Friends Forever: Part II

We have been joking for, well, about 4 years now that Hudson and Kaelyn would get married. Of course, parents make goofy jokes like this when they have children who are good friends and seem compatible. But over the past couple of months, these two have started acting like an old married couple.

Hudson and Kaelyn "met" when they were 5 months old. Sarah and I were both new mothers and quite nervous and clueless about these little people that we were responsible for rearing. Being just two days apart, it was easy to gauge milestones and development on a similar scale.

7 months old

Hudson's first birthday party

It started as parallel play, then chasing around after each other, and by the time she left yesterday they were sitting face to face in the living room talking over all the things they remembered in their five years together. 

They don't always communicate the best. This summer KK was explaining the wonders of the baby shower she had recently attended and Hudson was not acknowledging her as she wished. I guess she must have repeated some key details because Hudson barked, "You already told me THIS!!!" To which she replied, "Then respond to me!"

Oh there are other examples too!

Engagement picture 25 years early.

Saturday morning, after spending the night at our house, KK asked her mom if she was supposed to marry Hudson. Her mom said, "Well, if you love him and he makes you happy, then I think that would be okay."

Yesterday in our final minutes together, we were talking about how we would Skype soon. Hudson, in his very Hudson way, got right into KK's face and said, "You just climb up on your Mama's lap and we can blow kisses through the computer."

Dear friends are hard to find. And even harder to keep. How lucky Little Man has been to have one at such an early age. Hudson, you have my permission to marry KK. But you keep yourself and my grandbabies in the Midwest! Maybe that will bring one of my best friend back.

Friends Forever: Part IAll

Fitting in on packing box is fun! 

I write this one with a heavy heart. And a wet keyboard.

Moving day has come and our friends are moving 949.8 miles away. There isn't much I can say here that they don't already know. That I don't already know. So, I will not prattle on. But this is where our hearts and minds have been for the past couple of weeks. Here are some pictures from this time.

Bathhouse.

Lucky.

*tear*

Goodness.

Self-Portrait: August

My boy wants to party all the time

Welp, I took the past week off from anything non-essential to just play with my littles during our last week of summer. Tomorrow morning Little Man starts his final year of pre-K and on Tuesday Mr. T starts his first year of pre-pre-pre-K. We haven't just been lazing around these parts either, we have had a wonderful week.

Last Sunday Hudson and a couple 20 of his closest buds all celebrated his birthday at the local recreation center. It was a hoot. I absolutely love the picture of him above with almost all of the attendees because he looks. so. stinkin. happy. He had a great time and that is all that matters.

I am not real sure what adventures this school year will bring, but I am 100% happy happy happy that he is not eligible for kindergarten. Although he is so very bright, I also think that he is not ready for it endurance-wise. Going to school from 8 until nearly 3 every day would not go over well. Despite the fact that the child has not napped in nearly 2.5 years now, he just is can not last all day long being busy without getting grumpy. I have noticed that he is gainfully more independent these days though. He is doing very well with 30 minutes of quiet time. Well, if you know him at all, you know he is not quiet. He is just talking to himself for those 30 minutes instead of me!

These three have the coolest names. There is Hudson, Harrison, and Henry. For real. 

Remember when I was 4?

Hudson started the age of 5 as all normal children do: he asked to discuss his new bedtime. I was told that five year olds should be allowed to stay up later than their little brothers. Where he heard this idea, I do not know. I assume it is as ingrained in his DNA as the immediate giggles of laughter that the new gift of a Whoopie Cushion created in my 2 year old. One "tooooot" of the gift had my boys (yes, all three of them: the 2 year old, the 5 year old, and the 37 year old) all laughing like...well, boys!

The birthday festivities are over now. We had decided our children would get "big" parties on their odd birthday years, and Hudson's open gym party with 18 of his closest compadres was a hit and included only one major injury of a fat lip.

Gifts for Hudson show the evolution of our days. Superheros and legos are now big hits. So are bug catchers, intergalactic warfare games, and more and more awesome cars. Alas, I am destined for a house of all things "BOY" for a long time. And as long as it is coupled with laughter, that is just fine.

Wordless Wednesday: A picture is worth 1000 words x2

On being five

I want to be five.

I think Hudson had a really awesome day. First, he was able to select all of his meals for his special birthday. He selected a breakfast of Poptarts and pepperoni. Lunch was lunchables (his favorite treat). For dinner he chose meatballs. Instead of a cake, since we are having cupcakes at his party, he wanted his candle stuck in ice cream from Orange Leaf.

How old are the babies in the window?

The screams coming from the rollercoaster car ahead of me were pure joy.

Our day consisted of extra video games, a trip to the zoo with his best buddies including a train ride and a roller coaster ride, a trip to Indianapolis Motor Speedway to buy a new 1:64 scale IndyCar, McDonald's lemonade, special dinner, and Orange Leaf run.

So, I asked Hudson the same questions that I did last year HERE and these are his 5 year old responses:

1. What do you want to do when you get older? "Help Daddy work on cabinets" (Same answer as last year....just sayin'

2. What is your favorite food? Meatballs

3. What is your favorite color? Purple and pink

4. If you could give yourself a new name, what would it be? "Hubson"(giggles....)

5. What did you like to do when you were little? ...play with my cars...

6. What is your favorite snack? Lunchables

7. Who is your best friend? Nia "Actually, sometimes it rotates from one person to lots of persons."

8. What is Mama's favorite thing? Helping her make dinner and cuddles

9. What is your favorite thing to do with Dada? Watch Mythbusters and play MarioKart

10. What is your favorite book? Shark versus Train, Yes! Day, Barfburger Baby

In addition to his $60 ridiculousness, he wanted these overpriced HotWheels.

I guess I don't have to be five. I was able to do all those fun things with him AND I could have eaten all that crap if I wanted to! When you are an adult, you can be five anytime. You just won't live as long.... ;)

Cryin'

I am a really ugly crier.

Some people look sweet, vulnerable, even prettier when they cry. Not me. My face gets all contorted and the skin on my upper body grows blotchy.

This week has brought on the waterworks. And I have avoided mirrors. More dear friends are moving away. The Preacher Man at our church, with his wife, of course, who are also our neighbors AND our good friends AND basically a surrogate grandparents to our kids, are going back to their hometown.

*Sigh.*

I remember a woman I used to teach with said to me once, "I'm too old to make new friends." I did not think much about it at the time, but obviously the notion has stuck with me. Saturday night I had a lot of time to myself and I remembered her saying that. And my first thought was...How Sad.

How sad that people can not think opening themselves to new people is worth their energy. How sad that people think that their life is as full as it could possibly be. How do we really know how people can enhance our lives until we take the stab at being friends with them?

I am definitely trepidatious with new people. Trust is earned. But how grateful I am that I put myself out there. I have old and dear friends, but some of the most significant relationships in my current life are those I have met since we started going to our church or since Hudson was born.

I am done crying for this week. Even if you say you are moving away. I am just going to be happy we had the chance to be friends.

Smash the dress

I didn't have to have a trash the dress photography session after my wedding. God took care of that for me with the monsoon that came that day. The hemline was darkened and dirty. Probably permanently stained. Yet, that big old bustly thing has been clogging up my closets for just shy of nine years.

So I presented to a photography group this question:

I have no daughters, what do I do with my wedding dress?

And the best reply..."Save it. Your sons could use it in part for a ring bearer's pillow."

Welp, that made me bawl like a baby! But it sounded like a great idea, so I rolled out my new FoodSaver and decided to shrink wrap it in style. Yep. It is now teeny tiny. You will find it under our couch. 

My husband was right and other obvious moments

My husband likes to spend money. I like to not spend money. Therefore, the past five years of kitchen remodeling have had their interesting (read: disagreeable) moments. When you come to view the new room in all its splendor, anticipate that I will tell you stories of how cheap things were and he, well, he will show off the pricey gadgets.However, one particular moment where Josh was right on was with the purchase of our $360 kitchen faucet. I told him a hands free model with built in hose neck sprayer was so unnecessary, and naturally he bought it anyway. Oh my gracious, how I love it! We have had it installed for a week now and I have only turned the water on manually-- like a common pauper-- once. I still don't know how to actually make the water hot. I do know that it has a magic "laser" according to Hudson and is my favorite thing ever.

In the days since the funeral for my Aunt Tish, I have been trying to formulate a deep thought about life. Having written about death several times over the past five years, I shrug as I realize her passing only reiterates the most accepted universal truths I already knew. I only feel I can state the obvious: I adore my family. As unfathomable as it was to sit and celebrate the life of someone whose Time should not have already come, I marvel at the sheer joy and peace that is this truth: Family is what it is all about. My heart ached and my stomach hurt, but being able to hug it out with aunts and uncles, cousins and siblings, and share lighter moments together afterward made it feel possible to say that, indeed, Life will go on. 

Families are made stronger by the connections of the generations. I am so grateful for the thread that binds my clan together. They are a crazy, fast talking, witty bunch, but I am so grateful for them. 

 

 But that is obvious, right?  Just like that laser sink faucet. You know it will be awesome. Go get yourself one.