Luke's Fifth

As of 3:03pm, our Lucas Daniel officially became five-years-old!

Luke was the one baby I chose to deliver without pain maintenance.  Delivering Zac, Ben and Josh I hadn't wanted to forgo the epidural.  But the experience with Luke, while indescribably painful, was so incredible I had planned on not having an epidural with Tommy--until everything went haywire with his delivery.  So Luke is my one and only baby delivered through "natural" childbirth.  I remember, as I was pushing him into the world, feeling like my body might just tear right in half and thinking I was going to die and I would never have the chance to meet my fourth baby boy.  Of course, we both made it through just fine, and seconds after the most unbearable pain I hope to ever experience, I was feeling the most elated joy and blissful peace, heightened, I believe, by the mere fact of what we had just gone through together, as I gazed into the smooshy sweet face of my Luke.  And the fitting thing about that is that Luke still tears me in two.  He can pain my heart, yet he always gives me the greatest, sweetest joys as we travel this road of life together.

Luke has been our child that has stretched me the most as a mother.  He has forced me to grow and get creative.  He has helped me to seek the unexplored corners of motherhood and to become more thoughtful in my prayers.  He has made me analyze who I am and what I want him to see in me and the example I am setting for him.  One minute he and I are cruising cheerfully down the freeway of life, and the next we are in a 80-car pile up.  I can be fully in Zen Mama mode and then instantly Devil Mama possesses me and I need an exorcism.  His talkative nature and intelligent observations are a source of my greatest pleasures, but his baby talk and whining get under my skin like ringworm.  His laugh is contagious.  His tantrums are legendary.  Torn in two, yes.

But it is the short-lived pains of mothering Luke that I think heightens the joys of being his mom.  Luke's smile is bright like the sunshine and warm like a good friend.  He has a huge heart and wants people to love him and accept him, but is always true to who he is and won't act a certain way just to impress others.  He loves his brothers: especially Josh and Tom, and is always trying to follow Josh around and give Tommy hugs, even though Josh isn't always the nicest about Luke's adoration and Tommy is not a "hugger."  He always makes sure to thank God for me in his prayers, sometimes that's all he says in his prayers.  Luke is inquisitive and imaginative and is full of the most thoughtful, interesting questions.  Luke can play peacefully by himself, making up his own little world for hours, and he needs it, he needs the peace and the solo time to recharge his battery.  He feels such great big feelings.  He is intelligent, eager to learn and is so proud of his accomplishments.  Luke's memory is incredible, whether it's something he learned from a book or a PBS show or something that happened in the past, I am always amazed with his ability to recall.  He is just starting to read and is thrilled every time he sounds his way through another book.  Watching him make choices that are difficult or scary for him, and seeing him overcome the challenges he's had over the years provide me with a sense of pride that is hard to articulate.  Observing who he is today compared with who he was two years ago is a lesson in patience, hope and faith.  Luke is an undeniable source of elated joy and blissful peace.

I love that we get to go through this together.


Luke's 5th birthday, as an odd numbered year, was celebrated with just the family.  He awoke to blueberry muffins, orange juice and singing.  He has been counting down the months and days and hours to his birthday since Christmas, and the smile on his face when we started singing to him as he descended the stairs was priceless.  It was finally here!  We spent the day at home, Adam and I getting long-ignored projects done, while the boys played.  Luke opened his chock-full gift bag from his brothers just after lunch.  His birthday list was a mile long, so he didn't get everything he wanted, but I think he was very pleased with what he did get and didn't mention anything that was missed.  Josh made him a very cute pillow out of some felt, appliqued with an "L" on one side and a star on the other.  We had spaghetti for dinner, one of the two dinners I make that he will actually eat, the other being quesadillas.  It made my heart rejoice to hear him exclaim, "I WUV spaghetti!!"  (He's still getting the "L" sound down--right now he calls himself "Wuke" although if you say, "It's Lllllluke," he will reply, "Yeah, that's what I'm saying.").  The evening was finished off with cupcake cones and snuggling while watching The Secret World of Arrietty.  Before bed he told me, "I like my birthday, Mom."  And that's all that matters.

The Color Run 2012

There is one thing you should know about The Color Run:  When you think of the phrase "Fun Run"  there is NO 5k to which that phrase applies better than The Color Run.  I have done many, many 5k's in my running life, and this was by far the most fun of them all. 


Within minutes of hearing mention of this fantastic idea for a fun run from a friend of mine on Facebook, Adam, my mom, Ben and I were signed up.  Which was good because Denver sold-out FAST.  We were excited!  Ben wanted to sprint the course, but we told him that for this run we needed to stick together because that is what makes it fun, plus, it wasn't even going to be timed.  There would be a combination of walking and running since we'd be letting my mom set the pace.  She is the fastest speed-walker I know, but she is just starting to try running and was visiting from sea level, of course, which adds an element of difficulty.  Although he was a little bummed that he couldn't show off his speed, once we got started on the race, Ben realized that we were right and that running fast wouldn't be nearly as fun, so he settled for running circles around our little group and doing fancy jumps whenever the urge came. We've promised to sign him up another, faster 5k this summer.  

Here's the deal:  You start the morning off all clean and white.  Race instructions tell you to wear a white t-shirt to the starting line, and you receive a white headband in your race packet.  But you aren't going to stay white for long!!!  You are also given bags of brightly-colored cornstarch for throwing.  In addition to the color the runners have, along the course route there are "color stations" where you are doused with additional color.  But the coloring all starts before you even begin to run.  The runners were released in waves, and every time a wave was released, everyone threw color high into the air. 

There is music playing, everyone is in a happy, cheerful mood, it is a blast!  From the time the first wave was released to the end, I don't think two minutes went by without getting color splashed on me from another color runner or a color station.  And Ben doused me with a ton of blue right at the end.  We told him he Smurfed me!  When we finished the run, we gathered with the crowd, danced to the music and participated in two big "color throws" that happen every 15 minutes during the post-run party.  It was such fun.  I've done mud once, and am satisfied with that singular experience, but even though my hair is still a little green tinged (next time I think I will wear a bandana!), I'd do this run again and again!    

*There are MANY pictures below because it was that fun and because we have a waterproof camera that we could wash after the race.  And I love every photo!  I couldn't choose!  So here you go.

*Tips for those running The Color Run in the future: if you want the color to stay in your shirt, you really do have to do the whole vinegar/iron process they mention on the website, and even then it isn't bright.  A little Shout gets the bright color out of the armpits where you sweat nice, pretty, vibrant pit circles.  The shirts that we didn't vinegar were not washed clean, but still looked dingy, but not pretty, so either do the vinegar spray down/iron, or toss the shirt in the trash.
*If you are blond or have highlights, really consider wearing a bandana.  I have washed my hair 10 times since the run and I still look a bit like I spent too much time in a vat of chlorine.