Monday, October 27, 2008

Timothy's Chores

1. Push the garage door button to open/ close it
2. Turn on and off the light switch in his bedroom.
3. Get carried out to the driveway each morning to be lowered to the newspaper whereupon he picks up the paper and carries it inside, all while being carried by his dad.
4. In similar passenger fashion, get the mail.
5. Help roll the trash cans out to the curb on Thursday night and back in on Friday afternoon.
6. He helps move the laundry from the washer to the dryer and closes the dryer door every time.


We are proud of our son learning these life skills.
They are being added to all the time.

Interactions with Timothy

Timothy now knows how to kiss.
He kisses me. He kisses his mom. He kisses Caelyn.
Its adorable and makes me feel like I've already done something right as a parent.
It may be my favorite part of bedtime.

When Timothy wants our help, he comes and grabs a hand or finger. Then he leads me to what he wants. When he's hungry he takes me to his high chair. When he wants to go outside he takes me to the door.

Timothy's Words

dad
Um (for mom)
Boom
Bye
shoes (which means take me outside)
ba (for bottle even though he uses a sippy cup)

Whoa
uh-oh
Truck (any time a vehicle goes by anywhere)
plane (somehow he hears about every one that flies overhead)
Biyd (for birds)
No! No! No! No!
No (as in nose)

eye (with a finger right towards yours)
tee (for teeth)
Ea (for ear)
head
hand
cheese
baby
home
close
thank
Elmo

Animal Sounds
eef in a high pitch (for dogs and cats)
roar (for bears)
thbbbbt (for horses)
some sound for elephants that defies writing

Thursday, October 23, 2008

Caelyn is 10 days old... it doesn't sound like much but as a parent I can hardly believe it. Little children make you confront just how fast time slips by.

I'm still a bit laid up from the delivery. I expected a quicker recovery and pushed myself too hard in the days following her arrival. So now Brian is handling most of the household and Timothy while I tend to Caelyn. It's hard to sit still, especially with the perfect fall weather calling my name. But rest will get me out there sooner, I suppose. One nice thing about resting is that I can just sit and smell Caelyn's head. She smells glorious! And it's not from soap or powders and such... it's just her smell. That baby smell that just makes you want to be close to them all the time. I'm trying to figure out a way to memorize it because I know it'll eventually fade away. Then she'll smell like cheerios and slobber (if Timothy's any indicator of things to come, anyway). I also just stare at her. After she eats, she'll lay back half-asleep and contort her face in all sorts of ways. It often gets me going into some silly running commentary about what she must be thinking. The smiles are of course my favorite. The other day she broke into a wide smile and then gurgled out the cutest little belly laugh. I couldn't help but join her!

Saturday, October 18, 2008

Friday, October 17, 2008

Happy Birthday Caelyn!

A Family of Four!

Our newest addition is finally here-- Little C! She joined our family one week past her due date. Late as she was, when the moment finally arrived she was more than ready given that labor lasted about only 4 hours. Around 4 p.m. on Monday I was beginning to notice some regular contractions (I had been having activity for weeks prior, so I wasn't sure if I should take them too seriously). An hour later I called Brian to come home from work, and by the time he got home I was in full-fledged labor. We gathered our babysitters and belongings as fast as possible, and after about 1 hour at the hospital C was in our arms (7:30 p.m.)! No time for drugs to help me get through it (although I really wanted them!) It was truly a thrilling adventure for us all!

For those who recall our T story, this is about as opposite a labor and delivery experience as one can imagine. He was induced and took his sweet time at about 20 hours!

We are all at home now. C has been really content thus far... rarely cries and eats and sleeps well. T (almost 18 mos) seemed a bit displaced from having us gone for a few days but was on his best behavior for Grandma Joan. He enjoys looking at his baby sister but doesn't try to touch her much yet. He will kiss her toes, though, which is really sweet and we've noticed that he keeps a pretty good eye on her. Our hope is that they'll grow to become the greatest of friends!

We're so grateful for all the support and prayers people showed us in this pregnancy-- especially these final few weeks. Although being a week late is not very long, it really feels like a lifetime when you're in it! We're very happy to be sharing this wonderful experience with you and hope you can meet our little one soon!

With our love,
Amber, Brian T and C Dowd

Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Getting Started

This is my attempt at communication... letting you know what's happening in our little slice of the world. Our life is simple, really. Days and nights are consumed by our little children (one in utero for just a wee bit longer!) Brian works hard at making Next Step Coach a success. We love our children passionately and it sometimes hurts to realize how fast they grow. We try to live in the knowledge of God's passionate love for us. Hopefully you'll enjoy learning about our little family... it is our joy to know you too!