the coopers

Introducing the Cooper Sisters!

2007-02-16T14:03:00.000-08:00

Above are some pictures that Heather had taken at a local photo place. I was amazed at how well they came out! The girls are beautiful! They must have gotten their looks from their mother! The photographer liked the close-up of lyndi so much that she asked Heather if she could use it as one of their display pictures so Heather had to sign some papers to release it. They are both growing so fast!
Kessie is precious. She has been developing her hand eye coordination and is starting to grab things and shove them in her mouth! Everytime i look at these pics, i'm reminded of how blessed I am! I hope you all enjoy them as well.
We are working on arrangements to have Lyndi in Preschool this year. She knows her alphabet, can count to 100, and can do some simple addition and subtraction. One of her favorite things to do is play XBOX with daddy. We play Lego StarWars together as a reward for good behavior. Life moves faster and faster it seems. I hope these pictures find you all in good health! Blessings to you!
Also, I have some of these pics in various sizes for family and friends that would like one. I also have higher resolution pics that I can Email to people to download and print on their computers. There are a few more pics that aren't listed here. Email me and I will send them your way.

Happy Halloween!

2006-11-21T19:47:00.000-08:00

Arrrgh matey! Halloween has come upon us once again and Lyndi has taken the challenge of treat-or-treatin' Pirate style! Yes, she did have an eye patch but apparently she didn't like not being able to see out of both eyes so we lost the patch. She was a good pirate and rounded up quite a bit of booty. So much so that we are still working on finishing it all a month later. Now that's some good scavenging!

It's A Girl!!!

2006-10-30T00:24:00.000-08:00

Kessid Grace Cooper has arrived! Yes, yes... Kessid is a very unusual name. It is rare but I have heard of others and talked with one person who has this name. Kessid is Biblical Hebrew and it means "lovingkindness." It is used quite often to describe God's lovingkindness for His people. So whenever you see the word lovingkindness in the Old Testament, it is the Hebrew word "chesed", which we chose to spell in a more phonetic pronunciation. Below are some new pics of the "lovingkindness" that God has bestowed upon us!

Carving Pumpkins

2006-10-30T00:11:00.000-08:00

How fun it is to carve a Jack-O-Lantern with a 3 year old! I was the appointed pumpkin carver so Linda and Heather helped out with cleaning the pumpkins (the least favorite part for me!). We had a good time and it was good connecting with Lyndi a bit since the arrival of her new sister. Below are the pics from our adventure. Enjoy!!

Happy Birthday Lyndi!

2006-04-15T23:04:00.000-07:00

Time seems to fly by these days. It doesn't seem that long ago that we trekked out to southern california with a 1 month old baby. Now she is 3 years old and is a beautiful little girl! It was great to celebrate her birthday this year. We had a big party for her since this is the first real party that she can enjoy and will most likely remember. We invited some of her friends from church and our adult friends from AD. Overall it was a fun time and I was pretty tired after jumping in the bouncer with the other girls =) Hey... someone had to supervise them... right? =) Below are the pics from the party. Enjoy!

California Adventure

2006-04-15T22:02:00.000-07:00

Ah... one of the great things about living in So. Cal. is that we are 30-45 minutes from Disneyland. On this occasion Heather, Fred and Linda were able to take Lyndi to Disney's sister park, California Adventure. I believe that I had class that day so I wasn't able to attend, but it looks like they still managed to have fun without me. Enjoy the pics!

Heather, Vegas, and NASCAR... OH MY!!!

2006-04-04T23:30:00.000-07:00

Heather surprised me for my 30th Birthday this year... and did she ever surprise me! Most of you know that I love NASCAR, and those of you that didn't know now. So Heather decided to "kidnap" me after my Friday morning classes and we drove to good ol' Las Vegas, NV. I had never been to the Vegas track but had always wanted to go since it's only a few hours from us. So my fun-filled weekend was filled with NASCAR, great food and entertainment, and I got to enjoy it all with the love of my life! She is amazing! Despite the unpredictable high winds and cold rainy weather, we had a blast and it definitely was the most memorable Birthday celebration I've ever had.

Heather not only got us weekend tickets to the Busch and Nextel Cup races, but we had Pit Passes that allowed us to walk up and down pit road at selected times throughout the week. It was amazing. Robbie Gordon waved at us as he was filling his Busch car with gas. We were able to stay in the pit area while they ran happy hour and the pic you see below is how close I got to my favorite driver, Bobby Labonte. In this pic he is actually waiting for the official to wave him onto the track for their last practice run before the race. The background car is Kasey Kane. We had an amazing time!

Ah... one of my favorite things about Vegas is the amazing restaraunts! These pics were taken in a Cafe in one of the newer resorts known as the Wynn. Over the weekend it became our new favorite themed resort and the breakfast that we had was incredible. Heather and I also went to one of the Cirque du Soliel shows know as "KA". It was fabulous. The stage was the most amazing set up I have ever seen. It was such a wonderful weekend that it took the pains of moving into the 30's much easier :)

Happy New Year!

2006-02-24T20:48:00.000-08:00

Our new year celebration consisted of an invasion from several Buckeyes. Bo and Sarah came out for a visit followed by Grandma and Grandpa Bishop. It was great to finally meet Sarah since we had heard so much about her through our family. She is a special gal and seems to be one that is perfect for keeping Bo out of trouble! They seem to be a good fit and we are excited about the commitments that they will be making this summer. May your marriage exemplify Christ's love for the church and may your ministry in marriage be fruitful!

We took Bo and Sarah on a trip to Hollywood to take in the sites. Who knows... perhaps we'll be walking the red carpet someday to see one of Bo's films. Or maybe we'll walk down the alley to throw a few coins in his tin cup ;) Ha! Love ya bo. Just don't make a homemade costume and charge people to have their pictures taken with you!

We also crashed the scene at the Santa Monica Pier. It was a great evening of sushi, shopping, and the scrambler. Let the good times roll.

And of course Lyndi always loves visiting the pier. She is going to love roller coasters someday! Until then, the kiddie rides will have to do.

Our Christmas with the Bishop family was held on New Year's Eve. We enjoyed a simple Christmas with the family and enjoyed watching Lyndi open her new presents. For Christmas this year Lyndi helped daddy bake a birthday cake for Jesus and we celebrated his birth together. It was a special day for daddy.

OK, this is where things get a bit crazy. I think Grandma Linda had to much sparkling cider on New Year's Eve. Things got a little out of hand... and it was only 10pm. Since this time, Linda has been living with us in transition to moving out to California and I must say that she has been a HUGE blessing to us. Heather has been able to work days and get off of the graveyard shift. I've up'd my hours in my M.Div. program to 17 hours and am looking forward to graduating next summer. So two cheers for Linda... one for each horn stuck in her ear! :)

Not sure who this guy is. I think he was a whino that walked in off the street after hearing about the amazing steak dinner that the ladies made for us. Anyway, we took him in, fed him, and then shipped him off to the land of hairless nuts with no commercial value (Ohio). :) Yes, this is Grandpa Fred enjoying an evening of rest and celebrating the New Year in his own way. This is also Grandpa Fred at work... and when he watches the football game... and.... Ha! Love ya Fred! Sell the house and come home to us soon. We miss walking over your slumbering body! ;)

Back home again in Indiana...

2006-02-20T20:05:00.000-08:00

It was great to make a trip back to Indiana and see the family once again. It seems to be a yearly ritual and our short taste of what consists of a Mid-Western winter. Below I have posted some of the pictures from our adventure to Indiana.

This is a picture of Lyndi with her new friends: Khadijha and Al. It was the first Christmas that Lyndi was "aware" of what was going on and loved unwrapping her presents. It was a fun and exciting time.

Somehow I was the one appointed to take the kids down to a small local park to play with the kids in the snow. It was fun. I almost lost Khadijha when I spun the merry-go-round a little to fast. She has a strong grip! :)

Lyndi loves the swings and she seems to have enjoyed them even more with a snowy scene to enjoy. I had the task of keeping 3 children swinging as I ran back and forth between them. I had a great time though!

We also had a chance to visit our friend Melissa and her boyfriend Jerry. We had dinner at at a place Heather and I used to frequent, La Charreada, then we drove through the walkway of lights and had coffee at the Tree of Life where Jerry and Melissa had the urge to cuddle vegetables and sit in the kiddy section of the store. :) Good times.

A Cooper Family Christmas

2005-12-11T12:08:00.000-08:00

A Thankful Thanksgiving

2005-11-27T14:04:00.000-08:00

This year we decided to break tradition and do something a little different. We invited some friends of ours over for an untraditional meal of tri-tip steak and sushi. Our main focus for the day was helping out with a meal for the poor and homeless. We took turns helping out in pairs so that there was always another pair watching the kids. I recommended buying a large cage with a pad lock but no one else seemed to like my idea ;) So, Heather and Dawn started out by going first followed by Rob and me. We had a good time and we were able to have some good conversations with those that attended. I was excited to see that one of the people that we got to know was at church today. As I continue to grow in my relationship with the Lord I am continuing to discover that the goal of Christianity isn't to become sanctified or holy. It's to love and serve those around us. We spend so much time on our own "relationships" with God that I think we are missing the big picture. It isn't necessarily about us, it's about those around us. What have you done to love those around you?

Our local paper did a write up on the Thanksgiving meal that we helped with. Check it out if you have time.
http://www.sgvtribune.com/news/ci_3250391

Computer Down

2005-11-21T11:50:00.000-08:00

Hello friends and family. I justed wanted to let you know that our computer is down and is being sent to the manufacturer for 2 weeks. If you need to contact us then please phone us as I will be checking our email rather infrequently. Thanks!

Welcome to the Jungle...

2005-11-19T10:02:00.000-08:00

It has been a few weeks since I have posted a blog so I thought I would add some pics of our "family date" from last night. We made a trip to the Ontario Mills Mall and we ate at the Rainforest Cafe. Lyndi loves this restaurant because of the animitronics and the simulated rain storms. We also let her try one of my shrimp kabobs and she seemed to enjoy it. This was the first time that we gave her seafood and I think she's hooked. We'll wait a few years before we introduce her to sushi...it's just a matter of time.

Lord of the Candy

2005-11-02T17:39:00.000-08:00

Once upon a time there was a beautiful princess who loved candy. Her heart longed for the day that she would be free to roam the land with all of the other candy seekers. The beautiful princess wore magic slippers upon her feet that guided her to the sugary treasures that her heart desired. But a misfortunate thing happened on her last journey in search for the sacred treats...

The slipper betrayed her. It left her in her deepest time of need. The slipper longed to return to its master. He searched desperately for his creation so that he could become all powerful and collect all candy unto himself.

This greatly grieved the princess. So she distracted herself by tasting all the wonderful treats that the slippers had led her to. But, there was yet hope...

... the majestic queen of Azusa and her magic pumpkin came to the rescue and returned the magic slipper to the princess. She then led the princess through the Halls of Adam deep in the Azusa Pacific mines where mythical creatures were subdued and forced to hand over their ambrosial treats. Still the dark lord desired to eat the the precious candy (I especially like the Reese's Cups!)... but there was yet more hope to be had... the Fellowship of Candy came together to restore peace and fight off the gluttoneous candy eater from the frozen tundra of the east (sorry fellow Hoosiers!).

The beautiful princess and the Fellowship of Candy (Dora the Explorer and Tinker Bell) triumphed over the evil dark lord and turned his head into a pumpkin as a trophy of remembrance. And so the sugar addictions continue... all hope is restored... peace rules the land once again... at least until next year.

Creativity is fun... but it can be dangerous:) The Fellowship consists of Ericka and Sarah Davis, two of Lyndi's closest friends. They all had a grand time and have blessed the families with a plethera of candy that should last a few weeks! Cheers to Halloween!

the end of the road

2005-10-24T13:28:00.000-07:00

Heather and I decided to take my dad to Santa Monica Pier on the last evening of his visit to California. The historical value of the pier was that historic route 66 started in Chicago and ran directly into the Santa Monica Pier. So we had a nice evening at a mexican restaurant called Marisco's on the very edge of the pier. It also has an amusement park called Pacific Park that is located on the pier and we had an opportunity to let Lyndi go on some of the rides. She is definitely bound to be a roller coaster fanatic as much as she loves to go on rides and holds no fear. I'm sure we'll have many vacations to Cedar Point once she meets certain height requirements... until then, cheers to Santa Monica.

A Beautiful Mind

2005-10-23T20:42:00.000-07:00

Lyndi recently recieved a package from her fairy god mother (aka. grandma bishop). We have noticed that Lyndi goes through various phases where she lives out the lives of female disney characters. She was Tinker Bell for some time and she has recently made the transformation into Cinderella, thanks to the aid of Grandma B. ...and that one guy. So a big thanks goes out to the bishops for the "glass" slippers that are left lying around the house :) However, it is wonderful to watch Lyndi exercise her imagination and creativity. She truly is my beautiful little princess.

Race Day

2005-10-17T12:00:00.000-07:00

My dad was able to make his way out to So. Cal. this weekend so we decided to hit an IRL race at Fontana Speedway. I must say that I really enjoyed it. Most of you know that I'm a big NASCAR fan but I enjoyed the race... but i'm not ready to convert yet! The engines scream at a much higher pitch than the stock cars in Nascar do. I had to take a break part way through the race to give my ears a break. All in all it was a good day and the rain didn't cancel the event. I've posted some pics below for your enjoyment.

crash and burn

2005-10-17T10:01:00.000-07:00

Greetings. If you are visiting our site and thinking... "Hey, something's different" then your absolutely right. I was editing our blog over the weekend and accidently erased all the other posts. So, instead of re-writing all the posts that I created, i'm simply going to post the best-of the-best pics and move on. Also notice the links that I created to the right hand side. The A.D. Community is the young adult ministry that Heather and I are leading. I also added a link to keep all of you updated on my schooling at APU. Enjoy.