July 15, 2008

musician

| By cooleys | 10:38 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)

July 13, 2008

hvac tune

aidan singing into the hvac.

| By cooleys | 9:51 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack (0)

scoot

| By cooleys | 2:52 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)

June 30, 2008

the babe

sir willem the smiley one will be nine months old on the fourth of july

recent accomplishments include: scooting all over the floor without actually crawling; mastering this interesting yoga-like position that resembles a downward-facing dog; ramblings with a lot of "da da da;" so many smiles; a few more grunts now that several teeth are emerging at once; continuing to wake mom up 2-3 times a night with pleas for milk (have you seen the size of this kid?); a new nasal, snorting laugh that his brothers really love; and the ability to recognize his name and the sight of those that he loves the most. he really is so much fun! thank you, god, for this amazing gift!

| By cooleys | 10:02 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)

June 29, 2008

catchin' up

well, there are no pictures to share. sadly, my computer has not been well, and i have to snag mark's laptop when he happens to bring it home. i have been feeling a little disconnected. we rarely watch television or listen to the radio. now with no computer, i am totally in the dark. at first, i was a little anxious at being separated from my email, my new facebook friends, and the extra noise created by the television that kept me from thinking long enough to become discontent. now that all of those things have been taken away, i have found myself completely drawn to the silence...well, the bits of silence that can be found in this busy home. the boys and i have been reading much more, have structured our days around fairly worthwhile endeavors, and we really do not seem to miss the distractions.....

as our summer rolls on, we have found ourselves out on the greenway that runs alongside the river riding with all of the bicycle gear needed for a family of six. the path is great for long rides, and we often stop midway for a picnic at a playground. the kids love it, and i am working toward getting the exercise that i need. we do tend to attract a lot of attention along the way. aidan rides alone. mark pulls abel on a trail-a-bike, and i have ollie and willem in a trailer behind my bike. one afternoon, we ran into some good friends who were out for a ride with their five children. we really were a sight that day, but it was so much fun! we have also been busy with different camps for the kids, vbs, and weekly trips to the library. this week we are looking forward to some time at the pool, visiting with my brother and his family over the 4th, and maybe a trip to the zoo.

| By cooleys | 8:50 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)

June 13, 2008

summer

this summer is already much different than the last. at this time last year, i was on bed rest nervously awaiting the arrival of the fourth cooley boy. this year i am enjoying willem and trying to create an exciting and structured summer for aidan, abel, and oliver. we have been on several walks, played at a few playgrounds, gone to the zoo, swam, and spent a little time with family and friends. the structure...well, i am still working on that.

| By cooleys | 2:44 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)

May 21, 2008

the end

the end of the school year is upon us. aidan completed first grade today, and abel made his way happily through kindergarten. presently, i am at home with three thrilled little boys. ollie cannot contain his joy at having his brothers around to play with him endlessly--or at least that is his plan. aidan and abel really do not understand that they will not be seeing their good buddies as often. all that they can think of is swimming, ice cream, no bedtime, and endless gamecube playing...maybe i will wait until next week to share my plans for the summer which happen to be quite different from theirs. tomorrow, we will head out in the morning, go to the zoo, the park, and have a picnic. that sounds like a pretty good intro for the summer.

in other news, i turn **30** next week. that sounds about as believable as me having a first and second grader. these days have really picked up speed, and i find myself grabbing onto my boys and inhaling each of them just hoping that i can hold these many sweet moments with them firmly in my mind. yes, having these kids creates an incredible amount of work but i truly cannot think of one other thing that i would rather be doing on my birthday than looking at these four faces...so, happy birthday to me! if you would like to celebrate with us, i am trying to come up with some fun birthday plans.

| By cooleys | 4:02 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

May 12, 2008

camel riding

these pictures were taken while on a fieldtrip with battle academy's kindergartners to the knoxville zoo:

i am not sure what is funnier: the camel's expression or ollie.

| By cooleys | 2:22 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

May 5, 2008

seven months

"wimbelton" at seven months receiving much love from his brothers:

little willem continues to simply exude joy. i love so much about him and this particular phase of his life. he is snuggly, chubby, wears his smile often and well, and brings joy to all around him.

| By cooleys | 3:59 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

May 1, 2008

boston!

feeling grateful:

for my mother coming to care for the boys while we were away

for a safe trip to and from boston

for the comfort of good conversation with good friends

for time spent watching, holding, and talking with the pierce girls

for new sights and sounds

for the joyful baby accompanying me on the trip

for the sight of my children's faces upon returning

| By cooleys | 1:33 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

April 19, 2008

*whoa*

so, this weekend has been much anticipated, is way full, and happens to be passing too quickly...but, of course, the boys are thrilled with the festivities, and willem is still smiling.

we started off our morning at the crabtree farms plant sale. the weather was amazing, there were friends to see and talk with, and our neighbor, rick, could be heard playing his hammered dulcimer. i really wanted to just pick a spot and stay right there. however, there were many other plans in the works for this beautiful spring day.

mark participated in a dragon boat race with his co-workers.

the boys were invited to celebrate a friend's seventh birthday...yea! for cake and ice cream!

i really wanted to make it to the 4 bridges art festival and ended up spending a couple of hours there with only willem in arms and quite a lot of time to talk with friends and neighbors and dream about which pieces of art i would chose if given the chance.

...is that it? well, i guess i forgot to mention that i was in bed all day yesterday sick with mastitis. i probably should have continued to rest today, but there was just so much going on that i could not miss. i love chattanooga!

| By cooleys | 8:14 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

April 15, 2008

introductions

introducing sir willem to his great grandparents last month:

i would love to say that our trip to california was restful and full of just enjoying family. there were those moments in the mix, but there was also a very present sadness. it is difficult seeing those that you love grow older, especially when your mind is flooded with all of those childhood memories of time spent together and not being able to imagine a time without them.

| By cooleys | 9:38 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

April 1, 2008

aidan

raising a seven year old is more than a bit overwhelming when i take more than a moment to actually reflect on the process. i am sure that many who have been there would roll their eyes and say that i worry too much. that may be true, but i am often so afraid of all that i am probably doing wrong. when we face all that embodies this age again next year with abel, i am sure that i will not be as concerned. i will then be obsessing about whatever uncharted territory we have entered into with aidan yet again. you know, it is that first time mom thing. i am confident in my ability to not cause injury to my infant, but i have absolutely no idea how to raise a growing boy while keeping in mind the man that i hope he will become.

aidan has become much more vocal these days about his plans for the future. he presents his ideas with such confidence and determination. he is fine with leaving our home but cannot imagine ever being apart from his best friends, asa and willem. he plans for them all to find an apartment at some point. he is also talking about his desire to learn to surf, move to hawaii, and grow his hair "out like vines." hope that his buddies are up for that lifestyle. aidan is also planning for his future family. he wants to get married and have about five children. at this point their names are asa and willem (no surprise there), cannon and speed (who are all boys). he intends for his fifth child to be a girl named either sally or electric-c (not electricity)...

each day he is usually eager to wake up, eat his breakfast, and head off to school to meet up with his good friends. it is so comforting to know that he spends his days learning with a kind teacher surrounded by people his age who are loving and encourage him to always try his best. last month, his class each chose a different historical figure to study for black history month. aidan and i decided that he should research pele, the amazing brazilian soccer player. each night he came home eager to look on the computer for new information on pele and watch videos of this soccer star in action. he also shared bits of information on his classmates' projects throughout the week. i was amazed at the amount of information that he retained and his eagerness to learn. at the end of the month, aidan stood before his class, and his teacher said that he gave a great presentation.

as i am sure i have said in previous posts, coupled with aidan's determination and confidence comes some stubbornness and aggression (particularly toward me). these aspects of his personality are often made worse by fatigue and/or too much sugar. bedtime can often bring out the worst in my little guy. a couple of weeks ago i was putting my guys to bed and was tucking in a very frustrated aidan. honestly, i do not have a lot of patience at the end of the day and was hoping to just turn off the light and have some down time myself. aidan wanted to rehash an incident that he had with abel earlier that day in which he felt that i did not discipline abel enough for his offense. after telling aidan that it was just time for bed and that i loved him, he looked up at me with eyebrows furrowed and said, "mom, it's just like i'm black history, and you're the white man!" now that was not something i could have expected! i then laughed and complimented him on a great analogy for a first grader...a bit dramatic, but so funny!

last night aidan had a difficult time going to sleep because he was thrilled reading through a book on the solar system checked out from the library earlier that day. mark was holding willem, and we both commented on how amazing it seems that aidan is no longer this infant but a growing boy learning and reading on his own and so excited about all there is for him to learn. a few nights ago, a star wars book captured his interest. in an attempt to convey his love for all things related to star wars, he said "dad, it's like star wars controls my whole body. you know, i am just sooo into star wars."

so, there it is: bits about my boy that i want to remember. i know i will be laughing at my worries once we have passed through this stage and are entering into a different and possibly more complex one....

| By cooleys | 11:05 AM | TrackBack (0)

March 28, 2008

mini contortionist

i know that i must be at least a bit biased, but this kid has to be one of the cutest that i have seen...and he is just so smiley. you really cannot help but smile, especially when he reaches down, grabs a foot, and proceeds to suck on his toes. so cute!

| By cooleys | 5:08 PM | TrackBack (0)

March 25, 2008

*oh my*

here we are concluding a week of birthday festivities with a family dinner and gifts from us. abel was thrilled to receive a razor scooter, which seemed like a good choice given his reluctance to learn to ride a bike. ollie uncovered a new pet dinosaur. our thinking--maybe this is the only kind of family friend we can handle. all that we need to remember is an occasional new set of batteries...

toward the end of this busy week, i headed to california with willem in tow to spend time with family. after playing with friends on friday, the boys had a couple of fun days alone with dad. they got dirty, painted, played at the ymca, ate pizza and probably stayed up later and consumed more sugar than their mom would allow. what a great dad they have!

...and then they were off to nana's for a week where they played board games, read countless books, learned to love their uncle's wii, camped outside with their papa, made cookies and crafts, snuggled with their nana, and went on a few outings. mark gave abel the camera to take pictures during their two hour drive to nashville. i really love the self portrait...

willem and i made it safely back to chattanooga in time for the boys' return and to celebrate easter with mark's family. mark and his brother hid eggs in the park near our home for our guys and their cousin, remie. it was truly a beautiful day. the boys are pictured quickly consuming their bounty before mom decided to confiscate the sugar.

...and here are all of my guys with their bunnies. willem was a little bummed that he was not partaking of the chocolate.

| By cooleys | 10:13 AM | TrackBack (0)

March 12, 2008

four and six

with abel and oliver's birthdays exactly two years and one day apart, i decided to throw a mid-week kid party extravaganza to celebrate. there were kids, food, presents, laughter, some tears, helpful parents, and more kids filling our home and spilling over to the neighborhood playground. i am so thankful for all that showed up to wish my guys a "happy birthday" and celebrate with us! i am amazed by the amount of people surrounding my children that have befriended, loved, and encouraged them as well as their parents who continually encourage me!

could it really be possible for ollie to be FOUR? i remember so clearly sitting in my hospital bed the day after he was born holding this sweet boy and crying knowing that these moments would surely pass too quickly. i also remember his buddy, charlie, who was only a few weeks old at the time, visiting us with his mom. who knew that they would turn out to be such great buddies!

...and abel is now SIX! this boy draws others to him with a great smile, eagerness, and a tender heart. he is a great brother, artist, and friend. happy birthday, abe! always remember how much you are loved!

| By cooleys | 9:55 AM | TrackBack (0)

March 7, 2008

bath time

amazed by his beauty while bathing the babe:

| By cooleys | 4:38 PM | TrackBack (0)

delirious

delirious
-wandering in the mind and talking complete nonsense usually as a result of fever (or maybe a lack of sleep)

-of, suffering from, or characteristic of delirium. marked by uncontrolled excitement or emotion; ecstatic

| By cooleys | 3:20 PM | TrackBack (0)

February 27, 2008

right now

honestly, right now i am more than a bit overwhelmed by all of the responsibilities before me. having our fourth little guy has added so much more: more smiles, more drool, more sleepless nights, more insecurity, more work, more work, more work. i used to be able to set household chores aside for some time to knit, read, or even just think but now find myself so incredibly far behind in absolutely everything. what makes all of this so much worse is that my two older guys seem to be very aware of my shortcomings and share them with me often.

i am also trying to stay on track with an elimination diet that i have been on for two weeks. not being able to turn to food as a reward or for comfort has been rough. i was hoping that taking so many possible allergens out of my diet would boost my energy, eliminate some of the body pain, clear the brain fog, ease the depression, help with sleep, and force me to deal with some of the issues that cause me to run to food. this really feels like a lot, and i often think that i am not up to the challenge. i have done really well over the last couple of weeks and am hoping that some of the changes that i am making now will be lasting.

| By cooleys | 8:58 AM | TrackBack (0)

February 18, 2008

saturday

borrowed cardboard + grassy hill + three ecstatic little boys = good fun

we just may have found a new hobby.

and more pictures of that smiley baby...

| By cooleys | 8:11 PM | TrackBack (0)