Luke, The Big Boy!

I feel like I don't have a toddler anymore. He's a boy. I have a little boy. I think I've decided this is a good thing. He can communicate things with me now which is so nice! I had no idea what a huge help talking would actually be. He can tell me what's wrong when he's upset. He can tell me what he wants to eat (that's not always a good thing). And he can tell me he loves me. He's so much snugglier now than he ever was as a baby or a 1 year old. As long as he still hugs me and lets me hold him on my lap he can grow up all he wants! He still has his independent stubborn side to him though. I have to also admit that I really love that about him. I think I have to because if I didn't I'd no longer have a 2 year old! And truth be told it's totally my fault that he's that way! Even at this age he'll do something to be stubborn and I'll think, "Holy cow! That is so me!".

He's really a crack up with the things he's starting to say. A few weeks ago we were driving home from church and he all of a sudden says, "Mom's the best!". We just cracked up! Where does he come up with something like that? About a month ago we bought a new sectional off Craigslist (new to us anyways, and I LOVE it!). We brought it home and Luke and Levi were so excited about it! They kept walking from one end of the couch to the other. I think having one continuous couch was pretty awesome to have in our own house! Anyways, the next morning they were playing on it again and Trent and Luke had this conversation:
T: You really like our new couch don't you Luke?
L: Yeah! (pumping his fists in the air)
T: What's your favorite part about it?
L: Mama happy!
Haha! He's learning fast! I love that boy :)

He's learning to count pretty well and loved to count almost anything. We'll be in the car and he'll start counting the cars that drive by. We're working on colors but that's been a little more of a challenge for him. We're getting there though. He loves to play with my mom and Trent's smart phones. He's incredibly good at it! He knows exactly how to get to all of his games and how to get out of them and move on to the next one. Tech savvy!
Luke LOVES to sing! He'll sing along with Trent when he's playing the ukulele. He tried to sing along to the sacrament hymns at church. Which is really funny t hear because since we're in the Spanish Branch in our stake they're all in Spanish! He has a few favorites that he like to sing right now.
Itsy Bitsy Spider
Popcorn Popping
Once There Was A Snowman
The Wise Man and The Foolish Man
I Am A Child of God (my favorite!)
Twinkle Twinkle Little Star (sometimes that one turns into ABC's)
ABC's

His nursery leader is always impressed because he's the only one in there who will actually sit through all of singing time and actually participate.
He and Levi have been playing really cute together lately too. I think now that Levi is walking and can keep up Luke feels like he's big enough to rough house. Levi holds his own pretty well though. It's so fun to watch them interact! I feel like Luke has just recently realised he has a little brother. He never paid much attention to him before he could crawl. He'll get excited when Levi wants to play with him. He still picks on him from time to time but it's inevitable I think. He's sweet to get Levi a toy car if he's playing with one so they can play together. He'll also help Levi get into either a small wagon we have or his little red coupe car and push him all over the house. The only rough part is when Luke wants his turn and for Levi to push him. He doesn't quite understand that yet so mom usually ends up helping Levi push Luke around. That's good enough. He'll always share his goldfish with Levi too. Before he could eat the whole thing he'd bite off tiny pieces and feed them to Levi.

We were SO close to having him potty trained a month or so ago. He would tell me when he'd have to go and hardly ever went in his diaper! We were so excited! He was sick for a little shy of a week and then it's like we erased all the progress we'd made. Bummer!! I was so looking forward to having only one child's diaper to change. But, we're slowly regaining ground so hopefully it'll be soon.
Luke's been so much fun! The older he gets the funner he is. I love being his mom! I just stare at him sometimes because I can't believe he's already so big. I can't believe I'm a mother. It's the job I've always wanted! I'm so grateful that Trent works so incredibly hard to allow me to be home with our boys. It's not a job that I take lightly and it's the hardest and most challenging thing I've ever done but the rewards are even greater than the challenges. I can't wait to bring more little spirits into our family to see how our dynamic will change. But for now I'm trying to live in the moment as much as possible and just enjoy these two little boys. After all, they're only little for so long.