Caterpillar

I've been meaning to post about this for a few days, but keep forgetting to. I have a video as well, but I will put that on later. Linc has started to do a crawl. It isn't your traditional crawling, it looks more like a caterpillar. He will get up on all fours and then flop forward over his hands and then do it all over again. It gets him where he wants to go I guess. It is cute to watch, needless to say I have to watch our presents a little more closely these days.

New Obsession

Well I have recently gained a new obsession and this is listening to the band McFly. They are a band from England and I happened upon them one day and I absolutely LOVE listening to them. You may have your own opinions but that is okay with me I still love them. I have some on my playlist down at the bottom if you want a listen.

6 Months Old

Well Lincoln hit the 6 month mark right before Thanksgiving, but I was waiting for his Dr. appointment to update everyone a little. Stats first

height 26.25 inches - 50 %

weight 16lbs 3 oz - 25%

head 45 cm - 75%

He has leaned out a little but the doctor says he is doing fabulous. I've taken this from another blog and thought it was a cute idea.

He loves to grab the spoon when I'm trying to feed him - quite frustrating at times especially when he spits at me. But it's so cute.

Love, love, love this little Linc.

Dear Lincoln,

You are 6 months old. I can't believe you have grown and changed so much in such a little amount of time. However, it almost seems as if I can't remember a time without you in my life. You are such a darling, I love when you smile. Your dad and I will do pretty much anything to see that little mouth turn up at the ends. We also love your laugh. It makes us happy. You are a little bit of a stinker though. You don't behave very well at your Auntie Megan's house, though if I get right down to it I think I might even like that. I hope it just means that you miss me. You always get a huge grin on your face when I walk in the door after work. I hate being away from you for those few hours, but I cherish all the other time we get to spend together. You also know exactly what to do to make dad or mom run. As soon as you are ready to be held, you just look at us and give the ol' pouty face. Works every time. You are getting to be a fantastic sleeper - I couldn't say that a few weeks ago. You go to sleep about 7:30 and wake up at 7:30 with one night time feeding about 5ish. I must say it has been great. You aren't much of a napper though - sometimes you can go the whole day with only half an hour. I love taking naps with you, but I'm trying to quit because I don't want it to have a lasting effect on you. Lately you have begun to love food. When I tried it before you just spit it out and made a gagging sound. Now you look forward to it. You love to eat your socks. They are your favorite toy. As soon as I put them on, you are trying to yank them off to suck on them. You talk so much now (guh, guh - digee - buh, buh - mmmmmmm - dah, dah are the things I hear the most.) It is so cute, Linc. You are almost ready to crawl. You get up on your little hands and knees and you just rock back and forth. I don't think you have it figured out that you need to move your arms. You can push yourself backward though. You also roll all over the place. Seeming to get from one end of the room to the other in just a few seconds. Especially when I run to get something and you are too close to the Christmas tree. But I love your spunk and I hope that you always have fun being a boy. I will love you forever and I will always remember your sweet smiling face, you are my baby and I love you.

Mommy

A Lot of Stuff

Well I know I haven't been keeping up on my blogging, so here is a smattering of things that have recently been happening in the Dow household. Sorry if it is long.
This is my handsome little man in his bouncer. He loves this toy. I think it is because he feels like he can "stand" up and look around. He has such a cute little grin.On the day of Thanksgiving we were invited out to the Herbst's house. This is my sister-in-laws parents who live in Eagle Mountain. We had a wonderful time and were fed with a lot of great food. This is Linc on that day. Such a cute outfit, I can't get enough of this little guy.

I bet all mothers know what I am talking about when I say how wonderful this moment was. Lincoln is NOT a snuggler. Whenever you are holding him towards you, he always pushes away or tries to stand up. Well I had a wonderful moment on Thanksgiving day where he actually let me hold him for about 1 hour. 45 minutes of that was a nap, but hey I'll take what I get. I loved every second of that snuggling.

The next time Todd tries to tell me he can't help me in the kitchen I'm going to show him this picture. He was peeling potatoes! Ben Sloat got to come to Thanksgiving dinner with us. It was fun to get to talk to him on the way to and from Salt Lake to get him. Todd enjoyed catching up with his cousin.

This is the best picture that I got of Rheanna and Lori. (Lori is right by the refrigerator behind Trevor). Lori and Rheanna did most of the cooking and cleaning. I have to say thanks to them because it was a great Thanksgiving dinner.

I made pies!! Two of them to be exact. Coconut Cream and Pecan. I had really been craving a Coconut Cream so I was pretty excited that it turned out well, even the crust. I have to make another one soon though, because I didn't have any leftovers to eat.

Here are some videos of my babe and his new feats. He rolls all the time and is starting to get ready to crawl. Mostly he just pushes himself backwards, but he's moving all the same. He is also getting really good at sitting up for long periods of time. Needless to say, he loves his new found ability to move on his own. He is definitely independent and a little spoiled.

Anniversary

Yesterday, the 17th, was our 2 year anniversary. We decided that since it was on a Monday, we would celebrate the weekend before. So we went out on Saturday. We decided to try out Tepanyaki even though we heard it might be more fun with a crowd, while that is true it was definitely delicious and I even got to see one of my old students. After this we went and saw "Quantum of Solace" the new James Bond movie. Todd figured since we went to the first one on our honeymoon we could go to the second one on our anniversary. It was actually pretty good. I don't love the first one, but this one was better.

Marines?

Well Todd has recently been thinking of a few different directions to go with his life. The first was being a cop. We looked into it and there were some pros and cons and eventually the cons won that argument. Well now Todd has been thinking about ROTC with the Marines. We have been looking into it a lot. I'm mostly worried about him getting sent to Iraq for a long time and obviously the worst case scenario him being killed. Otherwise it has some really good pros for our family. I guess we'll update you all as soon as we figure it all out.

My Little Tiger

For Halloween we dressed Linc up as a tiger. He was absolutely adorable. He was pretty mellow all day and just sat there letting me take pictures. I don't think he knew what to think of the costume and all the kids. After teaching I went to pick him up and took him back to the school to see the Halloween parade. He was so cute to watch. Megan brought McKenna to come and watch with us. She was so cute in her little witch costume. Then we went around downtown American Fork to trick or treat for a littl while. It was fun. That was all that we did since he is still so little. We did go grocery shopping though. Walmart and Costco are heaven on Halloween night, I'd recommend it to all.

This was the only picture that they were both looking at me. I just wish Kenna's sucker wouldn't have been there.

Adorable right. What a cute niece I have.

Reading

During our nightly routine with Linc we always read him a story. He has been pretty fascinated from the beginning, but he has gotten to the point of being enthralled. He will just stare at the pictures and sometimes grab the book closer to him so that he can see it better. He loves the board books. I guess that instead of just getting them from the library, I should be buying him some.

Mover and a Shaker

Well at night when Lincoln is getting ready to fall asleep in his bed he will often move all over the place. It is not uncommon to see him turned completely around or even on his tummy now that he has learned how to roll from back to tummy. One night we went in to find him like this.It was so funny with his leg sticking out of the bars and his face all covered with the bumpers. I have since taken out the bumpers, but he is still my mover and shaker.

Birthday

On the 24th it was Todd's Birthday. A golden one at that, he turned 24. Although my hopes were to make this special, money is kind of a big factor as well as Todd not liking cake. So instead I just bought him a few presents and let him open them early. We always say that we are going to wait until the end of the day on the other's birthday, but we always end up being too excited to give the other one a present. So I let him open them the night before - I was too excited. I got him the first season of The Office, The Office game and a new hat. Not sure if he likes the hat or not, but the other two he does. Here is a pic and FYI, I have a lot of updates to do, so sorry for the blogging that will go on soon.

I really liked what my sister-in-law Rheanna did about her husband on his birthday so I will be copying that - Thanks Rheanna.

The top 24 things I love about Todd
1. He loves me, even post baby!
2. His smile - melts my heart
3. The way he looks at Lincoln
4. When he has a ton of homework to do, he will still put it off to clean up a mess in the house.
5. The way he rocks Linc before bedtime.
6. That he is worthy to give me a blessing whenever needed.
7. That he can be a worthy Patriarch in our home - I know this sounds the same as the last one, but prior experience has taught me how very important this is in my home.
8. He listens to me talk about school.
9. He is sympathetic about my school experiences even though I only have stuff to do for 4 hours a day and then I get to spend the rest of the day with Linc. Where as he is always busy.
10. He goes to school to get a better career.
11. He is determined when he gets a goal
12. The way he rubs my back/arm when I get back in bed after getting up with Linc at 3:30 am.
13. We have a lot of the same ideas. I'm always amazed at how similar we are on things.
14. He never yells, NEVER.
15. He can protect me - especially from ding dong doorbell ditchers. =) you'll have to ask him about this one.
16. He's committed to our family.
17. He is a wonderful nurse when I am sick - often going the extra mile, farther than I go.
18. He is very gentle with Lincoln.
19. He never says I don't do enough, even though I probably don't.
20. He closes his eyes when he smiles - makes me laugh.
21. He never changed a diaper till Linc, but now changes a lot of his.
22. He rides his bike when I enjoy the comforts of our only car.
23. He reads the scriptures and sings hymns to Linc.
24. The way he looks at me.

Boston

Tagged, I'm sorry but I couldn't do the 6th picture from the 6th folder because that folder only had one picture in it so I did the 7th folder. This is a picture from August 2007 when we toured Boston with Mandy and Eric.

Feet and THE Lip

Lincoln loves to grab his feet these days. Sometimes he will pull off his sock and when I pick it up later it is all wet. He has to chew on everything. Anyway so cute.

Love this!

Linc has this thing he does with his lip whenever he is whining. My dad told me I needed to get a picture of it so here it is. So funny. This is what he looked like as soon as I took a picture. Happy as a clam.

Just Pictures

Well Linc and I like to go on walks about 2 or 3 times a week (a little less lately). Lincoln does so well in the stroller, he stays in there for an hour and a half with no complaint. Here are some cute pictures I took of him after our walk today and by the way the one of him sitting up, is the first of its kind. He is starting to sit for very short periods of time.

Conference Weekend

Well my parents decided quite unexpectedly to make a quick visit to Utah to watch conference and most importantly visit the 2 grandkids out here. They came in late on Friday night and left early on Monday morning so they were only here for 2 days. But we sure enjoyed the time they were here. Linc loves his Mimi and Papa and always gets excited to see them. He wishes he got to see them more often, but such is life. He can't wait to meet his other set of grandparents, Grampy and Grammy when they get off of their mission. Here are some pics from this weekend.

Weird Habit

Well Linc has developed this interesting habit while he is eating. He likes to touch my face. Particularly my mouth. He likes to grab it and squeeze, which sometimes can hurt. It's really funny and sometimes kind of annoying.

FOOD!

Lincoln has started eating food, well rice cereal anyway. Not really sure if you can call that food or not. His first feeding was quite cute and funny - September 26, 2008. He got the part about opening his mouth when the food was coming, but actually keeping it in his mouth and swallowing was a little difficult. He kept wanting to babble or just sit there with his mouth wide open. It was so cute. I don't think he actually swallowed anything that first time, but it was definitely a learning experience for him. He has finally figured out how to do it, now about 2 weeks later. The very first bite.
He likes to grab the spoon or my hand, fun fun.
Where it all actually went.

So cute.

A Tooth

Well Lincoln is getting his first tooth. I don't have a picture and doubt that I will get one because it is not an easy shot. He isn't getting a front tooth, he is getting a molar. I know, strange. This could be the explanation for the extra fussiness lately, at least I hope so. It has just started to poke through the skin on the left side bottom. It's gonna look kinda goofy when it comes all the way in all by itself. Oh well he is still a handsome boy.

Disclaimer

Okay there is a disclaimer on this video, you sometimes have to make goofy noises to get your child to laugh. This is one of the first times that Linc laughed. I think it was taken about 2 weeks ago, I just forgot to put it on here. I love his laugh.

UUUGGGHHH!!

Some of you look at this and think, uh the dreaded pacifier, binky, passy, etc. For me I think, Oh how I love thee. I wish that my son loved thee again. So recently, last four nights, my son has realized that the binky helps him to fall asleep. He also realizes that he doesn't like that. So now he refuses to have the pacifier in his mouth at all. He gets very tired and won't go to sleep now. Instead he screams, and screams, and screams. So the dreaded cry - it - out stage is here. If it would work, I might rock him to sleep or something of the sort, but the babe won't let me do that either. He just knows and starts to fuss as soon as we get into his bedroom. I'm thankful that at least he still sleeps for about 10 hours at night, just getting there takes about 2 hours. We are definitely praying for this stage to pass.

Stats of a 4 month old

I can't believe how the time has flown. Already my precious little baby is four months old. It seems like just yesterday I was pushing and pushing and pushing and pushing to get him out. But he is here and he is wonderful. He has started to become so active. I can't believe how much he talks and moves. The doctor wanted to know how I am doing it so that Linc sleeps about 12 hours a night. He wanted to know if I was giving him a Heineken or if I was just lucky. We'll let you decide. Anyway the stats are

25 and 1/4 inch long - 75%

14lbs and 5 oz - 50%

42 cm head circumference - 50%

He's kind of sliming down, which is okay at this point just don't want him too skinny. Anyway here are a few shots of the wounds. He screamed a little during the shots and then quieted down pretty quickly after that.

I also cut his hair again. So that the top would be the same or about the same length as the rest. I know a haircut every month, isn't that supposed to happen when he's a little older.

Highchair

Well we got a new highchair for Lincoln. Many of you may ask how we can spend so much money on baby things. I will answer that with an "I don't know." When Todd and I got married, I realized that there were a lot of things where he was good at it and I was bad at it or vice versa. We seemed really compatible in so many areas. It didn't take long, however, to realize that we are both bad at spending money. We just can't seem to keep any in our pockets, it burns a whole if we don't spend it soon enough. Spending money on Linc is even easier than on ourselves, so I guess that is why we have so much stuff for him. Some of it we don't even use, like the mobile that I had to have for his crib. It really just gets in the way. But nevertheless, we are trying to be better, and hopefully we have enough baby stuff for awhile.

It is really nice to have a highchair because Lincoln feels left out if he isn't at the table when we are eating. This way we don't have to hold him and worry about our food ending up in our laps or in his.

Love This.....

Well I absolutely love when Lincoln falls asleep like this. However, I don't like when he wakes up by throwing up. Todd and I were pretty sick this weekend and have been praying and hoping that Linc wouldn't get it. Well he threw up twice today. So sad. I hope that he doesn't get any worse though.