Beach Camping August 2009

Sorry it's been so long since an update! Here is a quick over view of our beach camping trip we took at the 1st of the month... On Sunday we went to see the Newport temple and attended sacrament at the chapel across the street which ended up being the singles ward and Daisy was play screaming which sounded so load Danny had to take her out. The Newport Temple is so pretty, I guess they all are.

Me with my very sleepy children on the temple grounds.
Our typical set up; Daisy and Walt in the playpen, A child sleeping (Hanna) on the towels, some of us (Uncle Michael and Aunt Rebecca) just kickin' it. The water was so nice, I think we all went in everyday. If you didn't know I love body surfing and I do it pretty much every year we go. (Except for last year when I was 33 weeks pregnant with the twins, but the time I was 6 months pregnant with Van I did.)

Went to the beach house for the day. My sister took much better pictures than I but I haven't yet copied them onto my computer, so sorry, but these will have to do.

Hanna, Baxter, and Daisy filling the sand bucket.
I just love this picture of Daisy and Van fighting over the sand bucket. Even though she's little she already can hold her own!
Walt as happy as can be, even with a mouthful of sand! I was quite surprised how well the babies did, one night was a little hard but for the most part they did really well! I wish I took more pictures everyone was there; Mom, Kurt and Skye, Rebecca and Baxter (at the beach house 1 day; Kristine, my dad and Debi), Michael, Greg, me, Danny, and our 5 children. Even my cousins (The Webb's) and all of there kids, and a lot more one other day for a Cooper Family Reunion; really my pictures don't do justice! We all had a wonderful time despite the tired cranky moments. Thanks mom for a wonderful family vacation!

Happy 4th of July!

Today we drove to Vegas, saw UP, swam at Danny's mom's house, Hanna and Van did a few sparklers and then we put the kids to bed.(Max stayed the night at his cousin's). We were beat!
Van, Hanna and Max (Max needed to hold his gun). I love dressing my kids in 4th of July colors.
Daisy and Walt. I love this picture because it shows Daisy and Walt's full personalities. Daisy as Miss. Social and Walt as Mr. Chill.
.
Last night we went to the park for some fun activities (Max climbing the rock well) then the older 3 stayed up and we watched fireworks from our house in the back of Danny's truck.
Daisy eating her toes at the park last night.

Fun Filled Weekend With the Batista's

My friends Melany, Diego, and their 5 kids came to visit last weekend. That means we had 10 kids and 6 adults at our house. Two of those adults are the missionaries (if you didn't know we host the missionaries).
Danny with Daisy and Diego with Lyla on Father's Day.
6 out of 10 kids at dinner.
3 more. Lyla (6 months and crawling and would like to pull herself up on furniture), Walt (almost 10 months still army crawling, no desire to pull himself up onto furniture, way too cautious) and Daisy (almost 10 months and would love to be running).
And last but not least, Ryan (with Van in picture) was sleeping during dinner.
Max with Jacob they got along so well. Max lost another front tooth the day they came to visit.
All of the kids had a friend and they all played so well together. We all had so much fun, we can't wait another 4 years before we see them again, our kids played way to well together and they've been board ever since they left!

All About Max

Max at his Kindergarten graduation. It's crazy to think that my baby is officially a first grader.
Max with his friend Ethan. They received awards at there school assembly on Monday. Max was awarded Student of the Quarter for his class. Way to go Max! I was a little surprised because at the beginning of the semester a note was sent home saying how Max has had a hard time following class rules... not talking and keeping his hands to himself. The teacher said no matter where I put him or who he sits by he's mister social and likes to talk to everyone. He gets this from his Grandpa Ernie! We talked to him about needing to listen to his teacher and follow his class rules; I take it it worked.
T-ball season is over, Max enjoyed playing this year. Now it's time for soccer. I think I might sign Hanna up as well.

Random

Today my little brother turns 30! Happy Birthday Uncle Greg!
My brother Michael's Birthday was last week, but we had him over last night for dinner and ice cream cake. This was the first time he's been over since we've moved in. It was great having him here!
Daisy is crawling everywhere sometimes I actually can't find her (did I really just admit to that), she is just so tiny. I think it's so cute!
Walt is "army" crawling, but you can almost always find him laying down with his thumb in his mouth. When you walk by him you just have to pick him up because he puts his arms straight out wanting you to pick him up.
When Daisy sees something she wants it doesn't matter who or what's in her way she'll get it. Sometimes Walt will just let her crawl over him with no fuss, but today he was done!
Daisy and Walt splashing in the bath together. I made Daisy sit for the picture but she is almost always on her knees trying to get her hands on something. We call Daisy our "crazy monkey" and Walt our "chunky monkey" they're so fun!
Here is a picture Hanna drew and she wrote the names as well. I asked her why Van was sad and she said he wants me and Max to hold him. I was pretty impressed!

Max Lost His Front Tooth

Max lost his 1st top tooth. He has already lost 4 bottom teeth, but this was his first big front tooth. I felt horrible I forgot to put money under his pillow the first night, which he had told his t-ball team, "I can't wait for tonight, because I lost my tooth." Then his coach asked if the tooth fairy was coming and he said, no my mom; whoops! The worse was he reminded me before he went to bed and I said don't you worry, now go to sleep. And I forgot! Well, since he knows that it's me anyway I guess there was no real trauma done.

HAPPY 6th BIRTHDAY MAX!

Max's birthday was May 6th just a day after mine so I took him to lunch at the Deli and we both got sandwiches and ice cream, yummy! (Thanks to my friend Allison who got me a gift certificate there for my birthday. She also made me a big brownie cookie, that was so sweet of her, it really made my day). It was so nice to have some one-on-one time with Max, he is such a good boy who's growing up way too fast!
We celebrated Max's birthday on Saturday where we had his Army Party! The kids had a wonderful time going through an obstacle course, having a water balloon toss, and playing "hot grenade". I was so glad Danny was there he always does such a good job with the kids. He took charge of all the games having the "Soldiers" march to the different activities and so on.
Most of the kids wore camouflage, which made it all the more fun.
The kids doing the water balloon toss.
Here are some kids doing there army crawl through the finish line. Their medal for finishing the course was a root bear float. Max had a very Happy Birthday, thanks to all his friends and family who came to celebrate with us!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!

I'm 31 today! Here is a picture of Daisy and Walt that brings me so much happiness and joy on my birthday. You can tell that Walt is just screaming with joy in this picture. The babies aren't feeling very well today, but I plan to drive to Vegas this afternoon to go to lunch with Danny (Indian, my favorite) and shopping. Food and shopping = a Happy Birthday! A big thanks to my mom and Dee for offering to watch the kids for us.

Walt and Daisy

I forgot to mention how Walt is much bigger than Daisy so it really confuses people, they're not sure if they're twins or not. Walt is wearing 6-12 month clothes and size 3 diapers and Daisy is in 3-6 month clothes and size 2 diapers. I haven't weighed them in a while but they're at least 2-3 lbs. different.

Here is the video of Walt and Daisy talking and laughing at each other...

Our New Church Callings

Well, I've been called as a Relief Society teacher. This will be my first time in a calling in the Relief Society. I'm nervous, but excited for the new experience and it's a calling I can do with the babies because it's only once a month usually the second Sunday and it's just during the last hour.
Now for Danny...he was called as the 1st Councilor in the Bishopric. He was ordained as a High Priest yesterday. I know he'll do an excellent job and I'm so grateful for his willingness to serve. We have wonderful members in the ward who have already said they will be happy to sit with me and hold babies during sacrament and the Sundays I teach in Relief Society.

Trip to Cali and Easter

Me and the kids (and grandma) drove to CA last week to visit my dad, my sister and my friend Carolee who was visiting from PA. I hadn't seen my dad since his heart surgery and I really wanted to see him. It was great seeing him, the kids always have so much fun visiting their grandma and grandpa.
I had a lot of fun visiting with all my McCook friends! I hadn't seen Carolee since last year because she lives in PA for the next few years and she was going to be in Cali so I made a trip down to see her and was able to visit with her, her mom and sisters Kristen and Joy as well. It was so fun seeing them all and their cute families!
It was my mom's birthday while we were in CA so my sister Rebecca, my brother Greg and I took her out to lunch to Northwoods Inn, a restaurant we haven't been to in forever, it was yummy, and we had a great time together!
Then we got to visit my sister Rebecca and play with cousin Baxter at the beach. It was a little cold, but the sun came out for a little while and the kids had fun playing by the water and making sand castles they even swam in the pool.
We also got to dye some Easter eggs. The kids always have so much fun playing at the beach especially with their cousin Baxter!
The kids and the family Easter basket.
Daisy and Walt sitting up on their first Easter.
The kids all ready for church. Thanks to Aunt Rebecca Hanna and Daisy have Easter dresses. She hand knitted Daisy's cute little dress, pretty amazing huh?! (Walt has now found his thumb and loves it).
After church we went to Aunt Cindy's for dinner and a big Easter egg hunt. I just love this picture of Danny and Walt. We all had a great Easter Sunday!

Daisy and Walt

These are Daisy and Walt's 6 month pictures. This was the only picture that turned out of them both together. I wanted them to be able to sit up, but unfortunately they're still not doing so. We propped them up for most pictures, but Walt had his hand/fingers in his mouth in every picture. It was extremely exhausting trying to get 2 babies to look cute at the same time!

I always take a naked picture of my babies at 6 months. I was able to get Daisy to sit up for a second for her naked picture.
We couldn't get Walt to sit up, but that's OK I just love his big happy smile.

A Big Thanks to Our Mom's

We have been able to get a lot of the house decorated because of our wonderful mothers! Dee loves garage sales and has had a garage full of stuff that we were happy to put to use.
Most of our books for our library, a huge rug, a mirror and a beautiful rod iron decorative piece in our formal living room, most of our picture frames in our family room, our dinning room table and chairs and our large puzzle play mats in our playroom are all from Dee.
I know she's given us or should I say Danny has taken more, but those are the bigger items that come to mind. We use to say things about her garage sale addiction, but for now on we'll be much more thankful for it!

My mom is an amazing seamstress and thanks to her we now have beautiful curtains in our family room and dinning room. She also bought and made all our bathroom towels; she made them more fancy by sewing fringe on the ends of them and also made a duvet cover for Hanna's bed. My mom has had to come out a lot to do all the work she has done and we are so grateful for her talented skills!
Also a big thanks to craigslist, we have found almost all the other items from there. We're still not finished decorating, we still need a kitchen table, love seat and chair for our formal living room a desk for our library/office, the master bedroom and Hanna's room both need attention but, we will be taking a break for now unless we find more great deals on craigslist that we just can't pass up! Speaking of great deals, last weekend we found rope lights that go in the master bedroom and family room all for only $20. and we even have a couple extra strands, (if you haven't shopped for rope lights before FYI it's $25. a strand and we got about 10 stands). I would have to say we are huge craigslist fans!

You Know It's Time to Potty Train When...

you find your 2 year old has taken off his clean diaper to poop (all over your bed)! I was actually a little impressed that Van tried to clean it up with the wipes. YUCK!

Kids Speak

I did this fun little quiz on Facebook and I thought it was so funny I just had to post it to my blog...

The first answers are from Hanna my 4 year old and the second are from Max my 5 year old, they weren’t together when they answered.

1. What is something mom always says to you?
"get dress"/”clean up”

2. What makes mom happy?
"when I clean up the play room"/”when I help her”

3. What makes mom sad?
both said, "when I don’t help”

4. How does your mom make you laugh?
"when she tickles me"/”during the quiet game”

5. What did your mom like to do as a child?
"play dollies”/”play”

6. How old is your mom?
"18”/”19”

7. How tall is your mom?
"5 lbs"/”16 inches”

8. What is mom's favorite thing to watch on TV?
"Conference”/”Joseph Smith” (I’m really not this spiritual, I just don’t have a T.V. and I don’t watch when my kids are awake so they don’t know.)

9. What does your mom do when you're not around?
" help the babies”/”play with the kids”

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
"famous?”/”a talent show”

11. What is your mom really good at?
"playing basketball at Chuck E Cheese”/”helping dad”

12. What is your mom not very good at?
"holding me and Max”/”counting to 150,000”

13. What does your mom do for her job?
"clean the table"/”clean the bathrooms”

14. What is your mom's favorite food?
"spaghetti”/”chili”

15. What makes you proud of your mom?
"----“/”because she’s so nice”

16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?
"Barbie"/”Minnie Mouse”

17. What do you and your mom do together?
"date night”/"dates”

18. How are you and your mom the same?
"same skin"/”same hair”

19. How are you and your mom different?
“we weren’t born at the same time”/"cause she’s a girl and I’m a boy"

20. How do you know your mom loves you?
"because I’m your child"/”because she gave birth to me”

21. What does your mom like most about your dad?
"going on date night together”/”to kiss him”

22. Where is your mom's favorite place to go?
"all you can eat”/”the library”

Camping

Our family loves camping (especially Max and especially if his cousin Zachary is going too). I even enjoy camping, but with two 6 month old babies that's a whole other story. Also, with a bigger family it's a lot more work to pack and unpack just for one night of camping. We wanted to camp at the Valley of Fire, but sadly it was all full. The same thing happened last year so we found another campground not too much further past Valley of Fire by Lake Mead called Echo Bay.
The kids were just happy to get to a campground even the babies had a great time camping during the day, nighttime was a different story. I was nervous for the night because I know that with one baby and camping I usually nurse all night, but with two I wouldn't be able to do so. Danny and I didn't get much sleep, Walt wanted to nurse all night, Daisy did pretty good but still wanted to be held so Danny got a little taste of my camping trips with a baby. Hopefully, they'll be better at our next camping trip in August at the beach because that one is a whole week.
The kids had a fun time playing at the lake before we headed back home.

Creative Kids

I tried posting this one with my post yesterday, but I ran out of time.
Thanks to Danny and the missionaries our play structure is up, yea! Yesterday, I found the kids doing this activity... Van would bring toys from the shed to Max and Max would tie them to a rope from the ground and Hanna would pull the rope with the toy up to the top of the structure. If you look close enough you can see the scooter hanging form the rope. I thought this was so creative, (even if I didn't want all those toys up there).