Kaitlynn in the Morning

Lately I have been taking advantage of Kaitlynn's willingness to go outside in the mornings to feed the ducks. I grab my camera and snap away while she looks for the ducks and feeds them some bread. I have been trying so hard to move out of "Auto" mode on my little point-and-shoot camera in order to justify a much nicer camera purchase, but it seems like "Auto" is the only way I can get a decent photo most days. In any case, I can never have too many photos of this little girl!

Go Wildcats!

It might not feel like fall outside yet, but our fall officially kicked off last weekend with the start of Connor's soccer season. His team is the Wildcats and Jeff is the assistant coach. They had a great first game! Connor had so much fun and the smile never left his face. Here are a few photos from the Wildcats' first game.

Connor scored a goal for his team. Look at that proud smile!

Here's Asst. Coach Jeff giving the players a pep talk.

And here's proof that Connor still occasionally checks out his shadow.

Kaitlynn enjoyed hanging out in the soccer net after the game.

And this has nothing to do with soccer, but this last picture was the scene at our house Saturday evening before a huge rainstorm. I went to get my hair cut and in the middle of my session, my hair stylist noticed a huge crowd of people rushing to the windows of the salon. We wondered what was going on and then someone exclaimed, "It's raining! It's raining!" That just shows how much of a drought we've been in down here in Houston...a 10-minute rainstorm was quite the welcome sight for all of us!

Recently

I figured I'd better post some updates on the blog before I got a call from my Mom asking me if we are OK down here! Our September is going great and just as busy as the summer, hence the lack of posts recently. But here is a random collection of photos and updates to prove we're still alive and well.

I have been spending some time volunteering at Connor's school, and I had the privilege of joining him for lunch one day. He was surprised and excited!

I have been doing a lot of shopping lately to transform Collin's former room into Kevin's new bedroom. He is definitely excited to finally have his own room after sharing a bedroom with Connor for the past few years. I will hopefully be able to share pictures of his room soon. One of the things I bought for his bathroom was a little storage bin that Kaitlynn seems to have claimed for herself. She has always been drawn to confined spaces for some reason.

Another big chunk of our time lately has been going into our other house. It was our first home and we have been renting it out ever since we moved a few years ago. We had new tenants moving in last week, so we made multiple trips over there to make sure everything was in good shape. It's a little tricky keeping 2 young kids entertained in an empty house for hours on end. Movies, snacks, and phones sometimes did the trick. Also, the kids discovered the closet under the stairwell (we call it the "Harry Potter" closet) and loved playing there. Connor begged us to move back to that house so he could play in that closet.

I took a picture of the kids under the oak tree in the front yard because I couldn't believe how much it has grown since we lived there. It used to be a tiny little thing.

Kaitlynn has really been enjoying her Mother's Day Out lately. She insists on carrying her backpack all by herself, even though it just about tips her over each time.

And unfortunately, this year at MDO Kaitlynn shows no interest in napping. Her teachers say she stays put and is quiet, but no sleeping. Instead, she sometimes falls asleep in the carpool line while we wait for Connor.

Since Connor is now in school full-time, Kaitlynn and I have enjoyed a few lunches with Jeff lately. He loves having lunch with "his girls" as he calls us. I tell you, the relationship between Kaitlynn and her Daddy just gets sweeter and sweeter these days. There is no shortage of hugs, kisses, and love here.

And since I'm on the subject of Kaitlynn, I thought I'd share a picture of my favorite new hairstyle for her. Unfortunately she doesn't tend to keep the bows in this way, but oh, what I wouldn't do for that hair.

Last but not least, check out this little stunt by Kaitlynn. I wonder if it's too soon to sign her up for gymnastics??

Special Season Opener

Yesterday was a special day in so many ways. It was the season opener at home for our Houston Texans and our entire family was able to attend. That alone made it a great day, and it only got better and better.

First up, tailgating. It was a hot one! We enjoyed hanging around in the shade, eating some food and snacks, throwing the football, and the teenagers even managed to get a nap. Seriously, they can sleep anywhere!

Finally, we made it inside the air-conditioned stadium.

Every stadium chair had a miniature US flag as part of the September 11 tribute, and the pre-game ceremony was as touching as I've ever witnessed. On the field was a 100-yard American flag. "Taps" was played and we watched on the screen as every other Live NFL game was broadcasting the same song and view at the exact same time across our country. You could've heard a pin drop in our stadium of 70,000+ fans as everyone remembered those tragic events of 10 years earlier.

Later in the day, I was overwhelmed with joy to see the Fightin' Texas Aggie Band perform at halftime. It took me back in time well over 10 years ago when I was standing and watching proudly at Kyle Field. I will never tire of watching them perform.

To cap off the exciting day, our Houston Texans pulled out an amazing victory over the Colts!

It was a thrilling day, both physically and emotionally draining. This was the scene on the drive home.

Go Texans, and God Bless America!

A Morning at the Park

Houston had a bit of a cool front recently which brought the temperatures down enough for us to enjoy some playtime outside. Last weekend we took Connor and Kaitlynn to "the biggest park ever" which is just a few miles away from us in Jersey Village. It really is the best park for little ones and it was a great start to the long weekend. Here's a ton of pics from our morning at the park.