8 Months Old

Luke turned 8 months old. Stop growing! I just want to freeze each moment and milestone. But then he does something new and amazing and I'm excited about what's going to happen next.

Luke is no longer confined to the Living Room floor. While he's not yet crawling or even scooting, he's mastered rolling and attempts to follow me around the house by rolling along. He's started getting into some mischief (such as playing in the dog's water bowl) but it's been fun to watch him explore. Only one bump on the head so far after rolling into the corner of the wall.

While Luke and I were on a road trip to Chicago for my sister's bridal shower, he learned how to say "Dadadada" (on 10/27/12). I was bummed that Nick wasn't around to hear it for the first time, but now he repeats it constantly. I can't wait to hear "Mamamama" out of his mouth, but I'm sure it will come soon!

Luke is eating more and more solids. He even learned how to pick up Cheerios and Puffs with his thumb and forefinger and attempts to put them in his mouth. Sometimes he is successful but still more often than not he still has the food in his hand when he leaves his mouth. He gets frustrated about this and it won't be long before he's perfected feeding himself.

Luke is so happy when we clap our hands and say "Good job, Lukie!". He knows we're cheering him on.

Luke is primarily in 12 month clothing now! My big boy was 20 lbs, 3 oz when we took him to the doctor on 10/21/12.

Luke caught his first really big cold this month (on 10/20/12). He was super congested and coughing (though the cough only lasted for the weekend). Even with a cold, Luke mostly slept all night long. He just needed a little extra comforting once when his cough scared him. We had our first trip with Luke to urgent care on a weekend, but all was well and we didn't need any follow-up appointments.

Luke will not go to sleep without his lovie in one hand and his thumb in his mouth. Occasionally he'll wake up if he loses his lovie, but I just sneak into his room, hand it to him and then leave. He's immediately back asleep. I'm pretty lucky with a little sleeper! He sleeps from 6:30 pm-7 am.

The final big news is that Luke is cutting his very first tooth (on the bottom, middle). The tooth made it's first appearance yesterday (10/30/12) and is starting to bother him. But overall he's a happy baby who loves to play and be tickled by mom and dad. He's starting to laugh more and more and that's been so fun for our family.

Here are some favorite pictures from the month!

My pumpkin on the porch. Luke in his Halloween pajamas.

Little Man sleeps so soundly and in the funniest positions. This is how I often find him. Leg in the air and lovie over his face. 

Loving his time with Grandma Keller and Aunt Leanne

These smiles are so hard to capture on camera! Success! (Thanks Aunt Kristi!)

Luke is now actively trying to help feed himself. He often smiles and scrunches his nose these days.

Cuddles with Grandma in Chicago for Aunt Leanne's shower.

Luke went as "Snuggle Puppy" from his favorite book for Halloween this year. He wasn't so sure about the hood on his head...

Snuggles with Mommy.

The very start of a tooth is coming in (if you squint, you might be able to see it).

Luke still hasn't quite figured out how the Johnny Jump Up works...

Happy Halloween!

The Early Bird Special

This is a memory post. I want to remember to tell my kids about this time in our family's history. No cute pictures, just something to put a smile on my face in the future.

Nick works evenings. He has to leave home by 4:45 pm and then gets home again at 7 am. It's a really long night. We don't see a lot of him, but we want to have special times as a family when we can.

Since becoming a stay-at-home mommy, I've enjoyed meal planning and cooking. It's been fun to get involved again in the kitchen (and know before 5 pm what we'll be eating that night)! I like knowing that my family will have home cooked meals that I prepared for them. It's become such a satisfying part of my "new job".

Because Nick heads to work at 4:45, we eat dinner, as a family at the table most evenings, at 4 pm. Early? Yes. Worth it? Without a doubt. And since Luke goes to bed at 6:30 pm, we're able to eat together as a family when everyone is awake and happy.

Sometimes I feel silly making a meal at 2 pm. We feel silly whenever we spring for a meal out and go at 3:30 pm after the baby's nap for an early dinner. (BUT we get our choice of tables in the restaurant, and our little man isn't too distracting to the other customers!)

I'm glad for our afternoon times together. From 2:30 pm until 4:45 pm when Nick leaves for work, we're a family - sharing in stories, smiles, laughs and food.

Baby Dedication

This weekend, we had a wonderful blessing - our family came to Madison to help us celebrate Luke at his baby dedication ceremony at church. Nick and I had the opportunity at Luke's dedication ceremony to publicly present our baby to God and we made a commitment to bring Luke up in a Christ-centered home. It was such a special time with family and friends. Joining us this weekend were: Grandpa Ted and Grandma Judy Moser; Grandpa Greg and Grandma Anne Keller; Great-Grandma Mary Able; Great-Aunt Renee Captain; Aunt Leanne Keller and (almost) Uncle Michael Gonzalez; Uncle Brad and Aunt Melissa Moser.

On Saturday morning we went to church for a special and personal ceremony. So many babies were dedicated to the Lord. We were in wonderful company with several friends also dedicating their babies this weekend. Following the ceremony, we came home and let baby Luke finally take a nap. The grown-ups enjoyed lots of conversation and had an awesome lunch - lasagna, salad, garlic bread, grapes and Cheesecake Factory cheesecake!

The parents were invited to write a blessing for their children and to read it at the dedication. Here is what Nick and I read:

We pray that Luke becomes a man who loves Jesus and who loves people with a kind and generous heart. Our blessing for Luke is adapted from Psalm 119:73-80. Luke, the Lord’s hands made you and formed you, giving you understanding to learn His ways. We pray that the Lord speaks to you through His words in the Bible and that you use them as your inspiration and guide in life. May God’s unfailing love be your comfort, as He has promised us. As you face difficult times, let the Lord lead you through them so you may gain wisdom from them, wisdom you can then use to help others who are in need. May you wholeheartedly follow God’s ways allowing His light to shine through you, so that others will see this and will also follow Christ. 

Here are some of my favorite pictures from the weekend:

On stage with Pastor John Rosensteel. (Making some joke... no doubt!)

Our entire group onstage showing support for Luke and our family.

Special family moment at church before the ceremony.

The "Able" women - me, Mom, Grandma Able and Leanne.

Leanne and her fiance, Michael.

Opening a special gift from Grandma and Grandpa Moser. A bible! (Luke already loves opening and closing the pages. I love that I can point out baby Jesus, Moses, Noah, animals, etc.)

A good snapshot of Grandma and Grandpa Moser. (A bad snapshot of Little Man...)

Good morning! Here's our happy camper with his daddy.

Great-Aunt Renee has found another nephew to spoil rotten! She bought Luke the most adorable books - they all did something special (light up, pop up, puzzle pieces, textile pages, puppets and more!)

Giggles with Aunt "Leelee"!

On our way to church on Sunday morning! Luke with his new bible.

Eating Cheerios with Grandpa Keller.