Mysterious Red Deer

While in Vidalia,you visit the wild animals.

And no, I don't mean our relatives....

We spent the afternoon after the arts and crafts festival visiting some exotic wildlife.

Goats.

This really cool bird.

Some cows from Africa.

The females all have horns!

And this boy.

He was fascinated with the tour guide and how he referred to some of the deer on the property as the 'mysterious red deer' and he kept reminding us that we were on the lookout for those deer!  

Onion Fest

I know everyone gets tired of me saying it, but she's not a real baby.  Real babies aren't always this happy.  I believe in my heart without a doubt that children play off your emotions and attitude about 90% of the time, the other 10% of the time they are who they are going to be.  Spencer is the easiest baby ever.  The other two were easy, but she's a dreamy child.  It isn't even normal.  She is happy to sit and happy to walk.  She is only unhappy when she's really tired or hungry.  She was a trooper for this trip to Vidalia for The Onion Festival.  We left in the middle of the afternoon in hopes that the kids would sleep on the way down, no such luck.  However, we had a blast once we arrived in Vidalia.  We spent Friday night browsing the street festival and fireworks.  Saturday was really rainy and we made it out to the arts and crafts festival for a little bit after the rain went away.  

In between Onion Fest events we jumped on the trampoline, got mosquito bites, and drew on the patio with chalk.   We spent a lot of time with our cousins and really enjoyed the time with family.

Some of us ate chalk.  Not mentioning any names, but poop gets pretty colorful...

Just sayin'...

Working on fine motor skills and handwriting with this girl for her entrance into 'pre k' this fall...

I was sincerely hoping that Spencer would be a nice blend of her siblings.  Subtly cautious and a bit daring.  Instead I got a duplicate of the crazy sister.  Fearless Wonder Version 2.0.  She doesn't care about anything.  Throws caution to the wind and climbs all things....

Messiest eater on the planet...

Fearless baby with rolls for days...

I need to work on my pirate face.  He's perfected it, but I look like something might be wrong with me.  His favorite part of the whole weekend was the mysterious gray deer.  More about that later...

Mother's Day 2015

I love my church.

The tagline for the Mother's Day photo booth was that 'mom's love pictures.'

And boy, do they.

We had just spent time Saturday night having pictures made with our awesome family photographer Denise, and Daryk thought he was exempt from this on Sunday.

Wrong.

Please note the crazy smiles on Daryk and Hayes' faces...not real smiles.

And Libby looks confused.

And Spencer looks like she's lost.

But I am so happy.

Prom 2k15

I will say that one of the perks of my job is 'working' prom.  And by working, I mean we show up and marvel at the dresses.... good, bad, ugly....

Also, my date cleans up nicely.

Our favorite Hannah.

She is so special to us and I cannot wait to watch her grow up!

And Hannah's sidekick Bailie.

We love her so much.  I so appreciate her honesty and her integrity.

My Breakfast Club.

I will miss seeing them daily and spending time with them each morning and at lunch.  I've seen them twice a day for most days since August.  I'll be at a complete loss when they are gone!

Jayde!

The joy of my day!

Her positive outlook and smile can make my day better when I'm in the dumps.

Gorgeous inside and out!

And our precious neighbor Car-lo-line.

Caroline.

If you are my children, you love her.

We are so blessed to have this one close by to call upon when we need her.

During the Snowpacalypse 2014 she hand delivered brownies to us on Day 2 of Entrapment.

All by myself

Look Mommy!

I climbed up on this stool all by myself and I'm so big!

And I can clap my hands too!

I make this motion with my hands to you every single time I want you to pick me up.

Man, I love this kid!

We actually just went to the dr today for her 1 year well check... only a month behind her actual 1 year mark...  I'm an awesome mom, seriously.  I also breed stocky kids with big heads.  She is above the 95th percentile for her weight at 28 lbs.  She's hovering between 75-80 percent for her length and around 90 percent for her head size.  Typical Cochran-Palmer genes.  Short, stocky, big head.  

The doctor and I both agreed that she has the best disposition and that she's a fantastic kid.  I am so proud to be her mom and so thankful that God gave me not one, not two, but THREE awesome babies.  I'm taking credit for the sleep training and the positive attitudes, but He gets the credit for the overall awesome package!

Fab Frog

I love watching her write.  I still have to help her spell her name.  Note to everyone else, long names are a challenge for 3 year olds.  I know she won't be 3 forever, so I'll take this writing with PRIDE!  I love that she has improved so much this school year.  She has worked really hard to perfect her letters and she's made major strides in her name.  We still have work to do with some of the letter specifics and details, but we are making huge improvements.  

Big Kid

We were able to tour a local elementary school with Hayes and his Puppy friends this spring.  I was so thankful to be able to take part of the day off and spend some time with my big kid before summer gets too crazy.  He was SO excited to go on a field trip and see the 'BIG SCHOOL' in all it's glory...

We arrived and we were on time.  Write it down y'all.

We grabbed some pictures on the steps while we waited for the rest of the crew to arrive.  Chase and Hayes reallly love each other and I'm so thankful for that sweet boy's friendship.  Hayes is really going to miss him in the fall!  Hayes was most excited to sit in the media center and listen to the story.  He was thrilled to experience the gym and the chaos of P.E. as well.  They were playing some crazy game with the balls and the rolling carts.  Crab soccer maybe?  It looked like managed chaos and it was really loud.  I don't do loud...

We waited patiently to have lunch after our tour was complete.  Hayes' teachers informed me that if I didn't pack his lunch in the fall he was going to starve at school because he's so picky.  He freaked out because they put a cheese stick on his lunch tray and he didn't want it.  He also only wanted half of the banana.  They gave him the whole thing.  The nerve...  I am concerned about how his eating habits will change in the fall.  He typically eats a snack mid morning and mid afternoon.  I'm concerned that he will be starving by lunch time (which is really early in kindergarten) and then be starving again in the afternoon once he arrives at AHS.   

I am SO sad that this boy is almost finished with his journey at the ELC.  He's such a joy to parent and I have so enjoyed all the wisdom his teachers have poured into him while he's been there.  Thanks for being a part of the village that raises my baby boy!  

Summer To Do Lisit 2015

I figured since I had a year long to do list and I have an entire summer 'off' (more like 6 weeks)... I could make a to-do list for my summer break.

1. 1.  Work an extra 3 days on unit plans and tests in June with my colleagues.
   
2. Travel to North Carolina and see our favorite Marine and his bride.  While in NC, go see some awesome stuff and do some awesome things.
   
3. Paint the living room and finish the half bath.
   
4. Host a minimum of 10 skin care classes each month.
   
5. Figure out how to work exercise into my daily routine so that I can acclimate myself to that once school starts again.
   
6. Swim lessons and summer play dates at the pool for all of us!
   
7. Spend time on a day date with each child by themselves.
   
8. Encourge Hayes to try new foods before kindergarten starts.
   
9.   Organize my home office space and clean out my crap/craft room.
   
10. Buy a new chair for the living room.

Alphabet Parade

I am so pleased to watch the little guy and all the fun things of his last year at ELC.  We have so enjoyed all 4 years and the lovely women who have nurtured and loved him.  Lori, Robbie, Dawn, Lynn, Erin, Cindy, Jean, Lori (the other one), Kristi, and Jill.  They are soooo special to me and sooooooooo important to his development.  I am thrilled to watch him grow from preschool to elementary school and I cannot WAIT for him to start in the fall.  I don't want him to grow up any faster than he already is, but he is SO excited to be a Wildcat in the fall and I'm SO proud of him!  

Alphabet Parade 2015.

Hayes Cochran

'Jazz' the Transformer Autobot.  

Letter J

Goal Update: Halfway Done

I feel like I should preface this by saying that I've never in my life been much of a goal setter or achiever.  I mean, if you don't SET goals you will likely not achieve them.  Duh.  I was inspired by a dear friend of mine to set goals and achieve the a few years back.  I have also been disciplined with my Mary Kay training to set goals and dreams for myself.  Goals are dreams with a deadline... and dreams, are just that, dreams.

Goals for 2015.

1. Lose the last bit of baby weight and keep it off this year, possibly forever.
   My body has been in a constant up and down lbs. battle since mid 2009.  Pregnancy, baby, pregnancy, baby, weight loss, baby, better weight.... to be continued.
   
   I am slowly but surely working on this one.  I do technically have about 10 lbs to go to get to my 'prebaby/husband' weight.  I am about 99% sure that if I actually made time to exercise regularly, I would lose those last few lbs.  Summer schedule includes early workouts so that I can do that.
   
2. Declutter the house, one room at a time.
   Now that we have reached the 'last baby' stage I feel like we will be able to gradually remove things that are no longer being saved for 'later.'  I will also be able to remove my 5-6 size range wardrobe and focus on a smaller selection of clothing.  Advocare and exercise will help.
   
   Declutter Cochran Casa has begun.  We are gradually working through each room.  This summer the focus will be the kids rooms and closets!  Also, my closet.  Yikes.
   
3. Finish decorating the living room, buy new couches/chairs, and paint that room.
   Finally.  We have lived there for almost 3 years.... long enough to have painted the rooms.
   
   Painted the front entry and bathroom.  Done with the girls' room.  Working on living room completion as well.  Planning to paint the rest of the front entry and living room this summer.  I cannot WAIT to brighten up that room!  
   
4. Become a Mary Kay sales director by April.
   This will require multiple steps, but it is a goal... with a deadline.  And that deadline opens up so many other doors that I can barely stand it.
   
   Not in a director suit, but actively recruiting and building my team.  I will be seeing an aubergine suit this fall.  I am CERTAIN of it.
   
5. Organize my home office and my 'room' at the house.
   The craft room/office/crap room needs a face lift.
   
   Yeah, still working on this goal.  I plan to do some summer cleaning and move things to the basement so that my office can move out of my dining room into the craft/crap room.
   
6. PLANT FLOWERS AND VEGETABLES.
7. I want to unplug myself once a month for a whole weekend and just be Carrie the mom, the wife, the cook, the cleaner, the house keeper.... and not respond to calls or texts or emails or any social networks.
   I feel like doing that in spurts makes me rely on that a lot less to entertain myself.  I look forward to it.
   
   Planted a LOT of flowers and bulbs this spring.  I have so much fun planting things.  Truly love that part of being a homeowner.
   
8. Disney fund growth.
   Deposit a consistent amount monthly into the account for our 2016 trip.  :)  I'm hoping for a February or Spring Break trip!
   
   Disney fund hasn't grown at all.  But debt payoff has been fierce.  I know that Disney will come easier once debt is gone.  Shooting for a Christmas with Mickey trip in December!
   
9. Establish a fitness routine that I can maintain with my mommy lifestyle.
   I am 100% certain this will mean me buying a treadmill or something before it happens because I'm not going to the gym.  I am also 100% sure this means I will be exercising in the early morning hours because that is the best time for me.
   
   Summer 2k15 will be the first time the exercise has happened regularly.
   
10. Actually complete tasks I start.
    
    Done.  Starting to be more diligent about completing things.  Life skills people.  Life skills.

Yard work

Spring Break we had trees cut down!

We acquired this AWESOME mulch pile as a result.

AKA:  Mount Cochran

It was the best idea ever.

This was the scientific butterfly lesson over Spring Break.

Not sure when my kids learned some of the things they learned, but they are smart.

Too smart for their britches...

Bday cookie

We had an impromptu shopping trip to get my MIL a new fridge on Spencer's actual birthday.  I didn't really have a special plan for her day to celebrate.  I'm not a good 'celebration planner' and I truly hate birthday parties, so mall dinner was a good plan for us.  After feeding the crazies dinner and letting them run off energy at the mall infested playground... I got a cookie for Spencer.

I think she liked it.

It was a great birthday investment and possibly the messiest thing ever.  

But this little squish face enjoyed every bite and then some, so we will call it a win.

Birthday Baby

A little over a year ago we welcomed a 3rd human into our family.

She's the most joyful person ever.

I cannot imagine waking up without her giggles and smiles each day.

She's so sweet when she sleeps.

Even sweeter when she snuggles.

She is the bestest baby in the whole world.

Makes me want to have another person...

Brrrrrrrrrrrr was Easter

Next time, we will put the little kids up front and use a real camera.  

The BLUR and the giant adults in the photo kinda distract you from kid cuteness.