The daycare outfit

Another post in less than a day! Now you must really be shocked!!!

I probably shouldn’t share this, but tonight when I went to pick Cooper up from daycare, his oh so kind teacher went and got him from his crib and presented my child in horribly mismatched attire! I couldn’t help but laugh… oh, the poor baby. Apparently, Cooper had two blowouts today and their choice of clothing was very limited. Now keep in mind, I usually send two to three matching outfits and socks, but they try to be nice and salvage what they can which meant what he had in his locker didn’t match. I’ll take some blame (most of it) as I didn’t check last week to see what he had left… sometimes its hard to remember. Soooo… the poor child came home in a lime green and blue striped polo shirt, gray and blue plaid pants and red and white socks. In my life I have never seen such a sight. The daycare director was enrolling a new family and I had to go to the same desk to check Cooper out. I was a bit embarrassed hoping they didn’t think I sent him that way. Needless to say I will re-supply his locker tomorrow!

Cooper in pictures...

Another post in less than a week!!! You must be shocked!

Well, I thought I’d update it quickly. First, I took a few pictures of the items Cooper has made at daycare. The bat is made with his handprints. The Happy Fall is made with his foot. And then several handprints.


Yesterday morning we gave him an apple to suck on. If you are sucking in your breath in horror, a bit like my mom… yes, mom, I could hear it over the phone… Cooper doesn’t have teeth and we were sitting there with him so we know he didn’t “bite” any pieces off. At first he didn’t know what to do with it, but then he sucked on it for awhile. Eventually Cody got the slice.


In Friday’s post I mentioned Cooper aging about thirty years in his flannel shirt and jeans so I thought I’d share a picture. He is lying on the floor next to Steve being silly.



For Aunt Tamra, Cooper was reading his book from Thailand. He likes the cloth book as it is easy to hold and bend.


Last night we got together with Jan, Steve and Amaya. We didn’t get any pictures, but they were cute together. Cooper demonstrated how he can dump out toys to find what he wants… sorry Jan and Steve. I think he had fun with Amaya’s toys! Amaya is crawling… I wonder if Cooper picked up any tricks.

Happy Friday!

Not a whole lot new this week. Today is cozy shirt day at daycare. I sent Coops in a red flannel shirt and jeans. I think it aged him about thirty years. I should have taken a picture- it’s not like I don’t usually have the camera out. He was in such a good mood (as always) this morning. He awoke about 5am just chattering. He sounded so happy that I thought I’d leave him for a few minutes and then he fell asleep, again. I should mention the little guy fell asleep about 6:30 while he was having a bottle. About 9pm I changed his diaper and put him in jammies. We thought he’d sleep for awhile and then be up for an hour or so, but he slept pretty much straight through. He got up about 6:30. He’s been chattering since he got up this morning. I’m sure the daycare will hear many stories today.

Yesterday he came home with a bat… a cute bat made out of white handprints on black paper with a black pompom body. It has a magnet, so we put it on the refrigerator. On Wednesday they sent home a sheet with several orange handprints. I am so appreciative that they do those types of activities with him. I’ve tried to do a few handprints with him on cards to people as his signature and handprints are very hard to do at this age. I can’t imagine doing it with several kids… although most of them are about a year old or so.

Yesterday the daycare reported on his “about my day sheet” that Cooper dumped five buckets of toys to find the toy he wanted to play with. I’ve noticed at home that he seems to gravitate toward one particular toy for a period of time. He’ll play with others, but there seems to be one he plays with longer. The other day he was sitting at the door frame of the bathroom and trying to get his rings (the thin plastic rings that can be attached to create a chain- works great to hold toys to the stroller… or to chew on) between the crack of the door and the frame. He was pretty persistent.

While we can’t really see much progress with crawling- in the last day or so, I’m sure there is progress taking place in Cooper’s brain and body. He keeps trying. I really think in another week or so he’ll start. Not that I’m really ready to for him to crawl… note to self… start child proofing! When he sees something he wants just out of his reach he is usually pretty determined to get it. He can reach and scoot and he usually gets there. He is already a pretty tenacious little guy. It’s a skill I know he will benefit from throughout his life, but it also means as parents he’ll probably be very persistent when he wants something from us, too.

He currently prefers a cup without a lid to a Sippy cup. I’m sure at this age it’s hard to figure out how to suck from the spout. The other night he was getting frustrated with a cup of diluted juice so we took the lid off and helped him drink from the cup. He did really well. Obviously he is nowhere near being ready to do that one on his own. We also tried to give him some of the Gerber puffs. They are puffs that will dissolve in his mouth. Its fun to watch his hand-eye coordination and his ability to pick up small items… note to self, again… start child proofing! He got it on his tongue and immediately stuck his tongue out with the expression of “what is this”?

Watching him change is amazing!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Happy 8 Months Old, Cooper!!!

Here are a couple of pictures from the weekend...



This morning we had an adventure with cereal and bananas and plums. Cooper insisted on putting his fingers in his mouth after each bite. While we had quite the mess and needed a clothing change, he enjoyed his breakfast!

Happy October!

Wow, another week is nearly coming to an end. It was a fast week, and as much as I should be enjoying every minute and not wish the week away, I’m glad it’s Friday.

Last Saturday I arranged for a babysitter and Steve and I went out to dinner and to a movie. We needed a little couple time. The person that watched Cooper wasn’t my best friend Jackie, so I was a bit nervous at first, but Cooper was in good hands and I think they had fun. As for Steve, I tortured him with Nights in Rodanthe based on Nicholas Sparks’ book. He doesn’t usually put up to much of a fuss, but this time he tried to tell me that since he has seen all the other Nicolas Sparks movies (The Notebook, A Walk to Remember, Message in a Bottle) and after seeing the movie trailer, that he knew what the story was about and how it would end, so he really didn’t need to go. Once we got to the theater, he asked if he could see another movie, but being the good husband that he is he took my hand and followed me to Nights in Rodanthe. I probably owe him one. One note on the movie… and this is just my opinion…. don’t read the book and see the movie. Do one or the other or put several years in between. I read the book back in 2002, but thought I needed to reread it before the movie. I actually finished the book a few days before the movie. The book is great and the movie is really good, but I spent way too much time comparing them. Overall, it was a really nice evening out.

Here’s a picture of Cooper on Sunday before church in a sweater my mom got him before he was born. Steve wore a similar yellow polo shirt and navy blue pants. Don’t they look handsome?!?!



On Sunday, Steve’s parents came for a quick visit. Steve’s dad found a tractor on the other side of Minnesota that he was interested in so they stayed with us. They went and bought the tractor on Monday, came back for the night, and then headed home on Tuesday. They will be back in three weeks on their way down to Texas for the winter. I think Grandma enjoyed getting some extra Cooper time in. Grandpa enjoyed getting his tractor. It’s similar to one he used to own when they lived in Lower Michigan. I got a few pictures of him and Cooper on it and then a few with Steve, too.



Coops is doing well in daycare. He is learning sign language. I also bought a “signing with your baby” book and I’m trying to enhance what he is learning at daycare. Typically if you start to sign with them around seven months, by about 10-11 months they will start signing back… before they can talk. Cooper is already starting to gesture when he wants to be picked up, so I really think he will pick up on signing. We are working on the important signs like mommy, daddy, eat, more, all done, I love you, thank you, and dog (but I really don’t like the sign for dog). He is also working on social greetings… waving hello and goodbye and saying, “Hi”... not that he can say it, but imply it... although, I thought I heard him say it yesterday. They continue to work on object permanence by putting toys in a box and showing him they don’t go away even though you can’t always see them. I bought him some soft blocks and he enjoys knocking them over after I build them. Oh, he is fun to watch.

This month the daycare is focusing on fall. Today he was to wear his favorite fall color. I put him in a plaid green and yellow shirt with some jeans. He looked very grown up. Thankfully, they sent home a calendar that says what they are doing each day. He has a different color to wear each Friday. Actually, next week it’s cozy shirt day instead of a color. One day next week is “bring your teddy bear day”. Of course, at the end of the month they will have a Halloween themed week. Last week we got a card of a tree with his footprint as the trunk. Too cute!

Tomorrow my best friend Cindy is coming and she, Jackie and I will have a girl’s weekend. We have been best friends since we were about 12. For the last few years we have been getting together once a year to goof off… not as much as when we were 12, but just have fun. This year Cindy is coming to Rochester. Usually we meet in Fairmont, MN since it is the half way point. I think we’ve tapped the entertainment in Fairmont. We’d get a hotel room, shop at Shopko… not much else in Fairmont, order pizza, and then stay up as long as we could (also not as long as we could when we were 12) talking. We’ll see what this weekend brings. Steve is on baby duty from about noon tomorrow until noon on Sunday as we plan to shop and go out from dinner. Once again, I probably owe him! My guys will do great.

Cooper turns eight months on Monday. Oh my.

Mommy's Pumpkin

Life is good.

Two posts the same day... don't ask, just accept...

I am still amazed at how fast time moves. Don’t I say that every post??? Can it possibly be the end of September??? Our baby is nearly eight months old. He is such a cutie pie. He is just an amazing kid! And I love him, as if you couldn’t tell.

Our days and weeks have been pretty consistent lately. Get up, Cooper to daycare/go to work/ get Cooper/dinner/go to bed/get up a couple times during the night to roll Cooper on his side and put the pacifier back in/ get up… Yep, I think we are in a routine. I still stop and think… wait a minute… didn’t I just do this… yes… yesterday… oh, yeah… 24hours ago. While nothing too terribly exciting is happening, life is good.

While our lives don’t seem to be changing much from day to day, Cooper is definitely changing. I can’t believe how fast he has gone from this little six pound twelve ounce newborn to an eighteen pound bundle of energy! He so desperately wants to crawl. He really can push himself up and bend his knees, but they just don’t want to go under him. He can push himself backwards. The drooling continues, but no teeth.

Last weekend my sister came for a visit with Jacob and Logan. We had fun with them. I think Uncle Steve was worn out by Sunday afternoon, but it has to warm his heart to know how special he is to them. The highlight for them I think was making chocolate chip bear pancakes (in the shape of a bear head… think Mickey Mouse head silhouette) with Steve Sunday morning. They were excited to help make them and eat them. They got to play lots of Legos. On Saturday we took them to an apple orchard. I tried to get a picture of the three boys in the pumpkin patch, but Cooper was more interested in the grass than having his picture taken… “What is this green stuff”? I guess I need to get him outside more often. I had great help with Jacob and Logan helping me pick apples. HoneyCrisp season is back!!!



Here are a few more pictures…

Splish splash, Cooper was taking a bath…

Here are a few pictures of Coops in the tub. While he has had many baths with bubbles I think he has just now “discovered” them. It was amazing to see the amount of water he can splash out of the tub. Those spots in the second picture are drops of water and if you look closely you can see the wave of water in front of him.





Splish splash, Cooper was taking a bath
Long about a Wedneday night
A rub dub, just relaxing in the tub
Knowing everything was alright!

I changed the words a bit, but I don't think Bobby Darin would mind.

Okay, okay… you’ve probably wondering… again… where we are. Well, the weeks just fly around here. If I ever thought life moved fast before Cooper, those days are nothing compared to life now.

On August 9th we had JCP take a few pictures of Cooper for his 6th month birthday. I’ve attached a few. I had hoped some would turn out… and of course all of them were absolutely wonderful. I had to use a bit of restraint when ordering prints, because I could have ordered all of them. He’s my baby!

Two weeks ago we traveled to Michigan for Steve’s sister’s wedding and for Cooper to meet his great-grandparents, other aunts and uncles, and cousins. Wow! What a fast week. After packing the van… make that stuffing the van, we made our way to Milwaukee to sail across the lake. Thank God there is a ferry that travels across Lake Michigan… meaning less time in the car for Cooper. It was an interesting ride… rockier than we have ever experienced before. People were getting sick. Thankfully, Cooper cuddled in Grandma and Grandpa O’C’s arms and it didn’t bother him a bit. We had a wonderful evening spending time with my great aunt and uncle. They are wonderful people and much like pseudo-grandparents since my mom’s parents have died. Hope Cooper really gets to know them. After leaving their house we went to my grandma’s for a couple of nights. Cooper did a great job of sleeping most nights with very little waking.

On Thursday we traveled to the other side of the state for the wedding. We stopped in Blissfield and stayed overnight with Steve’s grandparents. On Friday we traveled to Detroit for all the wedding festivities. Cooper did a wonderful job of being a great baby. He sat through the rehearsal and dinner very well. Mommy was a bit nervous about the wedding as I didn’t want him to fuss. I had Steve (in a tux) quickly help me change him right before the service and prayed he wouldn’t poop. I made a bottle and grabbed the diaper bag filled with quiet toys and the “food” bag just in case. I then snuck into the first pew as I was sitting with Steve’s parents and grandparents… I did sit on the end so I had a quick escape, if needed. No need to worry… Cooper crashed as soon as everyone was in and the ceremony started. He snoozed through the whole thing until everyone clapped at the end. The reception went well, too. He got a little fussy, but a bottle and cuddling with Mommy helped. Sunday’s drive back to the ferry and home were a bit more interesting. After a week of four-hour trips, Cooper started to figure out that sitting in his car seat for long periods was not fun. I read to him, sang songs, showed him different toys, but nothing really seemed to work. The only positive was that at about 11pm, Coopers screams were keeping Steve awake while driving. Ugh. No more long trips for a long time. Cooper and I took Monday off to recover and try to get things from the trip put away.

Last Tuesday Cooper started at a new daycare. So far he seems to enjoy it. I love the fact that they make his bottles for him on demand and I don’t have to make and label them every morning. They also keep the bottles there and clean them. Thank you- I now have an extra twenty minutes in the morning. Since this daycare just opened a couple of weeks ago, they are combining the infant class until they have enough to make two rooms (which will be soon) and then they’ll split into mobile and non-mobile.

Developmentally Cooper is changing all the time. He is really sitting up well on his own. When he’s tired I still put the Boppy around him, but he probably doesn’t need it. He’s just a wild man in the exersaucer! Steve raised the seat again and he can still really jump. He loves to play in there! On a stinky note…the exersaucer brings out the “best” in Cooper- it makes him poop. It is almost guaranteed. Put him in it you’ll be changing a diaper… and possibly clothes. I think Cooper is ready for stage 2 foods. He loves peas, bananas, applesauce, and sweet potatoes. On our trip he got a few tastes of some really good things. We had ice cream while seeing my aunts and families in Grand Haven and he loved the taste I gave him. Steve’s grandma makes the best mashed/whipped potatoes and Coops got to try a bite or two. Steve’s Uncle Bill gave him some raspberry sherbet at the wedding reception. The other day the daycare said Cooper tried to drink from another child’s Sippy cup so they got one out for him with some water and he did great. Milestones, milestones. He watches everything and wants to try new things.

Cooper will be seven months old on Saturday… Where did time go????

Happy Six Months Old, Cooper!

Can you believe it??? Our baby is six months old!!! He is growing up too fast!

Life has been full and interesting over the last few weeks… Wondering where I was??? I wish we could say we have the ear infection saga behind us, and hopefully we do, but Cooper continues to be on antibiotics as he either developed another ear infection or the first one didn’t clear. We a very late night or early morning trip to the ER on 7/27. Coops had finished the Amoxicillin the Saturday evening before, but about 24 hours later he was screaming a scream I have never heard before. It took about two minutes for the doc to diagnose him. When his fever of 102-103 continued Steve took him back in last Thursday and they changed his antibiotic. As advised, we took him back in last Saturday since he continued to run a fever over 102. I think as soon as the doc heard we were first time parents, she didn’t hear anything else and blew us off. Thankfully the fevers ended on Sunday and so far he seems to be doing great. Today he gets his six month shots… let the fevers begin, again and an ear check.

Last Sunday we got together with Steve and Jan, a couple we met in our prenatal class, to get our little ones together and share our adventures in parenting. Cooper and Amaya went right for each other. They are just adorable and two peas in a pod. I think Jan would agree that they are so similar that they sound like twins separated at birth… or friends two weeks apart.

Cooper is pretty much sitting up on his own. Wednesday night I had him on his play blanket and he sat up for about five minutes. I was right there to catch him. Later that evening I went to give him a bath and decided to try the tub in the sitting position rather than the reclined position with the hammock. I think he enjoyed it! He was able to sit up and splash. You should have seen the waves in his tub. With his tub in our tub, it doesn’t matter how much he splashes… and it’s not like he really has that much water to get out of the tub. I let him play with a rubber ducky and a fish, but, of course, all he really wanted was the wash cloth to suck on.

Cooper is also beginning to cut teeth. He has one on the bottom that has been trying to come through for a little over a week. He doesn’t like us looking at it and sticks his tongue out.

This morning I dressed Cooper in a 6-9 month romper. Last week he weighed in at 15 pounds. It will be interesting to see what he weighs today and how long he is. The daycare likes to feed him. He is just growing up too fast!

Tomorrow, as long as he is feeling well, we will go to have some six month pictures taken. The poor baby… Mommy always has the camera out and now he has to go have more taken. Mine are cute, but we need a professional take some, too. The person on the phone asked if he is grabbing his toes. Is he grabbing his toes??? He’s now sticking his feet in his mouth. And he tries so hard to get his socks off. Thankfully, his feet are pretty clean. It’s not like he’s walking on them.

Well, I think that somewhat covers the last three week! Take care.

Coughs, sniffles, and fevers… oh my!

We continue to be under the weather at the Hull household. So far Steve is doing okay and hasn’t come down with the cold. As for Mr. Cooper and me, we spent several days bonding at home. We got in some good cuddle time. I took Monday and Tuesday off since we both weren’t feeling good and Cooper had developed a fever. My thought was to get past the fever on Tuesday so he could go back to daycare. Wednesday afternoon they called to say he had a temp and couldn’t come back until today. After three days of calls to the pediatric nurse line, I was tired of hearing that we needed to let it run its course and took him in yesterday. Sure enough, he has a “blazing red” ear infection and possibly a clearing pneumonia. No need to explore the pneumonia any further as the antibiotic for the ear infection would take care of both. Ugh. Poor baby! As for me, the week of a significant sore throat, yellow stuff running from my nose (sorry), and cough, didn’t come up to anything more than “it’s a virus” and to wait to see if it gets worse. Now, I’m not one to take antibiotics unless they are really necessary as there are too many drug resistant bugs out there now, but oh I don’t feel good. I did get Robitussin with codeine… like I want to take something that will make me sleepy when I have a baby that needs me. Trust me- with a week of sleepless nights as soon as I lay down I fall asleep. I don’t need codeine to help with that. The doc I saw (not mine) was more interested in the fact that I was 36 with my first baby and that his kids (late 20’s and early 30’s) haven’t had kids yet. Ugh, again. We’ll see how today goes with me back at work and Cooper at daycare.

Hate to say it, but since last Friday, the above has been the extent of our week.

So far so good...

Well, we made it through the last two weeks. Cooper did great at daycare. Mom did well… I only called once to check on him. Dad is doing really well with the drop-offs. Last Tuesday (his first day) they took pictures of Cooper and sent them home with a certificate that he completed his first day. On Thursday he got to finger paint blue and red fireworks with his hand. I would have never thought to finger paint with a four month old!... we’ve tried a handprint for memories and… well… it’s not easy. He also got to go for stroller rides. This Wednesday morning the director sent me a picture of him. He really looked happy. It makes it a bit easier to know he is having fun. It’s still hard to think of someone else taking care of him. He’s had a string of blow-outs this week- three in four days. I was looking for extra clothes to send with him this morning and I think we nearly tapped all the clothes that fit him. Hopefully the poo will stay in the diaper today. The daycare viruses have begun. Both Cooper and I have colds. Steve noticed several kids with colds and we are pretty sure that is where we got it. Ugh, it’s hard to be sick, take care of him, and work. Thankfully it’s Friday and hopefully I can rest this weekend. I hope Steve doesn’t get it, but we like to share in our family, so he’s pretty much doomed.

Coops turned five months old last Sunday! He is just an amazing little being. The other night I sat in awe just watching him. It wasn’t that long ago that he would lay and smile, but now he can purposefully reach out to grab something he wants. He was on him tummy and his pacifier was in front of him. He reached out to grab it and managed to turn it to get it in his mouth. Wow! I pulled him from his back to a sitting position and for a few moments he sat without any support. I was, of course, right there to catch him. He can also roll from his back to his tummy. Once in a while his arm is stuck under him, but he is getting better at getting it out. Yesterday morning we found him sleeping on his tummy in the crib. I shouldn’t panic as if he is old enough to get into that position he’s probably okay. The dangling toys, that just a few weeks ago were a challenge for him to pull to play music, aren’t so challenging anymore. I have a feeling we have reached a stage where things are going to start happening very quickly… rolling over, sitting without support, etc. Crawling will probably happen before we know it.

Last weekend we tried peas with Cooper and he loved them. He is like a little bird with his open mouth. We can’t get the spoon in fast enough. The squash we tried before wasn’t a big hit, but we’ll try again. He’s getting cereal twice a day, too. We are still struggling to figure out how much he needs of breast milk, cereal, and food. I was sending three four ounce bottles with him to daycare, but now they want five ounce bottles. The only problem is they feed him at 4pm and he can’t wait until 8pm (right before bed) to eat again. Someday we’ll figure it out… just in time to change, again.

This evening the new daycare that is opening is having an open house, so we will go over to that. I wish Cooper could stay where he is now, but they can only keep him through August at this point. Hopefully an opening comes up. If not, I hope to be impressed by the new facility. We are looking forward to a fairly quiet weekend.

Our BIG day! Daycare and a new job...

Well, here I go again. It has taken me over two weeks to update. Bear with me… it has been a busy couple of weeks. Steve had a couple of engineering interviews two weeks ago and he heard the Friday before last that one of the companies was interested in making him an offer. Of course that meant we needed to start looking for child care… oh my. I knew infant care in Rochester was scarce, but, wow, it is tight. As most of you know I am a bit neurotic when it comes to Cooper’s care and safety… true for all those I love. I’m not going to put him just anywhere and given that I work in organ donation and I hear the worst stories about shaken babies at daycare, it’s even harder. I started to frantically search as soon as we knew Steve was likely to get an offer- which officially came last Friday and they wanted him to start immediately. Most centers don’t have openings until February or March of next year. We looked at a couple of centers last week that were willing to work with us. Thankfully and unfortunately… one center (the one we want) just had an opening, but another family took it right before I called. The good news was they don’t need the spot until August and Cooper can be there as a drop-in… and with other kids going on vacation he can stay there until September. They have him on their wait list, but don’t anticipate an opening until January. Hopefully a permanent spot will open in the meantime and he can stay. If not, there is a new center under construction due to open the middle of August. The only thing that makes me a bit nervous is that I can't see the interaction of the teachers with the students. This is a well established child care corporation so I’m sure they know what they are doing. We’ll see…

So that leads us to today. Cooper started daycare and Steve started his new job. We’ve spent the last couple of days buying new bottles, wipes, extra pacifiers, etc, labeling everything and filling out lots and lots of paperwork. After several nights of tossing and turning about the decision to have someone other than us care for Cooper, this morning arrived. We got up a bit early to get everyone out the door without being rushed… well… we were still a bit rushed, but not too bad. We had a lot to take with us. Steve and I both wanted to drop off Cooper with it being his first day. I think I did pretty good. I didn’t cry this morning until we made it past the front door of the daycare and the director asked how I was doing… then the tears came. I was distracted enough with putting his bottles and car seat away and filling out the “information about today" form that I wasn’t sobbing. I gave him one kiss and said goodbye. Oh, my dear baby. He is in great hands. I know they will take great care of him. I haven’t called yet, but then again, it’s only 9:30… maybe in another 30 minutes… just to see how his morning is going. ***It’s now 10am… I just called and he is doing great. They had him in a bouncer seat this morning. He is startling easily, but Cooper is pretty sensitive to loud noises. They fed him cereal and gave him a bottle. So he is okay… and mom is okay.***

Steve started as an engineer with Kerry, a company that makes bio- and pharma-ingredients. Hmmm, not exactly sure of what all he will be doing. I hope he is having a great day, too! The daycare is close to where Steve is working, so he’ll likely drop Cooper off in the morning.

Hmmm… what else is happening? We are going on three weeks of Cooper sleeping through the night. He was doing every other night until a few weeks ago. Then it seemed like he reached this magical age and now he is sleeping from about 9pm until 6:30am. Some mornings he'll sleep until about 8. Oh, I love it. I still get up to check on him occasionally. We also bought a mesh bumper pads as he would wake up crying with limbs sticking out of the crib. One morning he was on his side with both legs out, an arm out and his head tight up against the rail. He let out a horrible scream. Poor baby. There wasn't any way for him to get out of that position. Even with Cooper sleeping, the “get up early to get ready before he gets up” and the “get as much done as possible before bed” routines cuts into sleep. I find myself crawling into bed at night thinking that it feels I was just doing the same routine moments ago when it really was 24 hours ago. I’m typically the kind of person that really, really likes 8+ hours of sleep. These days if I get five I’m doing well.

Thankfully, this is a short week!

More Milestones...

This has been a big milestone week for Cooper.

Sunday night my parents came to visit and Steve and I took advantage of them being here to get away for a night as a couple. This was probably a bigger milestone for us than Cooper, but still a change for him. Lanesboro has a special place in our hearts as it is where we go to relax. This is also the place we went on our honeymoon and 1st anniversary. Lanesboro is cute little town about 45 minutes south of Rochester. The town is also down in a valley so cell phone use is pretty much nonexistent… a bit of a thought to comprehend when you are leaving your baby for the night for the first time. I couldn’t call every hour to check on him. He was in wonderful hands and the three of them did a great job! Cooper went down for Grandma and Papa around 7:30 and slept until 4am- wow, he doesn’t typically do that for us. He ate and played… and became a little fountain for Grandma. Steve and I had a nice night out and came back shortly after breakfast on Monday. I didn’t sleep as much as I thought I would. I wasn’t worried about Cooper, but I still kept waking up. While we missed our little guy, it was nice to reconnect as a couple… a lot of our conversation was about Cooper- but that’s okay- this is our life! Thanks, Mom and Dad!

Last night was also a night of a big milestone for Cooper. Last week his pediatrician gave us the okay to start cereal. After Steve and I had dinner, Steve picked Cooper up out of the swing he was in next to the table. Steve handed him the spoon and he tried to put it in his mouth… now keep in mind everything goes into his mouth at this point. But we thought we’d try the cereal. So I mixed ½ a tablespoon of rice cereal with 4 tablespoons of breast milk and he ate all of it! Thank you to everyone that gave us bibs, we are going to use them! Actually, he did a great job of getting it back in his mouth. Tonight filet mignon… no, not yet- have to wait for teeth and a tummy that can handle it. We’ll stick with cereal and breast milk for awhile.

Cooper is really starting to sleep longer at night. The night before last, I put Cooper down at 8:45pm and he slept until about 5am. Steve brought him to me in bed to nurse and then Cooper and I crashed again. I slept until a little before 7, but Coops continued to sleep while I got ready for work. Steve had a dentist appointment, so it worked out great that he was still sleepy. At 8am I knew Steve was about on his way home and I needed to head off to work, so I started to wake Cooper up and oh my the stretches and yawns… he just wasn’t quite ready to get up. He slept almost eleven hours which means I got about seven hours… that felt good! As I mentioned with our night away, just because Cooper sleeps, doesn’t mean we sleep all the way through. Both Steve and I get up to check on him to make sure he is okay. If only we could figure out how to make it happen every night. Last night he did great, but wanted to chat… and nurse at 2am and then was up again at 5am. As he continues to get older, I’m sure the longer nights are coming more frequently. It’s almost hard to remember the nights of getting up every two hours… well, I still remember them, but I’m very thankful we don’t have too many of them anymore.

After hitting two milestones, even though one was more for mom and dad than Cooper, we had quite the week. Cooper continues to change every day, just sometimes not major milestones.

Happy 4 months old, Cooper!

I know I just updated (feast or famine), but I thought I’d get a short note in today as Cooper is now four months old. The last four months… actually the last year has been incredibly amazing! Just five days from now it will be exactly a year ago that we saw his heartbeat for the first time! He was just 6 weeks and 5 days (in reality he was 4 weeks and 5 days) of being a little growing miracle. It had been one of the scariest days of my life in that I had thought I was losing him, but when we saw his heartbeat I think my heart started to beat faster than his. The picture from that ulrasound is the bottom one on the right side. Life is so very precious.

We survived Wednesday’s exam and shots. Cooper is now 2 feet long… he’s grown about 5 inches since birth and is now 12 pounds and 9 ounces- it could also be that he hadn’t pooped in two days! He’s still a little guy, but is staying pretty consistent on the growth chart. Cooper showed Dr. Alme his ability to chat. The shots were rough. Last time he cried very hard, but this time he screamed and then held his breath and then screamed each time he was stuck. The nurse was quick, but four shots are a lot. We cuddled as soon as he got dressed and he fell asleep. The rest of the night wasn’t too bad, except when Steve went to get groceries, Cooper just screamed for about 30 minutes. I couldn’t give him any more Tylenol and there just wasn’t anything I could do to console him. In desperation I was going to give him a bath. As soon as I put him in his crib and turned on the mobile he calmed down. So I took advantage of it and let his friends dance for him. We did give him a bath a little later and I think it helped sooth him. The fevers weren’t as bad this time. He stayed between 100.4-100.7, but didn’t go higher.

Since putting on a little weight, Cooper hasn’t rolled over as much as he did a couple of months ago, but last night during “tummy time” he rolled over three times. I think he is just about to roll from back to tummy, too. When he is on his tummy he has a look of frustration that he can’t get his arms and legs under him to move. He does a “Super Cooper” by lifting his arms and legs off the ground like he’s ready for take-off. He is also pulling his dangling toys to make the music play.

It’s supposed to rain for the next several days, but we can hope to get out for a walk or two this weekend. This has already been an icky year for severe weather, so I picked up a new alarm clock that has a NOAA radio. It's amazing what being a mommy will do to you- you'll do anything to protect your child. I just want to be as prepared as possible with Cooper being down the hall (not really that far, but far enough). We have had tornados north and south of us, but most stuff is fizzeling out before it gets to us.

Grandma and Papa O’C are coming on Sunday to pick up Lacy. We may take advantage of having them here and go out Sunday night.

Have a great weekend!

So now I give him to the LORD...

1 Samuel 1:27-28 I prayed for this child, and the LORD has
granted me what I asked of him. So now I give him to the LORD.

We had Cooper baptized On May 18th. Grandma and Grandpa O’Connell, Grandma and Grandpa Hull, my sister and family, and Steve’s sister and fiancé all came. It was an exciting weekend. Cooper wasn’t short on being given attention and being held. He did a great job during the baptism. He likes having his hair washed, so I wasn’t too concerned, but the time of the baptism was just about naptime, so you never know. He watched Pastor Jeff pretty closely. Cooper wore the outfit Steve wore when he was baptized- pretty neat... and it fit just right! Coops is very blessed to have family that will make sure he is upheld in his spiritual life. Our church family thinks he is pretty neat, too. It definitely takes us longer to get out after church as so many want to see him. Steve and I know God has blessed us with this special boy and we give him to the Lord.

I so badly want to keep this better updated for those of you that are reading it and as a keepsake for Cooper… and me to look back on. What can I say, I’m a new mommy. Things just don’t always happen the way you plan. The days feel short. Sleep feels short. Where has time gone? Cooper will be four months old on Friday. I feel like just a short while ago I was carrying him.

So what is Cooper doing?… Oh, where to begin. Since my last post (a month ago), we have put away the bassinet. Cooper does a great job of sleeping in his crib at night. We have had more nights of him sleeping longer… and then he regresses a bit, and then sleeps longer again. I’d say many nights of the week he will sleep from 10pm until 4:30 or 5am. Not bad. He isn’t always a restful sleeper as I often find him in a different position then when I put him down. We’ve also found limbs sticking out between the crib slats, but bumper pads aren’t recommended anymore.

Cooper is becoming so much more interactive. He is a little chatter box and he can be so expressive with his eyes and facial expressions. He has also found out that he controls the volume of his voice and he can be quite loud at times. I can’t wait for him to tell me what he is trying to say. I think Cooper has started to discover textures. I’ve found him “scratching” the posts of his dangling toy mat and his shirts. He is also grabbing stuffed animals, blankets, and of course anything that can go into his mouth. He likes to look at the baby in the mirror, too. Coops is on the verge of giggling. He makes a little laugh sound when he is excited. There is nothing better than when he gets excited when he sees me. After I get home from work, his eyes will catch mine and he just lights up… my heart melts. Oh, this is so much fun. But he is growing up too fast!

Well, tomorrow is another big day of shots and a well-baby exam. Last time he ran a bit of a temp after the shots, but hopefully he does well with these. If not, we will have the Tylenol and soothing bathes ready. Momma is prepared for plenty of cuddle time.

Until next time… take care!