Milk-

It does a body good!



We picked Cooper up from camp today....what a difference a year makes.
Last year as soon as I drove up to the cabin, Cooper ran towards me at top speed.
This year, Jon and I drove up and got a nonchalant wave when he saw us.

It was a good feeling- and one that pulled at my heartstrings.
We got in the car, took a quick tour around the camp and headed home.

I offered him some milk as soon as we left the gates....his face was priceless.
It's hard to know exactly what the situation was, but he says that they only gave kids milk in the morning for their cereal. I cannot fathom not giving kids the option of drinking milk with their meals- sheesh.

Did he love it? No.
Did he have a good time? Yes
Does he want to go back next year? Not to this camp- he has a new appreciation for the camp he attended last year and I think we'll try to make that happen.
Did he have some funny stories? Yes!
Is he glad he went? Yes.
Is his confidence higher than when he left? Yes.
Is he glad to be home? YES!!

Are we glad to have him home?? YES, YES, YES!!!!

This Just In....

Jon went to the Post Office to grab our mail (yes, that's right- we don't have a mailbox at our house..it takes some getting used to but I LOVE it now!) and guess what was there???

Letters from COOP!!

Here is his post card-



We couldn't be more thrilled....
But, the best part was his letter (exactly as it was written)-

Dear Mom and Dad,

Top bunk is not that great, here is why the air conditioning can't get up here. Some things that have been cool are the wet willie, carpet ball, sailing, Ski School and our cottage. I am going to send you another letter tomorrow.

Love,
Cooper


P.S. Can you send some candy cause all the people in my cabin are stuffing down stuff.

Turn page



When I turned the page, this is what I saw-




Oh my word!!! If you know my kid then you realize how dire the situation is to have no milk. He can't get through a meal let alone a week without milk!!

I'll be packing a 1/2 gallon in a cooler for him to drink on the way home when I pick him up! Sweet little thing!!

Oh, my heart is so happy right now-

Funny Kid

Cooper came down wearing this sock combo and said-

"Hey Momma- look carefully at my socks. Tell me what group I'm wearing."

I didn't get it.

He said- "Momma- think about music groups and look at my socks. Think hard. Which group are they??"

I had NO idea.
I tried, I thought, I pondered what songs we had listened to together recently that might have given him an idea.

Nothing.

So he said, "think about the colors and the order that the socks are in. I think that will help you."

I gave up.
I didn't have a clue.

"Momma- see how the green sock is 1st...what does that remind you of? The earth??"

"MOMMMA- It's EARTH, WIND and FIRE!!!!"

Where does he get this stuff?
(and how long did it take him to put 3 pairs of socks on?)

I've got to give that kid props....he's got some pretty eclectic taste in music for a 10 year old!!

Free Roaming Pets...

Cooper and Jon went to PetSmart today.
This is the conversation I had with Cooper when he called me using Jon's phone.

Me- Hi honey
Him- Hi Momma, it's me!
Me- Well hi buddy, what's going on?
Him- Momma, we're standing in front of a guinea pig. I was wondering whether I could get one for my birthday.

Me- Ohhh, wow buddy. You know, I don't think that's a good idea.
Him- Why not?
Me- Well, I think maybe Gypsy would eat a guinea pig.
Him- No Momma, that won't happen. This guinea pig would live in a cage so Gypsy wouldn't be able to eat him.
Me- Hmmm, I still think it's not a good idea. What about a nice fish instead?


Thankfully they didn't come home with either. (whew-dodged a bullet there) It makes me laugh that clearly he thought that I thought there was an option for a guinea pig to NOT live in a cage. Have you ever??

Funny kid!

(my word, has it almost been a month since I last posted. I have been so nuts lately...good thing vacation is just around the corner!)

how do you eat this???

We went to a party yesterday...a surprise 50th birthday of epic proportion. The unsuspecting birthday girl was treated to about 150 friends and neighbors who turned out to celebrate in her honor.



We had a great time, met a ton of new people, ate amazing food and were entertained by a band who played until the wee hours of the night.



But quite possibly the most memorable part of the night was when Cooper tapped me on the shoulder and said,

"Hey Momma, how do you eat this??"



Jon and I have fond memories of attending an annual craw fish boil in our pre-Cooper years.....




And were more than happy to pass the experience on to him!

Here's to good friends, good food and making new discoveries!!

CIAA

One of the benefits of driving for hours each day with Cooper is that we have some really great conversations. It's the only thing that I'll miss when he transitions to his new school.

We were chatting yesterday and he started asking me questions.

Cooper- "Momma, do you know what SMPA is?"
Me- "Yes, St. M Parents Association"
Cooper- "That's right. What about the SMBA?"
Me- "Yes, St. M Basketball Association"
Cooper- "Ok, this is a hard one. What about the CIAA?"
Me- "Ummm...Colonial something Athletic Association?"
Cooper- "Nope, not even close"
Me- "I give up, what is it?"
Cooper- "It's the Cooper Is Awesome Association"
Me- "Well, I absolutely need to join!"

I love that little kid, he really is awesome!

Minimize it

This picture has nothing to do with my post...it just makes me smile. This is Aunt Kathy and Cooper at her big 5-oh birthday party. I love his grin and how adorable he looks in those crazy glasses. I also love how much they love each other!

I want to remember his goofy little grin (and those adorable baby teeth)..I also want to remember the funny things that he says. They are coming less and less often these days but every once and a while he says something that is priceless.

Coop and I were driving home and he was telling me about something on the computer. He explained that he couldn't see the whole thing at one time on the screen....

He said, "Since I couldn't see the whole picture, I decided to minnie mize it."
It was like he was saying Minnie Mouse except minnie mize.

I couldn't resist...and I made him say it again. Except he's getting too smart and he said- "you know the word momma, I'm not sure exactly how to say it."

"Minimize buddy. Minimize."

I wish I could minnie mize him....and keep him in my pocket all the time.
So sweet that one.

the note

when i woke up this morning, the 1st thing jon said to me was, "you may want to take a look at the refrigerator".

well, good morning to you too!

but after i took a look, it all made sense-



gone to man cave-
goodness, that little kid makes me laugh.

(and so does our fridge- that's another post though!!)

Tongue and Cheek

Yesterday we stopped at the drugstore to pick up a few things...
Cooper needed a new toothbrush and took great care in choosing one himself.

The one he picked had a tongue and cheek cleaner which impressed him. I didn't give it another thought.

Until, I walked into the bathroom last night and he was rubbing the back of the toothbrush on his cheek. The OUTSIDE of his cheek.

It took me a 1/2 second to figure out what in the world he was doing.

Goodness, he couldn't be any sweeter.
I ADORE that child...



And now, the INSIDE of his cheeks are appropriately maintained too.

Hope you hug your kid today...just like I hugged mine!!

happy halloween

Although my pictures aren't great, I think this was one of the best years in terms of Cooper's costume. There has been some stiff competition in the past- but this year was the 1st time that he decided his entire outfit.

He had an idea and he delivered.



Yup, that's him on the left with his friend L.

Cooper was a Monkey Suit. Get it??
We thought it was hilarious and genius all at the same time.

He found the mask at the grocery store and begged me to buy it.
Then, he figured out the rest of the costume on his own- painstakingly going through every pair of pants until he found just the right ones.

See how the pants have the stripe on the side, just like a tux does??
No matter that they're wind pants. They fit the bill.

I love that kid.
And the best part was how much fun he and L. had on their quest for candy.


But not before a little horseplay on the swings.


It makes me laugh whenever I see them-


The best was that the mask was too big so he had some trouble maneuvering. They'd be walking up the driveway and L. would make a turn onto the sidewalk and Coop would keep right on walking....a little kid in a suit with a purpose (oh, and a monkey head).

L (sweet kid that he is) ended up holding on to Coop and leading him from place to place to be sure that he wouldn't get tangled up in the shrubbery. Now, that's a true friend.

If you know me, you'll realize that this probably wasn't my 1st choice for his costume (or my 27th), but I got so overcome with pride that he did it on his own that it really didn't matter what he was. He loved it, he was proud and he had a great night.

I can't think of a better Halloween treat.

Hope yours was great too!

oh momma -look! i wanted you to see this....

those were words that cooper just said to me as we're snuggled up on the sofa to watch the world series.

what was he referring to you may wonder?

A GOUT COMMERCIAL.
What????

I said, "why in the world did you want me to see this?"
He said, "well, you said your foot was hurting, i thought you might have gout"

He's referring to the fact that I've been complaining about my heel hurting. I have plantar fasciitis....NOT GOUT.

My word.
That kid does make me laugh.

What's in a Name?

Cooper asked this on the way home today....

Hey Momma?
Is the reason they call them serial killers because they keep their weapons in a cereal box?


Wow- wasn't expecting that one, but I sure do love that kid!!

He wrote back! (sort of)

As we were getting ready for Irene to wreak havoc on us, I grabbed the mail.
Cooper was in the car with me and paid no attention as I pulled a large manilla envelope out of the mailbox.

A large manilla envelope addressed to my kid in loopy handwriting.
A large manilla envelope with THE WHITE HOUSE as the return address.

He asked his usual, "is there anything for me today?"
And this time my answer was exactly what he wanted to hear- "there sure is".

I wish I had my camera focused on his little face and had captured the wide-eyed look and smile that grew into a huge grin. I didn't- but it was perfect.

When he opened the envelope, he pulled out a letter, a signed picture of the prez, a picture of his family, a Q&A with the prez, and a special information card for Bo- the presidential dog. Cooper was so excited, he could barely focus- and after he tried to read the letter a few times on his own, he finally gave it to me and said, "He didn't say anything about the dogs, or the SPCA- but he says that if I work hard I can do lots of stuff".

So I read the letter- and while I tried to be positive (because it really was an inspiring message), there was a part of me that was so disappointed in the response. Yes, it's amazing that we even got a response, and yes, I realize that Cooper was one of thousands of kids who write....and really, we got so much more than I even anticipated- but there was a single thing about the letter that completely deflated me.

It said, Dear Student:

Really? Someone addressed the envelope by hand, and that's the best salutation they could come up with? Even a plain, Greetings from the White House! would have been better. Or has anyone heard of mail merge? Dear Cooper, would have been perfect- and not that much trouble.

But my sweet 9 year old didn't even blink at Dear Student.
Because the great thing about being 9, is that you believe that of course, the President would write back to you. And although he didn't say something specific about helping to save the dogs from no kill shelters, he did include a picture of his dog- so that means that it's all going to be ok.

Mission accomplished!

(to read Coop's letter and the story behind it, click here)

Thankful Thursday (Dear Mr. President)

Last week Jon and I were watching a movie- The Switch. Totally not kid appropriate which wasn't an issue, or so we thought. Cooper wandered in at the very end of the movie and it was on track for a happy ending so I didn't think there would be a problem. Except I was wrong. And so the fact that not all dogs lead happy lives became abundantly clear.



The below is the result of that knowledge....and was accomplished all by himself.

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

Dear Mr. President,

I am writing to you because I think that one thing that is very cruel is dogs being killed in killing shelters because they can’t find a home. How I discovered this terrible thing is I was watching a movie called The Switch and it talked about it, so I thought I would write you a letter and see if you could do something like tell the workers to send less dogs to the killing shelter and more dogs to the S.P.C.A. so more dogs could be saved! I have a wonderful golden doodle and can’t believe such brilliant mammals could be killed.


Also, I think that you sir should be on a ONE MILLION dollar bill!

Thank you.

Sincerely,


Cooper N. age 9
20 Cxxxxx Road, Virginia.
(The one with the basketball goal)


**************
I am thankful for an innocent 9 year old with a huge heart, a great sense of humor (even if he doesn't realize it), the gumption to follow through with what he believes in and faith in what our leaders may be able to accomplish.

I adore that kid.

And yes....the letter is on its way to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue (along with a disclaimer that we didn't let him watch the whole movie- I do have standards!!)

nothing better-

Cooper is a big fan of the present.
Big presents, little presents.....he's not picky. He loves them all.

He didn't realize that being an usher comes with a thank you in the form of such a gift.



He decided that he wanted to wait to open it- so with a hug, Wade headed to the Rehearsal Dinner with his groomsmen.



And then couldn't stand it anymore and opened the card.



I love his concentration, and that he's old enough to read "grown up" handwriting.

If you had given that little kid a million dollars, he couldn't have been more thrilled. When he opened the bag, the 1st thing he found was a T3rvis Tumbler that says "Don't Mess with Texas".

Perfect! For some reason, he thinks that slogan is awesome. He begged me for a shirt with those words and actually won the "Sharpest Dressed" at camp while wearing it. (clearly, the stakes were high!)

And then..stop the madness.........could it be????



Oh my word......it is...



Cooolllll!!!!



A genuine basketball jersey. Could anything be better??

Why yes. Yes it could.
The last words that Wade said to me before he walked across the street were-
"Tell him he can wear it tonight....and tomorrow night".

OH.MY.WORD.



Nana and Aunt Leslie watched the whole exchange and knew full well how happy he was-



He may as well have done cartwheels!



Me, not so much-



At least he's happy.

Tune in tomorrow to see the jersey in all it's glory at the WEDDING.

Nine

Cooper's last day as an 8 year old was spent at camp.
His last day at camp was his 1st day being a 9 year old.
Thankfully, camp ended at noon and I got to pick him up and spoil him for the remainder of the day!

While you're at camp, the only communication is via cards, letters and e-mails that are printed off and delivered to the campers after lunch each day.

This was our email message to our favorite 9 year old on the planet.

********

HAPPY BIRTHDAY COOPER!!!
happy birthday cooper!!!
hAPPy BIrtHdAy CoOPer!!!


Because you're turning 9, here are 9 things about you that are AWESOME-

1) You can shoot a foul shot (and make it!)
2) You can hit a home run
3) You are the funniest kid we know
4) You love animals, especially a really fluffy "dawg"
5) You are a splendid writer
6) You can tie your shoes
7) You are a good friend
8) You love GOD
9) You are the perfect little kid for our family!!

We love, love, love you!!
xoxo,
Momma & Dad


***********

We headed to the river to meet Jon & finish the birthday celebration.

Fortunately, I had planned every detail to make the most of his day.
Unfortunately, Jon didn't get the memo....



Fortunately, my sweet kid didn't mind one bit that his cake was a complete disaster.
Unfortunately, he needed quite a few blows to get ALL THOSE CANDLES taken care of.



Fortunately, his presents made up for any shortcomings with the cake.



Unfortunately, our blanket wrapping paper didn't conceal our gift for long!


Fortunately, there was a double rainbow on his big day.


Unfortunately, that meant we couldn't head out in the boat for some birthday fishing.


Fortunately, we were perfectly content to hang out with our river family and enjoy being together again!!


(yes, that's whole milk tied with a bow- Cooper's favorite and a treat that he only gets at the river!!!)

There's no place like home and nothing like feeling & being completely loved!!



Happy Birthday little kid!
We sure do love you-

Early Morning Exchange (or, Cooper loves Nubs)

Meet Nubs-



Cooper is obsessed with a book about a dog named Nubs that he checked out of the library this week. It's called Nubs, The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine & a Miracle and it's a wonderful story. You can click here to visit Nubs' website. The story is a must read and appropriate for any animal loving child (although it does touch on the war in Iraq, so be ready for a conversation)

Anywhooo.....the child is obsessed and will talk to anyone who will listen about the book.

Enter the following e-mail exchange that I had yesterday morning with Jon.

From: Jon
Sent: Tuesday, March 15, 2011 6:53 AM
To: Carolyn
Subject: Phone books

Hey do you mind if I donate our existing phone books to the school....The Peace Club is collecting phone books to recycle and they get money for them. I don't know the last time you used a phone book but for me its been at least 3 years. Plus it would open up new space for us.

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

From: Carolyn
Sent: Tuesday, March 15, 2011 9:53 AM
To: Jon
Subject: RE: Phone books

Sure honey, that's fine. I feel like I've used one pretty recently, but if it will help the Peace Club- I think I'll make it. What ever will we do with all the space created by giving away our phone books???

Oh and PS- You're funny!


********************
I wasn't expecting this to be his response....exactly how he wrote it (excluding the quotation marks).


From: Jon
Sent: Tuesday, March 15, 2011 9:58 AM
To: Carolyn
Subject: RE: Phone books

I'll tell you who's funny is our kid....

I told him I would try to read his book during practice last night. When he got back in the car to drive home, he said,

"so daddy did you get a chance to read any of the book?"

I said, "yea I read the first eight pages (I was lying) but I want you to read it to me tonight."

And he said, "That's sort of funny. How did you know you were on page 8? There aren't numbers on the pages." (So busted!)

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

When is my silly Neb going to realize that our kid is one smart cookie- and isn't easily outsmarted by his dad!

(which reminds me about the time that Cooper pulled a fast one with Jon and some math homework that he didn't want to do...but that's a story for another day!!)

Bottom line- read the book, warm your heart, and carry on Cooper's love for Nubs!

The 8th Year

As Halloween approached, I found myself excited about it. Last year we had such a great night. But his friend P had other plans and my attempts to create a stand in weren't successful.

Oh well, not to worry. This year we had Gypsy to provide comic relief and I thought that Cooper was going to dress up to coordinate with her.

She was a hot dog.



The plan was for Cooper to be ketchup.
So great!! Funny, creative and best of all....age appropriate.

I could hold my head high with my child dressing up as ketchup.

Except that's not what happened.

8 year old boys change their minds....and when you couple that with a trip to the costume store accompanied by your dad.....

Well, things go downhill fast.

I got the following text from Jon-

Him- Hey, how much is too much to pay for a Halloween costume?
Me- It depends....what is it?
Him- We have 2 options. Either a giant tootsie roll or Jason from Friday the 13th
Me- I don't care how much the tootsie roll costs. MAKE IT HAPPEN.

Oddly, there was no response to that text.
Imagine my dismay when my sweet, sweet child comes home and can hardly wait to show me his costume.....




And when he was all suited up....



I was so shaken that I couldn't even focus.
I tried to pull myself together....



He was sooo excited.
I had a few choice words for Jon who said,
"Come on, it's Halloween- it's ok to be scary"

I'm not bought in....
But he sure was excited to hit the streets!



Here's hoping that nothing too scary turns up on your doorstep tonight!

Geographically Challenged

Cooper and I were snuggling on the sofa this morning.
He was playing football on his PSP and I was checking e-mail.

This was our conversation-

Him- Hey Momma, help me pick the teams.
Me- Um, the Eagles?
Him- Ok, who should they verse?
(for more details on versing, click here)
Me- How about the Patriots?
Him- Are they from New England?
Me- Yes, do you know where New England is?
Him- Yea, it's in China.

I burst out laughing....I couldn't help it.
So, we had a quick lesson on exactly how far New England is from China and then, which states comprise New England.

Clearly he enjoyed summer a little too much...good thing school's back in session!



He does make me laugh!

The Beginning....

He did it!
He's officially in 3rd grade!



No tears, no worries....and no bath.
Whatever works!!!






We're so proud!

(photo by Coop, 3rd grader)