November 4, 2012! Luke Joseph Turns 3!

It's unbelievable that a year can pass so quickly... that Luke is celebrating his third birthday!  Luke was so excited about his party!  We spent a lot of time talking about it, because Halloween was just 4 days ago!  This will always be a fun time of year for Luke!

Uncle John, Aunt Deb, Koko, and Bob joined us in our celebration, as well as my friend Mindie, and her daughter, Allie.  Luke was so excited to see everyone, but was especially happy to see his friend, Allie!  He talked about her coming to the house for his party... he wanted to answer the door when she arrived, and he practiced saying, "Come in!  Welcome to my party!"  He brought her to his room because he wanted to show her his toys.  Luke smiled ear to ear when Allie came over to celebrate his birthday with him!  Without a doubt, Allie is Luke's first true friend.  She holds a special place in Luke's heart.

Mommy decorated with Whinnie the Pooh, and Uncle John and Aunt Deb brought balloons!  We enjoyed dinner from our favorite neighborhood Chinese restaurant!  The weather was beautiful... sunny skies for Luke!  Uncle John and Aunt Deb gave Luke a truck carrying a race car, complete with it's own key.  Luke carries that key in his pocket every chance he gets!  They also gave him his first remote control car... very COOL!  It didn't take long for Luke to figure out how that worked, and that it was very COOL!  He loves to play with his cars when he comes home from school!  Koko and Bob gave Luke his first train set from the Thomas train collection.  His engine was named Luke!  He loved his train set, and we play with it in his room before bed.  Also, very COOL!  Mommy's friend, Mindie, and her daughter, Allie, gave Luke a great thermal shirt and Mellisa and Doug Dinosaur puzzles.  Luke looks so handsome in his new shirt!  He loves the dinosaur puzzle... he lays all the pieces out, as if to admire his treasure!  Mindie brought Luke a gift honoring his adoption as well... belated Gotcha Day... she and Allie gave Luke a great Dinosaur placemat with everything a boy would want to know about dinosaurs!  Again, COOL!  Mommy actually received a gift, too... a little boy charm with the letter 'L' for Luke.  We are blessed.  Mommy gave Luke a set of wooded semi-trucks and a wooden toolbench!  The day was a big hit, and I am just so proud of my son!  He is just such a good boy and I am grateful to be his Mother.  

Luke's Favorite Things
Panda Bears
Whinnie the Pooh 
Curious George
Charlie Brown's Thanksgiving
Going on a Bearhunt
Children's Book on the Wright Brothers I purchased at WPAFB years ago
Singing, singing, singing!  The Wheels on the Bus!
Waking up every morning and saying, "Mo-ning Mommy!"

Looking at pictures with Mommy in his China Photograph Book



October 31, 2013. Happy Halloween!

Last year at this time, Luke was recovering from his orthopedic surgery...more eventful than we had expected!  This year was Luke's first opportunity to celebrate Halloween!  Luke has an advent calendar, and received a special trinket ever night for the month of October!  We have had so much fun this month, and Mommy knows that this calendar will only become more and more fun as Luke gets older!  Luke celebrated by wearing his skeleton pajamas to bed this week!  He decided to be a puppy for Halloween ...just like Tommy and Lily!  We practiced his bark all week!  Luke celebrated with a Trick or Treat parade at school, and came home with more treats than he knew what to do with!  He spent the evening admiring his treasure!  I'm so grateful he had the opportunity to celebrate with the other children at school, because we weren't able to go out in the neighborhood!  We had terrible wind and rain storms, and even had two tornados touch down near the airport!  Luke was none the wiser, and he had a great Halloween!

August 10, 2013. Luke's Gotcha Day!

It's been a year now, since Luke and I arrived in the States.  I remember every minute... Like it was yesterday!  Bringing Luke home from China last August was the single most important event of my life!  Our lives have changed forever now!  I am eternally grateful and forever blessed.

Luke and I spent the day with Grandma.  She gave Luke a beautiful pewter train engraved with his name, date, and first arrival of the adoption.  What a gift to treasure!  Mommy bought Luke his first toolbox and pretend food for the kitchen!  Both of these toys were well received!  My cousin Jerry was in town visiting from New York and brought his fiancée.  It was such a pleasure meeting Anna, and we all loved the opportunity to get to know her a bit!  Jerry and Anna are getting married in the Fall.  They both loved spending the afternoon playing with Luke, and getting to know the youngest member of our family.  Later, we ordered food from our favorite neighborhood Chinese take-out to celebrate!  We all watched a little of The Lion King, and Luke had a full day.  Our first Gotcha Day was a tremendous success!

 



Summer 2013 Photos!



March 31, 2013. Luke's First Easter!

Well, Easter Sunday started quite eventfully for Luke!  He was so excited to know Koko, bob, and the Easter Bunny were visiting all in one day!  Luke fell, face first, and bloodied his lips and his right front tooth!  He recovered fairly quickly, but as you can see in the photo, the fall temporarily slowed him down for a couple of minutes!  Nothing a frozen teething ring can't take care of!

Our afternoon was really nice ...Luke had fun with the toys in his new Easter basket, and we all enjoyed a nice meal with friends!  A couple weeks after Easter, Koko brought a special gift for Luke ...his first Radio Flyer.  What a treat!  Luke loved assembling the bike with Koko, and he was riding that afternoon!  He still hasn't mastered the big-boy pedals, but all in good time. He always has his Mickey Mouse car to act as backup!

February 9, 2013. Luke's First Stride Rites!

This might be one of my proudest moments yet!  Luke had surgery down at Cincinnati Children's, and things got a little tricky because of his reaction to the anesthetic that caused his lung to collapse!  The bar and orthepedic shoes (23 hours a day) was nothing to sneeze at, beleive me!  We all did great... Luke did the best of all!  I have to be honest, he never complained!  From this point, Luke only needs to wear the bar and shoes at night!  What a blessing!  Luke, the playground just became so much for fun for you!  Luke loves his new shoes!  Have at it, little boy!  You've earned it!