"C" is for CROP!

I've been trying extra hard to do "learning activities" with Easton (as he so fondly likes to call them).  They usually involve me bribing him and then he cooperates for a good 4 minutes.  And he usually does a great job of getting under my skin.  So, this morning, his humor was a nice touch to our 4 minutes together.  We were working on the first 3 letters of the alphabet (disclaimer, I'm not a preschool teacher)...I was singing the first three letters while pointing at the appropriate letter.  We got to "C" and he excitedly pipes up, "Mommy, I know that letter!  C is for CROP"!  I said, "oh yeah, that's right"!  And then he said, "you know, Daddy's 'C'"!  I immediately knew how he made his connection.  Our business logo is a capital "C" with a bean plant integrated into the bottom of the letter.  Obviously, the "C" logo stands for Cooper…but to a 3 year old, when your daddy is a farmer, sells seed and the "C" logo has a bean growing out of it, the letter "C" stands for crop!

Back at it

It's been over 4 years since I've blogged.  Give me a break, we've been a little busy!!!  In my last post, I was pregnant with "mini Coop"…he's now 3 (almost 4) and his name is Easton!  Oh, and we had another "mini Coop".  He's 18 months and his name is Miles!  So, if you couldn't keep up…we are up to 5…Zach, Diane, Beckett (5), Easton (3), and Miles (18 months)!  And yes, we still have our yellow lab named Champ (Champ-O as the boys like to call him) and we are up to 3 cats named Tiger, Mizzou, and Rocket.  Don't ask about our cats…I'll save them for a separate blog post someday!

We also moved houses.

And I became a stay at home mom.

And our business has grown and evolved into a partnership with another couple.

So yes, I think it's safe to say that A LOT has happened in 4 years!  So why have I decided to blog again, you ask?  Well...I have realized that I have a horrible memory.  It's true.  It was bad before kids and it's HORRIBLE after kids!  So, I'm pretty much blogging so I can remember our precious life and our crazy children…and if you want to be in the "Coop" loop again…you are welcome to follow along.  My posts will probably be short and sweet because…well…I think I'll be more successful at keeping this up! ;)

To get me rolling again, I'll start with this morning.  I dropped Beckett off at school.  He started Kindergarten 4 days ago and the whole process has pulled emotions from me that I never knew I had and wasn't prepared to have.  All of a sudden, I'm jealous of his kindergarten teacher!  Who on earth is jealous of a kindergarten teacher?  Not me until that lady gets to spend all day with him!  lol.  I've also learned how to cry without tears and smile while grieving.  However, this morning was good.  He unbuckled, gave me and his brothers hugs, and headed into school.  So today, a week after all these crazy emotions started, I think I'm starting to level back out.  He's going to be just fine.

Two quick funny kindergarten stories…

Before Kindergarten started I was explaining to Beckett that he would go to school for 2 days and then have 2 days off and then he'd go back to school for 5 days…and before I could finish "and have 2 days off" he enthusiastically interjected, "AND HAVE 5 DAYS OFF"!!!  lol…no buddy…gotta wait 'til Thanksgiving to get five days off! :)

And lastly, the first day of school Beckett brought his lunch.  We bought him a lunchbox and he was so excited to use it!  So of course, I packed him lunch on day 1.  When I picked him up from school that first day, we talked about how lunch went.  He said he liked his lunch, but he was going to eat hot lunch on Friday because he saw that the hot lunch kids got chocolate milk.  So guess what…he's eaten hot lunch every day since…solely for the chocolate milk!  :)

And this is our sweet Beckett on his first day of school!

"Ammo" on Big Brother

Well, little brother, your big brother has already taken over the few new things we have gotten for you, one of which being your new carseat!  The other day, I was in the kitchen and I heard your big brother cracking up in the living room.  I went to check out the fun and found him in YOUR carseat!!!  He was WAY too big for it, but he thought it was just hilarious that he could fit in it!  

Here's a picture for you to keep in a safe place, we will call this "ammo" for when you need to get your brother back some day!!!

Also, we are much closer to naming you!  Actually, Mommy has known your name for a LONG time, but has needed a little time convincing your Daddy of your name.  As you will quickly find when you meet us, Mommy usually knows answers to tough questions right away whereas Daddy has to analyze everything until he drives everybody crazy!  Mommy is almost crazy so maybe that means Daddy is closer to giving us the go-ahead!

We love you already little man!  Keep growing and getting stronger, you'll need a few muscles to stake your claim on what is yours in this house!!!

Mommy, Daddy, and Big Bro