Texas, Part 3

The last few days of our trip was all about CHRISTMAS! The day before Christmas Eve was our Santa day....which turned out to be a really really long line, with an even longer line to pick up the pictures. Thankfully we had multiple adults with us, so we could take turns and entertain the kiddos while we waited. I was so proud of them too! I had to prep Miss E the whole time, but she went up there, sat on Santa's lap, gave me a small smile, and then hopped off without so much as a complaint! LOVE this girl!!!!! 

That day was followed by a fun time at the park, checking out a few thrift stores (one of our family's favorites), and eating at Pesos for dinner (for about the 4th time that week!)!! And of course ended with our nightly Knock games....what a great day!

 Christmas Eve was so much fun! Samantha and Aaron and their kids, along with Brian and Jamie and their kids, all came over for some yummy dinner, presents, crafts, and goodies. We took pictures, opened presents, laughed with the kids, played games, and all had so much fun together! It truly felt like we had been family for years, and I was so grateful that Dale's family all welcomed us with open arms! Our family even all got their very own Texas A and M shirts to take home to Washington to show the Texas pride! :)

That night we all went to Christmas Eve service together and celebrated the Savior's life and mission. What a beautiful day!

 Christmas Day was spent at Dale's sister and brother-in-law's home, where the kids bounced and jumped and laughed their way through the day. Bouncy house, football in the yard, chickens and goats, etc! What could be better on Christmas? :) The house was filled to the brim with family, presents, wrapping paper, tape, and FOOD! 

We had a wonderful week in Texas! Warm weather, fun and family, bowling, baseball, presents, and Santa! We all loved it! The kids are already asking to go back!!! We even had a few inside jokes by the end......right "Darrell"?? :)

Texas Part 2

On the fourth day of our trip we were able to spend the day in College Station with Brian, Jamie, Cade, and Marshall. What a fun family they are!!! We had a wonderful time! The boys played outside all day long, playing football, basketball, and just about any other "ball" sport they could think of! We also were introduced to the art of "Punkin' Chunkin' ".....a Cannon favorite! Basically you put a small pumpkin in a large slingshot and pull back as far as you possibly can....then, LET IT FLY! Oh my goodness, the kids thought it was the most amazing tradition in the whole world!!! Even the parents got into it, and almost knocked Jamie off her feet!

We also were able to tour around the Texas A and M campus for a bit, which the kids loved. We saw the brand new baseball stadium and heard Cade telling us all about the campus and how he would one day be walking those halls! It was adorable! Thank you to the Cannon family for showing us such a wonderful time!

 The next day was the only day that was really rainy while we were there. Though still warm, which of course we loved. And since we are from Seattle, we didn't truly care about the rain! We went bowling that day to stay a little dry and the kids had so much fun giving high fives and trying their hardest to knock down a few pins. :) I loved seeing them in their adorable little bowling shoes! And after a fun day of bowling and a great lunch at the lovely Olive Garden, we went back to Tutu and Dale's home for some naps and a little muddy kickball! Of course, a favorite with the boys!!!!!! I stayed inside with Miss E while she slept (yep, I am a wimp), and the boys plus Tutu all went out and got muddy and slimy and gross! But had a TON of fun!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 The next day was really relaxing with fun and family. Finished some puzzles, played games, watched movies, hung out with new cousins, and watched the Seahawks kick some booty. We also got to see a wonderful Christmas play given by the kids from Samantha and Aaron's church, including our new cousin Brett. He did a fabulous job and we were all so proud of him singing and dancing his heart out!

Our Texas Christmas, Part 1

It's Time For a TEXAS Christmas Experience!

Our family had the awesome opportunity (thanks to Alaska Airline Miles!!!) to go down to visit Tutu and Dale in Texas for Christmas. Dale and some of his family live about a half hour outside of Houston, Texas in a little town called Crosby. I had visited Austin before, but other then that, no one in our family had ever been to Texas, so this was going to be a fun experience for us! And I can tell you, we had a WONDERFUL time!!!!! It was so much fun to just let loose for a bit, not have to worry about bills or cleaning the house, or school schedules, or anything else. We just hung out, played and did whatever we wanted, and laughed a lot! Thank you Tutu and Dale for the amazing week!!!!!!

 The airline flight was actually not nearly as bad as it could have been. Though of course, 4+ hours on a plane with three little kids is never a picnic :), it definitely wasn't terrible either! Just a lot of electronics, which I don't usually condone. :) But no one freaked out, which is a plus! The picture below is when we just had gotten to Tutu and Dale's house, and Emery decided she was just going to relax and color for a while.

The next day we were able to go over to Dale's sister and brother in-law's property and play on the farm for a while. Definitely not like western Washington! I think the one who loved it the most was Teage actually! He was so thrilled to be able to collect fresh eggs, I thought he might flip out! :) All of the kiddos had so much fun feeding chickens, watching the goats and donkeys, feeding the HUGE catfish out in the pond, etc. I loved seeing all of my children (and my hubby) having so much fun playing around, being carefree. What a lovely sight it was!

 Dale's sister has her kids living on the property as well, which is so neat that they are all close. On the property they have a few golf carts to get around, and of course, my kids LOVED riding along!! They thought they were in a theme park or something!

And of course, the gorgeous sunsets in Texas....it was warm, and beautiful. Definitely a great change for us for a week or so!

 The next day we had a chance to drive up to College Station to go see Dale's son Brian and his family. I am so grateful that I have some new step siblings in my life also, they are all such wonderful people and it was a fantastic opportunity for us to get to know them and their families better. Brian and his wife Jaime are two of the kindest, most sincere people, I have ever met. We truly loved spending some time with them at their home, and had a blast with all of them!

We were able to go to Marshall's school Christmas concert, which the boys loved, and it was special for all of us to be there. They sang songs and danced around for everyone which was really fun. The boys played outside the whole rest of the day, playing basketball, football, on the tree house, they had a blast! And that night was one of the highlights of the trip. We met up with Dale's daughter Samantha and her children, as well as Brian and his family and all went to something called "Santa's Wonderland". It is this HUGE (I think around 100 acres) area of land, all made up with amazing Christmas lights, beautiful scenes and gorgeous colors. We all piled into this huge hay trailer being pulled by none other then a Ford F150 (inside joke), and were able to go around the entire property to see the gorgeous lights. It was fabulous! The kids absolutely loved every minute, and it was so fun for us to see the joy and fantasy in their faces. It truly was beautiful!!

 The whole group!!!!!!!!! 

Brian, Jamie and their family

Samantha, Aaron, and their family

Tutu and Dale

and Teage, myself, and our family

I think it was really fun for my mom and Dale to have ALL of their grandchildren together in one place at the same time!!!! What a treat! It was for us also, we had a wonderful time with everyone!!!!

Happy Birthday to my HUBBY!!!!

Happy happy birthday to the love of my life!!!!

I am so thankful for you every single day. Thank you for teaching me, learning with me, listening to me, and loving me. You are such a wonderful father and husband, and I am so blessed to have your fun and loving personality by my side!!!

Happy Birthday Love! I love you!!!!!!!!!

Love, Me

Tangled

Miss E is completely obsessed with the movie "Tangled" right now! Every time she has a chance to turn on the TV (which I try hard not to have on a lot!) she will ask for her favorite movie! The boys are so bored with it at this point! But, I have to admit, hearing my little 2 year old running around the house singing "And at last I see the light!!!!!" at the top of her lungs is pretty much the cutest thing in the world!!!!

Miss E with the other love of her life, her softie! :)