We're still here

Sorry for the absence, but we're still here!! 

Cooper is getting so big! I weighed him on our bathroom scale the other day and he's over 13 lbs! Not sure how long he is though, but he's definitely getting bigger!! He's our growing boy!

Lately he's been trying to roll over onto his tummy soooo bad! We've been waiting a while for him to accomplish this and last night he did! I did not get to witness this miracle as he apparently did it in his sleep. Lol... I put him to bed on his back and woke up to him on his tummy. I asked Paul if he rolled him over on his tummy and he didn't, so Cooper did it in the middle of the night some time. He's quite mobile with all the scooching he does and I never know where's he's going to be in his crib in the morning. Sometimes he's turned sideways, scrunched up in the corner, turned completely around, and this morning on his tummy hehe. 

He loves to sleep on his tummy, and we let him. He doesn't go to bed on his tummy but if he gets fussy at 2 a.m. you can bet your ass I roll him over on his tummy to get a few more hours of sleep lol. Paul slept on his tummy, I slept on my tummy, and if you're over 15 chances are you did too!!! Cooper has amazing head and neck control (always has) so we're not worried abou this suffocating or anything. He's never once been face down on his tummy... its just not a worry in this household. 

Right now Coop is sleeping peacefully in my arms. Thank god for laptops, it makes is so easy to surf the net/type while he's sleeping in my arms or I'm pumping. Seriously I would lose my mind without my laptop while pumping. hehe

We bought a Wii a couple weeks ago and man is it fun!!! I spent a couple weeks actually trying to find a store that had them in stock and finally Toys R Us got a shipment in so there I was standing in line when they opened (10 a.m.)... there was already 5 ppl in front of me and while I was waiting for my turn another 25 or so lined up behind me!!! But I got my wii!!! The bowling is so much fun. Paul and I have nightly 2 outta 3 tournaments with the bowling (I have yet to win ) but it sure is fun... gives a way to relax and have fun together. 

We're supposed to be getting our stimulus check sometime within the next couple of weeks... Thank god! We've been waiting on this damn thing for months! lol. Can't wait to get it. 

The weather got cool here agin... we're talking for 87* highs to 65* highs..., CAAARAAAZY!!! 

Well that's our little family update! I added some new pictures to the site under the June 2008 album so check them out!!! 

Loves to all the fam and friends!!! 

xoxoxo 

Amanda, Paul, Coop, Pebbs, and Mister!!!

48 hours (long update)

(This is a mixed post - Scroll down towards the bottom for a Cooper update if that's all you want lol)

48 hours.... That's how long it took for them to turn our power back on....

We had a bad storm come through on Sunday. It was so weird. I was setting up our Wii(woo hoo I finally got one!) when the power went out and then all of a sudden the wind was bending the trees in half, it was raining sideways, lightening, and thundering like crazy. We grabbed Cooper, Pebbles, Mister, some clothes, candles, and flashlights and ran for the basement. Paul called his mom to see if she had heard anything and she said that it was really - sirens were going off, tornadoes had been spotted, and 500,000 ppl were without power. We were only in the basement about 15 minutes... the storm was so fast. It came on fast and left fast.

So we come back upstairs, fully expecting the power to come back on any minute... I was so upset because I was setting up my Wii and was all ready to play bowling when the power went out. Then I had to sit there for 48 hours and stare at the box before I could play it!!! Torture! lol

Paul didn't go to work on Mon and Tues. Mon was a horribly hot day to not have a/c. At one point it was 89* in our house, ugh!

I was so worried about the 400+oz. of breastmilk I had in the freezer... all my hard work at the pump gone.... NOPE!! My mother in law had power so we loaded it all up and took it to her house!!! I lost maybe 40oz (4 frozen bags and a few bottles in the fridge). We of course lost everything else in the fridge... but fortunately because it wasn't quite the middle of the month (just before pay day) we didn't have much.... mostly condiments lol.

I was still able to pump! My pump came with a battery pack and I used that... damn thing takes 8 AA batts though!! Fortunately all Coops baby toys take batteries so we had enough on hand... Did have to steal a few outta his jumperoo though. But I had to pump...

Tuesday wasn't so hot and when I came back from the Ortho at 545 we had power. It was such a great feeling to walk into the house and turn on the landing light!!!

Of course Cooper didn't even notice we didn't have power... he still got his meals when he was hungry, had his swing, play mat, clean diapers, etc... nothing changed for him!!!

Anyways! Now for updates!!!

Wii - As I mentioned, we got a Wii!!! On the way to the potluck on Sunday we stopped at Toys R Us (I called and they got a shipment in that morning) and I bought a Wii. I've been wanting one for a while and I finally talked Paul into it... If it wasn't for the stimulus check we wouldn't be able to get it... That's supposed to come next week btw.

Wii bowling is so much fun!! Paul and I have competitions every night (so far he's won all of them lol) but I'm getting better... I'm not very good at real bowling either, but I do much better at Wii bowling lol... I want to get Mario Galaxy this weekend.

Cooper is doing great!!! I can't believe how big he is getting, it's crazy! I don't know how much he weighs though (we don't go to the pediatrician), but I will weigh him on our scale this weekend to get a rough idea.

Sleeping - He is a fabulous sleeper!!! He usually falls asleep around 10. At midnight (after my last pump and before I go to bed) I change his diaper and feed him - he sleeps through this. He will then sleep until 630ish. At that time I bring him to bed with me and he goes right back to sleep... sometimes he's a little fussy when I bring him to bed with me so I get up and feed him and pump (we're up for about an hour)... If he doesn't eat at 630 he's up around 830 for food... If he did eat at 630 we can sometimes sleep till 11!!! It's great!!! Today he woke up at 6, I flipped him over on his tummy instead of bringing him to bed with me and he slept until 830. By 930 he was sleeping peacefully in his swing and I napped on the couch until 11. He loves sleeping in his swing during the day now.

Tummy Sleeping - Cooper loves to sleep on his tummy. At first I was worried about it, but not anymore. He has such GREAT head control and I've never seen him face down before, he always has his face to the side. I'm still hesitant to let him sleep all night like this, but am okay with it in the mornings for a few hours while I'm sleeping. And of course during the day for naps is fine.

Babyhawk - I am finally breaking down and getting one of these... Baby Bjorn just doesn't cut it... it's cheap, and hurts my shoulders like crazy! Plus Baby Bjorns aren't good for babies spine, legs, hips, etc.... For those of you who don't know a BabyHawk is a front carrier. When I decided to get a better carrier it was a toss between the Ergo and theBabyHawk. I decided on the BabyHawk because of it's portability... the BH can fold up and fit into your purse... and Ergo doesn't. There is a slight learning curve with a BabyHawkthough as it's a tie carrier, but it looks quite easy. I will be ordering for this over the weekend and it should be here in about a month (it takes so long because they are custom made). BabyHawk and Ergo both hold a baby/toddler up to 40 lbs!!! I can't wait for this!!!

On being a Mommy - Everyone always tells you how exhausting being a mom is, and that's true... but it's also wonderfully fun! When people ask me how I'm liking it get a huge smile and exclaim "I'm having sooo much fun". Most of the time they smile, sometimes I get a crazy look, and sometimes they look at me like they think I'm lieing... I'm not! Being a mom is the most exhausting, exciting, fabulous job I have ever had and I wouldn't give any of it back!

I love holding my little man. I love looking into his eyes. I love seeing his smile first thing in the morning and all throughout the day. I love watching in laugh and smile at his play mat toys. I love watching him sleep in his swing...

My favorite part of the day with him is when I put him to bed. I carry him upstairs (He's sound asleep), change his diaper, and sit in the glider and feed him. While he's eating he makes these little sucking noises and sometimes grunts (like he does when he's tired). Now he's getting big enough that his legs hang over my legs when sitting in the glider. I can remember when I would hold him and his head would be at my elbow with his feet in my hands!!! Not anymore :( He's growing up so fast, this is bittersweet... I love seeing him grow and change, but I am torn between wanting him to stay this size forever and wanting to see him grow up to see what kind of man he will be.

I sit there feeding him thinking about all the wonderful adventures yet to come... teething, rolling over, crawling, walking, giggling, all the hugs and kisses he will give me, starting solids, school, friends, girlfriends (or boyfriend, no pressure either way! lol), graduation, college, marriage, grand kids... it's so amazing and so sad!!! I also think about the first time he pushes me away from a hug, the first time he doesn't want me to tuck him in at night, the first time he wants me to drop him off around the corner so his friends don't see me, the first time he lies to me... Saddening, but so exciting...

Well I'm almost milked out here (I'm pumping) and it's almost time to go to bed so off I go... to put my little man to bed!!

G'night world!!!