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| Fashion Island stroll after Michael arrived in California |
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| Mesmerized by the Koi fish |
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| Park play date with the kiddos the day before we left for Hawaii |
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| Lake house lounging |
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Meet Barretta!
After an unfortunate diaper at the lake, we had to resort to Landry's dress |
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| Finger painting, which turned into face painting, last weekend |
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| I could snuggle with this cutie pie all day! |
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| Toying around with crawling |
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Meet Dr. Barrett!
He had to get in on the playroom fun last weekend. |
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| Feeding the ducks post-brunch last weekend |
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| Landry is obsessed with balloons. So naturally Barrett is too. |
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| Girls night last Saturday! |
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| Yep, I officially have a mom cut. |
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| Takeoff selfie. We had the BEST time in Hawaii! |
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| Michael's 40th was spent relaxing, drinking Mai Tai's and soaking up the sun |
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| This text from Mimi and Papa on Michael's birthday melted our hearts |
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| Luau selfie on the old guy's big day |
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| Love this pic my mom caught while we were away |
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Tourist alert!
We ziplined through the Maui forest. It was amazing! |
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| One of many lovely dinner dates on the island |
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One night we took a champagne sailing cruise at sunset.
This one of my favorite parts of the trip. |
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| Rainbow! |
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Our first day back we took her to Balboa Island,
the arcade, the Ferris wheel, a stroll down the pier and for a milkshake.
She was in heaven (that's her Hawaii backpack we brought home)! |
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| King of the sand castle! |
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| Visiting with Nanay and Tatay. |
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| This sums up Barrett perfectly: laid back and happy! |
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| Sad to leave California, but happy to get McDonald's at John Wayne |
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| Coffee date with my ballerina before her first dance class |
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| Pre-surf lesson shot |
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| Catching some huge waves! Wink wink. |
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| Early morning snuggles with this rooster |
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| Playing dress up before bed this week |
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Landry wanted to play beauty parlor with Barrett.
He didn't seem to mind |
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Had some quality time Friday with this guy.
So, naturally, I took lots of photos! |
It's hard to believe today is the last day of summer! We've packed in so much since my last post I don't even know where to start...
We celebrated Michael's 40th birthday in Maui and it was fabulous! We balanced relaxation and activities just right. We are already itching to go back! Hawaii will definitely be in our regular rotation of vacation spots. Michael caught the island bug for sure!
After we got back, we enjoyed another four or five days in California with family and friends. After being away from the kids for a week, we soaked up our one-on-one time with them and the gorgeous summer weather.
Transitioning back to Dallas life was a little tough after 16 days away. Both kiddos had to readjust to the time zone -- and not staying up as late as they want with Mimi and Papa!
The day after we got back in town Landry started back up in her mommy's day out program two days a week. She's adjusted well and goes on and on about the art projects and playground time during the car ride home each day.
On Wednesdays, she's now in a ballet class with her besties Charlie and Gabriella. Paula and I crack up the entire 20 minutes they prance around the class. Landry gives us some pretty big laughs as she beats to her own drum most of the time. Let's just say we don't see Juilliard in her future...
The kiddos are growing like weeds. Barrett turned eight months this week and is now in the same size diaper as Landry, which is just nuts. He's only about four pounds lighter than her, too. He's a solid, chunk of goodness. He is just the sweetest, most easy going thing.
He's rolling over a lot and loves tummy time. He's pushing up but not crawling yet. He got his first tooth -- the bottom right -- the day we got back in town. His bottom left is starting to make its way in now. Other than major drooling, he doesn't show any signs of teething. He hardly cries and it doesn't bother his sleep. I count my blessings every day for this sweet bundle of pure joy.
He hasn't really taken to solids, although I try new flavors every week. Last night I finally found the winner -- guacamole! I have tried avocados in the past, but he didn't seem to be a fan. But last night we had friends over for Mexican food and I made guac with garlic powder, salt and pepper. I figured I should try a spoonful and he gobbled it up -- along with another dozen bites. I guess we just needed to season things for our little foodie all this time!
He's still sleeping really well although for the past couple weeks he'll have an off morning and be up around 5:30 a.m. For the most part, though, he sleeps until 6:30 or 7 a.m. He's completely obsessed with Landry and loves nothing more than to be around her. This past week he started this really funny hissing noise/face that shows all of his little gums and cracks me up every time.
Landry is a blast right now. She's talking a mile a minute, although we only understand about 80-percent of it.
What surprises me most is her memory. She remembers everything! If I ask her on a Sunday what she had for lunch after ballet on Wednesday and who came over for a play date (and what activities they did) she can literally rattle off everything. Yesterday Michael asked her the name of the truck driver from one of her toys that they named at the lake two weeks ago and he rattled it right off.
She's about 50-percent potty trained. I think it just really started to click for her this week. One morning I asked her if she wanted to shower with me. She said, "yes Mommy, just a minute." I turned on the water and got ready to hop in when I heard clapping in the water closet. I went in and she had stripped down on her own and tinkled. It was a major big girl moment around here!
She's still in love with art projects and painting. She loves Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, anything Hello Kitty, her pink bike and doll Vicky. She wants to go to the park everyday (as much to play on the swings as to see other kids run around). Her favorite game at home is "doctor" with daddy. Bradley's girlfriend Megan (a nurse) got her a doctor kit and she's obsessed with getting a checkup every night when Michael gets home from work.
Every few days she gets hooked on a new word. This week was "stuck." She loves to pretend she's stuck somewhere -- between the bed and wall, two couch cushions -- and then ask for help. If you don't rescue her right away, she turns into a little actress making noises acting like she's trying to wiggle free but can't. It's the weirdest, funniest thing. I have no clue where she learned this. She loves to act and have the spotlight on her. She can also turn on the tears (mostly fake tears) in an instant. She has a flair for the dramatic for sure.
The past few weekends have been split between chilling at home or the lake house. We've really tried to relax as our weeks are crazy with work right now. Michael and I have both been traveling a lot, too (this week was split between his overnight in Austin and my few days in Rockport for client meetings).
This weekend has been a good balance of fun and relaxation (although Michael has been a little under the weather). I took off Friday to soak up some quality time with the kiddos and have a park play date with friends. Friday night Michael stayed home with the kids to get well while I enjoyed a friend's birthday party. Yesterday I had Morgan's sip-and-see to meet her new little girl Everly Lane and then one of my best friends from college came over for a Mexican dinner with her family. Landry loved running around with her two-year old Graham.
Today will be filled with brunch, the Cowboys game and I'm sure plenty of park time. Just a typical Sunday around here now that it's football season. Happy Sunday everyone!
