Pardon Our Poo: Bulldogs & Horses & Cows, Oh My!

This past weekend was a big one for Coop. He had his first experience with Friday Night Lights as our high school alma mater, the Wylie Bulldogs, creamed the Decatur Eagles in a playoff game 46-16. I was afraid the boisterous crowd and the ridiculous amount of noise makers (a la beans in empty milk jugs) was going to scare the poop outta’ him (or leave him with a hearing impairment), but he was great! Looking back now, I should’ve been more worried about him getting whip lash from swiveling his head so much to take it all in. =)

After the game, we headed to Stapp Ranch to spend the weekend with our BFFs, the Stephenson’s, and their buddies, the Hanna’s. And what a weekend it was! Cooper has been outside the city limits for all of about 5 minutes (for his Aunt Amy’s wedding); so being in the wide-open range in the middle of West Texas nowhere was a total treat — for all of us. Living in the metroplex and constantly stuck in traffic and on the go, you forget how blissfully peaceful and rejuvenating the country quiet can be.

We spent Saturday morning (6 parents, 4 kiddos and a baby) down by the creek, skipping rocks, basking in the sun … skinny dipping (OK, so that was the three-pack of dirt-loving boys ages 3-8 in their underoos. Coop and I missed the swim session because it was nap time, but the pics are too precious … this time next year Cooper will undoubtedly be right there with them digging in the mud and catching froggies with his bare hands!). The lazy afternoon gave way to a beautiful evening. We took Cooper on a walk through the field where he saw his first moo cow, pet his first horse and saw Mommy step in her first pile of poo … in flip flops no less — niiiice! Then 8-year-old Taylor took us for a spin around the pond on the ranger (a rigged-out all-terrain go-cart type of thingy). Her lead foot had me fearing for our lives as we turned the corner of a steep(ish) elevation that I swear was all of about 2-feet-wide. But, rest easy, Tay Tay, always the little adult, rocked the ranger and we enjoyed the view of the setting sun reflecting off the water. As darkness fell (yes, the verbiage is all countrified, lol) the manly trio of men took to the grill, cooking up stuffed jalapenos and steaks atop an open flame. Coop even dined al fresco, noshing (and ultimately spitting up) a concoction of water-down carrots. Yum.

In the morning as we were packing up, I decided that 58 pictures was just not enough for one weekend and had to have that 59th. Oops! Coop had his first brush with “8 Seconds.” I wanted a pic of Cooper sitting atop this ceramic roping steer and Brock, the most precious 3-year-old you’ll ever see, wanted to join. And then Taylor wanted in on the action, too. So, there they were, Taylor, Brock and Cooper, posing for what I hoped would be one of the cutest pics ever when, whoops. Just after I clicked and was readying myself for a second shot because Brock and Coop’s eyes were closed (of course!), hands let go and the baby went boom. The world went into slow motion as I watched my little guy slip from atop the cow straight to the ground, landing with a heavy thud. Thankfully, he’s bottom-heavy and landed on his diapered behind and completely missed bonking his head. So all was well, just a little scare — more for me than for him (guess you have to get that first oops outta’ the way some time, lol). Chris and I have now decided that Coop can cross bull riding off his list of career aspirations — that baby just can’t hang. =)