Daredevil Luke: Bad Judgement or a Boy Thing?

Michael and I have been discussing how you teach children good judgement skills. On Saturday I took the kids on a bike ride at Dawson Creek. Luke had a crash. He was going down a big hill toward a pond, (Luckily he didn't go in the pond--you'll find out why later) He didn't cry, but he was a little ways from me and just layed under his bike until Allie came and pulled it off of him. I expected tears and a little agony over skinned knees but no! I got, "Wow Mom, wasn't that so cool!" (No--it wasn't cool--While he was lying on the ground under his bike, I was looking for signs of movement and thinking: "We didn't even get past the year mark with no stitches, what are the signs for a concussion, how long will he have to wear the cast, and how am I going to carry him, his bike and push the stroller back to the car"). When I finally caught up to him he said, "I was going so fast with my eyes closed and then I crashed!!!! That was AWESOME!!!"
Of course he was just fine, so we got back on bikes, talked about the importance of using our EYES and kept riding.

When we got home I wanted Luke to tell Michael the story so he could reinforce the importance of using good judgement. I thought Luke might be a little embarrassed, but he was still so excited for his new extreme sport. Only this time he added that not only were his eyes closed, but said that he took his feet off the pedals and wasn't steering. He ended with, "It was AWESOME, Dad!!!" He was so proud of himself! As much as Michael and I talked to Luke about safety, etc, we don't have the feeling that it sunk in. I'm thinking the thrill of it all was just too satisfying and it will happen again. The funny thing about it is that Michael and I aren't really "extreme sports" kind of people--I would say we're very careful, safe people. As I write that, I can hear my mom's voice in my head saying, "What about when you were a river rafting guide on the 'Killer Kern'?" But that was different, Mom--the rapids weren't that big and we wore life jackets. Maybe it does come from the Galyan side--but I choose to blame Uncle Neil. This sounds like something he would do. (Only I'm sure he wouldn't have been wearing shoes or a helmet when he did it.)

Anyway, this was not an isolated event--there have been several other occurrences of varying degrees. So is it bad judgement or just a boy thing?

PS I'm so glad I had another girl.

2 Months Old

Kate had her 2 month old check up yesterday. She weighs 11 lbs, 8 oz (75%), is 23 1/2 inches long (90%) and her head is 38 cm (25-30%). Wow! We've never had a baby with a little peanut head. Actually, Kate is our littlest baby at this age. At 2 months Allie weighed in at a pound more and Luke was almost 3 pounds more. I guess it's a good thing Kate is smaller since she likes to be held all the time.

She got lots of shots and slept the whole day! It just knocked her out. Luke did not like it when she was getting her shots and asked the nurse what she was doing to Kate. He said, "I just can't take the screaming!" Luckily the screaming did not last long. (But it WAS loud!) Thankfully Kate is healthy and developing just great. Great news to us!

She smiles and coos so much now. This morning Luke was talking to her and she smiled and cooed at him and he said, "Wow, Mom--she's even cuter than me!" I can't wait to see how their relationship will develop as they get older. I think Luke will be the great entertainer and Kate will be the attentive audience. Allie as always may be the little boss! :)

A Picnic Too!

We got to have a picnic at the park too. The kids could barely eat they were so excited to play. Allie got tired of playing while Michael was pushing Luke on the swings so she hung out in the shade with Kate and me.

Luke was SO happy to have Michael pushing him on the swings. He was super excited to finally get to wear shorts. He is also wearing his medal that he got from soccer. I just think it's cute that he likes to wear it around like a champion!

Riding Bikes at Dawson Creek

Luke pretending to be a tiger

Michael fixing the training wheels on Luke's bike

Allie and Luke riding ahead. Luke would ride ahead, park his bike, walk back to Michael and I and hold my hand to "help" me catch up.

So a couple of Saturdays ago we had some great sunny, warm weather. It was so nice to be outside and not cold! It's so funny how when it's sunny in Oregon after so much rain EVERYONE is outside. You feel driven to get outside and enjoy it before it's raining again. Michael took most of the day off and we just played. One of things we did was take the kids on a bike ride at our favorite spot--Dawson Creek. Luke and I used to go there every morning in the fall for me to walk and for him to ride his bike. We have really missed it! It's such a beautiful place.

Kate Video

Now that Kate is a little more responsive, I thought it would be fun to post some video. I just took it on the digital camera and haven't ever posted video before so I hope it works. Michael discovered that she really likes it when you say "Boo!" to her. It almost always gets a smile from her. I love it when she smiles.

Monday Afternoon

Nothing exciting to post today, but since this is our family journal I just thought I would add a plain, normal day. Allie went to school and Luke, Kate and I went grocery shopping. I folded laundry and cleaned out the fridge while Luke flipped though a book and Kate slept. When Allie got home from school, the kids went outside to play. (I love the sound of kids playing outside--someday I want to live next door to a school so I can hear it all the time) But really, nothing exciting. It was nice to just be home together. This last weekend was General Conference--we got to hear the prophet and apostles teach so many wonderful things. Among other things, one of the things I really felt impressed to do was to enjoy the season of life I am in now and remember these times with my young children. Every day with them is truly a gift and sometimes as I rush about to all the "things" I have to do and don't slow down to enjoy this season. So today I just enjoyed the plain, boring, everyday things. Since I don't have very many pictures of me with the kids, I had Allie take some while we were playing this afternoon so I can remember what lazy afternoons at home were like when my kids were little. And yes, I'm wearing a hat because I still can't always find time to wash my hair, etc. Oh well--it was a nice day. I'm not really all that into doing my hair anyway.
Oh yeah, Luke got strep again! Last Friday I took him to the Dr.--it looks like he might have a tonsillectomy.

7 Weeks

I can't believe that Kate is 49 days old. It has gone kind of fast. I missed posting pics at 6 weeks--but she kind of looked the same a week ago. She is so much more awake now. When Kate was only a few weeks old, Luke lightly tapped her on the head and said, "Hello, is anybody in there?" and now we are seeing more and more that someone is in there! Luke and Allie both started sleeping through the night (6-8 hours) at 8 weeks and I don't think that is in the works for sweet little Kate. But that's okay--she sleeps a little more during the day which is helpful and sometimes I kind of enjoy our quiet times at night together. It's the last one at 5:30am that kills me because I know I have to get up soon.