Last year Tim was a typical South Dunedin teenager.
Today he is father to three-month-old Leighton Rutherford-Wilson, and working to build a life with his partner Corrin Wilson (16) and their baby.
"You grow up real fast," Tim said.
"From normal 15-year-old boy stuff - doing stupid things and getting in trouble . . . I grew up a little while Corrin was pregnant, but once Leighton was born I grew up in a big way, in just a few days."
Tim, Corrin and Leighton live in Tim's parents' home.
His bedroom, with car posters still on the wall, now sports a double bed and a large, wooden baby's cot.
"My mum and dad, and brother and sister, and Corrin's family have been a big help. They've been great," Tim said.
Life is now baby-focused.
"We still go and do things, but we do it as a family. We have to think about changes of clothing and bottles for feeding."
The best thing about his new life is "the feeling I get in the morning when I wake up and look at Leighton in his cot".
The down side is "the strain it puts on our relationship".
"It's hard, but it's more how you think about it, You've just got to remember you've got a child together now," he said.
They have received support through Anglican Family Care's Family Start programme, Catholic Social Services' birth support group, and Plunket's home nurse visits.
Tim said he would like more information specifically for young dads to help them with relationships, the pregnancy and parenting.
He is about to begin an automotive engineering course and hopes to then get an apprenticeship.
"I want the best life for my son that I can give him."
