Meet the McCools

Boo to You!

2009-10-31T19:57:00.001-07:00

Where has all the time gone??? I can't believe today is the first of November?! Well, what have we been up to??? Oh, fun stuff.....being homeless for a couple of weeks while we were between houses, painting our new house, unpacking all 108 boxes, decorating and of course getting ready for pumpkin time!! We love our new house and town sooo much!!! House post coming next. Onto our cute little trick of treaters....

They have the cutest pumpkin patch and scarecrow alley here. The kids loved picking out their own pumpkins!

Isn't Dorothy just the cutest?? Well, her costume was a 3, but Noah and I had a good laugh at how "daring" it was!! We ended up putting leggings on her.

Such a doll!

Megatron lookout........He has been dying to wear this for everyone to see.

Handsome boy!

Hope everyone had a great Halloween and got lots of goodies!! Remember, they are for the kids not the parents...hands out of the bags!!!

The Candy Necklace

2009-09-15T11:27:00.000-07:00

Most kids would just love to snack on one of these...Right??!!
Wrong!! Not my daughter anyways. She thought it would be far more fun to jam one of the candies way the heck up her nose!! So unladylike, I know!! Well after sitting on her and trying to get it out I realized it was just too far up there. So off we headed to the ER. We did get back really quick, which was nice. They tried using hemostats and suction but had no luck. By this point her little nostril was so swollen inside and just gushing blood. They decided since it was candy to pour a whole saline bullet in her nose to help dissolve it. The gave us some antibiotics and more saline and to have it checked again in 2 days. So, that was our excitement for the day!

Conversation with my Son

2009-08-31T17:09:00.000-07:00

We were walking through the mall today looking for tennis shoes...
Our conversation goes a little like this:

Jax: "Can I get earrings like you and Macie, Mommy?"

Me: "No Buddy, earrings are just for girls."

Jax:"Ok."

We walk into the shoe store browse around and a man comes and asks if we need any help....

Jax: "Excuse me man, earrings are for girls. My Mommy just told me I can't have some. How come you do? Did your Mommy not tell you they are for girls?"

Me: " Umm...Sorry, kids...ha ha?!"

And we quickly hurried out of the store.........

Gotta love 4 year olds!

Sheppard AFB

2009-08-29T20:36:00.000-07:00

Well, it is official.....we are outta Abilene!!! I think I am a mix of sad, excited and impatient!! I will dearly miss all of the wonderful friends we have made in the last 5 years here in Abilene. So many of us have kiddos the same age and we have watched each others' grow up so far. I know we will keep in touch and make visits, but it is still kinda sad! I am super excited for Noah. This will be an awesome opportunity for him. He will be a B-1 instructor. Plus, the best part is he can't deploy!!! That is such a huge relief! Noah is leaving tomorrow and heading to Wichita Falls, he starts work on Monday. We sold our house here but don't close until the end of September. So, the kids and I will hang out and see Daddy on the weekends. What's the reason for the impatience.....we bought a new house up there and don't close on it until the first of October!!!! I am super excited and can't wait to start decorating and making it our home! More on the new house to come....

Bling Bling

2009-07-20T18:38:00.000-07:00

Notice anything especially sparkly about my little princess??

That's right, she is now the proud new owner of little flower earrings! This wasn't how or when I thought she would get them, but what can I say........the girl loves her some bling!! Ha!! Well, lets back up for a minute, Macie has loved stick on earrings since Christmas. Every morning we had to put some on and then of course have melt down central when she looked in the mirror an hour later and one was missing! Fast forward......to about a month ago....my niece, Emilee, had gotten hers done and we took a trip to San Angelo to visit them and Macie fell in love! So, I asked her over and over if she really wanted them and even pinched her ear so she would know it would hurt. She was adamant. So off we went with Em and Aunt Megan in tow. They got her all set up and I was holding her hands and sweating and starting to think this was a bad idea(Megan told me Em cried a good little bit). They counted to three and she kinda flinched and they handed her the mirror and she just smiled, said "Ohhh Petty" and asked to go get her candy! Seriously not a tear!! I got my second hole done when I was 15 and I think I about cried then.........so needless to say she doesn't get the toughness from her Mom. I always thought we would do it around Kindergarten, but she loves them and lets me take care of them......so we are both happy!

I made Macie this shirt and bow to wear for Jackson's T-ball.
The back is my fav. part! Excuse Tucker!

Jackson has his last game on Saturday!!

San Antonio Vaca

2009-07-07T11:37:00.000-07:00

*Warning~picture overload*

This is a little late....The day after Jackson's birthday party we got up bright and early and headed down to San Antonio for a little vacation. My parents went with us too and it was a lot of fun! The 1st day we headed to Sea World for the day, the next day we went to the Children's Museum downtown and went to eat at the Rainforest Cafe on the river walk afterwards. That night we went to eat at Landry's for my birthday(our birthdays are a day apart), and then went on the boat ride by the river walk. The last day we headed to the Alamo and the Mexican Market. We had such a great time! The kids acted great and we can't wait to do it again next year.

Jackson kept asking if this dressed up Shamu was going to bite him if he turned around. He was really concerned!
Still not looking away!! The weather was perfect. It was sunny but not too hot. Lucky !!

The kiddos loved feeding the seals.

Jackson after lunch, checking the park map for our next stop.

The kids loved the Children's Museum! It was really pretty cool. It was 3 stories and had a grocery store on the bottom level that you could use a basket to load up food in and then use a real register to check out. The middle floor had a post office, bank, front loader tractor ride, bubble room, cow milking, etc. And the top floor had an airplane, control tower and play house. On with the pics we have a lot to get thru......

Jackson waiting to ride the front loader. His fav. thing by far!! Such a boy!

Milkin' the cows.

Macie loved the bank. They had an ATM machine that she couldn't get enough of.

Jackson flying the plane.

Hello??

My little trolley drivers.

The Rainforest Cafe was great. The kids liked it. Macie wasn't too crazy about the gorillas during the thunderstorm, but she loved the alligator downstairs. Of course we got the volcano sparkler thing for dessert and it was delicious!!

Last but not least, this is what Jackson found at the Mexican Market that he assured us he couldn't live without. He wore it the rest of the day.......on the trolley and all. We had an awesome trip with tons of good memories! Thanks Mom and Dad for going with us, wouldn't have been the same without you guys!

Go Pirates!!

2009-07-06T19:49:00.000-07:00

Jackson is loving playing t-ball! He is doing great and we are having a ton of fun watching him!

Go Pirates! The whole fam showing our team spirit!
Macie cheering Jax on. She really gets loud.

She loves her pom poms!

Every time he hits and runs to 1st and he tells me, "T-ball is so awesome, huh Mommy?"

Why do the hats have to give them Dumbo ears? Seriously, all of the kids?!

Daddy assistant coaching.

We still have several games left and Jackson is just loving it!

Happy Fathers Day

2009-06-21T12:22:00.000-07:00

Happy Fathers Day Noah! You are an amazing Dad and the kids and I love you so much!! Today was military appreciation day at Buffalo Gap Village. We haven't ever been there to walk through it before so we decided to give it a shot since the weather was pretty nice and it was free. We had a great time. The kids had fun and it was nice to just be outside as a family.

The best pic I could get of them. Excuse Macie's bloomers.
The kids eating their stick candy.

Jax on the rail road tracks. He thought they were really cool!

Macie not so sure about the old time bathroom behind the glass.

You could buy bags of goat food and go feed them. The kids favorite part !!

Hope you have a great day Noah, you deserve it.

We love you more than you know =)

Best $12.99

2009-06-21T12:15:00.000-07:00

I found this "clubhouse" as the kids call it at Hobby Lobby for 12 bucks. They love it!!

You can color the outside.
It has 2 doors and 2 windows.

Jackson watches morning cartoons in it!

Macie posing prissy! Love it!!

The Permanent Marker

2009-06-21T12:04:00.000-07:00

Well, this is what happens when your 2 year old monkey of a daughter gets ahold of a perm. marker. The giant one, no less!

She drew a mustache and all. The kicker of it is, the marker was on top of the fridge because I "was" being responsible and keeping it out of the kids reach. I just didn't realize Macie's reach was scaling the kitchen cabinets and getting things off the top of the fridge! Little stinker!!

Look at those eyes......don't let them fool ya!

*Note*

If your crazy kids ever get into this kind of mischief just use hand sanitizer and cotton balls and it comes right off!

Jackson's Boot Camp Birthday

2009-06-16T19:37:00.000-07:00

This year for J's 4th birthday we had a "Boot Camp" party. I was really happy and pleased with how everything turned out, well except for the weather! I found a store going out of business on e-bay that was selling camo t-shirts for a buck each! Now that is what you call bargain shopping!! So each of Jackson's friends got a t-shirt when they arrived. I also ordered some dog tags, and camo stretchy bracelets(like the Live Strong yellow ones), and cute camo pencils that said "Jackson's 4th Birthday." My mom brought some big fabric rolls that Noah cut for us and we glued them together and then deco-podged with camo material and added a leather strap and boom-binoculars for each kiddo.

I thought my tank cake turned out pretty cute. Jackson Loved it, so that is really all that matters!
Miss. Macie eyeing the cake.....the girl loves her some frosting!

My best attempt at holding/head locking her for a pic. No luck, she was too, too busy.

We gave all the kids some camo face paint, tank and rank stripe tattoos also.

We made the kids go in the backyard on the swing set for our "obstacle course." They had to go across the monkey bars, up the ladder and down the slide to get their "medal of honor" sticker they needed to get pizza. Uncle Casey giving Jax a hand across the monkey bars.

Getting ready to light the candles!

Blowin' them out! It was so funny, when we all started singing Happy Birthday he looked around at everybody staring at him and just crawled under the table. I had to hold him while we finished serenading him. Silly kid!

Gifts, gifts and more gifts! He is one blessed little boy!! I am pretty sure we now own every Hot Wheels brand toy they make!

I found this tank pinata at the party store. It matched perfect and the kids loved whacking it. Practicing his swing for t-ball(post coming soon by the way!).

We had those grenade looking water balloons too, but the weather was rainy and chilly of all days. We ended up moving the whole thing into our garage, but all in all I think it worked out just fine.

Happy 4th Birthday handsome boy! You have no idea how much you mean to us. You are a blessing beyond belief. You bring so much laughter into our lives. You have a heart of gold and are the best cuddler. I can't believe 4 years has somehow flown by already. We love you to the stars and back buddy and can't wait to see what amazing things are in store for you! Thank you for just being you and making our lives so much brighter.

Shawn Johnson eat your heart out...

2009-06-10T19:36:00.000-07:00

Macie started gymnastics in February and she loves it! She asks almost every night while we are eating dinner if "nastics" is tonight? She is doing great and it is something fun for Macie, since Jax gets to do so much. Some of the pics are kinda blurry, but still cute.

She loves her "uniform." She has to try and put it on all by herself every week.
The ladies there keep saying how impressed they are at her strength on bars. I'm not, I have been telling everyone all along she is part monkey. She can scale the kitchen cabinets in about 3 seconds. Jackson comes and tells me she is "being Spider-Man again!"

She loves the foam pit!

Doing circle time and stretching.

Yay! We are really glad we went ahead and let her start. She has a blast and is also improving.

Happy Birthday to you, you are now TWO!

2009-06-10T19:10:00.000-07:00

Macie had a cupcake themed 2nd birthday, and of course everything was done in pink, pink and more pink!

Eating some yummy snacks! For whatever reason the weather decided that it would be 90 that day. This was in February mind you. So her outfit had to change last minute and we were not prepared for summer yet, so this is what got thrown together! She is cute enough to pull it off =)
Opening presents! She got a high chair and baby bed for her babies that she loves so much.

"Don't help me!"

She also got a hair dresser chair complete with rollers, clips and scissors. It was the hit of the party. Jackson couldn't get enough of the scissors! We had a big talk about how they were just pretend and we only play with them and never cut hair with real scissors. They haven't given each other any real hair cuts yet, so we are doing good!

Happy Birthday to Macie!

Pinata time! Excuse her new sandals she got that she just had to wear with socks no less! I think she got the idea from watching Pop!!

Candy!!!

I am sure Noah would really appreciate this on here for a bunch of women to see!! Love you Honey!

Happy Birthday to our sweet little princess! You are a wonderful blessing and such a joy to watch grow! You sure know how to turn on the charm and work your little smile already. Seeing your beautiful blue eyes every morning just warms our hearts. Thanks to all our family and friends for helping us celebrate Macie's 2nd b-day! She is a lucky little girl!

Merry Christmas

2009-06-10T18:34:00.000-07:00

A tad late, I know. But, the kids had a great Christmas this year! They loved opening gifts and stockings, and helping Nonnie "redecorate" her tree over and over!

Macie hanging the candy canes for the 50th time.

How cool are they? Ha! This is what "Santa" brought this year. A Jeep Hurricane power wheels. It was a huge hit! Power wheels have come a long way. They now have real working radio's, even though Jax and Macie like to jam out to the spanish station every single time! Oh, and don't you love the sunglasses that Uncle Casey and Aunt Megan stole=) Ha!!

Macie trying to hike that leg up there and hop in!

Just walking out to see what Santa left.

Aren't they adorable? They have all changed so much just since Christmas.

Can't wait to see what this Christmas has in store!!

Blog Makeover Coming Soon...

2009-06-03T12:29:00.000-07:00

New look coming very soon, as well as a "dedicated" blogger (me)!!! My friend Jackie decided to start really keeping up with her blog and it inspired me as well. This is a great way to journal all the fun little things of daily life with 2 kiddos. As soon as I get my new look I will start posting events from the past couple of months!

Potato Head...

2009-01-07T19:07:00.000-08:00

Santa brought Jax and Macie the ultimate Mr. Potato Head pack for Christmas. They love it and have played with it a ton! This is what I found them doing the other day and laughing hysterically at each other afterwards. They are such a hoot. So, needless to say when they play with Mr. Potato Head he gets a few parts and they get a few...

Excuse Macie's snotty nose!

Elf Yourself McCool Style!

2008-12-22T06:51:00.001-08:00

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Here comes Santa Clause...

2008-12-15T11:13:00.000-08:00

We went to some friends house Friday night for their annual Christmas party and they had Santa and Mrs. Clause.

He was the best Santa I have ever seen! His beard was even real.
And my daughter totally surprised us and actually loved Santa. She went back over to him 3 or 4 times throughout the night. Go figure.......I guess there is just something "off" about Chuck E Cheese that terrifies her to no end!

I had to add this, as I found it too amusing!!
Enjoy Moms...

Dear Santa,
I've been a good mom all year. I've fed, cleaned and cuddled my children on demand,
visited the doctor's office more than my doctor
and sold sixty-two cases of candy bars to raise money to plant a shade tree on the school playground.
I was hoping you could spread my list out over several Christmases, since I had to write this letter with my son's red crayon, on the back of a receipt in the laundry room between cycles, and who knows when I'll find anymore free time in the next 18years.

Here are my Christmas wishes:

I'd like a pair of legs that don't ache (in any color, except purple,which I already have)
and arms that don't hurt or flap in the breeze, but are strong enough to pull my screaming child out of the candy aisle in the grocery store.
I'd also like a waist, since I lost mine somewhere in the seventh month of my last pregnancy.
If you're hauling big ticket items this year I'd like fingerprint resistant windows and a radio that only plays adult music,
a television that doesn't broadcast any programs containing talking animals,
and a refrigerator with a secret compartment behind the crisper where I can hide to talk on the phone.
On the practical side, I could use a talking doll that says,"Yes, Mommy" to boost my parental confidence,
along with two kids who don't fight
and three pairs of jeans that will zip all the way up without the use of power tools.
I could also use a recording of Tibetan monks chanting "Don't eat in the living room" and "Take your hands off your brother," because my voice seems to be just out of my children's hearing range and can only be heard by the dog.
If it's too late to find any of these products, I'd settle for enough time to brush my teeth and comb my hair in the same morning,
or the luxury of eating food warmer than room temperature without it being served in a Styrofoam container.

If you don't mind, I could also use a few Christmas miracles to brighten the holiday season.
Would it be too much trouble to declare ketchup a vegetable?
It will clear my conscience immensely.
It would be helpful if you could coerce my children to help around the house without demanding payment as if they were the bosses of an organized crime family.

Well, Santa, the buzzer on the dryer is calling and my son saw my feet under the laundry room door.
I think he wants his crayon back.
Have a safe trip and remember to leave your wet boots by the door and come in and dry off so you don't catch cold.
Help yourself to cookies on the table but don't eat too many or leave crumbs on the carpet.

Yours Always, MOM...

P.S. One more thing...you can cancel all my requests if you can keep my children young enough to believe in Santa.

Mr. J's Room

2008-12-13T19:37:00.000-08:00

Jackson got a new paint job and some new accessories. He also got some new bookshelves to help with organization.

He really likes the shelves. You can't see, but the bottom shelf has buckets for toys, art supplies, etc.

He loves these stick on cars. When I got them up on the wall he told me they were "cool because they had their angry eyes on."

Miss. Macie's Room

2008-12-13T19:24:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I know it took forever to get this post but look how cute her room is and you will forget about that!

Her fairy princess painting. Love it =)

Her table and chairs. Jackson and Macie literally will sit here and play for 45 min. to an hour. They love it. It is so cute to peek around the corner and they are playing and talking to each other, and "cooking" each other food. Every time we ask Macie what she is making, it is always "gop." No clue, but whatever it is it must be delicious to her. She must make 5-6 batches a day!!

She has cute little sayings stenciled in various places around the room.

Her big girl princess bed! She loves it!

Rub-a-Dub-Dub, Too Many Kiddos in the Tub!

2008-10-25T12:01:00.000-07:00

I know I am a little late posting, but................We got to keep my neice, Emilee for a weekend awhile back. Jackson and Macie loved having her stay with us. Jackson and Em are pretty funny together. They thought it was hilarious to chase each other around the living room over and over again! We took the kids to see Wall-E and to Chuck E Cheese. We had a great time =)

Here is all the kiddos in the tub...

Don't you love Macie's face here...

I'm Back !!!!

2008-10-23T18:13:00.000-07:00

It's official......I am back and hopefully will do a good job keeping up! Life just got kinda crazy busy for a bit. I have gotten quite a few things accomplished that I have been wanting to do for a good while. Macie now has a big girl girly girl room, and I LoVe it!! She has done wonderful in her big girl bed. I am charging my camera batteries or I would post some pics. I will try to get some up asap. Onto our handsome little man...Jax got a room makeover too. It is re-painted, in blue still, but now it is fauxed (not sure if that is a word, but you get my drift.) He also got two much needed bookshelves for some serious organization. He really likes his "new room" too! I will do my best to get some pics of the kiddos bedrooms up this weekend.

I hate entries with no pics, so here is Miss. Thang to hold you over till this weekend!

Spider-Man and the Girly Girl!

2008-08-18T11:12:00.000-07:00

Jackson just cheesin' it up!
The real Spider-Man better watch out, he has some serious competition at the McCool house. This little boy is officially obsessed with him!

In this pic, I just said smile Jax, and he responded with, "No Mom, I am Peter Parker!"

Macie trying out 2 bows. A little over kill I know. But she is still too cute!

Showin' me her teeth. We now have 6, finally!

Our baby is 18 months!!

2008-08-14T19:54:00.000-07:00

It's official....our baby girl is a year and a half old. I still haven't decided if I am happy and excited or just sad that time is flying by. She is quite the little character these days though. She is sassy and sweet, and needless to say she lives up to her nickname, "The Princess."

Her two favorite things right now are Jackson and her babies. She loves her brother. I always said I couldn't wait for them to start playing together, and let me tell you how cute it is!! She pretty much follows Jax around like a lost puppy. And you better believe if he can do something, so can she!

She is such a doll and so much fun. As many of you know, we were kind of surprised with a girl. Thank goodness for that! We couldn't imagine our family any other way. Hope you enjoy seeing a few of her pics, as much as we enjoy her.