Early Birthday Celebration

My Mom and Ed wanted to celebrate Delaney's birthday early again this year. They invited us over for dinner and gifts then Delaney got to spend the night all by herself as a special treat.

Harper got a new pink towel to keep at Honey and Grandpa's house (just so that she could also have a gift to open).

Honey made one of Delaney's favorite desserts - pumpkin pie! She even decorated it with pretty whipped cream.

Rudd Boys Sleepover

Allan and Brian decided that they wanted to have a campout tonight - even though it's a school night! The Rudds came over for dinner, and Krista stayed to hang out by the campfire for a while. At about 8, Krista and Colin went home and I went inside to leave the guys to fend for themselves! I think all of the kids were asleep by 9, Harper being the first to give in :) Allan brought Harper up to our bed at about 10:30 when he and Brian decided to go to sleep. She is such a restless sleeper that he was afraid she would keep everyone awake.

When I left for work at 7 in the morning, I took Harper outside and everyone was just waking up. I guess it was a success!

All snuggled in

Tyler was telling me to stop taking pictures because the light was too bright :)

Families R.O.C. 5K

This morning we participated in the Families R.O.C. 5K run for ovarian cancer to support our neighbor whose mom passed away from the disease last year. It was such a beautiful day to be out in Forest Park. The run started 5 years ago with only 200 people and they had over 1700 people this year! Allan rocked and ran it in just over 23 minutes - even pushing Delaney in the jogger! I ran most of it but walked some of the hills, took a potty break, and tried to keep Harper entertained and finished in right around 35 minutes.

Waving to Delaney and Daddy as we cross the finish line.

Our neighbors, Sarah and Scott

Toy Story 3 On Ice

Tonight we met up with the Rudds to see opening night of Toy Story 3 On Ice. Poor Krista is such a good sport - it was her birthday! The kids were excited to see each other as well as Buzz and Woody.

Waiting to go in

Harper cheesing it up

Love

I can't tell you how many pictures I took of the 4 of them in front of the Toy Story merchandise - and this is the best one I got!

We bought our tickets last minute at the ticket booth and were literally two rows from the top! The kids didn't seem to mind, though.

"The toys are back in town"

Buzz makes a grand entrance

Daddy and Harper playing on his phone during intermission

Daddy and the girls

The craziest moment of the night was when Krista and I went out to get a drink and were literally 10 feet from a fight. We didn't get the whole story, but a man and woman were physically fighting and the man was holding a little boy (maybe 4?) and wouldn't let him go. It was as if he were using the boy as a shield. It took four men at least three minutes to wrestle him to the ground and get the boy safe. So bizarre - and at a family-friendly Disney event no less!!

Balloon Glow

Tonight we made our inaugural trip to the Forest Park Balloon Glow. This event has been going on for as long as I remember, but it was our family's first trip.

We started the night by eating at, where else, The Fountain on Locust (we had a Groupon for there). I finally had the chance to try the lasagna primavera that I had been wanting. It was pretty good, but had a funky after taste. I'm not sure if it was from the goat cheese or the pesto that was on it. The girls both had peanut butter, honey, and banana sandwiches, and Allan had a roast beef sandwich. We shared a strawberry shake and the Johnny Rabbit malt (chocolate with fresh banana) for dessert.

We didn't start heading to Forest Park until after 7, so I knew that the crowd would be an issue. We ended up parking about a mile away and walking through Central West End. It was a beautiful night and the girls were in their joggers, so the walk was actually enjoyable. I'm so glad we decided at the last minute to bring the joggers instead of just the one little stroller we usually use. We followed the crowd down a windy path through some woods, over a couple of bridges, and down several sets of stairs - quite an adventure. By the time we made it to the glow, some balloons were starting to be packed up, but we were still able to enjoy the atmosphere. The girls were so good! They both fell asleep in the car and got to sleep in their clothes, which is a big deal for them :) If we go back next year (which I hope we do), we'll plan to go straight to the park and have a picnic supper.

Trying Times

I write a lot about all of the fun/funny things that happen with our family, but if I truly want to document our lives, I have to admit that it's not always rainbows and butterflies around Casa de Cochran. These past few weeks have been rockier than normal.

I want to make sure I write this down for two reasons. One, so that I can remember to thank God when we come out on the other side of it. And two, so that someday when my girls have kids of their own, they can see that parenting isn't always easy, but it's always worth it!

Recently, the girls have been giving me a run for my money! Delaney is super sensitive and we've noticed some major mood swings. She can be playing happily by herself, with friends, or with Harper and one little thing will happen to set her off. She gets her feelings hurt so easily, has some serious sibling rivalry, and can go into full-blown tears at the drop of a hat. It drives me crazy when she plays the victim role. Like when she says, "None of my friends like me because they can't come outside to play." I try to make her understand that it has nothing to do with them liking her, it's just that sometimes other families are busy. I guess that doesn't compute in her little 4-year-old mind. I've read that it is important to help kids understand what they are feeling, so I try to ask her if she's mad, frustrated, sad, jealous, or if her feelings are hurt. It's actually kind of cute to here her say, "Mom, I'm frustrated with you because... (fill in the blank)" or "I'm jealous of Harper because she is sick and you are taking care of her instead of me." I'm working on trying to find a balance between being empathetic and not coddling her too much.

And Harper, oh Harper! I personally have never met a more strong-willed child. I hope that it translates as "passionate" as an adult :) At least three times a day, Harper will have an all-out tantrum about something. It usually involves me trying to get her dressed or trying to do her hair or trying to change her pull-up. Or me trying to do anything for her. She is Little Miss Independent and always wants things to be on her terms. Sorry, Chickie, life doesn't always work that way! I know she loves me, she will tell me so. However, sometimes it just doesn't feel like it when she's screaming and trying to kick me in the face. It takes everything in me to keep it together and, honestly, I'm not always successful. I've raised my voice and given her spanks more times than I care to count.

Things all came to a head on Sunday, the 10th anniversary of 9/11. It was a day when you were supposed to love your family more, hug them more, tell them how much they mean to you, and cherish every moment. As I wrestled with Harper to get her to lie down and listened to Delaney whine about not getting to watch a show before nap, all I could feel was, "I give up! I'm done!" I felt like a horrible mother and failure that day. Thankfully, Allan was off work and told me to go lay down for my own nap, then encouraged me to go for a run after I got up. It helped!

I have prayed (begged!) God to give Allan and me wisdom in raising and disciplining our girls, especially during these "trying times." I get so scared because sometimes I feel like I'm getting glimpses into what the teenage years could look like - lots of screaming, door slamming, and tears. Trust me, I don't want to be best friends with my daughters and I know that it won't always be smooth sailing, but I pray that we have a good, healthy relationship as they grow older.

***In full disclosure, I have to admit that my own mood hasn't been the best this past week and I was more irritable than normal. Thanks mother nature and hormones and PMS! (Can you imagine those teenage years, when all three of us women are hormonal?!?) Poor Allan!!

iPad Addict

Harper just loves playing games on the iPad and can pretty much figure out how to maneuver from screen to screen on her own. Her favorite game is an animal memory game that she calls "Animals on the Farm". She would play it for an hour straight if we let her!

1st Campout of the Season

As his birthday gift, Allan finally got the new tent that he's been wanting for over a year. He had big plans to do a campout this weekend since the weather finally cooled down, but I had reservations about it as our whole backyard is a MESS due to the wall project. (I promise I will post pics as soon as it is finished!)

I was secretly hoping that the whole plan would be forgotten, but when I saw that our two neighbors were putting up their tents as we were leaving for the birthday dinner, I knew that a campout there would be.

It all worked out and we were able to get our new tent put up before dark (barely). It really is a supercool tent with a hinged door, screened sitting area, and overhead light! Allan was so proud to show it off and all of the neighborhood kids had fun exporing it :)

We all made S'mores in the Garman's yard before the Dad's and kids retired to their tents at about 10. Harper had a cold, so she got to be my snuggle buddy in my bed for the night.

Allan's pride and joy

Harper, Emma, Delaney, and Sammy get ready for the fire.

Sarah and Alayna

Bob and Sammy

Scott, Logan, and Luke

Getting sleepy

Delaney loves marshmallows!

Daddy and Harper

Mommy and Laney

Scott gets his workout pushing all three little kids at once.

Delaney was telling a "scary" story to the crowd.

The Patrick's - Bob, Beth, Emma, and Sammy

Harper snuggled with Sarah for a while.

Feliz Cumpleanos!

Our whole family met at a Mexican restaurant here in town to celebrate Ed's 60th and Allan's 36th birthdays. Everybody ate waaayyy too much but enjoyed good conversation. My Mom arranged for the waiters to come out and thoroughly embarrass the guys.

"Just take one little bite," they told him. :)

I love how his glasses are all cock-eyed. Since he was sung to second, he knew better than to take a "bite" of his ice cream.

The girls happily finish off the goodies.

H.O.O.S.I.E.R.

The temperature was about 100 degrees and sunny yesterday and about 65 degrees and drizzly this morning! The girls played outside while Allan was working on our landscaping wall (more about that in a future post) and Harper insisted on wearing her corduroy puffy vest instead of her normal lightweight waterproof jacket. Where does she get her stubborn side from?