Thursday, September 27, 2018
Girls Day
During one of our free days in Katy, we planned a Girls Day with Julie and Lily. We've been having these outings for a couple years now and didn't want to let the summer pass us by without having a special day together. We did some shopping and lunch at Memorial City Mall, one of our favorite spots. The girls were too cute in their matching outfits and smiles!
Monday, September 24, 2018
Play Dates and Doctor Visits
Back from our trips, the kids and I were hanging out in Katy for a couple of days before our next stop. We stayed with our great friends, the Lettows, but I didn't manage to get any photos during our visit. I planned several play dates with the kids' friends, which always brought big smiles all around.
About a day or two after Connor returned from camp, he started complaining of a painful bite on his knee. I remembered that there were spiders and other critters at his outdoor camp, so we just assumed he had some type of spider bite. When it became so painful that Connor had trouble walking, we decided to visit the doctor. That was the day that Connor hit triple digits on his weight for the very first time, ha! The doctor tried to excise Connor's bite but later that day, Connor couldn't even put any weight on the leg. Fast forward a few days, several doctor visits and phone calls, and two antibiotic prescriptions later, we had barely avoided a trip to the emergency room. That kid!
As Connor was healing from his spider bite, Kaitlynn was invited to spend the day with her bestie, Sophia. These two girls are just the sweetest ever. They had the best day with fast passes at Typhoon Texas, followed by the huge surprise that they would be able to have a sleepover. I just LOVED the photo Sophia's mom took as she told them the surprise. Hilarious!
About a day or two after Connor returned from camp, he started complaining of a painful bite on his knee. I remembered that there were spiders and other critters at his outdoor camp, so we just assumed he had some type of spider bite. When it became so painful that Connor had trouble walking, we decided to visit the doctor. That was the day that Connor hit triple digits on his weight for the very first time, ha! The doctor tried to excise Connor's bite but later that day, Connor couldn't even put any weight on the leg. Fast forward a few days, several doctor visits and phone calls, and two antibiotic prescriptions later, we had barely avoided a trip to the emergency room. That kid!
As Connor was healing from his spider bite, Kaitlynn was invited to spend the day with her bestie, Sophia. These two girls are just the sweetest ever. They had the best day with fast passes at Typhoon Texas, followed by the huge surprise that they would be able to have a sleepover. I just LOVED the photo Sophia's mom took as she told them the surprise. Hilarious!
Thursday, September 20, 2018
Girls Trip to Central Texas
I couldn't believe my luck that I had managed to end up with BOTH kids being away for almost an entire week in July. Actually it was more planning than luck, but in any case it was time to celebrate. Julie, Michelle, and I had planned a much anticipated girls trip away to central Texas. We were so excited to be together again and catch up!
Julie handled all of the plans for travel and accommodation. Michelle and I honestly had no idea what we were doing for the week, which was hilarious to me. Jeff kept asking me where we were going and couldn't believe that I didn't know, ha! (I could have checked my text messages from February but where is the fun in that?)
We set off from Julie's house and headed west towards San Antonio. All of our road trips over the years have included multiple stops at Bucees and this was no exception. Love that place! We made it to our favorite outdoor shopping mall in San Antonio and enjoyed lots of shopping for our first day. By the end of the day, we drove a short way to Bourne, Texas for our overnight stay at a quaint hotel called Ye Kendall Inn. It was so precious! We stayed in a single cabin with 2 bedrooms and a bathroom, off in a quiet and secluded corner of the property. It reminded me of an expanded bed and breakfast. We loved everything about it!
After our night in Boerne, we enjoyed a yummy breakfast at a nearby café and then wandered the main street of the town known for quaint shopping and antiques. The weather seemed much more pleasant than what we were used to in the Houston area.
After a long morning of shopping, we drove to the Spring Branch area to check out Julie's parents' new home there. It's a beautiful country home on some acreage with deer roaming all around. Julie spread some corn feed and they all came out for lunch. So neat!
Later that evening, we drove to Fredericksburg which is where we would spend the rest of our trip. Fredericksburg is an old town in central Texas known for its wineries, antiques, and quaint shopping. It was my first visit to this beautiful area in the hill country. We checked into another neat property and were upgraded to a cottage with multiple rooms. We immediately loved it and got settled in.
When it was time for dinner, we googled some suggestions and ended up at this amazing restaurant called Cabernet Grill in the heart of the Texas Wine Country. It was a gorgeous setting and even more beautiful inside. We were too tired from our long day to indulge in their extensive wine list, but the food was fantastic and the atmosphere was perfect.
It was later that night, after our lovely dinner and drive through Fredericksburg, that we ended up back at our cottage and ready to settle in for the night. We were changed into our pajamas and ready for bed when we discovered that the beds in our cottage seemed a bit dirty. We had a quick discussion with the property manager, requesting some clean sheets. It's a bit of a blur but it was around that time, about 10:30 p.m., that I spotted something which sent me into a full-on panic attack. While changing the bed sheets, I noticed a few signs of bedbugs on the pillow cases. I tried to stay calm and texted Jeff a picture of what I'd found, and he immediately responded with alarm because he knew exactly what the picture was showing. After what we'd been through in the spring, it just about sent me over the edge. I completely embarrassed myself and had a total breakdown!
So here we were, close to 11 pm at night, and no longer feeling ready for bed at all. The girls were incredibly supportive of my panic and feelings, so we made some calls and found an alternative place to stay across the street. We packed up, checked out, and drove across the street. The night manager greeted us with a warm smile and kind understanding of our predicament. Without wanting to tell him too many details about our story, we politely asked if we could "inspect" the room before we officially checked in. He shrugged his shoulders and said, "Sure, let's go on up." He showed us into the suite and sat back patiently at the door while we took a look around the room.
Picture us: 3 grown women in pajamas and no makeup, storming into a hotel suite -- that we hadn't even paid for! -- iPhone flashlights blazing while we ripped apart the freshly made beds searching for any suspicious signs of bedbugs. Just thinking back on that makes me howl with laughter, but it sure didn't feel amusing at the time with my panic just beneath the surface. We won't soon forget the kindness of the sweet night manager who graciously took us in and dealt with our crazy. We loved our new suite and enjoyed staying there for the remainder of our trip. But just for good measure, we packed up all of our belongings and kept our suitcases locked inside the hot car the next day. It was our own version of a "heat treatment" to make sure we didn't bring any tag-along hitchhikers (a.k.a. bedbugs) back with us!
All hotel drama aside, we ended up having the BEST time in Fredericksburg. We walked and shopped all along the main street for an entire full day and a half. We stopped at one of the local breweries for an afternoon snack, and we enjoyed a lovely outdoor dinner with live music.
Boerne and Fredericksburg were the perfect destination for a girls trip and we loved every second. What a blessing to have such amazing friends to enjoy a much-needed getaway and make lifelong memories!
Julie handled all of the plans for travel and accommodation. Michelle and I honestly had no idea what we were doing for the week, which was hilarious to me. Jeff kept asking me where we were going and couldn't believe that I didn't know, ha! (I could have checked my text messages from February but where is the fun in that?)
We set off from Julie's house and headed west towards San Antonio. All of our road trips over the years have included multiple stops at Bucees and this was no exception. Love that place! We made it to our favorite outdoor shopping mall in San Antonio and enjoyed lots of shopping for our first day. By the end of the day, we drove a short way to Bourne, Texas for our overnight stay at a quaint hotel called Ye Kendall Inn. It was so precious! We stayed in a single cabin with 2 bedrooms and a bathroom, off in a quiet and secluded corner of the property. It reminded me of an expanded bed and breakfast. We loved everything about it!
After our night in Boerne, we enjoyed a yummy breakfast at a nearby café and then wandered the main street of the town known for quaint shopping and antiques. The weather seemed much more pleasant than what we were used to in the Houston area.
After a long morning of shopping, we drove to the Spring Branch area to check out Julie's parents' new home there. It's a beautiful country home on some acreage with deer roaming all around. Julie spread some corn feed and they all came out for lunch. So neat!
Later that evening, we drove to Fredericksburg which is where we would spend the rest of our trip. Fredericksburg is an old town in central Texas known for its wineries, antiques, and quaint shopping. It was my first visit to this beautiful area in the hill country. We checked into another neat property and were upgraded to a cottage with multiple rooms. We immediately loved it and got settled in.
When it was time for dinner, we googled some suggestions and ended up at this amazing restaurant called Cabernet Grill in the heart of the Texas Wine Country. It was a gorgeous setting and even more beautiful inside. We were too tired from our long day to indulge in their extensive wine list, but the food was fantastic and the atmosphere was perfect.
It was later that night, after our lovely dinner and drive through Fredericksburg, that we ended up back at our cottage and ready to settle in for the night. We were changed into our pajamas and ready for bed when we discovered that the beds in our cottage seemed a bit dirty. We had a quick discussion with the property manager, requesting some clean sheets. It's a bit of a blur but it was around that time, about 10:30 p.m., that I spotted something which sent me into a full-on panic attack. While changing the bed sheets, I noticed a few signs of bedbugs on the pillow cases. I tried to stay calm and texted Jeff a picture of what I'd found, and he immediately responded with alarm because he knew exactly what the picture was showing. After what we'd been through in the spring, it just about sent me over the edge. I completely embarrassed myself and had a total breakdown!
So here we were, close to 11 pm at night, and no longer feeling ready for bed at all. The girls were incredibly supportive of my panic and feelings, so we made some calls and found an alternative place to stay across the street. We packed up, checked out, and drove across the street. The night manager greeted us with a warm smile and kind understanding of our predicament. Without wanting to tell him too many details about our story, we politely asked if we could "inspect" the room before we officially checked in. He shrugged his shoulders and said, "Sure, let's go on up." He showed us into the suite and sat back patiently at the door while we took a look around the room.
Picture us: 3 grown women in pajamas and no makeup, storming into a hotel suite -- that we hadn't even paid for! -- iPhone flashlights blazing while we ripped apart the freshly made beds searching for any suspicious signs of bedbugs. Just thinking back on that makes me howl with laughter, but it sure didn't feel amusing at the time with my panic just beneath the surface. We won't soon forget the kindness of the sweet night manager who graciously took us in and dealt with our crazy. We loved our new suite and enjoyed staying there for the remainder of our trip. But just for good measure, we packed up all of our belongings and kept our suitcases locked inside the hot car the next day. It was our own version of a "heat treatment" to make sure we didn't bring any tag-along hitchhikers (a.k.a. bedbugs) back with us!
All hotel drama aside, we ended up having the BEST time in Fredericksburg. We walked and shopped all along the main street for an entire full day and a half. We stopped at one of the local breweries for an afternoon snack, and we enjoyed a lovely outdoor dinner with live music.
Boerne and Fredericksburg were the perfect destination for a girls trip and we loved every second. What a blessing to have such amazing friends to enjoy a much-needed getaway and make lifelong memories!
Monday, September 17, 2018
Kaitlynn's Week with Anais
While planning for our summer in Texas, one of Kaitlynn's top priorities was to finally reunite with her all time bestie, Anais. I reached out to Anais's mom, Keri, to see if they might be able to host Kaitlynn during the week that Connor was away at camp. As busy as their summer was, I couldn't believe our luck that they happened to be free and were happy to keep Kaitlynn for several days. Keri and I were thrilled to be able to get the girls together again. It was a long-awaited reunion filled with giggles and excitement!
Keri was Super Mom that week and planned countless fun activities for the girls. They went to Glow Zone, swam in matching swimsuits, made batch after batch of slime, played on the trampoline, designed matching tie-dye t-shirts, enjoyed Parents Night Out, and so many other fun activities that I couldn't believe. Kaitlynn had the time of her life with Anais and her siblings, Amelia and Joshua. It was almost a full week of sleepover fun and pure heaven for the girls.
These sweet girls and their lasting friendship continues to be a blessing to both families. Kaitlynn was sad to see the fun end, but we had much more planned in the weeks ahead.
Keri was Super Mom that week and planned countless fun activities for the girls. They went to Glow Zone, swam in matching swimsuits, made batch after batch of slime, played on the trampoline, designed matching tie-dye t-shirts, enjoyed Parents Night Out, and so many other fun activities that I couldn't believe. Kaitlynn had the time of her life with Anais and her siblings, Amelia and Joshua. It was almost a full week of sleepover fun and pure heaven for the girls.
These sweet girls and their lasting friendship continues to be a blessing to both families. Kaitlynn was sad to see the fun end, but we had much more planned in the weeks ahead.
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