Field Trip

Today we went to the Downtown Aquarium with my cousin Alysia and her nice big brood. I had never been there, which is hard to believe since it's like a block from Wortham Theater and I used to be there just about everyday. I'm glad my first time was with them though, because watching the excitement of a 6 year old and an almost 4 year old run around freaking out at every little thing is pretty awesome. Look how excited lil'bub was to be there........

haha! she literally fell asleep the second we walked in! Granted, it was nice and dark and she had not had a morning nap yet, but geez..I know for sure that she would have liked to bang on some glass and scare some fishies!!

Here are Katie and Mackenzie getting ready
to pet a crab (it says use one finger!!!)

Here's Alysia's husband Chip being very educational.
Do you see the swimming sea turtle?

Does this photo freak anyone else out? It's very disconcerting to walk into a room with aquariums and see a human hand randomly swimming around!

My favorite part was at the end when we got to see the BEAUtiful white tigers. I got some funny photos...it looks like the tigers are just standing around us. And for some reason, their eyes light up like on fire, I guess (hope) from the flash---not their desire to devour us.

Alysia, Mackenzie, Katie....AND TIGER!!

WATCH OUT ALYSIA!!!!

wasn't he sweet to pose with me??

We ended with a carousel ride for the kids and then a train ride for everyone through the "Shark Voyage."

Katie on a dolphin

The humidity was terrible and we were all sweating buckets, so the train ride was actually nice. We went in a tunnel with various sharks swimming around, and random scuba divers, but it was air conditioned so I didn't really notice that much. Too bad they had to keep blowing the exceptionally loud train horn and totally freaking out our kids!

Here we are with the babies, Avery and Jack. They were born about two weeks apart. Here's a photo from almost exactly one year ago....

Aren't they cutie pies? They have grown up a bit I think.

Afterward we met my mom and Alysia's mom (the twinkies) for lunch at Spaghetti Warehouse. The last time I was there was in junior high or high school for some kind of school outing. And guess what? The food is still terrible!! (just in case you were wondering) The kids liked it though, and the sourdough bread was yummy, so it was good times. Here is lil'bub with her Nana.

Thanks Transous!! We had a great time. And today was the official beginning to our family summer vacation---Bub the hub let me start it with a nap from 3:30-7pm!!! woohoo what a great hubby. AND I NEEDED IT!! We leave next week for the beach ;)

Wonderful Wednesday

It's a Wednesday of just a few words...just so you all know, this is how I love to be greeted after a long nap (hers and mine).

Having a much better day today, can you tell?

Mischievous Munchkin

Yep, it's true. That little angel in all the photos can be very naughty sometimes. Lately lil'bub has been trying to unstrap/unbuckle/bounce out of every seat we put her in. This is especially true lately in her highchair. We don't put the tray on all the time, especially when we are spoon feeding her something, and so she starts going for basically anything on the dining table within reach. And now she is practically falling out of her chair to reach for things, and definitely would if we didn't strap her in so tightly!!

It gets really interesting when she goes for the placemats though. There are typically about five things on the placemat (and usually my dinner plate!) and so it gets a little hairy. We did start clearing out all objects that we thought were within reach, but it didn't seem to matter....

let's see here, what can I get??

oooo yeah, my favorite, a placemat!!
let me pretty much fall out of my chair to get this...

lemme just move this over
(and off the table if mom didn't stop me)

who me?? be naughty?? naaaaah

So yes, we have learned the hard way about this placemat affinity. Luckily no broken dishes though! Can you believe how long her hair looks in that last photo! She looks like a little lady :)

I am blogging right now on my laptop that I finally got back today, completely healed. I missed him horrendously and promise to be blogging more now that he is back! It was nice to get him back after a long day. Have I mentioned before that Tuesdays are the WORST DAYS? I just barely make it through them every week. Avery has three therapies, one being at Texas Children's Rehab, where she screams like being tortured for the entire hour. Throw in the drive, the wait, the traffic, and the expense and you get one pretty frustrated momma.

Today while I waited for my car (we had to valet because traffic was awful and I didn't want to be late...did it matter? NO because the therapist was late :()) a random lady sat down beside me and asked me if I was ok. When I said yes thanks, she told me no, I was not, she could tell in my eyes that something was just wrong....how do you even respond to that? I told her thanks again, but I'm sure she didn't have the time to hear about my complaints for the day. My car came right then so I had to take off, but she definitely weirded me out. So I guess these Tuesdays are getting to me. Thank goodness we are vacationing next week!!! No therapy!!! No doctors!! All beach!! yes.

Long Week

Well y'all, this has kind of been the week from hell. Hence no posts! To make matters worse, my little laptop got sick and had to go to the doctor this week. So I didn't have him all week and still don't have him back. This means that I have to go all the way upstairs! and get on the old PC if I want to get some computer time. Ridiculous huh? I know.

SO anyway, lil'bub had a very trying week in therapy, which makes me pretty much miserable. Sometimes it's just too much for her (and me) to take. However we did end the week on a good note today, with NO therapy, and I got to pretty much lay around while she took long naps and played with Bub the hub. He gets home before lunch on Fridays, which I LOOOOOVE. It's just a fantastic way to start the weekend....and lord knows I have not been able to lay around for, well......since Avery's been born!

The other good news is that the laptop got sick exactly one day before the warranty ran out (when does that happen right?), so we didn't have to pay! It feels nice. If they would just give him back then we could pretend this whole week didn't happen. Except for Monday! Monday was fun because Aunt Ali joined lil'bub and I at the pool. And yes, we are turning into pool rats. And we like it :)

Avery sure does love her Aunt Ali!


She debuted a new suit- a bikini!!!
Look at that adorable belly button!! Here, I'll help:


It doesn't get much cuter folks.

We paused from swimming to cool off with a little yogurt.

This was her expression when we ran out of yogurt.

So like I said, the only thing I really did today was lay on the couch and watch t.v. I watched an entire "True Hollywood Story" on that old sitcom Home Improvement. Two hours long! I was totally mesmerized. Who knew there was so much drama? We all watched The Rachael Ray Show too. I entered some contest on her website to win a makeover and a trip to the Emmy's. A girl can dream can't she!

Back to today, Bub the hub was wonderful and just let me relax. All I did was dress lil'bub. And gave her a snack this afternoon. She's back into loving those biter biscuits.

yum yum

We finally just firmed up our summer vacation plans. We were originally thinking of going to San Diego, but ultimately decided on Destin, Florida. Nothing like the near end of summer to plan your vacation! No matter, we will have a good time and chill by the beach. We are going at the very beginning of August, so I don't even have to wait long. This family needs a vacay big time!!!

Family Swim

We finally got the chance for Bub the hub to join lil'bub and I at the pool this weekend, and we got some really cute photos. Avery wore her pink and brown polka-dot swimsuit with matching cover-up. She got lots of compliments at the pool! Here's why.....

gettin' ready to go

pink cheek cutie

after her first dip...we had to add the hat, it was so hot!
good thing it matched right?

bathing beauties haha

laughing with daddy


taking a another dip

cheesing for the camera


too sunny!

kicking with mom

We tell her, "kick-kick-kick!" and her little legs just start going at it! I love it! She's turning into a fish just like her momma. She even swallowed some pool water and didn't seem to mind...much. Her daddy tried showing her how to make bubbles and she thought that was hilarious. Maybe we can convince her to try it herself sometime soon. Lil'bub is going to start doing swim therapy classes through Texas Children's soon since she is doing so well in the water. We are going to have to work on going underwater--that will be interesting considering she freaks out if even bathwater gets near her eyes. We'll see...cross your fingers!

ROADTRIP

So last week I got an email saying that a very good friend of mine was going to get a proposal from her boyfriend and we were invited to come to Austin to celebrate. Well, this was an event that I really couldn't miss, especially because it was my sweet friend Diana Wightman, who I don't get to see near as much as I would like to. And also because it was going to be a surprise proposal at the end of a couples' triathlon!! SOOOOO, Bub the hub and I popped lil'bub in the car and made the trip up to Austin. Avery did excellent in the car, sleeping a lot, and snacking (yogurt melts are her favorite right now) and lots of talking. We got to stay with my cousin Alysia and family, which was also a treat. She has Katie, who just turned 6, Mackenzie, who is about to be 4, and Jack, who is about 17 months. It's a full house!

The little girls were so full of energy and very loving, especially with Avery. Katie played lots of peek-a-boo with her and Mackenzie just kept giving kisses and hugs. The girls took a moment from coloring to take a photo with me.

They made these cute pictures for us... can you believe how well Katie represented Spongebob and his sidekick, Patrick? And Mackenzie is coloring in the lines like a pro!

Katie's art

Mackenzie's art

Saturday night we all had dinner with one of our very best friends, Logan, and his family. We don't get to see them enough either! Bub the hub and Logan had a good time catching up, when they weren't watching one of the 30 different t.v.'s in this restuarant with various games on. Heaven for them, I'm sure.

Lil'bub got very sleepy

Meanwhile, I pigged out (on fried pickles, mac&cheese, waffle fries, and BLT...yeah I went a little far) and talked to Amber, Logan's lovely wife. She has Eli, who is about to be 3, and Calvin, who just turned 1. She is a busy woman too! Here we are all together:

Bub the hub and Eli have a mutual Batman affection :)

THEN we woke up early on Sunday morning (not hard considering Avery's new 6am wake-up time :() and drove across Austin to Decker Lake, where Diana and her boyfriend Keegan were competing (fiercely I was told) against each other in a triathlon!! I got there just in time to help cheer Diana to the end! I helped hold up the last of five signs spelling out, "DI WILL YOU MARRY ME (KEEGAN)?" Keegan met her at the finish line. Of course, she said yes! An Austin news film crew was there to document it all too--- here is the couple right afterward, Di was so happy, you can see it on her face...

Here I am with Diana's mom (my 1st grade teacher!)
and more friends

Here's Diana with me, showing off her ring

Avery was very excited for Di too!
She got all dressed up just for the event...
her little cheeks are flushed from being outside.

Avery made a new little boyfriend in Sam Fredrickson,
Mari's adorable son.

At first she looked at him like who is this?
but she warmed up later!

You can watch the video of everything here:
http://www.kvue.com/video/index.html?nvid=379511&shu=1

Afterwards we went to a DElicious Mexican food restaurant to celebrate. We got to sit next to the Fredricksons and baby Sam and talk about baby stuff, so I was happy :) Lil'bub got her first taste of GUACOMOLE!! She looooved it.

Look at that green mouth

yummmmmm

Diana, Sam, Avery and me

It was quite a weekend. Avery did really great on the car ride home too. We collapsed when we got home. This week has been equally exhausting...I have had to take lil'bub to the medical center every day this week for one or more appointments a day. It's certainly making her sleep more! Hopefully I can find my rest somewhere too. If you made it all the way to the end of this blog, then I think you need some rest as well. Sweet dreams!

Balancing Work and Play

Yes, lil'bub balances it well. All you working moms take note, haha! Last week was a good mix of both, which I always try to do, so she doesn't think we are in constant therapy (which she kind of is, but shhhh, don't tell her). Avery did some excellent sitting with her daddy and Ms. Leigh. Here she is peeking over the table at me:

And playing with her favorite pop-up toy while sitting, also known as MULTI-tasking...

A couple of weeks ago I found this fun bubble gun at Target and lil'bub absolutely loves watching and grabbing at the bubbles. She makes the funniest mouth when they pop near her face. She sticks out her bottom lip like she's hoping to eat them if they are just close enough. I didn't get a good photo of that face, but here are some winners:

She pretty much flips out with happiness when she sees them.


Here she is grabbin a few.


and gigglin

We also had a wonderful visit from Laurie and Leila. I think Leila enjoyed all of Avery's toys. We even sent her home with one! That's just how much Avery appreciates her friends :).

Here's a good shot that showcases their drool!
Avery just got tooth #7 and it's been non stop!!!

Here you can see her adorable bow.
(Leila gave it to her for her birthday)
Looks like Leila is teething too.

In physical therapy, Avery is working on putting weight down on her right hand, so she can steady herself on both sides when she sits. She is definitely not a fan, so this was a very rare smile during weight bearing exercises:

As a reward, she got to watch some Spongebob right afterwards! She looks a little entranced. If I start singing the theme song, she looks toward the t.v. and gets super excited. It's hilarious.
She is sitting in her "supportive sitting chair," which teaches her to sit up straight.

This past weekend was incredibly busy, but in a good way. We took a very last minute trip to Austin and got to visit lots of great friends (and baby friends) and be there for a very special event. Unfortunately, I forgot to take my camera, so I had to rely on other people to take the photos and I am still collecting them. We will be back tomorrow to share how amazing it was!