So Tired...

I've been exremely tired lately, and haven't felt much like blogging! I'll post our Easter pics, though there are not many. Easter turned out great, and the kids really seemed to enjoy what the Easter Bunny brought them....especially the candy!

Natalie has made it to another milestone. Yesterday, I took the front rail off of her crib to make it a toddler bed. She slept there all night without falling or getting out of bed. This morning I heard her making her normal wake up sounds and waited a while to see if she would crawl out of bed herself and come downstairs...but she didn't. So I went up to get her, but allowed her to climb out of her bed by herself hoping that she would realize she could do it without help. Next we'll have to buy her an actual bed, cause we'll be needing her crib later!

Nolan with his Frisbee.

Natalie with her pink bunny.

Nathan walking around with an M&M filled egg.

Easter Eggs

I got the camera working again...thank goodness....though it looks rather beat up now. The kids and I colored some eggs yesterday and again today with Matt. It did feel a bit weird coloring eggs while it's snowing outside, but oh well, that's what an early Easter brings. Here are pics of our eggs and a few of Natalie the other day when she was being quite the "girl".

Cute eggs.

Nolan hard at work putting some paint on his egg.

So pretty....check out her lipstick!

Hey look! She's actually trying a smile for the camera!

OOPS!!!

First of all, Nolan dropped our camera yesterday, and we cannot get it working, so it may be a little while before I have new pics! Second of all...OOPS! We did it again. I was a couple days late and took a home pregnancy test....and of course it was positive! I seriously don't know how it happened (I know how....but not really). Matt and I were not planning on this again, but we are trying to remain positive about the whole situation. I know it is extremely early to be announcing this, but if it is meant to be, it will happen. I don't have a doctor here, so that will be my first task. I'm not really saying too much to the kids at this point....just in case. According to pregnancy calculators, I should be due around November 19th. So that is our big news.....another baby, and hopefully only one!

Nathan's First Haircut

Matt took the boys to get haircuts yesterday. This is Nathan's first official haircut....and Matt said he was excellent. Matt said both the boys were very good even after having to wait for over an hour. Nolan kept trying to look in the mirror so he could see what was going on....guess he wanted to make sure he still looked good! We think Nathan's haircut makes him look even more like Pops!

Great Birthday!

Today started off with Matt feeling sick enough to call into work and take a vacation day. But after he slept for a few hours, he was feeling a bit better. He then offered for me to go shopping while Natalie was napping and Nathan was approaching his nap time....so I did, with Nolan of course. We went to the mall, and I looked around, but unfortunately couldn't bring myself to buy anything (this is why I do not like to shop). The mall has a great play area for kids, so Nolan got to play for a while, and we also saw the Easter Bunny. When we came back home, I told Matt that I'd really like to go out for dinner instead of staying in. So we decided to head back to the mall for dinner and to let all the kids see the Easter Bunny.

We ate dinner at Garfield's, and it was really good...I especially enjoyed the fact that I didn't have to clean up afterwards! When we sat at our table, Matt told our waiter that it was "mommy's birthday". So after our main course, the gang from Garfield's sang a birthday song to "mommy"! Natalie however didn't care for the singing, and burst out crying about halfway through the song....I'm sure this did a number on their egos!


After dinner, we headed to see the Easter Bunny. There was one family in front of us posing their newborn baby with the Easter Bunny. The photographer must have taken at least 6 shots trying to get that perfect photo...which is what you do with just one little baby. Then came the Cook kids. We had them all situated around the Easter Bunny, but the photographer wasn't quite ready for us, as she was still checking out the people ahead of us. Natalie was busy telling the Easter Bunny about her shoes and her shirt and making sure that he knew who he was.....just saying "Natalie shoes, Natalie shirt, Easter Bunny". I was surprised that neither Natalie or Nathan were afraid. Nathan sat beside the Easter Bunny, and kept reaching up and touching his shirt, then cracking up laughing about it. Nolan was just ready to get this pic over with because he was ready to go play in the play area. The first pic was not very good at all, so we opted to take another photo. While the photographer was trying to get the kids' attention, Nathan rolled right off the bench, but thankfully I was in time to catch him. After the second shot, the photographer was trying to talk us into taking another one....but Matt and I knew that this would probably be the best we would get, and knew the kids were growing restless (probably the Easter Bunny too). And besides, these candid, unposed pictures are great....these are OUR kids in these pics....not models! Natalie doesn't get how to "smile" for the camera, Nolan puts on a fake smile (gets that from me!), and Nathan is hooked on his thumb! So this pic saves the true moment for us!

Feeling Better?

Good news....I am feeling great now, and Nathan is doing better except for a runny nose still. Nolan and Natalie were only sick for one day, so they must have avoided the flu somehow. Matt is a little sick now....but it may just be sinuses, and it appears that Natalie is starting something again as she has started to have a runny nose today as well. The thing that bothers me is that Natalie's cough is sounding the way Nathan's did last week. So I thought we were in the clear, but now I'm not completely sure. But for the time being, everyone is seemingly okay....so I'm going to hold out hope that no one else gets the flu!

As you can imagine with all of our sickness, we have done NOTHING the past week. Matt did go fishing this weekend, but the kids and I have just been hanging out. I'm hoping that we are all well because I'm supposed to meet up with an old friend from college next week. We're going to have lunch with our kids and catch up! I'm really looking forward to having an old friend to talk to!

That's all the news for now! I'll try and get some pics for my next post...I know it's been a little while!

FLU!!!

Despite my best efforts, we have the flu. Monday evening, Nathan, Natalie, and myself became sick. Low grade fevers, sore throats....just thought it was a cold. Natalie rebounded quickly....totally acting normal today with no signs of sickness. But Nathan and myself are still sick, and on top of that, Nolan started feeling sick this morning. I decided to call the doctor and have Nathan checked out since his cough sounded deep, and he was just not acting quite like himself. The doctor said his ears looked great and his throat was a little red. I told her about the rest of us getting sick -except for Matt- and she thought we should go ahead and swab him for the flu. And, of course, it was positive. So she wrote the whole family prescriptions for Tamiflu....this will be the first time that we've had a prescription filled for any of the kids. The other bad part of this is the doctor said an ear infection will typically follow the flu....

So it's probably going to be a LONG week here....just hope I can keep some sort of energy going as I feel achy all over and cloudy in my head. Wish us luck and a speedy recovery!

Playing Dress Up!

Today, Nolan asked if he could dress up like a pirate again, so I went ahead and got out dress up clothes for everyone! Nolan was the Pirate, Natalie was the Princess (make-up and all), and Nathan was the Chef (only other thing I could think of and had the supplies for).

Here are there pics....

"Chappy the Pirate." As I have mentioned before, Nolan has an extreme case of chapped lips! But he still makes a good-looking pirate.

The pretty Princess....but I kinda miss the hard hat!

The little Chef!

The couch/bed was the pirate ship....and he's not throwing a punch at me, he's steering the wheel!

My Son,The Storyteller

Two posts in one day....guess I'm making up for the last couple weeks!

I just came back downstairs after hearing Nolan tell Matt and me his "scary story". He told us that we had to all be in bed, and he would tell us. So we all get in the bed, and luckily in a very dark room (to conceal laughter), and Nolan begins his story - in his scary storytelling voice (which you can only imagine how cute that is!). "One night, a very scary ghost booed right into a house..." He went on the tell us how the ghost left one house, then he "began to go to another house, where a little girl lived." The story then diverted to "the next morning, the girl and the ghost went to the ice cream truck, and the ice cream truck guy said 'what's your favorite ice cream'." I was nearly in hysterics by this point, but did my very best to keep my laughter bottled up! I know he was being so serious, and didn't want to be laughed at... The story continued with the ice cream melting into the sewer and making a "kerplunk" sound. He finally wrapped it up with a "and he lived happily ever after". The story may not make a lot of sense...but to him it does. I love to encourage his creativity, and his imagination fascinates me. He pulled so many different "big" words into the story and his sequencing was great. I could actually pinpoint some of the books in which he pulled the word or idea from!

I'm sure this is one of those "you had to be there" moments, but I still had to share.

Hey Teresa, I'm sure he'd love to make up a story for you when you come to visit! Or maybe next time he talks to you on the phone!

More Snow!

Today, I got the kids out for some fun in the snow. Here are the pics!

Update

It's been a while since I've posted anything. Things have been pretty boring lately. It seems as though we've had snow or rain for weeks now, and I really miss the sunshine! We have had very few days to get the kids outside, but when we can - we do. Here are some pics of the kids!

Natalie taking a ride on her big wheel.

STUFFED!

Heels, shades, and a hard hat! That's my girl!

Last night's wrestle-mania! Clothes were optional!

Paying Attention to Attention

So, I'm only one day into my new "parenting skills"....but I've come to realize a LOT! I realize that Natalie was doing many good things, but was overshadowed by my negative attention toward Nolan when he would act up. Here's one example: Last week, I gave them each a sponge with some water on it, and they were "cleaning" for me. Natalie was rubbing her sponge on the floor, doing exactly what she should be doing. Nolan on the other hand was getting more water on his sponge and squeezing the excess water down the wall. Instead of ignoring him and praising Natalie....I directed my attention to Nolan, telling him to stop! I guess Natalie must have felt left out....even though Nolan was getting a lecture from me - it was still attention!

Yesterday, Nolan had about 3 or 4 trips to the corner, and Natalie had 2. This works because when they are in the corner, they get NO attention at all. So if bad behavior is ignored or acknowledged by a trip to the corner, I think they will begin to realize that this is not fun. After Nolan's last trip to the corner, I was feeling a little guilty for being so harsh....but when I went over to him to tell him he could get out and play, I asked him for a hug (which I always do). Instead, Nolan said, "how about 2 kisses and 10 hugs!" So obviously he wasn't too upset with me for putting him in the corner. I'm going to continue to remain positive and keep the negativity away! I even feel like I have more energy throughout the day! Keep your fingers crossed that I can continue this and that the process will ultimately work! I just want my kids to be happy!

Behavior Modification

Nolan had his 4 year well child visit yesterday, and as expected, he is doing just fine....other than an extremely chapped lip! Matt took Nolan to his appointment as I was not feeling too great. I had planned on taking him and asking the doctor about Natalie's exteme tantrums....and thankfully Matt asked the doctor. She gave him a handout dealing with behavior modification. It's a pretty simple format to understand....but may be a little harder to follow through with.

Natalie's tempers have continued to escalate to the point of her hurting herself. I have tried spanking, time-outs, comforting, ignoring....everything I could think of...but maybe I wasn't consistant enough with the type of discipline. According to the handout, we need to completely ignore the bad behavior...unless she begins to hurt herself or endanger anyone else. I have begun trying this method today....and it's going okay. It's also pretty useful advice for dealing with Nolan's whining and backtalk as well. I am completely ignoring the nasty outbreaks, and praising EVERYTHING that is acceptable. I feel kind of silly praising SO much....but I'm giving this a shot. I do praise my kids, but now I'm taking it to a new level....so we'll see how this works. I had felt like a terrible mother because I couldn't stop my child from hurting herself....so I'll try anything, and I am very optimistic that this will work.

Nolan's Birthday

Nolan's birthday was on Monday, but we had his party on Saturday....which is mine and Matt's anniversary (what a way to celebrate, huh?). We had a great time with family and a few friends. Once again, I didn't get many pics at all. Nolan wasn't thrilled about being the center of attention....kinda like how he was at trick or treat, only not nearly as bad! He got some nice presents....including a new copy of "The Incredibles" which has practically been playing non-stop since Saturday.

Today is Matt's birthday. We don't really have any plans to celebrate much today, except Nolan wants to sing "happy birthday" to him, and Matt wants to order out for dinner.

Here are some pics of Nolan through the years.....my, how he's grown!

newborn

6 months old

Christmas 2005

3rd birthday

Bowling Birthday Party!

Our neighbor's little boy had his birthday party on Sunday at a bowling alley, and we decided to go. The kids had never been bowling before, so it was a really fun outing. Nolan plays bowling games on the computer, so he knew the concept, and required no help from Matt or myself. He got his ball, went right up to the lane, and rolled the ball down to hit the pins. Natalie, on the other hand, was very skittish. She wouldn't even let Matt put her down at first. Finally after some coaxing, she took off her shoes and let Matt help her bowl. Nathan didn't get in on any bowling action. He sat on my lap at ate chips, a hot dog, some ice cream, and a bit of cake! Here are some pics of the kids....they're pretty dark....the lighting wasn't the best!

Nolan and Morghan (his "girlfriend") watching the ball go slowly down the lane.

Natalie walking back from a good roll!

Nolan and Morghan having fun with party favors.

Natalie looking pretty with her hair fixed....but she's not too thrilled!

Jesus' Cookie

Just another funny story!

Last night, I fixed chocolate chip cookies after dinner. I thought this dessert would be enough to hold Nolan over from snacking anymore before bedtime....but I was wrong. He found a new box of Rice Krispies Treats that Matt got from the grocery store and asked if he could have one. I said to him, "But you had some cookies earlier....wasn't that enough?" Nolan replied, "That cookie went to Jesus' belly, and this [rice krispie treat] will go to my belly." I thought this was hilarious! I have told him that Jesus lives in our hearts. So consequently, Nolan agrees that Jesus is in his heart....and Jesus needs to eat too! This kid will come up with anything to get his way!

Taking Steps

So it's been pretty boring around here lately. Matt started school this week...he only has class two times a week....so on those days I stay quite busy in the evening. I usually don't do too much as far as cooking goes, but now I'm having to cook dinner at least twice a week, and I'm not doing so bad. Nathan is big enough now to entertain himself with toys or with the other kids, so for the most part, he's not "in the way" while I'm at the stove.

Nathan took his first steps on his birthday and has continued to progress. He can take several steps at a time, and he is even able to pivot to make a turn. But he knows it takes more time to walk carefully than to crawl....so crawling is still his preferred mode of transportation! I don't think it will be much longer at all before he starts walking all over the house! I don't mind the walking part (I actually look forward to that)....it's the climbing stage that worries me....then you have to worry about them falling off the couch, chairs, etc...

Well, I just fed the boys lunch, and it sounds like Natalie is beginning to wake up from her nap, so I guess I need to get busy again taking care of the munchkins!

Funny Tidbits

Natalie and Nolan's personalities have evolved so much over the past few months. Sometimes, I just crack up laughing at the things they do and say! Here are the latest, best quotes from them.

Natalie: Every time I tell Natalie to quit doing something, she waves at me and tells me that she loves me....then waits for me to say, " I love you too, Natalie," ....then she proceeds to do the thing I've just told her not to do! Her "I love you's" are a great indication of mischievous behavior approaching!

Nolan: Today, Nolan had 2 extraordinary quotes! First, at dinner, we were all sitting at the table, and he says, "This food is too d*mn hot!" I had to turn my head from him because I was laughing so hard inside (yeah, I know....shouldn't be laughing at this, should be in shock that he would say such a thing). Then, when we were getting Natalie and Nolan ready for baths, I made him mad for some reason and he back-talked me. He then proceeded to tell Matt how mean I was. Matt told him not to talk back to his mother, because "mommy is too good to you". Nolan then half-crying and half mad says to Matt..."you're the one who married her!" I was so glad I was not in sight this time so I didn't have to hide my laughter! I don't get bothered by these displays of meanness towards me because I know they are emotionally driven, and that the kids DO love me....I was the same way towards my mom as a kid....so I guess what goes around, comes around!

Shaving fun!

The kids got so many neat toys for their birthdays that it was time to do a toy overhaul! Matt took at least 5 garbage bags, full of toys, to Salvation Army yesterday. I must say we were in desperate need of a good clean out!

My dad got Nathan a toy that shoots balls out with air...I knew all the kids would like this, but I had no idea that they would play with it together....I thought it would be a toy they would fight over! I was so pleased with their good playing that I had to snap some pics...this does NOT happen very often!

Last night, Nolan got the pleasure of taking a bath by himself....so I got out his new shaving kit for him! His only instruction to me was not to laugh at him while he was shaving. So I said okay, and asked if I could just take some pictures, and he agreed that pictures would be fine. I had to control myself from laughing because of the seriousness he took in giving himself a "shave." He even looked in the hand-held mirror to make sure he was getting all of the shaving cream off!

Here are some more pics!

Natalie riding her new "bike."

Just a little more shaving cream left!....OH the concentration!

Natalie says, "Say cheese, Mommy!"

Natalie & Nathan's Birthday Party!

Today was Natalie and Nathan's birthday party....Nathan's birthday is actually today, though Natalie's birthday was on the 20th. The party was to be at noon, but we started having guests arrive at about 11:00 (while I was still running the sweeper!). We started the party with sandwiches from Kroger that were absolutely delicious! I had anticipated serving birthday cake next, but the kids had other plans...those presents were just too tempting!

Nolan got his Christmas present from Aunt Kelly, and he also got an early birthday present from Mom-o and Pops since they won't be at his party (shame shame....for Steve;). I hardly got any pictures of the kids opening their presents because Matt and I both were helping tackle this task.

Here are a few pics...

Nolan opening his present from Aunt Kelly

Natalie placing a baby doll in her new stroller.

Nathan trying out his cake.

So cute!

Natalie taking a power nap on the chair after the party.