The News is Out!

I am so excited to announce that Sydney and Cooper will be having their first cousin in a little less than 6 months!!! Poor Matt and I have never had the opportunity of being an uncle and aunt, so we are super excited that Chris and Lisa will be having their first baby- due September 24th! We have known about the exciting addition for a little while now, and I must admit it was pretty hard to hold all the excitement inside and not spill the news until they were ready to go public to the internet world! I can't wait to have a little niece or nephew- either would be a great playmate for the kids- and fun for me to hold :) Chris and Lisa will be great parents... they are already great with our kids! Congratulations to them!

And just because I'm already posting a blog- here are a few other pictures of what we've been doing lately...

Cooper celebrated his 1/2 birthday yesterday. He is getting so big! I will do a 6 month post after we go to the doctor and get his stats- but I think he's almost 18 lbs! He has not started mush or baby food yet- probably next week sometime. But he has had a few tastes of ice cream and whipped cream, which he has grown a taste and love for already. He is starting to beg for it every time he sees one of us eating it!

Last week was my sister's 14th birthday! I can not believe that 14 years ago my little sister Allie was born. I waited so long for a sister! I remember the day she was born. I remember riding the bus home to my aunt and uncle's house, because my parent's were at the hospital. I remember running through the door asking if she had been born yet. I remember it was pajama day & I remember the pajamas I was wearing. I memorized all of her stats and told my 6th grade class all about her at school on Monday. I put her baby picture in a locket and wore it around my neck. I was the happiest big sister alive! Allie is so sweet. She helps me out with my kids so much, and is such a good aunt. She babysits for us, and is Sydney's best friend. She is always helping Sydney go potty or eat yogurt. And she even likes to come to my house and hang out with me! I am so glad that I finally got a sister and couldn't ask for a better one! Here are some pictures of Allie's little family birthday party...

Rolling Over

Ok, I know, a lot of posts today! I am just taking advantage of an apparently extra long nap time for both of my kids, which can I just say is heaven! I can not believe how big Cooper is getting. He is so chubby, and very few of his clothes fit anymore. I am just waiting for the weather to warm up, because the clothes that fit him are more appropriate for summer! He started rolling over on March 10th, and as I suspected, life around here has been a bit crazier. This play mat, which we call the "worm", was Cooper's favorite toy. He absolutely loved it, until he started rolling over. Then it started getting in his way. Every once in a while he will still play on it, but he has moved onto bigger and better things...

Matt has had a few especially busy weeks with school- they always do that before spring break! I had asked him to go through the storage closet and find our bouncer for Cooper, but let's face it, he just didn't have time. So I did it. Of course it was in the back bottom corner, but I'm pretty proud of myself for moving all those heavy boxes myself, and even putting the bouncer together! Cooper loves it! Sydney loves it too, and I often find her sitting in it. I'm glad that it can entertain both of them, because it takes up a lot of space in our little apartment. I'm sure Sydney's fascination with it will fade, but it is fun for both of them to play with for the time being.

Little did I know, that going through that closet would kick in my organizing instincts. After putting the bouncer together, I went through all of Sydney's baby clothes and tried to decide which ones to get rid of. We have kept every singe piece of clothing she has ever had, and it was getting a little out of control. I want to keep some, in case we have another girl (hopefully someday!) but, we just don't have room to keep everything. It took a long time to go through them all (I also added Cooper's to the list), but it was kind of fun and nostalgic. Sydney's clothes had that "newborn" smell to them. I would pull them out of the box, smell them and just remember her as a sweet little baby. It sure is a good thing that I have a baby, or else I would have been seriously baby hungry after that! I wish that I had been doing this blog when Sydney was born, because it is so nice to have words written down alongside pictures. It is amazing how much you can forget. Which is why I try to blog so often. Not only is it a good outlet for me, it is my journal, our family records, and our memories. Our blog is for us to have those memories recorded. It is important to me to record our memories, but some do slip through the cracks. Whatever the case, I will always remember how much I love and loved these sweet little babies. That love grows stronger every day, and I know that it will never fade. They make life worth living, and I thank my Heavenly Father every day for sending them to our home. Just for fun... here is a cute picture of Sydney as a baby, of course in the bouncer!

BIG SIS

Sydney just cracks me up, and that's all there is to it. She just has so much personality that bursts out! Here are some of my favorite moments from the past week...

Reading my Parenting magazine- (at least it gets read by someone!)

"Making cookies" while I fed Cooper- little did I know the baking soda was involved...

And my favorite... being a good big sister! She seriously has 'teacher' potential.

St. Patrick's Day

I just wanted to share some pics of the kids on St. Patrick's Day. Sydney sure loves Cooper! Good thing he loves her back :)

We also had lunch with my brother Tim's best friend, Griffin, at 5 Guys on St. Patrick's Day. He's from AZ, so my mom picked him up from the airport, we had lunch, and then we took him down to the MTC. It was fun to see him, and made us miss Tim. He will be going to Detroit, Michigan, and will do a great job- Watch out Detroit!

How to Make a Pizza

Pizza, Yummy Pizza, mmmm!

First you take some dough and you roll it, you roll it...

Pizza, Yummy Pizza, mmmm!

Then you take some sauce and you spread it, you spread it...

Pizza, Yummy Pizza, mmmm!

Then you take some cheese and you spread it, you spread it...

Pizza, Yummy Pizza, mmmm!

Then you take some cheese and you taste it, you taste it...

Pizza, Yummy Pizza, mmmm!

Then you take some pineapple and you place it, you place it...

Pizza, Yummy Pizza, mmmm!

Then you take the ham and you place it, you place it...

Pizza, Yummy Pizza, mmmm!

Then you take the pizza and you bake it, you bake it...

Pizza, Yummy Pizza, mmmm!

Last you take the pizza and you eat it, you eat it!

Pizza, Yummy Pizza, mmmm!

Last week we decided to make homemade pizza for dinner. I think homemade pizza is such a great meal because it's something we all enjoy making together, and of course it is delicious! Sydney had so much fun making the pizza with Matt! I had so much fun taking pictures. And Cooper had so much fun rolling over!

Help Please!

I have a confession to make: I still have a lot of clothes from high school. And I still wear them. I have been going through my closet and it is just sad. First of all probably 60% of my closet is maternity clothes. Then maybe 30% of it is clothes from high school. I haven't bought new clothes for a long time. It just isn't in our budget. But something needs to be done. I am getting tired of my old American Eagle & Aeropostale clothes. Don't get me wrong, sometimes they have a few good finds, but overall, I think I am ready for an older look. I am 25, and would like to look 25, not 17. So, PLEASE tell me where to shop. In all honesty, it has been so long, that I don't even know where to look! We have a little bit of tax return money, that we are going to try to use to buy some new clothes, but I need to know where to look. Obviously, NORDSTROM and other places of super expense are kind of hard, because we are on a budget. But I know a lot of you are also in similar circumstances... so please share! Really, if I get no comments on this post... I am threatening to go private! :) Thanks in advance!

ninety

On Saturday we went to a birthday party for my great-grandma, Grandma Roberts. She is turning 90 years old this week! We don't get to see her very often, but it is always great when we do get to see her. I have always been amazed by her. She is a neat woman and takes very good care of herself- probably where my Grandma Holmes gets it from. My aunt Syd made a quilt for Grandma Roberts with a square on it from every family. It was so neat! I wish I had gotten a picture of it. Someday I hope to have as great of a posterity as she does! She was so touched, when we sang "Happy Birthday" to her she even cried. We asked her if she had any plans for her 90th birthday, and she told us that she was going bowling! (Yes she still goes bowling at 90!)

5 generation picture (by blood my dad would be in my mom's place)

An old 5 generation picture with Sydney

5 Months

5 months! Cooper you bring such a light into our little family! I love that I can read your emotions through your expressive eyes! You communicate with me so well, and I have to say, I love that shining smile or that begging "I need you" look in your eyes. You seem to be such an emotional baby. You are often happy as can be- gurgling, smiling, laughing, moving... you love to suck in your bottom lip, or chew on your hands. You do not suck on a binky, you do not take a bottle, and you just chomp, not suck, on anything put in your mouth. Many times you just want me to hold you, and that's it. I love that you will cuddle up with me, and my favorite is when you lay your head down on my shoulder. You love to laugh and play with daddy, but you also have times when you only want me. I can't believe how big you are getting, and how chubby your cute cheeks are! I love you! ~mommy

One thing I am amazed by is how DIFFERENT my two kids are. Sometimes I think they are polar opposites! Sydney loved and loves adventure. She loved to be thrown up in the air. She never wanted to cuddle. She is very independent, and never seems to need me. She always took a bottle and a binky. She rarely cried as a baby. She never had stranger anxiety. And she was always very active, even always kicking me to death when I was pregnant with her! Cooper- well, he HATES being thrown up in the air. He always seems to need me- and often times only me. He will not just sit in his car seat if we are shopping, so I have to carry him, while pushing a cart, around the store. He will NOT take a bottle... we have been trying every night. He loves to cuddle with me (one of the perks about his emotional personality). Sometimes he doesn't like other people to hold him. He just seems to be a very sensitive boy.... if voices are raised, or have a hint of anger, he bursts out in tears. I think he is just very aware of things around him. When I was pregnant with him- he was very still, didn't kick much, VERY different from Sydney. It's funny how even in the womb, I could tell a difference between these two. They bring very different things into our home, and I love them both for who they are! There definitely are things that are hard and things that are PURE BLISS about both of them!

(by the way- HaPpY 100th PoSt!!!)

"Big Girl!"

Sydney is now officially a "big girl!" She almost always goes to the bathroom on the potty now, and rarely has accidents, even when we are away from home! We are so proud of her. She loves it when we call her a big girl, and knows that it is a compliment. It's funny because now when she is trying to compliment us she will tell us, "Mommy, you're a big mommy!" Or when Cooper does something we see as an accomplishment, "Coopy, you're a big baby!" So cute! Here is a picture of her potty training in action. I had to laugh that she was just hanging out, crossing her legs. Sometimes if she said she had to poop, we'd let her watch Cars or Finding Nemo on Matt's i-pod, so she'd sit long enough to actually go.

I am so glad the struggles with potty training are pretty much behind me now... at least for 2 more years! It is amazing how much of a process it is. Sydney got the 'peeing' part down pretty quickly, in about two days. But it took much longer for her to feel comfortable with going on toilets outside of our home, and going poop took a while too. A few weeks ago we went to a vacuum repair shop with my mom. They had this little play vacuum that Sydney wanted SO BAD! I told her that if she started going poop on the potty, we would buy her a vacuum. So once she was consistently going poop, we went to Target and bought a much cheeper version for her. She loves her "little bubbles!" Her favorite place to vacuum is the kitchen. Too bad it doesn't actually vacuum, it'd help me out a lot!