I'm so terribly, terribly behind on these posts! Here it is, after Johnny's birthday, and I still haven't posted about Luke's birthday. Sheesh. In my defense, our life is basically unbelievable right now, so I'm sure all current and future readers will cut me a wee bit of slack. :)
I asked Danny, and neither one of us can be sure exactly when we got Luke home from the hospital. But I do know it was in time for his birthday...and only barely! During the month of May, he seemed to bounce in and out of the hospital. And each time he went back was harder for me to take. I was getting so accustomed to having him home with me that when he went back I missed him terribly. To past the time, and to get excited for his birthday, and in no small part because I saw this on a friend's blog and want to be creative like her, I decided to make a birthday banner for my little man. Luke had undergone quite the transformation during his first year, and I thought it would be nice to have a visual reminder of his journey. I have to say, I was kind of proud of how it turned out. :)
Luke's birthday was on a Sunday this year, and we had the family over that evening for cake and presents. Everyone was SO excited for Luke's birthday! Luke was pretty excited, too...though he had no idea what all the fuss was about. :) He was happy to see Grandpa Richard and Grandma Ruth Ann, as were all the kids.
Luke was lucky enough to have ALL his grandparents with him to celebrate his first birthday. Grandma and Papa Call were so excited to have Luke home for his birthday, and not have to celebrate it in the hospital. We all felt that way!
And Grandma Candy always loves her time with Luke! She, too, was delighted that Luke could be home for his birthday. That was her birthday wish for him!
Once everyone else arrived, which consisted of pretty much all the local uncles, aunts, and cousins, we started the fun part. Presents! The kids got Luke a fun snail toy that crawls along the floor. They were hoping this would help Luke want to crawl. They're so excited to see Luke grow up!
Luke got so many fun presents! He got tons of cute clothes, and lots of fun toys.
And he always had someone willing to help him open his presents. :)
He got some fun birthday cards from Great Grandma Call, and from Grandpa Richard and Grandma Ruth Ann.
Luke was so excited to find the "Toys R Us" gift card in Grandpa Richard and Grandma Ruth Ann's card that he poked Daddy right in the eye! :)
Towards the end of the presents, Luke started to get the hang of things. When he saw this giant present, he was ready to go! I can't for the life of me remember what was in it, but I'm sure it was awesome. :)
We were all so excited to see Luke turn one. I know I've said it before, but we weren't always sure we'd all be together when he turned one. And I can't put into words how happy we all were to be together AT HOME for his birthday! Definitely a tender mercy.
This picture just kind of cracks me up. Danny and I have never been the "brother/sister couple", meaning that we don't in any way look alike. But in this picture, we look a lot alike to me. We have the same tired but happy expression, and neither of us has the energy to stand without leaning on something. Oh, and the attractive puffy eyes are just the same. I love Danny, and if we have to walk this road, I'm happy to walk it with him.
Anyway, back to Luke. Danny and I racked our brains trying to come up with what to get Luke for his birthday. Between having 3 older siblings, and having spent so much time in the hospital receiving gifts at every turn, the kid had just about everything! We finally decided on a walker. Like the kids and their snail gift, we were hoping it would help him kindle the latent desire to be mobile. It worked wonderfully! He loved it instantly.
And speaking of love, our Sophie LOVES Luke. She was literally by his side through his whole birthday. She was so excited for him to be one, and was beyond happy that he was home. She misses him so much when he's at the hospital. What a wonderful big sister she is.
We wondered what kind of cake to do for Luke, and when we came across the Curious George cake, it seemed fitting for our little monkey man!
Luke was a fan...especially of the candle! It was a bit of work to keep him from burning his finger. :) We sang him "Happy Birthday" and helped him blow out his candle. We all wished for many, many more healthy birthdays for Luke.
Most kids just get naked for the eating of the birthday cake, but we have to be mindful of Luke's broviac. He was NOT a fan of the aquaguard, but we assured him the cake would make it worth it! He didn't believe us...
...until he saw the cake!
I was so happy to see Luke just dig right in. My poor boy has no interest in eating food through his mouth. I worried that he would just look at the cake and have no idea what to do with it. Each and every one of us were so happy to see him shove a huge fistful into his mouth.
He was so happy he decided to share with his big brother! Johnny got a face-full of cake before Papa intervened and ruined Luke's fun. :)
Johnny was cool with it, though, so it was all good.
So while Sophie was by Luke's side, and Johnny was getting a face-full of cake, where was Claire? Being Claire...sitting quietly at the table with her cake. Always (or almost always) the perfect little lady. Love that girl!
What a wonderful day. We're so proud of Luke, and how hard he fought to get to get to this awesome day. Our future was uncertain then, and more uncertain now, but we are still hopeful to celebrate another birthday with Luke. He's such an amazing spirit. Danny and I don't know what we'd do without him, and have been grateful for him each and every of his 365 days. We love you, Luke Son!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
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