End of July 2016

Summer is 2/3s over! :(

She's so particular....first off she needs multiple blankets (on top of the pjs and sleep sack! Don't know how she can sleep with that much heat), then puppy goes on the left and turtle goes on the right but usually turtle isn't covering her face.

Emmalyn is making good progress during swim lessons.

Here's Maxwell's progress for his last class with Coach Katie. She's been his coach since he was 18 months and she is leaving Aquatots.  Pretty bummed about that but we are going to have her come over and teach Maxwell privately and take both kids out of Aquatots.  Maxwell has seen her every week for more than 3 years, it would be so sad if they didn't see each other any more.

Last class - with Coach Jada as well as Katie

Look at that face - she's up to something

She got a wound on her face but keeps picking it so I am keeping a bandaid on so that it can heal.  She is the worst at constantly picking her wounds!

Maxwell and Sanjinuh have been in the same class for awhile and developed a cute friendship.  They are good buds and it's sad that they won't get to see each other anymore.

Taking a nap with Uncle Joe.  Joe and Britt are going to move back in upstairs and so they have moved a bit of their stuff over to our house.

The kids got their passports!  We can all go international now.  Maxwell was super excited.

Look at that cucumber we picked from our garden!

Brittany took Emmalyn to the dealer to get some work done on her car and she sent me this picture and said that Emmalyn had a conversation with the giraffe, "I like your piggy tails.  I like your shoes.  I like your tail"  in the sweetest voice ever.  :)  She is certainly learning how to give compliments.

The owl that we are now using to try and protect the garden from birds.  For Emmalyn, he's another friend to play with.  (She told him she likes his eyes.)

At Kindermusik, Emmalyn decided she wanted to sit with Ms. Carolyn and not Mom.  

Giddy up horsey

I let Maxwell come to Emmalyn's Kindermusik class and he got to sit outside the room and play on his ipad.  The class is in a church that is empty on Saturday so he was safe but it felt like he was so far away and I kept checking on him throughout class.  Of course, he was fine.

Emmalyn likes to play peek-a-boo with the scarf and when she puts it on like this, she wants you to say "Emmalyn where are you?  I can't see you." and then she'll put it off and magically I can see her again.  :)

Last soccer game of the season.  These two have been a great team.

Look at Maxwell getting into the cluster around the ball!  Being around Preston's influence has really helped him be more aggressive during soccer.

Taking charge of the ball

Team picture.  The two boys to the right of Maxwell live in our neighborhood (Griffin and Kinsler but they are moving away which is a bummer.  We've played with them a couple times.)

Emmalyn is doing great at putting together these simple two piece puzzles.  

We spent more time at the FAC, mainly enjoying the lazy river which both kids love.

Tired post-swimming face (and those curls!)

Emmalyn riding her tricycle while Maxwell rides his bike with training wheels

We had a playdate at Luckshya's house (another boy from preschool - this group of boys is really keeping their friendships alive)

Remember how he always had his feet crossed when he was a baby?  It is still his natural tendency today.

Don't these flowers look awesome??  I didn't have to do a thing to get them.  They just came up again from what I planted last year - score!

A fun flashback picture my cousin found of my dad in high school.

I took the kids for dinner at Tokyo Joes.  Max liked using chopsticks.

We now have Coach Katie and Coach Jada coming over to give the kids private lessons next door.  Maxwell's lesson is an hour and Emmalyn's is a half.  I was hoping to stay out of the pool but because Emmalyn is used to having me in there with her for lessons, we are going to have to work on transitioning her to being in there without me.

Maxwell is acting like a teenager - - exasperated sighing and then whining all the time, talking with attitude, arguing and talking back so we had a conversation tonight about that not being okay and there will be consequences.  I sure hope this is a little quick phase.

Emmalyn tells you when she doesn't like something (like beans - "I don't like beans"). And, she's working on learning colors and her default is always purple.

Vacation to Fredericksburg, TX

One thing I want to remember about Maxwell, he still says - "demember" instead of remember and "cucancumber" instead of cucumber. He also says things like, "and he responded..." I find it fascinating how he speaks so mature/formal at times.  It's almost like he speaks like you read books.

Look at my garden - - it's basically all cucumbers and tomato plants.

So many flowers...not much fruit

Little miss spunk

Each of the kids made a bracelet with their name on it

Playing uno with mom and dad

We planned to go to Fredericksburg, Texas with the Kenyons for a fun, quick weekend.  Neither of us have been there but have heard good things about this German town in Peach country.  Before we could get on the road, we went to go get the kids' passports.  It ended up being a longer process than we hoped because we got all the way there and realized we had forgotten some of the necessary things and had to go all the way back home and get them.  The kids were good sports though.

Waiting for our turn

I love their pictures!

Luckily she took a nap on the long road trip to Fredericksburg (it's about a 5 hour drive)

She got comfy

As soon as we got there, we checked into the hotel, met up with the Kenyons, and went to dinner!  I had been really looking forward to the trip and hoped we'd get some good German food.  Plus, I told Maxwell he'd get to try some "schnitzel with noodles" that he sang about during his school music performance. 

YUMMMMMMMMMM - Schnitzel, Spaetzel, plus German style potato salad.  It was everything I'd been hoping for.

Happy girl!  (And boy was it hot.  We were sort of on a patio and it's hot out there!!!)

Natalie and Emmalyn were happy to be back together.

The next day we had breakfast and then drove out to one of the "must see" places in Texas - Enchanted Rock.

Makenna got to ride in the car and the kids read books the whole time.

Not long after we started hiking to the top, the clouds rolled in and we were so very grateful for the cloud cover.  It was really hot and humid before the clouds came and I did not bring enough water to keep us all hydrated on this serious hike.

Richard and the kids

Emmalyn was a trooper and walked most of the hike (although she would have like to have been carried).  It was so steep that neither Peter and I could get our own fat butts up the hike and carry her at the same time.  

At one point, I asked Peter, "How are you, babe?" Well, she thought I was talking to her and so she yelled out loud"I'm not a baby".  She was mad we weren't carrying her and her attitude was like, if you aren't carrying me then you don't get to call me baby!  It was really funny because she yelled it so loudly that many of the people around us heard her and started laughing.  

She really did do a great job.  She was the youngest kid we saw up there.  (That did make me worry a little that maybe we were the idiots that were taking our toddler on a difficult inappropriate hike.)

The whole group at the top!

Adore these two cuties

My little hikers.  Wish we had more opportunity to hike here in North Texas!

Too funny - Peter taking a picture of me taking a picture of Michelle taking a picture of Makenna.

The view at the top of the rock was gorgeous - you could see so far in all directions!

We are so little compared to these boulders!

Emmalyn got to ride on Richard's shoulders a bit on the way down because it ended up being more tricky than going up.  It got slick if you weren't careful.  I was super grateful that all those dark clouds never rained on us while we were up there!

In the center bottom of the picture is a prickly pear cactus - they were all over and we pointed them out to the kids.  Of course, Emmalyn went and touched one and got some of the prickly spines in her fingers.  

Makenna is a monkey!

WOO - we made it up that huge domed rock in the background!

Showing off his muscles

After that workout we were excited to drink some cold water and enjoy some snow cones back at the base!

After our hike, we headed back to downtown Fredericksburg and walked around looking for some lunch.

Naw... we don't absolutely love spending time together at all.  :)

We stopped at a pizza place for lunch and lots of water.

After lunch we played at a park while the dads went and got the car and parked it closer to where we were.

We shopped in some of the touristy shops along the main street and let the kids pick out a souvenir.  

Maxwell tried poprocks candy for the first time.

Emmalyn tried a little bit too

He loved it (and notice the rainbow bracelet Makenna made and brought for him.  He LOVES it and doesn't want to take it off).

Playing Uno while we waited for dinner.  Our last dinner together before the Kenyon's headed back home to Austin. 

We were all wiped out. :)  Not a lot of energy at this table tonight.

Emmalyn fell asleep on me.  It was so great having her cuddle me like this.  I cherished every second of it because it never happens anymore.  It made it hard to eat my food but so worth it!

I got schnitzel one more time.  YUMMMM

After this, the Kenyon's headed home and we stayed for one more night.  The hotel we stayed at had an amazing pool with a couple water slides, a lazy river, and a grotto.  It was seriously fantastic.  I took a bunch of really cool pictures with my new waterproof camera the night before when we went swimming at the pool and then again this afternoon when we swam again but they all ended up being accidentally deleted.  :(

Maxwell and Emmalyn slept next to each other and it didn't go completely smooth.  Emmalyn was talking, jabbering, and singing as she was winding down which frustrated Maxwell who just wanted her to be quiet.  He goes, "mom can you make Emmalyn be quiet so I can go to sleep?"  Well, that just fueled her fire and she did it more and so he started yelling at her.  Peter and I were in our bed listening to all this take place and couldn't help laughing.  Emmalyn can be such a pest to her big brother!

Breakfast the next morning in our pjs.  The hotel had a great breakfast!

Fredericksburg is in Texas wine country so before we left town, I wanted to go find a vineyard.  There were lots of wineries but very little vineyards that we could walk.  We found a couple rows of vines and called it good.

We also stopped at a stand on the road to grab some peaches.

Lunch - Tornado fries

We have had some great food here and tons of fun.  What a great trip!

Of course, all the fun wasn't done so we hit another "Must See" spot in Texas and drove the Willow City Loop.  It's a pretty 13 mile drive through some picturesque spots and views. 

Great views

Some gorgeous "hills"

We saw deer, cows, and some other animal that I can't remember right now

Reading on the way home.  The kids were great with road trip that took longer than normal!