He's growing up on me... *SOB!*

Today was Cooper's 2 year appointment and our last time with our BELOVED Dr. Eberspacher. Dr. E is moving to a new "urgent care" clinic in Lincoln, so we will be losing an amazing doctor. Anyway, Cooper got "A's" all the way around. He weighed 32 pound (90th percentile) and was 37.25" in height (100th percentile) and 20 inches around his head (100th percentile). I was proud! :) He did very good in the doctor's office today, although he was uncharacteristically shy! He usually runs and gives our nurse a hug and talks to everyone. Today I couldn't get him to udder a word and couldn't even get a smile out of him. Strange!

Calleigh enjoyed a wonderful morning with Miss Nicole (she used to keep Cooper when he was first born a couple of hours a week). When Coop and I came to pick her up, she wanted nothing to do with me. I picked her up 3 times and each time she started crying and reaching for Nicole. It melted Nicole's heart and honestly... I loved seeing it as well. Nicole is a wonderful mother to her 2 girls and I am so blessed that she loves my kids (and others) as much as her own.

After I pried Calleigh out of her arms, we went for a Daddy visit. Billy came outside and we walked around campus and enjoyed the BEAUTIFUL day! Calleigh experimented for the first time with walking on grass without shoes on. I think she will like it when she gets used to it. After we got home and ate lunch, both kids rushed to bed for a nap. I ended up having to wake them up so we could go wish a wonderful young man goodbye as he leaves YC for new adventures. After a little cake, the forgave me for interrupting their naps and we walked around for a little while longer. We made our way to Miss Sarah's house (another favorite with my kids) and Calleigh got to swing in her toddler swing and Coop got to jump on her trampoline. Both kids had a wonderful afternoon. We look forward to many more beautiful and fun filled days!

Ahh... Welcome SPRING!!!

Gratituesday (reflections on 2 years)

Daddy helping take his new truck out the package

Cooper opening the first of 3 "woof woof" movies

Coop's very own Coca-Cola Double Fudge Cake

Blowing out his candle

(thanks Amber for the great pic)

Yesterday was Cooper's birthday. He was born 2 years ago in York General Hospital with minimal fuss and barely a squeak. Things are different now... he is loud, silly, and ever so busy. This weekend of celebration was no different. Saturday we had some friends over to help us celebrate and he loved every minute. He got balls and a "woof woof". He was so thrilled with his toys that he will not let Calleigh play with them. Even if he is playing with another toy, he will carry his new dog around to make sure she doesn't get it. If she goes near any of his balls, he starts yelling "Baby, Baby, Baby, No, No, No!" Luckily, Calleigh doesn't seem to mind right now, but I expect that to change at some point.

Since yesterday was his actual birthday, we decided to save our presents for him to open after a celebratory visit to McDonald's last night. He LOVES opening gifts and with 3 new "woof woof" movies, I'm sure we will have a busy day. Unfortunately, a couple of his other gifts are for the summer, so he will have to wait to play with those and he didn't seem to really understand that.

So now to the gratitude... Cooper was a long awaited gift from the Lord. Billy and I had been married 10 year when we had him and were blessed with great and fun experiences and travels before his birth. When he was born, Billy and my mom were in the room with me and while I don't consider giving birth as a beautiful thing, I do consider it a blessing and I am so glad that 2 of my favorite people were there to witness the birth of yet another favorite... Cooper. Since he was born, I can remember thinking that HE was the very reason I was born! I realize that is a lot of pressure on both him and I, but Coop is a special little boy and I am so excited to see where the Lord leads him.

I pray daily for him to be open to God's plan for him. I also praise the Lord daily for giving us Cooper (and Calleigh, of course). He has brought many smiles & laughs and I expect he will bring many more years of joy. Cooper has taught me how to appreciate the small things in life and how to slow down and enjoy the moment. So I dedicate this Gratituesday to Cooper and the joy and lessons he brings to my life. I love you "Little Bit"!

Sick but smiling...

Unfortunately, our sweet girl is a little under the weather. We assume it is from her teeth, but I don't suppose you can ever be sure. Anyway, even though Calleigh has been permanently glued to my side (or Billy's at night), NO ONE can make her as happy as her big brother. Yesterday after Cooper's nap, I took Calleigh in his room to get him out of bed. She immediately perked up when she saw him and he refused to get out of bed... he was insisting that I put Calleigh in with him (he was saying "Baby" over and over and patting the bed next to him). Well I did and I had to grab my camera in hopes to capturing some of the resulting happiness.

Gratituesday (inspired by L.C.)

"Gratituesday" is something that I am inspired to "celebrate" due to Laura Coppinger and her wonderful blog. Each Tuesday she blogs about what she is grateful for and invites others to do the same. I thought I would try to do that today.

I have so many things to be thankful...

• I have 2 beautiful children who are healthy and happy.
• I have a husband who cares for me, loves me, and is good to me and the kids.
• I have a home that is warm, has running water, and electricity.
• I have a job that is rewarding, inspiring, and allows me the opportunity to get out of my house for a few hours each week and allows Billy to spend time alone with the kids.
• I have food to eat and my husband is an AMAZING cook who LOVES to cook for me.
• I have clothes that fit me, cover me, and keep me warm.
• I have a vehicle that works well and is safe for my family.

I am perhaps most grateful for my God who provided all these things to me and who has granted me the opportunity to praise Him for this amazing gifts.

I have much more to be grateful for so I will save a few for NEXT "Gratituesday". Thank you Laura for your inspiration and the Christian example you set for all of us ladies in York and all of your blog followers.

I do have a funny story to share that has nothing to do with gratitude. Tonight, my husband's boss came by for a few minutes to see us. Cooper has spent limited time around him and we expected him to just sit with us a watch his Disney show while we caught up. I was completely wrong. As soon as we sat down, Cooper jumped out of my lap and ran up to our visitor and IMMEDIATELY unzipped his pj's "for him". We figured out that he was telling us that he had to potty, but you can imagine after I got over my mortification... I had to laugh. I suppose that means I should add one more thing to be grateful. I am grateful for the funny things my children do that embarrass me and ultimately give me something to laugh about! Thank you Cooper!

Snow during Spring Break and other "sneaky" things...

So, this past week was Spring Break and it was an amazing week of hanging out and running around. The kids had a WONDERFUL time having both Momma and "Da" (what Cooper calls Billy) here with him. When he would wake up from his nap, he would holler for me, but as soon as I would go in to get him, he would start insisting on Da coming to get him. :) It was a lot of fun for us all. The weather was really good for most of the week and Thursday was the best of all. We had weather in the 60s and it was beautiful. The irony was that the next day was miserable with blowing snow and COLD temperatures. It was a good reminder that God is in control of EVERYTHING!

This weekend Billy made pancakes for breakfast. Pancakes are one of Coop's favorites and Billy tried something new... blueberries. I know that isn't a new concept, but it is to Cooper. Unfortunately, about 6 months ago, he started being very picky about what he eats and we have really struggled with getting him to eat anything besides the same 10 foods. Anyway, Billy added blueberries and it didn't slow him down at all. Cooper ate a ton that morning and has had one the past 2 mornings (we ALWAYS

make enough for leftovers). The 2 pictures to the left are of

Cooper eating the blueberry pancakes and enjoying every bite!

We have also been very pleased that within the last 3 weeks he has started eating bananas & apples and while he has been eating yogurt as much as we let him. He asks for it by name (not that most people could decipher what he is actually saying) and seems to love it. My fingers are staying crossed that he will continue to expand his love of good foods.

Calleigh's dress

Here is the picture that I promised...

And an old video...

Daddy's girl...

When we found out that Calleigh was going to be a girl, all of the men at church told Billy she was going to have him wrapped around his finger. I never really bought into this idea... Billy just isn't that kind of guy. This week I might have caught a glimpse of how wrong I could be.

Billy has been watching a dress in Lincoln for at least a month in a half. Every time we go into the store he would look at this dress and talk about how cute it was. I never knew why he liked it but he appreciated it from afar. This week on our trip into Lincoln, he changed his mind. He bought THE dress and I was so tickled that DADDY picked out and purchased a dress for his "princess", I thought I would share a picture of it. When I get a pic of Calleigh in it, I'll share it.

A few more pics from Pops and Lulu's visit

Swim Lessons with Pops and Lulu

Calleigh was already worn out before we got in the water

Going to the edge to practice jumping off the side

1...2...3...GO!

Coop got to open some of his B'day gifts and both kids loved the keyboard

Another cool toy... thanks Pops and Lulu!

A few pics

Chillin' with Pops and Lulu

Calleigh LOVES her Lulu and only had eyes for her...

Post bath

Coop wearing Lulu's reading glasses... doesn't he look like Jonathan Lipniki? Ha!

Calleigh and Lulu getting ready for church

Love and Spoilin'

Today was a sad day. Cooper, Calleigh, and I took my parents (Pops and Lulu) back to the airport for them to return home. As the kids and I went back to the car without them, Cooper began whining and saying "OooOoo" (Lulu) over and over and looking back at the airport. I felt as if I was hurting him and riping him away from them, but he recovered rather quickly as we got in the car and cranked up "101 Dalmatians" on the car DVD player. He didn't even mention them again until we got home and he started looking for and calling for "OooOoo" again. :(

My folks flew in on Friday night and the weekend was wonderful. We hung out and played and let Calleigh reacquaint herself with Pops and Lulu. Cooper, of course, remembers them and RAN down the corridor at the Lincoln airport Friday night as soon as he could see them. Thank goodness for lax security late Friday night. Ha! Sunday was full of Sunday School and worship, playing and more playing. We even got to celebrate my Dad's birthday together for the first time in at least 6 years! We took him out to Kerry's so he could get a Cheeseburger (his favorite meal).

Monday, I was kicked out of the house and given the wonderful opportunity to get a ton of work done in my office. Since we don't have a sitter, I only get "office hours" when Billy is able to come home to stay with the kids. I was able to get SO much work done in preparation of my on-line classes that I will teach this summer. I even went back on Tuesday to work some more. Monday we celebrated Cooper's birthday (he doesn't turn 2 until the 29th) so my parents could give him birthday presents from them. He was SPOILED and he loved it. He completely enjoyed tearing off the paper and seeing what perfectly picked gift they got him. He got a keyboard, a Crayola "Color Me a Song", a new pair of Crocs (my son LOVES shoes... he is SO my child!), and several other thoughtful and fun gifts. All of these gifts were AFTER the suitcase full of new clothes they brought for both kids! Most of the new toys make some sort of noise or music which delights him and Calleigh... not so much Momma and Daddy. HA! We will live and we have loved watching him play with and enjoy all of those toys.

Tuesday we celebrated my birthday. My folks kicked it off with a BANG Monday night by surprising Billy and I with a new TV for our living room (B's birthday is in April). I got some new clothes, so beautiful jewelry, and a new pair of Crocs for me. They are SUPER cute. If you haven't seen high heel Crocs, you should. I will be sporting them all summer long!

My husband and kids spoiled me with items from my favorite band, Better than Ezra. The kids got me a t-shirt and Billy got me 3 CDs. These 3 CDs are significant for the following reasons... #1- the new CDs completed my collection (I now have ALL BTE CDs), #2- I got the re-released version of Closer (my favorite album) that I didn't even know existed, #3- I got a duplicate CD... THAT WAS SIGNED BY THE BAND!!!! Such a cool surprise! Billy also made my favorite meal. He makes the most amazing roast and then he tops it off with rice, gravy, mushrooms, mac and cheese, green beans (only so we could have a veggie, ha!), and deviled eggs. For dessert, I requested key lime pie. YUM! YUM! After all of that gluttony, I was shocked to find that I didn't gain a single ounce this morning! That is truly a birthday miracle! :)

After stuffing ourselves to the max, we took the kids to swim lessons and Pops & Lulu got in with the kids while Billy and I filmed and took pictures. I don't know who had more fun... the kids or the grown up kids!

As I drove home this afternoon with my sleeping kids behind me, I counted my blessings again and 2 of the best ones are my mom and dad. They are wonderful to my kids, my husband, and to me. Being surrounded by my parents, my children, and my fantastic husband made this birthday the best yet! Thank you Lord from whom all blessings flow...

Pictures to be posted soon...