Cooper's Favorite Food = Greek Yogurt

I just thought these pictures were fun. Cooper loves, loves, loves Greek yogurt! Such an odd choice for a toddler, I know. He's got quite the refined palate.

Have you ever seen so much joy from a cup of yogurt? Yup...it is even in his nose. He means business when he eats this stuff!

Friday Family Movie Night

Last Friday, we had "Friday Family Movie Night," which we haven't done in a while. Cooper is on a major Toy Store kick, so we decided to watch Toy Story 2 since Daddy hadn't seen it yet. Cooper had all of the characters along for the ride, including the Slinky Dog from my childhood!

On the menu, Mickey Mouse pancakes to keep the Disney theme going. Daddy has started a trend that Cooper asks for Mikey Mouse every time he has pancakes or waffles. As you can see, they light up his meal!

After dinner, Cooper decided that he wanted to wear his Toy Story PJ's too! As you might notice, he is still carrying Woody and Jessie around too.

Then, off to bed. And oh yes, the characters got to come along for the ride.

When this boy decides he likes something, we go all out to make sure he enjoys it while it last. Thomas, then Spiderman, then Toy Story...we are starting some list. The good thing is that he still likes them all. We just play with each in phases.

We are asking Santa for Buzz and Woody for Christmas. Now, let's see if this lasts all the way until Christmas!

Mother of the Year

Well, I just thought that I would go ahead and make a little confession while I catch up on the 'ol blog. I'm pretty sure I will not win 'Mother of the Year' for this one.

Before bed the other night, I allowed my dear toddler to sit up on the kitchen island to share in piece of cake before bed. Yup, that's right, before bed. He was on cloud nine! Then, of course, he grabbed my cup of iced tea to have a little. Believe it or not, he brushed his teeth and went right to bed after this. 

My wish as his mother is that he will remember moments like this. I want him to recall that I didn't always follow the "parenting handbook" to the letter, that I let him splurge every now and then, and that we had special moments just the two of us even if it was something as simple as a slice of cake and two forks! I live for moments like that.

Happy Birthday Whitney!

Last week, we celebrated a belated birthday for our dear friend, Whitney. 

This was our third birthday celebration of the week! As you can tell, Cooper was having the time of his life. And even better, Whitney's favorite cake is Funfetti. What else could a kid ask for? And, a grown-up too, of course.

Before the cake, Sam and Cooper sat at the kiddos table for a little dinner. Sam kept taking the grapes off of Cooper's plate. Ha!

As always, Daddy came through and took care of the meal and clean-up. He made a delicious beef stir-fry. Yummy!! 

Thank you Daddy!!

And, most of all...HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY TO WHITNEY!!

Happy Birthday Papa!

Today, we took a trip to Henryetta to wish Papa a belated 'Happy Birthday'! We decided to throw him a little birthday party. So, I picked up a birthday cake on the way down. It was quite fun!

Cooper's all-time favorite activity lately is having a birthday party. He likes to sing and blow out the candles over and over again. So, we got to sing and blow out the candles a couple of times, but Papa didn't seem to care. 

Cooper had the best time helping Papa blow out the candles. Then, he was front and center to help him get into his presents...house shoes and PJ pants. Comfy, comfy! 

We spent the rest of the afternoon lounging around and chatting. 

Cooper and Daddy

Cooper and Granny (Ginnie as Cooper says.)

Now, we will wait until Thanksgiving for another visit!! Can you believe the holidays are upon us??

Happy Halloween!

We hope everyone had a wonderful and Happy Halloween! 

Cooper was the amazing Spiderman this year. He's got this new obsession with Spidey...watches the movie over and over, plays with all of the toys, and has been wearing the costume for over a month. 

Edmond's trick or treating was on Saturday night. So, we ventured over to Grandma and Grandpa's neighborhood to trick or treat before the football game. Cooper started the evening with a goody bucket made up of Phineas and Ferb loot and a Mikey Mouse Pez dispenser. And of course, he had to have the Spiderman loot bucket to complete his ensemble. 

Cooper made it up and down one street, filled up his bucket quickly because he's just too cute for anyone to say 'no' to, and then he was ready to go back. It was starting to get dark, and there was one house with some "scary" decorations. He walked nearly all the way. Such a big boy!!

After we got back to the house, "Spidey" inspected his loot and tried a Twix candy bar. He didn't like the candy. Oddly enough, his favorite treat from his bucket was bags of Halloween shaped pretzels. I guess that's good, right??

After tick or treating, we came back home to watch the football game and carve pumpkins. Cooper told me he wanted a "smiley face". So, I delivered.

We had a delightful time enjoying the Halloween festivities!! And...Go Sooners!!

Family Vacation - Tampa, Florida

We took the most wonderful family vacation to Florida the first week of October. I feel so lucky to have family to visit in one of the top vacation destinations. Man, is Cooper lucky? This was the first vacation that Cooper has actually been old enough to actively participate in, and we had so much fun. We were running around constantly, and he was such a trooper! We really didn't have any melt-downs, and that is a lot for a toddler!!

On Monday, we ventured to the Florida Aquarium. Cooper was so excited to see Nemo and Dori in person. All he could keep saying is that he wanted to see that Nemo fish again. Of course, right before we got to Florida, Cooper realized that he might be a little bit afraid of the dark. So, naturally, the aquarium is not the brightest place on earth. There was a lot of uncertainty, but he had a good time. 

He even got to ride in an elevator with penguins. Now, how many people can say they have done that??

On Wednesday, we spent the day at Disney World's Magic Kindom. We began our visit with a trip to Mikey and Minnie's house. Cooper was star struck! 

Once we got in line where he could see the two of them, he could not hardly wait to get to the front. He kept calling out that it was his turn. Once it truly was his turn, he ran up to them both with arms open wide. He was very matter-of-fact. Hi Mickey! Hi Minnie! They came down to his level, and he got all of the hugs and kisses he could stand. (He must have remembered his Sir Topham Hat experience...live and learn!) 

About half way through the day, Nana and Grandpa Andy took Cooper to get his 'Mickey Ears'! He put them on, and then wore them for the rest of the day. I was changing him into his PJs before heading home, and he finally took them off. 

That place is truly magical. It was so special to experience Cooper meeting his version of celebrity. Look at how mesmerized he is by "His Minnie"!

On Friday, we visited the zoo. This zoo is just amazing! We saw some very exotic animals. Cooper got the opportunity to feed a giraffe straight from his hand. He would just get so tickled everytime the tongue touched him. 

We spent a lot of time in their children's area. Watching Cooper play in the water was hilarious. Every time he would run through the water, he would get a little braver and then a little braver until he completely passed under a giant waterfall. And of course, my mother and I both missed it!! We turned around, and he was just drenched. We were setting there with the camera waiting for that moment. Don't you know that always happens? 

While in the childrens area, we also rode a train and fed the goats at the petting zoo.

Thanks a million to Nana... 

and Grandpa Andy... 

 for facilitating such a magical family vacation!!!

We look forward to many more to come!!

Potty Training Woes

Well, I simply must share some of the most hilarious potty training pictures you will ever see. If nothing else, Cooper shall serve as constant entertainment! I mean, really, have you ever seen something so cute?!? Here I am, trying to seriously potty train and get him pumped about it, and he puts the potty seat on his head!

It is almost as if he is praying to the "Potty Gods" for the strength to go! Oh, these are just the priceless moments that I will be able to share with his potential "love interests".

How about this for a serious boy? Just doing a little studying on how this whole 'using the toilet thing' actually works. And yes, the mosquitoes attacked him this summer. You will have to excuse the giant bite on the side of his face. He's just too sweet for those mean 'ol bugs to pass up!

Truly, he is doing a really good job on trying to use the potty. He consistently goes before his bath, and his daytime caregiver is working with him diligently. He will typically go for her a few times a day. Then, occasionally, he will wake up with a "bone dry" diaper, and we give him serious accolades for that!! However, we don't want to push anything. So, we have just put it out there and made the adorable froggy potty available for use. 

Now, for Pete's sake...can I get a little privacy please?!?

A Day Out With Thomas

As most of you know, Cooper is quite the Thomas & Friends fanatic. Much to our delight Thomas came to OKC again this year, and Cooper was finally old enough to enjoy the ride!

We enjoyed a sing-a-long, playing with the Thomas & Friends toys, looking around at all of the real life choo-choo's, and the ride on Thomas. 

We even ran into some Henryetta family there! Such a small world. 

Cooper was such a big boy. He sat across from us on the train ride in a seat all by himself. He held his own ticket and gave it to the attendant himself. At the end of the ride, the attendant gave Cooper a "Junior Engineer" certificate. 

After the train ride, Cooper got to meet Sir Topham Hat. He was more excited about meeting him than seeing Thomas. We waited in line, and he wanted Mommy to hold him. So, we met Sir Topham Hat, took our picture, and then said our good-byes. On the way out, Cooper bursts into tears and starts crying that he wanted a hug. I attempted to take him back through the line only to find out that Sir Topham Hat is "checking on the trains" and won't be back for another hour. Woops! Needless to say, Cooper will not make that mistake again. 

He learned quickly...if you want a hug, you better get it while you have the chance. Poor guy!

Overall, the "Day Out With Thomas" was a huge success. We will definitely go again if Cooper is still a Thomas fan. 

Go, Go Thomas! #1!

I'm back!!

 Hello Blog World! I'm back! The Yarbrough family has been busy since well, let's see...the last time I blogged was Cooper's second birthday. So, we've been busy since then. I am so terribly sorry that I have not been keeping you up to date on the happenings of our little family! Well, you are in luck. Sit back, relax, and allow me this opportunity to catch you up. With the weather getting cooler, I hope that I will devote the much needed time to my blog once again.

Since we've last "spoken", Uncle Jason and Aunt Leslie got married. Woo hoo!! We had a fabulous time at their beautiful wedding. 

 Cooper danced the night away, and he stole the show of course. 

 He was just too pooped to party by the end. Don't you think for a second this mama didn't change him into his PJ's in the middle of that party! 

As you can tell, he thoroughly enjoyed the cupcakes! This might explain the crash above!

We've spent countless hours playing with all of the outdoor toys before the weather gets yucky. Cooper loves his playset and has become quite brave while climbing and sliding. 

Of course, he still needs help swinging, but he's already started instructing me to go "higher mama, higher."  

Although we have been outside a ton, the little guy always has time for his choo choos. He absolutely loves to play dress-up in a very "boy way" of course. Now, have you ever seen an engineer as cute as this one??  

Watching him pretend to be an engineer is one of the cutest things I've ever seen. He pulls his pocket watch out, and tells me it is 4 o'clock no matter what time it is. Then, he calls, "All aboard!" He blows his train whistle, and off the train (generally Thomas or one of his friends) goes. Priceless!!

Of course, Cooper has become quite a fan of football. Like father, like son. Kenny got a football game for the XBox, and Cooper absolutely loves it! He runs up and down the living room mimicking every movement he sees on the TV.

Then, every now and then, you will hear him repeat, "Fumble!" or "Touchdown!" Now that we are a ways into football season, he has carried this over into watching actual football games. He will repeat generally every word that is called out at the TV! He especially enjoys repeating his Aunt Sheryle we've noticed. We even had one instance when he started crying because there was no football on TV. Since then, we've recorded an OU game to have on stand-by. Have you ever heard of such a thing from a 2 year old?? 

Wow! I haven't even made a dent in catching you up. Well, I will cut this blog short here. There's much more to come, so please stay tuned. We still have potty training woes, family vacation, and Halloween. I've also started a new hobby. I mean, why not add one more thing to this multi-tasking mommy's list, right??