House

As a result of the bathroom remodel I have been doing some purging of all things upstairs.  I put out 7 boxes for a local charity to pick up the first weekend.  Cooper even donated some of his older toys so "a younger boy could play with them."
Last weekend I realized that I was storing about 40 cardboard boxes from appliances that we bought over the last five years. I told Cooper we would make a castle or fort out of all the boxes so I brought them all downstairs.  He had fun with the styrofoam and the house I built him in the living room.

I made a bridge so he could sneak out and he decided where the door and doorbell were.  We read some stories and he cooked us dinner.  Slowly this week I have been breaking down the house, we are down to two boxes.  He was not too pleased to see his house destroyed.  Riley also liked the house and the bridge so she could sneak out rapidly. 

Cooper is engrossed in imaginary play right now and I love it.  I love listening to what he comes up with, I love the stories and play we do together, it's great.  The other day he had a whole dialogue to himself about his upcoming babysitter coming over to play with him.  He is also reading us books and it blows me away.  To see that retention of material and repeat it back is so cool.  Lastly, Cooper is singing now all the time.  He used to be very bashful about singing out loud and now I will hear him sing several of his favorite songs anywhere.  This includes on the bus/train, at home, at the store, everywhere.

Adventures with Emory

Wednesday, Libby and I took the Max to Gresham and spent a lot of time at Borders with Cooper and Emory. It was freezing cold that day with a mix of rain and snow so we spent all of our time in the store. We found some great deals on books and also read a bunch while we were there.  The boys had a great time on the Max/bus and playtime at our house too.

Train Adventure

Cooper and I woke up at 6:30am this morning to start our train adventure day. We took the bus/Max to Union Station to catch the 8:30am Amtrak to Seattle. There was a lot of build up to today, Cooper's asked me everyday if today is the day we are taking the train. All in all the train ride was great, Cooper loved it, it was quiet and relaxing. However, there was one not so fun thing that happened. We went to the dining car, bought some snacks for breakfast. We went back to our seat and started eating, Cooper had to go potty. We got up and went potty, came back and three minutes later had to go poo potty. He got up rather quickly and started toward the bathroom, I followed and could tell he was coughing/gagging. Well sure enough right as we got to the bathroom he heaved, all over me and the bathroom floor. We spent a good 15 minutes in the bathroom. I called Sharon while in the bathroom, and she said it could be from the movement of the train. Cooper has never had motion sickness before so who knows. After all that we went back to our seats and he was fine the rest of the ride. (This happened an hour into the ride, we still had 2+ hours left). Cooper was fine, acting fine, telling me he wasn't going to gag anymore. I, on the other hand, was constantly worrying that he was going to hurl again. At the end of the ride, the man next to us told me that Cooper is a great traveler. He really is a great traveler and he was incredibly well considering he "gagged" numerous times.
We arrived in Seattle a little late, Sharon picked us up and we spent an hour at her store so she could finish working. Then we drove to the Whidbey Island Ferry to take the ferry to Anancortes, our final destination. I have never taken that ferry so it was another great adventure. However, once we were in the line about to board, Cooper said he had to go potty.....can you see where this is going? I took him and he started gagging again. Sure enough he gagged twice outside before I got him in a bathroom at a restaurant. He peed and said he was fine, "I don't have to gag anymore." Great, can I now! (my internal dialogue). Again, he was fine, Sharon was fine and safe from vomit in the car and I was worrying about the cause and if it would happen again. The wackiest thing is that my worry is 1. for him, wondering what he has but also 2. for the innocent bystanders that may witness a kid hurling. I know that is a strange thing to worry about and useless. I cannot stand seeing someone vomit in public and so I guess was projecting those feelings on the strangers around me on the train and ferry.
The ferry ride is about 20 minutes, we got some great pictures and went back to the car, Cooper with french fries and some milk. He has been fine and hungry all night. I have no idea what the gagging deal was today. He is not acting sick, he doesn't have a fever and he has an appetite. I am the mom that wants/needs an answer, whereas Sharon is not concerned based on his behavior. She is also the more nurturing mom when it comes to sicknesses.

We made it to Rosey's and are all excited to start our weekend with take it as it goes plans!!