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| Easter Celebration/Egg Hunt at church |
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| There's chocolate in these eggs! |
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| Uncle Joe and Aunt "Care-kee" |
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| Kisses from Gigi |
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| "Mah (more) eggs!" |
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Easter 2012
Here are some pics from our Easter weekend. Lots of egg hunts, food, chocolate, and family time!
Sunday, February 12, 2012
I'm 2!
Cooper's 2! It's been one heck of a week, starting with a trip to KidMed on Monday night (i.e. his birthday eve) because of wheezing and labored breathing that we couldn't ignore. After several nebulizer treatments, x-rays, and steroids, we finally got home and tucked the birthday boy in around 11:30pm. He woke up bright and early on his birthday and we mustered as much energy as we could to make it a special day. We changed our plans to go to the zoo or children's museum because he was still under the weather, and instead had a low-key day at home. For Cooper, it was probably the best day ever because he got to do whatever he wanted, with mommy and daddy fully engaged for the entire day! We did venture out in the afternoon to the pet store (to see the fish) and to Target (to pick out a toy).
We officially celebrated yesterday with family and friends at an Elmo-themed party. It was a fun time even though Cooper was in a major mood and decided to show his anti-social side for one of very few times in his life. I guess that's the 2 year old reminding us who's in charge. For me, the highlight of the party was when we sang Happy Birthday to him. He finally broke into a smile, then signaled "more" ("mah", with a finger to his chin)...so we sang it a 2nd time. Also notable is that Cooper actually ATE cake and ice cream this year - he would not touch it on his 1st birthday.
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| Cooper, Julian, and Eliott enjoying cake and ice cream |
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| Happy Birthday to You |
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| Papa lending a hand |
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| Favorite hiding spot during the party |
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| Whew, long day. Sitting in the chair from Mommy and Daddy. |
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| Happy in my chair |
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| The family around the Elmo cake |
Saturday, January 7, 2012
Sunday, January 1, 2012
23 month update
Cooper is almost 2 years old! It's been fun to watch him reach some new milestones recently. He is transforming into a little person right before our eyes. Here are some recent developments:
-Each week he learns new words. This is huge, as he didn't really start talking until a few months ago. Some of his favorites: ball, moo, baa, cluck-cluck, bow-wow, quack, clock, shoes, dada, mama, papa, kitty, car, boat, coat, book. His go-to's are "okay" and "uh-huh" - says them all the time.
-Communication in general is improving. He's able to make choices, such as picking between 2 options for breakfast. Still has his share of tantrums, but they have eased up a bit because of this.
-Every night before bed we practice pointing to his family members. He correctly identifies us and all of his grandparents, aunts and uncles. Recently, he started calling my dad by name ("Papa") during this little exercise. This happened completely out of the blue. He also says "mama" and "dada" for us.
-Eating continues to be our biggest challenge - he is beyond picky and accepts a very limited range of foods. In fact, he'll start seeing a speech/feeding therapist this month to help with his language development and diet. On the flip side, he finally embraced independent eating about a month ago. I was having visions of spooning yogurt into his mouth when he was 18 years old, so this makes me very proud. :)
-Despite his wacky diet, his growth is perfect - about 29 lbs. and 35 inches - so luckily that is not a concern.
-Cooper's embracing sleep more than ever, and we're getting spoiled. He sleeps till 7 or 8am and takes an afternoon nap, which lasts anywhere from 1-3 hours depending on the day. It's awesome after months and months of sleep deprivation and waking up at 6am or earlier!
-He continues to be an extremely strong-willed little boy. Our pediatrician assures us this will be a good quality as he grows up to be a leader. Luckily, he is also a sweetheart, a charmer, and a goofball. (Sound like someone we know?)
-Recently Cooper's been saying the "p" sound a lot - sometimes correctly and other times, well, not. On Christmas Day, we pointed to his new train and asked him to say "choo choo" - but instead, he said "poo poo". He also says "poo poo" every time we point to his new UVA shirt. Still can't figure that one out... (No wise cracks from any Tech fans!)
-His biggest interests by far are books, animals, and Sesame Street. He loves to be read to, but also enjoys sitting alone in his rocker/glider and flipping through the pages of his books. As for Sesame Street, it all started with an Elmo obsession, but now he loves all of the characters. He can point to them when you say their names (even the more obscure ones like Abby and Zoe - we had to brush up on our Sesame Street knowledge recently!). And animals in general are always a win - in books, stuffed, in person, on flashcards, etc. He loves them.
-We are ringing in 2012 with Cooper's first stomach bug :( Seems the worst is behind us, but not a fun day for the little guy.
-Each week he learns new words. This is huge, as he didn't really start talking until a few months ago. Some of his favorites: ball, moo, baa, cluck-cluck, bow-wow, quack, clock, shoes, dada, mama, papa, kitty, car, boat, coat, book. His go-to's are "okay" and "uh-huh" - says them all the time.
-Communication in general is improving. He's able to make choices, such as picking between 2 options for breakfast. Still has his share of tantrums, but they have eased up a bit because of this.
-Every night before bed we practice pointing to his family members. He correctly identifies us and all of his grandparents, aunts and uncles. Recently, he started calling my dad by name ("Papa") during this little exercise. This happened completely out of the blue. He also says "mama" and "dada" for us.
-Eating continues to be our biggest challenge - he is beyond picky and accepts a very limited range of foods. In fact, he'll start seeing a speech/feeding therapist this month to help with his language development and diet. On the flip side, he finally embraced independent eating about a month ago. I was having visions of spooning yogurt into his mouth when he was 18 years old, so this makes me very proud. :)
-Despite his wacky diet, his growth is perfect - about 29 lbs. and 35 inches - so luckily that is not a concern.
-Cooper's embracing sleep more than ever, and we're getting spoiled. He sleeps till 7 or 8am and takes an afternoon nap, which lasts anywhere from 1-3 hours depending on the day. It's awesome after months and months of sleep deprivation and waking up at 6am or earlier!
-He continues to be an extremely strong-willed little boy. Our pediatrician assures us this will be a good quality as he grows up to be a leader. Luckily, he is also a sweetheart, a charmer, and a goofball. (Sound like someone we know?)
-Recently Cooper's been saying the "p" sound a lot - sometimes correctly and other times, well, not. On Christmas Day, we pointed to his new train and asked him to say "choo choo" - but instead, he said "poo poo". He also says "poo poo" every time we point to his new UVA shirt. Still can't figure that one out... (No wise cracks from any Tech fans!)
-His biggest interests by far are books, animals, and Sesame Street. He loves to be read to, but also enjoys sitting alone in his rocker/glider and flipping through the pages of his books. As for Sesame Street, it all started with an Elmo obsession, but now he loves all of the characters. He can point to them when you say their names (even the more obscure ones like Abby and Zoe - we had to brush up on our Sesame Street knowledge recently!). And animals in general are always a win - in books, stuffed, in person, on flashcards, etc. He loves them.
-We are ringing in 2012 with Cooper's first stomach bug :( Seems the worst is behind us, but not a fun day for the little guy.
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| At the Children's Museum (he was having fun despite the look on his face!) |
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| Mr. Heart Breaker flirting with the lady at the next table over |
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| Wheeee down the slide at Romp-n-Roll |
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Christmas 2011
Hard to believe Christmas is over. Though Cooper didn't fully grasp the holiday, he has definitely enjoyed elements of it. He has been completely obsessed with Christmas trees, running into our family room every morning and yelling "teeeeee!" at the top of his lungs. When asked what Santa says, he responds "ho ho". We enjoyed some fun events around town this month, including cutting down our own tree at a local tree farm, seeing the Grand Illumination downtown, and driving around Midlothian neighborhoods to see the lights.
We spent Christmas Eve at the family service at church. Cooper completely surprised us and sat quietly the entire service. He adores people-watching (and the goldfish didn't hurt, either).
Christmas morning was very different this year, as we were at home for the first time ever. The Huffmans and Jason's aunt came over for breakfast and gifts. (I felt pretty grown-up making Christmas breakfast and using my Christmas china for the first time!) Around noon, we headed to my parents' house for the Browning Christmas. Then we topped it all off with the extended Huffman family Christmas that evening. And 2 days later we celebrated the extended Browning family Christmas. Needless to say, it was a whirlwind and this has been a week of recovery. :)
The highlight and what makes the crazy busy month of December all worth it was spending time with family and seeing Cooper light up around them.
We spent Christmas Eve at the family service at church. Cooper completely surprised us and sat quietly the entire service. He adores people-watching (and the goldfish didn't hurt, either).
Christmas morning was very different this year, as we were at home for the first time ever. The Huffmans and Jason's aunt came over for breakfast and gifts. (I felt pretty grown-up making Christmas breakfast and using my Christmas china for the first time!) Around noon, we headed to my parents' house for the Browning Christmas. Then we topped it all off with the extended Huffman family Christmas that evening. And 2 days later we celebrated the extended Browning family Christmas. Needless to say, it was a whirlwind and this has been a week of recovery. :)
The highlight and what makes the crazy busy month of December all worth it was spending time with family and seeing Cooper light up around them.
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| Picking out our Christmas tree at the tree farm |
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| The child who eats nothing decided to eat Santa's cookies. We took the chance that Santa would understand, and apparently he did. |
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| Christmas Eve family photo |
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| Looking at a"bubble" (Cooper's name for snow globes) on Christmas morning |
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| Cooper's toys from Santa |
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| Lovin' on Elmo from Aunt Amanda and Uncle Sam (photo courtesy of Peter) |
Thursday, December 15, 2011
2011 Year in Review (Abbreviated)
I sat down to write our annual Christmas letter this week, and quickly came to the realization that with social media, most folks have kept up with us throughout the year already. (If you're new to Ashley's blog, I encourage you to check out this year's posts.) And besides, telling you about the minutia of our jobs, travels and tantrum management techniques probably bores most readers to tears. Especially in a year when many of the people we care about are battling illnesses, employment challenges and other hardships that put life in perspective. I did, however, peruse our 2011 photos and came to the conclusion that photos tell a better story anyway. So, enjoy our year in review vicariously through the many faces and phases of our boy, Coop.
Wishing you a Merry Christmas and a happy, healthy and encouraging 2012.
Love,
Jason, Ashley & Cooper (Schroeder & George, too)
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| Birthday Cooper |
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| Angry Bunny Cooper |
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| Spring Cooper |
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| Strawberry Cooper |
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| Contemplative Cooper |
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| Silly Cooper |
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| Swimming Cooper |
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| Surfing Cooper |
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| Surfcomber Cooper |
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| Farmer Cooper |
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| Catalog Model Cooper |
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| Tree Hunting Cooper |
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