Grandpa Cook's Visit

The SAME day Stephenie came, my dad drove down to visit us. 

And when I say "us", I really mean Kaden & Owen. 

reading through Kaden's Puzzle Buzz magazine

 As I was getting in to the shower, Kaden snuck in and asked if he could "go lay bt brampa"

instead of his bed.  15-minutes later, this is what I found: 

sacked out on the couch

There is a nice park (Paramount Park) very close to our house.

 Kaden was excited about taking his football to the park.

 Still a little young to play a good game of catch...

 ... but not too small to RUN with the ball.

This is NOT best picture of mommy, but this Moby Wrap has been the BEST investment for managing two kids.  Heck, I wish I had this when Kaden was an infant!  Normally Owen falls right asleep as soon as I put him in, freeing up two hands for other things.

Stephenie's LONG Drive West

My cousin, Stephenie, and her new husband, Jason, decided to take a job opportunity

and relocate from the mid-west to Phoenix, Arizona.  AND since Amarillo sits EXACTLY  between central Missouri & Phoenix, Steph stopped and spent the night with us pushing on early the next morning to finish her 22-hour drive.

 trying to hide behind Owen

Stephenie looking pretty comfortable with a baby.  :)

Although Kaden warmed rather quickly to Stephenie, her little min-pin, Tyson, was probably the highlight of their short stay. No telling what Tyson thought of Kaden as he quickly maneuvered around the kitchen & living room furniture in order to escape the loud, fascinated preschooler. 

 Kaden had a blast chasing him around and feeding him chows the following morning

before they loaded back into the car.



Kaden is 2 1/2!

2 and ½

and we can hardly believe it.

• If we would let you, your diet would consist of ONLY the following foods: bread, peanut butter, cheese, granola bars, and any/all sweets...
• 
• chocolate smoothie moustache

• The ONLY way I can get you to eat vegetables is to puree them and hide them in food, grind them up in smoothies (yes, I have been known to put spinach in your "chocolate" smoothie) or other deceptive methods. 
• A few months ago you started saying, "YES" to many things, which has been a wonderful change.
• You still enjoy puzzles, stickers, climbing, playing outside and most things that two-year-olds enjoy.

playing with the wagon from grandpa Cook
• You have just started telling us things and asking questions instead of parroting the things we say. For example, the other day I picked you up from an afternoon at papa's house and you said, "I ate Goldfish (crackers).  I took a nap.  I talked to Dorothy on the computer."  I called & verified the information and you indeed did all of those things that afternoon.
• You are completely potty trained- even during your nap.  Most of the time you wake up dry from the night, but we're somewhat scared to put you to bed in regular underwear.

you giving Owen a hug... nuzzling your head against his
• You've come a long way with your brother, going from, "No baby!" to "Let's get Owen!" (out of the car)

• 
• you "driving" the Prius

• Your absolute favorite thing would either be going to the park or driving.  Every day when daddy comes home you want to climb up in the cab of the truck & pretend to drive.
• You notice even more while we are driving around town. Sometimes you get frustrated and don't understand why we can't pull over and go to the parks we pass-- including school, church, and residential "parks".
• You like hair and when you are tired, you've started twirling your hair.  One day you woke up from your nap looking like this:
• 
• I realize you might kill me for posting this photo in the future...

• You like to "help" me in the kitchen when I'm cooking.  You push your chair up to the countertop and help me measure things (or play with the measuring spoons, etc).
• Whenever I'm baking you repeat the phrase, "I need to taste it!"
• 
  I often find you scaling the counter, scavenging for a snack.
• You constantly antagonize Schatzi.  Sometimes I think she likes it and sometimes I feel sorry for her.  We know you love her, but sometimes you get quite rough when trying to wrestle.  She is such a good sport, just taking your brutalities most of the time. 
• 
  Relaxing before bed
• You love to watch movies.  I try to keep the TV off during the majority of the day, except when we're getting ready in the morning.  Lately EVERY time we go to the gym, you go to the cabinet and ask Marissa or Heather to put in Toy Story or whatever Disney Pixar movie catches your eye.
• You still enjoy reading with anyone who will oblige.
• 
  mommy, Owen & Kaden reading "the animal book"
• February 2012

February Fingerpainting Fun

It's Feburary... 

It might be hot and sunny out or it might be cold, wet and snowy.  Today was more of the latter so 

I finally decided to bust out the fingerpaint that Kaden got for Christmas. 

 Who needs a paint smock when you can just go shirtless?

 Not sure what to think at first...

 I'm hoping that I haven't made Kaden too OCD about wiping his hands because he kept asking for a towel... It must be confusing to go from "Kaden, wipe your hands... Don't touch anything with your sticky fingers..." to "Dip your whole hand in & make a total mess all over the paper."

It took him a few minutes but he started to get the hang of it... 

Pinterest masterpiece.

(Would probably use painter's or thinner tape for easier removal next time.)

Owen's 2-Month Report

Mr. Owen is already 2 months old!

Cooing and smiling at daddy

We saw Dr. Fletcher at the Amarillo Children's Clinic for your 2-month wellness visit.

• Thus far you have gained over 5 lbs, putting you at 12 lbs, 8oz. and 23 inches long (65th percentile for height & weight)  Yay Owen!  We're doing it!
•  On cue, you cooed smiled at Dr. Fletcher right after he asked me if you had started doing either of these, which causes both of us to laugh.
• Dr. Fletcher also said that you have "above average" head control for a 2-month old. 
• You let out a piercing scream when you got your 3 shots, but thankfully the crying only lasted a few seconds. 
• You still have a full head of hair and it looks as if it's here to stay.

You are the calmest, most relaxed baby I've ever met.

Not sure if it was the shots, but you slept ALL night last night... as in from 11 p.m.- 7 a.m.  I literally jumped out of bed to see if you were ok and you just yawned and made a little noise.

Hallelujah!  (and thank you!)

Back to School

 When Owen was just a couple weeks old, my former principal at Sundown Lane called and asked if I would be interested in tutoring small groups of 3^rd and 4^th graders for a couple hours a day (1-3 pm),  three days a week to help prepare them for their BIG standardized test this spring. 

I immediately got excited and talked it over with my father-in-law, since he always seems to be the voice of reason and he would be the main one watching the boys. We decided that there didn't seem to be a downfall if it was something I wanted to do.  After all, my in-laws house is only five minutes from school, I would only away from Owen for about 2½ hours, it would be right in the middle of Kaden's afternoon nap... AND the money would be a nice supplement.

Thus far I have really enjoyed going back to school, putting on makeup (sometimes) and getting out of my sweats, and putting my teaching skills back to work.  I still think teaching is one of the most challenging jobs there is, BUT teaching writing can be downright enjoyable when you only have to work with a few kids at a time. I have no intention of going back full-time while the boys are this small, but 6 hours a week is completely doable!