My wish...

Driving down the road the other day, I heard the song by Rascal Flatts - "My Wish" on the radio. I have never really paid attention to the lyrics before, but for some reason started "really" listening to them. It almost brought tears to my eyes thinking about sweet little Cooper and I couldn't help but wish all of these things for him:

I hope you never look back, but you never forget
All the ones who love you and the place you left
I hope you always forgive and you never regret
And you help somebody every chance you get

Oh, you'd find God's grace in every mistake
And always give more than you take
But more than anything, more than anything

My wish for you is that this life becomes all that you want it to.
That your dreams stay big and your worries stay small
And you never need to carry more than you can hold



I pray that I can raise a strong, God-loving man that will connect with, inspire, help and love people the way his daddy does.

This is really my 5 month post

Cooper is 5 months old! Well, technically he is 5 months and a few weeks, but who's counting (ahheemm....I am!). I wanted to write down some of his "milestones" so when I actually get around to working on his baby book, I can reference the blog.

What Coop loves:

• Eating his vegetables - carrots and sweet potatoes are your favorite. You don't like peas..at all! You also love fruit...no suprise there. You make a huge mess...we learned to just go with a diaper and a bib to avoid ruining any more clothes.






• Laughing at Jack, pulling his ears, and poking him in the eye! He has definitely discovered his doggy and loves him very much. I think the feeling is mutual. Jack is just waiting for the day Cooper can run around with him. Jack is so sweet, too. He lets Coop mess with him and doesn't even bark or growl. He just lays there!



• Rolling, flipping, and scooting around. You are a very determined mind and will find a way to get to what you want (usually the remote or my cell phone is tops on your list!)



• Smiling! All the time - you're a HAPPY baby!


• Laughing at Jackson! Boy- he can turn a frown upside down.


• Looking at yourself in the mirror. (I wonder, do you know that's YOU?)


• Being outside. I hope this continues into the future, because we're an outside kinda family!


• Reaching up for Mommy when you are in your baby Einstein and want out. It really makes my heart MELT!


• Your baby Einstein has become your favorite toy. You will play with it for a good 30 minutes at a time. You have learned to turn completely around in it!


• Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Yes, I'm that mom that let's him watch TV. I'm not sure if he really knows what is going on and his attention span is about 10 minutes. But hey - it gives me time to make my breakfast and enjoy it!


• Going anywhere...you love all the attention you get and looking around at all the new things you see especially the signs at Krogers. Sometimes you have that "scared" look on your face...it's priceless.


• To stand and try to walk. Your legs are strong (so is your grip!). We might be using Jack's leash sooner than we though! ha ha!


• To pull my hair! (see grip comment) Ouch!


• To babble in the morning when you wake up. Andrew and I just lay in bed and laugh hysterically at you.


• To eat your feet!


• Grabbing at anything and anyone you can get your hands on!

5 month stats:

• Weight - approx. 14 lbs. (maybe more)



• Height- not sure, but he is SHORT! All his shorts are pants and his pants...well...we need to get them hemmed or something!



• Wears 3-6 month clothing



• Eats about every 3 hours...formula, cereal, fruit and vegetables.


• Sleeps good on most nights. Bedtime is between 8-9pm...wakes up around 7 or 8. Might wake up during the night, but nothing a pacy can't solve. Put it back in and right back to sleep! We are soon going to "teach" him how to put himself to sleep. When I get enough energy.

Happy 5 months!

Future VOL in the making

Cooper was born to be a VOL. His Daddy and Mommy are Vols. So is Gramps and Aunt Katie, and pretty much everyone else we know. Jack even roots for the Big Orange. I think one day he might even go to UT. That's if HE turns down Harvard, MIT, and Duke first...ya know, to stay close to home.

We decided a football game with 100,000 screaming fans, a loud band, and lots of sun, was not a good place to take a four month old. So he will have to wait until next season to see his first UT game.

We took a few shots in his UT hat before we headed out:

Four

A lot has been happening around here since my last post. This little guy turned 4 months old...

Ain't he cute?

Cooper has been bonding with Jack...

and sleeping on his back...

and with his Daddy ...

Hanging with Gramps...

and spending afternoons with Nana while Mommy is at work.

He's very loved by Jack...

tasting his first cereal..."eww...what is this stuff?"

"umm..not so bad"

News around town...

These past few weeks have been spent in the sweltering heat of a Tennessee summer...trying to stay inside and cooled off! It's a sauna out there! This is my last day before "go back to work week" begins! Yikes! I remember thinking in April how much time I am going to have with Coop before I have to go back...yet here it is!! I am very blessed though to have Nana care for Cooper while I will work 1/2 days at school. So I won't be gone from him for long! He simply is the love of my life! (along with his daddy, of course!)

Last weekend was spent in HOT-LANTA with my girlfriends!! I was sad to leave Coop, but we had an awesome time shopping, eating, and just catching up. It was nice to wake up to...nothing. Don't get me wrong, I love seeing Cooper in the morning, but all the moms out there know what I mean!

Andrew has been busy working on and tweaking his new product, The Perfect Putting Board, which should hit the market VERY soon! He has been "inventing" this training aid for about a year now and it is finally a finished product. He sold 50 yesterday! Woop Woop! For all your blog readers/golfers out there you can check out the website at http://theperfectputtingboard.com/ .

Cooper is continuing to grow and change each and every day. He will be 4 months old next week! I promise I'm gonna upload a video soon!

Mini vaca in the minivan with our mini Coop!

This past weekend, Andrew, Cooper, Jack and I headed to Lake Lure for a much needed mini-vaca. We enjoyed visiting the town, hanging out on the lake, and simply relaxing. As you can imagine, Jack LOVED the dock and jumped off it about 100 times. He even followed Andrew around as he paddled in the canoe one early morning while me and Coop were sleeping. It was extremely hot, so most of our afternoons were spent inside...it was just too hot for Cooper to be anywhere else! We can't wait to visit again next summer when Cooper can enjoy the water more!

Dad and Cooper hanging out of the dock

Kisses for Coopy

Beautiful sunset one evening from our dock

He's a keeper

Can you guess which one is mine?

This great mexican restaurant had a nice patio and even let us bring Jack! As you can see, it was too hot for Coop-man and he just fell asleep!

Lake Lure is where Dirty Dancing was filmed. Here is Baby's Cabin

And Johnny's Cabin

And of course a few pics of Jack enjoying his time: