Happy 1st Birthday Lucas!!

My baby is 1!!!  It is so crazy how fast his first year has flown by.  I haven't even updated my blog in two months! This blog post might be a little long, but I promise lots of pictures too!!

I love all of his expressions!

Lucas is such a blessing to this family.  We waited for so long to be blessed with a second child and I thank God everyday that he hand picked Lucas for our family in His perfect time!! 

Lucas is still growing like crazy.  At his one year appointment he weighed 26lbs 10oz (98th percentile) and he was 32 1/4 in (>98th percentile)!  I always think it is funny when they use the > symbol.  Lucas is just a big boy and I love every single ounce of him!  He is currently wearing 18-24 month clothes and size 4 diapers.  He moved to drinking whole milk a couple weeks before he turned one.  He switched over with no issues.  He eats all table food and we haven't really come across anything he doesn't like.  Some of his favorites are Cheerios, chicken nuggets from Chick-Fil-A, and green beans. 

Enjoying some Chick-Fil-A nuggets

Cheerios!!

Since his 10 month post we also found out that Lucas has a problem swallowing.  He had to have a swallow study done.  A swallow study is when he drinks his bottle with barium during an x-ray and the radiologist can see where the food goes.  During this swallow study we found out that he actually has been aspirating his formula.  The scary part is some of the times he aspirated he didn't even choke or cough.  We were suspicious something was wrong because at about 9 months he started choking on his bottles and would wake up at night with a bad cough.  Now we have to thicken all liquids he drinks.  This has added some extra frustration with feeding and weaning from the bottle.  He has to use straw sippy cups because of this too.  He is now drinking from a straw with no problem!!  He is pretty much weaned from the bottle, but still takes a night time bottle.  He would probably take a sippy cup then, but we just haven't tried it.  He is supposed to grow out of this problem, but the doctors can't give me any kind of time frame. We will just have to keep repeating the swallow study until he is cleared.  

During the swallow study

Drinking from a straw like a big boy

Other big news for Lucas is that he now is officially walking!!!  He just started in the last week or so.  Right now he is about half and half walking and crawling.  It is so cute to watch him figure it all out.  Andrew is so funny too because he gets so excited every time Lucas hits a new developmental milestone!  Lucas is so physical.  He loves to push things around the house like stools, chairs, large toys, and really anything that he can physically move.  I am pretty sure he could start his own moving company.  He can also climb the stairs and loves to do it, but don't worry we have the stairs gated and we only let him do it supervised.  I think he just wants to keep up with his big brother.

Lucas is such a lover!!  His face lights up every time he sees Andrew, Mommy, or Daddy.  He loves people in general and will let most people hold him.  He is becoming less and less of a cuddler.  He will always cuddle at night before bed in the rocking chair.  He is going through a phase where he cries when we first lay him down to sleep.  He just wants someone to hold him :(  Sometimes I will hold him and rock with him for a while even though it is not helping the situation.  He is still an amazing sleeper and sleeps from about 8:30-8:00 and still takes 2 naps most days.

Playing with Alissa at the Children's Museum

Hanging out with my BFF Patrick in the church nursery

Spending some more time at the Children's Museum with my other BFF Carter

He only has a few words right now, but seems to understand what I say.  He says Dada and yes all of the time.  I finally figured out that he calls me Nana (sounds like Mama but with an N) and he very rarely says Mama.  He sometimes says all done and more.  He still loves music and loves to dance.  He loves books.  He loves going in the playroom with Andrew now.  They will sit in there and destroy it everyday.  Andrew and Lucas can't get enough of each other and I am sure this bond will only grow as they get older.  My heart melts watching them together!

They make me smile everyday

Love them!!

For Lucas's first birthday we decided to do a baseball theme.  We had a few friends over and our family to celebrate.  Lucas seemed to have fun being passed around and playing with his little buddies.  He was so funny to watch with his cake.  He first knocked the entire cake off his high chair but it was still in one piece so I put it back up there.  He wasn't very interested in the cake at all.  He played with it a little and ate a few bites, but wasn't very impressed.  I couldn't believe it because I thought he would love it.  It is always so nice to have family in town and friends here to help celebrate. 

Playing with Patrick

Trying to figure this whole cake thing out

Not too sure about this

Present time 

Checking out his new toy

Spending good time with Dylan and Tyler

We had his one year pictures taken yesterday so hopefully those will be coming soon.  It is sad to say goodbye to the baby days, but I love watching Lucas grow and watching his little personality take shape.  Time is going to fly by with or without me, so everyday I take time to slow down and appreciate the phase we are in.  I try to really enjoy everyday with them even when it feels busy and hectic.  There will be a day when the house is quiet and I will long for a busy frustrating day.  I love being a Mommy to these boys and thank God for them everyday!!  

Happy Birthday to my sweet baby boy Lucas!!!  I love you so much!!

Lucas 10 Months

This little guy is keeping us on our toes!! I can't believe it is time to start planning his first birthday! These monthly pictures are getting so hard to take. He has no interest in sitting still.

 

 

 

The sticker is just so fun to pull off now!

 

Lucas is pulling up on everything and cruises along furniture like a pro. He loves everything that is dangerous. You cannot take your eyes off of him for a second. He really isn't a fan of baby toys much anymore. He wants Andrew's toys or things that are not baby friendly. I love that his little personality is really starting to come out now.

He loves this outlet and it has actually cut him.

I guess picture frames are fun too!

We have been doing a little more reading lately.

We still have an obsession with music! He loves Mark's guitar.

 

 

 

 

Lucas went for his first swim and he loves the water!! Both boys had a blast!

Our biggest news is that he got his first tooth! He actually has three now! Two on top and one on bottom. He has been working on these teeth for months now.

 

Easter Weekend

Happy Easter one week late!! We had such an amazing weekend! Thank God the weather is starting to turn around. It is weekends like this that remind me to be thankful for all of the beautiful things that God has put in my life!!

 

On Friday we headed out to Cincinnati for a quick visit. I was able to go out to dinner with my friends from high school. It was so great to catch up and I love them so much. Every time I see them it makes me miss home!! I love that we can all get together and just be ourselves. It is like we were never apart! There was a group picture taken but my phone died so I didn't get it. Mark and the boys stayed with Andrea's husband and boys. So thankful the guys stayed with the kids to give us a girls night out.

 

The next day we went to an Easter Egg Hunt that Andrea organized. We also met my family for lunch after the egg hunt. My mom had to work pretty much the whole time we were in town so we didn't get to spend a lot of time with her. Here are a few pictures from the morning.

 

 

Definitely forgot an Easter basket, Kroger bag will do!

 

Andrew, Dylan, and Lola

 

Had to check out the real bunny. I love that Andrew is a little sketchy with petting animals just like his Mommy.

Wish there could be more play dates with these kids!

On Sunday we went to church. It was a great service! My friend Stephanie and her family decided to check out our church that morning so we got to see them too. Here are the boys after church.

We started outside but that wasn't working well.

These two melt my heart!!

We had to work pretty hard for these pictures!

 

My boys, love them!

We decided to go to an Indians game in the afternoon. The weather was perfect!! Lucas hung out in the carrier and napped for a while. Andrew watched the game and then went on the hunt to find Rowdie.

 

 

We got the boys hats and the same hats that fit the boys fit me. Big baby head problems can be a benefit at times!

This was probably one of the best parts of the day for Andrew!

Andrew got to run the bases after the game. Which you may remember that he has done before, but today he decided to mix it up a little and go to third base first. I mean why not, that is where Rowdie is standing?!

He got back on track after third base, so he got to pass Rowdie twice.

I think it is safe to say that he had fun!! Daddy caught him the ball he is holding!

We went home after the game and cooked out. It was such a great weekend!! Hope everyone had a great Easter!