Growing up, I loved Sundays for the sole purpose of listening to Casey Kasem and the Weekly Top 40 on the radio. I was obsessed with what songs would be in the top 10 and annoyed by the long distance dedications got in the way of the music but today I’d like to do my own dedication to Susan (aka WhyMommy from Toddler Planet) as part of the Team WhyMommy Virtual Science Fair to let her know we are thinking of her and she is not alone.
The first time I met Susan, I served as her human shield as Jessica drove her minivan past Kristen’s ex-boyfriend’s house. Sounds crazy, doesn’t it?
That night I learned that I was protecting Susan because, as Kristen said, “if Susan has survived cancer and a double mastectomy only to be shot by my ex, well then won’t we all feel bad?”
Indeed. Human shield engaged. There were no shots fired that night and everyone made it home safely.
Fast forward to two years later…What served as a strange initiation into a world of bloggers has resulted in amazing friends and an incredible community who has come together to support Susan as she prepares for surgery and the removal of six tumors that are a recurrence of breast cancer.
Before Susan’s diagnosis, we talked about a play date at NASA Goddard where our kids could pretend to be astronauts, run around the Goddard Rocket Garden among the real rockets on display, and peek into the mock-up of the Apollo Spacecraft Capsule.
Such a place is pure heaven for Little Miss Techie and Captain Computer who have a healthy obsession with all things space-related thanks to their Aunt A. who is a planetary physicist. When the kids found out that Aunt A. and Susan know each other and work in related fields, they took great delight upon realizing that the super-cool Susan who coached summer soccer could answer all the questions about the planets, stars, and atmosphere that Mommy can’t!
I love that Susan fuels Little Miss Techie and Captain Computer’s interest in space related topics by explaining things in a kid-friendly way that they understand. I also love that while there is a big push in education to expose girls to science, technology, engineering, and math in a positive way, I don’t need to look any further than Susan as an inspiration and role model for my own daughter.
While we haven’t had a chance to go to NASA Goddard with Susan yet, I know a visit will be in order soon after she is feeling up to a field trip. Until then, we want to dedicate our favorite space-related songs by our favorite kids’ band to Susan, a la Casey Kasem.
With permission from Rocknoceros, I present the lyrics to Blast Off, Apollo, and Pluto from their Dark Side of the Moon Bounce Album. I hope Susan will read this and picture Captain Computer rocking out to the songs wearing his space jammies as he admires the space swag she sent!
(“Houston, come in Houston… do we have clearance to rock?”)
Well Once Upon a Time on a planet not far from here
The music played all day, you could hear it from afar and near
So we trained as astronauts
And built a spaceship fit for tots
To cruise the Milky Way, moving forward at a million knots
Climb aboard our ship, buckle-up, and get ready to fly
Because it might get bumpy as we near the pie in the sky
And we’ll blast into orbit soon
And gravity will sing a different tune
As we hop into our rocket and we rock it all the way to the moon
(“Rockno Two, this is Houston… you have clearance to rock!”)
Coach will dance the Chicken ‘cuz you know that he can’t refrain
And Boogie’s gonna sing about bananas, cousin to plantains
Williebob’s gonna play guitar
And give a hand stamp to planet Mars
And if we work together we can catch a shooting star
Now we can count our fingers all the way up to ten
And in eleven measures we will learn to count-down and then
If the stars are all aligned
Then I’m sure we soon will find
It’s not rocket science, atmosphere is just a state of mind
10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1
Blast off!
Well in nineteen-sixty-nine
A giant leap for mankind
Was a small step for a man you all should know
Neil Armstrong was his name
And the world’s not been the same
Since he went to the moon in a ship called Apollo
Apollo flew from Earth to the great big moon
The spacecraft landed safe on a lunar dune
For a long time we had wondered
About this orb that we live under
So we built a ship and trained an able crew
Apollo flew from Earth to the great big moon
Well Neil brought his friend Buzz
To the moon with him because
A trip to the moon can not be done alone
Michael Collins waited high
Up in the lunar sky
And watched Neil and Buzz explore the great unknown
Apollo’s crew
Was a select few
Who traveled from the earth to the great big moon
When the Eagle landed
The men would not be stranded
Ground control would help them get back home
And all the folks at NASA
Helped Apollo past the
stratosphere to land safely in sea foam
Apollo led the world to the great unknown
Apollo flew from Earth to the great big moon
The spacecraft landed safe on a lunar dune
For a long time we had wondered
About this orb that we live under
So Michael, Buzz, and Neil got a closer view
Apollo flew from Earth to the great big moon
Apollo flew from Earth to the great big moon
Apollo flew from Earth…
Long ago and late one night
A famous scientist looked into the sky
The image of a planet came
And Pluto was its name
Already around the sun
Eight more planets were having fun
Pluto joined to make it nine
But soon was left behind
Venus, Mercury, Saturn, Mars
All planets spinning below the stars
Uranus, Jupiter, Neptune, Earth
But poor Pluto lacks the girth
Now after intense debate
Scientists say of planets there are eight
Pluto’s fame will soon decline
Now that it’s not planet nine
Venus, Mercury, Saturn, Mars
Are flytraps, autos, or candy bars
Uranus, Jupiter, Neptune, Earth
But for Pluto there is no mirth
Long ago and late one night
A famous scientist looked into the sky
The image of a planet came
And Pluto was its name
This post was written in honor of Susan as part of the Team WhyMommy Virtual Science Fair. To see other posts written for the Team WhyMommy Virtual Science Fair, visit Stimeyland. Huge thanks to Jean for coordinating this bloggy effort!
Images and lyrics posted with permission from Rocknoceros.
Thanks for reading Tech Savvy Mama through your feed!
Original post by Tech Savvy Mama
©2012
My boys would LOVE that music! Now I am going to have to find one and surprise them one day and pop it in the car’s CD player.
This was an awesome tribute to Susan!
LOVE this idea, Leticia! What awesome songs to share in honor of our pal!
What a perfect tribute! I love the pics of the kids with the science learning too, esp. since Captain Computer is such a devoted fan of Susan! xoxo
What a fun adventure and awesome tribute!!!
This is sweet, and those look like fun songs.
I remember hearing the drive-by story from Kristen! I’m a DC Mama in Spirit!
Perfect suggestions for a novice space geek like me! Make sure you have TMBG’s Here Comes Science. It’s a little more introductory but tons of fun.
My science project is also on display!
I LOVE this — love, love, love the idea of incorporating the songs! I’m gonna have to go get the songs for my science-lovin’ JavaBoy!
That’s awesome. I totally agree with what you say about how Susan can explain science so well to kids. It’s awesome. She’s awesome. And you reminded me of a trip I took with our playgroup to this very spot with Susan. So much fun.
Thanks so much for taking part in the science fair!
Let us know when you are going! Sophia would love going there too!