Noah is 1/3 of a Year Old (That's Four Months, People!)

Noah turned four months old on June 22. (Call me biased, but I think that is the best of his monthly Pooh pictures to date.)

The fourth month was quite an adventure. We had our first overnight trip, with the three of us going to Naperville for his Uncle Danny's wedding shower. We stayed at the Hampton, and I am happy to report that Noah slept very well. In fact, he slept so well that we were tempted to use the Pack 'n Play at home as well.

In mobility news, Noah can now roll over completely. He moves around much more these days; we have to watch him when he is in his bouncer seat, as he now can move himself out of it. He has a little more strength, although sitting up is still a short while away. Whenever we grab his hands, he will stand up if we gently bring him up, and he will stay standing when we hold him.

Noah makes a lot more sounds now. Some of them even sound like words. I'm pretty sure he said "Hi" the other day when I got him from his crib. Sometimes, in the middle of the night, we'll wake up to hear him talking to himself in the other room.

Speaking of sleep, it is getting better. He still wants to fight sleep, but he has slept all through the night on several occasions now.

I had my first Father's Day last week. Noah (with mom's help) made a nice poem with his footprints, and a mouse pad that's a photo collage. It looks great on my desk at work.

Noah starts having small solid foods (starting with rice cereal) this week, so stay tuned for an entertaining fifth-month report in July!

Noah at Three Months

Noah turned three months old on May 22. The third month has been a fun one.

Noah now is laughing, and he has some ticklish spots. He also is babbling a lot these days; most of you saw the video on Facebook. One of my favorite things to say to him is "Ah Gee!" He seems to respond to it, and it sounds like something that he says.

Angie got to have her first Mother's Day this year, and Noah made her a nice gift.

Noah got to spend his weekdays with his Grandma Tina, since Angie and I both were working. Those were fun times. As of yesterday, Angie is no longer employed with the school district, and is now a full-time mom! We're very excited, and thank God for providing for us.

Last weekend, Noah went to his first baseball game, as he saw his cousin Zach play. He also had his first trip to the Central Park water fountain. He was mesmerized by the fountain.

We also are happy to report that Noah slept from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. earlier this week. Of course, we are all very happy by that.

As you'd expect, we're having a lot of fun with Noah, and we can't wait for the summer.

(If you are reading this on The Hynds Quarters, I thank you very much. I also would encourage you to check out my Facebook page. I have more pictures and videos on that page.)

Noah is Two Months Old

Believe it or not, Noah turned two months old on April 22. Here's a picture montage of his first two months:

This is a picture of Noah taken about two hours after he was born, on February 22.

We took this picture on March 22, his one-month birthday. We plan on taking a picture of him next to this Winnie the Pooh doll at every month, to show how much he grows.

And here's his picture at two months. He has grown quite a bit.

Noah has done a lot of growing and developing. He can move to either side, he can lift up his head, and he occasionally can hold his head in the air. He also is very close to completely rolling over. In fact, he wakes up every morning in the corner or the edge of his crib, but it doesn't seem to bother him.

Noah is smiling a lot these days, and he does have some small laughs. He actually laughs the loudest when he's asleep.

He likes to lay down on the floor or the bed, but he really likes to sit in his bouncer seat and talk to the animals on the seat. One of his least favorite places to be is his carseat. And for the past couple of weeks, he hasn't been a big fan of baths.

Sometimes, when he's fussy, I like to call him either Fussypants McGee or Noah Von Fussypants.

He sure has been a lot of fun. There will be many more pictures, videos, and stories over the years.

Noah Lee Hynds is here!

We'd like to welcome Noah Lee Hynds to the world. Noah was born on Sunday, February 22 at 3:24 p.m., at 9 lbs. 5 oz. and 22 inches long. He has brought tremendous blessing and joy to Angie and I. Here's the first of many pictures of our little guy. Noah and his mom are both doing well.




There will be a lot more pictures and videos both on this blog and on Facebook. We can't wait to share his stories to all of you! A big thank you goes to all of our family and friends for their caring and generosity.

Baby Comic

My grandma sent this to me a few weeks ago. It's a comic from Parade Magazine, and she threw in her own captions:




Pretty funny, and sadly, I know it will be true very soon.

Our Baby Shower

Angie had her baby shower back on January 17. It turned out very well, and we'd like to thank everybody for all of the books, all of the gifts, and the great food. Special thanks to Sherry and Nicky for organizing the event, Dad for preparing the soup, and our mothers, grandmothers, aunts, and friends for helping out. The pictures can be seen on Sherry's Facebook page.

If you see Angie, ask her what she thought of the fruit salad.

Thank you all for a great baby shower, and our little guy will be here before you know it!

Adventures in Plumbing

Angie and I had an unusual day yesterday. Let me set the scene for you: Yesterday, we both got off work at 2:00, both being done for the day. That almost never happens, so we were looking forward to an evening of relaxation. We both got home. Angie had to use the restroom right before we were to take off for Target.

A few minutes later, everything changed. Angie went to wash her hands, and the faucet bursted into the air. Water came flying into the air and out of the faucet. It did not stop. I ran downstairs to shut it off. In a moment of panic, I thought the shut-off valve was in the laundry room. It wasn't. Instead, I found out that the water had gone through the duct work and into the laundry room, where it was cascading down. I called Bill, my father-in-law. He told me that the shut-off is on the street side of the house, and of course, he's right, so I made it to the other side of the basement to shut it off.

The water is shut off, but there is still work to do. Bill called a plumbing service for us. Meanwhile, there is water in the basement, on the ceramic tile. So, while running to go upstairs and start cleaning up, I slipped and fell on the floor. I went upstairs, and water was all over the bathroom. We had to use every towel in the house to soak it all up on both floors.

About an hour later, the plumber arrived. It turns out that an O-ring corroded on the pipe, and a washer on the faucet fell apart. Those two little things caused all of this.

By now it's about 4:30. The plumber told me what to get, so I went to Lowe's to buy a new faucet, a P-trap, and two hoses. I got home and unhooked the water line from the old faucet, got everything unscrewed, and got the old faucet removed. At this point, Bill felt sorry for me and went over to help.

I should clarify that we have a small bathroom, and a small cabinet area. I should also mention that I'm about 6'3", and Bill isn't much smaller. I twisted myself more than ever before on this project. The pipes didn't quite fit, so Bill had to get a hacksaw to make the pipes fit. Bill spent most of the time working on it, and then I would occasionally tighten things up. Finally, a little after 7:00, the job was done, and the cleanup began.

Thankfully, everything is okay. The only two rooms that had water have ceramic tile, so it did not get on our laminate floors, or the carpeting. I also owe a lot to Bill for helping me out. Plus, I need to thank my father for bringing some fans over, so we could air out the floors and cabinets faster.

So if you ever needed help on installing a faucet, I can now say that I have some experience. Being a homeowner can make life interesting!