Summer Days

Summer is in full swing, in fact it's hard to believe we are already half way through. We have been playing so much that I haven't had time to update. We have quickly learned that Summer in Texas involves swimming basically every day, but we aren't complaining.  The girls love the community pools and all the play dates at surrounding splash pads. The water temps in the pool are crazy because it isn't cold, it's more like bath water. Ha! Even with triple digits, I still think DC is hotter overall in the Summer because of the higher humidity index. We will see what August and September bring.  I will admit that I miss the big rain storms all the time. And, the hardest thing about the weather here is that it is the same thing all Summer long without a lot of variety, but we still love Austin and are enjoying it.

Non-stop swimming. 

The libraries here have awesome Summer programs here.  Above is a kids concert and as you can see, the crowd was going wild, lots of dancing to the music.

Lots of feasts on the back porch with neighbor friends.  Hoping the scorpions stay away.  Found one in the house since the kids left the door open.  Yikes. We will be buying an automatic spring for the door to shut.

We finally changed our plates from Virginia to Texas. Bitter-sweet. The change is good but still can't help but miss our friends in VA.  

Daddy-daughter love walking out of the parking garage at work.

Above is the DMV... need I say more.  You should see my picture that resulted from this event, it's basically pathetic. Taking a picture after surviving the DMV with children can't produce the best results. The picture reflects my mood at the end of the ordeal. ;) We came in a rush to get the license because I wasn't aware you get fined and have to take the driving test again if you don't change it fast enough after a move. Thanks to my cousin for letting me know that detail. Gratefully we barely made it. I will just ignore the fact I have the picture til 2019. Ha! 

Loving the bounce house. 

(Don't ask why Kate is practically naked. This kid is a trip.)

BBQs on the back patio with friends. 

Abby and her friend Austen.

Kate and Veda.

I love runs by the lake in the morning. 

My neighbor Nikah runs with me in the morning I really look forward to it.

Soccer Girl

When we first moved into our home some kind ladies in the area invited us to join their soccer kids league.  It was really nice to have an outlet of running and kicking for Abby. Plus, Kate got to play with friends on the sidelines and had a great time.  We also loved getting to know people in the area and making some new friends.  Abby really liked soccer and hopes to do more in the future.  She even made a couple goals...(though one of them might have been for the other team. ) ;)  I am very entertained watching little kids play soccer. 

The teams biggest fans watching and cheering on the sidelines.

 (As you can see Kate's water bottle leaked all over the bag.)

For some reason the stamp at the end is definitely a highlight.  The coach was awesome and let Kate get a stamp as well.  Her coach was fantastic at teaching the kids.

And, of course, the girls wanted their nails done before each game. Oh wow!

Preschool Graduate

I can't believe it, she is Kindergarten bound.  This little girl graduated from preschool a few weeks ago.   The graduation program was filled with your typical entertainment...several boys digging in their noses (a classic), dresses swinging up and down, and all the kids waving to their fans in the crowd...never dull, always exciting. Daddy surprised her with flowers and she loved it. Since we moved right in the middle of the school year she had two preschools:  Westover in Arlington VA and The Fellowship in Austin. Both preschools were great and she had such a good year.  Abby dealt with the change well and dove right into the new adventure, and boy was it an adventure. 

She's all grown up.  

Here's her class modeling their Texas hats.  Her teacher definitely takes the cake.

Story time with her class at the library.  Kate and I joined in on the fun.

This is a self portrait she painted. ;) 

Brave Grandparents

My in laws were really kind to take on our two girls while I flew for the weekend to my friends wedding and Brett worked.  They were brave to take on the girls. ;) 

Thanks so much for watching them, they had such a fun time.  I just wish I would have taken more pictures of you with the kids.

Shano's Wedding

Shannon has been my friend ever since I was 6 yrs old.  We lived just a few houses down from each other and many Summer days we would run barefoot back and forth from each others homes.  He had many 'lemonade stands' and built pretty cool forts from old scrap-wood. We might have even hid in the window sills of her house from their insane pet bunny. There are many stories to tell but to sum it up, she is basically a sister to me. So, when she told me she was getting married, there was no question that I was flying out for the occasion. I must say it was a bit strange to fly all by myself on a plane. I finished two books and even took a nap, it was awesome. Flying is a completely different experience without little ones, though I did miss them while I was gone.  It was a very quick trip to Utah and back but very worth it.  The wedding was beautiful and fit her personality perfectly.  Mike, her husband is an awesome guy and we are really happy for them.  It was really nice to see family as well during my visit and made for a fun weekend.

(I am sooo sad I didn't have my camera to use during this whole trip, but the phone pulled through for me.)

I loved her cake.

Wedding luncheon

I went downtown literally every day because I love it.  It was fun to meet my mom for lunch at Kneaders and walk around the streets covered in Spring blossoms.  Crazy enough, I got to experience Spring twice this year. ;)

We always love our family walks along Bountiful Blvd.  We ran into my cousin Mike while were walking and it was great to see him before he leaves for his mission in July, he's such a good guy and will be an awesome missionary. 

I got to see my grandparents while I was there.  They have both had a rough couple of months health wise so I'm glad they are doing better. Grandpa was feeling back to normal and cracking his jokes as usual.

The next visit will be in July for a few weeks with Brett and the girls.  Here's hoping we survive the drive. 

April Visits

 This next few posts are a bit delayed but I definitely wanted to document all that happened the last couple months.  We had a chance to do some fun things while my parents were here to help us move.  Of course we had to introduce them to Salt Lick and Hopdoddy's, which both have yummy food.  The trip also wouldn't have been complete without seeing the famous 'bats' downtown.  I have never seen so many bats fly in my life.  The visit ended with my favorite outing, Zilker Park.  The girls loved riding the train and Barton Springs was green and beautiful.  It was our first time visiting this area and it won't be our last, we LOVED it, or at least I did. The girls better have liked it because we will be returning soon. ;)  It's always great to have visits from family and we are very grateful such such an awesome family. 

Before we moved here we were told Texas is just cactus and desert with a few trees... I beg to differ. Austin has much more than just cactus. 

This picture is classic because both are sticking out their tongue to compete in who can swing the highest.

Pops teaching the girls how to skip rocks.

Hopdoddy's shakes are the best.

Getting ready for the bats.

Safe in Nani's arms.

Checking out the trail behind our house.