Santa Cruz Vacation 2013

This past weekend, we travelled to Santa Cruz with my parents.  We had the best weather and a really nice time.  Our trip was relaxing and fun.  The first night we took the boys to the boardwalk.

Parker was able to ride almost every ride. He loved rides that went "real high".  We put Cooper on his first ride.  He wasn't very amused.

As was expected, they both hated the sand on their feet.  My boys are definitely made for the pool instead which is totally ok with my.  I tend to hate sand on my feet as well.

They even learned to fly a kite with Grandpa.  Parker was much better at it than I expected him to be. Maybe he has a future in kite flying?

We hope to travel this fall to Kansas City and hopefully let the boys experience some snow.

Nap time is a Joke

The boys currently share a room at our house.  We have started trying to put them down together for nap time.  This works perfectly at daycare.  They both take a nap, with all the other kids.  It's a piece of cake according to their provider, Terry.  Little angels she calls them.  Yeah right.

I have proof that nap time, with two boys just isn't possible but very funny to watch.

Dancing Baby. Spastic Gymnast.

My boys are growing like crazy.  Cooper is walking and very near talking. Parker is into sports of all types.  It's hard to find him without a ball in his hands. He loves doing exactly what his dad does. Baseball is his absolute favorite. They have finally started playing with each other as well, Parker doesn't really understand how small Cooper is right now, luckily, Coop is a bit of a bull and doesn't seem to mind the rough play.

They are both such bright spots in our lives, with such different personalities. Parker has the best sense of humor and Coop is our happy little guy.

I'm so proud to be their mom.

Back to Nature

I just can't help but giggle when I see a baby's butt.  These two love to be naked and being naked and outside is even better.  Last night, as I was getting them ready for a bath, Parker snuck out onto the back deck and Cooper quickly followed.

They both just laughed and laughed.  It was such a fun moment to be able to just sit back and watch them at play.  They are both still so innocent and pure of heart.  The simplest things really make them happy.  I hope that I can maintain this well into their adult lives.

Our lives are so full at times, that it's nice to be able to sit back at times like this and just appreciate the world around you, just soak it in and enjoy the moment at hand.

Cooper is 11 Months

Cooper is creeping toward being 1.  The last 11 months have just flown by and he is getting so very big! He still only has 6 teeth but he does big things with them.  He tends to bit toes and shoulders and then smiles.  It's hard not to laugh. He is just days away from walking but a bit weary of taking his first few steps.

Everything he does is big.  He eats big, he laughs big and he smiles big.  This kid has a heart of gold.  He finds pure joy in the simplest of things and just watching him interact with the world around him keeps my heart warm.

I can't wait to watch him grow and see the little boy that is will soon become. I could not be prouder of my little man.

The Giggles Get Me Every Time

Cooper just giggles. Just about everything makes him laugh. It doesn't take much effort, just a bit of an entertainment factor and off he goes. We recently got this awesome bath tub toy from my mom. Cooper thinks it is just great and it's made that much better by Parker holding it.

Cooper: Nine Months, Six Teeth, and Happy As Can Be.

Cooper is nine months old now, has six teeth and might possibly the happiest kid on earth. He goes to bed happy and wakes up happy. The only time you can find a frown on his face is when he is hungry or Parker has just whacked him with a bat.

He thinks his brother is the funniest person around and just loves to play with him.  Watch this video and just listen to his sweet belly laughes.

I'm such a lucky mom.  My boys are the best.  Every day brings something new.  I am just trying to savor every moment. 

Wow, Genetics.

I watched Kevin flip through images on his phone tonight.  It was so neat to watch my boys grow up as he flipped through hundreds of photos.  We landed on one photo and I suddenly realized that I didn't know what precious boy I was looking at.  From the shirt in the image, I guessed that the baby was Parker, but until Kevin confirmed my suspicions, I was completely confused.  It's amazing what genetics can do.  See below, can you tell the two babies apart? That's Parker on the left, both are about 6 weeks old.

 

Even as they have grown and developed into two distinctly different individuals, their looks have remained the same.  Here they are again, at around 6 months old. Same nose, double chin, same Worley ears, the same round faces, sane terrible drool problem, yet so very very different. 

I love each thing about my similarly unique little boys and every day I grow more in love, how could you not?

Brothers Gotta Hug!

How cute are these two kids?  Cooper thinks Parker is the cat's meow.  He laughs at just about everything that Parker does.  I am lucky to get a giggle from this kid.  I really hope this little bond continues to grow.  It's just so fun to watch them interact.

Parker definitely takes advantage of Cooper's inability to run after him.  The tables will turn soon enough, Cooper is almost crawling.  He's got the army crawl down, just needs to figure out how to get the arms and legs moving together!

Cooper is 6 Months, Oh My!

I'm not really sure how it happened but Cooper turned 6 months old today. He is such a little riddle. He loves to cuddle buts he's a put pushy at times.  Quick to let you know he's angry but tends to tolerate a lot.  He gets a kick out of aggravating Parker but also thinks he is the funniest kid around. Kevin and I try so hard to make him laugh and all Parker has to do is dance.

Cooper has grown so fast. He's a big kid, wearing the same size diapers as Parker which makes life a bit more convenient. He's almost crawling but still doesn't have any teeth.  I'm so very eager for him to get mobile so that I can watch him and Parker play but not ready for either of them to grow up just yet.

He's such a blessing to our family.  I can't imagine life without him.  Happy half birthday little one.