Stephens' Stories: More fun visitors!

Uncle Stephen and Aunt Ricki came to meet Austin this past weekend! They arrived Friday night before Austin's bath and bed time. Savannah was VERY excited to see them. On Saturday morning we all (except Savannah) went to the Cherry Creek Farmers' Market to shop and also to eat brunch. David and Stephen had a biscuit from the Denver Biscuit Co bus. It was a large buttermilk biscuit with a fried chicken breast, honey, dijon mustard, and pickles. David so kindly gave me the last third of his - it was delicious! After that, we went by Tony's Market to buy a brisket and ribs to smoke on Sunday. They only had 3 lb or 7lb briskets, so David got the 7lb one. We have leftover smoked brisket to last us a while. On Saturday afternoon we just hung out at the house and got showered for dinner. Showering and make-uping between feedings is an activity for me these days. Since it was an off-weekend for Texas, we didn't have a game to watch but the guys were able to find plenty of other college football on tv to enjoy. On Saturday night (well, at 5:45 since we eat earlier these days to avoid waiting at restaurants for a table with an infant) we went to Steuben's for dinner. It was our first experience where Austin stayed awake in the car for the whole ride to the restaurant and remained awake while waiting for the table and also for about 15 minutes after we sat down. Luckily we were outside and it was noisy so when he fussed a bit, no one could hear him. I did have to hold him and bounce him some to keep him happy. It was another great meal at Steuben's (although I did have the trout again). After dinner, Ricki gave Austin a bottle around 7:45 and we tried to keep him awake until his bedtime feeding at 9:45. That is the fussiest time of the day because he is tired, but I want him to stay awake a little longer so that he sleeps when I sleep.

On Sunday, we went to eat breakfast at the country club. We were on a strict timeline enforced by David. We had to be back before 11am so that he and Stephen could watch the Texans game (Ricki and I don't understand this because isn't this the point of DVR?). Oh well. After breakfast and a feeding at home, Ricki went to the grocery store while I went to the gym (yes, we left Austin to watch the Texans and monitor the brisket in the smoker with the boys). She shopped for ingredients to make us meals. We are spoiled! That afternoon she proceeded to make us 3 different meals, separated into 7 different containers so we could freeze them and pull them out when we wanted them. This is quite the challenge since David does not like onions or bell peppers or things like that. She made baked spaghetti (cheese on top!), chicken enchiladas hold the onions, and chicken, broccoli, and rice casserole. We probably have 8 meals worth of yummy food and it only took her less than 2 hours to make it all. Thanks, Ricki! Ricki, Austin, Savannah, and I also went to Wash Park to walk. It was such a nice day - a little warm for this late in September (highs in mid 80's), but I am not complaining. That night, we enjoyed a smoked brisket with Goode Company (from Houston) BBQ sauce, sauteed green beans, and homemade mac n cheese. I didn't do a thing to prepare any of it. Oh, except for snapping the green beans. It was great!

Austin and I took them to the airport this morning. We were sad to see them go, but we will see them in about 3.5 weeks when we go to Houston. Here are some pictures from the weekend.