Happy Halloween

The girls still fit in their bumblebee costumes from last year so that was easy!   I crammed Drake into a pumpkin pajama suit.  Then we headed to the neighbor's house.  There are only 7 or 8 young couples in our neighborhood so it was nice to meet everyone at one place.  Here are the pics I got.  The girls were more interested in the toy car than anything else.

I took these pictures the other night before bedtime.  The kids were watching an episode of Dora and they actually let me comb their hair.  Cutie pies.

I forgot to show you the latest update to Stella's room/playroom.  Lynda took the chair and pillows back to Houston for a re-do.  Wish I had a before picture.  Dark brown seat cushion and maroon pillows = dark and ugly.  Now it's beautiful!!!!

I need to do another video tour of Stella's room.  It's looking good!!

I am having fun playing with the slow motion feature on my new phone.  I have watched this video of Drake a hundred times today.  He HATES eating solid food.  He still gags as soon as I put something on his tray.  Here I am trying to get him to eat a puff.  Not much luck.

Nighty-night!!!

odds and ends

We are getting LOTS of use out of our back deck.  When it's just me and the kiddos and it's a little difficult to lug all 3 downstairs to the backyard, I just lock all the gates and let them loose on the deck.  Here's a picture I took while washing dishes - Reese is building with her Legos on the back table.

Speaking of the back deck, I've decided to get this hot tub up and running since the cooler weather is here.  I drained it after I took a water sample to Leslie's Pool Supply and they shook their head at me.  He threw around words like "hospital" and "staph infection" and that was all it took to convince me to drain it and start over.

I took out all the filters, head rests and other parts that I can soak in a chlorine solution overnight.

And then I got to work!!!    Vinegar, baking soda, a few rags and lots of lots of elbow grease.   Looks pretty good, huh?

I will fill it tomorrow morning and I have a spa guy coming at noon to walk me through the system.  Maybe Saturday night we will get a nice soak once all the chemicals are balanced!!

Let's go outside!!!

This is why we moved to Austin.  We are having so much fun in our backyard.  We can play outside for hours and never break a sweat.  The kids are loving all the room we have to run around.   Reese and Stella have already learned the areas that they can play in and the areas that are off limits.  They might need a reminder once in a while, but overall I can sit back and watch them play without having to chase them.   The first area they love to play is where the playground equipment is.  Steve and Lynda brought our Houston plastic playground to us and the previous owners left one for us.  So we have two!!   Wes also hung a swing in that area.  The girls love to slide and swing.  (On this particular day, Stella found a pet rock that she carried around all day, as you will see.)

Next to the playground is a bush covered in small colorful flowers.  Both girls love sticking their nose into the bush to get a sniff.  

Another favorite is chasing footballs in the flat, green space and running a lap around their track.  Down the stairs, around the gravel path, up the other staircase, then back to where you started.  Reese runs this track about 20 times a day.  Surprised she still has a bootie left.  

Another play spot is down the hill at the fire pit.  The girls like to gather piles of acorns on the stone bench.   And you'll notice the "Relax" sign hanging on the tree.  That is Wes's early birthday present.  We spotted it 2 months ago while furniture shopping and Wes really liked it.  I kinda shrugged my shoulders and acted indifferent.  But inside, I was thinking "That is the perfect birthday surprise!!  I'll hang it when he's out of town!!!)  So while Anadean was here, we made plans to hang it while the kids were napping.  And just as I was going in the garage to grab it, the garage door opened.  Wes was home early!!!!  So I made him hide in his office and wait until we had it up.  Not quite the surprise I was hoping for.... I had planned on not saying a word and waiting until he noticed it.  Whatever!!  Still love the sign.  And he did too!!!!

And while we are cruising around the yard, poor Drake is stuck in his exersaucer watching all the action.  But he doesn't seem too upset about it.

Here's a picture of Reese working on her i-pad next to Dean, her new best friend.  

And here's a sweet one of Daddy reading with Reese.  

Videos - Here is Drake standing up.  SOOOOOO close to walking.  

And Drake laughing.

The girls love to take turns going down the slide.

We're back!!

Sorry for my blog hiatus.  Let's get caught up.  Wes and I enjoyed a fantastic 4 day weekend at the Ritz-Carlton outside of Tucson, Arizona.  Lynda and Steve came in town to watch kiddos while we were gone.  (thank you, thank you, thank you!!)  After our disastrous road trip and a week of sniffles, we were ready for a few days to ourselves.  This was Wes's President Club trip, so we were joined by eight other employees and their spouses.  We had a blast.  Slept in late, ate some great food, hung out by the pool, got a massage, etc.  But as always, we were happy to get home and see the kids.  Drake kept Nana up at night (bad Drake!!) but Reese and Stella did great:) 

One of our sitters has taught Reese how to take pictures of herself using an i-phone.  It's her favorite thing to do if we leave our phone laying around.  Here is a collection of her selfies. 

 

 Reese and Drake playing in the kitchen. 

Mmmmm, doughnuts.

Pretty Stella.