Saturday was Luc's first birthday and we were fortunate to celebrate it with friends and family. Our celebration was centered around a mid-day lunch/party at the Hot Potato Cafe, a local restaurant walking distance from our house.
The morning began with a first for Luc... he squirmed out of his Bumbo chair. This little blue chair has (heretofore) been able to restrain him and support him (so he didn't tip over). But on Saturday he learned how to twist his body and fall forward out of it like a modern day Houdini. I guess it's a good sign that he can get out but it also means more chasing around the house for his parents :)
Later that afternoon Diane's sisters (May and Fran) arrived from NY along with their friend Louis. Then the group of us packed up Luc and walked over to Hot Potato. We brought with us a birthday cake made by a co-worker of mine which has the face of Curious George... Luc's favorite! We have some photos of the cake in the new photo set, including one photo where Luc is reaching out to the image of Curious George reaching out to him. It's too cute.
The meal at Hot Potato was delicious and the service was good. We got there before they normally opened and then had the place to ourselves for an hour. And actually even after they opened we still had the place to ourselves as business was slow. Hot Potato is a nice little place but not that busy yet. For those of you who watch Gordon Ramsey's Kitchen Nightmares show, the Hot Potato Cafe is one of the restaurants that he gives a makeover to. They are hoping that once the episode airs on FOX that business will pick up. When the episode airs I will let you know.
After lunch we enjoyed the cake and coffee and mingled a bit. Luc got to meet other kids and everyone was well behaved... even the adults! Then we walked back home to open presents. Thanks to everyone for your gifts, they are all much appreciated. We have some photos of him opening gifts in the photo set too.
So how fast did this year go! It seems like just yesterday that we were in the hospital waiting for Luc to arrive. And then he did and it has been a whirlwind of activity. He is growing up so fast (every parent's lament) and we feel blessed to be witness. It is a miracle watching a young baby slowing grow into a little person... learning first words, taking first steps, standing alone without being held. And there is so much more to enjoy!
Monday, November 23, 2009
Monday, November 16, 2009
Two Weeks To Forget
The last two weeks were not our best. First there was the SEPTA strike. SEPTA is the Philadelphia train/trolley/bus system and they went on strike two weeks ago without advance notice. We awoke on a Tuesday morning with the news that the trolley and subway Diane takes to work would not be running. This meant that I had to drive her out to Upper Darby where she would take a suburban trolley (which were still operating) to King of Prussia. Then I had to drive back into town and drop Luc off at the day care. And then continue on to New Jersey to my job. Total commute time: 1 1/2 hours. And I would have to do it all over again in the evening. And traffic was particularly heavy since SEPTA was not operating... UGH!
By Thursday things got a little better because Diane found a co-worker who lives about 15 min from us and who could give her a ride to work.
Then on Friday the day care called to say Luc had a fever and was not holding down food. So I had to leave work and take him home for the rest of the day. Apparently he had gotten a cold and was sneezing and coughing his little head off :( By Sunday night he seemed to be doing better and we thought about letting him go to day care on Monday but since the SEPTA strike was still on Diane decided to stay home and let Luc rest for one more day.
By Tuesday he was back at day care but by Wednesday we got another call saying he was very cranky, pulling on his ears and his temperature was starting to go up again. We did not have to pull him out of day care but Thursday morning when his temperature was 102.3 we decided to call our pediatrician.
We ended up taking off work and brought Luc to the doctor and discovered that while his cold had cleared up he now had two ear infections! So we got a prescription for antibiotics and I stayed home with him on Friday. The antibiotics worked quickly and by Saturday night he was already doing much better. But with Diane and I missing so much time from work we each had to work OT on Saturday... no rest for the weary.
Then just as Luc was improving Diane came down with a cold... which she is still fighting off. So she is sleeping downstairs in the living room to avoid re-infecting Luc. All of this has been going on while both of our jobs are asking us to make up missed time and to work OT. Needless to say it has been a stressful and exhausting couple weeks. But it appears the worst is behind us now and we are looking forward to Saturday, which is Luc's first birthday! We are going to a local restaurant with a bunch of friends to celebrate. Presumably we'll have plenty of photos from that to post here.
Anyway, that's it from now. Thankfully we are on the mend!
By Thursday things got a little better because Diane found a co-worker who lives about 15 min from us and who could give her a ride to work.
Then on Friday the day care called to say Luc had a fever and was not holding down food. So I had to leave work and take him home for the rest of the day. Apparently he had gotten a cold and was sneezing and coughing his little head off :( By Sunday night he seemed to be doing better and we thought about letting him go to day care on Monday but since the SEPTA strike was still on Diane decided to stay home and let Luc rest for one more day.
By Tuesday he was back at day care but by Wednesday we got another call saying he was very cranky, pulling on his ears and his temperature was starting to go up again. We did not have to pull him out of day care but Thursday morning when his temperature was 102.3 we decided to call our pediatrician.
We ended up taking off work and brought Luc to the doctor and discovered that while his cold had cleared up he now had two ear infections! So we got a prescription for antibiotics and I stayed home with him on Friday. The antibiotics worked quickly and by Saturday night he was already doing much better. But with Diane and I missing so much time from work we each had to work OT on Saturday... no rest for the weary.
Then just as Luc was improving Diane came down with a cold... which she is still fighting off. So she is sleeping downstairs in the living room to avoid re-infecting Luc. All of this has been going on while both of our jobs are asking us to make up missed time and to work OT. Needless to say it has been a stressful and exhausting couple weeks. But it appears the worst is behind us now and we are looking forward to Saturday, which is Luc's first birthday! We are going to a local restaurant with a bunch of friends to celebrate. Presumably we'll have plenty of photos from that to post here.
Anyway, that's it from now. Thankfully we are on the mend!
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Uh oh
Up until recently Luc's vocabulary consisted of "dad", "dada" and what sounds like "bob". Then on Saturday while shopping at the grocery store he blurted out "uh, oh". At first I thought it was just him making talking sounds and not a conscious formation of words so I looked at him and said "uh, oh" back to him. He smiled and then repeated it back to me. Next thing you know we're wheeling down the aisle and he's saying "uh, oh" over and over again. Even a couple of other shoppers smiled and said "uh, oh" back to Luc as we went by. It was particularly exciting and intriguing because this was not something we taught him. How did he learn it, we wondered.
A couple days later I went to pick him up at the day care. I usually have to knock on the front door to be let in and when I did I happened to over hear a chorus of kids on the other side of the door say in unison "uh, oh". That was my ah, hah! moment. I spoke with Denise at the day care and she mentioned that recently one of the kids started saying "uh, oh" whenever they heard someone knocking on the front door. Soon all the kids started saying it, including Luc. And what makes it particularly cute is the dramatic pause that they have between "uh" and "oh". In other words they will say "uh" in a quick, forceful tone and then pause for a couple seconds and then quietly and slowly say "oooh". Luc does this too and then some times he will say a bunch of "uh, ohs" in row and it becomes a furious declaration!
Anyway, what was particularly interesting about this was that it showed how impactful his experience at daycare can be. He apparently is learning from his peers. I guess it's also a cautionary lesson too. He is not alone in this world with just Mommy and Daddy, he is already immersed in the "real" world.
No new photos to post but per your requests I am transferring over a "best of" photo set from the old blog. This way you can go back and enjoy the early photos too. Enjoy!
A couple days later I went to pick him up at the day care. I usually have to knock on the front door to be let in and when I did I happened to over hear a chorus of kids on the other side of the door say in unison "uh, oh". That was my ah, hah! moment. I spoke with Denise at the day care and she mentioned that recently one of the kids started saying "uh, oh" whenever they heard someone knocking on the front door. Soon all the kids started saying it, including Luc. And what makes it particularly cute is the dramatic pause that they have between "uh" and "oh". In other words they will say "uh" in a quick, forceful tone and then pause for a couple seconds and then quietly and slowly say "oooh". Luc does this too and then some times he will say a bunch of "uh, ohs" in row and it becomes a furious declaration!
Anyway, what was particularly interesting about this was that it showed how impactful his experience at daycare can be. He apparently is learning from his peers. I guess it's also a cautionary lesson too. He is not alone in this world with just Mommy and Daddy, he is already immersed in the "real" world.
No new photos to post but per your requests I am transferring over a "best of" photo set from the old blog. This way you can go back and enjoy the early photos too. Enjoy!
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Welcome To The New Luc Blog
As you can see we have a new look and blog host for Luc's blog. This new blog should handle photos and videos better than the old host. Enjoy.
The biggest news with Luc is he is crawling now. It was only a few weeks ago and he was just shimmying along on the floor. This was a slow and difficult way to get around, so he didn't do it much. Then, almost over night, he figured out how to crawl and he has been buzzing around the house ever since. Also, he can pull himself up and stand (almost) by himself for extended periods of time.
His teeth are coming in too. He has two on the bottom and two on the top that are showing. A couple of the photos in the photo set show a glimmer of his teeth. The teething process has not been too bad. Basically they are just dropping in and he doesn't seem to be in any great discomfort.
Earlier this week I was thinking that last year at this time the 3 of us were doing the same thing... watching the Phillies in the playoffs. Only last year Luc was inside his mommy's tummy. But I imagine he could hear the game and I know Diane could feel his movements so it seemed like it does now when he is sitting and cheering on the Phillies. Hopefully we'll have this kind of bonding to enjoy for years to come.
Anyway, that's it for now. Enjoy the photos and please be sure to bookmark this site. The old site is going down on November 1.
The biggest news with Luc is he is crawling now. It was only a few weeks ago and he was just shimmying along on the floor. This was a slow and difficult way to get around, so he didn't do it much. Then, almost over night, he figured out how to crawl and he has been buzzing around the house ever since. Also, he can pull himself up and stand (almost) by himself for extended periods of time.
His teeth are coming in too. He has two on the bottom and two on the top that are showing. A couple of the photos in the photo set show a glimmer of his teeth. The teething process has not been too bad. Basically they are just dropping in and he doesn't seem to be in any great discomfort.
Earlier this week I was thinking that last year at this time the 3 of us were doing the same thing... watching the Phillies in the playoffs. Only last year Luc was inside his mommy's tummy. But I imagine he could hear the game and I know Diane could feel his movements so it seemed like it does now when he is sitting and cheering on the Phillies. Hopefully we'll have this kind of bonding to enjoy for years to come.
Anyway, that's it for now. Enjoy the photos and please be sure to bookmark this site. The old site is going down on November 1.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
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