Fourth of July

On the fourth of July, we visited two veterans that are dear to our hearts.  The girls helped Mimi deliver new flowers to her father and step-father. 

Cousins

When we were in Austin at the end of June, we were also able to spend a couple of days with Rick, Brisa, and their boys.  They filled our days with fun times, from bowling to swimming.  It's always a blast watching the cousins play with each other.  And Isabella had her first true sleepover when she slept in the same room with Benjamin and Nicolas.  It may have taken them a couple of hours to fall asleep, but all the giggling was worth it. Memories were made.

Gold Friends

Old friends are like gold.  Reminds me of a silly song I sang as a girl scout, "Make new friends but keep the old, One is silver and they other's gold."  As we make some new friends here in SA, I dearly miss the great ones we have left behind.  So we were so excited to be able to visit with some of these friends recently. 

 In mid June we were visited by some of our favorite people, the Frazier family.  We enjoyed a weekend catching up with them.  It was just like old times on Friday night when the four of us left the littles with a babysitter and we took off for some adult time.  It meant so much to Mark and I that we could feel like we could just pick up where we left off six months before.  And then we had a fun and sweaty time the next day when we took all four kiddos to Sea World.  We were so exhausted when we returned, that all eight of us took an afternoon nap. 

At the end of June, the four of us took a trip up to our old stomping grounds to visit with some more of our favorite friends.  The girls and I spent the morning doing our old Saturday morning routine:  walking at town lake and feeding the ducks.  But this time, we were able to do with it with my dear old high school friend and bridesmaid, Misty and her sweet baby boy, Joaquin who just moved to Austin from Brooklyn. 

Later that day we hung out with the Canales'.  We love those two, who will soon be three!  We are so happy for them!

Daddy's Day

We were blessed to be able to spend Father's Day with not only one of our favorite fathers, but three of them!  Father's Day started early with one of Mark's favorites...hot from the oven cinnamon rolls.  No, I didn't slave away in the kitchen, but instead slipped out to a corner bakery to pick up some fresh ones.  After a long walk to burn off some ooey gooey calories, we all headed to church.  After church we were excited to spend the afternoon with Papa.  He received a smoker for Father's Day, so our mouths were watering for some yummy grub.  And boy was it yummy!  It was so tender, it fell apart as he pulled if off the grill.  Not bad for a rookie!

We are so thankful that Papo came into town to spend the weekend with us. We only hope we will see him again sooner than later!

Some home-made gifts from the girls.  They received lots of compliments from the neighbors on our morning walk.

Chillin' and grillin'

"Trust God!"

Last week the girls enjoyed some fun-filled mornings at VBS. They eagerly looked forward to each day's activities. Each morning we had to make sure and get up and out of bed on time. Even Victoria, our late riser, was ready to be pulled out of her crib each morning at 7am on the dot. They slipped on their VBS shirts and were ready to eat breakfast in the car so we could make sure to arrive at church on time. By the end of the week, they were reciting their bible verses and singing to the songs in the backseat. "No matter who you are, TRUST GOD!" "No matter what you do, TRUST GOD!" "No matter how you feel, TRUST GOD!" No matter where you are, TRUST GOD!" "No matter what people do, TRUST GOD!" Victoria's favorite thing at VBS was playing games, and Isabella's favorite thing was singing.  My favorite thing was that  I was able to volunteer each day and see their sweet smiles as they entered the craft room (where I was working) ready to create something special. 

Visit from Nana and Grandpa Rami

We were so happy to have Nana and Grandpa Rami spend a few days with us, and even more excited that we were going to be able to spend Nana's birthday with her. The days always seem to fly by, but we were able to squeeze in some fun activities into the few days we had them here.

Victoria is captivated by the lions.

Couldn't get the four kiddies to stand still. 

"I think I see something."

Noah was such a good sport.

Finally...a snow cone to cool us off!

The girls are enjoying their first snowcone ever! 

How long does it take to make a snowcone?  Can't you see we're sweating out here!

Feeding the spoiled goats.

Open it!  Hurry Nana!

Making Nana her chocolate almond cupcakes for later.

Spending a morning at The Guenther Inn.

Waiting patiently for their pancakes

Cooling off on a hot summer day.

Celebrating Nana and enjoying a nice dinner out.

First Fishing Trip

So Grandpa took the day off to take the girls fishing.  It was going to be a morning with just the three of them, but when their daddy found out, he couldn't miss their first fishing experience.  So he took the day off too.

I think the boys were more excited than the little girls.  The night before, Mark took the girls to Academy to pick out their own fishing poles.  Punkin chose a lime green Tinkerbell one, and Sweet Pea settled for a pink Princess pole (since her first choice, Hello Kitty, wasn't an option at the store).  Charlie came over after the girls when to sleep and they both got their poles ready and tackle boxes packed.

Grandpa comes knocking early the next morning ready to go!  Everyone gets packed up, and they all head out.  And Momma gets the morning off!

Sounds like they all had a great time, and the girls had a fun and successful first fishing experience.  They came home with sixteen pounds of catfish!  Isabella was reeling in her own fish by the end of the morning, and Victoria caught one just about as big as her pint-sized self.  We baked up the day's catch for dinner and all five of us gobbled them up.  The girls loved them!