Spring Break

How time flies! It's been a month and a half since our spontaneous trip to Corpus Christi, Texas for Spring Break. We had a fabulous time.

The first day we went to an aquarium. It was kind of like a mini Sea World. We saw sea turtles, otters, sharks, sea horses, lots of fish (big and small), sting rays, an alligator, a bald eagle, dolphins, and some other neat things. We saw a fun dolphin show while we were there. James loved running back and forth chasing the otters around their exhibit. He also enjoyed touching the little sting rays, but he did NOT want to hold the hermit crabs. One of his favorite parts of the aquarium was the entrance which included statues of parts of whales (see below). He enjoyed climbing on them. When you got close enough the whale would spray water out of his blow hole. After such an occurrence, James decided to run up the whale, but slipped on the water and ended up with a nice mouth full of blood. Poor kid. It was thankfully only a minor wound, from which he quickly recovered. Even after that sad event, all he wanted to do was play on/around the statues.

After the aquarium, we headed over to the USS Lexington aircraft carrier that was docked next door. It was fun to explore. James' favorite part of the aircraft carrier was not the airplanes, but rather the construction equipment. He's really into construction things right now. He got to ride on a forklift and tractor-like thing, which he loved. Kate thoroughly enjoyed the day away in the carrier on daddy's back. She smiled there, laughed there, admired there, and slept there. A family that looked to be from India rather admired Kate's nifty backpack. In fact they admired it so much that they asked us if they could take a picture of it. So Jordan and Kate posed for a picture for some nice strangers we briefly met on board the ship. Next we went to walk briefly along the beach before dinner. I LOVE the beach. My family frequently went to California for family vacations, so the beach just feels like the place for a vacation. We got a little something for dinner and then headed back to our hotel to find that they had freshly baked chocolate chip cookies waiting. (I think I could live in a hotel...house keeping, complimentary breakfast, and freshly baked chocolate chip cookies each evening! Love it!) Anyway, James was rather excited...and I'm sure Jordan would want me to add that I was also rather excited. :)

Jordan and James enjoying a precious moment of father-son bonding via an airplane simulator (Isn't Jordan cute?):

On day 2 we drove about 30 minutes to get to the Padre Island National Sea Shore. It was wonderful. The weather was great (the day before had been rather chilly). The beach was nice and clean. We had to step through about a foot or two of kelp before getting to the water, which was interesting. James and Kate briefly enjoyed the water. We had to be holding them. The waves frightened them a bit. They preferred playing all day in the sand. They were both covered head to foot in sand. Kate found it rather enjoyable to purposely face plant in the sand. So even her sweet little eyelashes were caked in sand for parts of the day. She also enjoyed eating the sand. Yummy. Since we went on the trip on a whim, Kate didn't yet have her own swimming suit, so you see her below sporting James' old suit. It's a good thing she had a rather girly hat. When the time came to reapply sunscreen James was so covered in sand that he needed to be washed off first. Jordan took him to the nearby showers. However, they happened to be freezing. It took James a while to recover. He sat cuddled on my lap in a towel for about 30 minutes until he was ready to play again. At which point he joined a family in building (and occasionally destroying) a sand castle. It was a great day! When we returned to the hotel we again found delicious, freshly baked chocolate chip cookies. So wonderful. Then we went to a local BBQ place for dinner. I got a jalapeno with my dinner. James normally steers clear of all spicy things. However, on this particular occasion, for some unknown reason, he decided to grab my partially eaten jalapeno, stick it in his mouth and suck! Poor, poor boy. We didn't really have anything at our disposal to help him. So he just ate some roll and waited it out. He handled it rather well. When we got back to our hotel to our delight we found a new batch of freshly baked delicious chocolate chip cookies. It was a perfect day. :)












The next day we drove home and enjoyed the last of the hills and greenery before Lubbock. We also enjoyed the windmill farms along the way.

This Will Be a LONG Night...

...at least I have a feeling this will be a long night. James has been able to get into his crib on his own for a while now. By nature he is a fairly cautious boy, so until tonight (age 3), he has never tried to get out of his crib on his own. For sometime now he has enjoyed using his crib rail as a motorcycle, so I knew it was only a matter of time. The time has come. He has climbed out of his crib 5...make that...6 times in the last 30 minutes. Jordan thinks he has nipped it in the bud, but I would surely appreciate some ideas just in case. We have a toddler bed all set up in his room. So any ideas about how to inspire the desire to stay in bed?

Kate Update

The following pictures span November through January.

While James is over our tribe's war drums, Kate specializes in war paint.

Pretty intimidating, huh?

Using her ingenuity, Kate designed a new form of tribal intimidation.
3-D is always more impressive than 2-D.

Kate is also our family cheerleader. She loves to cheer herself and others on with a hearty clap.

One of the talents she developed before heading out of town before Christmas: standing and moving from place to place using furniture.

They love each other.

Exhibit A: Evidence of James' love for his sister.

Exhibit B: Further evidence of James' love for his sister.

Exhibit C: Obvious mutual love and adoration.
James is very good about taking care of Kate. I happened to be in the other room for a brief moment when Kate ran out of "puffs." James quickly took care of the problem.

Kate is particular about books. There are only a few that she will stay put for. But, she really LOVES the ones that she'll sit for. This elite list includes: Brown Bear, Brown Bear; Petting Farm (pictured); Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You? (also pictured); 10 Friendly Fish.

As you can see, Kate has gotten a number of teeth. She currently has 4 on the top (one is just barely coming in) and 2 on the bottom. She likes to use them...you'll see evidence of that later.

Our happy girl!

Yeah...so...like I said, she likes to use her teeth.
A couple of weeks ago, Kate woke up from her nap, but then went quiet. I thought maybe she had gone back to sleep. About 15 minutes later, I heard her chattering, so I went in to get her. I soon learned why she had gone quiet. The above file folder with a couple of sheets of paper within had been sitting a tad too close to her pack 'n play. She apparently spotted it and decided to practice her biting, tearing, chewing, and swallowing skills. This little girls LOVES eating paper. She is not allowed to touch it unless we have a constant eye on her. I honestly can't believe she ate that much paper: two layers of file folder, 3 sheets of paper in a two inch triangle. The little scraps of file folder on the table is the only bit that I was able to get out of her mouth when I got to her.

"It's tradition." (Most of the time)
Whenever one or the other wakes up from a nap, the one who first wakes up must get into the other's crib for a little jumping and playing before getting on with the day.

I can't remember if she was happy or upset here. This picture could really go either way. I think it really highlights how expressive Kate is. She lets you know when she's happy and when she's upset in a rather boisterous manner.

Kate's 9 Month Stats

Height: 27.5 inches
(30th percentile...or so)

Weight: 15.14 lbs
(3rd percentile...or so)

Kate is a little girl with a lot of drive and personality. In spite of her size, she can hold her own. She has been incredibly motivated to move. I witnessed her first steps by looking around a corner to check on her. No one was coaching her, she's just one motivated girl. She started walking at 10 1/2 months before it was even on our radar. That's how it was with sitting up, crawling, and standing too. We were simply too slow for her. She took matters into her own hands. Of course once she led out, we showered her with lots of encouragement. She loves to have us clap and to cheer herself and her brother on by clapping. She's an incredibly happy girl who needs far less sleep than her older brother. That has been an adjustment for me. Instead of 7:30 wake up time for the kids, it's more like 6:30 now. Her morning giggles often wake her brother. She's quite the social bug. She's often handed from woman to woman in Relief Society and Sunday School. She loves making new friends. She has been saying "mama" off and on since before Christmas. She has said "dada" a couple of times. And she went through a fun "uh-oh" stage for a bit. Currently, her favorite game is peek-a-boo. She is constantly putting objects over her face waiting for someone to say "Where is Kate?" She then waits for a moment of surprise and peeks out from behind the object with joy in her eyes as we say "Peek-a-boo." It never gets old. It's too cute. She also likes to play "chase" with James. And recently James has taken to tackling and wrestling Kate. Like I mentioned earlier, she can hold her own. She thinks its hilarious. I, however, usually stop the festivities; after all, she's just a baby. Kate loves to look at pictures of Jesus. It's adorable. She gets the biggest smile on her face when she sees a picture of Jesus. It can turn her cries into smiles and giggles. I love it. We absolutely love having this sweet little girl in our family! (I must not forget to add that she is totally a daddy's girl as of late. She LOVES her daddy!)

A Post to Clear Up Any Confusion About the Space Unicorn

Some of you may have noticed that the prior post about the Space Unicorn "confused" my dear sister, Tiffany. While this neither surprises nor concerns me, as Tiffany is often in a perpetual state of confusion (Let's be honest. She thinks I'm a nerd. Who in their right mind would think I'm a nerd other than someone who is always confused?), I feel it prudent to explain why the Space Unicorn is so inspiring, so as to clear up possible confusion.

After sharing the Space Unicorn video with a friend (hat tip to Matt Maddox), he noted that the Space Unicorn is a striking representation of Jimmer Fredette (and yes, he can make it from here).

Consider with me the following:

-So pure of heart = Jimmer Fredette

-So strong of mind = Jimmer Fredette

-So true of aim with his marshmallow laser = Jimmer Fredette

-Delivers rainbows all around the world = Jimmer Fredette

The similarities go on, but I feel I have adequately demonstrated that Space Unicorn = Jimmer Fredette = complete awesomeness.

I hope this clears up any confusion. Before you leave feel free to watch the Space Unicorn video again. You won't regret it.

For Those Who Love All That Is Good In the World...

The Adventures of James Jordan Cullimore

Here are some photos of James over the last couple of months. His imagination has really taken off as of late. It's fun to hear his stories and see what he comes up with while he's playing. He sees monsters EVERYWHERE! What is it about monsters? How does he really even know what a monster is and why aren't they something he wants to play with? We always try to tell him, "Oh, that one is a nice monster" and he always responds, "No, it's a bad one."

Without further ado, the recent adventures of James Jordan Cullimore:

Umbrellas are fun...especially inside the house.

Fashion Tip from James:
If your child has grown out of a pair of shorts or capri pants, turn them into a fashionable hat. In this picture, James is modeling a pair of Kate's capri pants.

Spiderman.

Yummy green smoothie.
We love putting spinach in our smoothies. This one was especially sticky since we also added some oats.

The post-bath mummy wrap is always a relaxing way to begin the day.

Frosty the Snowman.

James the Builder: Project Snowman.

James the Builder: Project Snow Fortress.

This cowboy has traded his cow in for a horse. He's a horseboy now!

Santa goes fishing with his grandpa and uncle.

Going for a ride on his trusty Protoceratops.

Smashed faces are funny.
This is a favorite sibling activity.

Sporting Kate's size 4's (her future shoes).
James always wants to try Kate's clothes on...her hats, her shoes, her shirts...I suppose the grass always seems greener on the other side. Other people's stuff just seems so neat.

He said they didn't hurt, but he didn't wear them for too long. Once they were removed, he had nice heart imprints on the tops of his feet.

James Jordan Cullimore, Play-dough Artist
Call today to order your handmade work of art.
806-BEST-ART

The native.
Yes, those are underwear on his head. He's rather creative. He is still in the midst of an "underwear hat" stage. I think this was his best execution though. Perfect underwear placement and he couldn't have picked a better activity. And yes, after taking the picture we noticed someone was having a bit too much fun on the drum and needed an intermission to take care of a personal matter.

This was a family home evening adventure: the words of the prophets protect our spirits like shoes, gloves, coats, hats, and umbrellas protect our bodies.

James the baseball player.
He loves baseball and BYU. We recently received a package from the BYU Bookstore. James read his first word (or...acronym): "That's from BYU." It was a proud moment.

I am ever impressed by James' creativity. Jordan and I were in the kitchen when we heard, "I'm skiing." He fashioned skis out of the golf clubs that "someone" broke (as he tells us) and used his unbroken golf clubs as poles. Love it (not the broken golf clubs, but the creativity). :)

Just You Wait...

I am going to be blogging soon...yes, very, very soon. We've had some adventures, the little ones are growing oh so fast, and I need to keep a record. It's gonna be good. So...don't leave us forever. We'll put something up here soon. :)