Crazy Hair Night

Last wednesday was crazy hair night at AWANA's. Here are some pictures of the boys. (Puggles doesn't do crazy hair night but there was no way that Ben wasn't going to have his hair done if Zach's was done.)

Martians and Marshals

One Sunday afternoon the boys wanted to play with their cowboy & policeman outfits. I was helping them put them on and Zachary starting making a big deal about how he was a policeman and Ben wasn’t. So I explained to him how that Ben had a marshal’s badge on his outfit and that back in cowboy days, before there were policemen, that special cowboys were marshals. About that time Ian came up to from the basement to see what was going on. Zach ran over to him and explained that before there where policemen there were martians and that Ben was a martian.

Playing like we are All Grown Up

They boys received a policeman outfit, a cowboy outfit and 2 doctors outfits for Christmas and they are probably their favorite things to play with right now. Here are a few pictures that I thought were so cute.


Zach decided to setup his doctor's office on the stairs. He had some very sick stuffed animals.

Boys & Water

What is it about little boys (or big boys, Ian) and water? It was 70 degrees one day while we were in Arkansas so we all went to the park. There is a small stream that leads to a lake at this park. The water was ice cold, but where did my boys all end up? In the stream.

Christmas at Grandma & Papa Coopers

Due to Ian's & his parents' work schedules we weren't able to have Christmas until this last weekend. Even with Ben's hurt foot they had a really good time. Ben is trying to help pass out presents even though he can't walk. So he decided to push the present across the floor with his head like a bulldozer.

New Year's Eve and Our 1st Major Injury

Ian had to work that night so I just stayed home with the boys with no intention of staying up to ring in the new year. Ian had left for work and the boys had been playing in the playroom for a while. Playing is probably not the right word. I had been telling them to calm down and quit jumping off of things for the last 30 minutes. Finally the inevitable happened. I hear someone jump from the train table (which I found out was Zach) followed by another thud which was Ben, and then a hurt cry. Zach comes running into the family room telling me that Ben is hurt but He didn't do it! Best I can figure (after listening to what happened from a 2 year old & 4 year old) is that Ben crawled from the train table up onto a small ledge that runs around the room and jumped off. This probably won't have hurt him except when he landed the top of his left foot came down on a toy with a rounded by pointed piece on it. Even after ibuprofen & a could washrag (he refused to let me ice it) he couldn't walk on it the rest of the night.

The next morning he still couldn't walk and we were suppose to leave the next morning for Arkansas. Of course since it was New Years our doctor's office was closed so we called the doctor on call. He said that since we were leaving town the next day we should probably have his foot ex-ray. So Ian & I headed off to the ER. They didn't think it was broken but it is hard to tell with small children because not all the bones in their feet have totally fused together yet. They said that in 2-3 days if he didn't start walking on it to come back and they would do a bone scan & just to keep it wrapped and give him Ibuprofen and ice it if he would let us.

So we went to Arkansas and Ben crawled everywhere he went for the entire trip (except for when he could look helpless and get someone to carry him, which was alot). He finally started walking on it Sunday evening, four days after the injury happened. He still limps because he is not bending his foot when he walks. So apparently his just has a really deep bruse in the tissue of his foot. At least he is not in a cast. A very active 2 year old in a cast, I don't even want to think about it.

It's Christmas!

We had a good Christmas. The only thing that could have been better was that Ian got sick 2 days before Christmas with an eye infection & an upper respiratory infection; which he really didn't get over until 2 days after Christmas. He did feel well enough Christmas to join in the festivities; but you won't see any pictures of him.

It all started Christmas Eve. We all sit together by the tree and read Luke 2, the birth of Jesus. Then we talk about what His birth means to us (trying to get the real point of Christmas across to the boys before the day long opening of presents starts in the morning). Then we let the boys open their stockings. Christmas morning we open presents as a family & just spend time together.

And Christmas Continues

After opening presents at our house we went to my parent's house for a late breakfast and more opening of presents.

Then after naps we went to my grandparents house for dinner and MORE opening of presents.