Cole & Cough Drops

Cole is just a fun kid.

The pictures don't match the story, but I just wanted to record this story about Cole from last week.

Cole came home from school and told me that his teacher was sick.  She had a cold and he wanted to do something for her.  I told Cole that we could make some bread and take her a loaf of bread to school the next day.  That suggestion didn't click with him.  So, I told him to think about it and we'd come up with an idea.  Cole was worried for Mrs. Foote.  She had used her last cough drops up during the school day.  So, after Scouts we went to the store.  I had to pick up a few things for lunches for the following day.  I told Cole that he could pick one thing--anything he wanted--to take to school for his sick teacher.  He picked a bag of cough drops.  And not just any bag.  He took special care to choose the bag that had the flavors that Mrs. Foote likes.  What kid even pays attention to what flavor cough drops his teacher likes?  And that she used the last cough drop?

Well Cole sure did.  We took the cough drops and a package of tissues and wrapped them in a clear bag with pretty ribbon and he took the package to school the next day.

A few days later I was volunteering in the class.  Mrs. Foote pulled me aside and told me how thoughtful it was for Cole to think of her and to notice that she wasn't feeling well and that she was out of cough drops.  She started to cry.  And, of course, so did I.

So proud of my little blonde tender hearted boy.  He really is thoughtful and generous.  And messy.

Cole-ism #2814

A while ago I had a funny conversation with Cole…

C:  What is the "F" word?

Me:  It's just a really inappropriate word that naughty people use.

C:  Who decided it was inappropriate?

Me:  I don't know.  It just is.

C:  I think the governor decided.  He makes up he laws, you know.

Me:  Well, maybe so.

C:  So, is Mitt Romney the governor?  Did he decide that it was a bad word?

Me:  Well, Mitt Romney was a governor.  But not of our state.

C:  Is he the President?

Me:  No, he is not the President.

C:  He should be the President.  And I'm pretty sure Mitt Romney decided that the "F" word was a bad word.

Me:  OK.

Scout Trip to the Springville Fire Station

On December 30, Cole's Scout group went to the Springville Fire Station.

Rick works with these guys and made the arrangements for us to visit.

Clearly, Cole is thrilled to be posing for the picture while we wait for our tour to start.

BTW, Cole is the only one wearing his scout shirt and neckerchief, so you can spot him easily.  I thought they were supposed to wear those expensive things when they went on these type of activities. Gotta get our money's worth.

Last minute review of the rules. Cole is obviously paying close attention.

Rick is chatting with his friends.  (really nice guys)

Learning about the fire hoses and how much water the fire truck holds.

Learning about the tools on the fire truck.

The Scouts got to climb into the fire truck...

and out the other side.

Putting on the fire fighting gear.

It is a pretty good idea for kids to see what firemen look like so that they are not scared of them should they ever come face to face with them in a fire situation.

They got to see some of the things on the ambulance, too.

This bag has the tools for airways.  

When he opened this case, he asked if anyone likes to get shots and Cole's hand immediately went into the air.  That brought a laugh.  And it's totally true.  Cole will watch the needle go in every time.  He doesn't even flinch.  It weirds the nurses right out.

I will admit that Cole got a little preferential treatment on this trip.

The boys had all kinds of questions about the fire trucks with their lights and horns and being able to speed and run through red lights.  It was funny.

Then opened the doors and sent the boys out of the bay.

…and let Cole pull the horn.

Lots of fun at the Fire Station.

And I was super surprised at the behavior of these boys, they have quite a reputation, you know.

Cole is 8

Because Cole turned 8 on Thanksgiving Day, we celebrated big for his birthday.  

Even though he chose Pumpkin Pie over cake, Kris made him a cake anyway.

Plus, we still had 3 pumpkin pies.

I got Cole set up with Scout gear for his birthday.

He's so excited.

Cole was baptized the following day.

This is a picture of Cole with Sister Wilkins.  She is the bishop's wife, but she was also the Primary President for a long time when Cole was in Junior Primary.  She has always been so sweet with Cole.  We just love her.

A little mingling after the baptism.  

Thanks to all of our family for coming.  This is a huge step for Cole and we really appreciate the support since we have a pretty small family.  (are we even Mormon???)

We invited the family over for waffles, breakfast casserole, fruit, and juice.

Thanks again everyone for participating in the celebration.

We had a great time.  

All of our Robison cousins (minus Brody).

What a crazy group of kiddos.

Kinda funny that we started out with 4 girls, then added 5 boys.

Always keeping things organized.

Loving the super November weather.  

Cole's first time at Scout--pack meeting.  They made cards to be delivered to ward members by the Activity Day girls.  Cole was so serious about his card making skills.

happiest place on earth...

We decided to fly to California for the sake of time.  We flew out of PROVO.  Awesome.

We would totally do that again.  Even though the flight was full and it was slightly delayed leaving Provo, it arrived in LA on time.  We were on a flight with 47 people who were attending a "happy, happy hipster wedding at the Los Angeles Temple on November 15."  It was like being on a flight with a whole bunch of Kardashians.  I don't even know what that means.   They were on our return flight on Sunday as well.  The wedding went well, apparently.

Anyway, good idea.  Would definitely do that again.  GO Provo Airport!!

So, Cole had NO IDEA at all that we were going to Disneyland.  We kept it secret until we all got up that morning and there was a suitcase in the middle of the floor.  Cole asked why there was a suitcase and Rick told him that he had been chosen as the lucky student from Chinese Immersion that would be flying to China to spend the rest of the school year with his Chinese Teacher's family.  That was not what he wanted to hear.  He cried the whole way to the airport and was not completely convinced that we were going to Disneyland until all of us were on the plane and buckled into our seats.

He's so funny.  I think he was the only person on the plane that was actually listening to the flight instructor.

We scheduled a limo to pick us up at the airport.  Cole didn't know it.  Then this baby pulled up to the curb.  His eyes were this big for the entire ride to Disneyland.  

2 reasons for the Limo:

1.  When scheduling that far in advance, it's nearly the same price as scheduling a shuttle, however...

2.  It doesn't have to stop every 10 minutes and unload a group of people, and therefore, the ride to Disneyland is a non-stop ride that takes half the time as a shuttle.  

First stop:  Space Mountain.

This was also the first ride that we went on when we went to DisneyWorld a few years ago.  

We like the traumatize the kids right from the get go.

We made sure Cole was in the front seat, just like last time.

We're so mean like that.

Another favorite from our first day was Cars-land.  It was a good idea to hit Radiator Springs Racer on a Thursday evening.  The lines were relatively short (OK 45 minutes, but whatever) and it's totally cool to do this one at night.  We did make it one other time with a fast pass.  Certainly a favorite!!

Notice Cole holding onto his seatbelt for dear life!!

We also hit a few other rides in Cars Land.  This is from Mater's Junkyard Jamboree and is similar to the teacups.  We loved it and laughed so hard.  Everything from Cars Land is so cute.  

Maybe I should watch the movie.

Poor Rick was sporting a knee injury that peaked on Thursday with the rupture of cyst and lots and lots of swelling.  His activities were kept at a minimum. 

It was pretty sweat celebrating the holidays with lights and music and 70* temperatures.

Certainly put me in the holiday spirit.

The next morning we started out at DisneyLand with Brandi & Jason and a few other dozen friends from Highland.

The River Safari.

Brings new meaning to the "duck face".

Friday night kid pic back at Cars Land.

These 2 opted out on the Tower of Terror.

Can't say that I blame them.

 Cole loved the Bug's Life bumper cars.

On the first night, we saw this guitar player singing just outside the entrance to Disneyland.

We got brave on the second night.  We asked him if he knew Stubborn Love by the Lumineers.  (we knew he did because we heard him play it the night before.)  He played it and the girls sang.  They were proud of the the fact that they helped him earn lots of tips for that song.  It was pretty fun.

There was almost never more than a 10 minute wait for this ride:  California Screamin'.

It's a roller coaster.  Summer and Sierra ran ahead to ride it before we got there.

Cole was pretty nervous to ride.  He was actually crying.  I felt like the worst parent ever for making him ride a roller coaster.  There was a mom and her son in line ahead of us.  They were so funny, the mom kept telling the son to tell Cole that he was so scared the first time, but now he just loves the roller coaster.  I was reassured myself, since I was slightly petrified to ride the roller coaster.  We had a cute worker named Jenna that reassured him that it would be OK and he would love it.  And he did.

(Seriously though, what parent just forces a kid to stand on their tip toes while silently crying to qualify to ride a dang scary roller coaster???)

 Toy Story Midway Mania was also a favorite.  (we didn't ride this one in DW because of the ridiculously long wait times)  It was really fun to do this one with Cole.  He loved it.

The lines were pretty short and we were able to do this one multiple times.

 Rick and Sierra

 Other favorites:  Soarin',  Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters, Indiana Jones Adventure, Haunted Mansion, Splash Mountain, Pirates of the Caribbean, Autotopia (Cole) and the beignets at New Orleans Square.

Things we did once and that was enough:  Matterhorn Bobsleds, Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage.

Things we missed but will be sure to hit next time:  Grizzly Rapids, Monster's Inc., and Club 33.