Does she EVER slow down?

Have you met my wife?  She's....well the best way to put it is to describe what she's been doing lately.

Tonight, she turned in a 15(ish) page paper to her professor.

Not too bad, but what's the big deal you ask?

Well, it was the last paper...in the last class...to finish her Masters Degree! (I'm so proud of her!)

WOW!!! (you declare, even though I can't actually hear you)

But wait, THERE'S MORE!

Last weekend, Luke turned 1!
We just got back from Jamaica!
We just put landscaping, a gazebo, and a shed in our backyard!
Melissa went on her first out of town trip for work!
Grandma Godinez came to visit!
I got a new instructor rating at work!
And much more!

Grandma couldn't figure out why she could hear Baby Luke, but just couldn't seem to find him!

What can I say, he loves his pinwheel!

Baby Luke is telling you all about his friend, Pablo the Penguin!

"I CAN TAKE A BETTER PICTURE THAN YOU CAN! GIVE ME THE CAMERA!"

Daddy imparting great wisdom on his son...

Baby Luke having a great time!

So you see, Dear Reader, that's probably why we haven't been writing much on the blog as of late.  But tonight...tonight things are different.  Melissa is surfing the internet and watching The Wonder Years reruns.  Ralphie is curled up next to her to keep his nose warm, and Sophie is snuggled up in her blanket on the floor.

It's a good night.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Little Dude!

One year ago we were staring at the monitors to watch your vitals, not even able to hold you because you were so sick. There were so many questions:  How long until you could breathe on your own? Did you have a heart defect? How severe would the Down Syndrome prove to be? How long until you could learn to eat?

Now......

 You have no trouble eating.....

You LOVE to be snuggled.....

 And you don't have a care in the world!

We love you, and here's a look at the first year of your life.

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Vacation - Part I of III: Trip to Kansas

Did you really think I'd put EVERYTHING from the last two weeks into one blog? April tends to be a monumental month in our lives every year, and this year is no different.  Two years ago it was getting news of the move from ND to LA, last year it was Luke's arrival, and this year it is epic chaos!

Two weeks ago, both Luke and I managed to get sick right before our big trip to Kansas, but luckily, mommy got some medicine at the doctor, and the family pharmacist, a.k.a. Grandpa Cesar, got Luke nice and better.

Mommy and Daddy had to go to Kansas City to celebrate Kim and Dan's wedding, so Luke asked to stay with Grandpa and Grandma Malone for the weekend. They spoiled him rotten so mommy and daddy could visit with all of their old college and Minot friends.

Luke loved getting spoiled, but he had to leave Topeka because it was time for a trip to Grandpa Cesar and Grandma Karen's house so mommy and daddy could go to Jamaica on vacation!

Next....Part II: Jamaica

Pirate's Life for Me!

Yar!  This weekend we got on our boat for the first time of the season!  We just had to.  We have been working on yard work, homework, and Melissa's work work all week and needed to get out.  It actually hit 90 degrees on Saturday afternoon, so we gathered out stuff and hit the road to the lake.  It was a great choice as we met up with some friends who also have a boat.

Luke got tuckered out!

Shhhhhhhh!

In funnier news, we happened to have Luke in his exersaucer next to an inflatable penguin that makes noise when you hit it.  Well, it happened to be close to Luke and he decided to hit it...and when the thing tipped over it said "WOOOOHOOO!" and then came back up.  Luke LOVED IT!  He kept hitting it and hitting it for almost an hour!  Melissa hates it, but I think it's great.  

Not much else is going on here.  We are getting the gazebo done.  Should have it done by the end of the week!  That with our new landscaping, our backyard is going to look like a different yard!  The next project is going to be a shed so we can clean out our garage...which is covered with brown spray paint powder.  I can't wait to get started!

March Madness

It is time for March Madness, and I don't just mean basketball! Things are rarely quiet at the Godinez household, and this week has been no exception.  Luke has been counting down the days until his first birthday, but in medical terms, a lot has to happen before then! Since Luke LOVES to stand up and watch the doggies play, it is time for him to get his leg braces. No, these will not be a permanent medical accessory; however, they will simply be to provide support until the muscles in his ankles can strengthen.  Due to his low muscle tone, his ankles like to roll when he stands, and nothing about it looks comfortable.

Everyone knows the continuous saga of ear infections and pink eye, so there's a doc for that! We went to the ENT yesterday for our initial consult for tubes. The doctor is optimistic that we might be able to get tubes in, but Luke has some tiny little ear canals. In fact, when the doctor looked in his ear, his immediate response was, "Well, this explains why you've had so many ear infections!" While Luke is in surgery, the doctor is also going to conduct a neurological hearing test. An 11 month old can't exactly raise his right hand when he hears a beep during a hearing test, so this seemed like the best option to ensure that we won't add hearing aids to our medical accessory list. 

On a more exciting note, here are some of our latest pictures of Luke enjoying the beautiful spring weather!

His legs finally touch the ground!!

Hanging out with daddy after school.

Doggie in hand...ready for school!

Zoom zoom!

Now we know he isn't allergic to grass...thank goodness! It does taste yummy though...

Just hangin' out...

Relaxing Weekend

After an exciting last weekend of Vegas, ear infections, and daddy meltdowns, this weekend was much calmer.  All three of us managed to be sick throughout the week (I think it was just allergies as everything is coming back to life since the weather is so warm), but we were all better by the weekend. Luke started off his Saturday by staying in bed until 9:00!!! This was great because Patrick and I had LOTS to get done. We just bought a gazebo from some friends moving away, so while Patrick painted it out in the garage, I diligently worked on homework so I could play the rest of the weekend.

 

When Luke finally got up, he was super hungry. Notice the two bottom teeth in the top picture! We decided his hair was getting a bit shaggy again, so we called on Stylist Lindsay, our neighbor, to come assist with haircut #2.  We had the brilliant idea to do it outside so we wouldn't get hair everywhere, so yes, our child is sitting in his bumbo in the bed of the pickup truck! Our goal was a natural, windblown look, and it totally worked! (Basically, we just couldn't figure out how to cut his crazy hair!).

Obviously from this picture, Luke wishes you would have been there to save him.  Despite his trepidation at our approach, his hair turned out beautiful!  Thank goodness we had him looking all snazzy because we finished just in time to make it to his friend Grace's 1st birthday party followed up by a bbq in the hood.