Lily Update

Well, I had my doctor's appointment this afternoon and she said everything is still looking good. I'm dilated to almost three centimeters (not that that means anything because I was exactly the same with Luke), but at least I'm making progress. They got me on the schedule to be induced next Monday, January 5th, although that doesn't necessarily mean we will for sure be having a baby that day. I have to call the hospital at 5:30 Monday morning to find out if they have room for us and when. If they get a Sunday night rush of women in labor we might not get in, in which case my doctor will just have to try and get me in later in the week.

I'm still hoping that I might go into labor on my own before then, and I'm trying not to get my hopes too far up for Monday. I know she will be here soon enough, but I am so ready to meet her, not to mention how much I am looking forward to not being pregnant anymore!

No promises, but we will try and update to let everyone know what's going on come Monday!

Christmas

We had a wonderful Christmas this year. Luke was so much fun. He was so excited to see what "HoHo" (as he calls Santa) had brought him on Christmas morning. There is nothing like seeing a little boy's face light up to make you remember how magical Christmas is.

Luke on the tricycle Santa brought.


Him getting ready to play his new harmonica (he's quite talented)!


We were so lucky to be able to spend Christmas with all of our family and we are looking forward to next year when Lily will be here to join us!

The World's Cutest Elephant

For Halloween this year, Luke dressed up like an elephant. Here he is modeling it for me.



This is his version of where the trunk is supposed to go.


He even went trick or treating!

It took him a few houses to get used to it, but the lure of candy was too good to pass up. We had so much fun watching him run around in his costume - I'm already looking forward to next year!

October

Luke had tons of fun this past month, so we thought we would post some hilights.

Here are a couple of pictures we took at the zoo. He really loved the elephants and the giraffes and he got to see the orangutans up close.

We also took a trip to Milano where Luke got to feed and pet some cows. Here he is sitting on a friendly one.


And of course we visited the Pumpkin Patch!

Luke and Taylor

Luke and Taylor have gotten to spend more time together lately and they are loving it! They have Gymboree together every Wednesday and Luke gets so excited when I tell him we're going to see Taylor. It is so cute!

Here they are in the Alarid's backyard the night of the bonfire.


Luke playing on Taylor's playground.


The two of them playing piano together at our house.

The piano picture was taken one night when Taylor came over to play. They wanted to do everything together and every time one of them would go to do something else, they would take the other by the hand and ask them to come. It is so much fun watching them grow up together!

Luke in Marble Falls

I know it's been forever since I posted...sorry, sorry, sorry. Here are a few pictures we took of Luke when we were in Marble Falls visiting Granny.

This one is Luke being tickled by his Daddy.

It's A Girl!

We had our ultrasound today and the littlest Bartkowiak is a girl! And apparently she's stubborn like her mama. When we first started the ultrasound, she was curled up in a tight little ball with her legs tucked up underneath her. The ultrasound tech poked and prodded and checked from all angles, but little miss was playing modest. I was getting worried that we weren't going to be able to find out, but the ultrasound tech said she would try again if we wanted to wait twenty minutes. So Matthew ran and got me a caffeinated beverage and I drank that and ate a bunch of SweetTarts hoping that would liven her up a little, and sure enough, when we went back half and hour later, she was rolled over and kicking! And she is most definitely a girl! We are both really excited and looking forward to meeting her.

After the ultrasound, we went and did a little shopping and got baby girl a few outfits and since today is our anniversary, Matthew bought me a wedding band that can be sized (my original one can't be) so that I will have a ring to wear while I'm pregnant. For those of you who don't remember, when I was pregnant with Luke my hand swelled to the point where I couldn't take my rings off for months!

One last note...I got my PICC line out yesterday! YEAH!!!! It had been in for eight weeks and really needed to come out and I am now doing just fine without it. It was delightful to go shopping today without having to haul around a fanny pack - surprisingly enough, fanny packs aren't the most fashionable accessory.

That's it for now. I'll post more pictures of Luke soon and I'll let you all know as soon as we decide on a name for our little girl!

FINALLY - An update

I realize that it's been a long time since I've updated, but here are just a few pictures of what Luke has been up to the last couple of months.

Obviously, he still loves the dryer.


Trying on Daddy's new boots.


And here he is "helping" Daddy build shelves.


Luke is a huge helper now. He loves to do anything we do and will happily clean and dust and generally do whatever we ask. I know this is a short lived stage, but we're enjoying it while it lasts!

On another note, I am doing much, much better lately. I still have the PICC line in, but I'm feeling tons better and I'm able to get out and do things now. Hopefully in the next two weeks, I will get completely better and I can have the PICC line taken out and get back to normal! Thank you so much to all of you who helped out the last few months, and thanks for all of your prayers - we are really blessed to have the friends and family that we do.

Laundry Helper

Someone has found a new place to hang out. Luke recently figured out that he can climb into the dryer and now anytime we go to do laundry, Luke wants to "help". Wet clothes, dry clothes, empty - doesn't matter to him!

Water Baby

Luke is loving being outside now that summer is here! He loves to play in the sprinkler and go in the little pool in the backyard. He will go down the slide as many times in a row as someone will help him do it!





Look at that grin!




Maya likes the sprinkler almost as much as Luke does.

First Time in the Sprinkler!

Last week my mom came over to watch Luke while I went to get a haircut. Nana let Luke have his first run through the sprinklers. He had a blast!

Too Hot!

Luke figured out how to blow on his food awhile ago, but just recently he has taken to blowing on ALL of his food. If Matthew or I start blowing on something that's hot, Luke takes his cue from us and will blow on all of his food for the rest of the meal.

Matthew is standing to the side of this picture blowing on a piece of chicken. Luke is helping!

Get Comfy

We finally got a good picture of how Luke sleeps. I can't count how many nights we go in to check on him and find one of his legs hanging outside the crib.

Maya Comes Home

Last night we drove out to Richmond and came home with a new addition to our family! Her name is Maya and she is a six week old golden retriever. Isn't she a cutie?


She had a long ride home and was exhausted!


Luke and Maya are fascinated with each other.

Bluebonnet Pics

Luke in the bluebonnets.


Luke and Taylor - so sweet.


All the babies together!