Fresh Cut!

Ok, so I finally gave in. It was time to trim Augie's hair, and last night was the night! We took some before pictures (this was also between going to the pool and taking a bath before bed).

Before with dry hair:


You can see the craziness around the ears especially.


Before with wet hair:
Lots of curlies on the forehead . . .

and around the ears . . .


Some during:
Bubby was well distracted, but it was still difficult to cut straight and keep him lookin' good.






And some after with wet hair:
You can't make this kid un-cute!!! He still looks good!!!



And some after with dry hair:




And unfortunately, his hair wasn't all that was cut . . . I can't stand how fast baby nails grow. Augie only sucks his thumb to soothe himself in bed. But his fingers scratch his face in the process of trying to get his fist clenched. And, last night, he took a couple of chunks out of his nose. :(

Good thing he doesn't let that get him down!!!


Hope everyone's week leaves you with a smile on your face!

A Weekend at Gamma and Pops Requires 2 Blogs!

A Weekend at Gamma and Pops Requires 2 Blogs - because we do so many things and have so much fun. We had a blog for Elena's bday party, but that was just Saturday. There was also Sunday . . .

Always starting with a good meal before church . . .
Followed by washing the dishes . . .
Followed by playing with the cousins while the parents take turns getting ready . . .


And for Elena, wearing our birthday gifts and attire. Fun hat (but not to church), cute new dress, and stylin' new boots (new boots not shown). And of course, the cowgirl had to get a picture pretending to ride her horse!!! YEEEEEE - HAW!!!

And for Augie, a new outfit - because the other ones we have aren't fitting anymore.




And after church, we all went to Gamma and Pops' for lunch and more family time.
We got to see GiGi:

And a lot of other family - but the pictures were few in the morning - I was a little worn out.

After trying to leave at a decent hour and head back to Dallas, we turned around and went back to Gamma and Pops. From now on, we will be leaving at 4:30-5:00ish on Monday mornings because the traffic just isn't worth sitting in on Sundays. And the trip is too short to leave early on Sundays. So . . . at least we got more time with the family.

Pops even got out all of his "toys" for us to play on!!!
His new 0 degree mower - Augie got to take a ride with Daddy-O:


And Momba:


And Marci and Elena got to ride the BIG tractor:


Of course - Marci and Gus got a little competitive . . .
"OH - You want to race, huh?!"

And Elena revved her engine!

Augie eyeballed the girls at the starting line . . .

They all went around the curve in the track . . .

And Gus and Augie crept ahead of Marci and Elena . . .

But let me mention that Marci whooped the 0 degree tractor when she put BIG BERTHA in 3rd gear!!!

Then we all took turns and tried out the different toys. . .





Augie re-hydrated:


And Elena and I used our dad's crocs to go to the front and get stuff out of the car!


All-together it was an afternoon well spent!
We are eagerly awaiting the next time we go down to visit!!!

Elena Rae's Rootin' Tootin' 3 Year Old Cowgirl Pony Party!

So, Elena's birthday party was last Saturday (birthday was yesterday). She decided to have a "Cowgirl" themed party. So Marci had some ideas of her own - and tied them in with Elena's ideas and decoration choices as well.

Instead of a crown, Elena had a VERY FUN AND STYLISH COWGIRL HAT - WITH FITTED BOA FOR EXTRA SASS! Of course, the outfit was completed with her boots, blue jean skirt, and baby pink cowgirl shirt!

There was a barn pinata - one of Elena's personal picks.

And then there was the "pony cake" - which kind of went with the theme - but the "My Little Pony" was just a tad BRIGHTER than the rest of the cowgirl decor - another Elena pick.

Marci made each of the kiddos a personalized bandana - so they could all be "Cowkids."

Even Augie left his on for a picture . . .

and that was about it . . . the cowboy knows what he wants . . . and it wasn't to wear a bandana!

Then . . . there were gifts! Lots of gifts - so here's a few quick pics.
Elena has her own sunglasses now (courtesy of the StaatsPac - Alexa has a pair that we got her for her birthday also - so now they both have REALLY cute shades!)

Then there was the horse trainer set from Gamma and Pops - complete with horses, fences, cowgirls, etc.

And some RIDICULOUSLY PERFECT boots from Natalie, Corey, and the kids! They were a HUGE hit with Elena!!!

Elena was even nice enough to let her little cowgirl sister Alexa play with one of the ponies that she received as a gift - it was a baby pony with a high chair. (Notice Alexa is also wearing a baby pink t-shirt with a ruffled blue jean skirt and personalized bandana - no boots though - because Lex is a one shoe or no shoes kinda girl!)

Gamma sure enjoyed the time with the kids too! She had her hands full all day!


So, we ate lunch, we sang happy birthday, we opened presents, and we had some cupcake cake. It was time to move on - or out - as in outside . . .
So we hit the pinata, let the kids get a little sugared up, and then just let them run around outside and play!
Alexa got the "Gator" out. And we decided to see how Augie would do in the motorized toys department.

He loved it!!! And Alexa loved getting to show him how to drive - even though she still has a hard time reaching the pedals.

It's REALLY HARD to hold a baby steady, walk, and lean over to push the pedal to make a little machine like that go. So, we traded in the Gator for Alexa's 4-wheeler!!! Yeah, it's a Tinkerbell one, but Augie's not above that - it moved - and he could help push the button himself! It was a hit for sure! Perfect size even! I really want to get him one of his own now, but I think we'll wait for his bday - it won't be long now - only 3 more months. :(? :)?

Then we picked up Alexa to ride with us!
She is great about sharing - and even let Augie drive. She didn't complain once!!! She just laughed and said, "Au-gie! Au-gie!" and patted him on the back as they rode along.


As the crowd of kids and parents departed, our family (which was about 1/2 of the people at the party because there are so many of us), decided to go out for some eatin' and dancin'. We headed out to a little place called "Oscar's Store" where they have great food and live music on Saturdays! (No, we're not from the country or anything!!!)
Augie wore Uncle John's Cowboy hat to prove that he was a cowboy!

And he danced Momba into the ground!!! He loved it! I loved it! It was just REALLY HOT!!!

After we waited (awhile - we had a party of 18 to be seated), we had a delicious dinner, and then we returned outside to see the band for the evening and do some more dancing.
Elena was re-energized after dinner . . . and she DANCED . . .

and DANCED . .

and DANCED - until she got a little worn out!

Gamma and Pops joined the fun too!

So did Lex!

And Augie didn't have to join anything, because he was the ring leader - first one on and off the dance floor that night!!!


I tell you what - we sure have a lot of fun when we go to Gamma and Pops to visit. But Augie sure does love having his cousins around. He tries to keep up with them, and he hates taking naps when we're with them (which is the opposite at home). But it breaks my heart every time we have to leave - - - - because I know how much they love each other and want to be together and play together.
It really gives me motivation to buckle down and get stuff paid off so we can build our house and move out there! I just pray that the Lord gives me discipline to stay the course so that we can get there sooner!!!!