Thursday, March 12, 2009

Luke Andrew




This picture was taken just minutes after you were born, March 9, 2006. I remember so well the events surrounding your arrival. You made your way into the world at 10:35 pm...just hours before your daddy's birthday on March 10th. You announced your arrival with a loud cry and Daddy prayed - thanking God for the good gift of you. We were so thankful that God had given us another little boy to fill our family. We had prayed and prepared for months...and at last, we were holding you in our arms.



Sam was 2 1/2 when you arrived. He was eager to meet "his baby" and was even more fond of you when he opened the gift you had "given" him. When he came to the hospital for the first time, you "gave" him a Veggie Tales play set. He loved it! He would learn to love you, too. At first, your crying really bothered Sam. As a matter of fact, you cried the entire way home from the hospital...and so did Sam. He was curious about you...and you were tolerant of him. I am so thankful that you two have become such good friends and playmates. No one makes you laugh or annoys you like Sam. {grin}






You were an easy baby...except when you were in the car seat. We were desperate to find a solution to your crying (the entire time we were traveling)...so, we tried a different car seat. SHAZAM! It was as if you were a totally different baby when you were not in the infant carrier. We were so relieved. You ate well. You also began to spit up quite well. Your spitting up soon became projectile vomiting...caused by pyloric stenosis. You had surgery to repair this tummy issue the same day you were diagnosed. Although it was a minor procedure (taking only 20 minutes), Daddy and I were shaken. You were so tiny, so frail, and we were unable to help you. I remember carrying you to the doors of the operating room and placing you in the arms of the anesthesiologist...and weeping. Daddy and I were quickly reminded that you were not ours - but, you belonged to God. We were reminded that God loved you even more than we did, and He would care for you. We prayed for your surgeons, your recovery, and your life. We were so relieved that the symptoms were gone immediately and you were able to come home the following day. We haven't looked back since then....you have been healthy, happy, and very busy.





Luke, you are an intense little boy. You love fiercely, play hard, jump high, run fast, roar loudly, giggle with gusto, kiss your momma with lots of slobber, celebrate big, and "squeeze hug" everyone you love. Physically, you astonish us. You are able to wink both eyes independently, you can hop on one foot, you did a forward roll at 11 months and have since moved on to headstands! You are practicing your coloring, drawing, and puzzle making...and doing quite well. You love to sing, march, and play instruments. You especially love to wrestle with Daddy & Sam. You most favorite thing of all is to be outside! You love to play in the sandbox (and throw it everywhere, I might add), ride bikes in our driveway, play basketball & baseball, and go to the park to "swing and slide."


Perhaps the most surprising thing about you is your heart. You really, really love people. You squeal with delight when Daddy comes home from work each day, you always grin from ear to ear and say, "Mommy, I found you" when I get you out of bed each morning, you always hug Sam and say, "Oh, hi Sam" repeatedly after you wake from your nap. You love to tell "knock knock" jokes before you and Sam fall to sleep each night. You are delighted by the simplest things. You are incredibly complex, as well. You are incredibly impulsive - throwing things, jumping, disobeying, and always at the most inopportune time. {grin} You are also incredibly polite. You always say, "Oh, thanks Mom" when I give you something or tell you that I love you. You also say, "Oh, excuse me" when you walk in front of someone at the library or the store. Daddy and I are so blessed to be your parents. We are so excited to see all that God will do in your life...and who you will become. Our prayer is that you'll become a man who loves God with his very life.


My sweet little boy is now three years old. Hard to believe. It has simply gone too fast. We love you, Lukey boy.

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