Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone! Can you believe another Christmas has come and 2010 is just around the corner?!?! Christmas always seems like a milestone for our family as everything begins to slow down in late December. However, for most holiday seasons in the past, 'slow down' means running to this family and that and being out of our home for what seems like most of December. This year was different in that we're not traveling until the 31st of December, and even then, it will only be for a few days. We always enjoy spending time with family, but it's great to be home with the boys.

For Christmas this year, Santa gave Nate and I a little time to ourselves this morning, as both boys slept until past 7:00AM (although, somehow I still managed to get up at 5:30...)! Cooper has not slept until past 7:00 for many, many months. This was destined to be a very Merry Christmas indeed!!

This year we continued with Christmas 'light'! We've both been burdened to keep the gift quantity on the low side so there wasn't too much under the Bethell tree this morning! In fact, most of those gifts in the picture are for other family members (mostly Haraders, this year!) and the big one was for me. :)



Santa brought our family stockings, and then Nate hid them. This was a Bethell family tradition with Tom, Nate's dad, always doing the hiding (still does it to this day!), and it is a really fun tradition Nate is carrying on in our family. Cooper found his stocking with a little help. :)



After we opened stockings, we sang Happy Birthday to Jesus and blew out the candles on His birthday cake (just so happened to be a delicious Heath-bar / pecan coffee cake!). Cooper is really starting to ask questions about Santa and Jesus, so I think he was pretty confused that Jesus wasn't there to eat his cake. He said, "Mom - I think we should take a piece of cake to heaven for Jesus." Other Jesus questions - 'How far away is Jesus?' 'Why doesn't Jesus blow out his candles?' 'Only two candles? I thought Jesus was old?'




Cooper's gift from us this year was a new bike. He has asked for a bike from Rose's for a long time, and now he has it. :) And if you didn't notice, yes, it's yellow and green - John Deere green baby!




Miles gift from us was a Cars bouncy ball.



However, when the dust settled, both boys wanted to be inside the box of my gift. :)


Cooper's very favorite gift today was the new Cars underwear that Santa brought him in his stocking. We had to wash them right away so he could wear a pair.

Miles was a little jealous of his bro's new undies, so he decided to wear a pair of Coop's old undies over his pants.

What a day! We are thankful we understand the reason we celebrate this day! Happy Birthday, Jesus!

Bethell Family Christmas

The Bethells gathered at our house last weekend for A Bethell Family Christmas! Originally we were going to head to Branson on Saturday to spend the day at Silver Dollar City, but Saturday's high was somewhere around 17 degrees, so we decided to hunker down and enjoy some quality time at home.

We exchanged gifts on Friday night, and the best gift of all was the stuffing inside of one of the gifts. :)


We spent some quality time together over a puzzle:


Here is our very full table: (Miles is there, too, I promise. His high chair is off to the side of the table...)

Bethell Family Picture:

Sick

Cooper and Miles were both sick this week. Coop had a fever Monday through Wednesday, and Miles had it Wednesday and Thursday. Having sick kids is not easy - by Thursday I had reached my threshold in several areas. However, sick kids are most certainly love snuggles! Miles fell asleep on the couch a few times, and Cooper said, "Mom, I think it's time for my nap now," all three days of his fever. (Impressive for a kid who is nearing the end of the nap era!)

Getting dressed...

Cooper decided he wanted to wear all of his clean underwear on one day. The result:

Santa!

Cooper very willingly sat on Santa's lap this year! He had a nice conversation with him, although I missed most of it trying to convince Miles that Santa was a very nice guy and he should sit on his lap. :) This was the 3 seconds that Santa could hold on to Miles...

Meet Slash... (Cooper's stage name of course)

Air-guitar, underwear and 'life is a highway'. He's still working on the words to the verse, but is quite confident in his delivery of the chorus.

The Farm

The weekend we went to KC for the big race, we celebrated Coop's and Jackson's birthdays at the farm. It was so fun! Here are a few highlights:

Miles' favorite part was the animals. This is a cow that you could really milk!

Here are the birthday boys together ringing the cow bells. Don't they look ornery?

The farm had several types of tractor tricycles. This was by far Cooper's favorite part. He kept driving off the path and Nana kept directing him back on. Cooper said, "But I need to plow the field!"



We did not create this photo with photoshop - Cooper did ride a horse. I think it was partly because his very cool cousin Jackson did it first. But whatever the reason, Coopster was BRAVE and rode a horse! YEEEEHAW!!

Miles' Language Guide

Bebee - Berry
Babee - Baby
Babaw - Baseball
Bop - Pop
Bubow - Bubble
Bobby - Cooper
Bubby - Cooper
MAWMEEE - MOMMY!!! (Usually distressed)
DaDEEEE - Daddy (Usually delighted)
Hi - hi
Mmmmm - That's good
Uh oh - Uh oh
This or That - Everything else

Potty Talk

Dare I even write this blog? I've debated in my mind, and blogging has won. So I blog, knowing that you readers will love our family and my children no matter what happens next...

Cooper has been increasingly curious about his bottom. We have been directing him to keep his hands away, but curiousity won out. Monday night after I put Cooper to bed, I heard him calling, "MOOMMEEEEE!" I walked into his room and asked him what he needed. He replied, "I need a rag." Me: "Why do you need a rag?" Coop: "For my hands." Me: "Are they sticky? What happened?" Coop: Silence. Me: "Did you pick a booger? Do you need a Kleen-X?" Coop: "I think there was a booger in my bottom." Me: Silence. Cooper was right - he needed a rag. Hopefully that fulfilled his need to learn more about that part of his anatomy for now. :)

In other potty news, Miles has figured out how to take his diaper off. :) No more naked baby. MUST WEAR PANTS. :)

"Shhhhhhhhh"

Cooper has been asking us what letter words start with. On Sunday morning, he asked me what "shower" starts with. I told him that it is 's', but it is a special 's' with an 'h' to make a 'shhhh' sound. Coop replied, "Mom! "Quiet starts with 's'! Shhhhhhhhhhhhh!"

A Message for Craig and Janet

One week down,


five to go!


You can do it! We love you!

My Bun!

Tonight, Carey had volleyball with some co-workers so I had a bedtime date with the boys. Miles was his usual self - make it through one or two pages of a book, wiggle down to go get another book off of the shelf. Bring that book back, read two pages, then wiggle down and get another. Do this about five times and you have Miles at bedtime. After putting Miles to bed, it's Coopers turn.

He love to pick out the longest books he can find for bedtime. We usually do two books and he insists that we read his books in bed. Halfway through the first one, I notice that he is shaking and moving all over. I look over and he says in an urgent tone ‘Dad! Something’s on my bun! It itches - will you scratch it?’ He then proceeds to turn over and expose his left cheek... It’s terrible to laugh when your child is in near panic about an itch, but it was very funny.

The Race

Sarita and I ran the Kansas City HALF Marathon (half empasized) last weekend. It was so fun! What a race!

Here we are running to the finish. The finish line was an exciting sight!


I think Sarita is elbowing the guy next to us in this picture. :) Not really - but WOW was it a crowded race!



We held up 1:55 because we thought that was our time. We actually finished in 1:54:07.



This may become an annual event - oh what fun! Thank you, Family, for supporting me in this craziness!

Bring the Beach

On Friday, Cooper found out that we were going to Grandpa's and Bugs house, and that Aunt Jenn, Uncle Matt, and Jackson would be there. Cooper said, "Oh, I hope Aunt Jenn brings the beach!" I said, "Cooper - how do you think Aunt Jenn could bring the beach?" Cooper: "She could pack it up in a big, big box!" I wish Aunt Jenn would bring me the beach in a box, too.

On our way home yesterday, Cooper spotted a car driving in the grass. He said, "Look, Mom! A car driving in the grass! Sometimes we drive in the grass at Scowden's house. Hmm...that's very interesting."

Bed

Cooper just said something like:

"When Miles and I get big, we're going to sleep in bed with you and Daddy. But we'll need four pillows! Maybe we can have a double decker bed...you know, like a double decker bus?"

A message for Daddy

Happy Anniversary!

Happy Anniversary Grandpa and Bugs!
Happy Anniversary Aunt Hanna and Uncle J!

Sorry we're a little late - hope you both had a great day!

Pumpkin Patch

Last Saturday we visited a pumpkin patch/farm in Springfield with our Small Group. Cooper found the pumpkin he wanted and sat on it to claim it.


Miles looked and looked for the right pumpkin.





Cooper's favorite part was the tractors! He loved riding them all!

Throwing Jokes

Our friend Jeff Case had dinner with us on Friday night. Cooper was VERY friendly to Mr. Jeff - showing him his room and toys, holding his hand, etc. Mr. Jeff said, "You're not very shy, are you?" and Cooper replied, "No. I'm just silly. I like to throw jokes."

Random Stories

Here are a few highlights from our last few days:

On the way to Ms. Lisa's house on Monday, Cooper saw a tractor. He said, "Mom! Mom! A tilde tractor!" (Pronounced like the punctuation mark.) I said, "I don't know what a tilde tractor is. What does a tilde tractor do?" Cooper said, "Well, Mom. A tilde tractor has many uses. It hauls gravel, cuts hay, delivers hay for the horses to eat, and many other things." If anyone has heard of a tilde tractor, let me know. :)

At lunch yesterday, Miles said "cheese!" It is by far one of his favorite foods.

I was putting Cooper's shoes on yesterday, and told him that I loved his shoes and wished I had some like that. Cooper replied, "You should buy some online!"

Cooper misbehaved today, so I sent him to his room. The phone rang just as he was leaving, so I went to answer it and Miles followed Cooper to his room. When I finished the phone call, I heard chaos coming from Cooper's room. When I went in and asked Cooper what happened, he answered, "I just ate Miles' finger." And he was right! (Hey - at least he was honest!) There were pretty deep teeth indentions on Miles' index finger. Ouch!

After nap time, Cooper and I were cuddling. He was rubbing my back and he said, "Oh, Mom! I found a little something on your back!" I said, "Oh. What do you think it is?" Cooper answered, "It is a piece of zud."

And finally, this one was on Facebook, but it is worth mentioning again: The current Catechism Cooper is learning is: I say, “In how many persons does this God exist?” Cooper says, “In three persons.” Cooper’s answer today: “Eleven.”

Clumps

Life happens in clumps. I had a pastor tell me that once...perhaps not with those same words. But it is SOO true! This week, I had well-baby check ups for both kids, Nate is traveling, I'm not feeling real well, Cooper started coughing today, and my very favorite sitter's aunt died, so I had to use a backup. (The backup is also GREAT!! It is just not "routine" for me, and anyone who knows me knows that I flounder outside of routine...)

So today, after lunch, I cleaned Miles up and said, "Go gang up on me with your brother." I want the two of them to be friends, so if it takes ganging up on me, then great! (But really, I didn't expect him to do it!) I proceeded to clean up the dishes, and I heard Cooper yell out, "Mommy, we are making a HUGE mess!" Uh oh. I went to see what he meant. They had pulled all of our linens out of the linen closet. (Praise the Lord they worked together and didn't argue!) But wow - what a mess. I had Cooper attempt to clean up his mess, and when I had watched unfolded towels being tossed onto the shelf long enough, I told him to go play in his room with Miles. As I was finishing the last towel, I noticed a black-eyed pea on the ground. Hmm...we had black-eyed pea casserole for dinner last night. This is not looking good. My fears were confirmed when I went and found Miles with marks all over his backside. So I got him completely cleaned up and changed, and the floor between the bathroom and Cooper's room cleaned up just in time to load up and walk out the door to the sitter's house. I got the pack 'n play, the diaper bag, Humphrey, Coop's blanket, Chavez, Miles' blanket, and the boys all inside. As I hugged Cooper goodbye, I felt it. A fever. So, load the pack 'n play, the diaper bag, Humphrey, Coop's blanket, Chavez, Miles' blanket, Coop and Miles back in the car...drive home. Dang. I could have really used a 4 hour Mommy break today...

I know this is just life, but MAN! Clumps are for the birds.

Today Cooper and I were having a conversation about Jesus dying on the cross for our sins. He asked lots of good questions. He asked if Jesus had blood, and I told him that he did. Then Cooper asked, "Did God say, 'It's okay, Jesus'?"

Cooper is 3!

Cooper had an awesome day today! After breakfast this morning, Cooper opened his gifts from us. His favorite gift was a John Deere Semi Truck with a trailer holding a combine. He was so excited to open it - can you see him straining to smile? He was really excited...


After gifts, Cooper got to try chewing gum. Even after much hype about how big he would be to chew gum and how we chew and chew it and never swallow, the gum ended up in his tummy. Oops! I guess we'll have to try again on his fourth birthday!

Nate took the day off today to spend with Cooper. They went to Duck Creek this morning just to talk to people. Cooper took his new combine to show everyone. Did I mention he's pretty excited about his new combine?

When the mail came, we had a few new gifts to open. Aunt Hanna made him a really neat book explaining all kinds of tractors and machinery. Very cool! (Thank you, Aunt Hanna!)

We had dinner at El Rodeo, Coop's favorite. He ate chips and salsa for dinner. That's really all. And then we let him eat birthday cake for dessert. Yikes!

A few friends came over for Coop's John Deere birthday. Here is the cake and dessert "display."

Memorable Quotes from today:

At nap time..."I can't sleep in my pack 'n play. Three-year-olds don't sleep in pack and plays!"

Random question at lunch..."Mom - can three-year-olds still cry?"

Getting ready for bed..."Will I still be three tomorrow?"

It has been too long...sorry about that. Much has gone on...so we don't lack for materials. I just haven't taken the time to update the blog. So here are a few random stories...

Miles started saying "hi" on Tuesday. We were playing out front, and Miles saw our neighbor Wilma and her son Steve. He raised his arm and said, "HI!" great big and took off down the street to talk to our neighbors. Cute.

When Aunt Hanna was here, a t-ball rolled down the street and into the drain. Cooper is now really, really nervous about other balls being out on the driveway. He freaks out when we bounce balls, and then quickly bats them into the grass so they will be safe. The other day, we were playing t-ball and a ball started rolling down the driveway. Cooper panicked. I said, "Cooper, calm down! Just relax. I'm going to catch the ball." Cooper answered, "Mom! I can't relax!" Wow - I have no question that Cooper is my child.

See the difference between Cooper and Miles has been encouraging for me. We bought a pair of Old Navy sandals for Cooper last summer. He looked at them and liked them, but didn't want them anywhere near him. Eventually he warmed up some, but it took several weeks before we got the sandals on his feet...and at least the first time he had socks on with the sandals. We got the sandals out of the closet for Miles to wear yesterday. The child laughed the entire time I put them on his feet. He just cracked up!

Here's Cooper driving a John Deere tractor! John Deere is his favorite! Several times a day he says, "Mom, do you know what my favorite color of tractor is? GREEN!"

Miles has given up his morning nap, but he isn't quite ready to make it to the afternoon to fall asleep. He fell asleep in his highchair mid-bite.

More Banff Pictures

Banff, Canada

Carey and I returned today from our extended weekend in Banff, Alberta - Canada. It was great to get away for a few days and while there is much to tell, I thought I'd share a few quick pics.

More Maggie...

She wasn't always so innocent...



She and Harley were such good friends!


We bred Maggie, and she had 6 babies. We named them Vicki, Winston, Duncan, Lydia, Edmond, and Captain.


That Maggie is a sweet girl. She will enjoy having people love on her...

In Honor of Maggie

Today Maggie went to live in a new home. Our neighbor, Dwight, has taken her on. She was being completely neglected in our family, and she deserved to have a home where she would be loved. I admit it broke my heart to see her go! But it was a needed change. Here are a few pictures of the good times:

This is when Maggie first came to live with us:


Maggie slept in our bed as a puppy:


Or occasionally she napped on us:


She loved to help me work: