Thanksgiving

Yesterday afternoon when I picked up Luke, I was greeted not only with the standard super-smile and reach routine, but also with 4 big kisses...sort of. He kisses with his mouth open, so it is debatable as to whether he is kissing or trying to eat you, but the intent is clearly to show great affection and we have been working hard at teaching him to kiss...so we are going with kissing. Aside from that he is also a pro at pulling-up on anything and everything now. He can even do a little foot shuffle to move around. Only problem is he isn't as adept at getting back down. Every morning around 3:30 or 4:00 he gets hungry. I hear the first whimper, go downstairs, heat his bottle up, change his diaper and feed him. It takes a total of 4 1/2 minutes to get the bottle ready, during which he usually just talks and crawls back and forth in his crib. But night before last he instead was really mad and crying for that period. I knew he was o.k., but definitely different. When I got in there it was clear he had no idea how to re-sit after pulling himself up, so he had been shuffling in a square around and around the crib. He was clearly in a panic...realizing there was no way he could endure such boredom for another 30 seconds. I saved him just in time. In between learning new things, we also had a visit on Thanksgiving from Grandma and Grandpa Anderson, Uncle Jeff, Aunt Lynn, Cousin Michael, and Cousin David. I want Luke to know his family and he got a real taste of the Anderson half for a few days. I think the boys really enjoyed each other. Michael catered to little Luke, bringing him toys and patting him every once in a while, while David tolerated him as long as he wasn't near his own mommy. I doubt that he'll remember the first Thanksgiving get-together, but we'll remember it, not because the turkey and dressing were great, although they were, but because it was real effort made towards making sure our little guy knows what is truly important and as he grows I know it'll pay off and serve as a reminder every day. Now it is on to Christmas and as you can tell, we are getting him ready.