Nothing New Around Here

Well, I feel the need to post something but I don't really have anything that is post-worthy. We have been really busy but for some reason I have not taken any pictures in the last week so I don't even have those to put up. I'm certainly not winning mother of the year these days!!

I'm happy to report that Hudson is absolutely in Heaven at his new school- or I guess I should say, his old school. He was welcomed with open arms by two wonderful teachers. He was very nervous at first but when I went to pick him up the teacher told me that when they were cleaning up and getting ready to leave, Hudson said, "already???" That was a great sign to me! On the way home he was asking if he gets to go back tomorrow so again, another sign that this is where he needs to be. You would not believe all the wonderful projects and things that already came home. They are so incredibly organized and creative over there.

Jason went hunting this past weekend with his dad. He was so excited since he has not been hunting in a long time. He also doesn't get any one-on-one time with his dad so he was even more excited about that. He purchased some new boots and hunting attire and he really pulled out the chick card when he tried them on multiple times and kept asking me how he looked. Too funny! I'm less than impressed with the 17 dove sitting in my deep freezer but hey, we've got to sacrifice a little for those we love, right?

My friend Laurie sent me a cute link to a very funny song about being a mommy. I will leave you with this. I hope everyone has a wonderful day! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_oc1j5NakY

Boys Boys

These days, Cooper wants to be outside ALL the time. I guess it's good for me that it hasn't been quite so hot lately. Jason is almost finished with the swing set.....the slide requires cement and metal posts so that will take a bit longer. The boys love having the swings and the fort at the top to play around on. Cooper loves to walk, crawl and run through the dirt. This boy could care less if he is messy or not. Dig, Dig, Dig
This face is the one we get when things are not going his way. It's almost a joke now....I will make this face too and this gets Hudson to laugh and forget about what he was wanting. We call it his "max" face (long story) He was in a silly mood today and I asked him to give our readers a sneak peek at this expression.Hudson's stubby toes! I just never know when I may want to look back at his toes from age 4.
Do you think Cooper is ready to come back inside?Many times during the day we have to do a quick clean-up of our hands and feet.......almost like a sponge b*th to get the dirt off. It's not worth my while to give them a full b*th because in a couple of hours they are ready to go back outside and do it all over again.

Again, acting silly and talking to his "friend" in the mirror. He said, "mom, take a picture of me!"

Update: I want to thank everyone that has called or emailed me to tell me that they are thinking of us during this whole preschool ordeal. I appreciate all the prayers and advice that were given to us. The more I thought about the way the teacher acted on Tuesday (and the other times I have seen her) I decided that this is not the place for us. On Wednesday, I called the director from the preschool he attended last year to see if they had an opening in the 4's class. She said yes and I was so relieved! I took Hudson yesterday to look around and meet his teacher. He saw many familiar faces (kids and teachers) and the minute I walked into the building I felt peace and I knew this was his place. Some have asked why we switched- well, this new one was much closer to home and I thought these may be some of the kids that he will go to kindergarten with next year. I was spending almost an hour (about 25-30 min each way) in the car last year. Well, after what we have gone through the last 3 weeks, I have realized that it is WORTH every mile to attend the school from last year. The teachers are so warm and friendly, the director is so awesome and organized, you can hear children laughing and learning, they are great at communicating with you........and these were things that the other place just didn't have. Hudson will start on Tuesday and we are all very excited about this! Thank you again for praying for us. It's so hard to see your child unhappy and to have that gut feeling that things are not right. This is his last year of preschool and this is setting the stage for how he views school. I know we will have an awesome year!

18 Month Check-Up

Today, Cooper had his 18 month check-up with Dr. K. He got 4 shots and was not happy about that one bit! He is 33 3/4 inches long and 27.3 pounds. What a big boy!!

Although Dr. K got him to laugh and giggle, I could not get him to sit still long enough to smile for the camera. He loved spinning around in the swivel chair.

Cooper loves to be chased and he squeals when you catch him. He likes to play peek-a-boo around the island in our kitchen. Nothing better than hearing this boy laugh!

Cooper is not as interested in coloring as he is in eating the crayons!

Just hanging out, watching some Baby Einstein. Good times.

Hudson had another day at preschool today. We've had a rough start.....okay, maybe not rough but I've been less than impressed with where he is going. They are just now getting a monthly calendar out and all communication is up to the individual teacher. That wouldn't be a problem if his teacher had not gone on a cruise last week (yes, during the second week of preschool) so I have not had a chance to really talk with her. The preschool H attended last year was awesome- we loved the teachers, the director, the communication,.....all of it. Hudson's teacher this year is not warm or fuzzy and I firmly believe that sets the tone for him. I pray all the time that Hudson will be placed in a loving classroom with a very patient teacher. He is not the typical kid. He likes very unusual things- things that tend to be more advanced than his years and it takes someone special to embrace that. I know because it's hard for me at times and I'm his mom. I think sometimes adults don't know how to handle or challenge him so they get annoyed instead of taking the time to figure out what will cause him to blossom. I'm so very afraid that his teacher may not be the best match for him. I may be wrong but it's just a gut feeling. Today was the first time I really had a small conversation with her. The first week was crazy and I didn't want to be that parent that wants a conference the first day. I could tell that she was overwhelmed (retired teacher but first year at this preschool) so I just introduced myself and walked out. Pretty much the same on the second day and then I found out that she was going to be gone the next week. When I went to pick him up today, she followed behind him and came over to me and said "I am sending some work home with Hudson that you will need to look at and have him finish." Okay......so I was curious- did he mess around and not finish or did they just run out of time? She said "he didn't finish. He's going to get very far behind with his work if he doesn't learn to follow directions." Okay.....now my heart is sinking. Is he being labeled as that kid? I told her that we would finish it at home and that I would talk to him about paying attention and following directions. Although most of the material that has been sent home so far is not new for him (he learned it about 3 years ago) I do still expect him to obey and follow directions. She never one time followed up by saying something nice about him. So, is he sweet while in class? Is he a good helper? Is he a friend? I walked away wanting to cry because I felt very defensive. One of the first things I learned as a teacher is that when telling a parent about a weakness with their child you MUST also tell them something positive as well. We all know that our kids aren't perfect. But they are still ours and it would be nice if she could have at least told me something good or something that she liked about him. Maybe I'm over analyzing the situation or taking it too personally. I often joke about how Hudson is "different" but I think it's also my way of dealing with the fact that I'm nervous about how others may perceive him. I just want the best for him.

Nature School

Today was Hudson's first day of Nature School. He has been asking me about 10 times a day when it will start. We had his orientation last Friday where we got to meet his teachers, visit his room, and learn about the neat things they will be doing this year. It sounds really cool....in fact, I think I'd like to attend Nature School. He will go on Wednesdays from 12:30-3:00. They take nature walks, learn about habitats, different animals, how the animals relate and what their role in the habitat is, etc....... the best part is that the park is close to my mom's house. I can drop Hudson off and then Cooper and I can go and hang out with my mom. It's perfect! Anyway, I picked him up today and he said he had a great time. Hudson and GrammyRight before we went inside his room

Hudson was not a fan of his name tag. He is used to the kind at church- either in a sticker form or a clip style. This was the pin version and I think he got confused. He acted really scared and I realized that he thought it was going to poke him (like a shot, maybe) That was the only issue we had. Once I assured him that it was just going through his shirt, we were A-OK.With one of his teachers, Ms. MichelleChecking out the corn snake. They also have a tarantula in the room. You should see the class schedule for the year. They will be learning about some really cool stuff. I'm sure Hudson will be teaching us a thing or two.I didn't want to disturb the class but I wish now that I had gone to the back to take a picture. They have a huge wooden deck outside with some sand tables and other activities. It overlooks a huge pond and lush green trees. You can see all the trails where they take their nature walks.

************************************************************************************

Yesterday, my good friend Laura came over. We had a great time playing and the kids had fun as well. (well, except for the multiple times Hudson acted like a punk) Ty and Hudson were running back and forth from the chair and the couch and having a good old time.

I wish I had taken more pictures but Laura and I were so busy chatting that I just didn't think about it. Maybe next time. I promise that Halle and Cooper were also present!

I have a funny story about Hudson: Yesterday, Ty asked me how old Cooper was. He then asked about his birthday. I told him and then I asked Ty about his. He replied: April 28th. I looked at Hudson (and realized that I haven't told him over and over the actual date of his birthday. We just talk about it when it gets close) Anyway, I asked Hudson "so, when is YOUR birthday?" He just sat there for a second and I said "it's on March 8." He looked at me for a minute and gave me a puzzled look. They he said "no mom, it's spin-around 4." I sat there for a minute and then realized that he was the confused one. I realized that at school that morning, his teacher asked the class to march to their desk and they must have done some other movements like spin around, hop on one foot, etc.....and when I told him March 8 he just slipped another movement and number in there like it was no big deal. What a goof ball.

"They call me the fireman.....that's my name"

Well, I love G Strait so any reason to use one of his songs as a title then I'm all for it. Today we had a really neat opportunity to visit a nearby fire station. My dad has a friend that is retiring after 30 years of service and today was his last shift. We got there really early this morning and Hudson was able to sit in the truck, push any buttons that he wanted to, honk the horn, and we even took a ride. He loved it!

We thought this was really cool- they keep their boots and jumpsuit right next to the truck so that they can step right in and get dressed really fast when they get called to an emergency.

Pushing all the buttonsHudson was in complete awe of all the switches and buttons

Thank you Papa for arranging our special day!You have to be a strong kid to climb inside

On our way there, Hudson was asking me if there was a fan inside the truck. In my head, I was thinking probably not but sure enough, there were 2 inside!Have fun together

A future chiefI was really surprised at how small the inside is. They have so much equipment- even a computer- that there is little room for the men.
This didn't turn out that good. I was in the back of the cabin and the light was pointed right toward my camera. I took this as we were driving.Riding on Papa's lap. We had the sirens on and everything!

Helping Papa plug the truck back in

Thanks to everyone at Fire Station 16 for an awesome day!

Visit from Friends

Yesterday, we had some old friends over to visit. Amy (aka "Gim") is a friend from my ACU days. She was in town for the day so she came over to hang out for a bit. Hudson was at school so Cooper and I were able to spend some time with Gim and Hunter. Hunter was born about 3 weeks after Cooper and they were so sweet together! We see many similarities in their personalities. She has a monkey boy on her hands too. We had a great visit. I just wish we could see each other more often.

Hunter had such a good time playing with all of our toys.

After dinner, we took the boys outside to play. It was a fairly pleasant evening- not too hot and a bit of a breeze. We stayed until it was about to get dark. As we were coming inside, we noticed how pretty the sky looked. By the time I got my camera, the sun had already gone down quite a bit but here is a picture of all the pretty colors. I love a beautiful sunset!

As far as school, Hudson had a pretty good week. Both days he didn't want to go and was very hesitant to walk into the classroom. When I picked him up both days, he told me that he had fun. I know that as he makes friends and gets into a routine that he will really enjoy it more. He doesn't like change and this summer was a long time for him to be home with me every single day.

I've got a prayer request and since so many people read this blog I thought I'd share this request so that we can get as many prayers going as possible. I have 2 friends from college that are both pregnant. They are actually due just a few days apart. Both of them went this week for their 20 week appointments and were given some disturbing news. There were some things that didn't look right and both have to go back next week for further testing. I believe in the power of prayer so please say some on their behalf. You can pray for R and L and the little babies they are creating. Thanks!!

First Hair Cut

Yesterday was full of firsts for us. While Hudson was at his first day of preschool, Cooper was getting his first hair cut. He did very well. No crying, no screaming.........in fact, he actually sat pretty still. He loved turning the steering wheel on the car and the lady put Baby Einstein on the TV in front of him so he was all set.

This is another example of how different the boys are. Hudson needed a hair cut on his first day of life. No, I'm not kidding. A few minutes after he was born, the nurses had him in the warmer and were cleaning him up. Jason looked at me and said "we have a little hippie." He was right. This kid was a little wig man- it was hanging down over his ears and down his neck a little. It was thick enough that when they combed it over, he had a part in it. Anyway, I can remember when Hudson was a few months old I mentioned to my sister that I was going to get his hair cut. She looked at me like I had 3 heads. I mean, is it SO wrong to cut a kids hair before a year old? I ended up waiting until he was 5 months old and I couldn't stand it any more.

Cooper was born practically bald. His hair has slowly come in but right now it's pretty light so it doesn't look as thick. He didn't really need a major cut, just some trimming and shaping up. There isn't a huge difference to me but now all the whispies and fly-aways are gone.

This car thing is pretty neat

Ahhh, Baby Einstein is my favorite!

Hey lady, what cha doin'

It would not be a Cooper event if he didn't let out some kind of little squawk

I love his facial expression in this one

Do I have any hair left?

first DAY of preschool........last YEAR of preschool

It's so hard to believe that this is Hudson's last year of preschool. This time next year, I will be sending my baby to kindergarten. How is that possible? Today was the first day of preschool. Hudson was very nervous and he told me that he wanted to go back home with me. I encouraged him before I left him and I told him that he would do great. My heart is torn because I see the scared little boy looking at me for reassurance but like I've said before, I know this will make him a better person. Next year, I won't have the choice if I take him back home or not so this will be great practice for both of us. It's only 2 days a week and I'm praying that he loves it. I'm sure like with everything else, it will just take time.

Yesterday, we got out his new backpack and lunchbox and began talking about school. I got him a few little treats and hid them inside his lunchbox. He was really excited about them and I told him that I got them because I knew he would be brave at school the next day.

With his new backpack

His new lunchbox

He said "these are my favorite things!" when he looked inside. It wasn't anything special but just little things that he does enjoy. He now has his very own pack of gum, a Mater Pez, some Tic Tacs and a Max Lucado book and DVD.

He was so excited about his "contacts." For some reason, he calls them contacts instead of Tic Tacs.

His new paint smock for school

He was nervous so he kept swaying back and forth

Hudson, I know you will do awesome this year. I am so proud of you! I love you Punk!

(In case you are wondering, I'm not really calling my kid a punk. I used to call him Punkin' and somehow over the years it got shortened to Punk.)