Saturday = Party Day

Saturday we had two parties to go to, one wedding shower and a birthday dinner for Matt's mom. We got the kids all dressed up and ready to go!

We got a little lost on the way, so the kids took a nap. Sometimes it's nice to have silence in the car!

We had fun at the wedding shower visiting with family, playing with other kids, and of course eating the food!
Afterwards we went to Lupe Tortilla's Mexican restaurant for my mother in law's birthday. Yummy food and even yummier margaritas! The kids were very well behaved, both sat in their chairs the whole time and ate their meals. They have a sand pit playground outside, so after dinner the kids got to go play for awhile. For being so good at the restaurant, we got ice cream on the way home!
Sunday we had a nice relaxing day. We went out to lunch with Russell and Lara. I colored my hair for the first time in almost 8 years.

And Katherine got a big girl hair cut! Her hair was getting so long, but she doesn't like braid, ponytails, or anything like that, so we cut off about 2 1/2 inches. I love it and she does too!




Getting her to take pictures sometimes is a chore!

Beat the Heat

Now that we are in the hottest month, it's tough to find activities to do with the kids. They love outside so much, but it's just too darn hot.

Saturday we took a walk around the block at 8:00am to beat the heat. Colin pretty much walked the whole way, only had to carry him just a little bit.

So here are the things we do to beat to heat:

We go to Barnes & Nobles or as Katherine calls it, "The Library" to enjoy some books and the AC!
We play in the sprinkler after 7:00pm when it cools off, it's even too hot to wear pants :)

We have movie time, Katherine with her popcorn and Colin with his Gerber Crunchies
Real men eat pink donuts with sprinkles to beat the heat!
We play chase after a bath -- and sometimes pee on the carpet :)

This weekend we got Katherine a big girl booster seat for the car and Colin got out of his baby seat into Katherine's old seat. They both really liked the switch. It was about time! Saturday evening we took the kids to Matt's parents house so we could go to a party. It was great to have a night out with friends and have some good laughs, we really needed that. My dad was also in town this weekend from his work cleaning up the Gulf in Louisiana, so it was great spending some time with him. He will go back tomorrow.

Whew.. What a weekend

Sometimes being at work is easier than being at home!

Thursday Matt had a discectomy. They had to shave down a bulging disc in his back that was pushing on his nerves making his leg and foot go numb at times. The doctor said it was one of the largest bulging disc he had ever seen. We spent Thursday night in the hospital and was released Friday morning. We weren't too impressed with our hospital stay. They told me I can stay overnight, showed me how the chair folded into a bed. So I drove home with Matt's mom, packed up the kids, went back to the hospital (30 minutes away), then went home a second time to take care of the animals for the evening/night, came back, then at 9:15pm the nurse came and told me I had to leave because visiting hours were OVER. I ended up talking to the charge nurse and she let me stay as long I didn't leave the room (where I was I going to go anyways at 10:00pm at night). Matt had a bad night nurse that put leads on him for no reason and just wanted even sure what was going on. We were very glad to be discharged the next day. Matt's parents were so great and kept the kids Thursday night and most of Friday.

Saturday we began the hot day with a water balloon fight! The kids ran me ragged on Saturday.. Man it is not easy when Matt can't lift a finger. These two can give you a run for your money! Saturday night we went to Russell & Lara's for Lara's birthday and to give Matt some piece and quite. We had cake and ice cream.. Yummy!

Sunday I got brave and took the kids to the zoo all by myself. I wanted to get the kids out of the house to burn off some energy and to give Matt some more piece and quite so he can rest and heal. I figure the faster I get him healed, the quicker he can help me with the kids! Katherine and Colin were so well behaved at the zoo. I normally would not go in August in Texas but they have a little splash pad water area, so we would go look at some animals, play in the water, go look at some more animals, get back in the water, and so forth. That way once we started getting hot, we would go cool off. We got there right when it opened at 9:00am and left right before noon, so it wasn't too hot YET! Colin was in the stroller part of the time and walking part of the time. Katherine had fun in the petting zoo, Colin wanted NO PART of touching the goats, he would talk and wave but NO TOUCHING! On the way home I asked Katherine what her favorite part of the zoo was and she said "Being with Colin"! How sweet is that! I am glad I have this written record for when she is 16 and he is 13!




Katherine was so great this weekend helping daddy! Since Matt can't bend over or lift anything, Katherine would reach and grab things for him that he needed. She was his little nurse and did such a great job at it. Colin now does NOT want you to feed him, I can do it myself. Matt had a banana and Colin wanted some, Matt pulled of a piece to hand to him and he got MAD. I had to get him his OWN so he could hold it, he ate half of it! I made cookies Friday night as a little treat for everyone, I broke of a piece for Colin and once again got mad, he wanted his own cookie, but hey who really wants to share chocolate chips cookies anyways!

New Braunfels, Texas

This weekend Matt and I took the kids to New Braunfels, a nice little town that has two rivers running through it. We got up really early on Saturday morning and drove 3 hours, the kids were okay in the car, Colin was a little fussy. We got to Landa Park right when it opened. Landa park is a city park on the river, with a regular pool & splash pad, a pool made from diverted river water with a slide, playgrounds, train rides through the park, paddle boat rentals, and much more.
We had a very nice day there. Katherine loved the paddle boats and I think Colin's favorite was the train ride. The river water is very cold, but refreshing here in the Texas heat!
That evening we went into Historic Gruene, ate at the Gristmill (an old cotton gin that sits on the river turned into a restaurant), listened and danced to some live music at Gruene Hall (one of the oldest Dance Halls in Texas), then went to some shops. Sunday morning we got up and went to Natural Bridge Caverns, I think both the kids enjoyed this the most! That is a steep climb back up the cave carrying a 20 lb weight (Colin). I got to work out all the junk food we ate on the trip. It was a very nice trip and the kids slept all the way home!