the traditional bulb syringe, which does NOTHING.

Anyways, here are a few more things that Lucas can do now that he is 15 months old!

Can answer:
What does a
wolf say? (throws his head back and howls)
cat say? Mow Mow Mow
bird say? tweet tweet tweet
sheep say? baaa
Santa say? oh ho ho

Are you bat man?
"ah bah bah" (said in a gravelly Christian Bale as batman sounding voice)

Can point to his or your

eyes (says Eye)
nose
lips
tongue
cheeks
chin (says chin)
ears
hair
belly
bellybutton
feet
hands
neck

Can complete a simple puzzle (needs some help, but if he doesn't get frustrated he can do it himself)

Finds his shoes when asked, helps take them off.

Helps throw things away when asked, puts things in the hamper, out of the dryer, and puts clothes away with help.

A bunch more things that I can't think of, but this is a good snapshot of his abilities right now!

Lucas at 14 Months

I feel like Lucas just keeps learning new things and surprising us with what he can do. So, I wanted to make a post about all the things Lucas can do at 14 months old. The months are starting to blend together, and I want to remember when he did these things!
Lucas can say:
Dada= Daddy
Mama= Mommy
Dah= Dog
Bah= Ball
buh= Bye bye
Tuh Tuh= Tanner!
Ah= Apple

He can tell you what these animals say:
Dog= woof woof woof
Duck= cak cak cak
Cow= mmmmmooo
Lion= RAWR
Fish= smacks lips like a bubble sound
Monkey= Ooh Ooh

He signs these words
More
Help!
Mickey Mouse (pats his head where the ears are)
Goldfish (shakes his hand like he's shaking the bag)
Hungry/Eat
Stinky (waves his hand like he smelled somethings stinky)
Cold

He can run! walk backwards, climb up on the dining room chair, go down a slide by himself, climb the curved ladder at the park, turn my ipad on, and go down small steps by himself (like the step off our front door. He listens to directions and follows them (sometimes.) He will throw his dirty diaper away for me when I ask him to. He will shut the door or the dishwasher. He will go get his shoes. He will help take off his jacket or clothes. He helps put on his socks. He puts laundry from the dryer into the basket, and then hands it to me to fold.

He does a million things every day that amaze me when I think about what he could do just a few months ago. It is crazy to think that he hasn't been walking more than 3 months and he is now running all over the place. It all goes by so fast. I can't wait to see what he does next :)

Sleep Again :)

Lucas is taking a nap right now. He went to sleep at 12:15 and will hopefully be asleep until around 3! He has been bouncing between taking one and two naps each day. It depends on when he wakes up in the morning. If he wakes up at 6-6:30 and won't go back to sleep, it is a two nap day. He is exhausted by 10:00 and needs a nap. He will sleep til around 12, and then take another one from around 3:30 to 4:30. But if he sleeps in until at least 8, he can make it until noon, and take one long nap. Normally this is around 3 hours long.

 I love that he is finally a good sleeper!! It is so nice to be able to to count on that time for myself to get things done and relax a little. I remember when he would ONLY take a nap while I held him. He didn't take a nap in his crib until he was 6 months old. So I had a long time when I had no free time at all. Not that I would have done it differently, but I now appreciate my free time a lot more.

Lucas is sleeping really well at night, still. He goes to sleep around 8 pm and normally doesn't wake up until around 4:30 or 5. He takes a bottle and goes back to sleep until 6 or today it was 8:45! It just depends on the day. But I am getting solid hours of sleep, and I hadn't gotten more than maybe 4 solid hours for a year. Wow, between that and the coffee I started drinking again, I feel like I can get anything done now! Now I just need to find projects to keep me busy while Little Man sleeps :)

Fun With MeMe

This past week, my mom was able to fly out to spend some time with us! It is always nice to have company, especially company that does laundry :) hehe And we had a great time. Lucas loves his MeMe. He was so happy to wake up and see her the first morning, and each morning that she was here. He would run to her and put his arms up for her to pick him up. He really loves her and the feeling is mutual.

While my mom was here, I got a ton of stuff done! I was able to make the growth chart that I have been wanting to make Lucas, a wall hanging for the living room, painted Lucas's room, and a bunch of other little things. She definitely motivates me to be busy, and it was great letting her spend time with Lucas while I get things done. Everybody was happy. Here are a few pictures from her time with us!

At the pumpkin patch!

 

Reading a story.

 

First trip to the Train Museum!

 

Choo Choo!

 

Lucas's new room!

The wall hanging I made Lucas :)

 

I am very blessed to have my mom as my mother, and now Lucas is blessed to have her as his MeMe. She is my role model and I hope I can be as good a mom as she has been to me. Love you Mom!



 

 

Year One Photos

During the first year of Lucas's life, we have gotten professional pictures taken twice. Once when he was six months old, at Sears, and once when he turned one. The six month pictures were very nice, and I love them. But I wanted some realllly nice pictures for when Lucas turned one. I figured that since we only took professional pictures occasionally, we could splurge on them this time. Also, I love pictures. I love decorating with them, looking back at them, and I see money invested into awesome photos as money well spent.

So we found a new photographer in the area, Holly Gannett. She just moved here, as her husband is a new T1 instructor. I loved the pictures she had on her site, and thought she had a beautiful style. (www.hg-pd.com) We had a one hour shoot with her, but really it only took about 20 minutes to get a ton of amazing pictures. Lucas was a little ham and seemed to love getting his picture taken. Here are a few of my favorite ones, and that is saying something because I love them all!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thank you Holly Gannett for the amazing pictures of our family. I am so happy with how they turned out, and will cherish them. 

 

 

Pro Life

Becoming a mother has given me insights and thoughts that I previously never had. It has also strengthened some of the ideas and beliefs I've always understood. One topic that has been in the forefront of my mind the past few days is the right to life or the right to choose. With the presidential election this year, the debates, and all the political discussion that seems to permeate our society, I've been thinking about the two sides of this issue.

My belief that life is precious and worth protecting has been strengthened since becoming a mother, and watching my son grow inside of me. I felt the first flutters of movement at 14 weeks, which is very early. Most states allow you to get an abortion between 20 to 24 weeks into your pregnancy. It baffles me how people don't think that this tiny, moving baby with a heartbeat isn't alive yet at 20 weeks. I honestly cannot understand.

My biggest disagreement with people that claim to be "Pro Choice" is that it is the mother's right to choose if her baby lives or dies because it is her body. No. It was the mother's right to choose to have sex. Period. I realize that many people having sex are not trying to create a new life, but any time that you have sex, the possibility is inherently there. So every woman has the right to choose if they want to have sex. I understand that there are extreme circumstances like rape, incest, and even when the life of the mother is in jeopardy. But these are not the usual reasons that people have abortions, and shouldn't be used to defend other circumstances such as the mother not wanting a baby.

So really, if you want to say that it is the right of the mother to choose because it is her body, I disagree. It seems, with this logic, that it is the right of the unborn baby, because it is really their body. And since they can't speak for themselves, I am going to just guess that they want to live.

Amillia Taylor was born at 21 weeks 6 days and survived. She is now 18 months old.

This is a picture of her tiny feet held by the doctor who delivered her. ( http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1021034/The-tiniest-survivor-How-miracle-baby-born-weeks-legal-abortion-limit-clung-life-odds.html)
She will hopefully go on to live a full life. I just don't see how we can allow other babies to be aborted within weeks of this baby's delivery.

This topic has been weighing heavily on me as I watch the presidential debates, and think about where our country is going. Above all, I know that my vote this year is the one thing that I can do to help get our country on the path I want it to be. And now, I need to go give my baby a big hug and kiss.