Cash Cab to the Cooper's, please

Hello blog readers! We've had a crazy kind of week around here. When I blogged last week I didn't feel well. I ended up getting sicker and after a trip to the Emergency Room early Wednesday morning I finally began to feel better. I have had a kidney infection and gallbladder issues. I go back to the doctor on Tuesday to find out more about that. But in the meantime I am feeling much much better! So that's good. It's hard to be sick when you've got two little ones. I thank God for my Mom and my wonderful husband who took care of the girls and everything else for a few days. What would I do without them? I don't even want to know.

So, needless to say, no skating for us this week. Carissa started pulling up to things this week. I think she surprised herself as much as she did me. She's a funny little thing. She talks to herself constantly while she is playing. I swear she is Maleah's twin - just four years later. I can not believe two kids can be so much alike.

I had a funny conversation with Maleah this week (well, many actually). She came and told me that she was pretending to be Mady from Texas (a friend of hers) and I was to be Maleah's mom (that's easy enough). She loves to pretend she is other people she knows. So here is how it went:

Her: "I'm Mady from Texas and I came all the way to Maleah's house in a cab."

Me: "Wow! That's a long way to go in a cab. I bet that was expensive!"

Her: "No, not really. It was the Cash Cab."

Me: "Oh. Did you have to answer a question to win a free ride?"

Her: "Oh yeah. They asked me "Where do hearts come from? And I said 'hmmm, Jesus I guess'. I was a big winner."

Me: "Good answer Mady."


Then last night for supper I fixed Shepherd's Pie. It's one of Jason's favorites. While we were eating it Jason asked Maleah "Do you think the shepherds used to eat Shepherd's Pie and that's how it got its name?" Maleah thought about it for a second and then she said "I don't know. Maybe. I'll have to ask God about that." I hope she tells me if she hears back from Him on that one. lol.


She cracks me up! She is always pretending to be somebody else. Maybe she'll be an actress one day. Who knows! She definitely keeps me laughing.

Eat, Sleep, Skate

Hey everybody! Sorry the blog is late but I just now got the computer back after its extended hospital stay. It was expected to be in there for 48 to 72 hours. But, it actually took 144 hours (or 6 days). The surgery was a success though and it is running great! Sort of wish I had insurance for that kind of hospital stay though...

So what's new with us this week? Same ol', same ol'. Eat, sleep, roller skate. That's us, baby. lol. I had the great idea to drive to Harrisburg on Friday night and go their somewhat new skating rink and to eat at one of our favorite restaurants there. Jason had to work but Mom and I and the girls headed south for some skating fun. We met our good friend Becky at Peking Palace and were very glad to get to visit with her. We were disappointed that the rest of the Staffords couldn't make it but it was short notice. The Chinese food was delicious too! So that part of the trip was totally worth the drive. But then we headed to the skate rink. What a disappointment! It was not near as nice as what we've gotten used to. It was small and there wasn't anything to do but skate! I know, I know. You're probably thinking "Isn't that what you went there for?" or "What did you expect??". Well, what I expected from this "Family Fun Center" (that is at least 30 years newer than the skating rink we've went to for the last several weeks) was a family oriented, full of activity, happenin' kind of place. What I found was a triple-wide trailer converted into a small skating-rink and packed full of cussing rowdy tweens who all happened to be really fast skaters. There were three parents in the room. One of the other ones was my mom. It was her idea to look around for a few minutes before we paid the 15+ dollars to get in. She is so smart! We didn't stay. We left with a very disappointed four year old. But luckily Fairfield was on the way home. Their skating rink was open until eleven that night. We got there about 8 o'clock so she still had lots of time to skate. It cost us $5 total for all of us to get in there and that included free mini glo-golf and free play area. They have a climbing/slide thing there that Maleah loves. So worth the five bucks! So, lesson learned: don't go looking for greener pastures; the pasture here is pretty nice.

So then we ate and slept some and went back to Fairfield again on Monday. They were having a daytime skate there because there was no school that day. So I rounded up my playgroup gals, whom I miss so much since school started, and planned a get-together at the skating rink. I also invited my friends Tina and Julie, who brought their kids, and Tina invited a friend who brought her kids. All together there were eight moms and seventeen kids in our group. We all had so much fun! I hope we can do it again next month on President's Day. Carissa loves to skate too! How does she do it? Well, she rides in her stroller and I push her on skates. And we go fast! It's actually a very good way to put her to sleep. Lucky for me, they're pretty laid-back at Skateland and didn't mind at all that I was out there with a stroller. How cool is that?

I wasn't kidding when I said "eat, sleep, skate". That's really about it for us this week. Anyone wanting a good workout should come with us next time! Just give me a call or email me at db.cooper1@verizon.net

Just another week...

Well, it was just another week here at the Cooper's. Not much really happened. Our computer is sick. I think it has a virus. It is going into the hospital tomorrow. Please keep your fingers crossed that the surgery is successful and that it gets to come home soon. If any techies out there reading this want to give me any free advice maybe the surgery could be avoided. Just a thought.

We went skating again this past weekend. It is so much fun! We had a blast. I had ordered Maleah a new pair of roller skates earlier in the week from the skating rink and they were in when we got there Friday night. I hadn't told her that I ordered them so she was surprised and very happy. They fit her perfectly and after about the first hour or so in them she started skating really good in them. At first she was just sort of walking in them - sort of a marching type of skate. She wasn't really rolling because they were a bit faster than her old skates. But after she got warmed up, she started skating skating. So she and I held hands and skated most of the night. When she took breaks to eat or play I skated by myself and really got my mojo back. I felt like I was 12 again! I wasn't quite as confident as I was back then but I was better than I was last week anyway. We had a super fun time and I can't wait to go back. Man, I wish there was a rink in our town. It is great exercise. I wish I could skate and push Carissa in the stroller while Maleah was at school. That would be a fun workout!

Carissa worked on her speed this week. I think she is preparing for the Baby Olympics. She can crawl fast! This week she has gotten out of my sight long enough to try to eat/possibly did eat cat food, play-doh, a chicken strip some other little girl carelessly dropped, and a few other things that I was unable to see but she zeroed right in on them. I am considering buying a baby gate to keep her out of the kitchen and all of the other rooms on that end of the house. I have been blocking the kitchen door with a chair and that limits her to the living room, hallway, and her bedroom. I keep the other bedroom doors down the hallway shut. Every time I have done this she sits by that chair and screams and throws the biggest fit because I won't let her into the kitchen. My sweet little "best baby in the world" suddenly has a little bit of a temper. Interesting. I wonder where she gets that from?

Jason's mom gave us a new recipe this week for something called "Arkansas Soup". She really liked it and thought we might as well. So I gave it a whirl tonight. It was good but I think I'd just as soon have chili or vegetable soup. They're my favorites. But anyway, here the recipe: 1 lb hamburger, 1 can chili beans, 1/2 can ro-tel, 1 can mixed vegetables, some onion, 1 can of minestrone soup, and tomato juice. Brown your hamburger and onion. Add in all of the other stuff and simmer. Very easy and pretty good.

Maleah got 6 inches of hair cut off this week. Her hair had gotten so long that I really couldn't do much with it and it just needed cut. After she got it cut it looks so much healthier and less stringy. She loves it too. She says she wished we would've gotten it cut even shorter. I'm not sure if I believe her or not.

Here's a picture of the girls in their coordinating outfits that our friend Jane from Georgia had sent them. They look so cute in them! Every time they wear them I always mean to get a picture of them to mail to Jane and I forget so this time I finally did it. Yay me! And thanks to Jane!

Boy-Crazy

Maleah is four years old and she is boy-crazy. Can you believe that? She loves to talk about her "boyfriends". She has four now.

She met Jake at her Uncle Craig's wedding over the summer. They were both crazy about each other and pretty much decided to be boyfriend/girlfriend right off the bat. She still says Jake is her boyfriend even though she hasn't seen him since. Anden is her other boyfriend. He is Jake's cousin, coincidentally. He goes to the sitter where Maleah sometimes goes. Then, when she started school this fall she met Wyatt. After the first week of school, she came home and told us she had a new boyfriend and his name was Wyatt Bryce. "Isn't that a wonderful name, Mom??" Umm, I guess. Meanwhile, all I can think about is if it like this now, what in the world are the teen years going to be like?

So last night she came and climbed in bed with me. She does this occasionally (okay, a little more than occasionally). She talks me to sleep. She has a lot to say to me that she forgot to say all day long when she was with me, I guess. Anyway, she whispered to me "I have a new boyfriend." I said "What happened to Wyatt?"

"Oh he's still my boyfriend, too"
"Oh really?
"We were in the hallway at school and I was standing by Ethan and I whispered in his ear do you want to be my boyfriend" and then she just giggled and giggled.
So then I said "what did he say".
Still whispering to me she said "he said yes". (more giggles)
Then she said "I hope he doesn't tell Wyatt". Then she thought for a while. Finally she said "what if they got into a fight over me? Wouldn't that be something? I like them both."

Where does she get this from? She's not allowed to watch half of the things her classmates watch. The kid's never even seen Spongebob Squarepants for crying out loud. Although I suspect Grandpa David might've overlooked the no Spongebob rule at least once. I hope she will always confide in me like that though. She's pretty sweet. Boy-crazy, but sweet.

Goodbye 2009 - Hello 2010!

It's hard to believe 2009 is already over. That was a fast year for us. We had a great year and can only hope 2010 will be just as good. Here's a not-so-brief look back. Sorry if I'm a little wordy - I just have a lot to say!



It's hard to believe that a year ago I was pregnant and driving back and forth to St. Louis twice a month to keep little Baby Cooper cooking longer than her sister did. The positive side to all of those trips was getting to eat out at all of the yummy restaurants over there.




By February I was even more pregnant and more miserable. I was now making a trip to St. Louis every week. I celebrated my 30th birthday. And by the end of the month I was on bedrest at home and was dealing with blood pressure through the roof and low amniotic fluid. I was drinking tons of water and trying to keep from going into labor. For my birthday, my mom paid for a lady to come and clean my house for me. Best gift EVER!!! With me on bedrest and Jason still having to work it was much needed.




I made it to March and was pretty sure that this baby would not make it to her due date of April 8th. I was actually wishing that she wouldn't. I was ready! By now, I was going to St. Louis twice, sometime three times, a week. It is a really long drive when you are nine months pregnant. I now know every clean restroom between here and there. I can tell you where to stop and where not to stop. I can tell you which restaurants are good and which aren't and which ones have drug deals going on behind the cash register. I had a couple short hospital stays for my blood pressure but got sent home each time with a baby still in my belly. I was beginning to think that I was going to have two daughters born on the same date. Luckily, that didn't happen. Carissa Faith Cooper was born on March 26th, four days after Maleah's fourth birthday. She weighed 6 lb. 11 oz. and was exactly 2 pounds bigger than her sister was. She was here and healthy and we were so thankful!




We made it to April and finally had time to have Maleah's first "friend" party. We hated to send out invitations to one in March, only to have to cancel it because I was either in the hospital or in labor, so we waited until April. It was at Charley Brown Park and it was lots of fun. Maleah had a blast. She has since been planning her next birthday party. She enjoys planning her party more than her actual party I think. We next celebrated Easter and Carissa turned a month old. She became a good little eater and a good sleeper almost right away. Thank God for that!





In May Jason's brother, Craig, and his fiancee LuAnn, got married. They make a wonderful couple and we were thrilled to welcome LuAnn into the family. Maleah was the flower girl. She did a great job at the rehearsal and a not-so-great job at the wedding. But oh well. Hopefully, her behavior won't serve as a big ol' dose of birth control to her aunt and uncle and one day she will have some cousins.






June and July flew by. My brother and his friends started a bike club and I joined. By the end of the summer I was able to ride about 12 miles on my bike and started to get in shape again. In June, the girls got a swingset in the backyard. Carissa has yet to enjoy it but we made sure that Maleah understood that it is not solely hers. Thanks to Daddy, Craig, Matt, Brad, and anyone else that might've helped when putting it together.
















Maleah started pre-k in August. She loves it! She was so excited on her first day.
It's hard to believe she's old enough to be going to school. She loves her teacher and has already learned lots since school started. When I ask her "what did you learn today?", she almost always says "to be quiet". Thank goodness for school! It's amazing how much work I can get gone when she's out of the house for 2 hours and 15 minutes.







September was pretty non-eventful. Carissa turned 6 months old. Jason and I celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary. The girls and I got into our school-year routine and the month flew by. October brought the Miley Concert and Halloween. Maleah was the cutest little cowgirl and Carissa made an adorable little snowman. She was all bundled up for a cold Halloween which turned out to be pretty mild. In Illinois you never know whether to buy a warm costume or a lightweight one!




In November I started Weight Watchers in order to lose some of this baby weight I'm still carrying around. So far I've lost 15 pounds and I'm pretty proud of that. Still have more to go though. Thanksgiving was here before we knew it and we got to see all of our families and have several fun get-togethers. Carissa discovered chocolate. Maleah and I started decorating for Christmas.




December was a whirlwind. Maleah had her first school Christmas program and Carissa turned 9 months old. She started to "creep" around on her belly but wasn't techically crawling. I went to Nashville on a 2 night shopping trip with my friends and had a blast. I met Gretchen Wilson and Cowboy Troy while I was there. Pretty exciting! Soon Christmas was here and gone. We celebrated with family and the girls got lots and lots of presents. We all did, actually.

So now it's the first week of January. Maleah's Christmas break is drawing to a close and she couldn't be more happy about it. The break has about killed her. She asks me every day if she has school that day. She can't wait to go back on Tuesday.

We celebrated New Year's Eve at Tim and RaeAnn's for a little bit and then ended up at our friends' house. We had a lot of fun celebrating with the DuQuaine's and the Kopacz's. Maleah actually made it to midnight for the second year in a row. Towards the end of the evening I started to get a sore throat. By the next morning I had laryngitis and have spent most of the last few days talking in a whisper, feeling good, but no voice.

On Friday night, Nikki and I took Maleah, Sophia, Madison, and Chloey skating in Fairfield. We got there at about seven o'clock and didn't leave until 11 o'clock. It was so much fun! I hadn't skated since I was in junior high but by the end of the evening I was doing pretty good.
Luckily, I never did fall but I was a little timid at first. We all can't wait to go back. They not only have skating but they also have games where you win tickets and then buy prizes with those tickets (kind of like Chuck E. Cheese's), glow-in-the-dark mini golf, and a big indoor slide/climbing thingie. The kids loved it! It was definitely worth the drive to Fairfield. Maleah desperately wanted this pink and brown stuffed butterfly in the prize counter. She needed 125 tickets to get it. She had 25 tickets. I had 4 more quarters in my pocket and I said that I would try to win her some more tickets. I spent 75 cents and hit the jackpot on the spinning light game. It spit out 300 tickets at us. We drew a crowd and were the envy of all of the kids. In their eyes, we had just won the lottery.
So Maleah got her butterfly and the other girls all got to pick out a stuffed animal too. And we still had tickets left! So needless to say, we came home with quite a bit of junk and less money than we started out with but we had a great time!

In other news, Carissa is OFFICIALLY crawling now. She has it figured out and is all over the place much faster now. You can just tell that she is so proud of herself! She also has a new tooth on top. I think I forgot to mention that last week. She has a couple that are on the verge of popping through but still haven't yet. She has had a cold but it is getting better. Poor baby! It's the first time that she's ever been sick for longer than a day.

2009 was a great year for us and I hope 2010 will be great for us and for you too. Here's to 2010!!!

Sorry if this was the longest blog ever. : )