so far, so good

Well, we took the plunge and put up a Christmas tree. It is in the corner between two couches for maximim security. So far, Lewis has shown relatively little interest in it, though he has pulled off an ornament here or there, and tried to pull off a few more without success. The cat on the other hand is known to sit up in the tree (not too far up, mind you), re-living the days of her youth when she had claws and could climb trees outside at will.





















Otherwise, Lewis has been enjoying walking around outside a lot!! He loves being out there and cries whenever we come inside. He has also become an avid reader, looking at books on his own and bringing us books he wants us to read to him. He is loving building towers with his blocks, and can stack them pretty high all by himself. He is quite proud when he can get that next block on top of an already high tower. Of course, he loves knocking down the towers too.

He got us excited last week at a therapy session when he clapped on his own. Once he realized what he was doing he stopped immediately. He wouldn't want to let on that he can do some of this stuff! What a puzzle he is sometimes. But we love him!

thanksgiving in Bowling Green

We spent a very pleasant weekend in Bowling Green with my sisters, Beth and Ellen. Our parents were out of commission in Belarus, so we gathered at our house, which was really convenient. Though we were few, we had a lot of fun. Lewis had more books read to him, and towers of blocks built for him than he could have dreamed possible.

Aunt Beth and Lewis:
















Aunt Ellen and Lewis
















Ellen and Justin ready for turkey

















On black Friday, we attempted to shop a little bit and only ended up getting Lewis a new hat and coat since the weather has turned cold. Here's a picture of Lewis all bundled up for one of our walks. (He's really into kicking off his shoes lately too).

lewis stands by himself!

Our habit with Lewis has been to get him playing with toys on the floor when we need to get something done around the house. My dream has been for him to come barreling through having discovered how to stand up without our help. Today it happened! Twice he was left playing and all the sudden he appeared.......my thought was that his stool (that he has learned to use as an aid in standing) was not far and maybe he scooted close enough to use it.

After dinner, Justin set up a scenario where we ignored him so he wouldn't feel like we were watching, but the stool was a few feet away and Lewis was sitting in the middle of the floor. Sure enough, he turned away from the stool and stood up all by himself! For the rest of the night, he was sitting down and standing up, practicing his new skill. He was cracking me up because he has never wanted to sit much because it meant he was trapped. Now he has really found new freedom. We are really proud of his progress!

He's not very fast, but he is consistent. Here's a video.

back from California

Justin and I returned from our vacation/anniversary trip yesterday. We were so happy to get home 3 hours early and to be reunited with Lewis at the Louisville airport! He spent time with both sets of grandparents over the five days we were gone and seemed in good spirits. He slept like a rock his first night home in his own bed. We all did, really!

We spent the first two nights of our trip in Mariposa, Ca. This tiny town did not have much going on. In fact, we may have been the only guests there for a while. We had dinner at the only open restaurant in town, called Pizza Factory. Thankfully, it was really good! We stayed in Mariposa because it is close to Yosemite National Park. We spent a full day hiking up to Vernal Falls, checking out the view at Glacier Point and finally seeing a few huge sequoias in the dark!

Our hotel in Mariposa (notice all the cars)
















In front of Vernal Falls





















View from the top of Vernal Falls





















Justin at the top





















In front of Yosemite Valley






















We're exhausted, and so glad we got away to celebrate our 4th anniversary (yesterday). We'll try to post more later.

the latest

After a few weeks of therapy, we are seeing some good results. Lewis is consistently pushing himself up with the use of his step stool, and without our assistance. He has even tried standing without it, but it is still a little too difficult at this point. He is becoming much more vocal too. No true words, but he is willing to watch us talk now, which should help him learn to put his mouth in the right position to say different words.

Here's a video of him standing up with his stool, and very quickly I might add! It often takes a little while to maneuver his little body, so this is his best attempt to date. He is on his way to independence!


Lewis is going to get to spend some time with his grandparents next week, and so here are a couple of photos of his grandpas from the last couple of weeks that we forgot to post earlier. Lewis LOVES his grandpas. He loves their female counterparts as well, but he has a special affection for these two gentlemen that is precious.

Grandpa Shepherd:
















Grandpa Reitmeyer