When we found out my dad would be visiting this weekend, we pretty much cleared our schedules. We wanted to make sure to take advantage of the short time he’s here.
This afternoon, the whole family hit up a local museum. My dad is a big history buff, so we figured it was a good, wholesome family activity. (And also a nice way to cross off #82 on my 101 in 1001 list, woohoo!)
Even though all but one of us are adults, I have to admit that we had the most fun with the interactive stuff. Makes sense, right?
Although he’s small, Hunter enjoyed a lot of it, too.
And before you ask… no. It’s not possible for me to point my camera lens at anyone but the baby. I’m sorry; I just can’t help myself.
…four months makes.
My dad arrived in town today. He’s up visiting from Virginia. Mostly because he just had to see his little grandson. You see, Grandson has been doing some growing.
Lots of growing.
Here’s the grandad and the little guy tonight…
Anyway, it’s really great when my dad visits. Tonight, we had everybody over for dinner (chili, yum!) at our place, giving us all a chance to hang out and catch up. Dad is here until Monday, so we have plans to spend a lot of time together as a family this weekend.
I’ll share more photos over the next few days, but for now, I just had to do a comparison photo of Grandad and Hunter at 1 month old, versus Grandad and Hunter at 5 months old. It’s funny, because it’s almost hard to remember him being that small.
Babies grow up way too fast.
You guys know the drill.
We plan a vacation. You give recommendations.
Just because y’all are awesome like that.
Soooo… in early December, we’re heading to the big ol’ state of Texas. Neither of us have ever set foot in Texas for any reason (I’ve never even been to one of their airports!), so it is a completely new experience. We’ll spend roughly two nights/days in San Antonio, and two more in Austin.
We’re staying near the Riverwalk in San Antonio (Got a 3-star hotel for $48/night on Priceline. Yes. $48!!), and then in downtown Austin. We need recommendations for it all… places to go, things to see. But please keep in mind that we have pretty limited time in each city, so give us your best of the best!
Of course, we know that one of the most important things (the most important thing?) to do in Texas is E-A-T. I am really looking forward to that part. We’re pretty open to everything, but one thing we absolutely MUST do is eat at an authentic Mexican restaurant. You know, one actually run by Mexicans. Sadly, I don’t think I’ve ever had the privilege before.
I guess the only other important thing to know is that we’re renting a car, so we’ll be able to get around on our own very easily. We’ll be driving from San Antonio to Austin on a Saturday afternoon.
On your marks… get set… GO! :)
P.S. I know some of you already gave some recommendations. I didn’t forget about those, but just looking for more now that we are for sure heading on down to Texas!
November 3, 2008 was a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.
One of the worst, if not the worst, of my life. The 10 days that followed were not much better. For those 11 days, Tessa had cancer. But then it turned out that she wasn’t sick after all.
Needless to say, a year later, on November 3, 2009, we’re in a much better place. Still, we look back.
If I sit and really think about it, I can feel the weight I carried for those 11 days. I can feel the tightness in my chest. I can remember how it felt to fall asleep each night on a pillow damp with tears. I couldn’t stand to leave her, even for a few hours. Really, I couldn’t bear to look at her. As my pet, my companion, my little girl, I couldn’t believe I was losing her.
It was simply a dark time in our lives. I remember the weather. Warm for November. Many of the days were filled with golden, late fall sunshine. We tried to use the weather to our advantage and take Tessa for as many walks as possible. We tried to make up for the walks we didn’t take, and the ones we would never take again.
As much as it hurts to look back, I like to do so every once in a while. It helps to put life into perspective. It makes me realize how good things are now. We appreciate the everyday moments with Tess. And as good as life is, I will never forget those days. But life is good, in part, because of those days. In spite of them.
Because ultimately, she is still here.
She is three, when we thought she might not ever be. In fact, she is even almost four. :)
Tessa snoozes in my lap as I write this, and I heave a sigh of relief, for I don’t have to imagine life without her. Not yet.
Those without pets cannot imagine the love you feel for them. It probably sounds silly from the “outside.” But we love her more than ever. And I have to say, the feeling is most definitely mutual. She adds value to our lives. We are lucky to have her; she is lucky to have us.
November 3, 2008 was a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.
November 3, 2009 has been a day of reflection, but otherwise…
Uneventful. Boring. Routine.
Just the way I like it.
I’m generally not a big fan of Halloween. Mostly because I hate the pressure to come up with a costume idea. But we were invited to my brother’s place for a party, and I didn’t want to be the person who shows up without a costume.
On Friday afternoon, as I sat at work, an idea came to me and I decided to run with it.
I have a Trent Edwards jersey, and I figured I could put it to good use by going as Trent Edwards. But that alone would be sort of boring. So, considering Edwards is currently out because of a concussion he suffered a few weeks back, I decided to go as Trent Edwards… with a concussion. :)
I hope you all enjoyed your Halloween as much as we enjoyed ours! Any good costume ideas I can tuck away for NEXT year?? :)
About
I'm Heather. I'm 33 and have been married to Michael for seven years. Together, we have two beautiful little girls we love more than anything, and a miniature dachshund who drives us crazy. I'm a full-time working mom who has very little time for my own "stuff" these days, like home improvement, cooking/baking, cake decorating, and photography. Despite the team not making the playoffs since 1999, I'm STILL a Buffalo Bills fan, which I think speaks to my loyalty AND sense of humor. I can't wait to pick up the pace with travel again some day... you know, when we're done being ruled by tiny fists. Welcome to my blog.
