Happy B-Day to me

Hello everyone, time for a much needed update. A lot has happened since Thanksgiving. To start off, we finally had professional family pictures taken. Since we were there they did my first birthday pictures too. When pictures were done we stopped to see Santa Claus. Here is a pic of Santa and I chit-chatting about Christmas.

Then last weekend was my big first birthday party. Mommy and Daddy threw a Spongebob themed party for me because I love Spongebob. All of my grandparents were here along with my Uncle Josh, Aunt Maria, and Uncle Jason. I received a ton of new toys and some clothes too. Here are some party pics and some pics of me playing with my new toys.


On Monday I had my visit with my pediatrician for my one year shots...yes, Monday December 10th, my birthday. It was ok though because I got four shots and didn't even cry, Daddy was so proud of me!! I weighed twenty pounds and a half ounce and I am now 29 and a quarter inches tall. This boosted me into the 15th percentile for weight and the 30th percentile for height. I am growing very well and Mommy and Daddy are glad to see it.

I am also getting good at walking. I took nine or ten steps all by myself the other day. I can do it, but I'm still a little scared and sometimes I just sit down instead of walking.

Today I had two appointments at the University of Michigan. The first was my feeding therapy and it went very well. I have started eating lunch meat and I really, really like cheese puffs, although I have to share them with Mom and Dad because they seem to like them a lot too.

I also wanted to say congratulations to my friend Ben and his parents Scott & Kym. Ben is now a big brother to Toban (Toby) Frederick Randall. I hope to get a chance to meet him early next year.

I am looking forward to making it back to Iowa for Christmas in a couple of weeks. We have plans to get out to western Iowa so I can meet my Great-Grandpa Otteman. That's all for now, I'll leave you with some pictures of me with my family that was visiting last weekend for my B-day.

Gobble Gobble

I have lots of news since my last post. Going back to the first weekend of November, Grandma and Grandpa Otteman came to visit me. We had a good time playing and of course shopping. It's always nice to have my grandparents around.

I've been going to my feeding therapy once a week. Things are going well and I have made great progress. I still have a ways to go but I am hopeful that I will be eating Mommy and Daddy food soon.
I had my monthly pulmonologist appt on Nov 15th. I weighed in at 18lbs and 11oz. I am still in the 6th percentile for weight but my doctors feel I am doing well. Nothing new at my appt this time. They tell me after Dec I will only need to visit them once every 3 months.
Daddy set up a t.v. and dvd player for me in my playroom. It has become a huge hit.

On Nov 21st we made the big trip to Iowa for Thanksgiving. We stayed with Grandma Kris and Grandpa Bob. I also got my first taste of turkey. I was lucky enough to enjoy it twice on Thanksgiving day. I also enjoyed sweet potatoes and squash. We had a nice visit but of course it went by fast. I also tried out my new car seat. I only suffered one meltdown on the way to Iowa. The rest of the time I did pretty well.
Here I am having turkey at Grandma and Grandpa Otteman's house. Notice the smears of sweet potatoes on my bib. I LOVE sweet potatoes!!

Round two of turkey at Grandma and Grandpa Eaton's house. I'm a little tired at this point.

Of course we made our rounds to the family. We spent some time at the farm. Here I am with all the women. Dawn (holding her daughter Jayla-7 weeks old), Claire, Glenda, Mommy and Kathy.

Here I am with Great Grandma and Great Grandpa Scott.

Great Grandma Dorothy came over to enjoy our Thanksgiving feast.

At Grandma Kris's house I found my "cheese". I can really ham up the camera when I want to.

We also celebrated Daddy's 30th b-day while we were home. It was fun getting the family together for some yummy cake. I even helped Daddy blow out his candles.

I also spent some cuddle time with my godmother Jessica.

And I couldn't leave without seeing my Great Great Aunt Helen.

Mommy took me to get my Synagis shot on Nov 26th. They of course have to weigh me so they can give me the proper dose of medication. Come to find out I had gained almost a pound in less than 2 weeks. I weighed in at 19lbs 10.5oz!! Must of been all that great turkey.
Now we are getting ready for my first b-day and Christmas. Mommy set up a Spongebob Squarepants tree in my room. Check it out.

By the way, I now have 6 teeth!!!

Until next time,
Love Luke

Trick or Treat...Smell My Feet

Happy Halloween everyone!! I spent my day with Mom. We hung around the house this morning and then had our first feeding therapy this afternoon. I did pretty well but I did show my therapist my gag and puke. He gave us some homework with a Nuk brush. It's a little rubber brush I can put in my mouth and practice chewing. I went to my therapy session in my Halloween costume. I was a little devil. Mom says this is nothing new from every day life.
Grammy Kris and her friends Hap, Deb and her daughter Emily came to visit me over the weekend. Friday we went out for lunch and went shopping at the mall. Mommy bought me some new jeans because I just keep growing out of my old ones. Saturday, I stayed home with Daddy while everyone else went shopping in Dundee. I guess they had fun because they came home with lots of goodies and wine. Later that evening they took turns reading to me. Emily and Deb read a book to me that my Mommy used to read to Emily.
Sunday everyone had to leave. Here I am sitting on Grammy Kris's lap.
Later that day Daddy and Mommy took me to Wiards orchard. We enjoyed a hay ride and a firetruck ride around the orchard. We also picked pumpkins and bought doughnuts in the country store.
Mommy later carved our pumpkins and decorated them with glitter.
My meds and treatments are going well. I've even learned to fake cough. I love to imitate Mommy and Daddy and we battle with our fake coughs. I'm doing lots of babbling but still no words. Mommy and Daddy work with me every day on MaMa and DaDa but I just look at them and laugh. I also got a new Spongebob ball. I was afraid of it at first but now I can't keep my hands off of it.
Grandpa and Grandma Otteman will be here this weekend. I'm looking forward to giving them a run for their money.
I will leave you with a picture of me and my Daddy in our matching white t-shirts and jeans.
Until next time,
Love Luke

"Hey There Little One"

Hi everyone! Not much is new this week. I'm happy to report I am taking to the Pediasure just fine. Daddy bought me vanilla, strawberry and chocolate flavors. Daddy really likes the chocolate the best!! Surprise, surprise. I also received word that I am approved for my Synagis shots to protect me from RSV. RSV is a nasty respiratory infection. I get Synagis shots once a month from October until March or April. They are only available to special kids who have to qualify through their insurance or else you pay $1700.00 for EACH shot. I'm not excited about getting a shot every month but I do not want RSV either. I go to U of M on Wed to see my therapist about my texture problem. Hopefully they will come up with a solution so I can enjoy foods with my Mom and Dad.

Mommy and Daddy also bought me a big boy car seat. I'm not ready for it yet but I had to try it out. Here is a picture of me in my car seat.
I would also like to share with you a song Uncle Josh wrote for me. I find it very special and I hope you all enjoy it as much as I do.

Hey there little one,
It's nice to see you smiling today.
Hey there little one,
There's just so much to you I'd like to say.
I hope that you always can tell,
Life's just a ride on a carousel.

Love has a way of keeping you clean,
if the ways of the world treat you mean.

Hey there little one,
It's good to know you're breathing okay.
Hey there little one,
Our love for you will not fade away...
I hope that your life goes so well,
You gave us all quite a scary spell.

Love has a way of keeping you warm,
if the ways of the world might do you harm.

Hey there little one,
Please don't grow up too fast.
Hey there little one,
Make all the good times last.
What your life brings I can't foretell,
But I hope that you'll never kiss and tell.

Love has a way of giving you joy,
to such a beautiful baby boy.
Such a beautiful baby boy...

Here is a picture of me with my Uncle Josh when I was in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit last December.

Next weekend Grandma Eaton and friends will be here. Until then...
Hugs and kisses,
Luke

Walking...almost.

Where do I begin? I have to say that keeping up with this blog and playing with my toys is becoming a real challenge. I apologize for the long delay but I must say I will make up for it with all of my news and pictures.

On September 29th Mommy, Daddy and I joined the Randall's in a Buddy Walk for children with Down Syndrome. Ben looked good and I had fun walking, I mean, riding in my stroller for him. Here is a picture of all of us after the walk.

Grandpa Larson came to visit in October. We had a good time together as he took care of me so Mommy could get some rest. Grandpa gave me lots of rides on my lion. We also spent time playing with my toys and sitting outside watching the cars go by.

My top two front teeth poked through. Hopefully soon I will be chewing more food. Can you see my teeth?

I also still LOVE the lion rides. Mommy and Daddy push me and I keep one hand on the lions nose because when you push it music will play and he will roar. My ride stops if the music stops so I make sure it never does. I also walk with my lion all over the place. I can really fly now and I think I may walk all by myself soon.

I went to see my pediatrician, Dr. Weinberg, on October 9th. He said I look great! I got my Hep B and flu shot. They also poked my big toe to check my hemoglobin and they said it was perfect!

I continue to make music with my piano. Mommy took this picture of me on my 10 month b-day. I also went to have lunch with Daddy at work and got to see all of his work friends.

On October 11th I went to U of M. I grew an inch and gained 1/2 a pound. I now weigh 18lbs and I was 27.1 inches. They say I am progressing well and I am in the 7th percentile for height and weight which makes me proportionate. My body mass index is in the 50th percentile. Lots of room to grow but I am making strides. My nutritionist, Hope, put me on Pediasure and took me off my formula. The Pediasure gives me more calories per ounce therefore hopefully a bigger weight gain. I will also be evaluated by an Ocupational Therapist soon for my issues with gagging. I can't seem to tolerate different textures of food and sometimes I will throw up everything I eat if I gag. They are hoping to help me with this problem so I can get every calorie my parents give me.

I also love to play UNDER my exersaucer because of the uneven floor my toys will roll around and I can chase them, sort of like what I do with everything else including the vacuum cleaner. I love to toss and chase or slide things around the house with my hands. Mommy and Daddy find my toys everywhere including under the oven.

Well, that's all for now. I need to go take a nap.

Love, Luke

Yet another Iowa trip

Hello everyone. Last Thursday was my monthly U of M appointment. I weighed in at 17 pounds 8 ounces and I was 26.25 inches long. I'm moving along fine and they told Mom and Dad to keep up the good work. My throat culture did not grow anything which is good, no more Tobramyacin or Cipro!! I also have another tooth coming in, soon I'll be chewing on some real food.

Last weekend we went to Iowa again. It is a long drive, but we take turns driving.

This time it was for my Godparents' (Jason and Jessica Unruh) wedding. Friday night Mommy stayed with Jessica at her house so Dad and I stayed in a hotel with Grandpa Larson and Daddy's friend Matt Redling. On Saturday we hung out at the church all day because Mom and Dad had to be there 4 hours before the wedding for pictures. By the time the wedding was supposed to start I was really tired! I missed the wedding because I was watching the Iowa/Iowa State game with Grandma Ann. Mom and Dad left the wedding in a limo with Jason and Jessica so I went to the hotel to eat with Grandpa Larson and Grandma & Grandpa Eaton. As you can see all of my grandparents were at the wedding. They all took turns holding me during the reception, that is when I wasn't out on the dance floor. I am an excellent dancer, at least that's what everyone told me. We saw a lot of new and old people and had a great time! Here's some pics from the reception.

Sunday morning we went to see Mom's friend Tara and her two girls Ashlynn and Lauren. Tara's husband Jeff grilled burger and hot dogs and Mom and Dad visited with them while I played with the girls.

That's it, the weekends just fly by so fast. This weekend Grandpa Larson will be coming for a visit, so I'll write more then. Take care everyone.

Lots of Firsts

Greetings again from busy Michigan. I have had many firsts in the last 2 weeks. First of all, I have sprouted my first tooth. Very exciting for Mommy and Daddy. Looks like another one is not far behind. Daddy also got me ready for the NFL opening game by decking me out from head to toe in Viking gear.

I also wore my Michigan hat to cheer on our Wolverines but they have proven to be a losing team this year. I believe I will still sport the hat but maybe I will stick to pro football games this season.

Mommy and Daddy took me to Heritage Park in Canton, Michigan on September 2nd. We had a good time taking a stroller walk around the ponds, swinging on the jungle gym and splashing in the water at the splash park. Here I am on the swing.

Mommy took me down the slide.

Daddy climbed the tower with me.

The splash park was fun but I mostly enjoyed walking in the puddles.

I have also started pulling myself up. Mommy and Daddy bought me a lion I can use to walk around with. I really enjoy getting rides on it though. Mommy and Daddy's knees are killing them!!

I also got my first black eye. I was eyeing my piano too close and caught the corner of my right eye on the edge of the piano. I cried for a while but then it didn't seem to bother me too much. Mommy tried to get a photo but it's hard to see.

Well, that's enough firsts for now. Hopefully all of my firsts will be nice ones next time.

Love and hugs,

Luke