Fall Fun Part 2

We recently met our friend Pam and she took some pictures of us at a park. Luke was asleep for half the time so we got to catch up with Pam. When Luke came to.... she got some good shots of us playing together.

Fall Fun

Luke likes to be outdoors. Ever since he was a very small baby one of my tricks to stop him from crying was to take him outside. He continues to like exploring and looking at lots of new things.


Here are some of the latest pictures of him. We went with Grandpa and Grandma Krause to Eberts Farm. Even though it was cool and windy that day Luke was able to see his first Billy Goat, Pigs, Sheep, and lots of other animals.


Luke also got to play in his first leaf pile with Dad. He picked up some leaves to study. Otherwise he liked to bang on them and hear the crunching sound.

Colorado Vacation

Last week we went on a family vacation to Colorado. This was Luke’s first plane ride and it went very well considering he had a cold and cough.

We spent 2 days with our friends Julie and Derek (from UW-Madison) at their home in Longmont, Colorado. Their son, Daniel is about 9 weeks older than Luke. It was fun to spend time with them and share stories about each of our kids, especially since we are going through this time of life together. Daniel was crawling around and eating a lot more solid foods than Luke so it gave us a preview of what Luke will be doing soon (update: Luke ate half a container of carrots plus a cereal for lunch today).

Luke was not his normal self the first 2 days because he was sick and not used to his new environment. Julie and Derek also gave us some advice on altitude and dehydration. After taking that advice and using a humidifier Luke was back to his normal self.

So our time at Vail was very fun. We went on shorter hikes at least a few times each day. I got to go mountain biking down Vail pass, which was a 15 mile descent. Alyssa went mountain biking on Vail mountain, which meant she went straight up. And Luke hung out in Vail village charming everyone.

Our next stop was Snowmass, which is near Aspen. We did a 3 hour hike with Luke by Crater Lake in the Maroon Bells. The Aspen trees were bright orange and yellow and contrasted with the dark green of the evergreen trees. Everyone on the trail was impressed with Luke and one older lady (about 75) said one day he would be a mountaineer.

The last day and a half of our trip it turned cold and snowed. We had about 10 inches at our condo which was at 8600 feet elevation. So we built Luke his first snowman.

We are thankful for a fun trip and the opportunity to give Luke so many good experiences.

5 Months Old

I, Alyssa, can not believe how much love I have for Luke. I kiss him 30-60 times a day because I know I will not be able to kiss him when he is older. I love to hold him and tell him that I couldn't possibly love him more. He also makes me laugh and call him a goof. Luke is now over 5 months old and starting to outgrow a lot of his clothes.

Next its off to a vacation in Colorado. We will update you with pictures when we get back.

2 Months Late

Here are a few pictures from Luke's 3 month picture set. I am a little late in posting - he is over 5 months old already.

Its Been Awhile

Summer is a busy time and its hard to get time to update a blog. Here are some pictures from our vacation to northern Wisconsin. We spent time with both Dave and Alyssa's family during the week.

My Baby's Got Sauce

This last week (June 12th) was Luke’s first week at daycare and hence Alyssa’s first week back to work. Alyssa had a good week at work. After her first day, I asked how it went and her first comment was “Well, I didn’t cry.” Then she responded with how it felt natural to go back, that she didn’t miss a beat, and she still likes her job of being a physical therapist. Working three days a week seems to be a good balance between working and motherhood.

I take Luke to daycare and pick up on those three days. His teachers’ comments include, “He is a dream baby.” Translation: He is well adjusted and doesn’t cry very much. They all like him and think he is very cute. On his second day I picked him up in a and he was in different clothes - his shirt said “Wash and Return”. He got his original clothes dirty, followed by his spare outfit by pee-ing on them while being changed.

Meanwhile, when Luke is home with Alyssa he is learning a new skill – helping cook dinner. His chair on the counter allows him to supervise. He is talking more (coo-ing) and also smiling more everyday.

Sunday Drive

Alyssa’s granddad likes to go for Sunday drives. So last Sunday we took him to Watertown. It was fun to have both great-grandfather and great-grandson together for the afternoon. Granddad is 92 and Luke was 10 weeks old at the time.

Said another way, Granddad was 33,694 days old (including 23 days for leap year) and Luke was 70 days old. What a blessing life is – both new life and a full, well lived life.

We had fun at my parent’s house strolling around the yard and having a picnic. Also driving around the town to see the Octagon House, Keck’s Furniture (where he bought a couch about 65 years ago), and the Rock River. The Rock River is much smaller in Watertown than it is in Sterling, Illinois, where he used to live. During Granddad’s life he canoed every mile of the Rock River at various times.

Sweet Pea

Question: What happens when you have a wife that is always optimistic and positive and then you cross that with being a very happy new mom.

Answer: You get at least one, probably two, and sometimes three phone calls at work stating that “we have the cutest baby in the world!" Followed by a full description of why that is true.

Alyssa and Luke have been having fun at home, visiting family and friends, and going on trips to the parks in the area. But this week they took a road trip to visit me at work. We had a picnic lunch at a local park. And then a visit to the office to introduce Luke to all of my co-workers.

Luke seemed to enjoy being in the office. What do you think? Future Engineer? …. We will see.

For right now he is just a “Sweet Pea”. Thanks to Megan, all the way from Vancouver, British Columbia, for that cute outfit.

Madison Weekend

It seems like yesterday that we were married - and now we have a baby. We went back to Madison on Memorial Day weekend to celebrate our 4th wedding anniversary. We had fun reminiscing but also got to "show" Luke the sights. We took him to the farmer's market, the Monona Terrace (site of our wedding reception), the Memorial Union, and Lakeshore path.

We enjoyed a nice dinner, while Luke was at Nana and Papa's house, at Biaggi's (the site of our rehearsal dinner). A lot has changed since Alyssa and I graduated from the university, but Madison still feels like our home away from home.

Also on the trip, Luke found a friend that was just his size. Sorry... I had to throw that in for cuteness.

Happy Mothers Day

Luke is continuing to grow. His newborn sleepers don't fit anymore and he jumped up from diaper size zero to size one when he was 6 weeks old. He just had his 8 week check up and the doctor said he is doing great. He is almost 11 pounds and is in the 50 percentile for height. After getting 3 nasty shots he is relatively good spirits.

Another new thing is that he is starting to smile. Nothing makes me smile more than seeing him smile. In the morning he when he starts to wake up he is fussing. I pick him up, lay him on the changing table, and has a big smile waiting for me. Luke is like Alyssa - they are both morning people.

Alyssa celebrated her first Mother's Day. Luke surprised her with flowers the day before to catch her off guard. Alyssa is sliding into the role of motherhood with ease. I am honored that she is Luke's mother.

We were also privileged to dedicate him on Mother's Day at church. Both of our immediate families were able to attend. Several other couples from our church small group also dedicated their children that day. We feel lucky to have other friends that are also new parents who can share the joys and struggles.

Cute as they come....

Luke is the best baby. I love him. In fact, that is all I tell him all day long. I do not have much else to say to him. On average, I tell him I love him once every two minutes. Here are some words from Celine Dion that represent how I feel.
-Alyssa

“I’m overwhelmed with happiness, so blessed to hold you close, the one that I love most. Who could ever love you more?’

“You’re my angel from above, only God creates such perfect love.”

“A romance that is pure at heart, I never knew a love like this till you. You break my heart with tenderness. Who could ever love you more?”

Nutso

I, Alyssa, have been enjoying my time with Luke. We are bonding in more ways than one. I am a proud mom when Luke stops onlookers with his charm while he is in the stroller. I love him all the time, he even makes me laugh when he cries.


I need to come up with an enduring nick name for Luke. So far we call him “Nutso, Goof, Mr. Mad, Mr. Big Stuff, or Mr. Pouty.”


I also need to learn how to take better pictures of Luke, see enclosed photos. This is the reason I already have had to take Luke for professional photos.