Galveston 2010

Our dear friends Lynn & Sarah Smith shared their beach house with us again this summer! They let us stay there (just the 4 of us) Wednesday through Sunday. We had such a fantastic vacation. We played at the beach, relaxed at the beach house, ate lots of junk food, went to Schlitterbahn, ate at the Rainforest Cafe, and just enjoyed being together!

Jackson found a friend

This was as far as Ben would go in the water!

He didn't mind that his snacks got covered in sand

They worked really hard to dig this tunnel!

Our 1 picture from Schlitterbahn! The boys loved it there! :-)

Jackson looking at the rainbow

Jackson had NO fear of the ocean. Ryan was such a good sport to play with him in the water for hours at a time! Jackson loved jumping over the waves.

Ben enjoyed walking in the sand

Leaving the beach after a day of fun in the sun

I can't even tell you how much food the boys ate while we were there. The beach made them eat and sleep like champs! I'm considering moving there permanently.

Puzzles after a full day of playing outside.

Thank you Smiths! We loved our time in Galveston!

Summer Fun

Jackson trying out his new roller skates!

typical Ben :-)

playing with Dad

Pops & GranMartha gave Jackson Buzz & Woody pjs. He was checking himself out!

finger painting

playing Memory

trying to wreck Ben with the wrecking ball- not ok!

time for a haircut?

we take our Thai Cottage lunches seriously!

afternoon playtime at the mall

dinner at Lupe Tortilla

Jackson & Lincoln had their last swim lesson this week. What cute little swimmers!

playtime at Sugar Creek

Yes, I chased Ben all through the playscape. It was quite a workout!!!

Ben loves to play in front of his window.

Watching Toy Story 2- dressed as Buzz, holding his 2 Buzz toys, and drinking from his Toy Story cup.

Happy 3rd Birthday

We celebrated Jackson's 3rd Birthday yesterday! I'm having a hard time believing that my baby is 3 years old-crazy! We had a party that was all about Jackson. He planned everything!

Conversation went like this:
Me: Jackson, what do you want to do for your birthday?
Jackson: have a party.
Me: What do you want to do at your party?
Jackson: play with my friends
Me: Ok. Do you want a birthday cake?
Jackson: Yes. A cow cake.
Me: What else do you want to eat?
Jackson: chicken nuggets
Me: What color would you like your party to be?
Jackson: My favorite color green.
Me: What would you like for your birthday present?
Jackson: a hot wheels car (i hope he's always this easy to please!!!)
You get the idea!

So, we had the cutest green/cow party you ever did see! We set up at the splash park, let the kids play, ate ChickfilA and cow cake, and Jackson even got a hot wheels car! :-) He was a happy camper!

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Early July

We left the farm minus one family member. Jackson went back to Frisco with his Papa John & Nana for some special together time. They had such a good week! Jackson never got homesick and they said he was perfect! I enjoyed some one-on-one time with my Benjamin. I forgot how quiet it is with just one child. :-) Papa John, Nana, and Jackson all came back to Sugar Land for July 4 weekend. I was so happy to have him home!!! I really missed my little buddy. We watched the fireworks, which totally confused Jackson. He was wondering where Cinderella's Castle was! (The last time we saw fireworks was at Disney World in September- he remembered!) BEN IS WALKING. He decided (on July 4) that he would walk and not sit down. He seems so big now walking and talking!

We went to Sugar Land's Childrens Museum with a group from church. This is a dig pit that my boys LOVED!

I no longer have any pennies in my purse!

Love this grin with his ice cream cone!

Fun At The Farm

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This Week/ No Pics

*Warning to Non-Family: This will be completely boring to you!!! I'm trying to keep the out-of-towners updated.*

What a week!
Sunday: Father's Day. I am blessed with an amazing dad and my boys have a great daddy! We had a mini-celebration for Ryan in the middle of our Sunday morning craziness (it was my day to make breakfast for class), enjoyed church, and had a wonderful Father's Day lunch at Pappasitos with the young Normans. Then we put the boys down for a nap and got ready for our First Family to come over. We did our little marriage dvd, grilled out, and all the kiddos swam in kiddie pools. It was a really fun day! :-)

Monday: I decided it would be a perfect afternoon to take the boys to the pool. (Note: it takes FOREVER to get ready to go to the pool.) We got in swimsuits, put on sunscreen, packed the pool bag, loaded up in the car, and drove to the pool. It was a little cloudy, but not too bad. We got to the pool, unloaded the car, and walked up to the gate. (This has been about a 45 min process by now.) The 16 year old lifeguard looks at me and says, "We think we might have heard thunder. So, we're going to close the pool." REALLY??? It was NOT thundering. Awesome.

Tuesday: no real stories. Had my first bad grocery store experience. Ben was not a happy camper, so I was pushing Jackson in the giant race car while holding Ben and trying to keep up with my shopping list/coupons. It was a work out! :-) I made this for dinner...yum!

Wednesday: Swim Lessons!!! Jackson is my little fish. His teacher told me Jackson didn't want to stay above water much! We've been teaching the Kindergarten class on Wed nights. It is absolutely hilarious. I have no idea how I used to teach kindergarten all day long, b/c I'm exhausted after my one hour with them! It's worth it though. So, we'll be getting ready for class tonight.

We're getting excited to spend some time with Ryan's side of the family at "Family Fun Day" coming up!