8 is great!

I know this is the most cliché thing a mother can possibly say, but... I have to say it anyway! I can't believe my Lucas is 8 years old today.

The day we brought him home from the hospital (Max and Eva wore the same going-home outfit.)

He was the cutest baby! He was ever so chubby. He loved wearing socks and had to have them on day or night. Then, suddenly, when he was almost 3, he hated socks and grumbles to this day about having to wear them.

He was such a binkie boy! (This was him in the bath, using a suction cup from the toy holder in lieu of a binkie.) We wondered how we would ever get the binkies away from him -- he was a true aficionado and kept a little bowl of them in his bed. One day he shocked me by saying that he was going to give the whole bowl away to our neighbor's new baby. He had a moment of regret at bed that night, but then he never looked back!

His first peanut butter sandwich. It ruined him. Ever after, it's one of the only things he likes. If he could, he would eat them 3 or 4 times a day, no joke.

He is very sensitive to smells, tastes (thus his very picky eating), and seams in his clothing (thus his dislike of socks).

Lucas at 2, the first time he lived in Paris.

He hates having his nails trimmed so much that he keeps them bitten down to little nubs. (photo courtesy of Jill)

Lucas at Jessie's wedding. (Love how you can see his trademark birthmark! He once told me when he was about 3 that when he was born, I gave him his birthmark and his dad put hair on it. ew!)

He used to be afraid of almost anything. When I took him sledding once with Max and Jill's kids, he was afraid to go down the hill, but he cleverly disguised his fear by saying, "I just don't like to sit on red things". Jessie reminded me recently that he was even afraid of butterflies and kittens at one time.

He also used to be extremely shy and cautious in new situations. I was concerned about switching schools before 1st grade, because I didn't know how well he would handle the change. He amazed us all by flourishing, and coming out of his shell so much that year -- it was almost like his whole personality changed!

Landon has been his best friend for as long as I can remember.

He is a very good big brother -- he can usually make Eva happy, and she is always thrilled to play with him.

He just adores his big brother.

One of his jobs is unloading the clean silverware. He always has little mock battles with the utensils before putting them away. He has such a great sense of humor, and likes to find the fun in everything.

He also has cowlicks that make his hair stand up. We call it his "spikle motion" hair. He doesn't care if it stands up, but he lets me try to comb it anyway.

The two of us after his family party tonight. I love that he still let me give him hugs and kisses, and he still likes to snuggle when I read to him.

I love you, Lucas pookus!