It happened again this weekend. The frantic sweating. And I know every single mom out there with a kiddo like Cooper can relate. Cooper and I spent a lot of time at the beach this past weekend. When we first got there I noticed another mom who looked a lot like me. My age, blonde, 3 young boys, camping. She was me. If I had to guess I would say her boys were probably ages 7, 4 and 2. I am a super observant person and I watched this mom a lot. First,…
Read MoreI got really mad at a little girl this weekend. As I write that sentence I realize that you will probably think I’m crazy. And I even made fun of myself after. But, it is what it is. Cooper and I spent the weekend at the lake. (I have more to write about that later.) It was a great weekend. Lots of sun and beach time. My favorite. As we arrived at the beach on Friday afternoon, Cooper let me know that he wanted to swing. There were two bigger…
Read MoreI’m no expert in parenting and half the time I am holding my breath waiting for something to explode but lately, dare I say it, I feel like we’ve settled into a good routine with Super Cooper. I have worked with therapists and teachers and also got lots of amazing advice from fellow bloggers. Here is a list of things that have made our life easier. When Cooper gets stressed out we immediately do a hug, tickle or throw him up in the air. If we are home one of…
Read MoreI realized that I haven’t done an actual Cooper update in a long time. I tend to get very caught up in how I feel about all of this and often my posts take on a sad feel. And I don’t want it to be like that ALL the time. Cooper has come a long way. I know that in my heart and need to remind myself of it daily. He is adorable and so sweet and so loving. He gives and gets a million kisses a day. He enjoys…
Read MoreCoopers quirks are showing more every day. There is no more hiding behind age. He is the size of a 4-5 year old. He’s also so loud that blending in isn’t an option either. He is ALWAYS making noise and it’s loud. I am sitting here observing him as he watches his trains. He borders between pure joy and stress. He’s flapping and jumping and making nonstop noise. Think shrieking. Every change to the track or train brings very obvious stress to him. To me, there is zero FUN in…
Read MoreLast night Cooper refused to eat dinner. (What’s new, right?) There was kicking, screaming, head hitting, throwing, etc. The whole ordeal lasted a little over an hour. I got it into my head that this kid was taking one bite of pasta. And I wasn’t giving up. After the first time-out Cooper took a bite. And then pulled out the gagging. And spit it out. He shoved his plate, threw his fork, dumped out his milk, and dropped a few handfuls of pasta on the floor. I went about my…
Read MoreWe had a victory and an epic fail today. And all in the 3 hours after work. Nothing like cramming a full day in a few hours. Cooper is afraid to ride our lawnmower. It’s hard to explain. He loves it and wants Jamie to drive it. He even wants Sawyer to ride with Jamie. He gets super excited and amped up when it is going. But the second you try and put him on it he loses his shit. Lately I have been noticing that he is afraid of…
Read MoreLife has been crazy lately. And again, in a way, I love it because I don’t dwell on the little things. I ran a half marathon yesterday and I’ll tell you that one thought crossed my mind a dozen times. ‘One more step and maybe Cooper will talk.’ So silly, right? I can’t help it though. It’s the way my mom brain works. I am his voice. I am strong for him. When the running gets tough I always think of him. Like maybe in God’s spare time he is…
Read MoreWhen we bring the boys to a store we know that Cooper is a wildcard. And if you saw us you would probably have two thoughts….1. That mom is freaking insane and/or 2. Her kids are so well behaved. Why is she running around like a sweaty lunatic? Funny, right. When I bring Cooper out I know that I will be the one that needs to manage the situation. Jamie always takes Sawyer. I will be armed with multiple kinds of snacks, a drink, a sucker, a phone, etc. If Cooper gets…
Read MoreWhen Cooper was (mis)diagnosed with a moderate hearing loss in both ears at age 2 I thought the world was ending. Dramatic…YES. But, I am an honest person and that is how I felt. I kept picturing him getting teased. He had just turned 2 and it was the beginning of the bad. (although I didn’t know that at the time.) I had a new baby and I was fighting the baby blues and nursing and I was told that my 2 year old would never hear birds chirp or…
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