Lots of News!

Well it has been a while since the last post, and a lot has happened.

First there was Luke as a monkey!

Next Luke took another trip back east and finally met his two uncles Ted and Andrew, it is up for debate who slept more at night, but I think Luke edged out Ted by about 25 minutes.

Luke also got to meet Aunts and Uncles on the Hynes side, see his cousin Jack play in a great football game (poor result though), and meet his great grandmother Bits.

We were all set to pack him into the car to head up to Boston, so that we could all meet Luke's cousin Zoe....it wasn't meant to be as Jen and I had a bit of a cold so we did not want to risk getting the one week old sick.

The three of us also picked out our Christmas tree. Last but not least, I finally finished my MBA program at The Ohio State University.....I am looking forward to spending more time with the family.


Also, enjoy the video of Luke and the best toy ever....

Buckeyes!

We had a great time a with Max, Aimee, and Cam when they came to visit. We all had fun at the OSU tailgate and Cam and Luke hit it off famously. We also were able to get a glimpse of what it will be like when Luke is running around....I think we are going to need to rest up now.



We are anxiously awaiting the arrival of Luke's first cousin and hoping for a Thanksgiving baby so we are able to meet the little lady.

Luke's Travels

Here are the long awaited slides from our vacations. We had great trips to Westport MA (Luke's first flight and swim in the Atlantic) and the Deer Creek Resort in Tennessee (Good ol' Rocky Top). We also capped off our vacation to Westport with a fabulous weekend in Simsbury (God bless it) for Meghan and Mike's wedding.

It was great seeing everyone back east, and Luke loved his first trip to Elephant Rock. A special thanks to, Rich and Kerry, Meghan and Mike, and Mary and Marc for all of their generosity.

Tennessee:



Westport 1:



Westport 2:


Meg's:

Aunt Gen's Visit

Luke and I had a great time two weekend's ago when Gen came to help me out as Jen went off to Florida for the weekend.

Gen and Luke had a great time, and we took lots of pictures :



We also got Luke an exersaucer and he seems to be really enjoying it (if anyone gives this to you as a gift, ask them when they will be over to put it together.)



We have a few trips coming up, Luke and Jen will be making a long road trip to Rocky top Tennessee, and on the 11th we will be making the long awaited journey to Westport MA and Simsbury CT for Meg and Mike's wedding!

Big Swim

Well, Luke couldn't wait to get to Westport for his first swim. Jen and Howard (Papa) took him swimming at the pool this past Friday. All reports were positive, and he got back to his routes by captaining the inflatable tugboat around the pool...we know we're far from the ocean, but the boy has it in his blood.

In other 'pool news, Luke was unfortunate to suffer through a disappointing display by the Reds, we got all dressed up and everything for the first game of the season and it was not a great show. Jen is not sure any of us will make it until May if things continue to go this way for our Scouse friends....based on how Rafa was sulking around the house, he was none too pleased either.

Todd and Anne, enjoy the picture of Luke in his favorite (only) baseball cap...it was a great gift. Also, please notice how much Luke loves his new pal, Sophie the giraffe, one of the finest teething toys we have seen. Thanks Meg & Mike!!!

We have some videos that we are hoping to post soon, but the IT staff is lazy tonight and hopes to get us hooked up by the end of the week.

- Chris & Jen

One Crazy Summer!

So the summer of 2009 is rolling along, and on uncle Andrew's 18th birthday, little (or not so little) Luke celebrated turning 5 months old. While we hope Andrew did lots of fun stuff on his birthday, Luke took it in stride with some eating, sleeping, and unfortunately teething.

We have been paying dearly for all of the bragging that we were doing about what a great sleeper Luke was. He is having a rough time cutting these first teeth, we hope that they will be here any day now so we can all get back to a regular sleep schedule.

There have been a few other big events for Luke this month. He had his first ride on the Swing at the park, and although Rafa was nervous it was a huge success. Also, we started today with actual food, it was peas to start (pictures included) and he liked some bites but not others, it was fun for us so sweet potatoes are next!

In other news, we had a great time with our friends the Matheises from St. Louis, and Luke told me if it can't be the Mets running the National League we should just let Todd have some fun (also thanks for the hat, although after a 9-0 loss to the Mets, who would wear it?)

One month until we are headed to the east coast for some relaxation and Luke's first flight....worst case scenario it will make for a funny blog.

Enjoy the pics!!

- Chris & Jen

Summer So Far

For all of our followers, we apologize for going a month without posting. We would like to promise to be better, but Luke has been keeping us busy. He is doing great, doing new things every day and gaining weight like you wouldn't believe.

We left him for the first time this weekend with Jen's parents while we were off to Hingham to visit some friends from college. Although we had a great time in Hingham (thanks Dave & Kate) and Luke had a great time with his Nana and Papa, I think it will be sometime before we both leave him again.

We are looking forward to going back east and Luke's first flight this September, and hoping the water at Elephant Rock is warm enough for Luke to go for his first ocean swim....

Chris & Jen

p.s. Luke asked that we destroy the pictures of him in the Mets hat, but they were just too cute!!

Blankets!!

Luke is obsessed with these blankets (thanks Maureen!!!) and we are obsessed with taking his picture making funny faces with the blankets. These are our favorites of about 50 or so taken since Saturday....we hope you like them as much as we do!

- Chris & Jen

Thumb sucker!

Well Luke continues to impress us, holding his head up more every day and finally he has found his thumb (although he can't repeat this feat at four in the morning yet.) It exciting to see and we may have some video of the first time, but we have not gotten all the parties involved to sign off on being broadcast all over the Internet (or to the twelve or so loyal readers of the midwestmorans)

I have a few weeks off from school and it was great for the three of us to all be together this weekend.

We hope you enjoy the pics...

Uncle Bren and Aunt Meg

Luke's uncle and aunt were in for a visit and a taste of what is to come for them this November. I think it was a good idea to wait, as Luke was a lot different 12 weeks ago. We made sure they heard the horror stories of the first night home and trying to get Luke to sleep, but it seems hard to believe based on his excellent mood all weekend...besides when I forgot that he eats at 3:00 pm I don't think he cried the entire time (I will never forget again Luke, I promise.)

Also, Luke has finally made it through the night without any feedings! It was only once, but we were quite impressed and hoping for a second night tonight. Looks like there is something to this baby coach after all.

We had a great time with Bren and Meg, we took Rafa swimming, checked out Columbus and Ohio State, and ate a lot of great food.

Lastly, it was amazing to have a long weekend with Luke and Jen, now it will be eight days of work and school before we all get to hang out again, hopefully it will be here before we know it.

Enjoy the pics....Chris

We've got video!

This is our first attempt at video on the blog, we hope it works. Luke is doing great, he loves the activity mat, and would love to thank Dave and Kate in person!

Also Luke is practicing sleeping through the night, he does not have it down completely, I think he wants to make sure Bren and Meg know what they are in for....

Wooden Shoes!

Luke's Nana and Papa were kind enough to bring back some authentic wooden shoes for him from their trip to Holland...unfortunately they were a bit small, but we got a photo anyway, don't they look great!

We had a great mother's day as well, Jen was able to sleep in, and the three of us had a nice breakfast out and a wonderful dinner with Jen's family.

For the diligent followers of the Midwest Moran's, Luke and The Baby Coach are not on the same page. There are good nights and not so good nights, but we are loving every minute no matter what.

Can't wait for uncle Bren and aunt Meg to get here soon.

Here are a few recent photos...

Luke vs. "The Baby Coach"

We are waiting on some pics from Cameron and Luke's first weekend watching Liverpool and enjoying the Midwest, so in the meantime we thought we would give a quick update and post some photos that we had not gotten around to.

Jen and I are putting into place Suzy Giordano's Twelve Hours' sleep by Twelve Weeks Old, but Luke has other ideas. The first night Jen got about as much sleep as she did the first night we brought him home...but if there is anything Jen likes it is a solid plan and I think in a few weeks we will be embracing "The Baby Coach" and even Luke will be enjoying (as advertised) "Sleep Success."

We hope you all enjoy the pics, and a quick welcome to Julian Ryhs Holt, Luke can't wait to meet you!

- Chris & Jen

Easter

Luke spent his first Easter Sunday showing off a nice new outfit at Nana and Papa's house. He was a big hit, and we promise to never make him wear that hat again (maybe Halloween). He is suffering through his second Mets game right now and is not optimistic about this rotation.

- Chris & Jen

One Month Check Up

Luke had his one month check up with the Doc today. He is gaining weight and growing fast, weighing 9 pounds 9.5 ounces and he is 21 1/4 inches long.

We had a great time last weekend with Aunt Gen. HC, Nicole, and Nana have all been a huge help this week allowing Jen some time to rest up. We are trying to get everyone on a solid sleep schedule but Luke has his own ideas.

This weekend I am off to Arizona, but Meghan will be here to help Jen out. Also Nana and Papa are going to be making their babysitting debut Saturday night to make sure that I am not the only one to have a night out.

We hope you enjoy the pictures, Chris & Jen

Dot and Gramps?

Luke's paternal grandparents made it to Columbus this weekend. We had lots of fun and surprisingly some sleep on Friday night. Dot was at her best helping Jen and I with everything, and Gramps (that name is not official) and I had a great time watching soccer and getting some much needed exercise. As you can see Dot loves newborns so if any of you reading this find you need some help just give her a call.

Luke can't wait for them to come back and is looking forward to meeting aunt Gen this weekend. Enjoy the pics...

Chris & Jen

One week in the books

We can't believe it has already been a week since Luke was born, it is amazing how quickly the time has passed. Things are busy with finishing up school for the quarter and getting back to work, so we apologize for not posting more pictures. Once finals are done we will be actively updating the site, until then, I hope these will hold you all over....we're all doing great (and just a bit tired!)

- Chris

Photos of Luke

I am not sure if it was harder getting Luke to sleep or posting this slideshow. We hope you enjoy, more to come soon.

- Chris & Jen

Some pics of the room, there is a ways to go still to get it ready. With just over two weeks to go we are all hands on deck...

First Post

Trying to get this thing going....Rafa knows that change is coming and he is on the lookout, it should be interesting when the addition arrives.