November

We have been busy this month.  Austin took 6 swim lessons at Memorial Athletic Club's indoor pool.  His teacher was Casey.  He enjoyed them, sometimes.  Casey was really good about singing songs and making everything a game.  Austin definitely has a ways to go before he can even try to stay afloat by himself but he is not scared of the water.  We will try lessons again in the spring or early summer.  Austin got another haircut, which was NOT fun for him.  He cried the whole time even with a lollipop and animal crackers.  David and I left Austin behind in Houston while we drove to Austin for the UT vs OKState game.  It was a 2:30 game so it worked well to go for the day.  Aunt Carrie so kindly babysat in the morning and MiMi in the afternoon until we got home that evening.  It was a terrible loss for the Horns but we had fun tailgating, visiting with my Dad who shared his tickets with us, and also got to see friends Doug and Tory at the game.  We even made a special stop to see Amanda, Stephen and baby Paige at their house before the game.  

Austin is boldly expressing his desire for independence.  He wants to do EVERYTHING by himself even if it is impossible for him to.  "My do it" is the phrase he uses.  They say this is a good thing and important for development but, man, it is tough for the parents.  Hopefully he will get passed the "tantrum every time he doesn't get what he wants stage" soon.  Or is this a long-term thing?  We will see. He is saying so many things now and really starting to string words together.  I can tell he just absorbs everything like a sponge.  We better watch out what we say and do because this boy picks up on everything.  Although he can be tough at times, he is a busy, curious boy who is keeping us on our toes.  

Hi Mommy!  

Random sunrise during my morning run

Just before the haircut

Blonde curls

Waiting for DiDi to come watch my haircut

Puffy-eyed boy. It is just a haircut and only took about 7 minutes

Got my sugar now

More swimming with Casey

Tailgating

Lots of Burnt Orange and White

The random Hook 'em shot

DKR Stadium=great place

Aunt Ricki's Birthday party!

Aunt Ricki's (and Aunt LaLa's) birthdays were on November 2.  Aunt Ricki asked friends and family to come to Bayou Wildlife park in Alvin (SE of Houston) to celebrate her's.  She grew up going here so it was fun for her to have all of us see what it's all about.  They have all kinds of exotic animals and we got to go on a tram ride through the park. Everyone was given a bowl of food to feed them.  They came all the way up to the open-aired tram and were not shy about busting in to get some food.  Austin found it both fun and scary at times.  Thanks for planning such a fun birthday party, Aunt Ricki!

Warming up to the animals with Daddy

Grabbing some food from uncle Stephen's bowl

Hi Mr Camel - wise men ride on you (Austin still has an obsession with the wise men in his picture Bible)

Invading our personal space

This guy was HUNGRY

Emu's eyes are red - scary!

Just some deer, Bambi too

Double stuffed oreo is her name - she is pregnant

Why hello up there (btw this is the blue-est I have ever seen the Houston sky - it was a gorgeous day -reminds me of the Denver sky)

Enjoying cookie cake for aunt Ricki's birthday (yes, he was happy, I assure you)

After nap and watching the Horns win, the 3 of us headed to Escalantes for some patio dining and queso.  Austin shoveled in the queso by the spoonful.  What a mess! :)

Trip to DFW

Over the last weekend in October, we headed to Dallas to visit my dad "Pop" and his wife "Gram".  Although it was a short weekend trip, Austin loved seeing Pop and Gram.  We didn't arrive until dinner time on Friday night so we ate at their house and Austin went to bed.  On Saturday morning David and my dad played golf and Michelle, Austin and I went to the Dallas Arboretum for the pumpkin exhibit.  It was amazing - thousands and thousands of pumpkins.  Houses built of pumpkins, pumpkins lining all of the sidewalks...crazy!  Austin had fun running around amongst the pumpkins.  We also visited the chilrens' garden for a bit.  We grabbed a bite to eat and headed back to the house so Austin could nap.  That night, David, my dad and I drove to Ft Worth for the Texas vs TCU football game.  Michelle and my aunt Sally who lives in the Dallas area babysat Austin.  It was our first Texas game of the year and David's first time to go to a TCU game since college.  Unfortunately, during the 2nd quarter, a massive thunderstorm rolled through.  The game ended up being delayed for over 3 hours due to torrential rain, thunder and lightening.  We waited out the delay for about 1 1/2 hours hiding out under the stands.  We then decided to head back to Dallas but not before walking about a mile in the pouring rain. We did have ponchos but those only do so much.  At least it was about 70 degrees and not too cold because we were soaked by the time we got to the car.  The game started again about the same time we got back to my dad's house.  I couldn't even stay up to watch it since it was already almost midnight.  Oh well, Horns, we tried to support.  At least UT pulled off the win.  It was a fun weekend with Pop and Gram. Thanks for having us!

Baby brother

Yes, that is right, baby #2 is a boy!  Austin will have a baby brother in April.  We are excited and know that the boys will be best friends and have so much fun playing together.  We were surprised because we thought the baby was a girl.  We had a girl name picked out but had not even thought of boy names.   We better get to thinking.  During the ultrasound, baby boy was facing towards my back and is breech. I was nervous that the baby was going to be shy and we would have to leave without finding out the sex.  Finally, after about 20 minutes of confirming that everything looked good with the anatomy, I turned onto my side and the ultrasound technician was able to capture a view of between the legs.  Yes, the baby is a boy.  We are thankful that everything is looking good and the baby seems healthy and on track.  He is about 12 ounces, which is the 66th percentile (not really sure if how accurate those measurements are).  So we will have two little crazy boys running around before we know it.  Mom will be outnumbered.  At least Savannah is a girl. :)  We shared the news with my mom, Lauren, and Ricki.  I also called Rachel in Denver to share. She is already an awesome mother of 2 little boys.  That night, we had MiMi, Big Deal, and the Barretts' (sans Ben and Davy since Ben was sick) to share the news with them.  I made some cupcakes with blue icing and we had blue balloons.  I can't wait to meet the little boy and watch Austin and him grow up together.  I pray that they are best buddies :)

Blue, Blue and more blue

Austin is not digging picture-posing these days

Boy #2 here we come...

Cousin Summer came over to celebrate and plays great with Austin

This guy takes cupcake-eating seriously

Seriously.....meltdown ensued after we denied him a 3rd cupcake

Silly boy in dad's jeans