BIG DAY!!!

Today was the first measurable snowfall of the season in Nashville. The roads were pretty icey and we ended up getting more snow than the weathermen predicted, go figure! Paul and I took this rare opportunity to get Luke bundled up for some "first snow" pictures. We think he looked pretty cute in his snow outfit. Paul stayed home a little later this morning and cooked breakfast and we all enjoyed watching the snow fall. We are anxious for when Luke is big enough to go sledding! Today is also special because Luke turns 8 weeks old and I am 31, argghhhh.... Paul is taking me to dinner tonight to celebrate while Nana and Grandpa watch Luke.

Birthday Dinner

Monday was Mom's birthday so we had her over for dinner. It is too hard for us to go anywhere with the little guy. We had a good time and I think Mom enjoyed being with her only grandchild on her birthday.

Trying to Capture a Smile

Luke has been smiling for a couple of weeks now. This past weekend he really started smiling and interacting more with Paul and me. He is cooing and making giggling noises. I tried my hardest to capture one of these sweet smiles on camera but to no avail. Above are some of my futile attempts!

Our Superhero...

Luke is doing new things everyday. He has recently started striking the above pose on a regular basis. We refer to it as his "superhero" pose. It looks like he is getting ready to fly off to save the world from the bad guys. We have caught him sleeping in this pose, too. He must have to be ready at a moments notice!


Paul likes to sit Luke up in the big people's chair. He is able to hold this position for a short time before he topples over. I think he was watching ESPN when this was taken! Dad is starting him out early.

Family Tradition

Paul and I carried on a long Troutt family tradition this week. The gown that Luke is pictured in above was his great Grandfathers'. It was made by his great, great Grandmother 91 years ago! Kitty has pictures of Doc, Bill, Jim, Paul and Jon in the gown displayed in her home. Now she will have another generation to add to her collection! Paul and I were so proud that she was able to see another Troutt baby in the family heirloom.

Luke's First Bathtub Bath

On Tuesday night we gave Luke his first bath in the bathroom. We decided it might work better to do it there instead of the kitchen where we had been giving him his baths. He always seemed to be cold in the kitchen. We took the small heater and put it in the bathroom and got it nice and toasty before we took him in there. He loved it! I think he might be a waterbug. It is a little easier on Kelly and me in the kitchen because he sits up higher, but if he is happy we can definitely make it work in the bathroom. Here are a few pictures.

Adult Interaction

Today was a fun day. A friend that I met while working at the hospital came to visit Luke and me and brought lunch. Luke slept most of the time. Brande and I had a great time catching up with each other. She doesn't work at the hospital anymore so we don't get to see each other that much. She also has a son named Luke! Of course I didn't take a picture to mark the event. What was I thinking??? It is so nice to have company during the day!

Weekend Visit

This weekend Luke finally got to meet Uncle Andrew and Aunt Mandi. My brother and sister-in-law came in for the long weekend from Florida. I think they thought he was pretty special. We spent most of the weekend with them going between our house and Mom's. It is kind of sad they live so far away and won't get to see Luke very often. We will just have to have quality time when we are together. Mom is in the process of planning a weekend getaway for all of us in April before I go back to work. So, it will be less than two months before we see them again. Until then we will keep sending them lots of pictures of how Little Bit is growing!

What Is Love?

Happy Valentine's Day!!! Today is the day that Love is celebrated. I thought I always had a good idea of different types of love were. Love for my Lord, love for my husband and love for family and friends. Well, this year I am experiencing a different kind of love. Love for our son, Luke. I now know what so many parents have told me over the years....the love you have for your child is different than anything else. Paul and I loved Luke even before he was born. But, as soon as he came in to our lives we were overwhelmed with love for him. We feel so blessed to have him in our lives. He is such a joy and we learn something new from him everyday.

Luke and I have had a good day which included a trip to the pediatrician's for a persistent stuffy nose. All is well though, his lungs and ears are fine. He just has a case of the sniffles which should resolve soon. Paul and I are going to celebrate Valentine's with a quick trip out for dinner while my mom watches the little guy. As I mentioned in an earlier post dinnertime around our house has been anything but peaceful lately. It doesn't seem to matter if we eat dinner at 5:30 or 8:00 Luke decides to be fussy and Paul and I end up swapping up who holds him and who gets to eat a hot meal! So, we are going to both enjoy a hot meal tonight while my mom has what she is calling her best Valentine's Day in years! We hope everyone takes the time to tell those closest to them how much they love them on this special day.

Updated Pictures

Every day is an adventure at our house. We try to always keep the camera handy! Here are some recent pictures we have taken of the little guy.

Nursery Keepsake

Paul and I wanted to have a special keepsake done for Luke's nursery. A girl I knew from Junior High school is now a local artist and crafts person. We love what she did for Luke and know we will treasure it for years to come. Check out her blog at www.pitterpatterart.com.

Growing Like a Weed

Paul and I have both noticed that Luke seemed to be getting longer. Today we decided to measure him. He was stretching really good while we were changing him so Paul ran to get the measuring tape. According to Paul's measurement he is 21"! He has grown 2 inches since he was born. His cheeks and legs are also filling out. It is amazing how much he is changing everyday. He still spends a lot of his time sleeping. He also somehow knows when Paul and I are getting ready to eat supper every night and gets fussy. So, it has been a while since both of us have eaten a hot dinner at home!

Attention Span

When Luke is awake and not fussy we try to entertain him with various contraptions. We learned quickly that he has a very short attention span which is understandable. Whether he is laying in the floor taking the world in, bouncing in his bouncy seat or enjoying his swing the fun lasts about 15 minutes and then he is ready to move on. I try to read to him, sometimes he seems to enjoy it, sometimes not. I have to admit those are my favorite times when he is so alert and looking around. He prefers to be held facing forward now so he can see what all is going on. It just makes you wonder what all is going on in that little head of his....

Super Bowl Sunday

Well, Sunday was the first time Paul and I had left Little Bit to do something for ourselves. My mom was more than happy to come and keep him for a few hours! We went to a church Super Bowl Party. We had a really good time, but I must admit I started getting anxious to leave before halftime! I know it will get easier leaving him but the first time was hard. We finished watching the game when we got home and I was so glad we did. That was the best Super Bowl I have ever seen. It is great when games are close like that.

One Month!

Luke is one month old today! Paul and I can't believe how fast the time is going. We celebrated by doing our usual Saturday errands. Today was the first day I had been to the grocery store since Luke was born. Thanks to all those who continue to bring us meals! Luke had several visitors today...Uncle Jon and Grandpa as well as our friends Jamie and Angela.

Paul and I had another reason to celebrate, Luke went 4 hours between his feedings last night! So, that meant I got two 3-hour blocks of sleep! We were so rested when he woke up at 5:45 we all stayed up. Paul cooked a great breakfast and we enjoyed spending the day together.

Monday....Weigh In

Since Luke's two week check up we have been keeping our fingers crossed that he was gaining weight. My friend Virginia came yesterday to help me take Luke to the doctor for a weight check. I think everyone in Goodlettsville was at the doctor! It was so busy. We had to wait a really long time but Luke did great and only got fussy toward the end. The scales don't lie....Luke now weighs 8 lbs! He had gained 1 1/2 lbs since his two-week visit! We were thrilled. So, we are doing something right. Dr. Patterson was very pleased and said he is doing great which was very evident from all of our cheesy grins in the pic above.

Virginia spent the day with us which was great. She also played photographer which I very much appreciate. We still don't have a picture of her with Luke yet. Monday night a friend from church brought us supper which is always a big help.

Luke's Newborn Pics...

Today has been another pretty relaxing Saturday. One thing that we did today was have Luke's newborn pictures done. Kelly has been debating between getting them done or not since he was born. I told her it didn't matter to me if she got them made or not. She decided that she really wanted to have some so she got one of Andrew's high school classmates to do them. She has a photograph business on the side (www.mattiecallahan.com). She came to our house and took pictures for over an hour and Luke hardly ever made a peep. I just knew he would be whining the entire time. She asked if we wanted to take any of him without his diaper, and both Kelly and I looked at each other and said it wouldn't be a good idea, because Luke tends to pee about every five minutes. Well we decided to give it a try and he did great! We didn't take any pictures while she was taking them, but here are a few other ones. Hope you all are having a great weekend.

Lovin' Bath Time

For some reason every 3 days or so Paul and I begin to dread bath time. Or, maybe that is just me. I don't know why I dread it because the more bath times we have the more Luke seems to like it. Tonight was one of those nights. Luke didn't make a peep during the whole process. He seems to enjoy the warm heat we have blowing on him and getting his hair washed and combed. Yes, we comb the little hair he has. It has a tendency to stick straight up if we don't! So, I am putting some more bath time pictures on here. They are some of my favorite.

Luke and Lauren

There have been very few days since Luke has been home that we have not had company. It is nice for me because it breaks the day up and it is good to have adult interaction if only for a few minutes! Today was special because Luke got to meet his cousin Lauren. Lauren was out of school a couple of days for the MLK holiday. She spent the night with Nana and Grandpa last night. They came by to see Luke this afternoon. Lauren was a little shy and didn't want to hold him but we convinced her to get her picture made with him. It won't be long before Luke will be running around chasing Lauren!

Tummy Time

When we were in the hospital the nursing staff stressed to all the new parents the importance of "tummy time". You are supposed to put your newborn on their tummy a few times a day to promote development of their neck muscles. Since the recommendation came out years ago that all babies should sleep on their backs there has been a decline in development of infants specifically their neck muscles. So, we are trying to have "tummy time" as much as we can. Last night Paul and Luke were lying in the floor and Luke raised his head up and moved it from one side to the other! Needless to say we were thrilled. He also played in his bouncy seat. We put him in it last week and he seemed to have no interest whatsoever in the brightly colored toys that hung in front of him. Well, what a difference a few day makes. He reached for the toys and held on! It is amazing how quickly they change and develop.