Installs, snakes and sick kiddos

Barrett playing with my work hat post install

Thanks for the sweet treat Nanay and Tatay!

Ready for takeoff for an adult getaway with friends!

The beautiful view from our room

How pretty is this place? 

Michael walking back from shooting

Group shot!

Art project with my girl post vacay

The past week has been action packed.

It started Monday with Landry's swim class.  Bradley and Megan came to watch and Landry became a little performing fish in the water.  She jumped off the highest point on the jungle gym and held her breath six seconds during her drills.  She is really starting to love the water and is so much fun to watch.

Wednesday we had ballet.  She's finally starting to find her groove and follow instruction. I could watch her dance around in that cute little leotard and tights all day!

Thursday I had a large home office install for a cute California girl I met through a former client.  The install went great and Lauren is thrilled with the results.  Her office was on the third floor so I got a serious workout in, too.

This weekend we were invited on a three-day quail hunt with our friends Nicolette and Miles in South Texas. It was a blast -- and Miles' family home on the famous King Ranch is beyond charming.  We saw gorgeous Texas country and sunsets, got face-to-face with some crazy critters (the boys killed three rattle snakes alone), shot skeet and loads of quail, and ate like kings (cue the fried snake and bacon-wrapped dove). It was such a treat and although we were up early for hunting each morning, it was really relaxing roaming around the outdoors and catching up with friends over margaritas.

Yesterday we got back to two sick kiddos. Landry is getting over a mild cold but Barrett has croup. Last night was no fun as Barrett was up several times. As the weather gods would have it, our doctor's office was closed today due to icy conditions. I stayed home with the kids today to give Cristina some time off and to take special care of Barrett.  He has a doctor's appointment in the morning to get a steroid shot to feel better stat.

When Barrett was napping today, I sent out Landry's birthday invites.  We're hosting a one-of-a-kind painting party at my framer's shop with a local artist.  I think Landry is going to lose her mind at this shindig.  I scheduled it while my parents are in town for the flea next weekend so it will be fun to have family there, too. I can't believe she's almost 3!

Valentine's Day

Ballet class last week

Painting her Valentine's Day tags

Waiting for cake at Poppy's party

Our "love wall" in the kitchen full of art projects, cards, invites, etc.

Morning stroll last weekend

Michael and I are not big Valentine's Day people. But it is a big deal for sweet Landry Grace.

I completely spaced on getting gifts for her schoolmates. So last minute we got creative with stuff around the house to make some DIY treats for her class.

I pulled out a handful of white tags I use for gifts and the flea and had Landry splash them with pink paint and heart stickers from our art bin.  We attached them to granola bars already in the pantry to make heartfelt-healthy Valentine's Day gifts for her friends.  (Once I saw what she brought home from the other kids, I actually thought ours were the cutest in the bunch.)

On actual V-Day, Landry had a birthday party for her schoolmate Poppy at Little Gym.  Landry loved swinging on the rings and the cake portion of the party.

Afterwards we headed home and I prepped for a dinner party.  We hired a sitter to watch our kiddos while we hosted friends for a chic night of cocktails, dinner and dessert.  The weather was so great, we even spent time in the cabana.

It was a laid back day and night full of love. Hope everyone had a nice Valentine's Day, too!

Family photo session 2.0

A year ago, we took Barrett's newborn photos the third week of January.  As timing would have it, one year to the date we took our annual family pics again so it's fun to see just how much the kids have changed over the past 365 days (and not so fun to see how many more wrinkles Michael and I have gotten). 

(Note to self: Next year wait until we're not so pale and the yard isn't so sad looking.)

Luckily, it was a beautiful January day, so we took the brood outdoors to play around the house and capture candid moments of us just being us. Landry wasn't a huge fan of the camera in her face so many of her photos are awkward at best; Michael and I were chasing Barrett most of the time time so action shots were a big part of the process. 

All that said, my friend Christina took so many photos that there were a lot of lovely ones we'll treasure forever.

Water babies

Ready to hop in!

The new flea billboard downtown

Homemade pizza night

Play date cake pop with Elle 

Chillin' by the lake

Loving on her daddy

He'll chew on anything to help the teething pain

Morning shenanigans on the porch at the lake

Blowing on her first dandelion!

Discovering pine needles

Goofing off back home in the back yard

First cruise in our new ride. Just a small little thing.

Park fun after the ride home from the lake

It seems our days have revolved around water this week.

Monday kicked off with Landry's weekly swim class.  She loved it so much she tried her first water slide at the end.  She's really building confidence with her skills in the water.  Today she graduates to wearing fins to work on kicking and understanding the sensation of swimming.

Saturday and Sunday we holed up at the lake house.  It was a gorgeous weekend and we just soaked up the sun most of the time.  Landry got a kite for Christmas and we took it out for its first ride.  I was surprised Landry wasn't more mesmerized by her dragonfly sailing through the sky.  She's still most excited by kicking balls around the backyard.

This week was a fun one, although we've all been a little under the weather.  Thursday I picked Landry up from school for some mommy-and-daughter time.  We grabbed cookies and milk, hit the grocery store and got a balloon.  Friday I took a half day from work to have a fun playdate with my friend Christy and her daughter Elle.  We took the kids to Starbucks and then walked to the park to let them run around for a couple of hours (thank goodness for this warm winter weather!).  And Wednesday night I had my own playdate -- a much-needed night out with my friends Paula and Jon!

Updates on the kiddos: Landry has a new favorite show called Chloe's Closet.  Every night before bed she requests watching it with Michael.  Now that the weather's nice, she wants to garden all the time.  She grabs her bucket and plastic shovel and just kicks up dirt around the yard. She also loves to jump.  She sings this little song about jumping forwards and backwards (I have no clue where she learned it) and hops around the house and yard.

Barrett is in the awful 5:30 a.m. wake up routine for the past week.  The only good part about it is after I get a latte in me I get a couple hours alone with the little guy. But I'm really ready for our normal 7 a.m. wakeup call again though.

He's starting to say more words and walk solo more and more. His favorite activities are kicking balls around the house when you hold his hand and climbing the stairs. He could climb the stairs for hours if you let him. He's also a little dancer. If you play music or sing a song he likes to bop his head and sway his shoulders from side to side. It's the cutest thing, so needless to say I sing constantly to him.

Hope everyone has a wonderful week!