Showing posts with label cousins doin' stuff. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cousins doin' stuff. Show all posts

June 9, 2009

Lessons in Love and Spandex

Hold on tight. The Steenkster is taking you back old-school for a minute. For those of you that have known me for a while, you recall that I used to put up posts with pictures of the kiddos and stories of our adventures as a family. Well, this is one of those posts.

Now before you go off thinking this is one of those posts, a post featuring some bland story about my kids at a park, blah, blah, blah...let me tell you two things:

1. No story about Henners or Reese could ever be bland.
2. No man should sport the spandex at a public park without good reason.

Sometimes cousins go to the park, hold hands and do stuff.





And then sometimes cousins just walk away.


Sometimes you're not even two year-old and your hand-holding cousins leave you with all the tall people over age 30. This makes you scared.


But you are only two and you are easily distracted. You spy a chunky, yet handsome toddler boy just across the way. You decide to make eyes at him.

The eye thing isn't working. The boy is too busy checking out his socks. You quickly grab a ball and use it as a prop and peek at him ever-so-coyly in an effort to gain his favor.

Okay, so now he's eating his socks. You are understandably grossed out, but remain undeterred in your quest to be noticed by him. Grandma swoops in and you use her as a "wing man" in order advance your position with the round mound foot fetish-having boy.

Okaaaaay. Granny is clearly not the babe magnet you were hoping for. Your off to try something else. You spy Aunt Karly, a single-ready-to-mingle twenty-something who's got the skills to seal the deal with the dudes. Surely she can throw you some pointers...

...as you use yours to dig. So. Busted.

My friends, the sock-eater and the nose-picker never made contact. Frankly, this strange dance was the highlight of my day at the park with family.

Unless you count this guy...

...which I totally do.

July 11, 2008

Cousin Cook Off

Last Saturday, Henry, Reese and Zoe decided to have themselves a little cook-off. It was a friendly little competition where the kids would make their own pizzas and cupcakes. It was designed to help the kids learn more about the kitchen, build self-esteem and give them a sense of accomplishment. We achieved all that. However, before you attempt something like this at home with your own children, you should know that side effects may include, pizza sauce stains, pizza sauce ending up in other facial orifices other than their mouth and contact high from all the sugar in cupcakes. Other than that, everything went off without a hitch.

See how Henners is so pleased with his sauce spreading skills?


Zoe is concentrating on her sauce.


Zoe sprinkles her cheese on the pizza first. See how delicately she handles the dairy topping?


Henry tries a little something new. What if all the cheese were in one place instead of spread around?


Back to Zoe. She has created a masterpiece.

Henry is definitely creating something.


The Cousins pose by their creations just before they are placed in the oven. As you can see, cooler heads prevailed and Henry was coaxed into spreading his cheese somewhat evenly over his pizza. The same can not be said for his mushrooms.


While the pizzas are baking, Reese enjoys the company of her Aunt Kimberly.


Finally! The pizzas are complete! Witness Zoe's cheese and mushroom pie.

And behold Henry's half cheese, half mushroom concoction. I don't think I can stress to you enough just how much cheese was on this sucker.


We enjoyed both pizzas but were still a little hungry afterward for a sweet treat. We decided that cupcakes would hit the spot.

Henry was the official batter stirrer.


And the self-appointed batter taster.


Once the cakes were baked and cooled, it was time to frost them. Zoe wanted blue and Henry insisted on green. Here's Zoe decorating her portion of the cupcakes. Nicely done, little lady.


Henry got bored half-way through the decorating and then experienced blue frosting envy. He bartered a deal with Zoe which was basically just taking a few of her cakes and placing them on his tray. She didn't really seem to mind.

He then skipped the sprinkles and sugar toppings almost completely and began sampling his tasty treat.

Yummers.


Double Yummers.


Zoe just kept right on decorating.

Just then, we heard a little peep coming from the corner.


It was Reesie! She could see and smell all the deliciousness happening and wanted in on the action. And if you know Reese, whenever there is food involved, she better be front and center and tasting it too.

I offered her a small piece of the cupcake. I was sure this would make her happy. Apparently not. This is her 'Seriously? This is ALL you are giving me?' face.


She wasn't satisfied. She wanted the whole thing.

Of course she didn't get it, but she did flirt with me enough to have a few small bites. See how happy she is now?


Then we heard a loud commotion coming from the other side of the kitchen. It seems that while I was busy treating Reesie, Henry had downed another two cupcakes and was on a ragin' sugar high.


Don't be alarmed. He crashed 10 minutes later, falling asleep in his bed refusing to let us wipe the frosting from his lips. When he emerged from his room three hours later, the frosting had disappeared. Where it went will always be a mystery.

June 30, 2008

Weekend in Fast Forward

Friday:
Wake up, log in, work from home (just a little), feed Reesie (a lot), coax Henry into eating, pack up, peanut butter, knife, drive thru gas station, water, suckers (two please!), play date.


Park, shade, relax, fancy sandwiches, slippery slide, peeing on trees.


Go home, get kids settled, get kids up, drive, traffic, meet parents, delicious food, birthday envy, pull one over on server, faux birthday, happy boy, tired girl.


Saturday:
Wake up....get up, stand up, people put your hands up (sorry, I got carried away), shower, shave, breakfast, ride four-wheeler on front lawn, ride bicycle on front lawn, Heritage Days, hot, people watching, blow $40 in two hours on children's activities.


Cute girl, tiki bounce house, Spongebob bounce house, pumpkin bounce house, Spiderman obsticale course, Super obsticale course.


Tired boy, get drinks, tractor train, bull ride, FUNNEL CAKE, tired girl, hot boy, hotter parents.More tractor train, skateboarders, excited boy.


Drive, purchase mass quantities of soda pop, visit Jeremy's parents, Reese wears a dress, eat delicious ribs, eat lots of potato salad, pants on head, Spiderwick, caveman cock blocking, boob sloobing, shim shammin.


More driving, packing up, car shuffling, urban hike, Henry's not-so-secret crush, the Shafers, more urban hiking, fireworks.


Whew! That's it. For more photos of our Heritage Days adventures, click here. To just see more photos of our family, go here.