One Month With Norah Finley

Oh my sweet Norah Finley. One month with her in our family. Spoiler alert: she is a perfect addition.

I spent a lot of the pregnancy worried, anxious, uncomfortable, nauseous. I wanted so hard to enjoy this time with a precious life growing inside of me but I struggled a lot. I started to wonder how this baby would fit into our family. Did I have enough love in my heart for another child? Did I have enough patience to stay sane? Would I have enough energy to survive? How could I enjoy having so many small humans that would need so much from me?


And then this tiny little baby came storming out into this world. It was one of the most wonderful and exciting moments of my life. Pure joy (and a little confusing, but perhaps I will save that for a birth story one day). From the moment she was born I was so in love.


Norah Finley is adored by everyone in this household. I was mainly concerned about Cooper. I really had no clue how he would react to having a little baby in the household. He wore the role of little brother so well. Turns out he loves her. He gives her plenty of kisses and attention, but at the same time not too much. He respects her space and isn't overly interested to the point that I have to keep him away. He checks on her sporadically throughout the day but goes on with his important business of running around the house and keeping up with his matchbox cars. Hannah, as expected, is an adoring big sister. Both her and Cooper take pride in their important role of diaper disposers. Hannah is always eager to help out in any way she can. Need a blanket? Hannah to the rescue. Pacifier is lost? Hannah will find it. Need baby wipes? Hannah has you covered. Funny because Hannah's strong suit isn't exactly listening and obedience right now, but if it involves helping with the baby she is all ears and right on it.


Little Norah, our tiniest baby. Our first kiddo to leave the hospital under 8 pounds. Everything about her seems so dainty. She is a chill little one; there was one week were she was a little fussy but so far she has been pretty content. She is a fantastic sleeper, waking up once in the middle of the night for a feeding. I was worried at first that she would never sleep anywhere other than my chest but now she loves her own bed and space and I actually wish she would sleep on me more. She is the best nurser I have had. She seems to fit right into the flow of our family. Getting out of the house of course has its extra challenges. We are definitely outnumbered so things are naturally not as easy but generally speaking life continues on as normal. I like to use having three kids as an excuse to having an extra cup or two of coffee a day. I also feel less pressure to make it to preschool drop off and pick up on time. One day we will get in a better flow of making it out of the house in a timely fashion.


So far Norah is a healthy gal. She is growing fast and doing well. She is super bright eyed and will generally stay awake for at least an hour after every feeding. She loves to lay on the ottoman in the living room and observe the chaos of kids around her. She reserves her new developing little smiles for Daddy; she is easily soothed by him. Her biggest talent is pooping, what a pro.  I am soaking in the now totally loving this newborn stage. I remember with Cooper feeling the desire to rush past it but this time I really am enjoying her in this tiny little state of life. I suspect this will be our last baby which finds me a little over sentimental. As much as I look forward to seeing her and her personality grow I wish time could slow down a little and hold on to my tiny little newborn longer.


Sweet Norah Finley, we love you immensely. I am so glad you are a part of this family. 

Cooper ONE YEAR

The last few months have been so hectic that this one year birthday of little Cooper really snuck up on me. I guess that is always how it is though; life, busyness, this, that and the other. Either way, I don't think there would be any type of  simplicity or leisurely way of lifestyle that would allow the first year of any baby's life to just slow down. Even staying home with the kids this year, life seemed like such a whirlwind of events that I feel like I missed out on so much of the little details that make up Cooper. I wish I could soak in him and his little personality more. Not to say I haven't enjoyed him like crazy though. This boy, my goodness, he radiates joy and is just so stinking fun.



We enjoy this kid a lot. He is such a delight to our whole family and while this year has seemed too fast it is hard to picture the time when Cooper wasn't a part of our gang. I can't get enough of his big toothy grin, sweet laugh, sparkly eyes and overall awesomeness.


The boy rarely cries but he will throw a fit though under two circumstances: 1) if you take his food 2) diaper and clothes changes as of lately. He is also hard to say no to; he will stop, shake his head no, laugh and resume whatever rascally thing he was up to. If I continue to repeat no he will stop but clearly get frustrated, throw his hands in the air and growl. Speaking of which, he is an expert growler. He loves when I chase him while both crawling and growling at each other. Cooper also loves to bark at Duncan or any dog for that matter. We joke that he is our second puppy.


He isn't a man of many words. Correction, he isn't a man of many ENGLISH words. In fact I am not certain that his native tongue will ever be English. Whatever language he speaks, he is confident that he has mighty fine things to say. The boy is starting to get loud too, his babbles are getting bolder and more hilarious every day.

Lets talk about sleep. Oh Hallelujah! Shortly after moving into our new home Cooper finally started sleeping through the night. I was determined that when we moved I would do whatever it took to get the boy sleeping better. Turns out he didn't need any tough love after all, he started sleeping through the night on his own. I think after a summer of sleeping in a pack n' play in a closet or wherever we could find room for him he was happy to have his own nice and cozy room and crib. He also started nursing so much better. It is no longer a frustrating wrestling match to get him to eat. I know having his own quiet room with a glider where we can go to nurse without crazy distractions has made a huge difference. I was determined to wean him right at 12 months but now I feel that we can take our time with that. We are also sitting down for regular meals where he is eating just about everything we eat. The boy has a mighty appetite and always eats more than his big sister. So I think between nursing better during the day and eating real meals he isn't waking up hungry in the middle of the night. Whew, that was a long explanation as to why the kid is sleeping. Point is, he is sleeping, I am sleeping, life is GOOD.


Cooper is a sweet guy but we also think he is a rascally little fella. He often wants to be where we aren't. He is easy to lose in the house. He is always running off to get into something precarious. Throwing shoes off the rack, unplugging the hallway nightlight for the millionth time, dumping all the books off the shelf, ransacking sister's room, finding new small objects to put in his mouth; the boy is antsy to explore and destroy. He keeps me moving. I am grateful for nap times and I am thankful he is real good at those.


Like I said before, Cooper is a big eater. He really will eat anything we give him. I remember those days fondly with Hannah. However with him I won't get a mom ego and think we are doing something special over here. Once upon a time she ate everything like him. Curry dishes, Mexican, all the vegetables, anything spicy, chili, Afghan chicken, all the good food of the world. Yeah, I am no fool, I know those days will pass. There will be a day when he too finds the need to survive off of cheese sticks, cheddar bunnies, and grapes just to prove a point. What point is that exactly? Who knows, maybe three year olds are just punks. But for now I will enjoy and appreciate the little boy who will stuff his face with anything.


I don't remember what the count was last month but Cooper is now up to 16th teeth, all but his two year molars left. His main mode of transportation is crawling and cruising along furniture. He mainly just says "Momma", though "Dada" and "up" is becoming more popular in his vocabulary again. He gives cute but slobber filled kisses. He devoured his first piece of cake on his birthday and seemed to thoroughly enjoy it. He likes baths, observing and playing with rocks, chasing the dog, reading books, sorting through the trashcan, running away, throwing out and rearranging our belongings and playing with just about whatever Hannah thinks is cool. He loves throwing his body on to our giant bean bag and rolling around. He also likes to throw his body off of beds, couches, and people. He has no fear. He is tough and gets up from a spill real fast. He is a total bro and he knows it. He is one sweet dude and we love him like crazy.


This year has been fast but full of a lot of good. We are happy to be in our new home here in Alaska. Overall it has been a pretty smooth transition. It doesn't hurt having a baby that is finally sleeping through the night. We are really enjoying exploring around and appreciate a change of pace and different lifestyle here. It is cool to think Cooper's first few years of life get to be spent in such a neat place. Some of his first memories will be Alaskan memories. It was initially a bit of surprise that we ended up here but it couldn't be more clear that this is where we are meant to be right now. While moving is never easy, I have had more peace about this move than any others and I am really looking forward to some cool years with our kids here. I think Cooper, who we have lovingly referred to as baby bear since he was born will fit right in here.


I have been reflecting a lot on the birth of Cooper and different stages of his life so far. I now only vaguely remember those few really tough weeks where it seemed like he always cried when he was awake. Now most of memories of Cooper are filled with happiness. He is just an easy going dude and so fun. Oh man I love this little guy and am so so so thankful for the timing of him in our life and our family. I am so glad Cooper is a part of us and that such a cool little guy is my son. I look forward to seeing how he grows and changes to come, though I wouldn't mind if time slowed down just a bit. So with that my friends....


Happy one year baby bear. We love you lots.

Cooper: 11 months

One month away from the big 0-1. Holy moly, our guy is getting to be an old wise man. A cute sweet old wise man. 

Like most months lately this one in particular has been a blur. Perhaps I should be doing weekly updates so that I can actually remember what goes on with this boy. Scratch that, it might require me doing hourly updates to remember anything ever. One day I think our life might find some routine but I have been saying that for a few years now. 

Just when I think I am getting Coop into some kind of routine, eating schedule, sleep schedule, etc life likes to switch things up. Cooper was finally starting to eat and sleep better but then came some kind of virus, mystery illness. He had a temp of 104 over a course of 4 days. The guy was so terribly pathetic, crying all the time, barely able to crawl. It was sad on my momma heart. Not to mention we were in Delaware getting to see both sets of grandparents before the big move and here is Cooper being ultra sad and clingy to me. Thankful his fever dropped the day before we were due to leave on this big road trip.

Speaking of which, we are currently on said road trip finishing up day 7. Let that be an explanation as to why this might be extra rambley. We are all tired, very very tired. We have had lots of fun and seen some amazing sites. I have also wanted to crawl into a ball and yell into a pillow. Traveling with two kiddos and a dog can require a lot of patience, patience that I seem to lose in a split second. Seriously though, how long can it take to get two kids and occasionally a dog in and out of the car to go to the bathroom or look out at a pretty overlook. We have to be the slowest family ever. Is there is Guinness World Record for these kind of things because I think we might win.

But really, Cooper is doing really well traveling. The first two days were a little rough. He isn't as content in the carseat as Hannah was. He is the kind of baby that always likes to be on the move. Ultimately though I think he has accepted his fate as a baby stuck in the car for days and has been pretty chill. Snacks especially help. 

 

So more about this month...Cooper quickly went from a crawler to a furniture cruiser in a blink of an eye. He is always on the move (except for when he was sick). He is a rascally little feller and is into a lot. Toilet bowl, electric cords, outlets, sister's shoes, you name it. I would love to get one of those fitbits to see how many steps I take in a day just chasing Cooper. That crazy kid. 

In other news this month, Cooper has not one, not two, no no no not three, not four, but FIVE new teeth. Three molars and two eye teeth. He looks like such a big kid with that full mouth of chompers. He is ready for some steak eating. Other than teeth, I can't think of anything too new. Like the developing and ever changing little lad that he is, he is interacting more and more in new ways. He gives kisses and waves. He woofs when ever he says a dog. In fact, we have Duncan back after a summer apart and he may now have a new best friend in the family. Lets see, Cooper doesn't say too many specific words. For some reason lately he says "up" all the time. I don't think he has a clue as to what that means but it sure is cute. He does like to babble and jibble jabber and my goodness I think his voice is the cutest. This boy continues to be the sweetest little thing. I won't stop, can't stop saying how sweet he is. SERIOUSLY SWEET! Sorry about that folks, his sweetness just overwhelms me.  

Anyways I shall wrap up this entry. I am impressed I got around to doing it on the road but I knew if I didn't do it now it would never get it done. I figured I am so close to 12 months of consistent monthly updates I best go ahead and write this 11 month one. I am sure I am missing lots that happened this month. I feel like this road trip has been going on for the whole month. So with that I shall say goodnight. 

Cooper Alan: 10 months

It seems as if this month Cooper has transformed from a baby to a little dude. I have seen the most changes in him this month and it has been a lot of fun. Ten months, as always tough to wrap my head around the speed as to which they grow.

Cooper learned to crawl this month and he is so much more content because of it. Man that kid was aching to be moving but had trouble figuring it out. But as soon as he got it, he was off. Hannah was a late crawler at 11 months and even once she learned to crawl she didn't have much of a drive to go anywhere in particular. In fact she never really left the living room rug. I probably could have left her there, gone out to get coffee with a friend, and returned an hour later only to find her in the same spot playing with the same speck of lint on the floor. Don't worry, I never actually did that but it sure was easier to leave the room for a second to grab something. The minute Cooper hits the floor, he is outta there. Leave a door open to the outside world and he will make it his personal life mission to escape. Where does he want to go? I don't know. But he wants to go go go. I have been rather slacking in my normal runs and workouts this month but good thing this boy keeps me moving all day, constantly redirecting him from troublesome baby hazards. As he is making his way towards something dangerous I will loudly say "Cooper, no no." With that he will look up, shake his head no, clap his hands, laugh, and then resume towards said baby danger zone with more determination then ever. He thinks he is hilarious. I think I am tired.

This stage is ridiculously fun. His little personality has us squealing, "ISN'T HE JUST THE CUTEST" at least five dozen times a day. I also love that he is so different from Hannah at this age but it also keeps us on our toes. It is a good reminder that even when you think you you have this parenting thing figured out and know what works best, let ye not forget what works on one kid won't work on another. Be humble. Be flexible. Don't let them know you are scared and they surely can't take over, right? Okay okay, that got a little dramatic, sorry, I am hyped on coffee after a restless night with Mr. Teether. Speaking of which, Cooper finally got one of his one year molars in, three more to go. Babies, they all get them, we all complain about them, but seriously can't they just do without teeth? We all end up with dentures when we are old anyways.


So what is really new this month? Cooper is eating more big kiddo foods. He had his first meal with chicken the other night, Afgan chicken kabobs at a restaurant by us. He was eating faster than I could serve it to him. He will surely be disappointed with any other chicken I make for him because man those were so stinking good. Coop is also an expert clapper (I know I know, his baby skills are just so unreal). I think he legit knows the word Momma now cause obviously I am the best. He lifts his arms up to be picked up, which melts my heart. If you try to cut him off from crawling somewhere he will throw his body in the opposite direction, giggle in delight, and try to run away with the fullest of enthusiasm. He is starting to pull himself up on furniture, boxes, other humans and things. He is a fan of dumping our laundry basket over and throwing everything out all over the floor. While Duncan is away for the summer Cooper has taken on the responsibility of being our house dog. He crawls around the house with whatever he can find to put in his mouth, shaking it back and forth. The most entertaining was a bra that he grabbed out of the laundry the other day and dragged around the house. Also in full dog fashion, he likes to grab and pull and chew on our door blinds. Our leasing office might question whether or not we had a kid or a canine living here.






Hobbies include but not limited to:
Eating dirt, grass, mulch, or whatever else he can find off the floor.
Resisting diaper changes and clothing.
Turning nursing into a challenging sport of wrestling (boy did I never think I would look forward weaning a baby so much)
Hitting and watching the door stoppers rattle
Swimming
Yelling and grunting loudly
Hardcore napping
Eating more stuff off the ground
Middle of the night nursing (because who has time for that in the middle of the day, not Cooper)
Wrestling with Hannah
Did I mention eating off the floor?
Other cool baby stuff






This month has been fun with travels to the beach and the farm to visit with family and loved ones. We have three more weeks until our big move and trip to Alaska. I think we are all getting antsy to get going and settled in to our new home. Cooper has been overall great with all these changes and has gone with the flow. Except for sleep, he still stinks at that. Overall, I am thankful for these kiddos that adapt pretty well. I think Hannah has had the toughest time, her attitude definitely reflected all these changes but that has dramatically improved in the last week or two. She was constantly reminding me that she missed our house, her bed, and her friends but now she just seems excited to go on our trip and get to Alaska.

On a deeper note, this last month has been exceptionally sad in our nation and around the world. Its hard to put it all into words and I have a lot of thoughts and emotions running deep in my heart and mind. A lot of people are hurting and grieving, feeling lost and fearful. Just in relation to my kids, the responsibility to be a good example to them seems more grave then ever. The way I want them to treat others and serve their community has to be set by Brian and I's example. I don't know exactly yet how that looks, especially now as I feel like we are living in limbo. I hope that we can find more ways to love and to serve when we arrive in Juneau. Meanwhile, I hope to show them to love others in simple ways just in everyday interactions. The world looks scary right now. Ultimately I know our true home is in Heaven. We are here to serve, love, and show Jesus to others. Sometimes that feels hard when it seems like these years of little humans, diaper changes, sleepless nights, toddler tantrums, etc. dictate my every day way of life. But we are raising these little humans to go out and be sent into the world. Phew, now isn't that a mighty responsibility and I am thankful, so very thankful.


And finally, because she is cute and sweet too and oh so badly wanted to be included and have pictures taken of herself, photos of our crazy and silly three year old.

Cooper: 9 months

Nine months to grow in my belly, nine months here with us. It is practically worth throwing a party and celebrating. 9 months. Horray! Can I tell you, a few days ago I was thinking about how I could even write this months update because I wouldn't have much positive to say. It was a tough month. But its always amazes me how often the phrase "this too shall pass"  really does play out in life, especially those funky and tear filled stages of kiddos.


I started the month with a terrible stomach virus or food poisoning, that or some form of mysterious horribleness (is that even a word?). Even after the 24 hours of the real horrendous stuff passed, which included a trip to the ER for fluids, I still couldn't keep much down for almost a week. My milk supply crashed and I had a very unhappy baby. In the midst of thinking I may be feeling better I drove the kiddos and I up to Maryland to stay with Brian. Cooper was hungry and not a fan of his new living arrangement, a pack n play in the closet. The first night he was up screaming until 2 am. When it was 10 o'clock at night and he was gobbling down mashed bananas I realized it was time to supplement with formula. I wondered if he would even take a bottle. The boy scarfed it down in what seemed like seconds. I was thankful and strangely offended (because human emotions especially those of females are often unexplainable). Unfortunately his sleep was still...well lets just say it as it is...crap.

Lots of drool and a constant hot forehead, administering of Motrin and teething tablets. That seemed like the theme of this month. The kid has had 8 teeth since 6 months but nothing new since then. I guess he is working on the big ones, but they seem to be taking their time. Up until this month Cooper was pretty content sitting and watching the world. Suddenly he found the desire to be on the move. One problem, he  just couldn't figure it out. Our days went like this: sit Cooper up, Cooper throws his body forward, Cooper falls on his belly, Cooper suddenly no longer knows how to roll over on to his back, Cooper whines and cries, mom sits Cooper back up, repeat whole process of falling and crying over again....all day long.


"This too shall pass." I am thankful for such a truth. Don't get me wrong, nothing extreme or terrible happened this month. It was just one of those months where a lot of little things felt like they were piling up and everything seemed a bit harder. But we are starting to settle into a new routine here living in an one bedroom apartment together. It is easier getting around and we are enjoying our days here, especially the pool. Cooper is much more content and learning to be mobile. He still isn't crawling but is so close and is able to get around some through shuffling, scooting, rolling, inch worming. He is also sleeping so much better (though 12 straight hours would rock my world. If anyone has any sleep training tips that don't involve a screaming baby waking neighbors please tell me your trade secrets?). I am also thankful that my milk supply is back to normal though I know he would be content either way. It is hard to remember during those tougher days that good days will happen again. It is also humbling to look back on those days that seemed plum dumb awful and think, that really wasn't so bad.




Cooper continues to be a delightful fella. I just can't get over that laugh, those eyes, his sweet nature. The kid loves water, he kicks his feet and throws his arms in excitement just at the sight of the bath water running. He is so comfortable and giddy playing in the pool. On tougher days he is most content out and about, whether riding in the stroller to the playground, shopping around the mall, going out to eat, anywhere there is activity and people watching. He also likes to be heard; he loves yelling, growling and hearing his echo as we walk down our quiet apartment building hallway.




I adore the way he looks at his sister with such admiration. No one can make Cooper laugh like she does. Sometimes we will try to copy whatever she is doing to make him laugh. He will look at us with a mundane face. "Mom and Dad, you just can't be as cool as my Hannah."  I am really grateful and proud of her especially. Three has not been easy, that is for sure, but  she has easily transitioned into the big sister role. She is always willing to help with Cooper and she shows him so much love and compassion. She may be a threenager but boy is she the best big sister. Man do I ever hope and pray that these two will be forever friends.


Like always, time is flying by too fast. Don't get me wrong, there are days as a mom that the day feels oh so painfully slow but man I can't seem to stop these kids from growing up so quickly. At the same time  it is exciting to watch them grow up. I look forward to seeing how they are going to mature, what new things they are going to learn, how they choose to live their life. I pray that they will love Jesus and love others too. It feels like a mighty responsible to guide them towards that. Man I can feel like the biggest failure when it comes to that but ultimately I know that He is in control and is mightier than me and can work in all my weaknesses.

Cooper, you are one cool kid and we LOVE you.