I think I have a problem...

I don't know if it is a little-girl-clothes-problem OR a thrift-store-problem but here it is:


All washed, this is Caitlin's stash of clothes! In all fairness, these ARE newborn to 2T! My guess is that 70% has been bought for .20¢ a piece at my favorite Sunday thrift stores. About 5% was given to me and the other 25% was bought at the Once Upon A Child "bag sale" or this week at the JBF sale. I really have to quit shopping. There's no more room in our house!!!

On another note, I completed my nursing cover this weekend. We're getting close to being ready to meet sweet Caitlin.


Cameron told me today that HE was going to take care of her when she arrived. This shall be interesting!

Spring Break

Spring Break came and went quite quickly. It has definitely been a busy time for us.

Saturday was our monthly Cooper family dinner. Here's Cameron dressed in Gramma's giraffe costume, showing off his tail!


Taelyn enjoyed treats that Gramma & Papa brought back from New York.



And Jackson, he's getting so big. Such a cutie! (I made that onesie for him!)


Monday was spent by JC & Brendan cutting and sanding wood for Cameron's new bunk bed. I decided to save all bunk bed prep pictures for a blog entry of it's own.

Tuesday we took a drive to Seminole, OK to visit the Jasmine Moran Children's Museum. The kids and I have been but Daddy hadn't. This was a fun time for all - we were happy to see some new exhibits and of course they still had our favorites!


I think Bren is a little bit too big for this slide!

Of course, we had to do a fossil dig.

Wednesday and Thursday were spent in Lawton. JC helped mom work on her rent houses, with some help from Brendan on Wednesday. Of course it wouldn't be a trip to Granny's without playing in the dirt pile & trees. What fun!

Friday was back home to work on the bunk beds some more. And catch-up-on-laundry day for mom. Here's another one of Cami's dress up outfits (notice the fisherman's hat, knight shirt, pirate sword, camo pants and dino slippers!). Friday evening we attended a church "sing".

We were blessed with wonderful, spring-like weather all week and then we got snow on Saturday. So with our bunk bed project on hold, we've worked on inside projects. I sewed "black-out" on the bedroom windows that face the East. I also made my nursing cover. We've rearranged some furniture to make more room for Caitlin.

I can't believe spring break has come and gone. It wasn't a very relaxing one for daddy but at least he got some good family time. Nine more weeks of teaching for JC and just under 12 weeks until we meet baby Cait. Oh, how time flies!

Pasta Salad

This just looked so pretty I had to share. I made one of our favorites, pasta salad, for church dinner last week. It's a great spring time side dish or even a meal!

You can use anything, really, to make this salad. Some of our favorites are black olives, green olives, tomatoes, pepperoni, green onions and mozzarella. Just chop it all up and toss it in a bowl.

Add your favorite cooked pasta and favorite Italian-style dressing and toss.

Oh-so-yummy!!!

Hello Spring?

I covered my daffodils last night but the bags blew off with the Oklahoma wind. It was a short lived enjoyment of my pretty flowers.

Welcome Spring Break!

JC's Spring Break officially began last night. We have 9 full days together before he gets back to the grind stone. But after that, he only has 9 more weeks of teaching, 1 week of cleaning up and finishing paperwork and then he'll be home for 2 months! Often the teaching job gets frustrated (not to mention the lack of pay) BUT the time we get to spend together sure is nice!

This past week, the boys and I took a quick trip to Lawton. Here's a picture of PawPaw and Cameron playing Cameron's "Game Boy".


I tell you what, this boy LOVES to dress up! He's always finding something to put on. This Batman shirt was found awhile ago but the mask just showed up in a friends bag of clothes she was giving away. Cameron has worn it almost nonstop for 3 days!



This morning, JC & I had almost 2 hours of quiet before Cameron woke up. Sitting in my favorite chair, I noticed the boys boots just sitting by the couch. It was very precious to my heart!


This week, I made my first splurge purchase for Caitlin. I wanted a pretty, girly hat for her when she's born. I wanted it for her newborn pictures, and I wanted it because my children are born without hair! So after searching high and low, I found this one on Etsy. And just to clarify, it was only $13.50 with shipping - BUT for me, spending that much on a non-essential item is a splurge. It arrived today and it's so pretty!!! I can't wait to see my precious baby in it!

And just for kicks, I thought I would give you my perspective. I feel much smaller looking at this angle than seeing my profile in a photo!

As of my doctor's appointment this week, I've only gained 11 pounds in 27 weeks. That's a LOT less than my previous pregnancies! My iron is low but I do not have gestational diabetes like the other 2 pregnancies.

These boots were made for walking...

WOW! Brendan posed for a picture! Isn't our son growing up and lookin' handsome?

The frustrating part is that with these boots on, he can rest his chin atop of my head!!!

This year, Brendan turns 15 and begins high school. How fast time flies. How quickly they grow up. What little time we have left with him at home, compared to time that has gone by. We are blessed by such a great son!!!

A little of this...a little of that...

I have some random and some not so random pictures to share. I couldn't help but share this little goober in the tub...



He loves playing in the tub especially with bubbles and crayola color tablets!

Cameron was in search of a snack and found some canned pineapple. He insisted on eating it out of the can. Such a funny face!



I am now teaching Middle School Digital Photography in co-op. Our sessions last five weeks. Last session, I got to teach the Preschool class. This was our last class and the kids are dancing with scarves. They had so much fun!


I don't know if you'll find this as humorous as I did, but this is Cameron trying to play the Wii game where you bounce the soccer ball off your head. It's so funny to see his body twisting all about!

This past Thursday our Photography class took a field trip to the Oklahoma School of Photography in Moore. Oh, how I would love to take classes...but this school charges $10,000 for their program!!! Ouch! That won't fit into the Dave Ramsey plan anytime soon!!! :-) It was a really neat tour; the staff was so kind and patient with our group.

Here's my 26 week picture! I'm getting big but I feel a lot smaller than I remember with the boys. I am feeling my best out of the whole pregnancy. I have a little heartburn when I eat too much and my body gets a little achy if I sit/stand/lay too long in the same position OR if I overexert myself. But I am sleeping better and I have more energy than I have had.

Another one of Cameron. If Brendan had his way, he would not be included in my blogs at all. I'll try to get more pictures of him this week! Cameron LOVES sitting on the back of the couch. Here he's playing his "game boy" from Christmas.

Friday we attended a going away party for some great friends of ours. I met Chasity through our homeschool group and we have become great friends in the past year. They are moving to Arkansas this week. :-(

And today we took the van on it's maiden voyage to Tulsa. It ran beautifully and everyone had a comfortable drive. Cameron loves having such a great view from the car seat!

Brendan, um...well, loves that he can stretch out!

Thursday was Alexander's 1st birthday and the party was today! What a cute boy!

Cameron enjoyed playing with Alex!

Alex wasn't too fond of the cake OR all the attention!

Cameron LOVED the ring pop that was in the goody bag!

Brendan avoided the packed house most of the afternoon. He & cousin AJ had fun goofing around outside.

Climbing trees and other boys stuff!

Finally, a picture of the big guy!