"YAY"

Luke is 15 and half months old, and we THINK he has finally said his first word... it's still a little muffled, and unclear, but he seems to be trying to say 'YAY'!

Usually, when Luke does something clever, or he listens when we give him an instruction, we clap for him and say, "Yay", or "Yay Luke"... recently, he started clapping at himself when he did something clever. It's very cute.

He likes to clap at himself when he closes the dishwasher door, or when he puts his stacking cups inside of each other when we play. (He can put them into each other if you give them to him in the correct order... he doesn't quite have the 'bigger and smaller' concept yet)

Then just the other day, he was getting into my nightstand drawer, which he knows he isn't allowed to do... I told him to close the drawer... so he closed it and clapped to himself and said what definitely sounded like an attempt at. "YAY"... it was more like, "AYE", but it was a definite try!

Since then we have heard a few more, "AYE's"

I am so excited to hear what he learns to say next... I think because it's taken him so long to say a single word, in my mind I had stopped imagining what it would be like when he spoke...I got so used to the constant grunting noises he made instead. Now I am excited to hear his little voice making proper sounds as he learns more words!

We are so proud of our growing little boy. He makes us so happy! :)

CHINA WEEK ADVENTURES AND A CUTE BOY!

I am long overdue for a blog update, but the past few weeks have been CRAZY! Week before last, Jake was in China for work (I have told him to do a blog post with some pics for you...) It was a tiring, long week for Luke and I being here without 'daddy', BUT, we made sure we stayed busy so that the 6 days Jake was gone would go by quickly, and so that Luke and I wouldn't drive each other loony with boredom. LOL.

On the Monday, we went swimming at a friends house. Luke used a big floating thingy, and was happy as can be floating around by himself!

Tuesday, was our friend Jo-Jo's birthday party, though I don't have any pictures from that!
Wednesday, we went with my friend Rachel, and her two boys Landon and Carson to the mall. The boys had fun playing with the train set in the bookstore, and then we took them to the pet store to look at the animals. Of course a trip to the mall wouldn't be complete without a cinnamon sugar soft pretzel and a cup of fresh lemonade. (It's become my mall tradition. LOL)

Thursday, I decided to host a 'Crayola Moms' tea party at our house. We had a nice group of moms and kiddies come over with treats to share and all the mommies enjoyed some lemonade and yummy food, while the little rascals all ran wild in the play room! It was great fun, and sooo convenient, because when Luke was tired and didn't want to play anymore, it was a 3 second walk down the passage and he was in his crib for a nap. I am definitely all for hosting things at our house rather than only going out!

Friday, a big group of us went the the Childrens Marble Museum in Raleigh. What a great museum. Kids can play there for HOURS. They have a little of everything. Such fun! It's a bit of a drive... about 50 minutes or so, but soooo worth it for a family outing with kids. Luke was really enjoying being able to run wild and actually be allowed to touch EVERYTHING. lol... something he doesn't usually have the freedom to do.
Unfortunately he had an accident about 30 minutes after we got there. My friends daughter, was running without looking, and ran Luke right over. Poor thing was just standing there, and then literally just got bulldozed over from the front. We happen to be in the corridor area at the time, not the play area... and the floors are hard granite. He ended up with 2 bumps on the side of his head, and some burst blood vessels in his ear lobe. I put an ice pack on it, and gave him some Tylenol because I am sure that caused a sizely headache. After that, he wasn't much in the mood for playing anymore.

These pics are too great... Jake had the good camera in China, and my flash wasn't working so well!



Since China, things have been JUST as crazy... Luke and I got sick pretty much within hours of Jake arriving home, and now 8 days later, I am still fighting the same old stubborn cold. Luke has been in really good spirits despite his cough and congestion. What a champ! Hopefully we will both be better in the next few days!

The next pictures are just random ones of things Luke has been up to lately. He is changing and learning so quickly. My baby is not such a baby anymore (hmmm...time for another baby maybe??? lol)

We don't feed Luke very often, so he finds alternate ways to survive... like 'stolen' ketchup! LOL



The result after a REAL dinner. LOL (Dinner time and bath time go hand in hand these days. LOL)

Lukes new 'trick' though it makes me VERY nervous! Jake taught him how to turn the lights on and off, and now he likes to climb up there and do it himself... just goes to show, you really need to be careful what you teach your kids. LOL

Such a cutie

He has also learned that he can ride his cars on the floor (or furniture), and it's really cute to watch him playing on the floor like a big boy. He is yet to do any sound effects while riding his cars around, but I guess that'll come after he learns to speak (which he still isn't doing)

Luke NEVER wears shoes.. it's just one of those things we gave up on. In fact, right now he doesn't even own any summer shoes that fit. He out grew his sandals, and we never bothered to replace them because he hated wearing them... we never forced the issue. I think babies/young kids have far healthier feet if they can grow naturally without the constriction of hard shoes. Anyway, with fall on the way shortly, he will need some shoes for the colder days. I spotted a genuine leather pair on clearance the other day, so I grabbed them. I thought they'd be cute for church or if he wears slightly smarter clothes. We tried them out today, with his very cute hand-me-down outfit. His feet looked so ginormous. LOL.. partly because the shoes are a little big (though there is only about 3/4 inch space by his toes, so any smaller and they wouldn't fit for very long), and partly because we are so used to seeing him barefoot. He looked so cute though. He looks like such a big boy these days.

And then ofcourse they came right off again as soon as we left church. Luke really would spend every minute totally naked and barefoot if he could. LOL


And that I believe is about everything that has happened since my last blog entry.