Five Months

Five Months, Cooper!  Really?!!  Everyone said that it would happen faster than I could imagine, and they were right.  And now look at you: five months old and HUGE!  

We celebrated your five month birthday with your first taste of rice cereal.  I honestly can't believe that we are at the "solids" phase in your diet.  These five months have absolutely flown by!  You seemed to really enjoy the cereal.  I was surprised that you actually knew how to swallow it.  For some reason, I just imagined you would push it out with your tongue.  You ate about half the bowl, and then let us know that you were finished by blowing bubbles each time you were given a bite.  You have been doing the same thing with your bottles- always blowing those bubbles! 

We fed you cereal again yesterday and I think you liked it even more than the first time you tried it.  You finished the bowl, and then practically licked it clean!  You dropped a feeding this month- woohoo!  Now you are eating 6 times a day (7:30, 11, 2, 5, 7:30, and 10).  This feels like the first time that I've had you in a routine that you seem to really enjoy!

You have had a busy month, Coopy!  We drove up to Oklahoma so you could spend time with Lolly & Pop.  They love you so much, Cooper!  Then the following weekend, Pops came in town from Memphis to spend time with you, Ellie, and Blake.  You had a great time being held by him and getting in a ton of fun cousin time!  I can't wait for you to be good friends with E&B.  You seem to already know that they are "your people."  I am already looking forward to Christmases, birthday parties, and weekends spent with your sweet cousins- you three will definitely find some ways to have fun!

You are growing so quickly, big guy!  You are 25 inches long and around 15 1/2 lbs.  Whew!  That means that sometime this month, you doubled your birth weight.  Way to go, Coop!  You wear size 2 diapers and mostly 3-6 month clothes (although I can still cram your tiny little butt into 0-3 months pants at times!)  I still think you are the perfect size, baby boy!

You "competed" in your first race ever this month.  Daddy pushed the stroller in his 5K at Baylor, and you got so relaxed that you fell asleep.  The following weekend, we went up to Austin for the Capitol 10K.  You stayed bundled up with Mommy during that race and were waiting at the finish line to cheer Daddy on to a great finish!

While we were in Austin, we got to have a great visit with our sweet friends Sarah & Michael.  Sarah is one of your best Aunts- I am so excited for you to get to know her, Coop!  We also took a special trip to Whole Foods, which seemed to be your favorite grocery trip ever!  You kept flashing that big toothless grin at everyone who walked past our cart!  I used to be so scared to take you out in public, because I was afraid you would cry and I wouldn't know what to do.  Now, I see that you thrive when you are around people (like your Daddy)!  You are such a little flirt, with those long eyelashes!

You have been increasingly alert, Cooper.  A couple of weeks ago, you discovered your toes!  You are always grabbing them while on the changing table.  I can see the wheels turning in your head already- you are thinking, "how can I get these in my mouth?"  I guess I just have to accept the fact that it's only a matter of time before you figure it out.  

This month we tried out your Excersaucer for the first time.  I would say you are somewhat entertained by the toys on it.  Your favorites are the lion hand puppet- which makes you belly laugh when you see it- and the little wire that you push the beads over.  You will sit there totally quiet for ten minutes just pushing the beads back and forth.  It's kind of amazing to watch you focus so intently on pushing those little beads!

You are still a champ at bedtime, praise the Lord!  You sleep 9-10 hours a night, with 3 hour long naps and 1 1-2 hour nap.  You must get that from your mama, because Daddy isn't a big nap taker.  Sometimes you go down very easily for a nap, and sometimes you fight it!  When you get really upset during nap time, the only things that calm you down are walking out to see the front yard or looking at your reflection in the mirror.  Maybe you realize how silly all of that fussing really is!  This month we started giving you your lovie at bedtime.  We are hoping that the lovie will comfort you a little bit during bedtime, since you aren't really into the paci.  

Usually you just chew on the lovie- but sometimes you will accidently drape it over your face, which scares you a little.  There have been so many times when we've crept into your room to find you fast asleep, just like this:

A couple of weeks ago, you went to the zoo for the first time!  You stayed awake the entire time, just happy to be rolling along in the stroller.  I took you out a few times to show you the animals, but you didn't seem that interested.  I thought that you would love the giraffes, since you are obsessed with chewing on your Sophie, but you were more interested at people watching.  Oh well!

This month you had your first cookout in Cameron Park!  A bunch of friends got together to grill out and play games for Kat's birthday, and you seemed to have a great time.  Of course, you love any opportunity to be around Corban and Clayton (your big boy friends).  

You had a great time, but were so tuckered out by the end of the night!  I LOVE your sweet sleepy face, baby boy!

I have had a hard time this month, accepting the fact that you are growing up so quickly.  I am proud of the milestones that you have accomplished so far, but I definitely don't feel like I am pushing you to crawl or walk anytime soon.  I treasure you, my sweet boy!  I love snuggling with you and singing to you when you are curled up on my chest.  I know that it won't be long until you are mobile and would rather scoot around than sit in my lap, and so I have been trying to savor each sweet moment I have with you.  You grow so peaceful when we sing to you, just looking up at us with those big, blue eyes.  Your favorite songs are "Jesus Loves Me,""Jesus, Savior," "My Little Buttercup" from The Three Amigos, and "Three Little Birds" by Bob Marley.  I have to say that I am really proud of you for enjoying multiple genres of music.

Cooper Hudson, you are one of the greatest gifts that Daddy and I have ever been given.  We love you with everything in us!  Right now, precious boy, you truly make our worlds complete.  I love your curiosity; I love your playfulness; I love your happy heart; I love your purity; I love your sweet, content smile.  I cannot wait for you to know the lengths, and depths, and heights of the love of the Father.  His love for you is SO GREAT, and I am so excited for you to know it!

Happy Five Months, Baby Coop!

Bearathon

Cooper had several "firsts" this week, and one of them that was especially exciting was completing his first race with Daddy!  Todd has a 2011 goal to run in 5 5Ks and 2 10Ks, and his first 5K of the year was the Bearathon at Baylor this weekend.  Over the past couple of years, Todd has run the Bearathon Half-Marathon twice (and would love to run it again!), but because the intense training that would be needed to complete the Half-Marathon would take away from his time with little Cooper, he decided to just stick with the 5K this year.  Running 5Ks is a piece of cake for Todd- in fact, the night before the race, Todd was out until midnight celebrating his birthday with poker, cigars, and beers!  So much for being well rested on race day!

But overall, Todd did great!  He has only run with Cooper in the jogging stroller a few times, but decided that he wanted to run with his boy on race day!

Here they are- crossing the finish line in around 27 minutes!

 Way to go, Daddy!  Cooper didn't make a peep the whole race- and I am guessing that towards the end of it, that sweet boy fell asleep!

 I was definitely a proud wifey and a proud mama!  I love my big guy and my little guy!

This is the face of a champion, right here!  I am so excited to get to cheer you on in your future sporting events, Baby Coop!  

                            

Airplane Fail

I was uploading some pictures from my phone to my computer this morning, and I stumbled across this little gem:

I guess I should know better than to do airplanes with Cooper right after he eats!  Being a parent sure can get messy!

Weekend in Oklahoma

Last weekend Todd went on a ski trip to Salt Lake City and Park City, so what did Cooper and I do?  We loaded up the car and headed up to Oklahoma for a weekend with Lolly and Pop!  Wooooohooooooo!!!

Besides Mommy & Daddy, I am not sure if there is anyone who loves you, Coop, quite like your Lolly.

But what's there not to love about you?  You are such a sweetheart!

Cooper had a great time going on walks with Lolly, hanging out in the garden, shopping in Norman, and taking baths in the kitchen sink.  I had a great time letting Lolly change EVERY SINGLE diaper!

Our weekends visiting Lolly and Pop are pretty relaxing, to say the least.  At 4 months old, you unbelievably get the idea.

One of my favorite things about the weekend was accomplishing one of my 2011 goals: learning how to sew!  Yay!  I've been wanting to learn how to use a sewing machine for a long time, so I was so thankful for a good long weekend for my mom to give me some lessons. 

I sewed a handful of burp rags for Captain Cooper, and then finished off the weekend with my first real sewing project- a cute apron.  My ultimate goal is to sew a quilt with some pretty Bella Notte fabrics that I have from when I worked at Spice.  That might consume multiple naptimes, so we'll see how long it takes before I can get to that.  But in the meantime, I will be cooking up something yummy in this little number:

Such a fun weekend!

Four Months

Happy (four month) Birthday, Mr. Coop!

Where has the time gone?!  I can't believe you have already been with us for four whole months!  Each day Daddy and I are surprised at how much our love for you has grown.  You, my sweet boy, are a delight to our hearts!  In the most subtle of ways, you daily open up our eyes to know the depths of the love of our Father.  You are so innocent, so trusting, and so genuinely happy.  I love getting you all snuggled up for bedtime.  You LOVE to cuddle, and seem right at home when you are resting in our arms.

You are still sleeping like a champ!  You go to bed around 9:30 or 10 at night and wake up at 7:30, like clockwork!  You always wake up in the best mood- we usually come in to find you just chattering away in your crib, waiting for Mommy to feed you.  Your sweet smiles in the morning are so precious.  Oh baby, we love you!  

This month, you surprised us all and rolled over!  Way to go, little bird!  When you were right about 3 months old, you just flipped yourself right over while you were practicing some tummy time.  And then just last week, out of nowhere, you flipped yourself from your back to your tummy.  You are so strong, mister!

We took you to several Baylor basketball games this month, which you seemed to love.  Maybe it was all the lights & noises, but you stayed very attentive during each game!  I think we've got a future Baylor Bear on our hands!  Here you are posing with Oso, your huge stuffed bear that Aunt Meg gave you for Christmas.  My, my, my, you are getting so big!

This month you had your first snow day!  It is truly an amazing thing to watch you look into the world with such wonder.  You are incredibly observant, wanting to be a part of everything.  It was fun to watch you experience snow for the first time.  Daddy and I are really looking forward to future snow days and ski trips with you, little man!

We found out yesterday at your 4 month dr. appointment that you weigh 14 lbs. 4 oz. (50th percentile) and are 24 in. long (just over the 10th percentile).  We think you are JUST RIGHT!  But maybe once you get a little bigger you will be more into your jumper.  Right now, you just kind of twirl around in it.  You are just totally content to observe everything that is going on around you!

Your favorite thing to play with is definitely your hands!  You are always chewing, sucking, or nibbling your hands, or staring at your fingers as you move them.  We bought you a Sophie Giraffe a few days ago, and she might just be your favorite toy.  You are really funny to watch- you will stare at her for a couple of seconds and then you just lunge forward and grab her, like a piranha!  

You are an amazing son, Cooper.  Daddy and I could not be more proud of you.  Your name means "lighthouse," and that is what we see in you even now.  You are going to grow up to be a man who is steadfast during the storms of life, filled with the light of God, and serve as a safe harbor to people who are weary from the tempests of this world.  We love you, baby boy, and are blessed beyond measure to have you as our own.