Park Time!

A quick trip to the park, one HOT afternoon. Henry loves this park, it has so much to do... there isn't really a small play area for Liz so one of us always has to be chasing her around, but she likes that part too!

 Henry was a little worried about this bridge, it moved so he was afraid he might fall (my cautious baby!)

 They road on the boat......

 Bryan and Liz liked it too!

 But it was HOT. Like really warm. And after a little sweet tea it was time to head home and go to the pool!!!

Swim!

Since there is a pool at Bryan's apartment we decided it would be worth it to try and teach Henry to swim this summer. The last two summers were spent playing at Nana's pool and he was always doing well by the end of the summer- never actually swimming alone, but comfortable in the water and with his abilities.

This year we noticed that he was a little more afraid of the water and the pool in general. He wanted someone to hold him the entire time he was in the pool- making it difficult for me to take the kids alone. After some research we found the Puddle Jumper at a local sporting store and snatched one up. Henry picked the color he wanted and we came home to try it out! He couldn't wait.

Bryan took him down to the pool after work, and although I was able to catch this photo, I am told it took him nearly 45 minutes to leave the steps. It's ok. Small steps. Right?

 He was so proud of himself, he kept saying, "Look at me mommy! I can swim now!"

 Once he was comfortable in the new life vest I was able to take him to the pool with sister in tow. They have been having such a fun time swimming here. We think that we will enroll them both in swim lessons for the fall and winter months, we don't want to lose any ground this year!

 Of course, sister loves the pool too. She likes to go underwater, she likes to jump in off the side. But mostly, she likes daddy (she says "daaaay") to swim with her. It is pretty amazing to me, Henry NEVER liked jumping in or going underwater.

 Love her little smocked swim!

Our first trip to Texas

Bryan moved to Houston in March and we stayed in Denver. At first, it wasn't too bad. We had family and friends who were there to visit us, invite us to dinner and help make our transition a little easier. Daddy came home every 2-3 weeks for the weekend. It was great, we got to spend time with each other as a family and it seemed like old times. But come Monday morning it was heartbreaking- both for me and for my kids. Henry would wake up and ask where Daddy had gone, and when we realized he had gone "to work" he would breakdown. It was awful. To top it off he was reverting back to his pre-potty trained ways. We knew how upset he was, so we planned a special weekend in Texas. We left sister at home and had a GREAT time.

We left on a Friday, we got to the airport nice and early for our flight- Henry hadn't flown in almost 18 months, so I wanted him to feel comfortable and have a couple minutes to have a snack, watch the planes and run around. We got a little more that we bargained for, however. Our flight was delayed 2 hours (just before we were getting ready to board, boo) so we sat in the terminal, had "Old McDonald's" and played with a couple of boys the same age- they were having a great time. Until we were delayed ANOTHER 2 hours. Henry did so well, he never cried or complained- I was so proud of him!

On Saturday morning we got up bright and early (ha! 10am. We didn't get to daddy's until midnight, so we all slept nice and late!) and headed to Kemah boardwalk. It was a warm, overcast day and there was a big festival going on. We walked around first and Henry decided that the train was the first thing he wanted to do!

 Then we went to drive the boats- he loved this and even though we never actually paid to drive one (he just thought he was driving it!) he played for almost 30 minutes!

 He was so not interested in taking photos- but this fun old police car was pretty cool!

After another train ride and some lunch we let Henry run in the fountains. It is one of his favorite things to do in Colorado and we thought it was just the right time of day to let him get soaked! He had so much fun, but he was worn out!

 We wandered around the boardwalk- we saw baby crabs, played some games and had an ice cream. We headed home, and Henry was too excited to sleep. We had a nice night at the house- watched a movie and had Henry's favorite dinner- chicken nuggets!

 Sunday morning we got up and took Henry to play at the playground then headed over to Hermann Park to walk around and ride the train. Yes, another train! We had to wait in line for almost an hour, but it was worth it. He loved seeing the park.

 (he only smiled in this photo because I promised to buy him a train at the end!)

 After a nice lunch in Rice Village we headed home to swim in Daddy's pool. It really liked having a pool in the backyard (like Nana!) Lucky for us, we were the only people at the pool all afternoon, so we were able to relax and enjoy for a couple hours.

 After the pool we headed to dinner and came home to pack our bags- we had a VERY early flight the next morning so Henry wouldn't miss school. We were sad to leave Daddy in Houston, but we knew that we would be back to see him soon!

(watching a movie with Parker!)

Daddy's Apartment in Texas!

Bryan's company is providing him with temporary housing of sorts- a furnished apartment in one of their buildings. It has a pool, Henry thinks that it is the coolest place on Earth. It is a cute little two bedroom place fairly close to the Galleria. We love this area. Bryan has a short commute to work, we are close to lots of great shopping, parks and restaurants.

Our first trip down to see Daddy was just Henry and mom (post to follow on that excitement!). We enjoyed a whole weekend seeing the city and getting used to the HEAT. A few weeks later I was able to sneak down for a long weekend for my birthday without the kids. It was a great weekend- we were able to explore, look for houses and even hang out with some friends, we had the best time! Last week we made our latest trip down- with both kids. We figured since it was summer break we would spend a couple weeks with daddy and really start to figure out where things were. So far, it has been great. We have loved having our family all in one place at night, quite the change from the 2-3 week stretches we were going before.

Although we think we might kill each other if we had to live in a two bedroom apartment for a LONG time, we know that it is temporary. We are now in search of a rental home, more on this later!

Happy Father's Day Weekend!

Words!

Lizzie didn't roll-over until she was almost 5 months old. She didn't crawl until she was 9 months old. She didn't walk until she was 12 months old. She wouldn't say "ma-ma" until last month- at 14 months old.

The doctor wasn't worried- she seemed to be doing just fine in other areas- she could throw a ball, read herself a book and kiss her dolls.

In the last 3 or 4 weeks liz has started saying lots of new words. Just so we don't forget:

- Shoes (which she says "shoooooes")
- Juice
- Mine
- Dog
- Doll

And our favorite.... "No way!"

Which is what she is saying in this photo.... I asked her to put down her sweet tea and smile. She said, "No, no way!" and then made this face at me.

Ikea! Ikea!

So, we don't have an Ikea in Colorado. Well, that isn't true. They are building one, it should open soon... but still.

Neither Bryan or I had been in an Ikea, so we thought a family trip was just the ticket! We loaded the kids up, put on our walking shoes and made sure we were well hydrated! It was a fun time.... we of course didn't manage to take one photo. Why? Oh, you know, screaming kids and a mom who was too busy shopping!

We didn't buy much- just some plastic dishes for the kids, some dishtowels and Liz bought a purse. Yep. Good purchases. The good news is that we are headed back this week to get some baskets for Bryan's bathroom and maybe a new duvet for Henry's bed at home... pictures to come on that day!

A trip to Bass Pro Shop

We aren't outdoorsy people. We don't camp, we don't hike, we don't fish.... don't get me wrong. A day at the pool? We are in. A walk in the park? Sign us up. A day at the golf course? Yep, Henry and Bryan will jump at that. But other than that? Notsomuch.

That said I had been reading how fun Bass Pro Shops were for kids- a big fish tank, all kinds of fish hanging from the ceiling, boats, stuffed animals (not the cuddly kind....) fishing gear, duck gear... you name it. And that had Henry written all over it. So off we went this morning, with sister in tow. And guess what? It was super fun!

Of course I forgot my camera, but we spent a good hour looking at everything in the store.... and even managed to buy a couple toys (they had some cool toys, maybe that is just what you think when you already own every toy they sell at target)

Henry at the fish tank!

We will for sure be going back, maybe with daddy next time to check it all out!

Have a good weekend, a couple of posts about our trips down here and Daddy's house coming up soon!