Merry Christmas!

We are getting packed and ready to head to California for Christmas, so I thought I would post a Merry Christmas message for all of our friends and family before we left... because who knows if I'll get to it after we leave.



Adam did it. Blame him. Or congratulate him!

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

I hope you enjoyed our family routine. We practiced for hours... Luke was especially dedicated!

Have a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! We love you!

Ever See a Full-Body Smile?

One of my favorite things about Luke is his smile. He smiles easier and more readily than any baby I've ever seen. It warms my soul every single time.

Kind of like this:




And this:






I love it!



But as much as I love Luke's smile, I love his Full-Body Smile the most. Have you ever seen one of those? It is almost impossible to describe. So, I was glad when the other day I was taking some pictures and I captured a few pictures of the process. This is how it goes:


I set him against some pillows:





I grab my camera.



Then all I have to say is, "Hi Luke!" And he smiles:






And I smile.



Then I smile really big and say "Hi Luke!" with a little more animation...



and then his whole body smiles:






Do you see the difference? Isn't it great? I love it!

It's Just the Way He's Built

Luke is so different from Audrey. It's hard to believe that even though I'm doing everything the same, they are opposites. Luke continues to grow and develop at an astonishing rate - and it's not as if he is eating more or more often than Audrey did at the same age.

It's just the way he is built. And I love it.




I am glad that he is healthy... and that I don't have to wonder of worry that he's not eating enough!

Here's another indication of his rapid growth: Luke now wears the SAME SIZE DIAPER as Audrey! Can you believe that? I think it's crazy! My just-turned-two year old is wearing the same size diaper as my four and a half month old!




Audrey still has about six pounds on him - those six pounds are probably mostly in her legs - you can see she is significantly longer than he is. What will be interesting to see is which one will grow out of this size diaper first. Based on his history, I'm betting it'll be Luke!




I can already tell from the look in his eye - "Hey, mom, are you sure she can handle me sitting on her lap?! I don't want to squish her!" And I think Audrey's probably thinking in the same thing, but she puts on a brave face and doesn't say anything. But I know what she's thinking: "Just hurry and take the picture! Seriously, mom! My legs are going numb!"


Aside from how big he is getting, Luke is also working on his motor skills - here he is getting ready to roll over from his belly to his back.




He did it the first time a few weeks ago and he's only improving. I love watching him figure things out and develop.

He's even getting better at sitting up - he still needs a little support from us,




but I think someday really soon he'll be able to do it all by himself. He can support himself for a few seconds at a time but he's still working on improving his balance - he's still pretty top-heavy. (You would be too if your cheeks made up about 40% of your total body weight!)

Oh, but I wouldn't trade those cheeks for anything!




They are incredible!

Luke is also built with an innate love for his sister. I wish I could adequately describe the way he looks at her. It's like awe and admiration and just pure joy that fills his eyes whenever she's around. And the huge smile that accompanies these looks is just as indescribable. I can tell they really love each other already - and that is awesome to witness.




I just hope it stays that way even after Luke is able to crawl and get into Audrey's stuff.

Why you don't leave your laptop unattended...

Yes, this is what I found on our bed after I left the room for just a few minutes. Chalk this one up to another lesson learned at the hands of a toddler.

Audrey and I were looking at videos of herself (her newest favorite activity) on our laptop yesterday morning, when I had to use the restroom... well, she was having so much fun that I decided I would just be very quick; and what harm could be done in the few short minutes she would be alone with the computer? I found out.




I walked back into the room and this is what I found.



Twenty-one keys pried off of the keyboard. And a bunch of the teeny, tiny brackets that hold the keys to the board... can you tell I'm not very technological?

I felt like crying. And as I was scolding Audrey about not listening to Mommy about not touching any buttons... it instantly became very clear this was not Audrey's fault. It was mine. How can I expect a two year old to treat my laptop as anything else but a wonderful toy to explore?



And really, no serious harm was done. I was able to put most of the keys back on. And I learned about how keyboards are constructed all at the same time! I was only stumped on two of the keys - the teeny, tiny brackets on them had the small hinge part broken off, so I'll just have to see if I can buy those and replace the broken ones.





And I'll know for next time that no matter how fast I am, Audrey is apparently faster!






"I pity the fool who underestimates me!"

Feel Good Moment

So the other day I was flipping through channels and landed on The Bonnie Hunt Show at the very end of it and saw this cute video clip. It is so cute and a perfect example of gratitude. Please watch it. It will make your day.



Isn't that so nice?!? I get misty every time I watch it.