Lookin' Good Buddy!

We were all finishing up our day's work and getting ready to go to some friend's house for the evening.......when I heard something. Dave was outside, Layla was watching a Hillsong music DVD and I was packing the diaper bag. I was sure I heard a hairdryer, but who would be using it? As I rounded the corner by the stairs, there he was.....Cooper. He had daddy's hair dyer, had somehow gotten the child safety plug out of the outlet, plugged the dryer in and turned it on. Seriously, that is quite the string of events accoomplished by a 16 month old in just a matter of minutes. Like any good parent, I immediately got the video camera. I figured if he hadn't electrocuted himself in the setting up process he would probably be OK for another minute! Lookin' good buddy!

FABULOUS!

Today Layla received a card from Mama Faye with pictures of their weekend together. Wow! I'm not sure how they got it all in. These are pictures of their Fancy Nancy party. They went all out.......full make-up, a fancy room, sweet treats, tea cups from great grandma's collection and Layla got to wear one of my old prom dresses. Too fun! They also gave each other manicures (yes, Layla got to paint Mama Faye's nails), shopped, went to 2 productions at the local children's theater, had slumber parties and made cupcakes. I'm sure I'm forgetting many things, but that's enough to make me tired. I've always heard that Grandma's have extra love, but apparently they also have extra energy!

God's Beauty, Baby Sign Language and A Glimpse Into the Future

What is the common link between these three things? The Handsaker kids. Here are 3 cute little stories from The Handsaker House.

God's Beauty

Layla, Cooper and I were hanging out on the deck at our resort in Indiana when a lady shuffled past us who was physically disabled. Layla noticed her as she passed by and I heard her say herself, is a quiet little voice, "That's how God made her and she's beautiful just how she is." Thank you Lord for that sweet, sweet heart!

Baby Sign Language

When I tell Cooper no, not to do something, I look at him until he looks at me and listens. It's turned into a bit of a stare down. A few days ago he started this thing during our stare downs where he blinks, very slowly. It goes something like this, stare at me for 3 seconds, close his eyes for a second, stare for 3 seconds, close his eyes for a second, etc. I'm not sure if he's trying to charm me, like batting his eyes, or if it's baby sign language for "back 'er down mom!"

A Glimpse into the Future

Layla announced to me yesterday that she's getting a new house and a new daddy. One thing I've learned in my short 4 years of parenting is not to show shock or surprise, but to ask clarifying questions! When I asked her what she meant she said, "Someday I'm getting a new house and a new daddy." No, I told her, you will always have the same daddy. "No mommy, someday I will meet a new daddy that God will give me. You told me! We will get married and have little teeny babies that will be so cute. We won't live with you, we will live in a new house. Remember mommy?" I remember, but I just don't want to think about it!!!

Corn Fed

We had a fun but strange weekend. Strange because we only had Cooper. Layla got it in her mind that she was going to go to Mama Faye's by herself for her first "big girl trip". Layla talked about it long enough that I was pretty confident it was something she wanted to do. So, we called Mama Faye, bada bing, bada boom, we were down to one child for 3 days. Cooper spent the first day walking around the house looking for sister and wanting me to hold him. By day 2 he got the hang of it and by day 3 he was all about being an only child. However, when sister returned today he greeted her with lots of hugs and wrestles.......and only one slug to the head. I have to say, I liked having this time with Cooper, being in his world and really listening to him. But, I was glad to look in my rear view mirror today and see Layla instead of an empty booster seat!

Cooper discovered corn on the cob this weekend and let me tell you, he doesn't even care if it's raw, he'll eat it! He was a great help as we worked with the Gibsons on Saturday getting 50 quarts of corn in the freezer. Jay and Tawnye, beware, Dave was talking to his dad tonight about getting more!

"Mom, that's not what the girl does in my story."

Apparently, Layla is writing a story in her mind. When I asked her to get dressed yesterday morning she replied, "Mom, the girl in my story wears her jammies all day."

This morning when I asked her to brush her hair she told me, "Mom, in my story I don't brush my hair. I just let it get crazy all day long."

When I wanted to put sunscreen on her before the pool she informed me that in her story she has magic skin and it doesn't need sunscreen."

Finally, when she told me this evening that she doesn't need to sleep because in her story she stays up all night reading, I informed her that I'm the editor and my red pen is ready!

Working for a Living

I feel like little Mr. hasn't received much post time on this blog lately. Some things I've observed about my boy recently...... First, he is a worker. Everything he does is work. He is always moving things, opening, closing, figuring out how something works (i.e.him trying to grab the camera), studying and hauling. He only sits still to eat and sleep. He has Handsaker/Kellen blood pulsing through those veins. He likes to work! Second, there is no intimidating this boy. Cows, horses, dogs, cars, tractors, trucks (uncle Ben and his squirt gun) don't make him flinch. He walks right up to thoroughly investigate. It doesn't matter how big or loud something is. The other thing about Cooper is his very tender heart. It breaks easily and needs LOTS of hugs, love and kisses to keep him going! So very sweet. Yesterday he added a new word to his repertoire...."uh-oh". He loves to say it after he hits sister!

Telling on Myself

Yesterday we were driving to the county fair and Dave and I were strongly debating some of the options for our re-landscaping job. Layla was in the back, quietly giving her play-by-play of our discussion. As Dave and I were talking, I could hear her saying the something over and over, getting a little louder each time, but I couldn't quite hear what it was. Until finally I heard......

"Mom, you're bossy!"

I think I said something profound and mature like......"So is Daddy."

And she replied, "No, it's just you. You're the bossy one."

We get to the fair and Layla wants to see the cow barn over and over and over again! Finally, I talk her into seeing the horses. As we walked through the barn she wanted me to read each horses name to her so that she could greet them. So we stopped by each stall, I read her the name and she would say, "Hi Scout." or "Hi Buck." As we headed to the next stall the horse was peeing and if you've been around horses you know that they pee a lot when they pee. I said, "Oh, he's peeing." It was meant to be a warning to Layla not to stand too close. But, she didn't miss a beat. She stopped and said, "Hi Peeing."

"Daddy, you got another Piston Cup!"

For those of you who have not seen the movie Cars, the humor of this statement will be lost! We are at Daddy's annual sales kick-off and Daddy's region has won region of the year for the 2nd year straight. We are so proud of his leadership and the hard work of his sales team. They are great guys with awesome families and we truly enjoy them all! When Layla saw Daddy carrying the cup (the award), she said, "Daddy, you got another Piston Cup. Now you have two!"

We've had a great week and Layla has been swimming like crazy. I couldn't believe it when I walked out to the pool on our first afternoon and she was diving off the pool step, staying underwater and swimming to Dave!

Daddy Date Night

Winterset has one of those old, cute movie theaters with it's original marquise sign. It's still very active, bringing current movies to town. Every time we drive by Layla asks, "Is that an appropriate movie, mom?" She desperately wanted to go watch her first movie in a movie theater! The problem with a small town theater.....movies don't stay long and we usually miss the "appropriate ones." Wednesday night it finally happened! Daddy took Layla to Ice Age 3. They had a great time and I'm pretty sure the highlight for Layla was the massive amount of treats she got to eat!

Yesterday was a great turning point for Cooper's disposition! He is happy and content, which I attribute to teething settling down. ALSO, he has stayed totally still when getting his diaper changed......ever since Layla prayed! Tomorrow we are off on on our trip, which means Cooper's first flight! Thank you Lord for a happy 15 month old, just in time!

"Jesus, please help Cooper not get anymore poop anywhere."

I don't know what Cooper's deal is, but it is like WWF trying to change him. It's gotten so bad that it's almost impossible not to get poop on something! Tonight, he kicked his foot right in his poopy diaper! Layla, seeing my frustration, started praying out loud. It went something like this....

"Jesus, help my brother lay still. Help him know that poop doesn't go on his foot. It's just for diapers. Jesus, help mommy not get poop on her. Please help Cooper not get anymore poop anywhere. Help him calm down."

So sweet and a good reminder that God really does want us to pray about everything. He cares about the smallest, and grossest, details of our life!

"Mom, let's make a list!"

What a great 8 days we had in Okoboji. Truly, too many fun things to even remember. Layla's overall theme for the week was bravery and independence. She tried water skiing, riding her bike without training wheels, rode a roller coaster by herself and conquered her fear of jumping off the dock, into the lake by herself. She also watched her first fireworks from the boat, being brave enough to withstand the noise for the first time. Not bad for a three year old! Since school ended, she has been very into trying new things. She told me, "mom, I have a great idea. Let's make a list of all of the new things I try." See Layla's list to the right.

Brother's overall theme was a little different than sister's. The highlights were that he tried his first ice cream cone, which he ate fast enough that there was very little spillage, and had is first Popsicle. And he got to play, play, play! The last three days of vacation were not good for Coop. I knew he was teething, but tonight I felt his mouth and now truly understand his misery. All first molars and his last lower incisor just started cutting through his gums. Here's the good news, we should be past this by the time we take him on his first flight.........next Monday.

Vacation #1

We are spending the week in Okoboji with Mama Faye and have been BUSY! Daddy was with us this past weekend and returns tonight, works in the area tomorrow and then is off for the rest of the 4th of July weekend.

We have had such fun! We've swam, played, gone to Arnold's Park, done the local park, done the beach, and Layla and Mama Faye went to a children's play yesterday morning. Wow! And, only 1 trip the doctor to treat Cooper for an eye infection. They say pink eye, I say the same old stuff we've been battling for 8 months that no one can really tell me what it is. Mama Faye and Papa have a kid's gator and tractor. Cooper loves Layla to drive him around on it. They really do pretty well for a 3 year old driver and a 1 year old passenger, in a vehicle with no working seat belts! The rest of the siblings and cousins join us for the weekend so we'll have many pictures to post when we get home!