Lil Ron

I'm awake early for a Saturday morning. My mind is spinning with the reality of what has surrounded my family's little world the past few days.

On Thursday, I woke up as the mom of Liam, Jack and Garrett. But 48 hours later, I am the mom of Lil Ron, Jack and Garrett.

Lil Ron's photos and interviews have gone "viral", and suddenly, nearly everyone in the U.S., perhaps around the world, knows the face of my eldest son with a mustache and a balding head.

I shake my head in amazement.

Truly, we did not set out to dress Liam like Ron Washington to gain any notoriety. Liam wanted to be an "old man" for Halloween, and that included shaving his head, wearing a bow tie, and carrying a cane. But when his school announced they wanted kids to dress for career day instead of Halloween, we knew we needed to tweak Liam's costume.

Rick suggested Ron Washington, and we laughed at how much Liam might actually look like our Texas Rangers' manager. Liam loved the idea, so the deal was set. It was a simple costume that made us laugh and has apparently made a few other Americans chuckle.

I cannot tell you how many times my cell phone has rung. I have no idea how some reporters even find my number; I guess I'm sheltered/innocent in that way. We can't leave our house without being spotted by someone who recognizes Lil Ron. I now understand why celebrities try to disguise themselves when going out for coffee.

The 5 of us, plus my mom, went to dinner at a local Mexican restaurant last night. People all over the restaurant pointed and whispered to one another, "Is that him?" As we sat at our table, Liam noticed people smiling and pointing, and he loved it. As long as he enjoys it, we'll roll with it.

The interview requests continue to pour in. Even as I got up this morning, there was a voice mail with another invitation to a live show this afternoon. I'm not sure if we'll make that one, as Liam has a game this afternoon. He might just want to be a Dirtbag today. We'll let him decide.

The biggest news of all is this: we're going to game 4 of the World Series on Halloween night!!! The Rangers promotion office called me yesterday and asked if I could please sit down. "Lil Ron's picture has reached the top executive level here. We all love him. If you're available, we would like for Lil Ron to have two tickets to Halloween night's game!"

'If we're available...'

"YES! Yes, we're available! Oh my goodness, I can't believe this," I shouted.

"And," she continued. "We'd like him to say 'Play ball!' at the beginning of the game. Do you think he could do that?"

Oh my word! Yes, I'm sure he can say that. We'll practice it with enthusiasm all weekend!

So...y'all be sure to watch Sunday night's game. I'm not sure if that portion of the pregame will be live, but if it's not, maybe they'll replay it.

As a sidenote, Rick and I were going to have to duke it out to figure out which one of us "deserve" to take Lil Ron to the World Series. But my man was able to buy two more nose-bleed tickets, so Lil Ron will take his parents and lil bro, Garrett. (Jack won't last that long at a game, so he will stay with my parents.)

Can I just tell you HOW EXCITED WE ARE?! I'M SO EXCITED I COULDN'T EVEN SLEEP LAST NIGHT! AND NOW I'M SHOUTING AT YOU!

Sorry.

Yes, we're enjoying Liam's "fifteen minutes of fame". It is extremely unexpected, but we are grateful for the outpouring of positive support we are receiving from so, so many people.

When all of this dies down and life goes back to normal, Liam will still be Liam. And I'll still be proud to be his Mommy. I've had the privilege to kiss him good night for 7 1/2 years, and that will continue for as long as he will allow.

If you're interested, I'll post some links to some of the interviews and online articles where Lil Ron has appeared thus far:
Channel 11 news (CBS) This was Liam's best interview so far! He was his typically nutty self.
NY Times
Dallas Morning News He is the Fan of the Day.
Sports Illustrated Scroll down to the section titled "WASHINGTON'S LITTLE LOOKALIKE".

Thank you to the many, many friends and family and even strangers who have passed Liam's picture along!

Lil Ron Washington *UPDATED*

When I stepped out of the gym at 10:30 this morning, my son was famous. It was all because of this photo:
Liam wanted to be Ron Washington for Halloween. It was a super easy costume. He already had the brown skin and glasses. He wore his baseball uniform with a Rangers tee. I only had to find him a mustache, since he can't grow his own quite yet. And his hair...yes, that is his hair shaved with a bald spot.

Lil Washington made his debut at our church's fall festival last night, and Liam was followed around like the paparazzi. Everyone wanted to take his picture and give him a high five.

Rick and I both posted the above photo on our Facebook pages last night. When we woke up this morning, we had no idea what was about to take place as a result of that simple pic. Rick went to work. I took the boys to school and went to the gym; it was a normal Thursday.

But by the time I finished my workout, Rick was frantically trying to call me. Fox 4 News wanted to interview Liam!!!

And interview him, they did.
He was nervous and quiet at first. Of all times to be shy! There's not a shy bone in his body, but the camera made him nearly mute.

Until we pulled out the sunflower seeds.
Then, he was his goofy self while I was interviewed. Who me? Nervous? Umm, yes!
Liam really enjoyed showing off his do.
And the claw.
You can see our interview here.

We're also appearing live on Good Day at 8:20 in the morning. Fox Sports Southwest wants to see us on Monday. As if three interviews isn't mind-blowing enough, Liam's picture has been plastered all over blogs and websites all day long. Seriously...Yahoo sports, Fox Sports, ESPN, DMagazine, Texas A&M, and the list goes on.... This is amazing!

Never in a million years would I have guessed that a Halloween costume would go "viral" online, but we are all enjoying Liam's fifteen minutes of fame.

Now, if our Rangers could only pull a win in this World Series.

*UPDATED*
Today's live interview at Good Day can be seen here.

Hat Day

The Carrots Make Him Do It

"Finish your carrots. They're very good for your eyes," Rick told the boys the other day.

"Carrots help my eyes to stare," Jack added.

Maybe we should cut back on his carrots.

Big Church

In July, our pastor encouraged parents to begin bringing their children into the worship service around the age of 5. Since our boys are 5 and 7, we heeded his advice. If we're going to teach our boys to obey, then we must also obey our elders.

We began teaching the boys note-taking skills from the get-go. In the beginning, they made tally marks next to words that we had them listen for. Then, we encouraged them to write down any words that they recognized. They have really come a long way in just a few months.

Liam's notes from last week:
He used the front and back of his paper. That's about 175 words, and he's only 7. Yes, I'm bragging.

What did Liam find important? Here are some highlights:
1. Jesus died for the good of those who believe Him.
2. It's the death of Jesus that satisfied the wrath ("raft") of Him.
3. God saves people.
4. Believers go to heaven. "Not believers" go to "hail".

Garrett's notes:
Garrett is still in the early stages of reading and writing, so I can't decipher a lot of his notes. But he listens very intently, and he wants to know more about the Word. He spells cross as "kros" and wrath as "raf".

Jack's notes:
According to Jack, cross is "cros", wrath is "rath", and death is "deth". Why are his notes so short? Well, I had to take away his pencil, after he tried to make his pencil and paper a helicopter. Why is the paper folded? That is because I had to take his gum away, after he blew a bubble during the sermon. Ahem.

I am so grateful to attend a God-fearing church, and I pray that my boys gain Biblical wisdom as they learn to sit in "big church".

Brotherly Advice

Rick leaves the boys notes at the breakfast table from time to time. It's usually fatherly advice such as, "Obey your Mommy." Or, "Don't pick your nose."

Liam wrote notes for his little brothers this weekend.
"Good morning Garrett. Have a good time on Monday. I love you very much. Be good and do not do bad things. Love, Liam" (Capitalization and punctuation added by me. Liam doesn't have time for such details.)
"Good morning Jackson. Be good on Monday. Be nice and do not get your folder sinde. Love from Liam"

Sage advice from a (mostly) sweet older brother.

Let's Go, Rangers!

When we went to bed Friday night, the Texas Rangers had made this baseball-loving family very happy by becoming the American League champions. When I woke up Saturday morning, I had to check their official website to make sure I wasn't dreaming.

No, I wasn't dreaming. The Texas Rangers are going to the World Series for the first time ever, and Texans are stoked!
Let's go Rangers! IT'S TIME!

Sizing Up

Garrett is 21 months younger than Liam, but his hands are just as big! How BIG will my youngest be, I wonder?

Growing Up

I recently pulled out some of Liam's old clothes to pass down to his brothers. Hand-me downs are a bittersweet reminder of how quickly they grow up.

Garrett today:

May 2008:
Why do they have to grow up?

Conviction on Perfection

I am very much convicted this morning by one of my favorite bloggers, JMom, who is raising triplets just a little bit older than my "twins". Please take a couple minutes to read this post.

A Sister

Garrett has been requesting a baby sister for some time.

I promise I do not put him up to it.

At the dinner table the other night, he said, "I want a baby sister. [pause for response] I want a white baby sister."

Rick and I both looked at him as if he had antlers growing out of his head, because we would never even dream of requesting a white baby. If we adopt again, we'll keep the brown thing going.

"A white baby? Why?," I asked.

"Because brown girls only speak Chinese or Spanish," he explained.

I've laughed about his thought process for days now. I guess I should explain to him that brown girls can speak English, especially if they grow up in an English-speaking family.

2x4

I was hit by the proverbial two by four the other day, when my boys brought home their professional school photos.

My boyS brought home school pictures. All three of my little men are in school now. No more babies. They're all grown up.

It's taken me seven weeks, but...

SMACK!

Right in the forehead.

And the heart.

The Three Musketeers

Occasionally, the boys will dress alike by their own choosing, and it makes me smile.
Goodness, I love those three musketeers!

With the cooler weather, we tried riding our bikes to school earlier this week. The boys were thrilled.
I'll let you in on a little secret. Those smiles didn't last the entire ride. There was some complaining on the way, but after a come to Jesus meeting, we persevered and made it to school on time. And their smiles were restored.

My Girl

My girl, Edie, came to Texas for 6 days. Her parents were at an out-of-town wedding and asked my mom if she would keep the girl. I'm sure they had to twist my mom's arm. Mom certainly had to twist mine when she asked if I could keep her during the weekdays so that she could work.

"You want me to keep her all by myself? While my boys are at school? You mean I get her ALL to myself? Heck yea! Sign me up!"

My girl and I had a good time.

This girl is full of personality and oh so much fun! She's also very squeezable.
She loved my stairs.
She loved my grocery basket.
She loved Uncle Rick's piano.
She loved my dog. And I loved her pigtails.
She loved her aunt "Maymee", but this is as close as she would get to her namesake, my Memaw.
She loved Uncle Rick.
She loved the boys' bike helmet.
Her dada came to get her, and I didn't let her go without a fight.
Edie, let's do it again, girl!

On Raising Boys

With a house full of little men, I never know what I'm going to find in different nooks and crannies around the house. I've found acorns in the dryer, used kleenex in clean linens, and bouncy balls in my underwear drawer. I should not have been surprised yesterday when I opened my oven to find a marble.Not only do I wonder how it got there, but how long has it been there? And who is responsible? The things boys do....

Guess What?

Guess what I just found inside my oven while prepping it for the self-clean mode???