Coop's First Haircut.

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Happy Monday friends!

It's nap time at our house - so I jumped on the computer because I just had to share some photos from the weekend.

After many-a-stranger kept telling us how cute our little girl was, we decided it was time. Our little boy needed his first haircut. I love, love those curls and this was a hard decision to make- but really, it wasn't, because we reached red-neck mullet status overnight, y'all. I mean, seriously how can hair grow so fast?

[caption id="attachment_1763" align="aligncenter" width="490"] This is absolutely horrifying. And yes, he has a quite large gap between his front two teeth.[/caption]

We took him to a local kids salon, put him in a fire truck and, honestly, I'm not sure he even knew what happened. He was too busy "driving" and saying "vroom vroom." Some before pics:

[caption id="attachment_1767" align="aligncenter" width="490"] Yea, it's bad.[/caption]

And, during:

[caption id="attachment_1769" align="aligncenter" width="490"] Not so sure.[/caption]

And...after!

[caption id="attachment_1777" align="aligncenter" width="490"] My mullet-less baby boy![/caption]

Thank you to friends and family who finally said, "you know, Lauren, it might be time." For those of you wondering if you should get your son's hair cut- when you can do a small, thin braid in the back, that's a sure sign.

In other news, our lilies finally bloomed (I've been waiting all summer for this) - how gorg!

[caption id="attachment_1771" align="aligncenter" width="490"] Beauty.[/caption]

...and our dog started showing interest in little Cooper! In fact, he's been sneaking into Coop's room during nap and bed time. It's seriously the cutest thing I've ever seen. And a little frightening, when I first saw two beady eyes on the monitor.





Here's to hoping that he is looking more like a little boy now :).

Happy week, friends!

xo

Lauren

 

 

Five on Friday: Baby Baptism Edition

Last Sunday we baptized Cooper at Vail Chapel, where we got married 3 and a half short years ago, and by the very same southern pastor who married us at our destination wedding. Let me tell you, it was something special. I've been looking forward to and planning this day for a while now, but didn't realize just how emotional it would be.

[caption id="attachment_1731" align="aligncenter" width="490"] In front of Vail Chapel.[/caption]

Because Cooper is an older babe, he was so aware of everything going on; he reached for the pastor when he went to hold him, and was silent and focused on him during the whole ceremony. What a milestone, and an important step in his faith as well as ours as parents, as we commit to raise him with a heart for the Lord.

[caption id="attachment_1733" align="aligncenter" width="490"] With the Kauffmans.[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1737" align="aligncenter" width="490"] Texas meets Colorado: The Kennedys.[/caption]

Yep he's tan and blonde these days. none of which he gets from his mama.

[caption id="attachment_1728" align="aligncenter" width="490"] Such a sweet moment.[/caption]

Here's a throwback of us in that very same chapel with the very same pastor on our wedding day:



Some special books to commemorate the day and how cute is this frame my mom put together?

There's so much hope in baptism. For our children it is the first step in what we hope is an incredible journey. As his mom it feels like a fresh start (or kick in the bum) to put God first in our life and our home. I hope we can teach Cooper all it means to be a man of faith, a Believer..

You wondering about that 5 on Friday part of the post?  Alas, here's my 5 things I loved about our special baptism weekend:

(1.) Baby's First Book of Prayers, Melody Carlson

(2.) Beginners Bible, Kelley Pulley

(3.)  My Baptism Book, Sophie Piper

(4.) Cooper's Linen Janie and Jack Shirt in Navy and J. Crew Bow Tie in green and navy

(5.) Proud mom's Anthropologie dress

Also not pictured is this custom framed bible verse that I purchased on Etsy. You can pick your colors and verse. I love.

Happy weekend y'all!

 

Tips when you take flight with the littles.

Greetings from the Vail Valley!

Cooper got baptized yesterday here in Vail and all of our families (minus a few) were able to come. It was a special day and it's been a fun weekend, I'll be sure to share pictures soon.

The other day I counted up how many flights Cooper has been on , and Y'ALL, it is FOURTEEN. This child has flown 7 round trip flights in his 17 months of life. I had so much anxiety on that first flight (which, by the way, I did alone), however I've realized people are nicer than you expect, the kiddos are manageable, and if all else fails all airlines offer wine for sale.

Here's some of our strategies on smooth flights with the babes:
Flights by Age

0-5 months - it's easy peasy. This is by far the easiest time to fly. The white noise of the plane calms the kiddos, and it's pretty easy for them to fall asleep after a full stomach. He slept each time he flew during this time period.

*Make sure you have a breast or couple bottles readily available for feeding.

*I also suggest that you have a nursing cover because even when your babe's not nursing, you can keep him or her covered when they are sleeping.

*Have a pacifier handy.

*Try to have baby sucking on way up and way down. If you can't don't stress. On Cooper's first flight he refused the pacifier, fell asleep before we took off and at landing, and was just fine.

*If you wear your baby just note you can't wear them while flying. Such a bummer, as the first time I flew he fell asleep in the Moby Wrap and I had to wake him up to take him out for take-off.

6-12 months - this is has been the trickiest age for us. Not quite walking, some babes will be crawling, but they are all super busy.

*During this age we did a lot of interactive singing games. You've heard them- "Wheels on the Bus," "Pat-a-Cake" and "This Little Piggy."

*He was really into things he could grip and touch. Bring any good "gripper" toys you have.

*I kept a bottle handy during this age (with backup formula to boot).

*I walked the plane a lot, or would hold him in the back of the plane until he fell asleep.

*During this time the app that saved us was called "Kidzongs" - which plays tunes like '3 Little Monkeys' and 'Twinkle Twinkle Little Star'. Coop loved it!

[caption id="attachment_1711" align="aligncenter" width="384"] The moment every parent dreams of.[/caption]

12-18 months- for us, Cooper stopped sleeping on a plane around this time (unless we had a really long flight).

*I keep him out of the seat (i.e.: my lap) as much as possible before take-off. See that picture at the top of the page of him on the floor? Kinda like that.

*The key for flying during this age is to have a variety of attention-suckers. We pack books, toys that are transportable (but don't have a ton of little parts) and an iPad with fun toddler-friendly apps.

*Apps. Let's talk about those. Cooper only likes two so far: "Phone for Kids" and "Bubbles."

*Have TONS of snacks. We pack Little Tots pouches, goldfish and/or any snack that takes the most time to eat. If your kiddo is big on milk then pack extra, as they don't sell whole milk on the plane.

18-plus-we're not there yet, but this will be the time I introduce DVD players and a lot more apps. That's right, folks, electronics.

Timing and Choosing Flights 

We love flying Southwest Airlines because their cancellation policies are great, they are rarely delayed and you can pick your seat. People are always nice, but they'll pass up a lady with a baby every time until they absolutely have to sit down. This often results in an empty seat next to me - which is so nice for a busy toddler or as a place to put your car seat.

During the younger months I would try to book flights during nap time- up until around 5 months. However as he has gotten older that has changed; I try to book during times where there are likely to be less people flying and the flights are typically not full. Because he is so busy this is the ideal time to have a bit more room.

Other little extras

This may sound obvious - but always give yourself extra time. You'll have to change diapers, make/heat bottles, and Lord knows what else.

Happy Flying!

Lauren

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Five-on-Friday

Hey y'all!

It's Friday and I am so, so excited for the weekend! My entire family is in town, how lucky are we? Linking up with over one-hundred blogs today to share five fun thoughts of the week. Here comes a whole-lotta random!

(ONE).

Seriously can down two cartons of this in a week. I don't, but I could. It's soooo good.

(TWO).

I recently bought these throw pillows at my happy place, Home Goods, and I'm kinda obsessed. I adore my cute little home but still feel like not one room is completely finished, if that makes sense. However I feel like I'm getting closer with this room. Aren't these pillows the cutest?

(THREE).

If you are looking for a good Bible Study I am loving this one. I have been so fascinated with learning more about the Old Testament lately, my mother in law gave me this one and I love how Beth Moore can find dissect a verse and find meaning in something I would otherwise just read past.

(FOUR).

I grabbed something at Janie and Jack for Coop this week, and seriously? Seriously. Our bank account would look a lot different if we had a girl, I mean these clothes are seriously adorbs!

[caption id="attachment_1690" align="aligncenter" width="120"] This was styled with skinny jeans at the local J&J. White skinny jeans! I die.[/caption]

(FIVE).

Don't laugh at me, but my mom gave me this CD when I was home in Texas and I can't stop listening to it. Not a big Taylor Swift fan, never owned a CD or song, but I LOVE this record! Coop and I have been jamming to it on our weekly errands. I'm late to the party I know.

Alright, my little nugget keeps signing '"eat", "eat" mommy' to me, so off to make breakfast I go! Have a greet weekend, friends!

xox

Lauren

WW: Accepting flaws.

I love this quote, and it is one of those "life sayings" that I hope that I can teach my children, because, hello?! How much easier would life be if we all are OK with our shortcomings?  

Not only do I want Coop to accept his flaws, but  be able to recognize them and accept constructive criticism. Jeff and I are not going to raise a kid who gets a trophy just for participating, or thinks he is good at everything because that's what he has heard his whole life. I want him to know he isn't going to be good at everything- he may be really bad and have to work at a lot of things. 

In fact one day, he might be the worst tap dancer in the class or not make the volleyball team in the 7th grade and be devastated. Theoretically. And that's okay, and kinda how it's supposed to be. If you process your failure- flaws- right, it drives you to work harder and to improve yourself. If we don't recognize our flaws and accept them, how do we progress in any  positive direction?  

Love and light y'all - Lauren 

PS- Full discretion y'all - that was ME I was talking about earlier. I didn't make the volleyball team in junior high and was a terrible tap dancer. However, my dance teacher did always tell me to smile really big because no one is looking at your feet anyways, which COOPER, if you're still listening is another excellent reminder. Smile big, honey.

Jet-setting.

Long lost greetings friends!



I took a little bloggy-break over the past month or so, because per the usual, this summer we have turned into jet-setters. Cooper has slept in his crib five times in the last four weeks and I'm positive my friends here forget what we look like.

Here's what you missed:

1. Cooper hits my face, your child, and often times his own head now. He's acquired a temper. We're working on it.

2. We spent 11 days in Texas and Cooper got to play with his Dallas-buds. It was chaotic.



3. Cooper's mom drank approximately 5 Mambo Taxi's while in Dallas (not consecutively). A Mambo Taxi is a 1200 calorie sangria-swirled margarita, with an intensely guarded recipe from HEAVEN (ie Mi Cocina). Legend has it that its name comes from the fact that after consuming three of them, you’ll need a taxi to get home; this I can neither confirm or deny. I've tried really hard to track down this recipe and this is as close as I've gotten.

4. Cooper's mom had an awesome stay-cation at the Ritz Carlton in Dallas. Massage, facial, pool time and you more importantly, martinis.

[caption id="attachment_1663" align="aligncenter" width="480"] BFF staycation! I'm thinking an annual event![/caption]



4. Cooper spent invaluable time with the Kennedy/Nann side of the family (his great-grandparents and great-aunts and uncles) while in Houston. He sweat a lot too.

[caption id="attachment_1675" align="aligncenter" width="473"] Sweet Gigi Betty.[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1662" align="aligncenter" width="480"] I mean, ew.[/caption]

4. Cooper started excessively hand-waving. He waves all the time. He waves hello, goodbye and "get-outta-here-mom." En route to and from the Lone Star State he waved at the entire section of the plane we were in; four people asked to hold him. This worked out for me though because I got a break, and let's be honest, it gave me time to pick the goldfish off up the floor.

[caption id="attachment_1652" align="aligncenter" width="426"] That's one of our flight attendants.[/caption]

5. I put Cooper in one of those jon-jon things and it didn't go well. One kid told us our little girl was cute and my husband will never let me forget it. I'm going to stick to shorts and polos from now on.

[caption id="attachment_1646" align="aligncenter" width="490"] July 3rd BBQ.[/caption]

6. We went to a Kauffman reunion outside of Gunnison and it was totally gorge. We also fit 6 adults and 4 children under 3 into one small cabin. Everyone slept awesome.

[caption id="attachment_1657" align="aligncenter" width="490"] The whole Kauffman clan! Everyone looks cute but I can assure you my son kept them up all night.[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1658" align="aligncenter" width="490"] Coop with his Papa. Seriously can't handle this picture.[/caption]

7. I put Cooper in flowers and took about 50 pictures. I also put him on a boat for the first time. He was excited about all of it.







And, that about sums it up! It's been a busy, fast-moving few weeks to say the least, but I know it's fleeting. I know we won't be able to pick up and go once the littles are older; we just won't have the flexibility and time. So the opportunity to do it now is welcomed and savored.

Now who can watch my kid while I go take a vacation from our vacations???

xox

Lauren