5 Weeks old

 I know I said this when Gabe was a baby, but it's still true- the days seem to go by so slowly, but the weeks and months just zoom by!  I can't believe that Luke is already 5 weeks old.  He has already changed so much.  

He is holding his head up for longer periods of time, and looking around, watching Mommy and Daddy, and of course Gabe as he runs around the room.  He takes a bottle and his binky pretty well, which is a relief.  He seems to prefer nursing but at least he doesn't reject the bottle.  He is starting to smile more, which we love!  Those smiles are so precious!

We usually put Luke down to sleep for the night at around 11:30pm after one last feeding, and then he will sleep for several hours, waking up anywhere from 3:30am to 5:30am to eat again.  Luke is a pretty mild- tempered little baby.  He does fuss a bit in the evenings, not so much crying as whining, grunting, and grimacing as he tries to find a comfy position.  He also rubs his face which is not good since he has sharp little fingernails.  He seems to have trouble getting burps up, and he also gets hiccups that BJ terms "ferocious" quite often.  BJ is really good at helping him in the evenings- Luke cuddles right up to him and calms down better than he will for me at that time.  

I made these little mitts to keep Luke's face from getting all scratched up.  I made a pattern and tutorial which I posted here for those interested in making some.

 Thankfully Luke is very tolerant of Gabriel's love for him.  He gets squished a few times a day before I can run over and save him from the hug Gabe is giving him.  He also gets lots of kisses on the head and pats all over as Gabe says "sass" (soft) over and over again.

I love watching Luke grow, but it kind of makes me sad at the same time.  I love that newborn smell, and the way he just melts into my shoulder when I hold him.  I love his rolly-polly chubbiness, and how soft his skin is.  He has the same fuzzy hair that is long in the back and nearly bald in front that Gabe had as a baby.  His umbilical cord stump finally fell off a few days ago- it took quite a bit longer than Gabe's to fall off, and it was a bit of a shock, since I had just checked it minutes before, then had to change his diaper while we were in the car in the zoo parking lot- and it was gone!  I found it in my lap... ew.

Luke in the front pack at the zoo.

 Luke loves riding in the front pack.  He just relaxes immediately and goes right to sleep.  He was happy for several hours that way at the zoo on Monday, and we often go on walks outside with Luke in the front pack and Gabe in the stroller, which works really well for me. 

I'm not exactly sure how much Luke weighs now, but I'm guessing it is between 10 and 10 1/2 pounds. 

I love this sweet little boy!