A New Man!

Luke's tubes are in! The Surgery went smoothly (and quickly!). Luke did not cry when he missed his morning feeding and he was a champ when we said goodbye when they wheeled him into surgery. The Dr. said he ranks the amount of fluid in children's ears on a scale of 1 to 6 and Luke was a 7! We are trying to be quiet around him because normal noises are sounding louder to him today (Brent got a pan out of the cabinet and Luke jumped at the sound! I guess we didn't notice he wasn't hearing all of the noises that we adults drown out, until now.)!

Missing his morning feeding:

Some things I do not want to forget about today:

- We were about 5 minutes late getting out of the door this morning and it was raining which slowed us down. Traffic wasn't backed up yet (it was 6:00 after all!) but we were glad to roll into the parking garage. The Volvo SUV next to us must have been a little later than us because he zoomed past us and sort of cut Brent off to park in the doctor parking. Brent said in his silly sarcastic voice, "Well, excuse ME, Doctor!" Then I said, "Unless you are Dr. Burkett" to which Brent responded, "Yeah... hurry up and get in there!" I thought it was funny.

- On our way up in the elevator, we met 2ish year old Stewart, also going into surgery-- heart surgery, which put my mind at ease about our minor outpatient procedure. As they were playing in the waiting room keeping him occupied, they were video taping Stewart and he raised his shirt up to show where his new heart was going to be- his dad placed his hands over his face and wept. All I could do was silently pray for that young family and sweet Stewart's heart while thanking God for my Luke.

- We met up with Luke in recovery they handed him off to me with a bottle of APPLE JUICE (making sure he wasn't going to aspirate after anesthesia)... this was his first encounter with juice and he lapped it up-- I don't know if he liked the taste or if he was just starved from his 9 hour fast, or both!)

Waiting his turn on the stretcher:

I don't know who looks more relieved here!

Resting comfortably (that is his $400 bear in his left hand-- ie... copay and deductible :) Worth EVERY penny!

Goddies from our sweet friends and family:

6 Months!

Our little guy is 6 months today... I can barely write this without tears welling up! I really didn't want to be "that" mom, but turns out "those moms" can't help it! This month has been a fun one! Luke has just begun holding his arms out when he knows we are picking him up... he holds his mouth wide open to kiss me back when I kiss him... he babels non-stop and loves to squeel in the mornings... if we put our face close to his, he pulls on our noses, hair, ears as if to feel what he is seeing... as much as I want time to stand still so I can soak it all in, I love as each day passes by to see what he will do next. When I look at him, I try to picture him in 2 years, 5 years and 10 years and it overwhelms me. To think of all that is ahead of him, good and bad, is bitter-sweet. Just this past week, we were working on him sitting up and he did the slow motion fall to the side then bumpped his head on a toy-- he immediately began to cry and it was the first time I got to scoop him up to console my boy-- it broke my heart (my baby was hurting) and melted it (how many more times will he let me hold him this closely?) all at the same time. So, I enter this month with mixed emotions-- thrilled that we have made it to 6 months learning all there is to know about our baby, but sad to think in 6 more, Luke's first year of life will be a memory. Tear.

Eating- Take 2

We have had a hard time getting Luke to enjoy dinner time. He initially liked it the first time we tried and since, he has tearily gotten through it-- he gave us about 2 weeks of sleeping through the night and we attributed that to cereal, but he just wasn't enjoying it. As much as I love food and all things sensory, this was hard to watch! So, we decided to lay off for a week and just let Luke sit in his high chair while we ate, reverting back to a liquid diet and midnight feedings. Last night, we tried again, manipulating several variables from many discussions with my mommy friends. The winning combination is WARM, OATMEAL cereal with APPLES and BANANAS mixed in. He also likes Sweet potatoes. (He does not like cold anything, green beans, green peas, or rice cereal-- I am pretty sure this is God getting Brent and I back for being picky eaters!) So, we are going to ride this wave of the "winning combination" for awhile and see if we can get more smiles at dinner time! Wish us luck!

Happy Baby!

Momma showing Luke how to chew a strawberry (in between singing verses of "I like to eat, eat, eat, apples and bananas.... I like to oat, oat, oat, opples and bononos, etc." Not even kidding you.

Daddy celebrating dinner time was over by bringing out the Tickle Monster.

Shout Outs!

Over the past few weeks, I have come to find (and appreciate) a few of you checking our blog often by comments you have made to me! I love it and thank you for being interested in our lives (as dull as we may be at times :) So, here is a nod to our loyal following ;)

- Jennifer E.- The minute I post a new topic (at work or otherwise :), my coworker Jennifer tells me how cute Luke is, etc. I guess we both blog on our "breaks"! ;)
- David T.- I didn't know guys cared, but love that one of our friends in Sunday School reads my ramblings! He is on the next Crawfish Boil invite list, for sure!
- Christy K.- My soon to be sister-in-law calls my brother-in-law to tell him when I post a new topic and to check out the pictures! I love it!
- Ginger P.- One of my friends in High School that I recently reconnected with leaves me comments regularly... makes me feel special!

Thanks everyone! We are thankful for your friendships!

ENT Consult

Luke is scheduled for tubes next Thursday. They start with the youngest patient, so he will be going first at the 7:30 time slot. We met with the ENT yesterday and I LOVE him. Luke's pediatrician gave me a list of ENTs that he recommended (their pictures were on the list). I choose the oldest ENT so he would have plenty of practice! And, yes, I checked that his hands were steady... we are good to go! The ENT specialist said that Luke's ear infections have never gone away and there is a lot of build up (the consistency of glue) sitting in his middle ear. This would affect his speech development if we would not address this now because Luke hears as if he is under water. The ENT Specialist did say this is the happiest baby he has ever seen in Luke's condition! He put Luke on his 5th antibiotic to try to get relief before surgery day (although having an ear infection at the time of surgery would not dealy it).

We would ask for your prayers for Luke's little ears... although it is a routine procedure, it is still surgery and he will still be under anesthesia. He has to go so long (I am not sure how long- we get details at the Pre-op visit next week) without food and water, so I am sure that will be traumatic Wednesday night and Thursday morning. Pray also for his Momma to remain calm too-- these things usually affect me more than him! We will let you know how it goes next week.

Crawfish Boil 2009

We had our first "annual" Crawfish Boil this weekend... what a fun time and yummy food! Here is the play by play!

We "borrowed" Allie's swimming pool to keep the Crawfish contained-- she probably will not be getting it back:

The Sort:

Washing (after they added salt to make the crawfish THROW UP the mud in their bellies!):

The Guys-- the girls took a quick peek, but let the men do the dirty work:

The Girls-- poor Holly got stuck chopping onions and bell peppers for the dirty rice and I outsourced Luke's bottle to Leah-- these girls are wonderful!:

The "Dead Ones" (see cooler):

Boiling-- I could hear the little boogers squealing as they hit the water:

The End Result-- Well worth the effort!:

Oh, NO he did NOT suck the head!!!

Ah--Done.

Naked Baby!

Happy Anniversary!

Today, we celebrate four years- What a ride it has already been! Brent, I began our relationship loving you, and now I am actually getting to KNOW your heart as the years progress. Through the knowing, my love has grown deeper and more appreciative of the person God picked for me! We have moved away from our families to an unfamiliar city, you have worked long hours in a job that was dropped in your lap with little explanation, we have experienced the loss of a family member, we have made amazing friends, we bought our first house, we had our first child, you passed the CPA, we have gone on wonderful vacations, and we have experienced medical roadblocks. You have become a "handy man" around the house, a fisherman, a "grill master", a financial planner, a landscape connoisseur, a compassionate husband, an engaged Daddy... I have seen you stretch and grow into this man I admire and trust. You challenge me, you encourage me, you protect me, you humble me, you see my ugly side and love me the same. You are a blessing to me-- and you are the only person I want to go through this life with. With all my heart, I love you.

Random Pictures

That bunny started to nibble at Luke's toes and the photographer threw a carrot at the bunny to make it stop! I guess Luke's toes looked like mini carrots!

"Talking" to the creepy snake puppet... just this week he has found the button that makes the cow go "moo"!

Crawling-- Failed Attempts

Luke is not a fan of being on his tummy... we are just now to the point that he won't pitch a fit when we turn him on his belly. Here he is figuring out how to pull up to his knees, but he doesn't understand putting his hands under him to raise up, so he remains in a half crawl with a nice face plant!

My Birthday

Wow! I feel loved and wished well! From new plants, to hairdryers, to new shoes, to gift cards, to smelly lotions, to massage certificates, I have been spoiled! Thank you for all of the phone calls, emails, and text messages... I am a lucky girl to have you all in my life. And the answer to your question is... YES... I do feel older this year. And, it is ALL Luke's fault, that stinker! Brent took me to Benihana's for a Birthday Dinner before we left for Honey's! He knows the way to my heart!

Easter

As much as I LOVE celebrating Jesus's birth at Christmas, Easter holds so much more meaning for me... what a wonderful time for reflection on the sacrifice Jesus made on my behalf so that I can be with Him eternally! What an awesome love God has for me, knowing he would bring a Son into the world to live among the worst of sinners, letting them mock Him and beat Him. When all I do is think about how to protect Luke and keep him from harm, God GAVE his perfect, spotless Son knowing what He would have to physically endure. But, oh how proud the Father must have been to see his Son, rise from the dead, victoriously over death! Thank you Lord for saving me, thank you for resurection power!

Granna brought lots of goodies in a Thomas The Train Easter Basket:

Luke loves to stand up and look around:

Honey holding our squirmy 17 pounder:

Luke wearing his "Have You Seen My Honey" Overalls:

That Easter Bunny always finds us!

Ear Infection #4 buys Luke Tubes

We had a re-check for Luke's ears to make sure his last infection had cleared up-- both ears are still infected (or reinfected), so we have an appointment with a pediatric ENT later this month. Hopefully we can give our baby some sweet relief soon. What a little trooper...

Opening Day

In the 4 years of our marriage, I have never bought hot dogs to make at home... too many Food Science classes ruined them for me. Last week, Brent called me from work and told me to put hot dogs on my mental grocery list in a tone that I new I'd better oblige! (I don't mess with his love for his 'Stros!) So, we wore our Astros shirts and had hot dogs while watching opening day at home... it was a nice start to the season.