Happy Father's Day!

Now this is a day is to celebrate you, David! Not just all you've done so far as a dad, but all you are committing to do for our future. We don't know how many children our future holds, but you are falling into your new role as a dad so beautifully.

You loved Caleb before you even met him. You took time away from work and sacrificed to come to EVERY one of my prenatal appointments. You prayed for him. You knew there were no guarantees of a healthy baby, but you decided early on the trust God with our family's future and that He would prepare us for whatever happened.

You took a 7-week birthing class with me so that you could be prepared to help me in labor. You were supportive of my desires for a non-medicated birth. You didn't laugh or call me crazy or think I couldn't do it...but you were proud of me, and you were there to comfort and help me. You stood next to me for hours in the hospital having had nothing to eat all day, were gentle and attentive, and were there with me for the birth of Caleb. Here you are with him just moments after he arrived:

You went everywhere with him if they took him out of the recovery room. You were the first to change his diaper and swaddle him. You are definitely not a dad content with being on the sidelines. You're right in the action, showing him love from the very beginning.

You cuddle Caleb and are so sweet with him. I know you will teach him to be a man who is strong, yet tender and kind. By loving him, you love me.

I can tell already that he has your joy, your happiness, your curiosity, your love for people.

You are supportive of me staying home to be a mom. Thankfully, God has blessed us with the ability to do that, and I know that you would be make sacrifices and do anything in your power to help make that happen.

You work so hard to provide for us. Sometimes I tease that you work too much. But really, you know how to prioritize in order to get work done and still spend time with your family. :)

You don't worry about what people think about you. You're always yourself - very genuine. I know our kids will be able to come to you with anything and that you'll be able guide them in wisdom and love.

Here we are together dedicating him at church to promise to raise him in a godly home. I'm always comforted by the fact that you love God and you seek His will for our family. You're an amazing leader - you're selfless and serving. What more could I ask for?
How did Caleb and I get so lucky? How were we so blessed? To have you - someone who has wanted to be a husband and dad since he was a little kid. Someone who is kind, patient, serving, forgiving, loving... When we're sad, you comfort us; when we're happy, you are excited with us. What a wonderful example and picture of love.

We love you! Happy Father's Day!

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And now for the dad who started it all!! (at least for me anyway)...

(groovy haircut)

What can I say to the best dad in the world?! You decided from the very beginning that you would be a dad present and active in his daughters' lives. You were outnumbered all those years with three girls in the house, but you never seemed to mind...unless we were asking to put make-up on you, then you minded. ha! You made us laugh ALL the time and gave us lots of good memories. You went to gymnastics meets, girl scout trips, trick-or-treating, softball and basketball games, parent-teacher meetings, band and choir performances, college visits, and lots more.

You have a real zest for life...always trying new things, learning new things, taking up hobbies. Scuba diving, jogging, tennis, golfing, swimming, rafting, canoeing, fishing, camping, cooking, eating, gardening, Rangers baseball games, to name a few...

You're very hard-working. I never heard you complain about going to work all those years. You provided so well for our family. You valued family time and going on vacations together. You made us feel special with our gifts and talents and accomplishments.

You're the definition of faithful and dependable. If we needed anything, you would help. I know even now, you would jump in your car and be in Houston in a heartbeat...well, four hours. :) And not only are you faithful at home, but you serve your church every week setting up chairs behind the scenes and setting up communion each month. And you help with children's Sunday school. All of the kids love you, which means you have some wonderful quality to draw them to you and make them feel comfortable. You take your commitments very seriously, whether it's Meals on Wheels or giving blood or platelets all of these years. Everyone knows they can count on you.

And now you're a grandpa! What a lucky kiddo to have a grandpa like you! To teach him to enjoy all the stuff you enjoy.

You sure love Caleb, and he loves you!

I'm happy that he's going to have lots of good memories with you, just like I do.

Even though you didn't have any boys, you are a wonderful example of a godly man to David and Caleb. They can learn a lot from you.

I'm thankful that I was not only blessed to have a dad, but I have one who is really fun to be around, loves God, and LOVES his family. You're the greatest! Happy Father's Day!

Stuffy sneezes

Poor little Caleb is sick! Coughs, sneezes and a fever! :( We hardly slept last night. He just couldn't get comfortable. I was nursing him more to keep him hydrated and I thought it might help his throat. His temperature was 100.9 last night, but it's back to normal today. But I read it can fluctuate and get higher at night. So the doctor said to have him come in so they could check him out to make sure it's not a respiratory infection or ear infection. Of course he's still pleasant and smiley. Breaks your heart!! He was so good at the appointment. He cried a little bit when she had to swab his ears to take a look - he is very waxy. But he just sat really quietly the rest of the time.

Hopefully he gets some rest today. I'll just be giving him a little Tylenol and lots of TLC. David gets back from traveling tonight, and then he'll be able to take care of the both of us! Dad to the rescue for Father's Day weekend! :)

4-month stats

Length: 24 1/2 inches (25-50 percentile) - grew an inch and a half
Weight: 13 lbs 14 oz (25 percentile) - grew 2 lbs and 7 oz
Head size: 16 1/2 inches (25-50 percentile) - grew an inch

Caleb looks like a little man!

He's got such a fun personality. He likes to play peek-a-boo with his blanket. It's so easy to make him smile.


And he gives good belly laughs now when we're really silly with him. David's good at getting him to laugh.

He's a rolling machine. Every time we put him on his belly, he'll roll to his back. I'm going to have to capture it on video and post that soon. He's rolled over from back to belly twice, but I think it'll be a while before he gets good at that.


He's very curious and concentrates on things. Here he is "reading" his book.


Here he is eating it...
He went 8 hours between feedings last night, which is a huge milestone for us! Yay! A full night's sleep should be in my near future! (hoping!)

He's getting very talkative. I think he'll have lots to say like his daddy. David's mom said that when David was little, he used to come down every morning and want to share new facts that he learned.

He's also pretty social. He loves going to visit different places and seeing new faces. We started putting him in the church nursery recently and he does so good. He's in there for about 3 hours. They said he's usually very smiley and content.

It's so fun to see Caleb grow up!