PARENTING IS JUST BEGINNING...........

Well let's just say this week has been interesting on the parenting front.  Monday night Coop decided that he would rather hang out with me than sleep.  Generally he wakes Terry up when he wakes during the night, but Tuesday was a Mommy Night.  It started about 11:30 p.m. and like clock work he was in every 2 hours until about 3:30 a.m. and then it was every 45 minutes.  He was not cranky at all and was actually very sweet, he just couldn't sleep.  At one point when I was laying beside him and he was rubbing my shoulder he whispers, "Mommy you tired?"
"Yes Boo I am tired, are you?"
"No I not tired, but you go sleep I snuggle with you."
"Thank you Boo but I want to sleep in my own bed."
"Ok I come with you to you bed."
"No Boo, you can't sleep in my bed."
"Otay, you sweep in my bed."
I laid there for a few minutes than told him I was going back to my bed and he needed to go to sleep.  He agreed and I went back to bed.  When he returned again to our room he said, "Mommy I back I need dink, are you still sweepy?"  Hmmmm, I decided then that he was not and I might as well decide I wasn't either.  When 6:30a.m. rolled around I took great pleasure in waking him up!

So after Coop's challenging lack of sleep I was feeling a little sleep deprived which makes me a little less quick on my feet and a lot less patient.  Of course this is the day Raelynn would choose to be a little challenging herself.  First of all I offended her by calling her new Converse sneakers, tennis shoes.  I mean how could I do something like this!!!  Raelynn informed me that they were SNEAKERS not tennis shoes. Then she breaks into song.....'She wears high heels, I wear sneakers, she's cheer captain and I'm on the bleachers...." her favorite Taylor Swift song! By this time I am somewhat entertained by this whole episode but also pleased that now I knew to order her to GET YOUR SNEAKERS ON instead of tennis shoes!  We make it through the morning and by the time I picked her up from Mary Beth's and head to soccer I was feeling pretty confident that I was actually going to make it through the day.  Oh little did I know..........we got home from soccer and proceeded through our nightly routine.  It was time to lay out her clothes for the next day and she informs me that she has to wear her cowgirl belt because Jerod wore his and she told him she would wear hers.  We spent the next 20 minutes trying to find an outfit to wear with her cowboy belt without wearing jeans.  It never happened.  So therefore our 20 minutes of frustration was followed by a temper tantrum.  In our home tantrums are not accepted, respected or allowed in any way.  I am big on learning to use your words to express your feelings, not crying and wining and stopping your feet.  Now remember I am exhausted from the night before, irritated by the last 20 minutes we had spent looking for an outfit and now I was to remain calm as my child screamed and cried.  No problem!  We managed to make it through the tantrum fairly quickly and were using words instead which are always much more productive.  Finally it was time to tuck her into bed and after story time and prayer which include a prayer for a friend of ours who is pregnant and we pray for her baby.  I leaned over to her for one last kiss goodnight and she says to me, "Mom how do they get the baby out of the Mommy's tummy?"  Oh boy, here we go......I tried to give her simple answers in hopes that a little info would curb her questions for awhile but no such luck.  I finally give in and explain to her that when the baby gets big enough the body leads it down the birth canal and out the body.  She responds, "so when the baby gets big it takes a birthing canoe out the Mommy's......" I burst out laughing, "no not a canoe.....follows a birthing CANAL." "Oh, so does the canal just come out the Mom?" "Well it leads out of the body." I replied.  "But where does the baby come out of?" So with little option left I explain it to her.  I stay general enough but honest.  She laughs and cringes a little and then says, "What does the Daddy do?"  I had so many answers for this one but I just stuck with a simple, "The Daddy makes sure the Mommy has everything she needs and rubs her back."  Raelynn replies, "the Mommy always has to do everything!"  Again, laughter!  Anyway, she asks questions and I answer with enough info to satisfy her but not any more than I have to.  Then she says, "so that's how it gets out, but how did it get in there?"  I smiled and told her it was late and we would talk about that tomorrow night, buying myself some time on this one!  She was happy with that and thank goodness she did not remember to ask tonight.  But the story goes on.....so I pick her up from school today and she says to me,"I told Jerod that he was wrong about how a baby was born, he thought a stork brought it.  He said he would talk to his Mom about it because she shouldn't lie to him!"  Oh boy, I can hear my phone ringing now!!!  I asked her why all the baby talk and she says "well you know we learned how butterflies and lady bugs are born and wanted to know how we are born?"  So as of tonight, no call from Jerod's Mom and no in depth conversation about reproduction with my 5 year old, so after 2 long nights of parenting I can consider this one a breeze.  As I told my Mom today, I thought parenting was so important during the baby and toddler years but I am finding out that this is when the real parenting starts! Wish me luck!

TIME FOR AN UPDATE..........

It seems to keep getting harder and harder to find time to keep everyone updated but I always remember that this is my journal to my kids too.  Therefore, finding time to update becomes extremely important again.  The past week was just another week.  Monday night we actually did not have one thing to do after work.  The evening seemed to last forever and it was awesome.  It made me realize we really need to find more evenings like that.  The rest of the week was go, go, go as always.  Saturday morning was up bright and early for soccer.  Raelynn is actually really enjoying soccer.  Her coach is probably the most patient man I have ever met.  Teaching 5 year old girls the rules and strategy of soccer is not an easy task.  At one point the girls were actually playing leap frog during a short time out.  I was standing by the coach's wife and commented in laughter about the patience of her husband and simply smiled and said that his consumption of wine after practices and games seems to increase as the season goes on.  I laughed and assured her that ours does too!  It is all in good humor and if I can set my competitiveness aside for awhile, it is very entertaining.

After soccer we headed home for lunch and then Coop down for a nap....wishful thinking.  I am discovering that we may be approaching a time when Coop no longer naps.  He is a real trooper and hangs out in his bed for an hour or so but sleep he does not.  We were serenaded with B-I-N-G-O and Itsy Bitsy Spider over and over again.  Cooper loves to sing and sings in the bath, at the table, on the potty, in the car, anywhere he can.  If you are not listening his voice gets louder and louder until he does have your attention.  He is always so proud of himself and he keeps us smiling.  So after an our of singing in bed he was up.  We finished cleaning the house and doing laundry and then headed up to the stadium for the Hawk Zone prior to the KU football game.  We had no intention of going to the game but thought it would be fun to experience the atmosphere anyway not to mention the Hawk Zone had bouncy houses, face painting, KU Bball players signing autographs and much more.  While there a friend of ours from daycare offered us extra tickets they had.  We agreed to stay and were looking forward to it.  We did not come prepared to stay for the game and therefore only had sweatshirts.  Minutes after entering the stadium it began to rain.  Raelynn looks at me and says, "that's it, we're going home, we can watch the game on TV and stay warm and dry!" We tried to stick it out for a little while but quickly realized it wasn't going to last.  So we stopped for a bite to eat and then headed home.  It was so much warmer and dryer I was thankful Raelynn made the call.

 This morning our church had their Fall Kickoff which is always a good time.  The kids played and played and played.  It was great fun!

Steph and Raelynn

Raelynn patiently waits to make sure Coop makes it through!

Kaden and Raelynn joust it out!

After all that excitement Raelynn and I headed out for some girl time shopping.  I thought this would be fun and was looking forward to it.  Somehow I guess I had forgotten how picky my little girl is!  I did survive though and 4 hours later we arrived home with some new shoes and some jeans and shirts.  She was exited about them all so we can only hope she won't find something wrong with them before we get a few wearings in.

Well it is time to go for now and I promise to update more often!  When I wait so long between posts I leave out all the precious talks we have and the special moments we share.  These are things that are most important to remember!

WHAT A WEEK AND THEN ENDED ON A HIGH NOTE..................

It is amazing that so much can happen in one week. Coop went in for a weight check last Monday and fortunately has gained 2 oz. He truly is getting the idea of eating. It is sometimes so unbelievable to see him just eating away. Yesterday at the 5K he was just walking around eating a banana like it was nothing new. It is so nice to no longer have to tote a cooler of fortified milk around everywhere. Oh the little things that make us happy!

I got an email from a friend this weekend that I had to share. She was home with one of her kids who was feeling a little under the weather. Her son said he wanted to bake a cake and have a party. He was naming all the friends he would invite. They know more than one Cooper so her son said I would invite Big Cooper and Little Cooper.... and my friend was explaining it would be more appropriate to use the Cooper's last name. She told her son Little Cooper's full name is Cooper Keefer. Her son laughed at her and said, "it is not Mom, it is Cooper's Cause!" I love this. We try so hard to get the word out and I guess it is really getting around. Even Cooper himself is starting to understand. On Thursday morning I had several things in our living room getting ready for Saturday's Cooper's Cause 5K. When Coop got up and walked into the living room and asks what all this stuff is. I told him it was stuff for the 5K, for Cooper's Cause 5K that is Saturday. Coop looks at me and says with such excitement, "stuff is for my foundation for my heart?!" It was so cute for him to be connecting everything. I can't wait until he can really understand what he has done!

The 5K was Saturday and it was another huge success. It looks like we raised right at $6K which is great. We have really had a successful year of fundraising. We are so very fortunate and have so many to thank for it. One of the "teams" of runners there on Saturday was running for their friends who are currently in Texas with their newborn daughter who just underwent her first of multiple open heart surgeries. I tell you there are so many heart warming stories and events we encounter at every event. It makes the hard work so worth it. I thank God daily for giving us such an opportunity!

5 YEAR OLD SOCCER............

They say a picture says a thousand words but this picture simply defines 5 year old soccer.....

RAELYNN AND SPORTS.................

Raelynn's world is sure changing well I guess adjusting maybe I should say. It seems like we have just entered a whole new stage of development since we got to kindergarten. I find her communication as well as new experiences a whole new level of enjoyment. I remember when the kids were 1 or so and everything they saw was new and exciting and we were able to re-experience so many things. Now at 5 things are new and exciting but she expresses them with such attitude. Raelynn does not like gym class. One day last week I picked her up from school, it was a gym day as they only have gym every couple days. I asked Raelynn how gym was today. She responds while rolling her eyes, "Oh don't get me started on gym class!" The conversation went on and I don't remember exactly what I said when I received the response, "Evidently I did not make myself clear...." It is down right spooky to hear my very words coming back at me. Raelynn usually is giggling when she throws these phrases my way which makes it even funnier. She doesn't use them rudely but just they way we as adults would, it is pretty funny.

Saturday was Raelynn's first soccer game. It was awesome! I love watching her and she does pretty well. They best part was that she actually liked it! It was a great way to start a Saturday!


This upcoming week is one of the busiest we have had in awhile! The Cooper's Cause 5K is on Saturday and it is sure to be a lot of fun!

WHEN I GROW UP I WANT TO BE A SUPER HERO............

How many of us can say that at age 2 1/2 we have accomplished our dream? This weekend Coop said to me, "when I grow up I want to be a super hero!" How do I explain to him he already is. A super hero defies death over and over again, Coop's done that! A super hero helps people, Coop's doing that! A super hero has a super power and if you have ever seen his smile in person you know his smile is his super power! I told him this weekend he already was a super hero, but I cannot wait until he is old enough to understand.

Tonight our little super devoured pot roast and cake. As long as I dipped everything in ketchup including the cake, he ate it. He sat at the table and ate for over an hour. He ate everything on his plate and two very large pieces of cake. It is crazy to see him eating now. We love it!

Raelynn is in soccer now and this Saturday is her first game. She complains about every practice she has to go to and hates that she sweats in practice. Are we sure she is my daughter????? Anyway, even though she complains she does very well. I explained to her that it was her choice to participate in soccer and until the season was over she was to give 110% whether she likes it or not because it was things like this that defines who we are. Yes, I figured this was a little advanced for her and I planned to explain this further when she said to me...."I know and we are good people and good people always do their best and think of others. The others are my team right?" I couldn't help but laugh.....I guess she is listening even when she is having a little tantrum and I think I am talking to a wall!

LABOR DAY WEEKEND...............

After an extremely difficult week, Friday was finally here. It has been a long time since I have been so ready for a weekend so it was nice that this one was a long one. Terry has decided not to ref football this year which will be a big change. As long as I have known him Friday nights in the fall I have been on my own. I actually get a little use to having the night to my self but it always takes half the season for me to get used to it so I definitely am not disappointed in his decision. Anyway, this Friday would have been his first game but instead the four of us met up with our friend, Steph, at the KU Volleyball Game. We have never taken the kids before and it was so much fun. Raelynn watched and asked questions about the game all night. Coop watched as well but was much more interested in walking between Terry, Steph and I. The kids also got to see Baby J which is always a treat and when we were leaving one of the cheerleaders handed Raelynn a Jayhawk T-Shirt so the night was a huge success in her eyes!


We got home a little bit late and were getting the kids ready for bed. At one point I am not sure exactly where we were but obviously not watching Cooper. After I had Raelynn tucked in I went to the kitchen to get Coop's medicines I rounded the corner to find Cooper sitting on the counter eating cake right out of the pan! For a boy who wouldn't eat, he sure does find a way to get his favorites!
We finally got him to bed and then to bed ourselves. It was a perfect evening! Then Saturday was all about getting things done; cleaning, laundry, paperwork, bills, Cooper's Cause the list goes on and on. We got a lot done and Raelynn went with one of her best friend's from preschool to the Topeka Zoo and Cooper and I spent the afternoon running errands. I wouldn't say Saturday was a fantastic day but it was a productive day and a day spent with my family so in my book it was pretty good.
This morning the kids slept in and when Raelynn did wake up she said, "Mommy, can we please just stay in our pajamas and play today. I don't want to go anywhere." I knew they needed a down day and I was ready for it too. So Raelynn and Coop played and played. Their imaginations and outfits were quite entertaining!The best part was just having time for a little snuggle and a few I love you's here and there. I truly love being home with them! Then it was off to a potluck with family. The kids always have fun seeing their cousins and the rest of the family.


The kids got to better pretty late tonight so I can pretend that they will sleep in in the morning but reality is they won't. The truth is I look forward to them waking up every morning. These long weekends spoil us and we love our extra day together. I guess it is time for me to get to bed now too. I will make my usual stop at each of their rooms to assure myself that they are safely in their beds and give one last soft kiss on the forehead for each of them. This is always the perfect end to whatever day I have had. It is amazing to me that regardless the challenges we are handed, regardless how tired we are, regardless how unfair the world seems, the end of every day is nothing but perfect and beginning of every day in nothing short of another wonderful adventure. Thank you God for giving me such a wonderful family!