Is that a snow cone umbrella in your toe???

Weird title huh? Well rewind a little while and it will all make sense. Sweet Uncle Jonathan and Aunt Jenna asked if they could take Reese for a little date to celebrate her starting Kindergarten. SO FUN! We have a new Bahama Bucks here (YUM!) and so after dinner they took her on a little date. She was SO excited, as she should be. I found myself wishing I was going for a little "starting Kinder treat". :) Anyway, they had a blast and came home with full tummy's, one VERY hyper Reese, and little wooden umbrellas that were in their snow cones. Fast forward a few minutes, and in our attempts to tire Reese out so she would go to bed, we had her running laps around the kitchen island. (Does that sound bad?) She thought it was fun. BUT, it wasn't enough. So Daddy turned on some music and we had a little dance party. Fast forward another few minutes, and, if you know me, will not be very surprised by this but picture this: Me standing in the living room, a little wooden umbrella on the floor, Justin coming over to dance with me, and in one very swift movement me kicking the umbrella and Justin very calmly saying "that umbrella is in my toe!" WHAT???? He walks (more like limps) to the bathroom and I found him on the toilet with his toe up... it was like something I picture some women in labor doing (go away, no help me, don't touch me, help, pull it out, don't touch it!) Anyway, the umbrella had indeed impaled him through the toe. Ouch and Gross! He pulled it out and I am pretty sure he gagged a few times while doing so. So, moral of this post... Bahama Bucks snow cones are delicious, but those umbrellas can be very dangerous if left in the hands of the Cooleys!! See evidence below!



Reese, Uncle Jonathan and Aunt Jenna Headed to BB's

Enjoying her sugar mountain

shortly after the stabbing :)

Homeschool - Day One

Things are so great here in the Cooley dream house... I'm a rockstar, I am homeschooling my Kindergartner, things are just dreamy. Let me walk you through our first day of homeschooling...
Everything starts out great. The girls get up and quickly eat breakfast (you wouldn't think that was a victory but for us, finishing any meal in under an hour is amazing), they brush their teeth, get their clothes on and happily head to the play  room so school can begin. After a rather frustrating Bible time, We start with Math and then work on a sequencing activity. Reese practices cutting, gluing, order of events, and even some critical thinking with a what happens next activity. I am feeling pretty excited, and we even have a paper to show Daddy when he gets home. I rock! That was about 30 minutes into our school day. Reese is now unable to continue working because her fingers hurt (I am now wanting to quote Happy Gilmore to her... "ya, well now your back's gonna hurt cause you just pulled landscaping duty!" - obviously I refrain) I feel she has earned a break so we have snack and I give her a chance to relax for a bit. Fast forward 20 minutes or so and somehow, she ends up in her bed screaming, I end up in the playroom crying and wondering what in the world I was thinking, feeling like a complete failure! WOW. Day one.. really? The good news is, we have been slapped with reality really early on! :) Anyway, long story longer we reconciled the situation, got started on a super fun art activity, went back into the playroom and rocked some reading and writing and finished on a great note. I was reminded WHY I am doing this, and how only God's Grace will be getting us through this year. AMEN!
Day 2 went a little better... we had a better idea of what to expect, we worked really quickly, and I am happy to report no tears were shed by either of us! And, she even learned a little something :) I'd say that makes for a rather successful day of learning!

Reese working hard on cutting

Peyton working hard too :)

Luke did shaving cream during art time

Painting for Art Day 1

ABC Mouse.com while Mommy makes lunch

Art Day 2- we have been working on the letter "f" this week

Luke perfected the "art of eating"



The finished product

I'm baaaaaack

well, seeing as my last post was from 2009... here is a BRIEF recap of the last 4 years. Let's see... (start the really fast theme music) Went back to work full time, teaching 2nd grade at a fabulous school about a mile from my house! Had our 2nd daughter, Peyton in July 2010. Taught some more... got pregnant again... Had Luke in June of 2012. Retired from teaching. Reese went to Pre-K 2 days/week. Both girls did dance. Mommy tried to figure out how in the world to have 3 kids 4 and under. Figured it out. Started my photography business. Reese turned 5. Luke turned One. Peyton turned 3. Decided to homeschool Reese. Signed Peyton up for preschool, Reese up for Soccer, and both girls up for gymnastics. And I think that brings us to now. (you can stop the music now)

Reese

Peyton

Luke