The 1 Year Update

Mom brought Luke to the doctor today for his 1 year checkup.  On top of all of the height and weight measurements Luke had to get three vaccinations.  Apparently Mom had a new nurse today who wasn't very good at doing it as she took forever with each injection.  The experienced nurses set everything up and do all of them in rapid fire.  If done correctly they are putting on the band-aids before the first tear.  Luke was a trooper and once it was all done he was back to his old self.

One of Luke's vaccinations was for the Chicken Pox.  Even though it is a relatively harmless virus I can see why they protect against it; missed school, shingles, complications, etc.  All that being said I feel cheated that I had to go through it but the new generation doesn't.  Part of progress I guess, like having to get up to change the channel.

Now that Luke is 1 his diet also gets to change.  He now gets to drink whole milk instead of formula.  That is $25 every 5 days I don't have to spend.  It is also time we start the transition away from bottles to sippy cups.

Luke's height and weight continue to the "normal" channel.  His height is still in the 95th percentile but his weight is now in the 90th percentile!  10% of the baby population weights more than Luke!  This is a nice change from when Luke was off the charts heavy.  His head diameter is also in the 90th percentile.

• Weight:  26 lbs. 5 oz.
• Height: 31 1/2 inches
• Head:  48 cm.

Mom and Luke met me for lunch after the appointment and he doesn't seem any worse for wear.

Funny Faces

Luke has gotten his sense of humor. He likes to laugh when we laugh and laughs by himself when we do something funny. He is also the originator of comedy. His favorite thing to do is to make funny faces blowing out his cheeks like a chipmunk. Sometimes he'll make funny noises and laugh at himself too. As Luke ages he is definitely becomming his own person with his own personality.

The Park

Luke and the rest of the family are enjoying a nice afternoon at the park. It's the first time we've been to this park. It is small enough to never have anyone here but big enough to have slides, swings, and a merry-go-round. Luke also got to go down his first baby slide. A total drop of 2' with Mom holding on the whole time.

Going Forward in Reverse

Now that Luke is one year old and fits the height and weight requirements he qualifies for a change in scenery. He now gets to face forward in his carseat! No more going through life seeing where we've been rather than where we are going. We knew it was time because when facing to the rear he couldn't fully extend his legs.

We Have a Walker

Today Luke showed without a doubt that he knows how to walk!  I was sitting on a chair in the kitchen giving Alyce a goodbye hug, Mom was at the refrigerator and Luke was standing near the door to the garage holding onto the wall.  As I was finishing my hug and Mom closing the door Luke lets go of the wall and takes 4 - 5 steps right over to Alyce and I!  They were some pretty fast steps and he was pretty shaky on his feet by the time he arrived but technically it was a walk and of considerable distance.  Best of all both Mom and I were there to witness the event!

Mom and I couldn't be prouder of Luke.  He has been working for so long on walking.  It seems that a few weeks after he was crawling he started climbing up things to cruise around the room.  Luke has even mastered getting back onto the ground as evidenced by a bruise on his bottom.  We were hoping that he would be walking on his own by his first birthday and we made it by 2 days.