Nasty bananas=gorgeous bread

Y'all ever had bananas that look like this?

I tend to freak out if they have a tiny brown spot.

Just one.

And I'm done with them.

I have zero desire to eat a brown-ish banana.

But man, do they make some gorgeous banana bread.

It was perfect.

I love that it was crispy and crunchy on the top, but perfect on the inside.

I added some walnuts for a crunch, must be related to Harry.

I picked up a recipe card from Starbucks a few years back.

Best thing I've ever gotten from the SBucks, like ever.

It is perfect right out of the oven.

It is even better the next day toasted and topped with cream cheese.

Totally healthy.

Lucky for me, nobody else likes it.

Baby Girl #3

Well y'all, it is a girl.

We saw the parts last night.

She wasn't shy and showed us her parts.

Clearly she was proud.

Daryk didn't go into heart failure, he was pretty excited.

He won't admit that, but he is.

I am thrilled.

I know that my girls will always have each other.

I know that they will always have a protective older brother.

I know that their daddy will take good care of us forever.

Mostly, I know that I'll have someone else to share make up and clothing with.

I'm sure my version of sharing and their version will not be the same....

We shall call her Spencer Brynne Cochran.

The debate continues about whether or not we will call her Spencer or Brynne.

I love her already.

I cannot wait to dress her and Libby alike and make them take pictures together.

Can I get an amen from Kitty and Leigh?

Or maybe I'll just give them the exact same bad hair cuts with bangs and a perm?

Yeah?  

Brilliant.

I am trying to enjoy this pregnancy and not rush it, but part of me wants it to be over already.

I want to know that my family is complete (or at least the part we made on purpose)...

I am ready to feel like I've finished this part of my life.

I'm ready to give away or sell allllll of those maternity clothes.

I'm ready to be able to control my body shape and size a little bit better.

I know that none of these things will even matter come April and I'm holding that squish ball baby.

Nobody got stuck.... Yet.

I live in fear that the two of them will re-enact that episode of Full House where someone got stuck.

I feel like I'll pull a Gibbler and probably need a stick of butter.

That was Full House, right?

Either way...

Terrified that will be my lot in life.

It only takes them a minute to find or make trouble.

I figure it is just a matter of time until I find someone stuck in the rails.

But they are so cute when they look like they are in prison!

Anatomy of a Butterfly

Hayes, what are you drawing over there?

A butterfly.  Here's his eyes, and his mouth, and his penis.

**giggles** His penis?

Yeah Momma.  It goes right there.

Meanwhile, all I can think is... does a butterfly even HAVE a penis?

I had to google that one.

Yes, yes it does.

Well, the male butterflies do.

They have male parts just like Hayes does.

Who knew he was a biological genius as well?

The Other Kid

The other kid came home to see us a few weeks ago.

I'm sure she came to see other people too, but I don't really care about them.

I was so glad to see her!

We hadn't seen Jordan since she left for school in August and we were SO used to seeing her daily that it was REALLY hard for me to adjust to life without her.

The kids were thrilled to see her and so was I!

She spent some time playing games and taking pictures with Libby on her phone.

Both Hayes and Libby drew her pictures for her to put on her dorm room walls.

I think Hayes was really proud that she wanted to use his pictures!

Friends, this was the night that I realized that Hayes has learned how to write his name at school.

We talk about school, but his answer is typically something about seeing his friends.

He doesn't really give me details about anything else in his day.

Except maybe when he brings snack and it is trail mix.

He likes that a lot.

He loves school.

He loves his friends as well.

He speaks highly of his teachers.

When I questioned my special source about his teachers, her response was...

'They are the best.  You don't get any better than those ladies.'

I was so excited to think that my boy would be well cared for!

I was so emotional upon realizing that my 3 year old can write his name...

forward and backward, mind you.

He says all the letters in his full name and he's learning all of ours too.

He has grown up so much in the last 2 months that he's been in school.

I'm no longer worried that he won't be ready for PreK next year.

I know that he will be ready.

And I cried when I saw him do this.

Chubby fingers and crayons writing a name is something more precious than I ever imagined.

Naps and Selfies

Sometimes I know she has played hard because she naps like this.

And when I get to grandma's house at 4:30 to pick her up she is still snoring.

So I let her sleep, because who really wants to wake up a princess?

Hayes and I just take a lot of selfies while we wait for princess to awaken.

He makes silly faces because he likes to look at himself in the camera.

I just laugh a lot and try to make myself look attractive.

Age 31.

I have forehead wrinkles and 75 chins.

That's attractive, right?

Shopping with Papa

On Fridays Hayes goes to school.

Libby J stays with Papa Jack and they go to the grocery store.

She likes to shop, especially with Papa.

He lets her pick out TWO things that she can buy for herself and take home.

Naturally she chooses chocolate donuts and cheetos.

Duh.

I mean, that's culinary genius for you.

I predict that this will be on the list of ingredients on the show Chopped one day.

Libby J would rock that show because her meals consist of odd combinations of lovely things.

Like... cheetos (keytohs, as she says) and chocolate donuts.

And an extra sassy dose of that 'look' so she can glare at you while she eats.

Nekkkid...

Me:  Hayes, you need to get dressed.

Hayes:  I don't want toooooooooooo.

Me:  Hayes, please pick up your clothes and put them on your body.

Hayes:  I can't dooooooooo it Mommy.

Me:  Why are you sitting on the sofa naked?

Hayes:  My clothes are just too hard today.  

Driveway time

Sometimes when we don't have anything to do we stay in our jammies all day long.

Nothing illustrates that better than driveway art at dusk.

I mean, why would I create MORE dirty laundry?

I'm just doing my part to reduce my water usage and detergent waste.

Conserve energy, water, etc.... less laundry.

Yes?

Please tell me I'm not the only one...

Also, you'll notice that Libby's toes are painted pink.

You'll also notice that she has a hair bow.

I spent a whole year trying to get her to wear a hairbow or headband.

She always snatched it out and then laughed at me.

Now, she will hardly let us leave home without one!

What gives kid?

I've learned that she does things in her own time.

Like potty training, apparently she knows how and when to go potty.

She just doesn't want to do that when I ask her to.

Fine.

Sit in your diaper.

I'll send you to college in those things.

But at some point you're going to have to buy your own.

They play so sweetly sometimes.

And then their relational bipolar disorder sets in and she tries to bite him.

Such love.

She calls it lip ick. I call it disaster

I am not really sure where she got this 'need for cosmetics' genetics from...

It is not me.

I blame Grandma Anette and all the glitter.

She comes home at least once a week with something sparkly.

She's quite proud of it!

Occasionally I don't notice the disaster until it is too late.

Today was one of those too late days.

She was covered in shimmery gloss that was more similar to tar in texture.

I had to wipe her about 60 times to get it off her skin, face, and hair.

I spent about that long cleaning the carseat and the window.

But she surely looks pleased, so I can't complain too much.

Princess soup

Apparently it is no longer necessary to heat the soup.

Or use a bowl.

So she just rolls with cold soup and the can.

We are stellar parents.

Working at the car wash...

Sometime last month, before the cold started to creep in, we washed cars outside.

Well, Daryk washed cars.

I took pictures.

The kids 'washed' and Daryk rinsed a lot behind them.