Texas Trip: Part 2

The ice cream buzz and The Sound of Music carried us the rest of the way to our destination: our friends' house in Round Rock. It was great to see M and R and their kids again! The girls have been SO excited about seeing their friends A and W...it's been 2 years since we got to see them at Disney World. Which reminds me...the night before we left for Texas, at prayertime before bed SJ said she was thankful we were going to DW! I think she thought "going to see A and W" meant going to DW, since she was way too young to remember her only visit to TX and associates A and W with our trip to DW. Took a little explaining, but she was not disappointed after all...for her a house and yard full of different toys and a parade full of old "new" friends was as good as the Magic Kingdom!

AG and Aubrey the evening we arrived


All the kids had fun in the sandbox and sprinkler that night. We also had some of our favorite TX bbq from Rudy's and a great visit with another family we've missed alot these last years!

This one cracked me up because I first thought it was "censored"! Turns out RL is just toting some kind of toy tool box after being stripped of his wet and sandy clothes!


Saturday morning we went to visit T's hometown friend JD and his beautiful family. We had lots of fun catching up over lunch and watching the houseful of girls (our three + their three) play dress-up...you can imagine! RL held his own despite all the frilly silliness around him!


That night the kids watched a movie at the Ps house and the Daddies took charge while M and I went to a fun girls' night at another friend's house. The next morning we went to worship at our Austin church's new location, which wasn't built yet last time we were there. So good to be there and to see lots of dear friends and their growing kids! Then to visit more friends, the McA's; we always love to catch up with them and are thankful they have some family in our new city which gives us more chances to see them! Then back to RR for dinner with the Ps at Chuy's...oh my, I had forgotten just how awesome those fresh flour tortillas are! Definitely worth a wait for a table, and I will be making a few calls to see if I can find a place here that makes their own really soon :).


A was sweet to share her room with our girls for 4 nights! They were chatty after lights-out a few times, but really did great all together!


More to come...

Texas Trip: Part 1

The first weekend of the month found us heading west for a long weekend in Austin! It's been over 3 years since we'd been there, and we were all ready to go back and visit friends, see some sights, and eat some really good Tex-Mex. This was the longest road trip we've taken since RL came along, and I wondered how it would go, but he did great and we made it out in good time and pretty much fuss-free. Part of that may be explained by the fact that one of the two stops we made was at the Blue Bell Creamery, and few things make a vanload of carseat-bound kids (OK, and parents) happier than some good ice cream on a hot day!

Dance Recital

AG and LL marked the end of their dance year on May 27 with a sweet recital. Their class danced to two songs and in the finale, and they both were lovely! Here are some photos taken before the show. We were so glad to have all four grandparents there that evening! I was planning to get some shots of the girls with Gran and PopPop afterward, as they were making a flower run beforehand, but then all the video of the dancing filled up my memory card. The girls enjoyed the dancing, but I think the major highlights for them were getting to wear a little lipstick and have cake at the reception afterward!

Swim Lessons...the Grand Finale

The girls enjoyed 2 weeks of swim lessons in May and learned alot. Hopefully we can keep these little fish in the water this summer! I got to watch them on the last day and record a few memories.

SJ ready to jump right in!


LL after a swim out to her instructor and back


AG likes swimming, but not so much the camera that day :)


It's not all work...


Another AG game face...

Swamp Day and Sprinkler Fun

After our last soccer games we went to check out a local attraction we've never been to before and got to see some interesting creatures up close! Alligators, turtles, lizards, snakes, and birds...

RL seemed to like the snakes.




The girls checked out the snakes, too, but were gentle enough to get to touch some birds caught that morning for observation.




The beginning of sprinkler season!


RL immediately showed himself to be a sprinkler fan!