Luke!

Still working my way backwards to catch up!  I thought I would do an update on the boys.  And, because this is my blog, I get to brag a little:-)
Today is Luke!

As you can see, everyone is enjoying the evening except Luke.  He has nasty mood swings, and we couldn't break this one!

 Let me start off by explaining that Luke is a very unique child.  By unique, I mean just when we think we have his personality figured out, he surprises us.  One of our favorite things about Luke is his ability to drop one-liners that floor us.  He has perfect timing, and he genuinely doesn't go for laughs, it is just his way of communicating.  There is no one in this world who can humble and put Logan in his place faster than his little brother.  I believe that he developed this skill because Logan can push his buttons like every older brother is trained to do.  Lyndon and I find ourselves having to turn and walk away in order to laugh so they can't see us.  Sometimes, we look at each other wondering where in the hell he heard some of the things he says.  I believe that Luke absorbs everything he sees and hears.  His little brain is always working even if you think he is totally ignoring you.  This was very evident this year in school.  Luke is the child that I always stress over regarding social situations.  He never did well when we left him, and it always took time for him to adjust to new environments.  So, needless to say, the idea of all-day kindergarten freaked me out.  I had visions of phone calls home from the teacher explaining that they couldn't get him calmed down or that his behavior was deplorable because he didn't want to be there.  But, as usual, he surprised us all year.  He only came home once with a "yellow" mark, and his teacher sent home a note explaining that he simply made a poor choice to knock over blocks.  His consequence was to fix them the next morning.  He still talks about that yellow mark today.  He never made that mistake again.  I finally figured out that Luke really likes rules and needs (seriously needs) to be told exactly what our expectations are and what the consequences are for breaking rules.  Once this is in place, he will do anything he is asked.  The problem lies in follow-through.  If you don't follow the rules yourself or if you don't follow through with the consequences, then it rocks his world.  I truly believe this is why the classroom works for him. Expectations are explained from day one as are the consequences.  The teacher, in order to keep it all under control, takes those rules and consequences to heart.  She followed through!  He had a routine and new his role everyday.  There was never a question of when, where or how often because he knew those answers stepping into the classroom.  I guess spontaneity is not his thing!  He likes order which explains his love for building things and numbers, another surprise this year.  Luke loves math and is pretty good at it.  I am guessing he got that gene from his daddy and grandpa...it is not from me!! He actually enjoys working math problems.  Who likes math that much?  At any rate, Luke also decided that he wanted to join a soccer team this year!  I was so very proud of his effort.  Sports have never really been his thing, but he gave it his all this year and actually had fun!  His little team tried hard and won a few games, but in the end it was his spirit that I loved.  He tried and worked hard and even played well with a team which is great considering he really would prefer to play alone.  He had a ton of growth this year, physically and mentally, and I was blown away by it all.  I can only hope that each year he continues to grow more and more.  It has been a blessing to watch!

Love me some Bubba!