Memorial Day Fun

When you think of Memorial Day, you think of the start of summer....and when you think of summer, you think of....SWIMMING!  Yay, who doesn't love to swim??  Well, apparently my son!

On Sunday, we went over to my parents house for the day and spent the night for Memorial Day.  My parents are members of the Kingwood Country Club where they have an awesome pool.  They reserved a Cabana for Sunday late afternoon so we could relax in the shade by the pool, order some drinks and go swimming!  Justin was especially excited to take Cooper in the water for the first time.  I went swimming with some girls from church last week, which was the first time for Cooper to ever get into the pool.  He pretty much fussed the whole time in the pool.  I wasn't really sure if it was because he didn't like it, or because of the entire new situation with all the people and kids.  He can be a little shy at times :)  

After that, I went and bought a cute little floaty for his age and we were excited to take him in it again.  Justin took him in the baby pool and the look on his face was like, "Why, Daddy..Why??" He was just not enjoying it at all.  I tried to take some pictures but he just wasn't having it.  So Justin took him out and let him chill for a little bit and tried again later.  He took him around on the lazy river and the poor baby cried the whole time!  I thought maybe he would get used to it and enjoy the ride...but no...you'd think we were torturing him.  So that was that of Cooper's first swim.  Wasn't too exciting but hopefully he will learn to love to swim!  

Though the swimming wasn't a huge success for him, he sure did look cute!  Have you ever seen a cuter little swim baby?  I can hardly stand the cuteness!  

The day at the pool definitely didn't go to waste.  Cooper took a nap in the stroller with Granna while me, Justin, Brandon and Peyton played in the pool and floated on the lazy river.  Justin may or may not have gone down the water slide and jumped off the diving board a few times.  You only live once, right?  

Justin and Peyton playing in the splash pad area

Gu watching

Coop hanging out with Granna

After the pool, we went back to my parents house and they grilled some steaks and had a yummy dinner.  I tried to put Cooper down for a nap when we got home but he fought the whole nap.  I thought maybe it was because his schedule was off.  Well, it turns out that apparently he is going through a phase where he won't sleep anywhere else but in his crib at home.  We spent the night at my parents house that night and Cooper had one of the worst nights of sleep since he was just a few days old!!  It was miserable.  It would take him forever to go to sleep, and then he would wake up screaming like he was scared and didn't know where he was.  He usually is a GREAT sleeper and almost always goes to sleep after I lay him down in his crib awake.  After he woke up in the middle of the night, it took me 2 hours to get him to finally go back to sleep.   I wanted to pull my hair out.  He just did not want to sleep in the pack and play, which is strange because he has slept in it many times before with no problems.  Did anyone have babies that wouldn't sleep anywhere but their crib?   Of course when we got home yesterday, he took a nap in his crib and slept 12 hours last night and didn't fight it at all.  Oh well, I'm sure he will grow out of this soon.  It was a great Memorial Day even if we didn't get much sleep :)

7 Month Update

Last week Cooper turned 7 months old!  

and the hair is still sticking straight up, we get lots of comments about that :)

I'm a week behind on posting but better late than never, right?  His 7 month pictures are horrible, but I'll post them anyway.  The older he gets, the harder it is to take pictures as he won't sit still.  It's definitely a 2 person job now, and waving a toy in front of him just doesn't work anymore. Instead of smiling at the toy, he gets fussy because he doesn't understand why I'm waving it in front of him but won't give it to him.  That and he blinks every time the flash goes off, makes for some comical pictures.  Anyway, here is what is going on with Mr. Cooper at 7 Months:

Sleeping:  This has by far been the best month of sleep...Cooper is sleeping like a champ.  He goes to bed between 8-8:30pm and sleeps till about  8:30am.  The past week he was sleeping until 9am.  Um, yes..thank you son for extra time in the mornings.  Then this morning he woke up at 7:30 so sometimes it's hard to predict.  He hasn't woken up at night at all this month which is another added blessing.  He takes 2-3 naps a day depending on the day.  Usually 10am, 2pm and short nap at 5:30 or 6pm.

Eating:  I feed him a bottle 4 times a day...usually 8am, 12pm, 4pm, and 8pm.  Our little schedule is working out well for us.  He also eats some solids at lunch and dinner. I will probably add breakfast soon.  His favorites are carrots and pretty much any fruit he loves.  He's not crazy about green beans but will still eat them.

Temperament: Cooper is a super easy baby right now and so much fun!  He wakes up in the mornings and his naps SO happy (when he sleeps well).  My favorite thing is coming in his room after he wakes up.  He smiles so big, laughs and kicks his legs because he is so happy to see me.  Justin and I even fight about who will go in his room to get him in the mornings....that's how much fun it is!  He is so happy and smiles non stop at home, but in public...well, that's a different story.  He seems to be a little shy around other people.  Most people will tell me how studious he is.  He will just stare at you and try to figure you out or what is going on in this new environment.  He is definitely a people watcher :)  He doesn't necessarily have separation anxiety as he never cries when I take him to the church or gym nursery, but he is just cautious around new people.  I really don't think people believe me when I say that he is so happy and smiles a lot at home because he usually looks SO serious around other people, it's so funny.

Milestones/Working On:  Cooper LOVES being on his stomach...that is where he is the happiest.  He  is army crawling everywhere right now and can go pretty fast when he has his mind on something.  He loves to play on his stomach so much that he really doesn't want to sit up.  He can sit up, but never longer than a minute or so because he just wants to get on his stomach to crawl.  He will sit up more on a chair on in my lap where he really can't get on his stomach.  I'm really working on sitting up with him though.  He does get on his hands and knees and rocks back an forth and I keep thinking he is about to go on his hands, but then he gets back on his elbows to crawl.  I'm pretty sure he will be crawling on his hands and knees soon.  It is also getting next to impossible to change his diaper and clothes.  He hates being on his back and he squirms the entire time to be on his stomach.  When Justin is home, it really does take 2 people.  One to distract him and hold him still and the other to change him.  He also got another bottom tooth this month and the other bottom tooth is about to break through.  Coop is a camp with teething.  I haven't even noticed a difference in his temperament when he is teething and all of a sudden I see a tooth. He mainly just wants to chew on everything in site when he's teething.

the flash got him again...

He is oh so cute and I say that about 100 times a day.  I just can't get enough of his smile and cuteness!

Mother's Day Weekend

We had a really fun and busy Mother's Day weekend!  I'm so thankful that Justin had the weekend off.  It started with going to my best friend's daughter's birthday party!  It was a super cute party theme and she made all the kids capes and masks....even Cooper got one!

As you can see, he was too crazy about it.  He's clinging onto his toy for dear life!  When we first put it on him he started to cry but then he stopped and he let me keep it on him for a long time.  He was never too happy about it though as you can see..

He looks more like a super hero here looking off into the distance....

And we can't forget the beautiful birthday girl!!  Too bad I couldn't get a better picture...

As always it was also so great to see the BFF's again!

Then that evening we had Justin's best friend and his fiance over for dinner.   They are getting married in July and Justin is the best man.  We are so happy for them as they really are perfect together!  I wish I would have gotten a picture of them with Cooper!  Cooper's cautious personality is coming out more because when I got Cooper up from his nap and brought him out into kitchen with our friends, he started to cry!  He didn't know who they were and why they were in his house!  Then I had Paul hold Cooper and he started to cry again!  It just takes him awhile to get warmed up to people.  By the end of the evening, he was best buds with them :)

Then on Mother's Day, Justin and I went to church and then went over to my parents house for brunch.  My mom made a wonderful brunch which really isn't fair on Mother's Day.  The guys played some basketball outside again which is becoming a little tradition.

My First Mother's Day

Cooper and Gu

with Uncle Brandon

Being my first Mother's Day, my heart was filled with such thankfulness for our son.  I love him more than words can express and have such deep appreciation for being a mom.  I am thankful I get to spend every hour with this little guy as I just can't get enough of him.   So on this Mother's I am deeply grateful to 2 very huge answered prayers:

• My mom is all complete with her treatment and is currently in remission!!
• God answered our cries for a child and He gave us a beautiful baby boy!  I am so blessed and thankful to be his Mom!  

Thankful 

Happy Mother's Day....Part 3

The Wide Spectrum of Mothering 

by Amy Young

To those who gave birth this year to their first child—we celebrate with you

To those who lost a child this year – we mourn with you

To those who are in the trenches with little ones every day and wear the badge of food stains – we appreciate you

To those who experienced loss through miscarriage, failed adoptions, or running away—we mourn with you

To those who walk the hard path of infertility, fraught with pokes, prods, tears, and disappointment – we walk with you. Forgive us when we say foolish things. We don’t mean to make this harder than it is.

To those who are foster moms, mentor moms, and spiritual moms – we need you

To those who have warm and close relationships with your children – we celebrate with you

To those who have disappointment, heart ache, and distance with your children – we sit with you

To those who lost their mothers this year – we grieve with you

To those who experienced abuse at the hands of your own mother – we acknowledge your experience

To those who lived through driving tests, medical tests, and the overall testing of motherhood – we are better for having you in our midst

To those who have aborted children – we remember them and you on this day

To those who are single and long to be married and mothering your own children – we mourn that life has not turned out the way you longed for it to be

To those who step-parent – we walk with you on these complex paths

To those who envisioned lavishing love on grandchildren -yet that dream is not to be, we grieve with you

To those who will have emptier nests in the upcoming year – we grieve and rejoice with you

And to those who are pregnant with new life, both expected and surprising –we anticipate with you

This Mother’s Day, we walk with you. Mothering is not for the faint of heart and we have real warriors in our midst. We remember you.

A Mother's Day tribute to my Mom

My mom is one amazing woman.  I have always thought that about her....but after this year I have more of a respect for her than ever before.  She really is one of the sweetest, kindest, and most generous people I have ever known.  She is quiet and private and this post will more than likely make her uncomfortable....but I just wanted to publicly share with everyone how thankful I am to have her for a mom.

She is the kind of person you definitely want to have on your team. She will work incredibly hard and want zero credit for it.  She does more for her family than any of us ever know because she will never tell us all the things she does.  She has the biggest servants heart and she never seeks credit.  She has been a stay at home mom my entire life and is a huge example to me of how to be "busy at home."  She  is an awesome homemaker!  She takes care of the home so well and all of us would be completely lost without her.  She is unbelievably organized, the house is spotless, and of course she is an awesome cook!

Growing up, she was always there for me.  She helped me with anything I needed, cheered me on with accomplishments, and was there for me during hard times.  She hardly ever said no when it comes to having my friends come over which I always appreciated.  Though my mom doesn't like to be in the center of attention, she always allowed me to have pretty big parties at our house (it was nice that it was mainly youth group parties).  She is also such a loyal and good friend.  She would much rather have 2 or 3 close, lifelong, friends than 30 just so- so friends.

This has been one tough year for my mom.  For those of you who don't know, my mom was diagnosed with aggressive lymphoma cancer back in August.  The cancer seemed to come out of no where and was in her brain, bones and body.  We were all in such shock.  For the past 10 months, my mom has been in and out of the hospital, being probed and pricked countless times, with an IV poll attached to her at all times.  She has gone through 6 rounds of intense chemo, each twice a month.  She has spent many, many nights at that cold hospital.  She had a stem cell transplant, which is an extremely risky and scary procedure and had to stay in the hospital almost a month with such sickness, nausea, weakness, fevers, digestive issues, loss of appetite, chills, fatigue, along with so many other symptoms I don't even know about.  Lets not to mention having all her hair fall out and me having to shave her head for her.

It has been rough.  And no one would ever even know how hard it has been for her, because she has displayed so much grace and faith through it all.  Through all the pain and trials, she has not even once questioned God.  In fact she has clung to him more than ever.  She has not felt sorry for herself and she never complains.  Her faith has shined so bright through her cancer.  She even had a nursing student follow her case and had to write a paper about her.  In her paper, she wrote that the reasons she believes my mom has done so well with her treatment is because of family support and her faith.  I can't even imagine how many nurses and doctors she has had an impact on with her strong Faith in the Lord.

If you are able to call or spend time with your mom on Mother's Day this year, please don't take it for granted.  I know I won't this year more than ever before.   Mom,  Thanks for being an example to me of what it means to have joy during trials.  Thanks for teaching me by your actions how to be a wonderful Mom.  Thank you for always being there for me!  You are so strong and I am so proud of how you have handled everything that came your way this year.  I pray that the Lord would give us many, many more years together.  You are my hero.  Happy Mother's Day!

Dear Mother with Empty Arms...

Mother's Day is fast approaching which has many different emotions for me, which is why I'm doing a little Mother's Day Series.  I have a lot of post ideas in my head, but who knows how many I will end up doing.

***disclaimer:  I wrote most of this post last week before I saw all the other Mother's Day links similar to this going around on social media.  I debated not posting it, but decided to go ahead anyway.  For all you moms out there, please don't feel any guilt celebrating Mother's Day...it is a great thing to celebrate***

I am of course so thankful to be a new Mom on my first Mother's Day, but I also can't help to think of all the women out there who are hurting on this day.  All the women who have longed and dreamed of being a mom since they were little girls, but are going through another Mother's Day with empty arms.  I am not even going to pretend to know what is is like to experience infertility as that is not something I have had to walk through.  I'm not going to say if you only trust in Jesus more, he will give you a child.  I'm not going to tell you that you are not taking trials well because you show sadness and hurt (which are real emotions).  What I do know is this....

I do know the deep longing of wanting to be a mom as long as I could remember

I do remember dreading the Mother's Day service because you would not be standing up or getting a rose like all the other women

I do know what it is like to be in your late twenties, with most of your close friends married, and wondering if marriage would ever be in your future, let alone children

I do know the deep pain of losing 2 babies before having any children of your own

I do know that feeling of wondering if it would ever be possible to have children of your own

I do know the fear of walking into a fertility clinic so scared not knowing what the future holds

I do know the agonizing feeling of waiting for a phone call with important test results

I do remember all the pregnancy tests, and the hoping, praying, longing to see 2 lines

I do know the deep fear of losing a baby

Though I will never understand having empty arms year after year after year, these are the emotions I can relate to.  Let me first say I'm so sorry.  I'm sorry that your dream of having children has not happened yet...whether it be from prolonged singleness, infertility, or miscarriage, it's all so painful.  I'm sorry that churches make the pain even deeper by making you feel less of a woman because you're not a mom in the worlds standards.

I have mentioned before on this blog how miscarriage is a silent pain.  (you can read that blog post here: The silent pain of miscarriage)  I believe prolonged singleness is also a silent pain that many people do not talk about especially on Mother's Day.  If you do talk about the pain of prolonged singleness people will think you are desperate and aren't trusting God.  If you talk about your infertility or miscarriage, people get awkward and just don't know what to say as it has always been a taboo subject.  But what if on Mother's Day instead of churches only recognizing and honoring Mother's....what if we prayed fervently for couples longing for children or who have recently lost children due to miscarriage?  What if we prayed over singles desiring for marriage and children?  What if we prayed for couples who do have children for wisdom and guidance as we raise them?  There is so much more we can do for Mother's Day than to just hand a rose to all the Mother's and have them stand up during the service (though these things are not bad of itself)

Can I leave you with a little encouragement?  I am a testimony of someone having 2 miscarriages and then having a healthy baby boy.  I have seen first hand couples experience infertility for years and then the Lord gives them a child.  I know of another couple who could not have children and have adopted children and have helped many other couples throughout their adoption journey.  I have seen firsthand women in their late thirties and even early forties get married and go on to having children!  God can do what we think is impossible!  He has a most wonderful, perfect plan to bring Him glory that we don't understand at the time.  He is so good!  I am praying for you, dear Mother with empty arms this Mother's Day.

Birthday Weekend

Well, another year has gone by and I'm another year older.  I turned 31 on Friday...31!  How did I get here?  That just sounds old to me but I'm thoroughly enjoying this stage of life and thankful for all the many blessings at 31.  Justin and I were talking about how it was just last year where we were in New Orleans visiting our dear friends and going to Jazz Fest for my birthday.  This year has definitely flown by!  

It was nice that Justin had Friday off so we were able to spend the day together!  We relaxed at home and I went over to my BFF's house to drop by some cupcakes since it was her birthday too!  We have shared many birthdays together since we were in high school.  After that, we packed up our car and drove to my parents house to spend the night.  We spent just one night there, and our car was completely packed, with many trips to load the car.  The life of having a baby and a dog. I really can't imagine it when we have more!  

It was so nice to go to my parents for several reasons.  First, my mom had a stem cell transplant back in January and was not able to be around kids for awhile.  We did see her for Easter but then Cooper got his 6 month shots and then she couldn't be around him again because of the live virus from the shots.  Enough time has now passed that she can be around him again so that was great!

Second, Justin and I have not been out by ourselves since Cooper has been born!  Because of my mom's cancer, and because of Justin's crazy school schedule, we have not had a babysitter and had the time to go out together.  We have gone out with Cooper, but it's definitely not near as relaxing.  Don't get me wrong, we still have had plenty of time to spend together at home, but it was SO great to go out on a date together again just the 2 of us!  

We went to a restaurant in Kingwood call Raffa's which is on the lake.  It was very nice and we enjoyed it!  My sweet brother gave us birthday money to enjoy dinner and we sure did!  Wine, appetizer's, steak, and dessert (that the restaurant gave us for free for my birthday).  We haven't dined like that since our anniversary!  Yummy!

After dinner we went outside and listened to a live band that was playing.  

Then we walked around the lake area and went onto the pier

Then we headed home to watch the Rockets game with the family.  And can you believe it?  I didn't even call home to check on my Coopy!  And sure enough, he did just fine without us!  Didn't really seem to miss us one bit :)

My mom also had a little birthday table set up for me!  Flowers, gifts, cake, and pictures framed of me growing up.  She is so thoughtful...

My mom also got me a new cell phone case...check it out....

The picture is clearer in person but it's of course of my sweet little man with the words "I love Mommy"  Now everyone will know how proud I am to be his Mama!

Thanks to my hubby and my parents for making my birthday special.  I love my family!