The things we say...

So Cooper and I have been butting heads as of late, she is trying to assert her Independence. I asked her to hand me the powder the other day, she picked it up, shook it and told me "Empty Mommy". And I said "No it's not, just bring it here." And then it happened! She looked me square in the face and proceeded to tell me "Mommy, trust me, empty!" It's funny because I tell the kids that all the time when they are about to go off the deep end over some little thing that is a non-issue. Ahhhh, the circle of life!

that time of year again

I always dread the start of school. Not for the same reasons most people do...but because for as long as I can remember, school starts and I end up getting sick! Not usually something that makes the world too difficult, but this year it ended up hitting me, Jilly, Cooper and Wyatt. I have never seen so much snot before! (I know, not the prettiest of mental images)

Courtney is getting use to 8th grade, Jilly loves school, Cooper and Wyatt are dealing well with the schedule changes.

resolutions

I know it's not time for New Year's, but as the school year is about to start I have a tendency to make resolutions. One of my resolutions is to blog about the kids once a week. I may not have as many pictures, but I will try to keep everyone up to date on a more consistent basis.

Love to All!

Such a slacker!

My apologies for not keeping in touch. Busy, busy, busy as of late. Kids are amazing..Wyatt popped his first tooth right after 4th of July. Cooper not only speaks in sentences, but in full paragraphs...too cute to hear her tell a story. Jilly has discovered how much she loves to sing and dance. Courtney is just chilling this summer, being a huge help to me with the kids while I 'work'. I have helped my Mom start a business (get ready for a shameless plug). To see part of what's been keeping me from blogging go to www.bugandbeanstore.com . I have become the resident photographer (love it!!!) and have been helping with a lot of the creative for the website. OK, so kids...check, bugandbeanstore....check, oh yeah! I have also become a consultant for the scrapbook company Close To My Heart. So you can see, being a wife, raising 4 kids and trying to get 2 businesses up and running is a little time consuming, but I promise to get caught up!

Love to All

appologies

So very sorry to all for the hiatus. With Jilly finishing school, horse shows, Birthdays, and trying to get 2 business off and running, I have had very little time to get you all updated. Here are a few of my favorite shots of the kids and the ponies.

OH...Cooper

One smart cookie is all I can say about Cooper Boo. I have found myself having actual conversations with her as of late. It amazes me how much she understands what people are saying to her, and her vocabulary is astounding. I would be here all day if I tried to list all the things she says. I think the funniest thing she does right now is to follow Jilly to timeout. And then she just plops her little butt next to Jilly and sits there quietly. At this point we are starting to give Cooper her own timeouts...it might only lat 20-30 seconds, but she knows where to go, and she stays there. And when she's all done little Missy does give you a kiss and hug and tells you she's 'sorry'. As much as I complain about the kids making me want to loose my noodle, they truly are such individual precious gifts that I would not trade for the world.

My Jilly Bean

What else can be said for Jilly, other than she keeps us laughing. Here are a few examples...

She has picked up on the commercial for Charlestown Races and Slots. (Mostly, she is drawn to it because of the horses they show...) but it is too funny to hear her sing the tag line!

Along the same lines, while watching Nick Jr there is a commercial for a brand of shoes called Lelli Kelly. And girlfriend flips her lid when it comes on saying "I want to be a Lelli Kelly girl." These shoes are just canvas Mary Jane's that have been 'blinged out'. So I was paying attention one time to the commercial for a website, and was heart broken. In fine print it stated "Available only in finer department stores Nordstrom and Macy's". I was depressed, I was so looking forward to being her hero, and just could not justify 70-90 dollars for one pair of shoes that she will out grow in the next 6 months. And then it hit me "Chris, (that's typically what I call my self during internal dialogue) you are a crafty person, you can MAKE something that looks similar, and with her bring so young she won't even know the difference." So off to Target I head to look for some plain canvas Mary Jane type shoes. And to my surprise, they had a knock off with all the bling that little Miss Girly Girl could ever want! I got to be the hero and not get shot by Jeff for spending that much on one pair of shoes!

One more quick story about just my Jilly Bean. We were in the kitchen looking for a snack, and she turns to me and asks "Is it OK if I have one of your Nudie Boys Mommy?" I about died I was laughing so hard. I had to try to figure out what the heck in the world girlfriend was talking about. And when she pointed to the box of Nutty Buddies, it all made sense. I'm just waiting for the time she's out and about and starts talking about 'Mommy's Nudie Boys'! There is no shortage of laughter in THIS house.!!

First solids

OK, you can call it cheating, but I like to think of it as being tricky. All four of my monkeys had pears for their first 'real' food. Makes it easy to remember, and it is one of the easier foods to get use to eating at this age.

Wyatt was not to happy about it at first, but after a few tries, he now eats like a champ. He's eating the stage 1 food with just as much rice cereal in it twice a day. Boy sure loves to eat, and it shows 'cause he's growing like a weed!!

Mad

So Cooper has discovered what it means to be mad. Whenever she gets upset, she will cross her arms, drop her head to her chest, and say "Mad" and then start to cry.

And in similar fashion, she has also discovered what 'no' means. When she does not want to do something, she just looks you square in the face and tells you "No."

And, she is pushing the envelope when it comes to being 'advanced for her age'. She has blessed us with "Why?" And yes, she does expect an answer. The 'why' thing isn't supposed to start until well into the "terrible two's" which are still 4 months away! Lord give me strength, I need it!!

photoshoot

So this is how we spent our time waiting for Courtney to finish her riding. The two girls were just cracking themselves up running around, and I was lucky to be able to capture some of their joy.