(Disclaimer: We’re trying out a new photo plugin for the site, but are still learning. Not sure why the Christmas slideshow is not working properly, so don’t click on it. The New Year’s one is working properly, I think; you can use the navigation bar to go back and forth and view it full screen by clicking the button on the right. You can view all the photos the old way by clicking here for Christmas and here for New Year’s.)
Dear Cooper,
On January 20, 2010, you turned 38 months old.
Another month full of travel! We traveled back to Arlington (for the third time) for Christmas. We got to meet up with Mommy’s friends Martha and Amanda and you got to play with William and Hayden. I think we get the same picture every year with you and William sitting together in a chair.
Christmas Eve turned out to be quite an adventure. First, it started snowing. We then drove through the snow to G-Mama and G-Papa’s house. You had a blast opening presents and you had so much fun playing with your new toys. We drove back to Mama and Papa Choo-Choo’s house through the snow. Uncle Todd wasn’t feeling good and ended up in the hospital with Appendicitis.
Christmas morning was pretty quiet; Papa Choo-Choo was at the hospital with Uncle Todd. The streets were still pretty bad due to the snow and ice the night before, so the usual Christmas morning festivities didn’t happen. You still made out pretty good, though. Santa brought you lots of good stuff and you got to eat your first cookie off of Mama Choo-Choo’s Christmas tree.
We came back home, but we didn’t exactly have time to relax. On Monday, you got to come to the doctor with Mommy to find out if you were going to have a baby brother or a baby sister. You just knew it was going to be a boy, but unfortunately, you didn’t get your way. You are going to have a little sister! As soon as the sonogram tech said ‘it’s a girl,’ you were ready to leave, you were no longer interested. On Tuesday, we had a final walk-through on our new house. On Wednesday, we closed on our new house, woohoo! Uncle Robert, Aunt Becky and Jaxon came to visit and on Thursday, we all drove down to Uncle Paul’s house in Boerne for a New Year’s Eve party.
When we got back home, we were finally able to move in to our brand new house! You have a nice new room, a playroom for all of your toys and a huge back yard to play in when it gets warmer out. I can’t wait to make some new memories in this house!
Love,
Mommy
Posted in: cooper, family.
(Update: not sure why the pictures aren’t showing up, go here to see them all)
We woke up this morning to big, fat flakes falling from the sky. It was beautiful.
Of course, I couldn’t let Cooper play in it because we had to get ready for school. But he got to play in the snow at school and he got to break in his new snow boots when he got home.
Unfortunately, the snow had died down after school and was starting to melt, so it wasn’t as fun. I got him down for his nap and looked out the window as I was heading upstairs to the computer…big, fat flakes again…figures!
Posted in: asides, cooper.
(Disclaimer: I wrote this 3 months after it happened, so details were purposefully left out as I don’t really remember them.)
Dear Cooper,
On December 20, you turned 37 months old.
This month started off with a trip to Houston for Thanksgiving. You enjoyed playing with your cousin, Jaxon. I hope you love your new brother or sister as much as you love Jaxon. It is so cute how you interact with him, trying to show him how to do things and how things work, even though he isn’t old enough to understand.
We took you to the zoo for the very first time while we were in Houston. We went to the Houston Zoo with Daddy’s friends Damon and Aseena and their little boy, Ashdin. You had a great time looking at all the animals and playing with Ashdin.
I just realized that every weekend this month was spent away from home. We spent the weekend after Thanksgiving in Arlington, where Mommy put up G-Mama’s Christmas tree. The next weekend, we were back in Arlington to watch Daddy’s cousin, Steve, run his first marathon.
Mommy’s MOPS group held a fundraiser where you got your picture taken with Santa Claus. At first, you didn’t want to have anything to do with Santa, but eventually, you got used to him and we got some cute pictures.
I’m looking forward to a fun Christmas with you this year.
Love,
Mommy
Posted in: cooper.
Hello, my name is Wendy, nice to meet you! Oh…wait…this is my blog…right. I guess it has been a long time. Well, a lot has happened in the last few months. Where do I begin?
Well, I guess I’ll start where I left off. After Cooper’s birthday, we went to Houston for Thanksgiving. The first weekend in December, Cooper and I went to Arlington to put up my grandmother’s Christmas tree, which I’ve been doing for her since high school. Then we came home and the next weekend all of us went to Arlington to cheer on Jeff’s cousin, Steve, who ran his first marathon (White Rock). Then we came home and was soon time to return to Arlington, yet again. This time for Christmas, where my brother kindly ruined it for us due to his appendicits (just kidding, Todd). Oh, and there was lots of snow and ice as well. We came home, had a sonogram, found out we are having a girl (Princess #3!), closed on our new house, traveled to Boerne for New Years at Jeff’s uncle’s house, then came back and moved in to our new house. Whew, that makes me tired just thinking about it all. Did I mention this all took place in the span of about 6 weeks?
No wonder I haven’t had time to blog. Well, I’m finally caught up with work and house stuff (mostly) so now I can import the 400 or so photos off of my camera and write Cooper’s 37, 38 and now 39 month letters. Pictures to come soon, I promise!
Posted in: asides.
I cannot believe how big my belly already is!
This picture was taken of us in Jamaica when I was about 14 weeks pregnant with Cooper.
Here I am at 14 weeks with #2:
Need I say more?
By the way, I am now 16 weeks and even bigger. People keep asking me if I’m having twins, I’m so big. Guess this is just going to be one long pregnancy.
Posted in: asides.
My apologies for this being so late. Right after Cooper’s party, we left for Houston for Thanksgiving and I’ve been extremely busy with the Christmas rush for work. Things have finally calmed down a bit, so here you go:
Dear Cooper,
On November 20th, you turned three years old! Happy Birthday, my sweet boy!
I can’t believe you have been on this earth for three whole years. It feels like just yesterday that we were bringing you home from the hospital.
This month, Mommy and Daddy announced that you are going to be a big brother! You got to go to my 11 week appointment with me and got to hear the baby’s heartbeat, saying it sounded like a choo-choo train chugging. You hug on my ever-growing belly and give ‘your’ baby kisses. You are already very protective and sweet. You tell me that you are going to teach the baby how to play with your trains and share your toys with him. I can’t wait!
Halloween marks the beginning of the fall holidays. We had fun trick-or-treating with you and Ava’s family.
Next was Noah’s birthday party at the park. You have known Noah your entire life.
Then we traveled to San Antonio to watch Daddy run in the San Antonio half marathon. Unfortunately, Mommy forgot to pack the camera. You got to meet our friends, the Colvins, and their sweet kids, Cannon and Bryn. You and Cannon are close in age and had fun playing together, especially feeding the ducks! While we were in San Antonio, we visited with Uncle Paul and Aunt Irene. You had so much fun playing with Aunt Irene. She let you play with the pool net in the pool (a new summer job perhaps) and my-oh-my, the rocks. It didn’t take long for you to get filthy dirty, but that’s what boys are supposed to do, right?
Next was Phoenix’s birthday play-date. You have known Phoenix your entire life as well.
Finally, it was Cooper’s birthday! Your Mama and Papa Choo-Choo came in town and you had a Handy Manny themed party at Hoppin’ Hippo with all your friends. You had so much fun jumping and sliding and running around with everyone. It was a great party!
I hope this next year is as good as the last three have been!
Love,
Mommy
Posted in: cooper.
This past Monday was my 11 week doctors appointment. Since my doctor didn’t have any openings on Tuesday or Thursday, while Cooper was in school, he got to go to my appointment with me. We hadn’t mentioned anything about the baby to him since I wasn’t really showing and he probably wouldn’t understand anyways. He was having trouble understanding why I had to go to the doctor, so I just told him that I was getting a check up. We waited and waited and waited some more and finally it was our turn and then we had to wait in the exam room for a while. The waiting and trying to keep Cooper entertained is the stressful part. (Just so you know, this won’t be happening again if I can help it, except for my 20 week sono). The doctor finally comes in and is so sweet to Cooper. She asks him if he went trick or treating and what he was for Halloween. I think you know where this is headed. The subject of choo-choo trains comes up, and of course he is wearing a shirt with a choo-choo on it.
So they continue to talk trains while I get up on the table and the doctor starts to listen to the baby’s heartbeat with the doppler. The heartbeat is strong and steady, up in the 160s. Cooper is intrigued by the sound and I ask him what he thinks it sounds like. In true Cooper fashion, he says it sounds like a choo-choo train. The doctor and I laugh and I tell him that Mommy has a baby growing in her tummy and that sound is the baby’s heart beating. His first response is: “the baby is riding on a choo-choo train! Chugga chugga chugga.”
Luckily, he no longer thinks the baby is riding on a choo-choo train. I’m already starting to show a bit and he sees my belly and talks about the baby. It is so cute. He hugs and kisses my belly and tells me he loves ‘his’ baby. He even gets upset when I lay on my side next to him, because he thinks I’m going to hurt the baby and he doesn’t want the baby to cry. I can’t wait to take him to my 20 week sonogram, so he can actually see the baby.
When I ask him if he wants a baby brother or sister, he usually answers that he wants a baby sister and then a few minutes later he’ll say he wants a baby brother. He even told his teacher at school that he was going to have a baby brother.
I just know Cooper is going to be an awesome big brother. I can’t wait!
Posted in: asides, cooper.
So I was a little anxious about taking Cooper Trick or Treating this year. I wasn’t quite sure how he would react to potentially seeing scary costumes, decorations and the whole going up to strangers houses asking for candy thing. A lot of the cartoons that he watches had Halloween episodes, so he started asking about Halloween and Trick or Treating. I told him that he had to dress up in a costume or he wouldn’t get any candy. I asked him what he wanted to be for Halloween and he said he wanted to be a pumpkin. So, off pumpkin costume hunting we went. Cooper has become extremely picky about his clothes and didn’t want to have anything to do with any of the costumes we looked at. I reminded him that he couldn’t go Trick or Treating without a costume and he said that was ok and he would wait until he got bigger. (It’s amazing how his just shy of three-year old brain works.)
A few days go by and he starts talking about how he wants to go Trick or Treating again. I remind him that no one will give him candy unless he is dressed up. A friend of mine gave me a bag of hand-me-down clothes for him and there happened to be a pair of Osh Kosh overalls, so I suggested he wear those along with one of his two conductor hats and be a train conductor. He agreed and I was so thankful that I did not have to pay for a costume that he probably would not wear.
We were invited to hang out with some friends to Trick or Treat and hand out candy. Oh my gosh, he had soooo much fun! He totally blew my expectations out of the water. After seeing Ava go up to the first house, say “Pick or Peat’, and come back with candy, he was hooked! He pretty much ran up to the porch of every house and wanted to be the first to say Trick or Treat.
When the kids were done Trick or Treating, we hung out on the porch to hand out candy. I allowed him to eat two small packages of candy (fruit snacks and skittles) and it was almost like he ate everything in his bucket. He was so hyper-active it was not even funny. He was running around playing with the girls, trying to scare the girls, handing out candy, rearranging the pumpkins, rolling the pumpkins down the stairs, running up and down the front walk…he should have been dressed like the energizer bunny!
All in all, we had a great night hanging out with Dan, Lauren, Ava and their friends. Cooper even fell asleep in the car on the way home, which never happens. Today all he talks about is wanting to go Trick or Treating again. Unfortunately, we’ll have to wait until next year. Here are some pics of our super fun Halloween. Make sure you check out the descriptions under the pics.
Posted in: cooper, friends.
Here are some cute new pics of Cooper’s cousin, Jaxon:
Who says he doesn’t look like his Daddy?
and my personal favorite…
Posted in: family.
