Beach Day 1

We took our annual family vacation to Gulf Shores last week. The drive from The Woodlands is about eight and half hours!!! But the girls were amazing the whole way there! We could not have asked for a better car ride. We got there Monday afternoon but after stopping at the grocery store for food and unpacking we didn't have time to go play but we did take a nice walk down the beach. But Tuesday morning the girls were up bright and early and dying to get down to the beach.

Ready to go!

When we first got down there Ryan and I set up camp and the girls just went and sat right on the shore and stared at the ocean for several minutes. It was really cute, they didn't talk to each other, they just watched.

Every year the girls blow me away at how much fun they have for hours down on the beach.

My sweet Tater

Making ladybug sand castles.

Cooking up some yummy cookies and brownies (on the boogie board)

and burying Daddy in the sand.

After lunch and a little nap we headed to the pool.

My two little fishes jumping in!

The girls have been taking swim lessons and have gotten so much better.

Then we headed up for dinner, baths, and S'mores for desert (made in the microwave, one day we will do them over the fire!)

After a super fun filled day bedtime was easy!

Father's Day

Father's Day started with Ryan and his Dad playing golf. Then his Uncle Neal and Aunt Carina came up from Houston for a Bar-B-Que and some swimming.

It was a super fun and relaxing day.

Ryan and his girls!

Ryan and his Dad (aka Poppy)

And the day ended like this.....

I couldn't ask for a better father for Kendall and Taylor and I thank God everyday for him.

Happy Father's Day!

Sweet and Sassy

Saturday we headed to The Woodlands to spend some time with Ryan's parents. First on the agenda was the girls annual trip to Sweet and Sassy. Mimi and Poppy give the girls a gift certificate for a mani/pedi for Valentine's Day and we haven't had a chance to cash it in till now!

The girls getting pedicures and hanging with Mimi

Next up, manicures complete with sparkly lotion, a ring, and nail art!

And the cherry on the cake is finishing up with glittery star on our checks!

Mimi's car may never be glitter free after our ride home. Thanks Mimi for another fun visit to Sweet and Sassy!

Pool Party!

This last year I join a year long Bible study called Mom to Mom in our neighborhood. The first hour we would do a whole group study and then break off into our small groups in have more discussion. I was in a group with 3 other Moms (a few others but they didn't attend regularly) and our mentor Mom Diane. I had no idea how much I would enjoy Monday evenings from 8-10 because of these women. We bonded over time and have become good friends.

This last week Diane (our amazing mentor Mom) invited us over to her house for a pool party and pizza.

Her house is on Lake Travis and has a great pool. The kids and Moms all swam and had a great time. We took a break for some pizza and watermelon and then headed down to the lake for awhile. Since the lake is down so much there are a ton of shells on the shore. The girls had a great time collecting and playing in the warm lake water.

Between the 4 Moms (including me) there were 11 kids!

Group pic of all the kids (plus one Char, Mr. H was not wanting to sit for the pic)

Thank you Diane for having us all over and for great fellowship as well.

Mountain Goats!

Yes, I think my children are part mountain goat after our latest day trip. We had been in San Antonio visiting family and on our way home we made a detour to Enchanted Rock! Grams, Aunt Jennifer, and Avery joined us for the adventure.

We got there early since this summer heat is out of control and I had read online that the park fills up fast and sometimes has to stop letting people in. We arrived around 9 and were surprised how few people were there.

We took the Summit Trail up- The Three Amigos

Stopping for a water break on the way up

We made it to the TOP!!!

Grams, Aunt Jennifer, and me

Kendall, Avery, and Taylor

We wondered around at the top for awhile and Kendall pointed out this "Eagle"

The girls taking in the views and giving Grams a heart attack by going to close to the edge (two more feet and they are going straight down)!

Kendall acting like she is stuck under this rock! Goof Ball

My future paparazzi (Taylor) took a cute photo of the two of us at the top

Taking one last water break before we head back down

After we made it back down and the girls were adement that we HAD to have a picnic, blanket and all. So we found a nice shaded spot with a picnic table for the adults only of course.

Right as we got there we were greeted by a crazy squirrel! This squirrel was WAY to use to people and was coming WAY to close to the table for my comfort. He had a crazy look in his eyes. He would stand right over our heads on the tree and then run to the other end of the branch and get super close to us. I swear he was about to attack! Grams came to the rescue and gave him a piece of bread which made him happy for awhile.

Crazy squirrel running away with food

The girls did an amazing job climbing up and down the whole thing. We had to keep telling Billy Goat Kendall to slow down and to stop running and skipping the whole way because she was giving Grams some serious heart burn. We all had a great time and got out of there before we completely melted!

Happy 9th!

This week Ryan and I celebrated our 9th anniversary!

Here is a picture from our wedding day (way before digital so it didn't scan very well).

Grams came in town to spend the night with the girls so we could take a road trip to Fredricksburg for the night. We started by walking and shopping on Main Street. So many cute little shops. Ryan was a great sport and let me go and walk around as many as I wanted to (which was a lot!).

Looking down Main Street

We ate lunch at a good restaurant and beer garden called Auslander. Then a little more shopping and next we headed to Grape Creek Vineyard.

We did a wine tasting there and then we hopped on the trolley to tour the winemaking facilities and production area. It was really interesting to learn about the whole process. Then we went down to the cellar and got to taste a few different wines that were aging in the barrels.

The Grape Creek grapes

Then we went to Becker Vineyards and did another tasting. There was hardly anyone there but we found someone to snap a picture.

Next, we went to check into our cottage. I had made a reservation at a bed and breakfast cottage. It was really cute and quaint.

Our cottage

We headed to dinner and I can't remember what the name of it but the food was really yummy! The desert menu didn't appeal to us so we thought that we would head some where else and grab some but once we got out on the street we found out EVERY WHERE was closed already! So the only place open was the gas station. We went in grabbed some good old fashioned Blue Bell!

The whole trip was really nice and relaxing! Happy Anniversary! I love you!

Mount Bonnell

The girls and I took our first summer outing this week to Mount Bonnell. It is the highest point in Austin city limits. You have to climb 106 stairs (and yes we counted on the way down) to get up to the top.

Once you are up there you can see the whole city from different points.

One way you look you can see all of downtown.

The other way you can see Lake Austin and the surrounding area.

The girls enjoying the view!

The girls had a good time "hiking" around and climbing on all the rocks.

Funny pic of the three of us (sorry for the unflattering pic we were going to the gym afterwards), not easy to get all three of us taking it yourself.

Memorial Day Weekend!

The Madison's and the Perroni's, two of our good friends from way back, came and stayed with us the past weekend.

On Saturday afternoon everyone arrived and got unpacked we headed to the pool (to wear the kiddos out).

Morgan (4), Hudson (6), Bella (3), Taylor (5), Mallory (6), Kendall (6), and Case (1)

Yes, I had 7 children all 6 and under in my house all weekend!!

We order pizza to be delivered at the pool (so I didn't have to cook for 13 people or clean up the kitchen!). The kids and the grown up had a great time for a few hours playing around in the cool water.

Then we came home and got everyone all nice and clean and ready for bed but not before we enjoyed some strawberries and whip cream!

Totally made their night by giving them all a mouth full of whip cream :)

Sorry the picture is dark.

After everyone was all nice and quiet the adults headed out for dinner.

The Mommies

Me, Jennifer, and Leslie

We headed not far from the house to my favorite restaurant for a yummy dinner. Our neighbors and another couple joined us dinner also. After dinner we headed out to the patio for some great live music.

Leslie, Tiffany (not sure what the face is for), Amy, Lacy, and Jennifer

The guys

Casey, Craig, Ryan (no comment on the face), Lonnie, and Evan

We had a great time singing, lots of dancing, and laughing so hard my stomach hurt!

Sunday afternoon we hopped on the boat for a fun filled day in the sun.

Taylor and Morgan- little fish

Morgan and Kendall

The Mommies

It was to windy to let the kids tube but they didn't mind. They had so much fun just swimming around. The water was still alittle to cool for my liking but it was a beautiful day and had a great time.

Amazingly, the weekend went by with out major meltdowns, tears, or fights between the kids. Yes, it was loud (but the had stiff competition between the three Daddies) but they played so well together.

Thanks Madison's and Perroni's for coming and visiting!