A Smith Update

To Catch You Up On Things.....

Cooper has been inconsistantly using the potty for about a month now! We're so excited. Granted it is not as consistant as we'd like, but I think it's a step in the right direction. He gets SO excited when he does go, because he gets to help flush the toilet. He jumps up right after going pee and claps his hands. Oh the little joys in his eyes!

We have been battling teething molars and bronchitis with Cooper for the last 3 weeks. I didn't know teeth could prove to be such a battle! He is finally getting over the bronchitis and now his bottle molars are moving up....ugh!

We are still seeing the specialist every week or so for check ups. Nothing has really changed in one direction or the other which is both good and bad. The doctor does not see the need at this time to do more extensive testing though since Cooper is still healthy. I did just find out though that because of Cooper's condition, we qualify for free umbilical cord banking for future Smith children.

Randell will be working on a cool project beginning within the next few weeks all by himself. He is very excited as it will help expand his knowledge of public works!

I am still working at MDO on Tuesdays/Thursdays. It is a lot of fun and very challenging. I have also started a new Stay At Home Moms Playgroup on the Northwest side of SA. There is already a great group of moms involved which helps to keep Cooper and me busy on M/W/F!

Even though it's November....the weather is not as cold as we would like it, but it's perfect weather to have the windows open and take an afternoon walk.

Don't forget to check out new pictures.

To Sell or Not To Sell

We were faced with the possibility of selling the truck yesterday. We could have gotten just a few hundred $'s less than what we were asking and we would have been able to by a more full-efficient, family friendly vehicle. The problem is though that we're just too dang attached to that truck. Why? I don't know....maybe it could be

1) the fact that we can only move the pedals up and down to fit to our needs rather than moving the seat up since the motor went out oh about 4 years ago.

2) that we just really love getting drops of water on our head/arm/leg while driving in the rain or after a heavy rain due to a leak that could have possibly come from the XM system that Randell put in 5 years ago that we do not use at all.

3) how when we accelerate up a hill, the AC goes from blowing normally to blowing through the defroster. Once we release the accelerater, the Ac goes back to normal.

4) the wonderful shaking feature that allows us to know that we still have a muffler attached to the truck when going over bumps in the road.

OR
5) the repetition of Maroon 5 in our CD player because the face to the stereo will no longer open up, thus allowing us to change the CD.

Whatever the reason is, we still have the truck. I think we'll always have the truck.

The next time we think of selling the truck, all we have to do is get in and go for a ride. We'll go right back to loving the POJ. (piece of junk)

Our Weekly Trip

3 Saturdays ago Randell and I finally decided to do the San Antonio type of thing and make a purchase. We had heard that it was a great investment, one that we can use for a while and even Cooper will enjoy. What is the investment? Well....

We finally bought Sea World season passes! We were able to get a great deal on 2 passes for not only the rest of this year, but all of next year as well AND a free parking pass.

So we have decided to use them for what they are worth and then some! We've now gone to Sea World for the past 3 Saturdays. It's now "free" in some terms of the word, fun, and right down the street, literally! Yesterday we were in the park 10 minutes after leaving the house.

Cooper enjoys it a lot! He's met the effects of Shamu (we sat WAY TOO close in the splash zone, and who knew they used 2 whales to splash you at the same time!), he loved the sea lions (when they would go back stage, he would through his arms up as to ask "Where did they go?"), and just yesterday was able to watch the Buluga Whales (he said "Woah" every time they jumped up out of the water while stuffing his mouth full of popcorn).

Our routine has become to watch 1 show each time we go, then let Cooper play in the bounce house, watch a feeding or walk through an exhibit, and then relax in the Hospitality House.

That's right, 1 thing that makes Sea World better than Fiesta Texas is the 2 free beers that you can get at each visit. They have different beers that we would NEVER buy but hey, since they're free, we might as well try them.

All the way around, it's a great family outing. Pictures are posted of some of the fun we've already had there.

It Happened!

Well yesterday it finally happened, I bought my first pair of Mom Shorts!

I've tried to avoid it at all costs, but yesterday as I was browsing through the clearance rack at Target I found a pair of jean shorts for $3.48. You see that's just too great of a deal to pass up. So I tried them on hoping that maybe they would fit differently than they looked. They would hopefully fit more like non-mom shorts fit, or they would be too small/big mom shorts. But alas, they fit PERFECTLY and I mean there was no denying that I would have to buy these shorts.

I leveled with myself though. They will only and I mean ONLY be worn with shirts that come way past my waist line so that no one knows just how much of mom shorts these really are! I was hoping that maybe they would be super comfortable, but they're not. But hey they were only $3.48!

On another note, while I was walking into Target yesterday, pushing Cooper's stroller, I saw another mom infront of me struggling to carry her son. It made me think about the little things that happen through pregnancy and into Mom-hood. One of these little things is that your hips no longer stay little. Instead they expand. I thought at first that they might go back down, but no, that would not serve their purpose. The purpose of hips that I figured out yesterday is so that moms can carry their children easily on them. It's like a built in seat for Cooper!

Just to make sure of this little wonder, I asked Randell if it was hard for him to carry Cooper on his hip. His response: "I dread having to carry him like that because he always falls down".

So see, God gave Moms hips to carry their kids. It all makes sense now!

Writer's Block

Writer's Block! Too much stuff going on to think about. One main issue is how frustrating American Politics have become. I wish we could get rid of Dem vs Rep and just be smart and do what's right!

Anyhow...maybe I'll have funny stories from MDO tomorrow!

Where is the Monster?

So I sit here at this moment feeling sad inside. Although I can't decide if I should feel sad, happy, or indifferent to this matter. I thought when confronted with this matter I would be so happy to be free, not so badly needed anymore, and able to move on to the next stage in our life. I knew this day would come and I knew that it was for the better of everyone and everything for this day to come. But I didn't think I would deal with it like this.

What is the matter? I'll tell you.....

I have raised a full out "booby monster" to say the least. There were days that I thought Cooper could have nursed all day long if I would have let him. It was my secret weapon to getting him to sleep for naps and bedtime. If he hurt himself and wouldn't settle down....the secret weapon would calm his pains. We didn't sleep through the night the first year of Cooper's life b/c he was so bent on having his midnight snack (and 4am snack as well!).

There were days when I hated the fact that he was nursing...."why does he have to be with ME all the time?" I used to think. Or better yet, I used to wish so much that he would have taken a bottle so that Randell could have fed him or so that Cooper could have stayed with Nana & Papi over night. When mastitis appeared TWICE....I wanted to quit so bad. I was in pain, had no strength to go on, and yet STILL felt like a cow!

We kept going though. I used to say "I'll only nurse for a year and then he's going to be weaned!" Randell and I would be amazed (and bewildered) at the fact of someone nursing a 13,14,15,16 month old. My my how we have changed!

So, why am I so upset right now? What happened to get me to thinking about this? Well you see, our bedtime routine with Cooper is this:

Dinner
Quiet Playtime
Bath
Lotion massage
PJ's
NURSE & prayers
Reading time w/ Daddy
Crib

Tonight after we had him in his PJ's, I sat down in the "nursing chair" and asked Cooper if he was ready to nurse.....I know, I know, at this age if he can answer me then we shouldn't be nursing right? I AGREE....but it's much harder than just agreeing.

So he looked at me and ran to get a book and then went to his "big boy bed" (he's still sleeping in the crib, but we're getting him used to it). So I asked again, and again, AND again. Finally he came to me but maybe nursed for 3 minutes total. I wanted to start crying then. It's not that I want to nurse a 3 year old or anything, but I LOVE this cuddle time. He's such an active child that I rarely get to just hold him and cuddle. And I know that one day there will be another baby to nurse, and I'm sure I'll have the same feelings (good and bad) for it then too.

Maybe it's just the knowledge that Cooper's growing up and before we know it he'll be graduating high school and going off to A&M. Whatever it is, I'm sad. I know I should be happy that I didn't have to "wean" him so much that I would anger him like some parents end up having to resort to.

We'll see how tomorrow goes, but I'm realizing that the days of nursing are dwendling down very quickly and I'm just not ready yet!

The Deal of the Day!

Wow a whole week has past by and I haven't blogged....sorry!

To sum up our week....GREAT weather + a rested child = a happy MOM!

Today was full of great deals and fun times. We began the day by driving around a community wide garage sale. It was amazing! We were having a rough time finding the deals that we wanted (why do people ask for 3 times what a piece of junk is really worth?). So after becoming slightly disappointed, we stumbled upon a garage sale that was run by an older dad who was talking with his 2 teenage boys about swords and dragon computer games. I was hesitant at first to even look around, but then I saw a PERFECT buy. I'm not too great at the negotiating part of garage sale shopping. I normally ask how much something is and then say "Oh that's a awesome", pay what they ask and then get to the truck where Randell asks if I talked them down on the price.

So I had my game face on. I was prepared to put up a hard bargain with these sword fighting salesmen. I asked how much the toddler portable booster seat was, prepared to only offer $5 for it. The father walks towards it and says "Oh...(I just knew that he was going to say $8)....50 cents. 50 cents!!! Are you kidding me....I didn't even know what to say, except YES!!! So then after being so thrilled I decided to continue looking around in the millions of boxes of PURE JUNK that was for sale and found a brand new nalgene sports water bottle. Again, I was prepared to negotiate. His answer with the price....50 cents!

So I thanked him SO MUCH for being such a great garage sale man, all the while knowing that he was going to make NOTHING off of his boxes of junk if he sold things for only 50 cents.

We also ended up finding a neat chalk board table and toddler bed for Cooper's big boy room.

A summation of the rest of the day....the Aggies lost, we had a bbq with great friends over, and played hard. What a great (well besides the Aggies loosing) day it's been.