a MAJOR milestone!!

I cannot tell you how happy I am to say that Riley finally has enough hair for rubber bands and hair bows! Doesn't she look cute? I have waited and waited and yes, waited for this day to come (almost 4 years, but who's counting?)...and what's even better is that she let's asks me put them in her hair.

(I think I have died and gone to heaven). We've had bows and barretts stashed away and everytime I tried she either yanked them out or they fell out, much to my disappointment.

Yes, I am that mom- the one who loves bows in their little girls hair- but just had to, yep you guessed it, wait for her blonde hair to GROW.  Any of you who have known her also know that she was practically bald up until her 3rd birthday and then it very s-l-o-w-l-y started growing.  It is starting to fill out and she's even getting curls to it. Let's be honest, she's got the hair I always wanted...blonde, curly (loose tendrils) when wet/humid, and the ability to blow dry it straight. I'm jealous.

Let the bow shopping begin!

well, and not to leave my other child out, he likes his hair spiked. His hair was never an issue- he had his first hair cut just before he turned one at the same time Riley got her first hair cut (she was almost 3 and just needed a "trim"). Anytime we go somewhere he runs to my bathroom cabinet and grabs his hair gel and then proceeds to tug at my leg and say, "hair!" repeatedly until it's his turn.

Inks Lake, Part II

a fun Saturday

Yesterday we spent the day by taking the kids to the circus. My mom had mentioned taking the kids back at the beginning of summer and I thought it would be something that the kiddos would enjoy. I always went every summer as a kid with my friend, Jessica, so the circus to me was always something fun and super entertaining.



The kids did really well and were pretty enthralled by the whole show- which was 2 hours!! We had a small intermission so we let the kids stretch their legs and took potty breaks. We honestly weren't too sure how well they would "sit". Cole sat in my mom's lap a good majority of the time and clapped and kept saying "all white horsie", "all white zebra"...(well yeah, buddy, sort of). So cute tho complete with him just clapping and laughing. Let's be honest...he's 2 and there's a reason they call them terrible. He doesn't always sit that well...unless it's cartoons, and when he wants to move, there is no holding him back. I'm not gonna lie...I had visions of a temper tantrum complete with the ear piercing screams and then me wanting to crawl under my chair. I was so relieved and let's also add thankful. He proved me wrong. wow!

There was so much going on to keep their attention that I'm pretty sure that was why. Brian and I had a good time watching the kids have fun but it's just not the same as when we were kids. I remember the 3 ring circus, families of trapeze artists that would swing and tumble from end to end at The Summit and drop to the big mesh net, the motorcycles on the high wire and in the round cages...none of that. The animals were there doing some of the same things but it has definitely changed since our days. Overall the kids did really like it.


If you get there early enough, they have an Open House where you can walk through and see the animals and meet the clowns. I was quite surprised the kids weren't scared.

Can you tell they had a good time?

Saturday night we met up with our friends Matt and Jess and headed out to Tomball to this place known for the Mega Mel Burger. Check it out here. I can't believe in the 7 years we have lived out here, I have never been. Super cheap ($3.20 for a cheeseburger!) and super yummy. Ya'll know my love for food, and it did not disappoint. This is one of those country places everyone knows about (well except me until recently) and they pack them in rain or shine. It was packed- people waiting on the porch, on the picnic tables outside, down the side out to the parking lot. Thank goodness the wait wasn't real long. And just as packed as it was outside, so was the inside. Not one empty chair. Seriously.

We all got the famous cheeseburger (I couldn't convince Matt to eat the Mega Mel and I was a bit bummed but at $20.00 and about 3.5 lbs, I guess I can't blame him but a man did do it in 9 min!! I missed out seeing it because it happened before we got seated) and the BEST onion rings I have ever had. They were prefectly fried with a tempura-like batter- not real oily but just the right crunch. Oh.my.heavens. I ate too many.

Happy 2nd Birthday!!!

Happy 2nd Birthday to our sweet little love....today you turn 2 and we could not imagine our lives without you!

At 2, you weight in at a little over 26 lbs. and are just over 34" tall. You can wear a 2T but mommy has to roll them over. HA!

*You have the sweetest smile and crystal blue eyes.
*You LOVE the outdoors and the water. I love how you say "watie" when you want to change into your swimsuit or go swimming.
*You are all boy- trucks, trains, tractors, guns, and anything else you can get pleases you. Riding in your daddy's "ruck" is the best.
* I love that you are a sleepy head in the mornings like your mommy and you are my cuddler.
* You are so compassionate to your sister "Wiley" esp. at bedtime when you have to give her hugs and kisses 10 million times and then say "weet dreams" before you go to bed. This also applies to Sadie, our dog, who you HAVE TO hug also before bed.
* You LOVE "b" (strawberry) or "whocolate" milk. ( I think we need to buy our own cow).
* I love how your face lights up when you recognize someone you know.
* You are inquisitive and like to figure out how things work. And when you notice something or figure it out, you go running to try and tell someone.
* You can be quite independent and when you get your mind set on what you want, good luck changing it.
* You have a pretty good appetite and will devour yogurt, pancakes, or grilled pork chops.
* I love how every time you saw a horse, you would say "moo" before you eventually figured out you had it mixed up. You even named your favorite stuffed horse Moo, who has to sleep with you every night.
* You can bust a move anytime you hear music.

Cole Matthew, you have blessed our lives and expanded our hearts! We love you BIG!

Inks Lake, part I

This last week was the annual family get together in the hill country for Brian's family. Ever since all the kids (I say kids, but I mean Brian and all his 100 cousins that are now grown) were little, they've been vacationing to Inks Lake every summer. We try to go every summer and join in on the fun, sun, and family time so we took off last Wed. and spent 5 days. Most everyone made it and it was a great time for us to spend time together. I had never even heard of Inks Lake until I met his family. It's nestled in the hill country, surrounded by the mountains, and their campsites are usually straight across from Camp Longhorn.



We all had a great time even though the weather wasn't stellar everyday. There were quite a few times when all of us were soaked. Brian ended up not coming on Fri as planned but staying here since the forecasts were so grim. And just like with any forecast, sometimes its right, most of the time its wrong when it comes to rain. It rained on and off Thursday and soaked us on Friday. Luckily, against the weather predictions, it cleared out by Sat. and was that gorgeous hill country weather we love.



The kids played so hard- I knew the naps weren't going to happen- so I didn't even try on vacation. I don't know how they did it but they played hard all day long and went to bed much later than normal and still managed to stay sane. And so did this momma.



These are a start to the gazillion pics everyone took:





Reese and Riley

Gorgeous sunset Wed. evening after the rain...

These two were inseperable when together...

My Roo Bug and Jeep

This is the norm at Brian's gp's house. We stayed at their house and the deer are so tame they come right up and eat corn out of your hands (well, ok, some were brave enough. Most just looked at me wondering who I was because I look nothing like Papa who feeds them all the time) The reality is I lured one in with a fruit snack and they all came over when the saw I had corn. This is what we call welfare deer. They would've have continued to eat as long as I was willing to feed them. Ha.

Greedy thing, this one was. I was trying to be fair and feed everyone.

I know my dad was probably smiling down or maybe he was shaking his head in disbelief that I had them eating out of my hands. He never would've believed me if I had told him.

Sat. night we loaded up in the car and headed to the bridge over Inks to watch some of the fireworks going off. We caught a free show from some residents who had an arsenal on their boat dock. No pics of the fireworks...pics through a fence doesn't look so good.

More pics to come later....