Happy 4th of July!

The kids and I spent the morning and early afternoon of the 4th at Mom-o and Pops' house. I was heading back home later in the day and wanted to make sure the kids were worn out enough to sleep for most of the trip. Wearing out he kids is no problem at Mom-o's house. The kids spent a couple hours in the pool having a great time.

Natalie floating.

Nolan floating on his back.

Nathan. He was really into having his picture taken.

Mom-o, Nicholas, and Natalie.

Natalie....she won't let go of her floaty.

Mom-o helping Nicholas float in the duck.

Granny & Poppy's Anniversary

My mom's parents have been married for 60 years, WOW! I look up to them so much, and admire their marriage...the ups and downs, the tears and smiles, the sorrows and joys. They are truly an example of what life is.....not always perfect, but when you stick together, you can get through anything.

We spent the day at the church building for food and time with extended family and friends. Then we (my brothers and all of our kids) headed to Granny and Poppy's house to watch the kids play, "country style." Granny got out her slip and slide and blow up pool, and I brought along our jump and slide. It has been a year since all of these kids were together, so it was a true delight to watch them all have so much fun. I love that my grandparents wanted nothing more for their anniversary other than to be with family and friends and to see their great-grand kids. I cannot express enough how much they mean to me.

Here are just a few pics of the kids at play.

Judson getting a running start for the slip and slide.

Nolan sliding down for a splash landing!

Nathan and Nicholas kicking around in the kiddie pool.

Natalie and Nicholas bouncing around.

Kids' Photo Shoot

Nolan, Natalie, and Nathan like it when I take their pictures, and ask me to do so frequently. Nicholas, on the other hand, doesn't always get in on the action. I attempted to take pictures of all the kids together, but Nicholas wasn't quite up for it. Here's the product!

My big three were ready to cooperate and looking so cute!








Big smiles :)





















Nolan's pose.




















And, Natalie's pose too.










Isn't she sweet!?!




















Looking like he's about to stir up some trouble!












"Forget it, Mom, I will not take this out of my mouth!"

A Day at the Park

I took the kids to a local park, not the one in our subdivision, on a sunny, yet not too hot day. Natalie and Nathan played t-ball at the field below, and we would play briefly at the park following the games. The kids were always disappointed when we left, so I thought we should try a day trip so we could stay longer.

The kids had a blast! Nicholas went down every slide, even the big swirly one, all by himself. Just because he's still a baby, he's not gonna give up and let the big kids have all the fun. This park was so much fun and it was very easy for me to keep up with all the kids, as they had no desire to stray from the slides and swings. We will definitely make our way here again soon.





Here's the determined Nicholas making his way onto the slide!













Nolan stopped for a photo....say "cheese"













Nicholas climbed up for this shot....he's quite the climber :)
















Natalie's turn down the slide.

















Nathan peaking out of the porthole!








"Take my picture, Mom!"



















Nolan on the swinging bridge.

Father's Day

To my dear husband who has put up with me and our four beautiful kids, we love you so much and appreciate everything you do for us. Matt, you are a great dad and wonderful husband. I love my family so much, and look forward to many, many happy years together.

Nathan's Glasses

Earlier than expected, Nathan and I were able to pick up his glasses. As I suspected more than a year ago, he has vision problems. The doctor is optimistic that with glasses and possible other treatments his vision can be corrected. I won't be holding my breath, though, as my vision is poor and chances are at least one of our kids will end up with my horrible eyesight.

Nathan is doing well with his glasses. The doctor said not to force him to wear them, but to get him to wear them as much as possible. We've had a few hours of success each day, but none have been completely successful.

Nathan looks absolutely adorable in his glasses....such a grown up look for such a little guy :) I hope we can get his vision corrected so he can enjoy everything he sees. I just love this little guy so much.

T-ball 2010, Opening Day

Opening Day of T-ball was on Saturday, May 1st. The kids looked so adorable in their baseball outfits!!! First were pictures. I can't wait to see the outcome of the kids' pictures. Natalie held a pink bat and actually smiled for the photographer! Nathan was looking cute in an over sized jersey and holding a bat....I'm sure his picture will turn out awnry as usual. I wasn't around to see Nolan's pictures, but I'm sure they will be great.

So after pictures, on a near 90 degree day, Natalie and Nathan began warming up for their game. They came over to me for a drink, and Natalie said that she wasn't feeling well. Next thing I know, I'm with her over by a fence while she's throwing up. I took her and Nicholas home and put Natalie in a cool bath and gave her a Popsicle for hydration. She appeared to be well, and we headed back to the ball field to catch the end of Nolan's game.

Nolan is one of the older kids on his team this year and is showing much improvement from last year. He likes his teammates, enjoys playing, and is getting better at throwing, catching, fielding, and batting. It's so wonderful to see him enjoying a team sport.

So, after Nolan's game, we headed home for naps. The kids (except Nolan) took naps, but Natalie woke up sick again. She threw up so much that we called the doctor then took her to a local Urgent Care to see what was wrong. They gave her a shot of Zofran for her stomach issues, and they gave her 4 stickers for her bravery with the injection. After the shot, she did much better. I still wonder if it was a stomach virus or something to do with the heat, as the rest of my family did not get sick.

So, we'll try again this Friday for 3 of the 4 Cook kids to play t-ball. Hopefully the weather will be milder and the kids will all get to play successfully!

Settling Down, Hopefully!

From the blogs of yester-year when I was so distrought over moving away from family, I have finally become confident enough in myself and my family to realize that home is wherever we make it. Though it's been a difficult decision, Matt and I have decided to try and sell our townhouse to buy a Single Family home in Morgantown. We have Nolan in elementary school making friends, a great pre-school program in which Natalie is currently enrolled and Nathan is in for the Fall, and so many fun things to do within the area. So, I guess I'm trying to say, that the Cooks will officially be Morgantown residents for many years to come, if things go as planned.

I will continue to miss the days of Sunday gatherings at the homes of our families, but Matt and I have to do what we feel is right for our family. The kids have no concrete memories of living close to "home," and actually when I presented the idea of living in Morgantown for good to Nolan, he was fine with it. He has made so many friends, as I'm sure he would anywhere, and is only concerned about being with me and Matt....which is the great wisdom that my own dad has instilled in me since I became a parent. Home is truly where the heart is, and I'm looking forward to planting our own roots and moving forward with our blessed lives. Please wish us luck as we make yet another transition and be looking soon for updates of our new home.....hopefully!

Natlie's Ear Piercing

Last Sunday, Matt took the kids to the mall to play (all except Nicholas) so I could stay at the house and clean. Much to my surprise, when they came back home, Natalie had a BIG story to tell/show me. She had her ears pierced. She was so proud of being a brave girl and it was her idea to get them pierced. Natalie also picked out her pretty purple heart earrings!

I'm so proud of my little girl. She's the daughter I always dreamed of....sporty, yet prissy :)

Nolan's Basketball Game

Nolan's last basketball game was today. Here are a couple videos from the big game!

A Small Break from Cabin Fever

This wonderful Winter weather has had the kids and I have suffering a bit from cabin fever. Matt talked me into going to Valley Worlds of Fun over the weekend. I wasn't really in the mood to go anywhere that day, but I'm glad I did. The kids love this place! They have bowling, rides, and an arcade. We bowled one and a half games, ate some pizza, let the kids ride a ride or two, and ended with a couple of arcade games. We made the mistake of going around 6:00 pm, which was entirely too late for the kids to really get to spend a lot of time playing. I didn't get many pics, but I'll share the two I got :)



Nolan watching his ball roll down the lane. This kid actually got a strike and a couple of spares (with bumper pads)!




Natalie's choice of arcade game was shooting basketball. She actually scored an 18 on her own! She's definitely an athlete :)

Snow, Snow, Go Away!

Last Friday into Saturday, we got about 14 inches of snow. It's been 11 days since the initial snowfall, and we've had an additional 6-10 inches of additional snowfall since then. The kids were all pretty excited about the first foot that fell, and enjoyed a few hours playing in it. However, since we've had cold and snowy days basically every day since, the kids are finally getting fed up with all the snow. Nolan and Natalie have only had school 5 days this month....(7 days so far have been cancelled.) We're all anxiously awaiting Spring and the big melt!

Natalie's gigantic snowball!














Nolan's HUGE snowball!

















Natalie on top of the shovelled snow getting ready to go down the "snow slide."













After 9 days, this is what my neighbor's deck furniture looks like!

Here are a couple samples of the icicles hanging from our gutters. This was a couple days ago, and they now hang even lower. I would estimate many icicles now exceed 10 feet in length as they hang as low as the bottom of the windows!

Nolan's 6th Birthday

Yesterday, on Nolan's birthday, we went to the Mexican restaurant that's minutes away from our house. Nolan loves tacos, so this was a great birthday treat for him. We ended the dinner with a serenade, sombreros and fried ice cream. It was a nice family outing for us all.

WVU Basketball Game

For Chistmas, I got Matt tickets for the WVU basketball game against Marquette. Our neighbor is one of the assistant coaches, so I asked his wife if there was any chance I could get tickets in such short notice. She offered me a set of spare tickets she had. The tickets were in the upper level, but I didn't care as long as we got to attend the game.

Game day morning, my neighbors' wife, Brandi, called. She had been looking for better tickets for us, and better they were. The tickets we ended up with were for the VIP section. We had floor seats! I couldn't believe it, and couldn't wipe the smile off my face for the entire game. Matt and I had a great time at the game. We had awesome seats and the game was very exciting. The Mountaineers pulled out a win with less than 3 seconds remaining......a wonderful date for just Matt and me.

Our pre-game dinner was at Taco Bell. The restaurant we tried first had too long of a wait.

Ready for the game to start.

TV timeout. The coaches pull out chairs for these breaks.

The final score!

Happy 3rd Birthday Nathan!

Nathan is at Mom-o and Pops' house for his birthday this year. They came up Sunday and took all the kids back to their house and left Matt and me at our house for a few days alone. Nathan is having a birthday party and will be just fine without us there too.....presents and a choo choo cake will keep him entertained.

Mom-o and Pops brought their Christmas presents on Sunday so the kids got to celebrate another Christmas.

Nolan and Nathan playing some air hockey!

As happy as can be!