2 months

Dear Luke,
Today, you turned two months old. And you demonstrated your maturity by sleeping for 6 whole hours last night! Daddy and I could not believe it when we looked at the clock and you were still fast asleep at 5am (a time when you would normally be waking up for your 2nd or 3rd bottle). When I weighed us together on the scale this morning, you added another 10 pounds to our total, which means your wrists are no longer the size of my thumbs and your legs actually have some meat on them. You are a ten pound baby boy! People still comment about how small you are and how light you are, but daddy and I can tell - you feel bigger. You look bigger. Your face is filling out and your baby hats don't fit anymore. You have a handful of outfits that we don't even try to squeeze you in to because it's just not worth the struggle. (It's really hard to get you dressed. You really hate it. I mean. REALLY. HATE. IT.) And it's not worth getting something stuck on your noggin just because we like the monkeys on the front.

I'm already starting to feel sad that the time is going by too fast. Before we know it, I'll be going back to work and we won't get to spend all day together - going on walks, baking cookies and watching home decorating marathons. I really love our days together. I love lifting you out of your crib in the morning and kissing your hot little cheeks. I love that you scream through your entire diaper change, outfit change and bottle prep, but you immediately stop crying when that bottle goes in your mouth. (Like you're just starving and you can't understand why we don't do the bottle thing first.) I love that you want to hold my hand while I hold your bottle and you immediately calm down when I brush your cheek with my finger. I love that we have had this precious time to get to know each other because I have had the time of my life getting to know you.

My friends at Hallmark threw us an amazing baby shower last week and they made the little birdie mobile that now hangs over your changing table. They also collected money so we could sit for hours in a new glider - feeding you bottles, reading you books, or lulling you back to sleep. You have an amazing support system around you and I feel so lucky and proud to show you off.

Your Hallmark baby shower:

Table decorations and games:

The insanely talented Katie Larson made this for you (still blows me away):

Our amazing hostesses (and you...snarfing down a bottle):

Mommy's take-home treat box (please ignore the ratio of fruit to sweets):

One little birdie from your mobile:

All of your amazing gifts:

In the last few weeks, you have begun to discover light and shadows. You like to lay on the floor in the mornings and watch the sun dance through the leaves outside. You like to watch the light cast shadows on the floor. You are awake more during the day than you used to be (though you wouldn't know it from all of my pictures of you, sleeping) and you've really started to study my face. You look at me and you reach for me and you try so hard to copy the faces I make at you. You are able to reach and grab and kick the things on your play mat and you even rolled over the other day!  Granted, you were furious at the time, but you lifted your little head off the mat and with one impetuous maneuver, you flipped yourself from your stomach to your back. And in that amazing moment, I saw an entire lifetime of moments - getting to cheer you on and celebrate your victories.

You rule:

The most important thing to happen this month was your finalization with the state of Kansas. You are officially Luke Adler Westhoff and a part of our family forever. We called it "Westhoff Wednesday" because the whole day celebrated our journey to permanently change our Westhoff family tree. We decided we would celebrate your birthday on September 3rd, but also your finalization day on October 20th because that's when our lives truly began. In honor of your finalization, I surprised daddy with a family garden in the back yard. I had three trees planted, one for each of us. Together, we will watch them grow tall and strong - leaving room in the garden for any other little Westhoffs that may come along.

We have had so much fun with you, Luke and we can't believe you're already 2 months old. We are so excited to watch you grow and become a little man - but not too fast, okay?

Love,
mom and dad

Cousin kisses:

Four generations: