Monday Adventures!

We had another day off on Monday, which was really exciting because the Monday after a holiday weekend is always a drag. I initially planned on doing laundry, grocery shopping, and completing other tasks that help my household function properly....but then I decided we needed an adventure instead. It seems I'm always trying to juggle that balance of work vs. play, too busy vs. not busy enough, too much vs. too little. My brain is in constant overdrive. Anyway, I planned for us to adventure to south Houston to visit a wildlife bayou and then to Galveston.

I didn't know the bayou accepted cash only, so that extended our trip into this town named Alvin to locate an ATM. The portion of town we drove through was quaint and had that old town feel. I don't know why but that is one of my favorite things to do. I love exploring little towns. We made it back to the wildlife bayou where we were greeted by a very friendly tour guide. She told me every day for the rest of the week they were expecting field trip visits with over 500 students. This made me really happy that we decided to come on a Monday. We pretty much had the place to ourselves! The tour guide drove us around in this jeep/human cage/doon-buggy type vehicle. The animals are free to roam around the 80 acres of property and it's very much built to replicate a natural habitat for them. It's like an opposite zoo because people drive around in cages to look at the animals instead of vice versa. Ha! The animals are not shy. They had no problem getting up close and personal, sticking their necks into the cart to grab a mouthful of food from us. It freaked all of us out little, but it was also very thrilling. I think a real safari would be awesome someday!

The kids enjoyed the tour and seeing so many of the animals up close. They were hesitant of feeding them, but they still watched. They were also able to ride a pony, visit the petting zoo, and make friends with a deer. This deer is named Joey and he was cracking me up. He just wandered around the property as he pleased, even making his way toward the gift shop. The only animals they have confined to one area were the alligators, which makes sense. Those things are freaking dangerous! Dinosaurs! I was disappointed the rhino didn't feel like making an appearance, but that gives us a reason to go back! Plus, I really enjoyed our tour guide, it was obvious she was very passionate about her profession and she kept cracking jokes about drinking on the job. She was a funny one.

Galveston is only another 30 minutes from the bayou place, so we continued our adventure down to the beach. The weather looked a little sketchy when I checked it earlier, so I didn't come prepared for a full beach experience. I figured we would fly kites, enjoy our picnic, and maybe dip our toes in the water. Much to my surprise, the weather was beautiful. We ended up staying for over two hours, searching for sea shells and slowly inching further and further out into the water. Max and Lyla were completely soaked and covered in sand, even my jeans were wet up to my knees. Haha! I should have known my kids would have wanted to get in the water regardless of anything else I had planned. I won't let that mom fail happen again. It was a fun day and both kiddos were zonked out the entire ride home. Although Galveston doesn't have the prettiest of beaches, there is still something so peaceful about the ocean. My decision to ditch the chores and adventure instead was just what we needed. 

I can't stop looking at this photo! She looks TOO old. 

Wedding Ceremony

I got a little picture happy, so I decided to include the mock wedding photos on a separate post. And yes, Max has road rash on his face. If you know Max, then this will not come as a surprise. 

Congratulations to the lovely couple and their union as husband and wife.
The newlyweds are registered at Target and Toys R Us.

Happy Easter Weekend!

This was one of those weekends that I could replay over and over again. I think the fact that it was extended by two extra days for our Easter break may have contributed to the goodness. We spent Friday visiting with a friend and her delicious newborn baby, then returned home to dye some Easter eggs. Lyla seemed to enjoy this project more than Max. She had fun combining different colors and creating designs on her eggs, whereas I probably blinked twice and Max had already dropped his entire pile of eggs into all the color cups. He was unimpressed and ditched us to play outside, however his eggs ended up being the brightest colors since they were left to soak for so long. Nobody likes the taste of hard boiled eggs in our family, but we had fun dissecting them afterward. 

Saturday the kiddos woke up at the crack of dawn, because that's what they always do when we have the day off. Lyla woke up with the idea that she really really needed to go get her haircut, like immediately. She actually started this a few weeks ago when she mentioned that she would really like to cut bangs. This was one of those "smile and nod" moments in parenting with the expectation said child will likely forget about whatever they keep going on and on about.....but Lyla has a natural ability for being extremely persistent. She did not forget and this "I want bangs" conversation continued for about three weeks. So, when she brought it up yet again on Saturday morning, I said "okay fine, let's go!" And off we went on our 9:00 a.m. adventure! Technically they are side swoop bangs because she has a calic, but regardless, we think her new style is fab. The boys left on their own adventure to Home Depot. I was laughing at Max's comment when Kirk told him that's where they were going. He said, "you mean, it's like our home...but it's a depot???" Yes, exactly son. Kirk decided he wanted to make our garage less trailer park-ee, so that was a nice improvement. I decided Kirk is in the "weekend project" phase of life. Max has been quite eager to assist him.

I made lunch for us and then the kiddos played outside for the remainder of Saturday afternoon. And by remainder I actually mean for about five hours. They were mad when I made them come inside at five o'clock. The neighbor kids may drive me nutso sometimes, but I'm also really appreciative of them. Lyla and Max really look forward to play time with their neighbor friends. I want my kids to value the friendships they make in life. It reminds me of a book we read together, "If I could keep you little I would pick for you a friend or two, but then I would miss you choosing friends you like who like you too!" It's a cute one. Anyway, I left later that evening to join some friends at a painting class. I forgot how much fun those classes are!

The Easter bunny visited as we slept that night. We were lucky it didn't rain and he was able to hide some eggs outside for the kids too! It was pretty funny when the kids woke up that morning because they could not find their baskets. We left them on the couch in plain sight, but they were running in circles and probably looked at the baskets five times before Lyla finally noticed hers. Max had this disappointed look on his face as he watched Lyla go through the contents of her basket. His basket was sitting right next to hers!!!!! We watched in disbelief for a few seconds, before we finally motioned Max to his own basket. You have one too little buddy! That morning brain fog is a real struggle. We ate breakfast and then I'm pretty sure the kids consumed 70 pounds of candy while I prepared a couple of dishes to take to Charli's. I do not like all that Easter basket madness, by the way. Who invented hiding plastic eggs with candy in them? I don't like that person. And whyyyyy does Easter basket grass exist? That stuff spreads like wildfire. And why do I even go along with all of it!??!

I took pictures of the kids before we went to Charli's and they were super agreeable to do so for once. I had this genius idea to have a pretend sibling wedding. The kids loved this idea and they were totally all about it. I told my brother this story and he called me "creepy" and "weird" --- typical little brother thing to say. I thought it made for a really exciting photo session! We even had a wedding ceremony, complete with wedding march music and a bouquet for the bride. It turns out I'm a terrible wedding officiant, as the only thing I could come up with for the ceremony was to have them say one thing they love about each other. Max contemplated for awhile and eventually said "booty" as his response to the question. I thought it was hilarious, but apparently that part of the story also contributed to my brother's "creepy" comments. He's entitled to his opinion though. We enjoyed lunch together at Charli and Jeremy's house. The kids got in their mandatory golf cart and Mario Party time. And that concludes our Easter festivities!!!!!!!!!!!!! I slept like a baby on Sunday. 

Silly string...another evil product....yet I continue to buy it like an idiot.

 Her face is PURE JOY!!!!

December is here! Is this real life?

We had a fun visit from Grandpa Rick and Becky this week. It was a quick two days, but I've learned to take what I can get. We have been so lucky to have several repeat visitors since we moved to Texas, so I feel like we have already cycled through most of the touristy stuff. The one new attraction I've been able to share with our family is the kid's school. Grandpa and Becky were able to enjoy lunch with us and see the kiddos in their classrooms. It was nice to show them what daily life is like for us these days and I'm fortunate to work somewhere that doesn't mind if I bring in guests every once in awhile. It's a pretty laid back atmosphere, both from a working perspective and in the classrooms. Also, as the ongoing tradition continues through the generations, Grandpa treated us to ice-cream after school. That will always be one of my favorite and most memorable traditions of my childhood. 

Lyla singing her Christmas program for Grandpa and Becky. It doesn't get any better than a private performance!

This weekend it finally started feeling like Christmas for me. We went to a fun party on Friday night and then Lyla & I spent most of Saturday Christmas shopping for family and friends. She is a good little shopping buddy these days, very opinionated too. Ha! Sunday included a visit to Santa at the kid's school. The school PTO organized an event with different craft booths, hot cocoa, and photos with Santa. I figured it was a good opportunity to cross Santa off the list. Lyla has been talking about asking for an American Girl doll for what seems like an eternity, but the moment she approached Santa it's as if she was starstruck or something. I was rather confused as she uttered the words, "fairy barbie" when he asked what she wanted for Christmas. I was actually thinking, "Uhhh Lyla!!!! That was SO last year." Max pretty much had the same experience. He has been going on and on about this Batman Transformer toy, yet he was only able to squeak out the word "dinosaur" when Santa asked him. *eye roll* I told them it's too bad they froze up under pressure because now Santa isn't going to have any clue of their true desires. As always, Lyla was quick with her response, claiming it was fine because she also wrote him a letter. I was unimpressed with the Santa at our school event and felt he could have been slightly more enthusiastic anyway. He even had a real Santa beard, so I was really expecting that kind of physical dedication to match his energy on the inside. It did not. 

I suppose if an unimpressive Santa is our biggest problem in life, then we don't have any problems at all. I have been thinking about this concept a lot lately and how our life problems are all about perspective. The beginning of the month really started out with a Scrooge-esque attitude for me, especially in regards to the holidays. It only added fuel to the fire when I started assembling the Christmas tree and learned none of the lights were working. I had a little tantrum over it. Then I gave Christmas spirit another attempt with some good ol' fashioned baking. Burned my cookies. Que tantrum number two. Oh yeah, and how could I forget the major pity party over the disappointment of my Christmas cards. It was obvious hibernation was going to be my only destiny for this year!!! Good grief, listing it all out like this and I am actually embarrassed by how pathetic I am. 

Okay. Anyway! Along with all my pitiful behavior, I also have these light bulb moments when these small realizations show me that my problems are not actual problems. We have a good life and most complaints are simply comical. My family is together. We are healthy beings. And my kids are so very loved. There are a lot of people in this world who would give literally anything for even one of those things. Que perspective shift.

And with that, my 2016 Holiday Mantra: Even if our Santa Claus clearly hates his job, our Christmas tree is [was] not shining brightly, and our cookies have black bottoms....this life is still so good. Merry Christmas! 

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas....

Dad was able to make a surprise visit for Max's Christmas program! Yay!

My Saturday shopping buddy!

These are my people! How did I get SO lucky?

Don't be fooled by his good looks. He was the worst.

We are so lucky to have such great friends in our lives too!

Turkey Day

Hi friends! We had a lovely Thanksgiving. My dad, Shelby, and Jake were our featured guests this year. The kids and myself had a full week off from school and Kirk decided to take the rest of his available vacation days as well. It was a lot of fun and I'm grateful for the quality time we were able to spend together. My turkey received his usual special treatment and turned out wonderfully. I had a lot of help preparing the rest of the meal from two wonderful chefs, namely Charli & Olivia, which made it a pretty stress-free week for me. It's hard to believe we are already into December. I haven't started any shopping yet and honestly I'm lacking any motivation to even get started. We are going to decorate our Christmas tree this weekend, so I'm hoping that helps me rediscover my typical overjoyed attitude about Christmas and all its magic. This is a pathetic blog post, but I mostly wanted to share our Thanksgiving pictures. I'll try to add some descriptive captions because I know all my amazing and dedicated fans are deeply saddened by my lack of eloquence. 




This little turkey had a Thanksgiving performance at school and was surprised to find out she had quite a few of her people watching from the audience. It's so convenient that her best buddy, BYA, works at her school. Plus, she had Aunt Taylor & Uncle Jordan in the audience to not only watch her perform but also join her for lunch afterward. They spent some time with Max in his classroom too and it made him feel pretty special. Max's teacher thought it was pretty cool of Uncle Jordan to participate in the silly dancing and to sit criss-cross-apple-sauce during story time. This day acted as a "final farewell" of sorts for the kiddos to Taylor and Jordan before they moved back to Idaho and I felt like my heart was shattering the entire day over it. We are going to miss them so much! They are the best aunt and uncle, it's no question they are going to be amazing parents.

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This is one of the notes clipped to our gratitude tree I started a few years ago. It is my favorite one of 2016 and it belongs to Lyla. This was her first note of gratitude created all on her very own. I didn't have to prompt any ideas for her. She made it by herself, only requiring help with spelling. It says "mom making lunch" and it made my heart happy that she is really understanding the concept of being grateful....because there are definitely some days I question if anything I'm doing will prevent my kids from being asshole adults. Ha! Also, how awesome is she doing with her penmanship? I'm proud of my little smartie pants.

This is Max's super cool hair cut. He went with Kirk right before our family photos so they would be looking fresh. Also, a sneak peak of Lyla. I wish I could share the rest, but you must wait. 

Uncle Jake creating his masterpiece Thanksgiving appetizer. I enjoy watching his methodical cooking methods. And my dad enjoying his LATE Thanksgiving feast. Sadly, this is the only picture I shot of him or Shelby during their visit. FAIL.

TWINS! Max attempting to match Jake was hilarious to me.

Thanksgiving Day Feast, along with photos I force my people to be in.

We also visited the Renaissance Festival. I was laughing because we haven't been to this festival since the last time my dad visited Texas. I like to tease him about this activity being his idea, but truly I find the whole event to be fascinating. I feel like it's a lifestyle I could really dive into if I wasn't already committed to this family thing. Hahaha! At least Max agrees with me, just look at him go to town on that steak on a stick.

Halloweekend

We headed to Kemah on Saturday to pick up a car for brother-uncle Jake. This means he will be travelling back to Texas for Thanksgiving and I'm SO excited about that. Kemah is an area of Texas we have never explored before and it was a fun family adventure. The little town definitely has that easy going coastal vibe. We decided to check out the Boardwalk and indulge in all the people-infested activities that I tend to loathe. But parenting requires sacrifices!!! And I'm willing to make those sacrifices for two tiny people I love!

We checked out the amusement park rides and it was a right of passage for Miss Lyla, as she has reached the 42" height requirement allowing her to ride solo. She was loving this newfound independence and even requested to ride the mini ferris wheel in a cart on her very own. Unfortunately, this created some jealousy in Max. Sorry shorty. Maybe next year. The kiddos also had their faces painted. Max picked a Spiderman design. He was quite pleased with his new look and started spraying strangers with invisible webs afterward. It was a day of adventure, including a near death experience due to a run in with a flock of seagulls. The shrilling screams definitely turned some heads on that one.

Max said, "LOOK MOM! A PIRATE SHIP!!!!"

Jake's new blue car!
Jake doesn't know it yet, but we decided he should gift it to Lyla when she is old enough to drive.
That's assuming he doesn't wreck it as he usually does. Who typed that? How rude. 

We had such a fun Halloween! I always forget how much I love this holiday until it rolls around each year. The festivities lightened the heaviness that typically accompanies a Monday. The kids were able to wear their costumes to school and I was able to join in on their class parties. I coordinated the cookie decorating portion of the party for each class. It makes me really grateful to have a job that allows me to still be so involved in the daily routines of my kids. I start to feel a whirl of anxiety when I think about them going to school without my presence in the background. Maybe I can convince their next school to hire me too! Ha!

The school day concluded and we headed home to recharge our batteries for round two. I prepared for my Annual Halloween Chili Chow Down. Actually, I just made that up. I've never called it that in my life. The Texas weather sometimes permits the practicality of this event, but I don't care. I will not allow the unrelenting heat to ruin my traditions!!! Taylor came over to transform me from nice witch to mean witch, and I must say, she is quite the talented artist. I purchased one of those latex noses to really amp up the wow factor. The kids remained in their costumes all day, so they only needed a few modifications for trick or treating. We spray painted Max's hair black because...Superman! As for Lyla, she begged and pleaded for this silly wig and I finally caved in. It was hilarious for the entire fifteen minutes she wore it.

The Stouts joined the party and we all headed out for some trick or treating. This was our first year in our new neighborhood and holy crap. The herds of children were unbelievable. The entire neighborhood was so festive and it was awesome to see all the different decorated yards and porches. We noticed Max was beginning to tip to one side as he carried his overflowing basket of candy, so we decided to head back home. The obligatory dumping of their winnings was the final conclusion of the night.

Post Halloween, Lyla has been disciplined with her candy consumption, but sadly Max already had his entire fortune permanently revoked. It has yet to be determined if he will have an opportunity to earn it back. Life is rough when you fail to listen to your parents. Happy Halloween!