Luke's 1st Birthday Party

It's been so long since I've updated this blog thing, but that doesn't mean there hasn't been anything going on.... just the opposite! I'm finally posting because I had to share some pics and a recap on Luke's 1st birthday party. Our little guy's birthday isn't until the 26th, but we are heading to Denver to get together with the McKinstry side of the family that weekend. So we threw a local party for him this weekend, and the family came to help celebrate. Tom & Ruth, Kellie, Brett & Abby, Kristen (and Zac stopped by when work allowed), Grammy Sharon & Papa Jim and Gabe, Nancy & Jameson. It was a beautiful day. Seth put his new grill to work, bbqing a pork roast for pulled pork sandwiches - yum. Surrounded by family and friends, it was a wonderful day! A great way to celebrate Luke's 1st year!

the birthday cake - those are starburst and laffy taffys used for the words and border.... Don't worry. We switched out a plain frosted cake for when Luke dove in.

Look how big these boys are getting!

Jameson checking his email

Ella was more than happy to help

climbing up on the box one of his toys came in - boxes make the best gifts

checking out the new cars and racetrack

Seth and I with our Little Man

happy family

white on white.... hard to see the cake with white frosting that

I'm putting in front of Luke. We didn't even try to actually light the

candle with the breeze blowing.

Yum!

Sharing with Jameson.... he's in training for the big "1" in July.

i think he likes it

Looking out for Mom

Ella cracks me up. On nights when we're eating a dinner that she likes and approves of, she'll look at me and say, "good dinner, Mom!" I'll tell her thanks, and then before he even has a chance to say anything, she'll look at Seth and say, "now you say it". It is so funny! She's got my back!

Luke Pics - 11 months

Next month at this time, I'll be posting pictures from Luke's 1st birthday!! It really doesn't seem possible.

Coug fan

I love this picture.... Serena and Luke, eye to eye

mmmmm, pancakes

artwork by Si

I love this boy

comin' at ya

Luke is always on the move these days....loves to stand up

hanging out with cousin Jameson

Mr. Smiles

standing up in the crib - he shocked himself, can you tell?

EASTER

It was a busy Easter weekend, and get this - the weather was gorgeous!! We hadn't planned on it, but we went to the Easter egg hunt at Riverfront Park downtown on Sat morning because the weather was so nice. We just wanted to be outside in the sun! There were tons of people, which we expected, but it was a good time. The egg hunt itselt was a little nutty...... 2 huge roped off grassy areas with 100's of eggs inside. When the clock struck noon, the kids were given the ok and off they all ran to scoop up as many eggs as they could. Ella got 5 I think. There were more for the taking, but she was pretty overwhelmed with the whole spectacle. I was just relieved to get at least one and that there were no tears..... Luke was happy, sitting safely in the stroller, away from the crowds. After the egg hunt we walked up to an Earth Day street fair that was also going on downtown and then headed to Red Robin and the Mall in the Valley. Whew! A long day! Easter morning, the kids slept in a bit so we did our own quick egg hunt and unveiling of the Easter baskets before getting ready for church. After church we headed to Kristen's folks' house - Tom & Ruth - for a wonderful dinner with their family and friends. Thanks Tom & Ruth for a wonderful afternoon!

these eggs need some color!

ready!

plastic eggs - yum!

Carousel rides are the best!

running from the garbage eating goat

the happy hunter

Easter baskets....yea!

family pic

in their Easter best

Ella & Abby after their Easter Egg Hunt at Tom & Ruth's

Making his move.....

It's been a nice, peaceful 11 months. That peace and calm that came from Luke staying in one place has now come to an end. He's slowly putting it together and is getting from one place to another when he really wants to. There's no crawling yet...it's more of a military crawl or scoot. He pulls with his elbows and digs in with his toes to propel himself forward. It's not very effecient, but it does the trick for now. He still gets defeated pretty easily.... especially in this video. I pulled out the camera a little late to catch his full energy attempts. This is just the beginning....

Working on a mouthful

Luke seems determined to be cutting a tooth constantly. He's got 3 that are impossible to miss (can you see in the pic above?) The 4th - the other front tooth on top - is just slowly pushing it's way through. Definitely not the funnest part of being a baby! Luke is also expanding his vocabulary lately. Seth and I are taking turns saying, "did you hear that?", as he strings together noises that sound a little like mama and dada. So fun!

Thinking spring

We have seen mostly the dark and dreary side of Spring around here until lately and we are so ready for more sun and warmer temps! It's been so hard to wait to get outside again. There have been a few days here and there to head out, and Ella loves her new scooter!