This last weekend I had a kid free trip to Houston for a day and a half to hang out with Leslie. We stopped in at Nana’s and I was told her friends in NC are wondering why I haven’t been blogging. So by popular demand here is a new blog.
At the end of August we went camping. Ryan’s parents were kind enough to loan us their truck and camper for our first family camping adventure. Ryan spent much of his childhood camping and the girls have stayed overnight with my in-laws when they camp close to our house, but I don’t camp. To prove my love for my family I agreed to spend a few days roughing it. In some aspects it was better than I expected…and in others it was exactly what I dreaded. We encountered some rain, met some interesting people, saw interesting campsites and made a lot of s’mores.
The river was nice and exactly what Ryan dreamed of all summer while he worked in the fields. If Reese hadn’t convinced Brynn that every rock in the river was an alligator, Brynn might have enjoyed it a bit more and moaned a little less.
We thankfully had no cell phone service so we didn’t have to compete with technology but that also meant there was no way to check the weather when it rained for 11 hours straight.
I also confirmed that I do NOT like using public shower facilities and they are just as horrific as I had imagined them.
We all survived, and we brought home a lot of dirt.
We had one real mission on our trip, to teach Reese how to ride her bike without training wheels. Mission was accomplished, but not without a few temper tantrums. She’s doing great riding on her own. She still needs a little work but she knows what she’s doing.
These pictures were on the way to camp. Reese was exhausted from a week of swimming and fun at home…and poor baby Ty, I think he got car sick.
Right after camping was done, the girls started school. Choirs of angels sang from the heavens…
Reese started 1st grade, she LOVES school so it’s never an issue for her to get up and get ready to go. She was one happy camper that school was starting. She has a few friends in the class from last year but she knows every kid in school…I swear, it’s crazy. I was there last week and a kid I have never seen in my life, said “Hi, Reese’s Mom”. She’s running for mayor next week.
Brynn started school the next week. To say she was overjoyed to go to school would be a BIG understatement. She LOVES school, maybe more than Reese. She loves bringing her backpack and lunch box and she races into school so she can be the first one in class (her words not mine). Each morning she asks if it’s her day for school and if I say yes, she runs around the house screaming with excitement.
Leslie came for Labor Day weekend. It was operation get Brynn’s room redecorated and converted to a BIG girl room. After Nana’s party in August we brought home the twin bed for Brynn and she moved out of the toddler bed. She was so happy.
We painted all kinds of wall decorations, re-did the colors on Reese’s letters and painted her bed. Both girls had fun painting
We made Brynn a popcorn cake since it was almost her birthday. It was awesome!
The finished product for Brynn’s room. She painted the canvas behind each of the letters to spell out her initials. They hang above her bed.
We headed to College Station for the first game vs. Lamar. Our dear friend Jason Henderson is the AD for Lamar so we were thrilled that we could see him back on our old stomping grounds. I had a blast on Friday night seeing Jason and his great girlfriend Taylor. Brynn had fun too with Meems and Grampy at the condo, so much that she passed out at the tailgate and slept for HOURS. It was brutally hot too.
Jason was super nice and let us sit in his press box with him and some high ranking Lamar folks. It was an amazing experience, one I am glad we got to take part in before they knock down the press box to build a new side of the stadium. We had a heck of a time finding the elevator to the press box. It resulted in Ryan and I walking the entire perimeter of the stadium and seeing all the new features from underneath.
The view from our seats.
There has always been a rumor that the press box sways during the Aggie War Hymn when we “Saw Varsity’s Horns Off”. Being an average Joe in the stands you assume it’s an optical illusion because you are moving. Well we were greeted with the paper below that explained that the press box will in fact move and not to be alarmed. It was NUTS. I video taped it because it’s so noticeable that you really are moving. It doesn’t move a little, that sucker is swaying. I had a water bottle on the table and the water was swashing around in there. It was an amazing thing and we are forever grateful to Jason for letting us share in it.
I finally found what I had been looking for to hang between the two mirrors. Our bathroom is complete!
Brynn’s actual birthday
The last weekend in September we had a joint birthday party for the girls. We rented the community center in our neighborhood and a bounce house. About 3 minutes before the start of the party, the heavens opened up. With the help of my in-laws, parents, Leslie and Stacey we all got drenched and moved the entire party (minus bounce house) to our house. We were soaking wet. To say it rained like it did when Noah was loading the Ark would be a good description. It was insane rain for HOURS.
Making candy necklaces
Some of the food.
Some of the kids
Ryan decided last minute to go get the karaoke machine from work and it was a great idea. Dance Party was in full swing during the party.
The popcorn cake we made for Brynn’s birthday with Leslie was so good that we recreated it for the party in ball form. They were so good that Thurman ate 3 and was on his 4th before he got busted.
Our amazing neighbors the Ferguson’s who came to the party.
All the guests. Somewhere back there is an immense amount of dog food. Reese and Brynn decided that instead of having friends bring gifts to the party they would request dog food to donate to the local shelter. We donated at least 100+ pounds of food. It took up the entire back of my car.
After the party they opened gifts from family and some friends.
We dropped the dog food off at the shelter on Monday and Tuesday we got a new dog. I of course looked through the kennels at the shelter for a dog while we were there and found this sweet little doggie who needed a home. Ryan went down the next day with me and met Hank, then he met Thurman and then he came home. His name is now Zorro, and he is about as big as he will get. We all love him. It’s like dog wrestle mania around here most days, with naps in between rounds. They have a blast together. Zorro’s goal in life is to find things we leave on the floor and drag them through the house.
Our old oven sucked. Like took 2 hours to pre heat sucked…and couldn’t heat above 375…We finally got a new oven. I had to cook our meatloaf in the toaster oven before Ryan realized I was serious about how bad our oven really was. Now I can preheat to 425 in 5 minutes and things cook in the amount of time they are supposed to, instead of an hour more than the directions call for.
Brynn in Reese’s fake glasses
Face painting.
Reese got her ears pierced for her birthday but those pictures are on Ryan’s phone so that will need to be for the next blog.
The girls are going to a clinic this weekend where they will learn a dance that they will preform with the high school dance team the following Friday night at halftime. Ryan and I are competing in our first sprint triathlon on Saturday as well. Hopefully we won’t drown.
