Littlest Boy Scout

I knew I was forgetting some picture this morning. Apparently being excited about getting to blog in peace overwhelmed my brain.

On our recent trip to Charlotte, we stopped for a breat at some outlet stores, and Nathan picked out this outfit for Coop. It's not the cutest color for a baby, but it looks like a boy scout uniform. All the ladies and some of the parents at the daycare went ga-ga over it. So I had to show it off. I go ga-ga over the baby in the outfit. What a cutie pie!

Also noteworthy, yesterday Nate was watching one of the fishing shows he regularly records. The guide took his 4-yr old son fishing for sharks. Nate was nearly teary-eyed as he said, "Hey Chrystal, look how cute this is," as he re-wound it to show me. As I watched him watching the clip again, and saying to Coop, "Someday, Coop, that will be me and you," I got a lump in my throat. Watching father and son bond is so fulfilling. I know he can't wait to teach Cooper how to fly fish.

8 Months Old

Cooper will be 8 months old in 3 days. He's quite the little man now. Here he is watching one of his Brainy Baby DVDs I got for free. He LOVES it. I use it to keep him still while I clip his nails. Works like a charm.

Cooper has discovered how to pull things out of the kitchen cabinets. We haven't put safety locks on them yet since we're moving in a matter of weeks. Meantime, I get to keep a strict eye on him any time he's in the kitchen. Of course he goes straight for the cleaning supplies under the sink. So I've been encouraging him to play with pans and tupperware. His favorite are the cooling racks.


Snaggle-toothed grin. Tooth #7 is up and out, and #8 is close behind.

Coop has been practicing some of his fine motor skills. He's using his pointer finger and thumb quite a lot now. Ever night as part of his bedtime routine, he gets to turn off the light. He used to use a full hand to do this. Now he just uses his pointer finger. It takes him a little longer, but he's sure to clap "yay" when he does it. [Cooper's form of clapping right now is either clapping his fists together, or waving one hand.] Here he is trying to turn the knob on this jack-in-the-box. He's getting better at it every day. As soon as the teddy bear pops out though, he immediately tries to close the lid and wants to do it again. Repeat about 30 times before he gets tired of it.

Cooper is VERY mobile now. He gets into everything. He no longer wants to sit down in the bath, but prefers to stand and play with the faucet or his bottle of soap. Plain ol' bath toys are so last month! This has made bath time a lot more challenging for me, and consequently MUCH shorter for him.

Cooper's favorite places to play or explore are, of course, the very places he shouldn't be: the office where he loves to play with the electrical cords of all the computer equipment [if we leave the door open, he b-lines straight for it]; the bathroom--ick!--I seriously can't figure out what is so interesting in our half-bathroom, which I try to keep clean, but just the thought of him playing near the toilet...yuck; outside--Cooper LOVES to sit on the grass and pull it and get his hands dirty. I'm sure he'd also love dirt, but I haven't yet gone that far. Georgia's dirt is red. No thank you to that laundry nightmare!

This morning my body clock woke up at the same time my alarm goes off every weekday. My first reaction was, "Seriously?! C'mon! It's Saturday!!! Sleep until Cooper wakes up." So I laid there another couple of minutes trying to will myself back to sleep. But then my mind started wandering to all the things I could do in an hour with no baby or husband to take care of. You have never seen me so happily pop out of bed at 6 am. Oh, all the things I can do with an hour to myself!!! What a great way to start the weekend.

Edited to add: As I was feeding Cooper this morning I thought of a few more things I want to record as his 8-month milestones. He has recently learned to wave bye-bye, and he has started to feed himself finger foods.

First Mother's Day

Cooper is such a little ball of joy and fun. Here he is playing in the bath a few weeks ago. He loves to splash and usually giggles and shrieks with joy, but of course when the camera is around he doesn't do the "usual." Still fun to watch for grandmas and grandpas.

Here is Cooper at 7 months old. He was playing in the kitchen and put his toys on the window ledge, which is just the right height for a fun play surface. He will stand there and play and talk to his duck (see in the background) for about 15 minutes at a time. It's his own creative space that he found and claimed on his own. Oh, and there's a vent nearby too. For Cooper a great space doesn't get any better than this. And I just LOVE him in this blue outfit.

Thursday I when I picked Cooper up from school he had Mother's Day presents for me: a flower finger painted, with a picture of him in the middle; and a picture frame also finger painted with a picture of him in it. The daycare took pictures of him painting the frame, and I had planned on scanning them in at work, but then I was sick with the flu Friday. So those will have to wait for a later post. He was so happy to give me the presents, as you can tell here.

He also gave me the following poem with a little painted hand.

A Child's Hands

Tiny fingerprints on the wall

A broken window from a bouncing ball

A bandage wrapped around a thumb

Fingers sticky from bubblegum

Flowers clutched in a tiny hand

Castles built from playground sand

A cup of milk spilled on the floor

A crayon masterpiece on the door

A soft caress on Momma's cheek

A baby's game of hide and seek

A hug in Daddy's arms so tight

A story-time snuggle in bed each night

Although for now, my hands are small

Someday soon, I'll grow quite tall

So hold me close another day

And cherish all I do and say!

I sure do cherish each moment with my little man. This week was full of amazing moments, one of which included finding Cooper climbing up the stairs all by himself. He'd made it up three before I found him. He has also learned to kiss and hug, but beware, his kisses are open mouthed and slobbery. He likes to kiss and hug one little girl at school--Valika. The two of them have become quite the little playmates.

Cooper has started babbling using consonants more and more. I'd like to think that when he says "Ha" he's saying hi. And earlier this week he was wanting me and crawling toward me saying, "Maaaaa, Maaaaa, Maaaaa." I convinced myself he was saying Mama. No, really! ;o)

I am so lucky to be Cooper's mother. He is such a great kid: so full of love, happy most of the time and full of smiles and hugs, easygoing, adventureous, trusting, smart, and talented. He has made my life so full and I have learned things about myself from him that I never knew; he has revealed many of my strengths and weaknesses. He always has a smile for me, and always wants my love. Motherhood is such an amazing thing. I thought I understood it before, but having a child of my own has opened a whole new world to my heart. From the time I was a small child, I dreamed of being a mother. I even used to sing a song called, "When I Grow Up, I Want to Be A Mother." For so many years I longed for a child. How blessed I am to be celebrating this, my first official Mother's Day. Thank you Heavenly Father for sending us Cooper. Thank you Little Boo for being so wonderful.

Happy Mother's Day to all you mothers!

(P.S. This being my blog, I wanted to record the feelings I was having today as a new mom. This post is in no way intended to offend those without children.)

7 Months

Cooper is getting more and more adventurous every day. Just today for the first time, he pulled himself up to the couch, walked across the front of the couch hanging on to the edge, and then transferred to the ottoman, holding on the whole time, of course. It was fun to watch him try to figure out how to get from the couch to the ottoman without letting go or getting down to crawl.

Cooper's most recent favorite thing to do is play with the vents in our house. Whether it's the air return vent, or the heater vent, he thinks they're so fun, and especially loves it if we run our fingers quickly across it to make noise. He'll squeal in delight.

This face was just too cute to pass up sharing.

And this toothy grin...who can refuse?

We're FINALLY over our colds. Yay!

Cooper also had a great first week at "school" (new daycare). His babysitter is moving in May, so we had to find new childcare. The new daycare is about 5 minutes from my office, so I get to spend a lot more time with my little guy. I think the new school is actually really good for him (second only to being with Mom). He has 6 new friends all very near his age. He's learning not to be afraid of people of color. He used to cry or get really worried when he saw a black person. It made me feel so awful, but I guess it's just because up until now he hasn't really been around much cultural diversity. Now he is, and I'm thankful for that.

He really enjoys playing at school, and loves the activities they do.--fingerpainting this week. They took pictures. So cute. They go outside on walks or play outside twice a day, and he LOVES that. He's also getting really attached to me, and it helps that he's around more people now, and is learning to trust others. It makes me feel good to have him in a place that is so good for him socially since I can't be with him full time. The first 6 months of his life were with a fantastic one-on-one babysitter in her home, and I wouldn't trade that experience for the world. Thank you Brandalyn!!! We'll miss you! But I am excited for this new learning time for Cooper.

Coop is 7 months old today. Sometimes he seems so grown up, like when he tries to communicate with us. Maybe I already shared this, sorry if I did, but when he's hungry he won't just sit and cry, he'll crawl over to me and beg to be picked up. If I pick him up, he'll grab my face and suck on my cheek. That mean's he's hungry. If I don't pick him up, he'll suck on my leg or my foot--any skin he can reach. Funny kid. I LOVE that he is starting to learn he can ask for things and tell us what he wants and when he wants it.

Other things he's recently learned or started doing:

• Holding bottle on his own. Sometimes I still hold him to feed him just because I can, and I know he loves it.
• Falling asleep on his own after eating bottle/ falling asleep more easily for naps. Yay for this.
• Using forefinger to poke at things/ move things around.
• Splashing water in the bath. This is nearly all he does in the bath every night. Forget toys, he'd rather splash. He continues to love the bath. Every night I sit on the side of the tub with him on my lap, and turn on the water. The instant I turn it on, he gets all wriggly and excited, turns and looks at me and grins, then turns and looks at us in the mirror, which he can barely see into above the counter, and grins and giggles, then looks back at the water, and tries desperately to get into it until I let him.
• Saying consonants/vowel combinations. Bah is starting to be said more often to say bottle. He continues to say Nee to say he's hungry. He is also saying Nah and Dah, but it's just jibber-jabber. I am going to predict that Dada will be his first word besides Bah.
• The beep-beep game. Cooper will giggle to no end if you touch your nose and say "beep-beep." This game can go on repeatedly for 5 minutes without him becoming bored of it, as we discovered the other night. He thought it especially funny when both Nathan and I did it. If only all things in life were so simple.

Cooper is such a joy. Nathan recently commented how nice it is that we're starting to be more in his world, not just him in ours. I liked that perspective. He clearly understands that we are his parents and our role in his life. It is fun to have him show us what he likes or dislikes, and what makes him happy, sad, or excited. He has quite the personality, and I look forward to getting to know him more and more every day. Love you Little Boo!

I Have My Mother's Feet

I was going to wait and blog about this on Mother's Day, but I'm afraid I'll forget by then, knowing the forgetful mommy brain I have as of late.

Saturday I took a half hour to myself instead of doing dishes, laundry, cleaning house, running errands, or any of the other hundreds of things there are to do on Saturday. Coop was asleep for a morning nap, and I jumped on the opportunity to have some me time. Out of the all the things I could do with my half hour, I decided my feet needed some attention and opted for a self-pedicure.

I'm too cheap/practical to spend money on getting a professional pedicure. Don't get me wrong, I love going to the spa and such, but even a $15 pedi seems to much to spend when I know I can do it myself and spend the money on something more lasting or entertaining. This do-it-herselfer hasn't had much time for such things in the last six months to do more than the occasional clipping of toenails and pushing back of unruly cuticles, and occasionally applying some lotion. Er, well more like nine months. I well remember the last time I painted my own toenails because I was UBER prego and could hardly reach my own feet through some serious yoga-like moves, and had to come up for air in between brush strokes. Glad that's over.

With warm weather finally here, and wanting to wear open-toed shoes in public, it was time to give my feet some TLC. As I sat down and examined the damage done over the last nine months, I could not believe my eyes. It was like staring down at my mother's feet.

Now let me intercept here with an explanation--this is NOT a bad thing. I am a chip off the old block. I don't know if my mom has ever had a professional pedicure. She's not that kind of woman; Mom is the kind of woman who goes around shoeless in the yard, and would prefer to not wear shoes anywhere. It's from Mom that I learned to appreciate the feeling of cool grass between my toes. I recall several times when I gave my mom a pedicure on the back porch or the couch. So I know what those feet look like. And mine are starting to look just like them.

As I sat there with my pumice stone and nail polish, I thought about my Mom. I thought about how I had always told myself that I would take better care of my feet so my heels don't get like Mom's, or that I would at least wear nail polish more often. Huh. That was before I had a child. Now I could appreciate how those calloused feet got that way, and appreciate what it meant. As a mother, who has time to spend on her own feet? Most of the time a mother's needs are the last to be met by herself, and her feet, well they're at the bottom of the list of priorities. Literally.

So to me, seeing my feet look like my Mother's...well, it was an indication that I have been being a good mom and wife, and a relization that it's all about the journey, not what our feet look like along the way.

Choose Your Own Adventure - Cooper Style

Cooper is really getting around now. He knows where to find his toys.
And has learned how to help himself, holding on with one hand, and pulling toys out with the other. (He's only fallen in the basket once. LOL)
He has figured out how to pull himself up to just about anything, but our little shortie has a hard time hanging on because most of our furniture is still too tall for him.

I love that look.
Cooper is always full of smiles, except when the camera is around. Everywhere we go people comment on his big smiles and how happy he is.

Nate took this video of Coop crawline to the camera as bait, and pulling himself up to the ottoman.

Now if only he could figure out how to get back down. Yesterday his adventures resulted in several bumps on the head, two of them resulting in pretty sizeable goose egg-protruding bumps, and a couple other bruises. Poor little fella. Unless we have our eyes on him all the time, or are right next to him, he seems to be pretty accident prone.

This week has also been hard as Cooper and I are still sick. Took him to the doctor last Tuesday. Prognosis: sinus infection turning into an ear ache (antibiotics for this), and causing the puss oozing out his eyes (eye ointment for this); teething of top 4 teeth still coming in (tylenol/motrin for this); fever of 100.4 either caused by sinus infection or teething (tylenol/motrin for this); and a viral infection that has moved to his chest along with a nasty cough (albuterol through nebulizer for this). Add daily vitamin supplement, humidifier, chest rub, saline drops and nose syringe to all this and I feel like we have a baby pharmacy. The pharmacist at the local CVS knows us by name, as do the nurses at the doctors office.

Today we stayed home from church again because we're both still sick. I have the same viral infection and cough. Thank goodness Nate still hasn't caught it (knock on wood). Let's hope this week is better.

Easter Weekend and Such

The last few weeks have been fun, but crazy busy. Amongst all the goings-on, Cooper received several packages from far away family. Here he is in an outfit from Nana. The first shorts he has ever worn. Too cute. And the saying on the overalls is SO TRUE. The kid never stops.

Last weekend we had a last-minute opportunity to go rent a cabin near Helen, GA with a bunch of friends. They called us Friday morning (I think someone who was supposed to go dropped out), and we left Friday afternoon at 3:30. It was crazy to do something spontaneous like that with a little one, but I was glad for the break.

The "cabin" was a lot like the one we stayed in before, fully equipped with a ton of bedrooms; a hot tub; pool table; grill; and a fun pond just steps from the front door, with paddle boats, a fishing dock, and a canoe. The cabin even had satellite tv, so we were able to watch General Conference on tv, which beat the internet viewing we would have had at home. We went with 3 other families: 8 adults and 9 kids, the kids ranging in age from 7 to 6 months. It was a house full of crazy fun.

Here is Cooper on the shore of the pond with his friend Gwen, deciding whether he liked sitting on the grass. Pretty soon he not only liked sitting on it, but pulling up fistfulls and stuffing them in his mouth. This was the first time he got dirt under his fingernails.

Nathan had enjoyed a morning of fly fishing in some local rivers, and that afternoon showed the dads how to help the kids catch fish. He helped most of the big kids successfully catch a fish. They were all excited.

Here is Cooper "fishing" with his Dad for the first time.

Priceless.

We went into Helen Saturday afternoon for a round of mini-golf. Here's Cooper and his Dad excited about the game. Do I note a little sarcasm in Nathan's expression?

Even Mom got to enjoy the fun.

Sunday morning before Conference, we all hiked to Ruby Anna Falls. Our mountain vacation wouldn't have been complete without visiting a waterfall! (It's become a accidental tradition that we joke about since it seems every hike we go on is to a waterfall.) Cooper was more interested in the sticker on my shirt than the waterfall.

Father and son.

Um, hello! Dropping the baby--not funny.

It was too dirty to let Cooper crawl around on the boardwalk at the waterfall, so I was holding him up by his hands, and...voila! He started full on walking. This was a very exciting discovery for him.

Now he loves to walk around all the time, holding our fingers.

He is fast learning how to get into things. Here he is helping me do the dishes. Notice how he is sitting on his heels. This is his most common position now besides crawling. Rather than sit down all the way, he just sits back on his heels to play. This morning he crawled over to the toy bin in our tv room, pulled up to it, and sat back on his knees/heels, pulling the toys out. There is just no stopping this kid.

On another note, Coop has been sick all week full with fever, cough, congestion, puss in his eyes--the works. That has been rough on us all. The culprit--his top two front teeth are coming in. So the tooth total is fast approaching six. What a kid.