America's Funniest Home Videos: Cox Family Edition

Here's the setup:

We found a light saber (sp.?? I'm not a Star Wars geek, so I don't know how to spell it....LOL!) under the bed. When Nolan received it for Christmas, he could have cared less about it. Now, however, he very clearly understands what to do with it, much to his mamma's amusement, ahem, I mean dismay......

Bailey was waiting for grandma and pa pa to arrive, and didn't even see it coming.

Easter

Happy (post) Easter! I hope that everyone had a wonderful time with family/friends, hunting eggs with the kids and eating great food. More than this, I hope that you were able to reflect on the wonderful and free gift of eternal life given through the blood Jesus shed on the cross. I was so proud of Bailey for telling the Easter story to the entire family on Sunday. If any of you have not yet discovered Resurrection Eggs, I highly recommend them (Mardel, $16). The set includes 12 plastic eggs, each with a symbol of the crucifixion and resurrection inside. There is also a book that helps kids learn how to use the visual aids to tell the story. Bailey now knows pieces of the story that would be new to most adults. Amazing!

The kids set out their baskets and some carrots and lettuce for the Easter Bunny. Bailey was amazed that the bunny would come down the chimney just like Santa.

The Easter Bunny ate most of his treats and left some non-candy goodies like hot wheels, pajamas, clothes and a Barbie. I suspect he figured that candy would not be in short supply.


On Saturday, I took the kids to a nearby church for an egg hunt. Since we were expecting rain on Easter, I figured I better let them have the experience on Saturday.

Nolan cared more about a sliver of pizza he carried around the entire time than actually picking up eggs. But here you can see him going for one (but still with the pizza in one hand).

Bailey got to ride a horse. I thought about letting Nolan ride with her and then had visions of him diving off the side. So ixnay on the ideray.

They had a huge tortoise there. This is NOT a good picture, but you can see how close Nolan got to it....he refused to budge for about 5 minutes but wouldn't let me put him on top for a ride.

Here are a few pics from church on Sunday.

Here, Nolan is about to jump. Anytime I get out the camera, he starts doing his tricks.

I believe I learned this Easter that hunting eggs is not Nolan's forte. He just stood there looking around the whole time, despite our yells of "Get some eggs! Put it in your basket! Look, get that green one!"

He finally got some eggs, but only out of a little girl's hand...not off the floor.

With second cousins Anna and Joseph. Anna is 5 weeks older than Bailey and Joseph is 4 weeks younger than Nolan. We didn't tell the girls to do this to their brothers, it just happened that way.

Since it was raining, we created an egg scavenger hunt for the girls. Their last clue led them to the bathtub where they found their baskets.

The girls posing.

In case you're wondering, Jason DOES know how to smile...just not in pictures. Love you, babe!

The girls telling secrets.

Nolan wanting in on the secret.

Bailey showing Anna her Barbie from the Easter Bunny. It's funny to see them interact. And, yes, Anna wore her princess hair from the Tea Party pics. I made a comment about how dark Anna's hair was getting and I think Tina thought I was referring to the fake hair. I had to clarify that I meant her REAL hair!!

Here's a video that will convey how Nolan spent Easter. It's not the best one I shot, but the others are long. He basically ran around and around Jeanne's kitchen and living room begging people to chase him.

Finally, here are some random pictures from the weekend.


This picture is significant only because Nolan has thus far rejected the notion of reading books. I usually get two or three words out before he slams it shut and runs off. Here, you can see, he is actually pointing to a picture in one of his books. Yea!!

Pajama time!

And, here's a video of the kids playing "roll ball." They have a little fight in the middle - just ignore that part. LOL!

I leave you with a few Bailey quotes from the week and things little Nolan is doing:

Bailey

-"Momma, my brain is telling me things I don't like. He is telling me that he doesn't like our house anymore and that I'm not pretty, Nolan's not cute, you're not pretty and daddy's not handsome. Why is my brain DOING that? It's not even true!" Apparently her brain is a male. Hope this doesn't cause any gender confusion someday. On a serious note, she has started making comparisons and saying she's not as pretty as someone in a picture or something. This makes me sad - she's only 4!!! I guess that's part of growing up. And I think it makes it easier for her to have negative thoughts if she can blame it on that ornery brain of hers. LOL!

Nolan

-I told you last time about his hitting problem. I've been regularly saying, "NO hitting. Just love and gentle touch." Then I will demonstrate gentle touch. Well, here's what that got me......now Nolan hits and then IMMEDIATELY hugs his victim. Progress???

-Speaking of hugs, he gave Bailey a big hug when Jason dropped them off at MDO this week. Jason said it lasted for about a minute and he just held on and wouldn't let go. How sweet!

That's enough for now. See ya later, alligators!

Adore Me, Please!

Bailey got invited to a "Princess Tea Party" at Rose Castle (aka Rose State) to benefit Artzplace Kids in MWC. After a whirlwind Saturday morning that involved working a retreat in Guthrie, I headed out to MWC with both kids. Bailey was so excited! She wore her flower girl dress from my brother's wedding, and I put a white cardigan over it to hide the fact that it no longer (easily) zips to the top. :-) Even more than the party, I think she enjoyed wearing her attire as we did some pre-event shopping at some stores that we don't have in my neck o' the woods. Fast forwarding to later in the day when I suggested she change for the rest of the day's activities, she said, "But, momma, people don't ADORE me in my regular clothes!" Oh, dear.....

Here are some pics, which include little Nolan dancing (you can't tell he's dancing, but he is!) with some of the other little girls near the stage.



She looks like she's praying, but I think I got her mid clap.

Look at that pinky - the epitome of class and elegance when drinking lemonade out of plastic cups.

The dance squad.


Both my children lingering on the stage while other mothers were trying to get pictures of their kids. Bailey just stayed and smiled until I went and got her.


Bailey with cousin Anna and Anna's cousin Katie.


Bailey learned how to wave like a princess (elbow, elbow, wrist, wrist, touch your necklace, blow a kiss), and a little about table manners. We'll see how long she keeps up this new found etiquette.

Nolan, as you might imagine, got tired of the girly stuff and I spent the latter part of the event outside watching him climb up and down the same set of steps 150 times. He did pretty well, if you ask me. So, this is why I was super surprised as we were packing up to leave when a lady said, "How old is he?" I responded with 16 months and waited for her next comment to be he's so cute, which is what usually happens. Instead, she said, "He's quite a handful." Now, I didn't know if she was trying to be snotty, but that's not something I would ever say to anyone else. That's something I can say about my own kid, but it's not so kosher the other way around as it has a negative connotation. I think I just said, "Yeah" or something in response. THEN, she said, "Shouldn't it be his nap time?" At this point, I was still trying to figure out her intentions. I can see saying he sure looks tired, I bet he's ready for a nap but the way she said it screamed YOUR KID IS SO BAD. WHY DID YOU BRING HIM HERE? I'm not very good in these situations, and didn't know what to say. As a good Christian, I should just ignore any ill intent and go on with my life. I'll give you 3 guesses whether that's what I did. Right then, Nolan started whimpering for me to pick him up and I said, "Gosh, Nolan. I feel the same way about what she said!" Then, I walked away. To my credit, there was a lot of commotion and I don't think she heard me. Booooooooo!

Here are some cute bathtub pictures of Nolan from this week. Sorry for the nakedness.

I think he's drinking the water as it goes down the drain. Fun times.

As you can see, he still only has 2 teeth on the bottom, 4 on the top.

Finally, we embarked on a new adventure this week....being fish owners. Bailey has been asking for a dog lately and we gave her our argument that a fish is a good compromise. She bought it, so we committed to getting a fish. Here she is talking about it in the car (note her irritation when I take the camera away. That's what you call "attitude." We're working on it.)

And, here she is proudly displaying her fish.





Not to be Debbie Downer after such a fun tale of a girl and her pets, but they died about 20 minutes after putting them in the tank. Our friend at the pet store said there was probably too much chlorine in the water. On Sunday, we ventured back to Petsmart to get some new fish. One of them died this morning. I'm not sure how this new adventure will end!! Bailey was cute, though, when we were trying to decide if one of them was dead. She said, "No, Cindy just likes being funny and hanging out at the top. She'll swim again here in a little bit." Not so much!!


Finally, I leave you with a bad mommy moment. Nolan has learned how to climb up and slide down the slide in our backyard. I was so impressed that I went to get the camera...only to capture what I should have anticipated would happen. He wasn't hurt, by the way. So, it's okay to laugh.



Oh, and here's the picture Nolan took of HIMSELF! You can tell it's a super close-up by the massive amount of light reflected in the picture.


Peace!


Kendy

Troublemaker Deluxe!

So, I'll disclose right off the bat that I don't have any pictures to post today. But, I wanted to write a couple of things down before I forget. I'm getting too old to stash things in a mental file for later....no worky no more.

BUT, I will get some pics and video this weekend because there are a few things I have to capture. But, I'll wait to tell you about those things when they can be accompanied by picture/video proof!

Nolan is becoming quite the little devious one. I think I've previously written about his obsession with throwing clothes and other items either in the bathtub or the trash can. Obviously, the bathtub is a bit more convenient for the removal process. His newest trick is hiding his food. He's never been a big eater, but periodically he gobbles up food like a champ. So, we keep giving him more. Then, come time for us to clean up, we find half of his food shoved underneath the removable top tray on his high chair. What?? Why would the kid keep begging for more food if he's just going to hide it? I don't get it. But, I'm sure it makes perfect sense to a 16 month old baby.

The cutest thing ever is his expanding vocabulary. Now, I admit, it's expanding much more slowly than I expected or would like. I looked back at Bailey's baby book and I have documented that she said 75 words at 16 months. At 18 months, she said phrases like "more milk" or "daddy's cup." Weeeeeeelll, that's not the case with little Nolan. BUT.....he has started saying "uh oh" when he drops things or, well, when he gets a reaction out of us. What's funny about it is that the "uh" is super high pitched, and the "oh" is super low pitched. It sounds so funny and cute.

He also now says "bubbles" (in the bathtub) and his "thank you" has gotten a bit more clear. Most of the time, however, he still relies on pointing and pushing us when he wants something or to go somewhere. I think I've worn out the "Use your words" line over the past month.

Finally, we're a bit worried about him becoming a hitter. He loves to hit us....not hard, but definitely more than a gentle pat. He thinks it's funny. Thus far he's never hit anyone outside of the family, but I'm sure it won't be long if we don't nip it in the bud. We have been careful not to inadvertently encourage the behavior and always stop what's going on, get down on his level, and say, "NO hitting." Sometimes, however, he hits me in the face when I'm admonishing him for hitting. Sigh. That's when I spank his butt. That's the irony of all parenting if you ask me. Believe me, I'm a proponent of spanking. But, spanking to punish hitting seems a little counterintuitive. We'll see.....like other things, I suspect the hitting is sure to be a short-lived phase. At least he's not a biter, right?!

Gotta go....check back for pics.