My cool new shoes

I collect Converse All-Stars & love Dr. Seuss, so someone sent me these in a swap - hand-painted Dr. Seuss Converse All-Stars. Doesn't get much cooler than that.

My loot from the onesie swap

On Wednesday the package of onesies & shirts my swap partner made for me arrived at my house. Unfortunately, I wasn't there because me & Cooper were spending a couple days with my parents. We got home tonight & I got to sort through my loot. I got some really great stuff! Five onesies for the baby and 3 shirts & 2 onesies for Cooper. I may have mentioned to my partner that I have a Dr. Seuss obsession...

The middle one is for the baby; the other two are Cooper sized.

It's difficult to see in the picture, but this one says "Priceless"

Made especially for Cooper's 2nd birthday.

Cooper's wearing a Dr. Seuss backpack my partner included in the package. She included lots of extra goodies: a tiny stuff animal, some bath fizzies that dye the water different colors, a framed Dr. Seuss drawing, and felt food - green eggs & ham! Oh, and an awesome placement/playmat with car fabric on one side & chalkboard material on the other!

Oh, the Places You'll Go is the best book ever... and it's MINE

So I have an obsession with Dr. Seuss, particularly the book, Oh, the Places You'll Go. It's not 'cause I'm a mom either. I've always loved it. Oh, the Places You'll Go is probably the best book ever written. Ever. I've read it a hundred million times.
It is also the only perfect book (that I've found at least) for everyone. In my past life (before Cooper) when I worked with kids involved with the Department of Children & Family Services, I really liked the idea of giving my clients books, but they were all different ages (babies to 21), and very different reading levels, & the younger kids are easy enough to find books for, but the pre-teens & teenagers were more difficult. Some clients had family or friends they could count on, but most didn't. I thought of a lot of books that I liked when I was younger, but they all involve someone dying, or depending on family, or they were somehow just not appropriate for the kids I worked with. Try finding a wholesome book that is easy to read, is hopeful (because the saddest part about the DCFS population of kids is that very few of them have any hope at all and there usually isn't anyone around them telling them they should have any hope), and doesn't tell you that you can always depend on your family - it's not easy.
OTPYG was easy to read, but didn't seem like a baby book. It's inspiring, but it's honest. My two favorite parts of the book are:
"All Alone! Whether you like it or not, Alone will be something you'll be quite a lot. And when you're alone, there's a very good chance you'll meet things that scare you right out of your pants. There are some, down the road between hither and yon, that can scare you so much you won't want to go on."
and:
"And will you succeed? Yes! You will, indeed! (98 and 3/4 percent guaranteed.) KID, YOU'LL MOVE MOUNTAINS!"
So I kept several copies on my shelf in my office to give to clients for birthdays, graduations, or accomplishments.
So, of course, when I got pregnant with Cooper, I insisted that we do an Oh, the Places You'll Go themed room for him. Dr. Seuss books aren't the most common themes for nurseries, and when they are it's usually The Cat in the Hat, which is also good, but far inferior to Oh, the Places You'll Go. John spent countless hours tracing, copying pictures freehand, and painting to create Cooper's room.

Cooper's favorite - a "boon" (balloon)

John decided to add Sam I Am too.

We got a Pottery Barn Kids catalog in the mail the other day & I gasped when I saw the cover (no, Cooper wasn't on it). They have a line of "Oh, the Places You'll Go" kids room items. What?! That was MY idea.
So now Cooper might not be the only kid on the block with an Oh, the Places You'll Go room. (Although he will be the only one with the coolest Oh, the Places You'll Go room.) Sort of annoying to me, but I guess it's for the greater good.
To Cooper, and those other kids, & you too:
"Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting. So...get on your way!"

Cooper's giant "Horton Hears A Who" birthday bash

Cooper's ginormous first birthday bash was Saturday. Still, I can't believe my baby's one! I chose a Horton Hears a Who theme because I like Dr. Seuss. Maybe I should have chosen a theme based on things Cooper likes, but breastmilk, rotisserie chicken (he likes watching it, not eating it), and cheese seemed a little weird. Next year maybe he can pick.
I originally planned to make the cake myself & I've been making practice cakes for a couple weeks (& forcing them on John), but I finally decided it was a bad idea; I knew it wouldn't turn out just like I wanted & I'd be stressed out & get no sleep. I wanted Cooper's party to be absolutely perfect (can you say Type A?), but I tried to keep in mind while I was doing it that it was for him so if I was to busy & stressed out before or during the party to play with him then what's the point? So I ordered the cake from Sam's Club & I'm so glad I did! They don't make Horton cakes, but I figured this one was close enough to a jungle to fit, sort of. Whatever - it tasted good & was so much less stressful!

Since I wasn't making the cake, & since it really wasn't a Horton cake, I made some elephant cupcakes. Not my idea - I stole it off the internet - but I think they came out pretty good.

And I made some dessert sushi, another idea I stole from the internet. They were so easy to make & cute. They're Rice Krispie treats, Fruit by the Foot, & Swedish fish. Yum!

I also made some decorations (again, stolen idea!). These are flowers made from tissue paper. I know, it's kinda girly, but they're the flowers from the book & I don't think Cooper minded. Besides, orange makes them kinda manly, right?

I was absolutely thrilled with the place I found for the party. It was a gym so it was huge. We were able to have seating for 70, tables for food & dessert, & plenty of space at the end of the room to spread out a bunch of big toys for the little kids to play with. I think we had 11 kids that were two years old or younger so it was great letting them run around (or crawl, or creep, in some cases) together. There was even a kitchen and a stage we put the presents on. I loved it! If I ever have a party this big again (highly unlikely!) I'd definitely go back.

The balloons were Cooper's favorite part. They were attached to balloon weights so Cooper was just dragging it along behind him. With his big t-shirt and bare feet (he pulled off his shoes & socks early on) he looked like a hospital patient dragging around an iv!

Again, we had a slow start to the cake. I thought he'd dive in since he loved it last time, but no. I think it was about 10 minutes again before he got interested. Cooper just likes to be stubborn & do things when he's ready to. I can't imagine where he got that from - it's not like John or I are stubborn at all.
Okay, okay, stop laughing.

Eventually he did dig in again and just ate, and ate, and ate. I finally had to wrestle the cake away from him to get him cleaned up and changed for presents.

Cooper, and Mommy, and Daddy, and grandmas, were all exhausted by the end of the day. Overall, (I think, I hope) a good time was had by all.