Come on Coe Coe

“Come on Coe Coe.”  Its a phrase I hear a million times when Frances is around.  She has called Coe, Coe Coe, since she first began talking.  Their friendship has evolved so much in 2.5 years.  For the longest time she wanted everything to do with him, and he wouldn’t give her the time of day.  Right now the love is mutual, but I’m sure eventually we will reach the stage where Coe is in love and she wants nothing to do with the blonde headed pest!

A few weeks ago Mac wanted Jack to come home with us after church.  Mr. Jeff was out of town and Mrs. Lacy needed to run a few quick errands so I suggested Frances come over too.  Since the play date was unplanned the Phillips kids didn’t have play clothes to change into after Sunday school.  We quickly made do and Frances became an AL fan for the day.  She and Coe Coe had a great date! 

A week or two later, the Phillips and Gills (the Gillups) came over for dinner.  the Gill girls took charge of Frances and Coe and before we knew it they had bathed them, rocked them and gotten them both to sleep.  Lacy and Jeff had the debate every parent has when this situation comes up – do we risk waking her up to get her home and in her own bed.  I convinced them {it didn’t take much!} to leave Frances and promised to call if she woke up scared. 

Around 6am I heard on the monitor “Coe Coe, I’m in a big girl bed and you are in a baby bed!”  I rushed in the room {blurry eyed and still half asleep} to make sure Frances wasn’t scared or confused, but that little girl never missed a beat.  She quickly greeted me with a good morning and asked if she could get out of bed and read some books!  Lacy mentioned that she figured Frances’s first spend the night would be a little more planned and probably with someone of the same sex, but things never go as planned.  And let’s be honest, at some point Mr. Jeff is going to put a stop to Coe Coe sleeping in the same room as his baby girl so we have to sneak in the spend the nights while it is still socially acceptable.  I wonder who will end the sleepovers first – Frances, Coe or Mr. Jeff!  I have a feeling it won’t be Coe Coe :)  

Playing around

 

Gigi and Papou

I have not taken many blog worthy photos lately, and therefore I haven’t blogged much in the past few weeks.  I think I mentioned in a past post that I signed up for an online photography class.  I actually learned a lot and have taken a ton of “test” pics over the past few weeks, but most are out of focus, poor exposure, etc.  Hey, you learn more from your mistakes, right? 

Last weekend we were supposed to go to Gigi and Papou’s to swim, but like it has pretty much every day in July and August, it RAINED!  We quickly switched plans and everyone came to our house instead.  I took a few pictures over for lunch, but I didn’t use any of my new techniques for shooting in manual mode.  I’m still super slow getting my settings straight and the boys aren’t patient!  We had a fun day despite the poor weather.

Playing peek-a-boo with Finley!  

Talking to Papou and Gigi

 

I’d like to brag that I got everyone looking at the camera and smiling, but that wouldn’t be true.  One person’s head has been replaced from a similar photo.  Can you tell who?  If not then maybe I’m at least getting better at learning how to edit photos in the new photo program I’m testing out!

Kids say the darndest things

Mac:

A day or two after Mac came home from G’s he wanted to rock Coe to sleep and for some reason I can no longer remember I had to tell him no that I was going to do it.  He said…

I've been rocking him {Coe} for like 5yrs and I leave town for 2 days and this is what happens?  Whatever!

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While in Birmingham

Deeda: Mac scoot over G needs some room

Mac: she likes to be close to me. She's my kind of girl.

 

G: I bet your mommy and daddy are really missing you.        

Mac: Nah, they probably like the break because I never stop talking and I ask a lot of question.

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Day 3 of Kindergarten

Me: no carline today. We are going to park b/c mommy has a mtg

Mac: well you aren't walking me to class b/c I'm not scared

Me: what?

Mac: let's just do carline

Me: but I have a mtg at your school so I have to go inside too

Mac: fine but you have to go in a different door than me

Me: I'll just do carline :(

 

Copeland:

I’m never ever never gonna play wit you again.  I probably hear this at least once a day, and on the weekends its more like 5-10 times a day.  Pretty much anyone who ever says “No” to Coe is going to hear this and then see…

mad face

 

He loves pretending to be a Power Ranger, and repeats one line from the movie over and over again:

Fireblaster, POW! (while pretending to throw something at his target)

Coe is also a parrot.  Anything Mac says, he says. and apparently anything I say, he also repeats.

{Text from Kay Kay}

Coe: I don’t want to hear another word! (with lots of authority and attitude)

Katie: Excuse me?!?!

Coe (laughing): Kay Kay laugh with me!

At night before bed, Coe gets his paci and Bs, and I rock him.  If I give him a kiss goodnight while he has his paci in, he always starts laughing, pulls his paci out and says, “not with my paci with me lips.” Yes, I purposely kiss that paci as often as I can just to see him get tickled!

Finally my all time favorite thing Coe says when he wants me to pick him up is: I need to hold you, mommy! I never correct him.  He will correct himself one day, and it will be just another reminder that he is growing up way to fast. 

where’s Mac?

The week before school started Albi and Mac drove to Montgomery to meet G and Deeda, so Mac could go home with them for the week.  Copeland was a mix of emotions the whole time Mackey was gone.  He started off confused, then sad, then mad and finally a happy/sad mix. 

Before Mac left they made sure to give lots of hugs, and then Coe and I waived bye bye as daddy and Mac pulled off.  Coe asked to go with them, but when he found out I wasn’t going he was perfectly fine staying home with me.  When Albi got home 5+ hours later without Mac is when the confusion set in.  Coe immediately asked where Mac was. “G’s house, remember?”  “I wanna see him!” which he said in the sweetest most pitiful little voice.  Thankfully he had Finnie to play with and quickly got over his brother’s absence.  When rocking him later that night he kept asking where Mac was and if we could do a video of Mac so he could see him.  I promised we would face time the next day.

When Coe got up the next morning (and every morning for the next 4 days) the first thing he said was "where's Mac?" I reminded him (for the 100th time) that he was at G's house. Coe said "let's go get him!"  Thankfully after a breakfast bar and yogurt and getting to pick the morning show to watch on tv (a rare occurrence for him!) he quickly forgot about his big brother :)

Mac had a great time in Birmingham.  He went to DeSoto Caverns (HUGE hit with Mac!), the BHM zoo, and spent lots of time in the pool.  G sent me some pics of their adventures.

Mac made is home safely after 5 days in BHM and Copeland was very happy {for about 5 min} to restore order to our family.  G and Deeda stayed for the weekend so we spent Saturday at the beach as a belated birthday celebration for G!  I let Coe skip his nap, and both boys did surprisingly well the whole day.  The waves were rough and the undertow strong but they had a great time playing at the water’s edge and “chasing” the waves. 

 

{I’m working on some new photography skills – the last 3 photos I was trying to freeze motion – so hopefully my photos will improve in the coming weeks/months :) }

Kindergarten

I survived the first day {so did Mac!}.  It was a great first day.  Everyone up early.  Took first day pics.  Made it to school on time.  Navigated through the car line. And no one cried until the back car door shut.  Then I lost it.  Mac on the other hand never looked back.  I would call the day a success!

We met Mac’s teacher – Mrs. Slay – yesterday at orientation.  Isn’t she just adorable?!?!  We forgot to get a picture with the assistant teacher, Mrs. LeMaster, so we will have to do that soon.  

All grown up and ready to go!  He insisted on wearing his belt today and tucking in his shirt even though the dress code is loosened a little for the first few months of kindergarten.  {he came home with no belt on and his shirt untucked.  Oh well at least he started the day right!}

I was trying to take a picture as he was quickly being yanked out of my car and rushed to his class by a total stranger greeted by the principal and escorted to class by a volunteer.  Hard to see through my tears, so I did the best I could while driving off and trying to avoid hitting any of the other 8 million kids and parents who were wandering everywhere. 

One of the mom’s in Mac’s class snuck in and took a few pics as school was starting this morning.  She sent me this to brighten my day and reassure me that Mac was doing just fine!

 

My sweet mommy sent me this note and flowers to the office today.  Was everyone more worried about me or Mac surviving?  Either way we both made it and we are now both exhausted.  It will be an early bedtime for us tonight.