Cousins

I was going to post it just like that:  ‘Cousins’ as the title and two pictures, no words.  Sometimes there are so many things to say, so much to condense.  Instead, a summary of my kiddos today-

Holly pushed up her head and shoulders today while laying on her stomach.  It was a surge of strength and growth.  She hasn’t spent too much time on her belly, mainly because she is held almost all the time.  She’s so snuggly and it’s just so easy to hold her. 

Tate is about relationships, not tv watching.  I was getting some meals into the freezer this afternoon, and Tate ignored the tv to stand by me with a pack of stickers, talking and sticking stickers to my hands.  He covers me with stickers at least a few days a week.  It’s very sweet, very giving, very Tate.

Rush and I went to Wal-Mart this afternoon, so our wait in line was somewhere in the 25 minute range.  Instead of going crazy, I recognized it as a chance to spend time with him.  We played ‘I Spy’ –his idea- and talked about what kind of cokes we would get from the cooler if we were getting cokes.  He was also so upbeat and chatty that he accidently spit his gum on the floor two separate times while we were in the store, so we laughed about that.  He’ll be four and a half for a few more days, but already, as he would say, you would think he was five.

I love being with these people.

Shoot For The Moon

Recently my BFF Kate came to visit, which, for many reasons, was wonderful.  A bonus from our time together was Kate asking if I had heard of Astronaut Chris Hadfield and subsequently showing me a video.  As I recall, most of my leisure time in the pregnancy of 2013 was spent on the couch playing Candy Crush, so this was my first introduction. 

Because I love space exploration, I read his book and proceeded to watch more of his videos from the space station.  The greatest part is that Rush and Tate jumped right in.  They are old enough that they were interested; they were into it with me.  Hurray!

We spent a few nights following dinner with a dessert of YouTube, watching videos on how to brush teeth in space or how to sleep in space.  After watching How To Make A Sandwich in Space, we started making Astronaut Sandwiches.  These sandwiches, consisting of a tortilla, peanut butter, and honey, are a superb addition to our lunch routine because not only are they tasty, they are fast, cheap, and space station approved crumb free.

During the week, I found them playing with their shuttle toys.

And last week included Fake Mustache Day at school, so Rush and Tate chose not just any mustaches, but astronaut mustaches. 

It’s just so exciting to have someone, a few someones, to obsess with.  Want to talk about astronauts again?  The shuttle?  Space station?  You do!  Great! 

The following few pics are actually from last April, but they were never posted here.  (Please see above reference to Candy Crush.)  Houston may be unbearably hot in the summer, but that’s balanced out by being able to run by NASA any time to look at the Saturn V.

These are the kind of things that make home schooling sound fun.  (I’m not planning on home schooling.)  We would read A Man on the Moon and visit NASA and finally make it to the observatory at Brazos Bend.  We would do any math, because it is rocket science and all math is relevant.  We would solve physics problems involving keeping the space station in orbit.  (That sounds equally like something I would have seen on a high school physics test and way too complicated.)  We would make one of those scale models of the solar system where the planets all rotate around the sun in their proper orbits.   We would silk screen T-shirts that say, “Pluto, Never Forget.” 

Then our Space unit would end and I would have to send everyone back to regular school.  I just don’t think I could rally for a lesson on cellular mitosis.

Schedule of a Perfect Afternoon

3:00 PM:  Change out of normal shirt and into hoodie that I slept in last night

3:10 PM:  Plant spring flowers in front yard, boys throw balls of clay mud into street, I throw mud balls back into yard

3:45 PM:  Watch two men unloading new washing machine and dryer for house down the street

4:00 PM:  Walk down with boys (who have somehow shed their shoes and socks) and Holly and ask if we can have a box

4:02:  Drag box down the street

4:03:

Holly approves!

Send It To Bob Cutlass

Huge realization in the life of the Williams family:  the karaoke machine has been previously underutilized.  We pulled it out of the closet this morning, and it was all day entertainment.

Rush and Tate mainly enjoyed switching out the cds, playing with the microphone, and popping out from behind living room curtains, their stage.  They sang too, mostly making up songs.

Surprisingly, not one of my previous jobs tapped into one of my major talents –being able to sing song after song, indefinitely, verrry off key- but being a stay-at-home mom really lets me work it.

There appears to be an excessive amount of crap all over the floor.  Yep.  Accurate.  It was karaoke and photos or pick-up.  Make hay while the sun shines.

And yes, that is a gingerbread man from Christmas still stuck to the door.  There’s always one straggler.

Rush was also conducting Olympic interviews with Tate, asking him about “his falls”.  Tate was telling Rush about how he got snow in his eyes, as things in eyes have been a big point of discussion this week.  I managed to capture an interview on video and Rush ended it by looking at me and saying, “Send it to Bob Cutlass.”

If you have only seen the movie Cars once, or if you’ve never seen it (what?! come over!) you may not have noticed that one of the Piston Cup announcers is Bob Cutlass, voiced by Bob Costas.  After much explanation and Olympics watching and consulting the book Meet The Cars, the joke is starting to make sense to Rush.  I’m going to do my best to make “Send it to Bob Cutlass” happen.  It’s a new phrase that means a little something like, that’s awesome, you’re fabulous, and the world should know about this.

An example of how it might be used in conversation-

Trent:  Hey Kelly, I just made a loaf of Smitten Kitchen’s Pull Apart Cheese Mustard Beer Bread and found an ice cold can of Diet Coke.  Why don’t you grab your book and take all this upstairs where you can lay in bed eating and reading?

Kelly:  Send it to Bob Cutlass!  You’re the best husband ever!

The Coziest

On the last day of our hospital stay when Holly was born, I requested one last visit from the lactation consultant to ask her how much caffeine was an okay amount to be drinking while nursing.  She said, quote, “We encourage mothers to continue the same healthy diet they followed while pregnant.”  Oh really?  I once followed up lunch at Jack in the Box with a quick stop at Sonic for onion rings.  That advice was equivalent to the Human Society calling the veterinarian to check your references before approving your kitten application.  It takes fifteen seconds on a Saturday morning to pretend to call the vet (who we haven’t brought a cat to in five years) and confirm that we’re good to go!  They just want you to adopt one of their 7,000 kittens.  These people just want you to breastfeed, do what you have to do in terms of diet.

Maybe right now I should be brushing my teeth and getting into bed instead of sitting on the couch thinking about a cup of coffee tomorrow morning.  But right now, because all the kids (the real coziest) are sleeping, this blanket is the coziest.  That’s Tate talk:  Mommy, you’re the coziest.  And Holly is the coziest.  Daddy is the coziest.  Rush is the coziest.  Although he doesn’t say it about himself, Tate is the coziest too.

Baby quilts are the coziest baby accessories.  Here’s Holly’s baby quilt, made back when she was just known as “the baby”.  I made it on my birthday, about eight hours total, made possible because Trent took off half a day from work.

Panther provided that j’ne sais quoi.  (cat hair)

At some point of being pregnant with Holly, I also made this baby quilt for my nephew, Nils, back when he was “the baby” to Casey and Chris.  Two gender neutral quilts somehow worked out perfectly for a perfect little girl and boy.

Kate also made Holly a beautiful quilt with her name on it, not pictured because it’s in the dryer, again.  No preserving quilts for heirloom purposes or tucking them into closets around here.