Chase Me!

A snapshot at 10 months

Everyone tells us that raising a baby gets better and better the older they get. We're both finding how true that is as Lucas is developing new skills, a more complex personality and a sense of humor! We love it! I do miss some of the sweet mannerisms of his 6-month-old self, which I get to enjoy with our friend Sufyan, but our ease of communication, our predictable daily napping and nighttime schedule, and the new games we can play (along with more laughs!) make his getting older pretty sweet too.
Here are his stats from his doctor appointment today:
Height: 29 inches
Weight 18 lbs, 13 oz
Long and lean like his cousin Zayna!

Lucas has recently developed a fascination with anything that gives him the opportunity to use his little pointer finger. Anything that looks like a button gets poked and he likes to "trace" the pictures in his board books.

He's also learned how to feed Annie from his highchair even though we've never modeled this to him. He'll even give her his all-time favorite food (bread) just to watch her eat it.

Another recent development is his love of methodical mess-making. He loves to take each book off his toyshelf one by one and drop it to the floor- considering each book for one second before releasing it dramatically like it's a dirty undergarment.

He also enjoys playing "chase the baby" with either Laith or I crawling after him. It's so much fun as he squeals with delight!

His favorite foods are anything new and anything very flavorful. Hummus, pesto, seasoned pasta dishes, guacamole and bakery breads are his current favorites along with whatever is on our own plates.

His favorite toys remain anything that can be banged on and also anything that's a little bit challenging for him to manipulate. Mr. Baby likes to discover how mechanical things work and is very creative with his problem-solving- just like Daddy!

Here's to lots of fun and learning for month 10!

TEN!!!

He's hit the double-digits, folks! More Lucas stats and stories to come mid-week.

Weeee!

Lucas' first swing!

Max Visits!

Laith's brother, Max came to visit us a few weekends ago and we really enjoyed having such a great reason to get out of the house and enjoy everything Austin has to offer. :) We had just started our self-designed "Go to Sleep Baby!" action plan so we were both pretty exhausted and hadn't really done anything fun in quite a while. This weekend with Max made up for a lot of missed time. All 4 of us went to Hamilton Pools one afternoon- it's a collapsed grotto with a waterfall-fed pool and rocky beach. Perfect for lazing away a hot summer day. Lucas got to try out his inflatable swim suit- which worked really well for us even though he was in our arms the whole time. It was more of a back-up device. :) Other than that, Laith and Max got to spend a lot of time together seeing a few sights, catching a movie and dinner at the Alamo drafthouse, and babysitting Lucas while I shot a wedding on Saturday. We very much enjoyed having him stay with us and we look forward to seeing him and the rest of the Vincent family again over Christmastime!

Family Portrait

Imaginary Life

I'm copying this idea from my friend Ravyn's blog. I loved reading it and it inspired me to write my own! My rule for this post is that I can't mention anything that is reality for my life- so nothing about being a photograper or physical therapist or a mom, or married to the man of my dreams, etc.

Imaginary Life...

• I am a puppy raiser and team trainer for Canine Companions for the Blind/Deaf/Physically Challenged. All my former puppies and owners keep in touch with me and send me Christmas cards so that I don't wonder about them or miss them too much.
  

• I am a musical prodigy and can play any song on the guitar minutes after first hearing it. I have perfect pitch and a voice that makes your heart expand and your eyes widen.

• I am a Christian scholar. My command of the Greek and Aramaic languages helps me shed light on the subtleties of the passages, context and culture of the original biblical writings. Though I'm very knowledgeable, I have lots of questions and love the mystery and grandeur of it all.
  

• I am a travel writer for National Geographic. They send me and my whole family to beautiful places off the beaten path to experience local culture, cuisine and traditional festivals. They set us up in 4 or 5 star accommodations and of course we fly first class.
  

• I am a dancer for Stomp. But I also have some mean salsa and swing moves. I have such energy and grace and presence that I'm often hired to dance in Gap ads.
  

• I run fast.
• I have a photographic memory.
• I knit.
  

• I have the skills. money, support staff and resources to empower others to
  

overcome an addiction
finish school
learn a trade
do what they love
take a risk

• I can speak 5 languages: English, Spanish, Italian, Greek, and Aramaic.

• I am a ropescourse facilitator. I'm not afraid of heights.
  

• I am a captivating storyteller. I can weave the scariest ghost stories, know traditional folklore, and can recount hundreds of years of oral histories of my families and my community.

• I am a superstar at Capture the Flag. I play in city-wide games complete with disguises, military-like tactics and good running shoes.
  

• I can speak perfectly in any accent. Irish, Australian, Cockney English, Southern Belle, Western Canadian...
  

• I'm so creative that it comes out of every pore. I'm like one of those street performers you see in Boulder- wearing crazy clothing and playing the didgeridoo. I leave art in my wake. I don't care what others think of me.
  

Balloon!

Lucas got lots of attention from the other shoppers as he exuberantly played with his balloon the WHOLE time! I didn't even capture the full range of excitement because he tones it down everytime he sees the camera. Enjoy!

Time For More Cute!

Nine is Fine!

I know it's been more than a week since Lucas turned 9 months old- I'm a bit behind. This photo was taken at the 9 month mark but it took me a while to cull through the 30 or so images from this session to find a picture that would work with the rest of the "1 year by the month" series I've been shooting of him. He's going to be REALLY hard to pose for month 10 11 and 12, I can tell you that! We barely got this one for month 9! Mr. Explore and Squirm and Climb and Reach didn't want to sit still!
Lucas has been so much fun at this age. He can eat a lot of the same foods that we're eating for meals so no special prep other than dicing and fork-mashing, he makes up games for us to play with him (watch me stand up at the window sill and then I'll fall down and then you laugh at me and come tickle me!), he crawls all over the house and is starting to stand unsupported (for only a second though). Not interested in walking yet. Just standing and cruising. He lets us know what he wants (or that he's excited) by panting like a puppy- it's kind of like playing the 'warm, getting warmer, hot hot!' game. The panting and leg-kicking gets more intense the closer we carry him towards his requested item. We try and use signs and words as much as possible with him but I think he's happy with his current communication methods and his favorite (and pretty much only) sound is still ba ba ba. It's awfully cute to watch so we're not complaining. :) I'll post some excited leg-dancing videos soon.

Happy Sufyan Time

Sufyan visited us last weekend for a little more than an hour of some lovely babysitting time! Lucas was already asleep for the night so Sufyan got all the attention! :) Laith and I had so much fun playing with this smiley, engaging little boy. It was also a treat to play games and do things with him that Lucas has outgrown. He hasn't gotten to the 'grabby-hands' stage yet so we were able to eat and do things around the house; showing him new sounds and sights without him getting all tangled up in them! Meanwhile, Ravyn and Faris had a quiet dinner at their home while sitting in chairs instead of taking turns eating while standing up as usual! :)
Thanks for visiting, Sufyan, we hope to see you again real soon!