Holiday Recap

It's been over 2 weeks since we began our Winter Adventure and our Winter 'O Fun. As I sit back and reflect on what an amazing year 2010 has been, I can't think of a better way to wrap it up. I feel so blessed to be able to ring in the New Year with my parents and to begin 2011 with some of my favorite people.

Our Holidays were wonderful and filled with love. Cooper is having a blast with his Grandparents and Cruz is eating up all the snuggles and loves. Grandpa Pat is enjoying having a new audience to laugh at his corny jokes and Grandma Linda is quite the baby whisperer. Best of all, Mark was able to take some time off from work and we've enjoyed all of our Daddy time. 2010 will always be remembered as the year of the Cruzi Woozi and for that we are so very thankful. Now it's time to party it up like it's 1999 (I mean 2010) St. George style. I hope we can make it past 10pm :). Happy New Year Y'all.

Holiday Wardrobe

Is it possible to have too many outfits when celebrating one's 1st Christmas?????????
I think not.....Although Cruz might beg to differ. He was quick to remind me that The Baby Jesus didn't have this many outfit changes.

Peas on Earth good will to all......

Cruz would like to thank all of his loving friends and family members that contributed to his Holiday Wardrobe. We made certain that he celebrated in each and every one of them.

Santa 2010

Dear Santa,

I'm sorry our first face-to-face visit wasn't very jolly. You definitely redeemed yourself with all the wonderful presents and stocking stuffers you left us. I'm also kind of glad that your friend the Elf is no longer lurking around the house and spying on me. He even managed to find me in Utah!! He sure is a sneaky little dude.

Please let your wife (I believe her name is Mrs. Claus) know that although I'm usually okay with hamming it up for photographers, I reaaaaaaallllly don't like it when people make a big deal about trying to get me to smile in front of strangers and big bearded men in red suits. Her clown horn was a tad much for me to handle.

All in all I think you're a pretty cool fella and I might be willing to give you another chance. How 'bout next year? Do you think you'll be around then? Rumor on the streets is that you know where to find me.

Sincerely,

Coop (and my little bro Cruz)

PS. You kind of smell like beef and cheese. At least my Mom asked me if you did. She thinks she's soooooooooooooo funny and says it's one of her favorite movie lines. I'm learning that my Mom isn't quite as funny as she thinks she is. Shhhhhhhh, don't tell her I told you that. I don't think she can handle the truth just yet. In the spirit of the Holidays, let's allow the lady to think she's funny.

Winter Adventure

Our Winter-Holiday-Festivus-Family-Filled-Extravaganza is about to begin! I'm sooooo happy to report that we will be spending the next TWO AND A HALF months in Utah. Words can't describe how excited I am to be spending the Holidays with my parents and sharing some of my favorite Holiday traditions with the boys. I feel as excited as I did when I was a little girl about the Holidays this year. Even more so because I get to spend them with my favorite men AND my parents. I have no doubt that this will be the best Christmas ever!

Out of respect for my father, I have decided to keep this blog all about the happy things that start with the letter "C" and not the horrible and unfair things that start with the letter "C". Just know that every post I do and share on this blog is inspired by you, Dad. You are without a doubt, the best example I know for how to be an amazing parent. Cooper and Cruz are so very lucky to have you for a Grandpa and I'm so happy that they get to spend the next couple of months with you.

So let the adventure begin! The boys and I fly out tomorrow and Mark and the doggies will begin their drive on Wednesday. Mark will be commuting back and forth because of the ole J.O.B. and because someone has to bring home the bacon while the rest of us get to play (Thanks Mark!).

It's a pretty scary thought that I'm just now beginning to pack. I've kind of been in denial about all of the "stuff" we need to bring. Thank goodness Grandma Linda has made it her quest to pick up toys and baby gadgets so we don't have to pack our entire house. Again, another reason why I am so lucky to have such amazing parents.

I hope you're ready for us Grandma and Grandpa!!!! One thing is for sure, WE CAN'T WAIT to share some AMAZING memories with you.

It may be hard to tell by the look on Cruz's face that he is excited. He's still getting used to the paparazzi.

Hair Revisted

Hair take 2 (actually 3 if you count Coop). Mark humored me and helped me with an attempt at yet another nostalgic hair shot. It suddenly donned on me that Mark has much better hair for this. Yes, my husband's hair is waaaaay more long and luxurious than mine. It's funny what a few weeks of baby growing will do. Cruz is much more agreeable to sitting in the bumbo now and even seemed to notice his new "do". I think he kind of looks like the offspring of Slash and Angelina Jolie (Slangelina if you will).

It kind of looks like he's wearing a baby bumpit in this shot.

I have to admit, I was giggling like a school girl as I took these pics. This means that:
A) I have a weird sense of humor.
B) I'm avoiding packing for our big trip at all costs.
C) I secretly want one of my sons to be a Glam Rocker.
OR
D) All of the above.

Month #4

Little C is 4 months old! Today Coop and I took him to his well baby check up and I was anxious to see what he weighed since he seems GINORMOUS to me. Surprisingly, he weighs one pound less than Cooper did at this age. Either way, he seems B.I.G. Here are his stats (so I can continue to keep track as I'm sure not many people other than Mark and myself really care how much he weighs and how big his little bald melon is).

Weight: 15lbs 4oz. ----70 percentile
Length: 25 1/4 inches----60 percentile
Head Circumference: 42.2 cm----50 percentile

Here are some pics to show what he's up to these days..............

He's becoming very vocal.

He loves to laugh.

He thinks it's ridiculous that his Mom keeps trying to pose him in this bean bag chair every month.

He's a drooling machine and loves his hands.

He's oh so close to rolling over on his own.

He loves to check out his brother.

He's meeting lots of new friends.

And is loved by ALL.

Baby Dinosaur

Auntie Z bought the boys lots of treasures on her journey across country before stopping at our house. One of Coop's favorites is his baby dinosaur. Z hit the home run with this one! It's a dinosaur egg that you submerge in water, wait couple of days and watch it hatch (or as Coop calls it, "patch").

After waiting very patiently, it finally "patched" yesterday morning. I told Marianne we would be sure to give her updates since she wasn't going to be here for the big reveal. I asked Cooper what we were going to name it and he said "dinosaur". He calls it baby dinosaur and it has followed Coop everywhere since it "patched". He's quite fond of the little guy.

Day 1: The waiting begins
He's Ready! Coop trying to figure out the best approach to set him free.

Soaking it all in.

Helping him stretch his legs out.

Introductions.

Thanks Auntie Z. We'll make sure to take good care of baby dinosaur. He's in good hands.

Auntie Z

Mark is out of town this week and the boys and I had the pleasure of spending a couple of days with Auntie Z!!!! Auntie Z is one of my BFF's (awww shucks) and it's an absolute MUST that our boys know how much she means to me. Targhee and NeeNee already know how special she is and did their best to smother her every second they could. All of our kids (canine included) had a blast hanging out with her. And SO. DID. I. It was wonderful spending time with her and staying up past our bedtime laughing and giggling about the good ole days. It's just what my soul needed. If only we lived closer so that we could have more Marianne time. Thanks for coming to The Smokies Auntie Z!

Love,

Amy, Cooper, Cruz, Targ and Kokanee

Introducing Z to Dolly was a must!

Introducing Z AND Cruz to the fishies

Meeting some stingrays

And some penguins

Another new penguin friend (thanks Auntie Z!)

Targ and Neener got lots of playtime too!

We played in the snow

And got lots of cuddles in

This is how Cruz looked after we dropped Auntie Z off at the airport.

Both of the boys were exhausted.

PS. Cruz would like to apologize for his initial welcome. Just because he chose to scream bloody murder from the back seat on our way home from the airport does not mean he wasn't exited about meeting you. In fact, it was quite the opposite. He wanted it to be known that he was ECSTATIC you were here. So much so that he had to throw the worst fit ever. Oy Vey......nothing says I love you more than blood curdling screams. He made quite the first impression. Atta boy, Cruz. Way to make your Momma proud!

Dear Elf

Dear Elf,

I want to extend my sincerest apologies for my oldest son's lack of interest ever since we introduced you to our family. I truly had your best interest at heart and thought you would be quite the hit. Truth be told, he's just not that into you. Ever since I discovered you a couple of weeks ago and you made your first appearance on Thanksgiving Day, Cooper really has wanted little to do with you. Please don't take it personally. My husband and I think you're very cute and will continue to do our best keep your spirit alive. Cooper on the other hand, might take a little while.

We'll continue to read your story every night before bed and will check in every morning to see how your evening trip to the North Pole went. Please say hello to your boss and let him know that Cooper and Cruz have been good little boys. In the meantime, we'll take advantage of the fact that Cooper doesn't quite get the whole Santa and his Elves concept just yet.

For now, Mark and I will have fun looking for you each morning and won't make a big deal out of the fact that Cooper sees you but pretends like he doesn't. He'll look at you out of the corner of his eye and then quickly looks away. When we ask him if he's seen you, he simply answers "nope". Such a funny little man.

I know we were supposed to name you but it's kind of hard to come up with a name when one of the crucial members of our naming committee won't acknowledge your existence. Until then, we shall call you "Elf".

I just wanted to welcome you to our Family and let you know that I look forward to celebrating many Christmases with you. Thanks for your efforts. They have not gone unnoticed. If you ever need a reference or positive feedback for your performance appraisal, I'll be happy to report back to your boss in anyway I can.

Many Thanks,

Coop 'n Cruz's Mom

The Wedding Crashers

Last Saturday we went to our first wedding as a family of 4. One of Mark's friends and coworker tied the knot in the Park so we got all gussied up and were ready to partaaaay. I use the term gussied up loosely because it was an outdoor ceremony which required lots of layers for the little guys and anything other then sweat pants and a ponytail is considered gussied up to me these days. Mark said we looked like the Griswalds in our sweaters. I'm not sure why. It's not like they had matching reindeer prints and we all wore different colors. But whatever, this post isn't about how pretty we looked :).

The wedding reception was a hoot. Cooper really came out of his shell and let his feet do the talking (read: danced his little tail feathers off). Mark and I decided to just let him loose without hovering too closely because we loved the fact that he felt so comfortable around so many unfamiliar faces. We did have to step in a couple of times when he tried to pull up a chair next to random individuals with yummy plates full of food. For the most part he stayed on the dance floor. I really talked up the fact that he was going to a party with lots of kids beforehand so that he would be excited. He tried his best to talk to some kids but sadly, his shy little voice didn't quite get their attention. He walked up to some older boys that were playing with bubbles and said "Hi kids, this is my Mommy and this is my Daddy". It melted my heart when I heard it, but either they didn't hear him or just weren't that interested in meeting us (go figure). Apparently, stranger kids don't think Mark and I are as cool as Cooper does.

Cooper then decided he would spend the rest of the evening dancing. And boy did he ever. Mark tried to capture a video of our little bluegrass buddy but the video was taken as things were winding down. It was more of his "cool down" dance.

Bluegrass Wedding from A Mendonca on Vimeo.

The Bluegrass band was a hit. They gave him a copy of their CD and said he made quite the groupie. If it weren't for them being from Georgia, I think Mark and I would consider letting Cooper watch them again. Crazy thing was, they told us some parents paid them $1000 to play a 30 minute set for their 2yr old's birthday party!!!!!!!!!

Cooper was especially fond of the fiddle player. He sat on the stage while he was packing things up. The guy was so sweet to Cooper and talked to him like he was a fellow musician rather than a 2 year old. The conversation went a little something like this:

Fiddler Player: Would you like to learn to play the fiddle?

Cooper: ****Nods his head as if to say HECK YES I WOULD******

Fiddler Player (speaking in the typical Georgia Bluegrass Twang): Okay then, I'd suggest you start off with a 16.

Me (listening from afar and thinking to myself): What the HELL is a 16?????? Crap. Do I need to be taking notes?????

Fiddler Player: Make sure you tell your Mom and Dad that you should start playing right away. I reckon you'll make a mighty fine fiddle player.

Cooper: Okay. Again nodding his head and looking at him as if he just met a Super Hero.

Me (thinking to myself): Crap, I missed the best photo op. Cooper with the fiddle. Damn, I wish I had my camera!!! Mark, where the hell are you? I need a picture of this.

Here's a picture after I scrambled to find Mark, the fiddle was packed up and the conversation was over. The poor guy just wanted to pack up and start his drive to Marietta so I didn't have the heart to ask him to re-enact the scene so that some crazy Mom could have him pose with her son, The Future Fiddle player.


On our drive home, Mark had the best idea EVER. Since we don't go to church, my efforts at finding a nearby Playgroup have failed and Cooper really needs to get out more, we have decided to become Wedding Crashers. I guess I need to subscribe to the local newspaper and start reading the wedding announcements :).

Oh, and in case you were wondering how Cruz spent the evening. He enjoyed himself doing what he does best: sleeping and looking cute.

Cruz Meets Grandma Mickey

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving Week spending time with Grandma Mickey. Cruz was anxious to meet her and Coop was anxious to play with her. We spent the week playing, cuddling, hanging out and EATING. We also tried to talk with Coop about all that we're thankful for. What do I hope our boys are most thankful for? Hugs & kisses from Grandma and the rest of our wonderful family & friends!

Our little Butterball and Turkey

Hair 2.0

What does any bored SAHM do on a rainy day in the Smokies? Give her bald baby boy hair that's what! I did it with Coop so you just know I had to try it with Cruz as well. Cooper was much more agreeable. Cruz not so much. Perhaps it's because he's about a month younger then when I tried it with Coop. Or maybe Coop is just more into hair? Who knows? What I do know is that I had fun and that I'm in desperate need of a hair cut. Can you say dry ends?

Coop 4.5 months old August 2008

Cruz 3.5 months old. Take 1.

Take 2.


And Take 3.



Really Mom?

How you doin'?

Okay, I'm kind of getting freaked out here.

Enough already. I'm not really feelin' this. Cut. We're done.

Yes, I've got some serious problems. I need a Momervention.