Trips, Slides, and Pre-Shopping Lectures

So, looks like I am past due for an update. The visit with Christina, Jared and Tabitha was great. We saw Neuschwanstein castle (the one that Walt Disney modeled Cinderella's castle after), spent a day in Munich, enjoyed some great waterslides, visited a large lake called Chiemsee that contained a beautiful island with another castle modeled after Versailles in Paris and built by the same king that built Neuschwanstein. I really enjoyed driving through the Bavarian countryside, probably the only place that you will see cow crossing signs, and yes, we did have to stop for cows in the road . . . twice. Of course, I had to tear Tabitha and Jared off of the Wii Mario Kart game so that they could take in the sights!

Cooper is a wild man. He is walking everywhere and he is fast! Now that he is able, he wants to walk everywhere and the once novel and exciting grocery cart has apparently become a torturous restraint for this man on the move. We have a short conversation before we go into any store now and it goes a little something like this: "If you want to walk you have to hold mommy's hand and walk in the same direction as mommy. If you don't hold mommy's hand and don't look when mommy calls you, you will have to get back into the cart/stroller." Not that Cooper really comprehends it, but I have to inform him of the rules nonetheless. Sure enough as soon as he is down he refuses to hold mommy's hand and, if loose, breaks into a high-knee march/trot in the exact opposite direction of where we are going (usually accompanied by a high pitched squeal that must be intended for dogs hearing). At this point he is like a deaf horse with blinders, not even a turn, pause, or flinch when I yell his name. True to my word, this means that he has to go back into the cart/stroller at which point he performs what Jared calls the "limp kitty" pose. Letting his whole body go limp so that he flops around on the floor and although he weighs somewhere around 27 pounds, it feels more like 40. Then as we approach the cart/stroller, the thrashing and screaming starts. Birth control, anyone? Luckily he recovers quickly and this whole episode doesn't last long. Still though, makes me wonder what the upcoming 10 hour flight will be like.

Aside from strong-willed toddler shopping episodes, Cooper is a great little boy. In general, he listens when we tell him "no" and has started to enjoy handing us random objects in order to receive a big smile and a "Thank You". So, if you are idle in a room, you may end up with a collection of a pen, phone, remote control, socks, shoes, books, papers, DVDs, pillows, etc. all courtesy of a sweet little boy with a huge smile on his face. It's actually kind of fun until you have to put it all back. He is now tall enough to reach the light switches and controls for the floor heating in our house, so I am constantly going through the house turning off lights and checking to make sure the heat is set correctly. And I can't believe it, but today I noticed that he is tall enough to open the top kitchen drawers, stand on his tip toes and look at what is inside. His favorite thing to do in the living room is to climb onto the back of the sofa and stand up in the window sill. From here he can pull down the external window shades (it's a German thing) and he has now learned to open the window, which is actually a horribly dangerous skill considering the lengthy fall at risk. I've attached pictures at the bottom of the man in action. He is also skilled at opening and closing doors.

He still enjoys the slide and swing in the backyard, and when we are playing in the front driveway with the other little boys, he will sometimes decide that is where he wants to go. So he will walk over, open the gate, walk up the steep hill to the back and start pushing the swing back and forth. I was working in the yard on Sunday morning and Peter announced that Cooper was now capable of sliding on his own without us holding on. I skeptically asked, "Are you sure?" To which Peter set Cooper again at the top and sent the big boy on his way (unassisted). Cooper flops backward with legs flailing and flies in the air off the end of the slide right onto his butt on the grass. He gets up for another go, and Peter and I bust out laughing. No, Cooper is not quite ready to handle the slide without a little help.

Cooper and I will be flying October 8th back to our hometown and Peter will come over the week before Thanksgiving. We will return to Germany on December 1st. It's actually quite fun to tell folks here that I am going to be in the states for 7 weeks. I love my job! Can't wait to see you all!