Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to my wonderful husband! What a great dad you are to Luke and Winnie- We love you so much!


Mark and I also want to wish our dads (Poppy and Grandpa) a Happy Father's Day! Thanks for being such great inspirations to us. Enjoy your special day!

June Happenings!

It's summer, and even though the days are longer, they seem to be flying by way too quickly! We've had a busy and fun few weeks with visitors and excursions to many parks, the zoo, and downtown Greenville. Here are a few recent pictures, and I've posted more in our Winterhoff Family Photo Albums.


Mimi came to visit last weekend, and we had a great time eating lunch outside and visiting Falls Park!



There are "interactive fountains" for kids in downtown Greenville, and Luke LOVED splashing in the water!

Favorite Things

This week, we have been celebrating the longer hours of daylight with evening trips to our neighborhood pool. Grams and Poppy recently sent us a pool float for Luke to use, and it has become our new favorite thing! The first time we tried it out, Luke happily relaxed in it for over an hour, a content little water baby. Mark and I felt like we were on vacation! Now whenever we arrive at the pool, Luke giggles with glee, clutching his beloved float and pointing to the water. I can't stop taking pictures of that cutie floating in the pool. Here are a few of my favorites:


I love his little leg underwater in this one!



Chillin' in the pool...



Splish, Splash!



"Hi Guys!"


Another favorite possession is Luke's special Demon Deacon book. Our friends gave Luke this WFU-inspired story for his birthday, and it has quickly become his favorite book. He flips through it constantly, "reading" it aloud to me, and even points to an illustration of a male alumnus in the book, calling him "Dada" (what a brilliant child!). These pictures were taken one morning this week, and Luke just happened to be wearing his Wake Forest pajama pants, which are adorable. Here is our little Demon Deacon with his favorite story (and thanks to the Davies for such a great present!):

First Steps!

Luke took his first official steps yesterday! We had friends visiting us and Luke decided to show off for his audience. He looked so proud of himself each time he walked without help. What a huge milestone!

1st Haircut

Today marked a monumental event for Luke: his first real haircut! Mark and I have tried to trim Luke's hair several times at home with disastrous results, usually with Luke writhing and screaming to be released from his parent's grasp and away from that torturous comb. The last time, I nicked Luke's ear, drawing blood, and I burst into tears because I caused my child pain (Luke was mildly annoyed and fussed a bit, but quickly recovered from his "wound"). Then there was the incident where Luke quickly jerked his head away from me while I was in mid-trim, causing a large, uneven chunk of hair to be cut from the right side of his head (we took a lot of pictures favoring Luke's left side for a few weeks). So we decided it was time to leave this task up to a professional, and this morning we had an appointment at Jellybeans, an adorable kid's salon that caters to crazy parents like me and has a promotion for "Baby's First Haircut", complete with a balloon, certificate, and locks of your child's hair as keepsakes. I warned Luke's "stylist" that I was a little nervous and informed her that Luke was fidgety and fussy when anyone tried to trim his hair. Mark even took an early lunch and left work to help me out during this much anticipated event, as I thought I may need a second set of hands to hold our child down in the seat. However, during the haircut today, Luke was a perfect angel. He sat contentedly in the chair, playing with a toy the entire time. We were absolutely shocked. The entire thing only took about 10 minutes and in retrospect was quite anti-climactic. In fact, the only tears shed by Luke occurred when his balloon burst as we were unloading him from the car once we returned home. Now our little man has a cute summer 'do, and we are pleased to show off his new sporty look!



"See Mom, it's no big deal!"



Trimming the back...



Just a little more...



Proudly showing off the new 'do!



On the way home, with his (short-lived) balloon!



Posing with his certificate

Little Chef

Luke has recently decided to pursue his love of food by obtaining a formal education in the culinary arts. We are please to introduce the newest Le Cordon Bleu-trained executive chef, Luke Winterhoff:


Culinary School Graduation Photo



Our family's new personal chef!

Seersucker, "mandals", and all things summer

It's Memorial Day weekend and we are kicking off summer with lots of fun social activities with friends, which require appropriate summer attire. Today Luke is wearing his seersucker shorts and a white polo shirt, and he looks like such a preppy little boy! We ran some errands this morning, and while Mark and I were unshowered and a bit bedraggled, Luke was dapper in his outfit, resulting in several compliments from strangers referring to our cute child. (I wonder if they felt pity for his homely parents!) Nothing says summer in the south like seersucker, and one of the most exciting fashion aspects of being the mom of a boy is knowing that there will be many summers of those lovely blue and white stripes in my son's future... that is, as long as Luke allows me to dress him & pick out his outfits, and before we hit the "I want to wear my Spiderman costume everyday" stage. It is a consolation prize, since there are adorable sundresses everywhere, and dressing a little girl in summer clothes allows for so many more choices. I tell people that I am saving so much $ by having a boy (vs. girl), as I don't have to resist the temptation to buy all those sweet floral prints, beautiful Easter bonnets, and frilly skirts and dresses.



Continuing in the theme of summer fashion, Luke has several cute pairs of boat shoes that he wears with many of his outfits. However, we decided that he needed summer shoes, too- hence the introduction of his "mandals".




For those of you unfamiliar with this term, the Urban Dictionary defines mandals as:
mandals: (noun) man sandal; a men's summer shoe, that consists of black or brown leather that covers more than 50% of the foot, buckles and a thick sole.

We have a pair of such sandals for Luke, and he looks so funny wearing these shoes. Since he is not quite an independent walker yet, Luke clomps about, with the weight of his heavy mandals echoing off the ground as he steps. In case you are unclear about the neccessity of the mandal, we found a slightly hilarious article online entitled: "Tips for Wearing Men's Sandals, or Mandals", and here are some my favorite excerpts:

"Mandals are casual footwear...The more seriously one takes the mandal, the more ridiculous one looks."

"It should be simple, easy and summery. The mandal should not be a fashion statement...But should you choose to sport fancier fashion mandals, the rest of the outfit has to back it up."



What says "summer casual" better than this surfer dude?!

And lastly, just in case there is still any confusion out there:

"Just so it's clear, mandals are not appropriate in any season except summer. That means no socks - ever."

Ok, we've got it. And thanks to our little man for being our fashion guinea pig and model today. We love those little feet!!



Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/lifestyle/2008/08/19/2008-08-19_tips_for_wearing_mens_sandals_or_mandals.html#ixzz0GM9gvIPN&B