Cooper and the Map, etc.

We were visiting GG and Papa recently while Susie was still in town. Cooper and Kendall managed to get into the hiding space for GG & Papa's road maps of New England, Tennessee and every state inbetween. Here is a piece of a conversation I had with Cooper while we were looking at these maps.

"Mommy, this is Shark Lake right here (pointing to an actual lake in Tennessee).

Mommy, this is the Bird Thing (pointed to a State Park in Tennessee).

Mommy, this one is Fish Lake (another actual lake).

Mommy, we live here (pointing to a spot in middle TN).

After school, we go here (pointing to somewhere in Maine).

This is where we go to Scary Things (pointing to a rather large park of some kind in New England).

You and Chip go that way (I then ask, me and Daddy go there?) and he responds: NO! We ALL go that way...Grammy, Susie, Daddy, Vovo, Kendall, Cooper and April. Do you want to go with us Mommy?"

This reminded me that I have done a terrible job at keeping up with any "Cooper's Quotes" which I promised would keep coming at the beginning of my blogging. Sorry! I suppose my excuse could be that there are too many to keep up with! He is getting to be such a little man lately and the funniest things come out of his mouth nearly every time he speaks! He is truly a joy and the greatest fun we could ever have!

I was cooking spaghetti recently and Cooper asked, "Mommy, are you the food maker at the restaurant?" I told him that no, I was not. He then said "Well, I'm pretending you are!!! OK?"

We were recently getting ready for dinner and Cooper and Chip were having a conversation about the shrimp cocktail we were about to have. Chip was doing a splendid job of quoting Bubba in Forrest Gump...you know, the guy that repeatedly names every imaginable type of shrimp meal out there?! It went something like this...

Chip: "Fried shrimp, shrimp gumbo, shrimp kabob..."

Cooper: "Daddy!! I don't like Shrimp & BOB!"

If you don't get it, reread it out loud.

Hope you're having a wonderful day!!!

A Visit From Susie

This is where the night ended, with about 100 pictures taken, we got a half-way decent one. Kind-of. Cooper refused to be in it and I think Susie is talking and Kendall only smiled for one. After the amount of photos we took, even a 2 year old got tired of the laughing.


We just couldn't get everyone to look at the camera at one time. Not sure why, but the Freberg's just couldn't seem to keep their focus on this night! =)

Now, notice, ALL eyes on the camera. At the same time.

This ain't half bad. The odds get better when there are less Freberg's in the picture!

Two words: Giggle Fit.

I give up. This is proof of my professional photography career going down the drain before it even begins.

My Little Shutterbugs

I think it is pretty obvious to most of you that I love to take pictures. This, apparently, is contagious. Our kids both got a kid-friendly camera for Christmas and if the batteries are not dead, the kids love them. However, they also love using both of my cameras. I tend to be a little more open to the idea of them using my smaller Powershot and it's easy, with a big button and it fits well in their little hands.

We had a great weekend, but very busy! Aunt Susie is here for a visit and we went to dinner on Friday night. About the only way to entertain our kids for even a millisecond was to let them take turns using my camera. The same thing happened the next day when eating out with our friends Joy, Will, Drew and Baby Caroline (although, she's so new, we kinda forgot she was there!). We also got to see our wonderful friend Baby Cade be dedicated at church this morning. We're so excited to be a part of Baby Cade's life!!! Although flash photography was not allowed at the dedication! ;)

Below are the first pictures taken by the WebbKids posted on the blog! Enjoy!

Kendall took this picture of Mommy at Sullivan's Friday night.

Kendall did a great job of getting a picture of all three smiling...Aunt Susie, Grammy & Grandy

Kendall was the main photographer at dinner Friday! Cooper did get a hold of it, but took pictures of waiters and strangers mostly!

Cooper got a great shot of Drew saying "cheese"

Cooper got LOTS of pictures of Miss Joy and Mister Will, so I had to choose just one (Sorry Will).

Cooper took a picture of the waiter cleaning up the BIG glass of milk Kendall managed to spill JUST before we got up to leave!! Yes, we left a big tip!!!

Photography Class & Catch-up

I've recently been harassed about not blogging enough lately, so if this is a boring post, be sure and blame That Guy!

That Guy, my friend Julie Elder and myself have been taking a class from the Emily Webb School of Photography. We've had three classes so far and personally, I am not sure you can tell judging by my 'homework.' Below are some pictures attempting the use of my fancy flash and a borrowed lens (my new one is currently en route via UPS and I am SO excited to use it more).

Using the flash outdoors with Kendall jumping rope. I was also attempting a try at changing my shutter speed while following her around, running and skipping. If these terms mean nothing to you...join the club.

Indoor flash. I assume it could use some work, but that would require reading the 2 inch thick manual. Need I remind anyone that I hated college?
Cooper outside with the aformentioned borrowed lens. I imagine if I could get the lens working in conjunction with the flash, I might get a pretty good shot one day!

The "new" lens again, no flash. But a very silly face.

This is my favorite homework (which I didn't turn in, shame on me!) from the trip to the barn a couple of weeks ago...also with the borrowed lens. In this photo: our neighbors and Coop's best friend, Cody and his daddy Jason.

This past week we celebrated Vovo's birthday! Not surprisingly, we didn't really get any great pictures from that evening, as we attempted pictures in the vicinity of chocolate cupcakes. Need I say more?

Mimi and Grandad got back from Disaster Relief for a brief 5 day vacation in Maryville before leaving for the miserable St. Lucia tomorrow. Poor Mimi and Grandad, they'll miss all the 30 degree weather here.

Valentine's Day was a nice surprise...our sweet sitter April offered to babysit for us so we were able to enjoy a UT basketball game, dinner at a very UNfancy restaurant to avoid the crowd and a MOVIE!

The amazing thing about the movie is that it was the first for us in a very long time, then I got to return to the theater the next day for a "chick flick" with some girlfriends. Two movies in 24 hours has got to be a record...at least since I graduated from high school! For those wondering, we saw Gran Torino (very good!) and I saw Confessions of a Shopaholic (also cute!).

Giddy Up!

This was by far the most beautiful weekend of 2009 in East Tennessee. We celebrated this wonderful weather with cleaning out the garage and a trip to the recycling center. On Sunday, we had far more fun when Chip went with our friend/neighbor, Jason, to ride horses and we joined them at the end of their ride with a farm staple...fried chicken. Jason is married to my great friend Julie, whose parents have owned a horse farm for their entire lifetime. I spent many days at their barn as a child, so it was a lot of fun to introduce my kids to the Cunningham Farm yesterday (to be fair, the kids were in a wedding at this very farm back in May, but that was such a long, hot day, and it wasn't exactly the same type of day! No playing in the dirt allowed!!!). Thanks to the Bartons and Cunninghams... Mayor Jerry, Janis, Kirk and Katie for introducing Chip to trail riding and joining us for dinner, too!!

My sweet little poser.
The boys got to get in on the action and ride around the ring for a while!

Kendall wasn't so sure at first, but loved petting and riding the "horsies!"

These boys often proclaim that they are BEST FRIENDS. We wholeheartedly believe it!!!!

Another "Blizzard"

This one is actually more of a Blizzard than the last, but yes, I do know...we did not have a blizzard. However, all of our grass was covered and we got probably 2-3 inches total. More due tonight, but since they said we were NOT getting any yesterday and that much fell, I don't have a lot of confidence in the weatherman today.

I can't remember a snow that was more perfect for building a snowman. We built this guy in about 5 minutes flat, accessories included.

Notice the tutu. Never leave home without it!

Cody wasn't tired of sledding even after day 1. Day 2 turned out to be just as fun!Much of the snow melted in the sun today, but the kids still each enjoyed their turns on the sled! Drew came over with his mommy and new baby sister, Caroline. Caroline hung out with Baby Cade at the top of the hill. Next year they'll be playing with the big kids!

Kendall took her first turn on the sled late yesterday evening. She loved it, until the end when it got a little scary!



Boys and their trucks...even with all the snow to play with they still dig through the garage to find trucks!! After playing in the snow, Ms. Julie invited (invited? I don't remember that part) us all over to her house for snow cream! It was yummy! It ruined our lunches, but it was yummy, so who cares?!!!

Things You Might Learn...

...When You Spend the Night With Your Kids in a Hotel Room...



1. Sometimes they snore and you may have never known that before.


2. If you're sitting on their bed while they're sleeping, watch out...they might swing their arms in their sleep violently for no apparent reason and hurt you.


3. You might think the three sets of dark blinds would keep them from waking up at their normal hour, but you might be wrong.


4. Even though they haven't had a nap, had a long drive, a fun and stimulating day at the aquarium, a cold and windy walk, exciting dinner and amazing amount of fun in a pool...it will still take them FOREVER to calm down and go to sleep.


5. You will probably be frustrated that they don't go to sleep, perhaps even threaten spankings or someone having to sleep on the floor. You'll be very angry and upset that they will NOT go to sleep. You're tired! Why can't they be tired, too?? Then you may glance over and realize it's only 8:30PM...and you're mad that you can't close your eyes and go to bed. You may also realize that's kinda sad!


6. You give incredible thought to who might be on the other side of the wall during giggle fits, moments of forgetting our inside voices, and midnight screaming and coughing fits. Before kids in our hotel room, I'm not sure it ever mattered whether there was someone in the next room or not.



7. In any other circumstance, you might not give yourself the chance to listen to your two children giggle uncontrollably while playing footsie for an hour and a half.



8. Most hotels probably don't carry the best cartoon stations and when you're trying your best to calm your kids down at night, Sponge Bob Square Pants doesn't exactly help.



9. It's hard to find good bath toys in a nice hotel...glass mugs, glass glasses, etc. So, a slippery bar of soap and a ziploc bag may be the best you can come up with!



10. When you're leaving and walking up to the front desk to check out, you might actually be worried the nice lady might say "thanks for coming, but please don't ever, ever come back!"

We knew we were meant to have this room as soon as Cooper looked outside...We were overlooking the aquarium AND the new dolphin exhibit they are building. Notice the construction site to his left. He was in heaven!

We didn't bring any toys up to the room with us. We didn't really need many b/c of the entertainment the window provided.

Bright city lights. The Aquarium to the left. Baker Street, downtown Atlanta.
Next door to the aquarium is the brand new World of Coke building. On top it has a gigantic coke bottle that contually fills up with Coke and back down again. Cooper loved watching that.

Welcome back to the United States Grandad!