Celebrating Luke!

Today, my oldest puddin' head is six years old! Can you believe it? I can't! It seems like yesterday that I was rocking him and rubbing his bald, little head. He was so precious then and he is even more precious to me now. He was my little buddy before Leah came along and I loved doing everyday things, just the two of us. He was so excited when Leah arrived and nothing could wipe the smile from his face. "It's a baby!" he exclaimed over and over again in the hospital room. He's been the best big brother ever since. He's had to share me from that time on, but he never seems to mind (as long as he gets to sit beside me and play with my "orange" hair). Luke definitely takes the big brother role seriously. He's a cautious child, and has always been quick to pull Leah into the garage if someone was backing out of the drive, or pull her back when she was tiny and about to toddle into the road. Luke is also quite competitive and lives to play soccer, baseball, pool, air hockey, and any board or card games. He'll even make a competition out of eating if you let him. He's very thoughtful and notices when other children are upset or hurting. Luke has always had a sweet, gentle nature and seems to be in constant observation of the world around him. He's always asking questions: "How many horsepower is that?" "Why were people mean to Jesus?" "Can I have that?"... He also has a stubborn streak. It is almost impossible to get him to try something new if it scares him in the least. Let's just say swimming lessons were close to torture for the both of us. But he's good at whatever he does try (much like his daddy:). Luke's a bit of a perfectionist and gets frustrated if he doesn't do something as well as he'd like. I have to tell him that it's okay to get messy and make mistakes (contrary to what I tell Leah). Luke is a morning person to an almost aggravating degree. He wakes up early, chirping: "It's a beautiful day! The sun is shining! Get up!" He's actually taught me to enjoy mornings! But when he's tired at night, he can be a real pill. He's relatively shy, but obeys me when I tell him what to say to people when they speak to him. And the older he gets, the more he thinks of the right things to say himself! He really loves to be around friends, loves animals, and loves babies, too. And if you ask him, he'll tell you that he loves God the most! If you can't tell by now, I am so proud that he's my son! Happy Birthday, Luke!