Bitty Baby

Marley came into the kitchen & said "mom I finally got the baby to sleep!" It was so adorable because she kept rocking & hugging her Bitty Baby like it was her actual baby.

Sleepy Grace

Grace's face is so cute when she's asleep!

Little kid in a big coat

Grace kept pulling at my coat & finally I realized she wanted to WEAR my coat! She thought it was so hilarious to wear it around the house. The coat looks massive on her!!!

Look at me!!

I don't know where Marley got the idea to do an early attempt at a handstand but one day she said "mom look at what I can do" & she got into handstand-like position on her own!

Nappy Hair

Marley rarely takes naps, let alone
long ones. This is her hair-do after a 3
hour nap on the couch! She was more
concerned about the wrinkles she go on the skin of her arm from laying on it!

Hat Change

Grace has this weird obsession with hats. She wants me to put them on her, then she wanders away, comes back shortly, with the hat off, wanting me to put it back on! She'll do this numerous times in a row.

I Want a Pony

Ok, so I know that this is not an incident that happened to me, rather to Kevin's co-worker Mike, but I have to post it because the ridiculousness of the whole thing still makes me laugh so hard!!  

Mike's wife, Chrissy, always quotes the line from the Johnny Depp version of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory that Verruca Salt says: "I want a pony". So Mike thought that it would be kind of fun for her birthday to give her a cake in the shape of a horse (envisioning those fancy cakes that they show on the Food Network).

After a few days of putting in his order in to some cake place (of what I think was was owned by an acquaintance), he got a call about the equine-shaped dessert.  They told him that he may want to come look at the cake first to see if he even liked what they had done.  I'm sure he didn't think much of it until he SAW the cake...(dun dun dun....)

OH MY GOODNESS!!! Can you BELIEVE this cake?!?  I WAS DYING OF LAUGHTER WHEN I SAW THIS PICTURE!!!  They said they could add the wings to make it better...really?! I'm sure that adding wings covers up the rest of the hideousness that is this cake.  Kevin's co-worker called it a horse from the land of misfit toys!  It's My Little Mutant Pony is what it is!!!  I thought that Kevin's co-worker should've bought it and given it to his wife because the whole thing is ridiculously hilarious, but they said because the cake didn't quite turn out, they'd charge him $80 instead of $100!! Really?! This horrible baking creation should've have been just given to him for nothing (I mean Grace's first birthday cake was awesome & only $65!)  They made another cake (and unfortunately, I don't have a picture of it) that looked like he went to the local grocery store picked up a two-layer white cake and stuck a plastic toy horse on the top...and they still charged him $100!! Whoa! Let's just say I was really nervous when Grace's cake person moved to San Diego because I sure did not want a mutant Hello Kitty cake for Marley's birthday!!!

Gotta Roll Out My Back!

Kevin got out the foam roller to work out some knots in his back, & Grace decided that she needed to do the same!

A Real Snow Day

This is the first time in 2012 it has snowed & actually stuck!! When Marley saw that it had snowed, she BEGGED us to let her put on her snow suit & go outside.

A Real Snow Day

I don't have a snow suit small enough for Grace but I had to let her go outside. She cried the most heart-breaking cry when she saw that Kevin & Marley we going outside without her!!
She had so much fun she didn't want to go back in!!

Annual Cooke Family Bowling Party 2012

Marley was so excited for the Cooke bowling party Jerry & Ruth have held
for the past several years at Fat Cats. Kevin was dying to battle it out with his bowling nemesis, Guy (his sister Kristen's husband) as Guy is the only real bowling competition, as far as adults go. (The children battle it out for a trophy of their own!) Guy took home the trophy last year but, alas, Kevin was not destined to take it to our house this year! Guy bowled an unreal 210 his first game, which pretty much took Kevin & everyone else out of the running.

Annual Cooke Family Bowling Party 2012

Mascara

Marley came in wearing her version of "mascara". It never fail to make me smile when Marley attempts to put on her own make-up!

Benihana & The Nutty Nutcracker

After Benihana's we went to the Capitol Theater to was The Nutty Nutcracker.

Benihana & the Nutty Nutcracker

Grandma Ruth & Papa Jerry invited us for dinner & the Nutty Nutcracker. We had taken Marley to a tepanyaki grill before, but she was only 1 1/2 to 2 years old. She cried when we went last time & they started the fire on the grill. This time, fortunately, was different...she loved it!! She got to use the chopsticks they made her & she was pretty good at using them!

Laundry Hamper

Marley often likes to play hide-and-go-seek before bedtime...she continues to try to find unique places to hide. Tonight it happened to be our empty laundry hamper. When Grace realized that you could actually get inside the hamper, she was begging to get in as well. She didn't want get out of it!!
As a side note: Marley makes me laugh because as she's finished counting she says "ready or not you shall be caught!"

Kylie & Marley

We went to visit Kylie (whom Marley adores) & they both got dressed up...so cute!








HOMEMADE CUPCAKES

Marley often makes treats when she is visiting her Grandma Ruth.  They made cupcakes & Marley really enjoyed the end product!!!








PLANKING

So "planking" is the new thing to do.  People find odd places to lay face down, stiff like a board & snap a picture.  Of course we all had to try it!  Even though I don't have the picture to post, we got Miranda's daughter Sadie to get into it! She's so funny!

Marley's plank is so hilarious!

Laid-back

I thought it was so adorable when I got Grace on the couch, just laid-back & lounging, casually shaking this rattle toy! So cute!!

Sheep headdress

Marley put this sheep blanket/pillow on her head & wore it around like a hat. She's so goofy!!

Gotta have the hood!

We left Marley's regular coat at church so she has had to use her snow suit coat that has a hood. For whatever reason, Marley decides that when she's in her car seat with that coat on, the hood needs to be on! She was freaking out at me when it was stuck behind her back & she need help getting it on.