Happy Memorial Day!

Nana, Big Daddy, Reese & Samantha

We went to Uncle Bob & Aunt Laura's house for a Memorial Day/Graduation party for Samantha, who just graduated from Clemson University. This was the 1st time Reese got to meet some of the Bowen side of the family.....including Nana & Big Daddy, her great grandparents.

Cousin Mac, who was the ring barer in our wedding, really enjoyed holding Reese. I think he was a little disappointed Reese couldn't play with him and all his toys. But he is really excited that he is no longer the baby of the family.

After the party we ate supper with Tess, Brett & Adahlyn. Adahlyn loves to hold Reese's hand!

Reese likes to Dance

Reese was a little fussy one night so Lee started playing the guitar and it helped calm her down. She's a pretty good dancer if you ask us! :-)

Reese is 2 months old now! She's growing up so fast! I can't believe how quickly she has come into her own and started doing so many new things. She makes eye contact more often and I get the feeling she now knows who I am. She loves to smile, especially when I greet her in the mornings. She has noticed her hands and feet, and I occasionally catch her staring at them in amazement. She is able to hold her head up much better without support. She is grabbing and holding on to things....like the end of her dress which she likes to pull up to her chin, exposing her diaper. And my personal favorite is all the 'talking' she is doing. She makes all kinds of vocal sounds, anything from a high pitched 'Aaahhh' to a low pitched "mmmm-um" to a content 'Hoooo Hoooo' that mimics a morning dove. I can't wait to see what she will do next!

She is putting on weight nicely too.... she is now over 11 pounds! Eating is obviously one of her favorite things, but she also loves to be cuddled, listen to music, lay on her back and flail her arms and legs wildly, go for car rides, look at the wind blowing through the trees, and rock in the rocking chairs on the front porch.

She has started fighting going to sleep in the afternoons, when she seems to need it the most. But that is usually her only fussy time during the day. She is sleeping well at night and will usually be asleep by 9ish and wake up around 4 or 5 to eat, then go back to sleep, wake up around 7 to eat again, then sleep until 9 or 10am. Thank goodness those times of her screaming and crying all night seem to be over!

Reese Caroline born March 15, 2008

We had one heck of a rough birth, but we will spare you the play by play action. If you really want to know the details we will be happy to tell you the story in person.

After a 30+ hour labor Reese Caroline was born at 9:56am on the Ides of March via Cesarean section. Kind of ironic huh? Shortly after her birth, a tornado touched down near the hospital where we were. We were quickly evacuated into the hallways of the hospital while all the windows and rooms were locked down. This made for quite an experience, especially since Sarah was still unable to move the lower half of her body and was still quite out of it. After spending 5 long days in the hospital and hitting a few more bumps in the road, we were finally able to go home as a healthy family of 3!