Great Wolf Lodge Vacation

Lucas at 37 weeks

This week Lucas attended his very first birthday party!  Lucas's friend, Baby A, mailed him an invitation and he was pretty psyched.  He practically BEGGED me to take him.  All of the children at the party had a great time.  Baby A is a girl, totally unfamiliar territory for me, so I got to go shopping for fun little girl outfits.  Notice that Lucas is so busy playing in these pictures that I cannot get a good shot of his face.

Lucas at 36 weeks

Lucas is an extremely active child.  I thought I would take a picture that is truly representative of life with Lucas lately.  He is always on the move and I feel like I stare at the back of his head while he takes off and gets into things.

Lucas plays with his toys.  The thing that looks like a lawnmower on the right is a Christmas gift from his Aunt Ryan.

I couldn't end a post without sharing a picture of my son's beautiful face!

Lucas at 35 weeks

The sign always fascinates me.

Isn't Lucas's custom made ECU Pirates diaper adorable?!

Lucas is pretty darling in this picture but I had to post another shot of the diaper!

Lucas gets so many unsolicited compliments on his gorgeous blue eyes!

I'm so glad I have pictures of Lucas in his custom made ECU Pirates diaper.  I met a neat local mom named Shannon Hines recently.  As it turns out, Shannon is a cloth diaper freak just like me!  We love cloth diapers, appreciate a good pair of yoga Capri pants, and have beautiful sons.  Of course we clicked instantly.  We started talking shop about cloth diapering and Shannon told me that she started her own cloth diapering business, Hines Cushy Tushies.  Shannon sews amazingly cute and functional cloth diapers in her home.  She told me that her cloth diapering do-it-yourself extravaganza began when she could not find a cloth diaper that would keep her baby dry for a whole night.  I was having the same problem so I asked Shannon to sew me one with ECU Pirates fabric.  Lucas loves it, OBVIOUSLY, and I love it because I no longer have to change his crib sheets on a daily basis.  Hines Cushy Tushies are made with love and you can find them/Shannon on Facebook.  Thanks, Shannon!

Lucas at 34 weeks

Lucas fell asleep during a diaper change.  The photo opportunity was too cute to pass us.

Lucas at 33 weeks

Lucas returns to the baby corral/super yard yet again for another group of wonderful pictures.  At least I finally dressed him in something other than pajamas and he is awake.  Points for me! 

Maybe if I swat at the sign no one will notice how chubby my cheeks have gotten.

It's worth a try, isn't it?

Give me my sign back!

When all else fails total cuteness will get me through any situation.

Do you my halo shining brightly?

Lucas at 32 weeks

Again I photograph Lucas wearing the red sleeper.  I'm amazed we got so much use from one article of clothing.  If you are a parent of an active child and do not own a super yard or baby corral, they are definitely worth the investment.  In these pictures Lucas is playing in his.  He loves it and it gives me an opportunity to do things, like update the blog, while keeping Lucas safe.  Due to Lucas's appetite for paper I have had to get more clever about how I display the sign in the picture.  Sticky notes are amazing!

There is life outside the baby corral.  I can see it.

Teething biscuit?

Yes!  I get a teething biscuit if I just look cute for a couple more minutes.

Lucas is really hamming it up in hopes of getting the teething biscuit.

I am a baby with a limited amount of patience and I'd like the teething biscuit now if you don't mind.  Please and thank you.

Lucas at 31 weeks

In these pictures we prove that Andrew, Lucas's dad, still exists and my two favorite guys enjoy some cuddle time.

You can tickle me with your beard if you want to, but it will not prevent you from turning 40 this week!

Lucas loves being loved.

Lucas at 30 weeks

Look at my sweet face!

Lucas at 29 weeks

It must seem that Lucas did nothing but sleep for several weeks but that is far from reality.  I've never been a creative photographer and this week I was horribly ill.  Dad took over the photography and this is the result.

Mom's armpit sure makes me tired!

First sickness

Lucas had his first disease: Hand-foot-mounth - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hand,_foot_and_mouth_disease
We had few sleepless nights and he is all good now.

Lucas and his toy

Restaurant visit

New shoes

Few nice pictures

Lucas and the recorder ... first steps with musical instruments

Lucas and the broom

Lucas plays with the broom a second time with added gusto.

Couple days later ....

Lucas in a cage

Another swimming for Lucas ... this time with a ball

Lucas talking

Laughter

Lucas at 25 weeks

In keeping with tradition I have titled this post "Lucas at 25 weeks."  If I were totally upfront, honest, and using this blog as a means of communicating the realities of our lives and chronicling the day-to-day goings on of our family, it would be titled something like "Lucas's mom is a big slacker." 

By the way, to all of those moms out there who have children whose named end in "s," the rules of apostrophe usage have changed.  It is no longer kosher to just tack on an apostrophe to a child's name that already ends in "s."  Now we have to treat an "s"-ending name like it isn't one and still do the whole apostrophe + "s" thing.  When I was a kid we made Chris possessive by turning it into "Chris'".  This isn't the best demonstration of apostrophe usage because it gets camoflagued by the quotation marks.  Oh well.  It's incorrect now anyway and should be "Chris's."  I should write a song with lyrics involving as many names ending in "s" as possible, ensure that it is catchy, and encourage 6 year-old happy, off-key soprano singing females to sing it to their parents (all members of the English language police, of course)...incessantly.  What is more beautiful than a child's voice?  A tribe of extra apostrophe "s" pronouncing, snake hissing she-bandits will erase motherly love from the planet entirely.

Just so you know.....  I'm annoyed by this secretly issued mandate from the English language police.  Why wasn't I officially informed?  And in a timely manner?

I'm not going to edit old posts to reflect the new rule.  I guess the grammar police will have to hunt me down after reading all of my old posts about "Lucas' _____" and beat me with a giant wooden exclamation point.

Oh, and, I'm definitely not a big nerd or anything....

What's more interesting than my hand in the air?  My hand stuck in a SLEEVE in the air!

If my mom were a better photographer she would take fewer pictures with giant shadows across my face.  But she isn't.  So I'm just going to go with it.

Lucas at 24 weeks

Which one is the real baby?

I am beginning to notice that only having a male child is affecting me in interesting ways.  This is a picture of Lucas with the doll I bought him.  Yes, I bought my little man child a doll.  I have never been one of those "children-belong-to-the-universe-and-therefore-shouldn't-be-immediately-engendered" parents who dresses their child in only unisex clothing and doesn't believe in giving kids haircuts until age 3.  But lately I'm feeling the testosterone overload in my household and find myself reaching for more femininity.  So I bought my male child a doll. 

In my defense, Lucas somewhat chose the doll for himself.  So maybe I'm the one who took it from the shelf in the store, held it in his face, discovered that the doll laughs when you push on his belly, and made a fool of myself in public to get Lucas to enjoy the doll even more.  But, hey, Lucas laughs when the baby doll laughs and that's pretty cute.  Other than that, Lucas just chews on the baby's hands and feet.  So maybe the doll is more for me than Lucas little more than Lucas's favorite teething toy, but the laughter and comfort of a child are priceless, right?

Lucas's Godmother recently told me about an article she read.  Apparently male children who grow up playing with baby dolls make better fathers.  This means that I made the right choice in buying my son a baby doll.  Also, forcing it on him for my joy because I don't have a daughter ensuring that he engages in play situations involving the expression of care for a more helpless human being will make him a better adult.  So there.  There is research and it is proven. 

Lucas at 28 weeks

This picture was taken after Lucas was horribly sunburned.  More on that later...  I think that I started taking pictures of Lucas sleeping because he was beginning to grab the signs you see in his weekly pictures and shove them in his mouth.

Mom loves dressing me in this red and white sleeper.  I will just lie here and dream of having variety in my wardrobe.

Lucas at 27 weeks

My infant seat is so comfortable!  I think I'll just nap and let Mom and Dad handle the rest...

Lucas at 26 weeks

Yes, I am far behind on posting weekly pictures of Lucas.  But they are so much fun to see!  Enjoy!

Being in the baby swing is so relaxing!

Lucas eats pears

Pureed avocado didn't go over so well, but I redeemed myself as a baby chef by preparing pureed pears for Lucas.  They were a big hit.  I must thank Lucas' grandmother, Mimi, for giving us a wonderful baby food making machine, the Beaba Babycook.  It has made making meals for Lucas so easy.  It is compact and simple.  It steams and purees food all in one machine.  It comes with great instructions and I am amazed at the amount of food I can make for Lucas with just a few fruits or veggies.  Three pears costing under $4 made about fifteen meals for Lucas.  Fifteen containers of store-bought baby food is close to $15.  So way to go, Mom!  Thanks for the great gift.  Here is a link to a more in-depth description of the awesomeness of the Beaba Babycook and, as usual, below are more pictures of Lucas.

Pears are so good that I think I will take over this whole process.

Bite of pears, bite of duck.  Thanks, Aunt Ryan, for the wonderful rubber ducky!

I've got my duck, my pears, and a lot of attention.  I am content.

What else can I do with this spoon?

A dirty face, a dirty bib, and a boy doing the full-belly-stare-off-into-space.  Nap time awaits! 

It's not easy eating green

A lot of new and wonderful things have been going on in Lucas' world.  A few weeks ago Lucas ate cereal for the first time.  Now that he is six months old we have started solids.  Our first try with solid food was pureed avocado.  I thought avocado would be a good first food because the likelihood of an allergic reaction is slim, it is easy to prepare, and it was endorsed by a pediatrician's wife.  Also, Lucas' mom--yours truly--loves guacamole.  I thought fondness for all things avocado was definitely ingrained in Lucas' DNA and he would adore his first solid meal of pureed avocado.  Yeah, that didn't happen.  What did happen was this.

A happy baby eagerly awaits his first bites of solid food.

This is not what I expected.

Do you see the tear forming in my right eye?  That means I HATE THIS.

I'm two more spoonfuls away from having a major meltdown.

I am stunned.  I just didn't think it could ever happen to me.

Let me out!  No more!

Lucas at 23 weeks

I am going to have to get more creative with Lucas' posing for the weekly pictures.  If you look at the weekly picture posts there is a recurring theme. 

Play yard?  Check!

Late at night?  Check!

Lucas lying on his back?  Check!

Lucas wearing a sleeper?  Check!

Lucas smiling?  Check!

*sigh* 

Being a stay-at-home mom in graduate school means that I am in the business of putting out fires.  As important as it is for me to document the journey and share it with family and friends, making sure that everybody is fed and clean takes priority.  I acknowledge that our weekly pictures are most likely predictable.  I will do my best to spice things up a bit.  If possible.  While I take a class.  And work on a project due in an hour.  On a computer with Windows in Polish.  One-handed.  With a crying baby.  Who needs food.  And is covered in poop. 

In other words, stay tuned for more pictures of Lucas smiling and wearing a sleeper while lying down in the play yard late at night!

The yellow and green turtle you see next to Lucas is a Christmas gift from his Aunt Dona.  It lights up and plays music and Lucas loves it!

I'm such a good sport and always smile for my mom!

Lucas at 22 weeks

These pictures epitomize our lives as parents.  It's getting late.  We are tired.  The baby is tired.  The sheets don't match.  Way too many activities that used to go on outside the bed are now happening in the bed.

Lucas poses mischievously.

Big grins help make the world go 'round.

It's good to be king!

We are getting tired.

I'm so happy to be developmentally capable of holding and mouthing this sign!