Birthday trip to the river.. Don't drink the river water

View of the river and pool from our balcony

This weekend we took a trip with another family to the river about 3 hrs away. It was a great weekend with family and friends AND was my birthday as well. What a great way to spend a birthday then relaxing in the river and enjoying a nice getaway. Keep reading to find out why NEVER to drink river water!!

We arrived Saturday late afternoon and swam at the pool. Colin was the big hit of the day. He made friends with some ladies (I think they were mid 20's). He was flirting BIG time and had their whole group (even the men) mesmerized with him. One of the guys said the Colin had more "game" then any guy he knows. Colin was playing cute for his crowd! Katherine was so excited to have her friends with us, the girls were off swimming and making friends as well (their own age though)!

That night we went and had a great BBQ dinner and the hotel had a live band in the courtyard, so we sat out on our balcony and had some drinks and listened to music. 

Sunday for my birthday, we went to another section of the river that was a little more shallow than the section of the river behind the hotel. This way the kids could play more in the water and swim. It was the perfect set up, deep enough to swim, but shallow enough for the girls to stand up and for us to put our chairs in the water and relax! We spent pretty much all day on the river, the kids had fun going down the tubes on little chute and well Colin tainted the river water. Before we left, he asked if he could pee in the river.. not sure why a 3 year old would ask that, but Matt told him yes. Well I just happened to catch him in the act. He thought no one was watching!

That evening we went into Gruene for dinner and drinks. And back to the hotel to hang out on the patio and enjoy the evening. We took the kids down to the river to watch the fish jump at night. It was a very nice birthday. I am glad I got to share it with some great friends, my family, and of course the wine!

Our view for my birthday!

Matt and Katherine on the river

Katherine and Olivia

When you got to go, you got to go!

Katherine "tubing" down the river

Matt and Colin just chillin on the river!

The river behind our hotel

The kids playing in Gruene while we enjoyed some wine

Happy 6th Birthday Katherine and 4th of July

Ok..Ok. I am behind on this post... been busy and lazy at the same time. Katherine's 6th birthday was June 30th.. yes.. 6th birthday. I still can't believe that our baby girl just turned 6. How the years have flown by! Our sweet daughter, we love you so much and are so proud of you! You are so loving, caring, smart, silly, pretty, drama queen :), creative, and an amazing big sister! For her birthday, we had a Luau at our house. BUT first we had a t-ball game that morning, then we had about 15 kids at the party that evening for games, pizza, cake, ice cream, presents, and of course running around the house. After the party, Katherine had 4 other girls spend the night for a slumber party. So technically her party didn't end until the next day. All the girls were very well behaved and we had a blast. So the next day we have a very very lazy day!

Luau cake, the flip flops are magnets

Katherine and I all ready for her party

My handsome surfer dude ready to PAR-TAY

Very excited about presents

Blowing out the candles

The girls the morning after the sleepover

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AMERICA! (Or as Colin was saying half the day.. Happy Birthday CAPTAIN AMERICA!) 


We had a great 4th of July. Matt and the kids put out our flags first thing in the morning, then we went to Matt's parents house for their neighborhood parade. The kids loved it and got lots of candy! Then they went swimming for awhile and we had lunch. It was a very nice day. Then we came home and had my family over for dinner and fireworks. The kids (and of course me) LOVED the firework show and even got to meet up with some friends durning it. But at the end, we had to say goodbye to my parents as they are now on a  2-3 month trip up North. But we follow them on their blog and Skype while they are gone. 

God Bless America! 

Colin waiting with Grandma for the parade to begin

Waiving at the firetruck

Playing in the pool.. Watch out Colin!

The YUMMY Holiday Trifle I made.

On top of Pah Pah's truck waiting for fireworks

Pah Pah, Colin, and Kannon watching fireworks.. OOHHHH.. AHHHHH

Semi - Wordless Wednesday

Katherine had her first t-ball game,  Matt is helping coach, here he is giving the team a pep talk before hand

On the bench waiting to hit

Matt helping Katherine getting the right stance.

Getting ready to bat. They get 3 tries of coach pitch, then hit off the tee. Katherine's 1st bat, she hit off the coach.

Giving the thumbs up after getting on base

Saturday night, I took Katherine to see her friend's dance studio preform Peter Pan. Keira did an excellent job!

Where else do you go when it's going to be 100 degrees? Of course we got there at 8:30am to avoid the heat and left the beach right before noon. 

Colin playing in the water. We have had an unusual high amount of seaweed this year, look at the wall behind Colin. That's all fresh seaweed, you can see a pile in the back where they have been pull dosing it. But it's good protection for the beach, as they are using the seaweed to make more sand dunes. 

Here comes a BIG one!

Katherine and Matt playing in the waves. They had so much fun out there.

Splash!

After the beach we grabbed lunch and of course some adult drinks that are served in coconuts! What's a trip to the beach without Pina Coladas!

Fontan delayed, trip to the river, water slides, and whiplash

So much to say in one post, so let's get started.

First and foremost, Colin was presented to the surgical team on Monday to decide on his next and hopefully last surgery, the Fontan. In April we were told it was going to be this summer or early fall. GOOD NEWS is the team decided Colin was doing so well that they want to wait until Spring so he can get a little bigger. Though we were ready to face the Fontan, it's great that Colin is doing well enough that we are not in a rush and can let his body get a little bigger. So for right now we will procrastinate the inevitable. 

We took a nice 3 day trip to New Braunfels this past weekend to meet up with my parents who were camping there. The city is an old german settlement nestled between two rivers in the Texas Hill Country. I love it there, I always have a hard time leaving. Friday my mom took the kids swimming and to play while the "BIG KIDS" (me, Matt, and my dad) went to Schlitterbahn. It's one of the countries top water parks. We decided not to take the kids since Colin is too small and Katherine has no interest in watersides.. YET.. still working on her. It was a very fun day racing down slides and floating in the tubes.

Saturday we took the kids and my parents to Landa Park, which is a park that sits on the river and uses river water for their pools. This is the 3rd year we have taken the kids there and they had fun as always swimming, looking for fish, ridding the train, and doing the paddle boats. I was brave enough to do the rope swing off the platform. First time I did it perfect, the next time, my hands slipped and I fell off too soon and landed on my face. It hurt pretty bad, but after 10 minutes I was fine. The next day though my neck was sore, Monday I went to the doctor and was treated for whiplash.. yes you read that correctly. 

Matt and Katherine being silly in the river

Beautiful day for a swim

Dad coming off the rope swing

Me coming off the rope swing the right way the 3rd time, I had to redeem myself after landing on my face

Ready for the choo choo train ride at Landa Park

Colin steering the boat while Matt and Katherine paddle

Katherine driving while Matt and I paddle, Colin is in the back looking at fish

Me & My dad at the Grapevine wine bar

Saturday night we went out to the historic town of Gruene (Green). We ate at the Gristmill, which is a restaurant that over looks the river in an old gristmill. Then we went to a wine bar that is a large lawn and had drinks while the kids played. It was a great evening with good food and even better company. Sunday we hung out for a little while in the morning before making the trip home. The park we camped at had lots of activities for the kids like a jumping pillow, game room, and pools.

Matt & my parents having drinks and listening to the band

Mom and the kids outside Gruene Hall, one of the oldest dance halls in Texas, still has regular concerts there every night over the summer

Katherine on the jumping pillow

Colin on the jumping pillow

Landa Park