The Handley Family

Monthly Update - March 2013 Happy Birthday Cooper!!

Monthly Profile Pics for March

We bought ducklings and baby chicks this month to add to our hobby farm. It was exciting to give Addie and Cooper a chance to bring them home and give them a place to live. Watching them grow in only a matter of weeks has been really enjoyable for the kids. At one point, we brought the ducks into the house to live in the bathtub. Addison and Cooper LOVED coming into the bathroom to see them daily.

All About Addie:

New Phrases:
"I can do that": She has become more independent over the last month and likes to say she can do just about anything. So when we go to get something for her or do something for her, the response is generally "I can do that".

Gymnastics: Addison LOVES her gymnastics class. I think I've posted about it before but she has really grown to love it even more recently. Her favorite things are hanging from the bars and the trampoline. They set up obstacle courses for the girls and Addison has a blast going from each station.

Rain boots: Mommy bought some rain boots because one of Addie's favorite things is to "jump in muddy puddles" like Peppa Pig. We had quite a bit of rain in March so Addie was able to really break in her new boots (see pics below).

First time seeing train: Mommy went to Chicago one weekend and took the train to get there. Nana and Addie came to see mommy off. Addison was stoked to see the train. It broke mommy's heart that I couldn't take her with me. She STILL talks about that day and seeing the train. I see a train ride in her future!! :)

All About Cooper:

Happy 1st Birthday Cooper!! What a great birthday he had. On his actual birthday (the 7th), we bought some cupcakes and had an intimate birthday with just the four of us. Cooper really didn't know what to do with the cupcake at first but eventually ate quite a bit. Then, on Saturday we had family and friends come for a HUGE MONSTER BIRTHDAY BASH. We are so lucky to have family and friends like ours. The day was a success and of course the kids were exhausted by the end of it all.

New Words:
"Cheese": He did this out of the blue one day while I was taking a picture of Addie. It sounds more like "teese", but still super cute! Now he says it every time he sees a camera out.
"Nah": Means "no". If Coop doesn't want something, he will say "nah" and shake his head. He has no problem telling people no these days. LOL

Pulling self up to kneeling position: He will do this next to the toy bins so he can see inside of them. He will also do it next to book shelves and cabinets so that he can play with whatever is in reach.

Blowing kisses: LOVE THIS! Sometimes he doesn't actually pull his hand away from his mouth, but it's still cute.

Spinning on floor on belly: Probably one of the cutest things I've ever seen him do. He will get on the hard wood floor or on a solid surface and using his hands to turn, he will spin himself round and around. I'm sure I have it recorded, so I'll try to get a copy on here.

More Photos From the month of March:

First birthday cupcake

First birthday family pic

Mommy made a onesie for his big day

Nana made a cake smashing chair just for Coop!

Bath time!

Presents!

Addie trying to figure out which toy she likes more.

Our little gymnast!

DUCKS!

Playing in the rain

Waiting for mommy's train to come in

Cooper watching the baby ducks and chickens.

Addie helping mommy stuff eggs

Driveway Picnic

Monthly Update - February 2013

Monthly Profile Photos for February

All about Addie:

Words and Phrases:

"Why": Oh yes, the dreaded "why". Addison started this recently and although it is cute at times, it can become frustrating when the answer is not something short and simple. We've decided to somewhat discourage her from constantly asking "why". We discourage it mostly when she asks it after we tell her to do something and not necessarily when she's just being curious.

No More Paci in car: We decided that we are going to slowly take the paci away from Addie versus a "cold turkey" method. She's become quite attached to it and we decided that we would wait at least until we move her into her new room. It will be nice to have that extra "security" when she finally makes the big move to her new room.

Momma, Dada, Addie & Cooper bears: We have these teddy bears that the kids like to play with and Addie recently named them. The two biggest ones are Mama & Dada, the medium sized one is Addie, and of course the smallest is Cooper bear. The biggest ones are the same ones that we bought to put in the nursery before Addie was born. She LOVES these bears and crawls around with them often.

All about Cooper:

One Year Photo Shoot: We couldn't have been happier with Cooper's one-year photo shoot. It was cold outside but our photographer was really quick and worked with our slightly grumpy little guy.

Solids: Cooper is still eating canned and frozen fruits/veggies along with yogurt, bread (cut into small pieces), and shredded chicken breast. He's been doing really well with everything we've given him so far.

Straw: I don't know why I was so excited about this but around the first week of this month, he was able to drink from a straw. I don't remember Addie being able to drink from a straw until much later. I swear I threw a mini party in Target when it happened too. I kept making Shane stop the cart so I could have Cooper try the straw again.... then I would cheer!! HAHA

Clapping Hands: Cooper LOVES to clap his hands. He figured this out around the middle of the month and now claps over everything.

Putting toys away: Addie and mommy were cleaning up one day and after watching for a minute, Cooper began to help. He would grab a toy and then crawl over to the toy bin and throw it in. Addie and I were so excited for him that we started cheering "yay Cooper".

Arms up "All Done": Cooper does this now at the dinner table when he is done eating. He will also do it when he wants someone to leave him alone.

More photos from February:

Monthly Update - January 2013

Monthly Update January 2013

Monthly Profile Photos:

All about Addie

New Words/Phrases:
"Daddy" - We've always called Shane "Dada" but lately she's been mixing it up a bit and calling him Daddy. She sounds so much more grown up when she says it. Potty Training

"Oh Gawrsh" and "Aw Shucks" - She picked this up from Goofy on Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. If we tell her we love her or she looks pretty she will say "Oh gawrsh" or "Aw Shucks" just like Goofy does.

Captain Obvious - Addison is really good about pointing out obvious situations for example:

"Food is done" (when the microwave beeps)

"Someone is calling you" (when my phone beeps or rings)

"I'm crying" (when we try to talk to her during one of her fits)

Potty Training - We have nixed candy when she goes potty on the toilet and now give stickers. She did great transitioning from the candy and actually enjoys having a piece of paper on the side of the refrigerator where she can admire each sticker from the day.

All about Cooper:

No More Bottle: We started getting Coop used to sippy cups recently. He took really well to them and we decided to cut out the bottle all together. He did GREAT with the transition.

New Solids: Blueberries and Yogurt are some of Cooper's newest foods. He seems to love both quite a bit. Other favorites are Frozen and canned fruit. Around the middle of January, we cut out baby foods completely (no more purees). It was nice to be feeding Cooper more normal foods.

Waving bye-bye: Cooper started waving bye to people. It's a pretty simple wave of his hand in the air but sometimes he will open and close his fists to say bye.

Little sickie: Cooper came down with his second cold ever this month. It wasn't too bad and I'm sure it bothered mommy and daddy more than it probably bothered Coop. Humidifiers and Vick's seemed to help quite a bit though.

More photos from the month of January: