Giving Thanks

It was wonderful to spend time with the Bickel/Wire/Castillo clan for Thanksgiving this year. Luke, as always, love to "work the room," making sure all eyes were on him. He loves to laugh and nothing gives him more happiness to see others laughing. Now that Luke is walking around and clapping, everyone around him is always laughing. It was wonderful to see Great-Grandpa and Great-Grandma having so much fun with him.

Generations together.

Thanksgiving time is also Great Grandpa's birthday. Luke loves wrapping paper and tissue paper, so he was thrilled to have a birthday party too!

Great-Grandma's Thanksgiving dinner for Luke - he loved it! He loved the turkey and the stuffing. And of course, Uncle Joe's sweet potatoes. The brown sugar made them especially delicious!

Daddy gave a few bites of Cool Whip as a desert - such a spoiled boy!

Going out! Part I.

Thanks to Grandma and Grandpa Rosbrugh, we were able to attend a friend's wedding. As much as we love Luke and love spending time as a family, we do enjoy getting out and enjoying our time alone. When Luke was first born, it seemed our hands were always full, always busy. It was rare that we weren't busy in one way or another. Anytime our hands and arms were empty, we would happily look at each other, say "We should hug!" and obviously hug. It kept us strong and reminded us that even though things were hectic, we still loved each other very much. And I always think of that when we're out alone - We should hug! And we do.

Playing at the Park

While the weather still isn't too cold or rainy, we decided to go to the park and play for a little bit. Luke is now walking (though rather tentatively) which made roaming around the grass pretty fun. He always hated the feeling of grass on his hands, so he would refuse to crawl.

Luke is still not too sure about the swings, but he enjoys going down the slide with daddy. We're hoping to squeeze in a few more trips to the park before the weather becomes too "wintry."

Fall Pictures

We decided to send out Halloween cards this year with pictures of Luke. We had planned to go to the pumpkin patch, but between a tight schedule and rainy weather, we simply didn't make it out. But I was bound and determined to get cute fall pictures so the front yard would simply have to do.

Sounds great, right? It was - until our normally quiet street turned into a popular thoroughfare. Luke is all about cars (Daddy's boy) so every car that passed caught his attention. It was a moth to a flame. We really had to carefully time the pictures, and even then it was difficult.

What I loved about the pictures was his intensity - about everything. The cars, the grass, the leaves. I was impressed - not once did he try to crumple the leaves. Luke kept turning it over and over again. He held the leaf away from him, he held it close. He held it with one hand and then with two. But always very delicately. As rough and tumble as Luke is, he's still a thinker. I love that.

Halloween

We had a difficult time this year deciding on a costume for Luke. He has such a personality that a typical baby costume just didn't seem fitting. I knew I would make something, but there were just too many ideas to choose from. Originally we were all going to dress up: Luke as Popeye, Todd as Bluto and Noella as Olive Oyle. But as we weren't going to a party, that just seemed like too much work. Since Luke turns as red as a tomato when he gets angry, we always call him "Jack Jack" from "The Incredibles." So we finally decided on that. We took Luke over to Trick or Treat at Grandma and Grandpa's house and they loved it! He played the part well - turning red and yelling when he was excited. Instead of candy, Luke trick or treated for Cheerios!

Great Grandma's Birthday

We all went to visit Great-Grandma for her birthday this last October. We had a great time driving up to Gridley with Grandma, Grandpa, Mommy and Daddy. Grandpa's new ride is pretty sweet! Great-Grandma was so excited to finally meet Luke. Having everyone together for the weekend was wonderful.

We remembered all of Luke's things but completely forgot our own suitcase. Oy. There was a late night rush to Kohls just for a few important things. What a weekend . . .