James turns 9!

"Birthdays are good for you. Statistics show that the people who have the most live the longest."
–Rev. Larry Lorenzoni

James’ birthday was this week and there were plenty of activities to make it a fun birthday.  We started with a pancake breakfast, followed by a hide and seek game that Isla made for James.  Afterwards, James opened presents and we spent the next few hours playing with new toys. 

We asked James what he wanted to do for his birthday and he picked rock climbing.  He did awesome, taking to the walls like a champ.  He tackled four walls and was able to make it to the very top of all of them, which required some tricky moves at points.  Ashlyn and Isla had fun also, even if they didn’t have James’ knack for scrambling up the walls.

Mommy had heard about an indoor black-light putt putt place nearby and the kids thought it would be fun.  It was an interesting experience, and being able to play in the air conditioning was a nice bonus.

Since Grandpa and James have a birthday around the same time, we got the some family together for a dual celebration.  We played cards, board games, ate dinner, and had cake.  It was a great way to wrap up a birthday weekend.  Happy birthday James and Grandpa!!

Father’s Day 2021

"We wondered why when a child laughed, he belonged to Daddy,
and when he had a sagging diaper that smelled like a landfill, 'He wants his mother.'"
-Erma Bombeck

This weekend was Father’s Day, and PePa was able to join us for a breakfast made by our resident chefs.  We enjoyed a feast of eggs, biscuits, and sausage gravy.  The breakfast was good, but the best part was spending time with the kids as they worked to do something special for us.

 

The kids weren’t going to let PePa leave without giving him some cards they made.  Isla shyly showed off her gymnastics medals when PePa asked to see them.  Ashlyn refused, she’s even more shy about her awards than Isla is.

 

Later that day we went to a friends house to swim.  The kids enjoyed the fun that can only come from a clear Texas summer sky, warm water, and great group of friends.  It was a nice way to end the Father’s day weekend, spending time with the kids who mean more to me than anything else in the world.  To all the Dad’s out there, happy Father’s Day.

A flurry of activities with friends…

"Ah, summer, what power you have to make us suffer and like it."
-Russell Baker

This was a week of activities with friends.  It started with a visit to the Museum of Illusions, which was fun for a one time visit.  The kids got to see how different illusions work, and as a bonus it made for some good pictures.

The next stop on the fun train was Hurricane Harbor, where the kids were able to go down slides and cool off in the Super Clean Water™.  They all got a little pink despite liberal amounts of sunscreen, but it didn’t stop them from having a great time.

Eager for some air conditioning, the next stops included laser tag, bowling, and Chuck E. Cheese.  That’s a lot of activity in a single week, and we still have a lot of summer to go.  The urge to have an eventful summer after last year’s pandemic induced isolation must be strong.

Summer activities and a gymnastics championship…

"Simone looked at me, so she knows I'm a person in this world."
-Ashlyn

Summer is here, which means swimming season is upon us.  With the water being warm, the kids were quick to jump into the pool at Nina and Papa’s.  I wish I could say it helped work out some of the pent up energy, but they were given equal amounts swimming and sugar.

The US gymnastics championship was held in Fort Worth this year and Ashlyn’s gym had the opportunity to buy group tickets.  It was a fun two days for Ashlyn, who got to see a lot of the best gymnasts in the world, including the greatest gymnast of all time Simone Biles.  They had goods too, allowing us to find them on TV during the beam event.

We purchased seasons passes to Six Flags last year but didn’t get to use them much because of the pandemic.  Thankfully, Six Flags was kind enough to extend the passes through the end of this year.  The kids took the first trip of the summer to the park and had fun going on the rides.  There were still a lot of rides not working, which will make future visits more interesting.