It's way past time..........

for a post dedicated to LUKE:)

These pictures are from August and September, and I did place them in order from oldest to newest.

On a side note: as I was working on this entry, I realized that since I took a hiatus (intended or unintended) back in June from blogging, I failed to post the pics from Lukes' 1st birthday (and Sean, Aidan and Drew's birthdays too)- YIKES! In fact, the last "Luke post" I could find, was way back in May before Luke turned 1. He has changed soooooooo much and my blogging friends have all missed out on it :( So I think I have come up with a plan - for every new post, I will create 1 old. I will leave it current for about a week and then edit the time stamp to move it "back in time". This way you can view it without having to scroll back through the "older posts", looking for ones that you haven't you seen before and then wondering if indeed it is new or if you had already viewed it and just forgotten.

Okay, enough already!

Get ready,

Set,

GO!!!!!

It is LUKE time!

Sweet boy!Showing off his cute grin and tiny teeth.Favorite past time:

emptying cereal boxes on the floor and then playing in the midst of it all.Believe it or not, the above picture is Rice Krispies and this one is Cheerios.

I cleaned up the first mess and left the room. Upon returning, I found this!

He was so pleased with himself - little stinker pot!Do you recognize what he is holding?

Gotta start them young. Used to be his favorite place to chill -

(under the high chair)

Just learning to climb. Luke LOVES the bath!
Caught red-handed!Luke also LOVES animals.

He is quite different from our other boys in this respect - they were terrified of animals.He just woke up in this picture (notice the wild hair).

He was hungry and Drew decided to let him sit at the table like a big boy. He was quite pleased.From breakfast to gaming.Mmmmmmmmmm, spaghetti is so good! Followed by dessert - double yum!

Time to go for a drive.
Bubye.Hanging out in his stroller at Dollywood.
Notice the ever-present finger and puuu-puuu!!!
(Puppy is the little blue spot in the lower left corner)


These last few pics are a collection.
You can see a bit of his personality in his various expressions.
Silliness
Angst


Concentration

Wonderment

There is nothing quite like seeing life through the eyes of a child.

Dollywood with Nana and Grandad

Hopefully, these last few posts have not totally overwhelmed you with pictures. Believe me, these really are only a few of the ones I took. But we had so much fun, I just had to share!Our first stop upon arriving, was actually a concert. Sorry, I don't remember who the band was - totally not my taste in music.
But Luke and Patrick loved it!

Following tradition, the boys first ride of the day was the Dizzy Disk! I love the way my new camera allows me to catch a little of their excitement with the ride in full motion. ________________________________

Next, everyone enjoyed a ride in the antique cars at Rockin' Raceway!

SeanDrew

Luke, Patrick, and Aidan

And of course the happy couple,

enjoying a nostalgic moment induced by the 50's-themed car ride!Nana and Luke hanging out together while everyone else enjoyed the rides.

Patrick and Aidan on the Scrambler.The boys enjoying a much-needed foot massage.

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This next ride, the BUMPER CARS, is one of our favorites. We ride it time and time again.

Patrick and Aidan

Sean

Drew

I love this shot of Drew "frozen" in time. After snapping this picture, I tried over and over again to duplicate it, but I couldn't figure it out. Can anyone explain to me how to capture a still image of one thing while everything else is in motion?

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Thank goodness we saved the water rides for last, because we were soooooooooo ready to leave in order to change out of our wet clothing.

This picture cracks me up - their matching, intense, warrior-like expressions!

They certainly tried to give as good as they received:)

The boys at the end of our wonderful day!!!

Grandad and Luke - so sweet!

Goodbye.

Samuel and Charis come for a visit

On August 19th, our 6-day-old nephew, Samuel Rutherford, came to live with us for 2 weeks. He was soooooooo tiny and absolutely ADORABLE!!!! I still find it very hard to believe that my sister, Jeannette, actually trusted us to care for him during this time when she was unable to do so.The day he arrived......

His mother had him dressed in a blue gown and hat set and wrapped in a cozy blanket.

She also sent this cute little sheep that she had slept with, so that her scent was always with Samuel - what an awesome idea. Every time I put him down to sleep, I would place the legs of his lambie around the top of his head. This helped him to stay warm and feel all snuggly at the same time.

Caring for a small baby was far different than I had ever imagined- inability to stay warm, no body fat, diapers that are too big, etc.Yes, he must have been sucking his thumb in utero:)What a sleeping angel!

Luke and Charis

(Katie and Charis came for a visit to help me out with everything.)

Luke LOVES babies. Look at his hand gently touching Charis's face.Baby taking baby for a ride.First bath!

Samuel adored his baths and would totally relax, closing his eyes.Fresh-smelling, clean baby is one of the best scents in the world.This was a rare moment -

you couldn't ask for a happier, more contented baby than Samuel. Luke was so pleased that Samuel was in his crib.
Samuel being reunited with his daddy (Rob). Samuel and I just moments before he left to go home to be with his family.
These last 2 pictues are very recent.

Hasn't Samuel pudged up?

But he is still a beautiful, sweet little boy!!