I'm ba-ack!

Brent and I had a relaxing, rejuvenating, fantastically warm and sunny vacation.  Most of my views for the week were this:

And I also saw the back of my eyelids a lot, but that would be difficult to take a picture of.  :)  I will share more once we get settled back into reality.

We both really, really, REALLY missed this:

But we brought him presents, so he hasn't held it against us.  In fact, he had so much fun with Papa and Gramma, I'm not sure he noticed we were gone.  I was glad to do this when we got home:

*Notice my nice golden tan?

Sleep patterns

Lucas woke up about 3:30am with a high fever.  I gave him some Tylenol and he fell back asleep, but I couldn't.  It made me think about, just two short years ago, when I would get up in the middle of the night to nurse him.  I would stare at this itty-bitty baby, knowing that my sleep patterns would never be the same.  And you know what?  Even though there are days of exhaustion, I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world!

Back then:

Cousins

We got to see all of Lucas' cousins this weekend. All six cousins are on Teresa's side of the family. Nick, 5, wrestled in a tournament Friday night, so we went to watch. 

Lucas has two Uncle Brian's and, ironically, they were both there.  Uncle Brian F. is Nick's dad (Teresa's brother).  Uncle Brian P. was the referee for this match (Brent's brother).

We had more cousin time on Sunday to celebrate Claire's 4th birthday.  The birthday girl wanted to celebrate by going bowling, so we all got to have some fun! 

First we got shoes.

Then we picked a ball. 

Then we got help from big cousins and the dragon. 

Then we ate pizza and cake.  Yum!

Then, 30 seconds after we got in the truck to drive home, Lucas was fast asleep.

ABC's and 123's

Irony is interesting, isn't it? Just days after posting that Lucas isn't a fan of mom's singing, I record video of he and I singing his ABC's. Oigh. Sorry to all of you that choose to listen! By no means is this mastery, but I thought it would be fun to see where he is at now and watch him learn. He has a handful of letters down and can usually count well on his own. Enjoy!

You may need to turn up your volume.

Can you hear me now?

Any cell phone within Lucas’ reach becomes available for his personal use. Who, me?

He primarily only calls two people.   

Hello?

Hi, Papa.
Feedin' cows? (if it is Papa Richard)
Huntin’ deer? (if it is Papa Steve)
Bye.

Friends

Daycare has taught Lucas a lot of wonderful things, but one of the greatest benefits is the friends he has made. He comes home and talks about Ava, Jonah, Carter, Bo, Sawyer and Charlie, as well as lots of the teachers and other schoolmates. Since they were just a few months old, Lucas and Ava have been hanging out.

Ava and Lucas at the pool for the first time: June 2008

This seems like so long ago…

When Lucas started to say Ava’s name it came out sounding like Ahhhh-va. Ava’s mom and I have exchanged several stories in the time they’ve been friends. There have been several mornings that Ava has been the welcoming committee and met Lucas at the door with a beautiful smile.

Since Ava is a few months older, she got to move to an older room before Lucas. He was very happy to be reunited with his buddy on his birthday. That same week, Ava’s mom told me that when she asked Ava which friend she played with at school she replied "My Lucas". Then she sang "Happy Birthday, Lucas.”

A few days after that, I walked in to pick up Lucas and bent down to give him a hug. In an instant, Lucas and Ava were both trying to unzip my coat and get to the I-State symbol on my shirt. "Cy! Cy! Cy!" they yelled. 

This was at supper last night:
B: Lucas, who did you play with at school today?
L: Ava
B: Does Ava play with dolls or tractors?
L: Dolls.
B: Do you play with dolls or tractors?
L: Tractors.
Me: Do you play dolls with Ava?
L: Yes.
Me: Does Ava play tractors with you?
L: Yes.
Me: That is a very nice friend to play with each other's toys.

It was funny because it was such a long conversation with a two year old! He was so sincere about it.

Brent and I both have very dear friendships that started in diapers. I hope that Ava and Lucas can always be good buddies.