Last Minute Summer Fun

We tried to make the most of the last few weeks of our summer despite the extreme heat! We took Jillian to a jumpy house. It was the 1st time she had been to one just to play. She has gone a few times for birthday parties. She had a lot of fun going down the slides but I'm not sure who had more fun - her or daddy.
Daddy even attempted to teacher her how to play air hockey
Mommy even had to take a turn and let me tell you climbing around in jumpy houses is very exhausting for a pregnant woman

We went to another jumpy place on a play date with Jillian's friend Avery. They are definitely two of a kind. Avery shared her snack
and the car. Who knew that two kiddos could fit in that thing
The week before I went back to work was a busy one. On Thursday we made our second trip to SeaWorld. Might as well if its free! We tried to hit all of the things that we didn't get to do last time but it was even hotter than before and I was even bigger and had more swollen of feet. Jillian took to her usual spot - riding on Daddy's shoulders but she actually did ride in the stroller more this time b/c she was lugging her blankets around and that was where they stayed.
We fed the dolphins. Jillian liked putting her hands in the water but every time the dolphins came close, she took her hands back out. She also wouldn't touch the little fish to feed them
Mommy really enjoyed it though b/c I had never touched a dolphin before

Then we discovered the coral reef and shark reef. I don't know why we didn't discover this on our first trip b/c it is air conditioned! I enjoyed sitting while Jillian and daddy checked out all of the fish

Here is the blanket again - we think she was trying to cover up the fish

And now maybe trying to give them a drink?
Then we headed to play. Jillian was determined to get into this thing but I think she was a little scared at first. She finally made her way through it
and then she discovered the water

Of course she had to drink it
From the water place where she was playing we had a great view of the Seasame Street show
Jillian liked to watch from afar but wouldn't get anywhere near any of them when they were walking around
She again enjoyed seeing Shamu as you can tell from her big smile
After Shamu we left the park for a break, some food, and some air conditioning. On our way back we believe Jillian was trying to stay cool but putting her blanket on her head but who knows what she was thinking
Then we headed to the water park where we enjoyed the wave pool and Jillian played in the kiddie area
On Friday we went camping. Yes, I know we are crazy to go tent camping in this heat but it was actually quite bearable with the evening breeze we had both nights. I only got miserable one time but got over it quickly with a cold shower. We spent a lot of time in the water during the day and spent some time swimming in the middle of the lake, thanks to Kelly and Kevin's boat. There is nothing more embarrassing then to have to have two grown men pull you in from the lake by your life jacket to get you back in the boat! Unfortunately I took my camera out to take some pictures and this was the only one I got before the battery died. I was trying to get a picture of how good Bandit was being. He was a regular old swimmer on this trip. He's come a long way from his first camping trip when he was so scared that he pooped in the boat!
This past weekend we went to Hallettsville and made our 1st trip to Splashway water park. It is definitely a great place for little ones to play.
and for big kids to relax
James was determined to get Jillian to go down these slightly bigger slides but she wasn't having it so he finally decided to go with her. Then on the second trip, he sat her down in front of him and pushed her down, while I caught her at the bottom. I'll spare you that picture since my mother took a horrible picture of me being over to pick up Jillian. It should be illegal to take pictures of pregnant women from that angle! Needless to say after that Jillian was on her own! She went up and down the stairs many, many times by herself to go down the slides and didn't even need anyone to catch her. It made our day quite relaxing to just sit there and watch her play.
Luckily we all got to go and all the cousins had a great time playing together in the water!

Sea World

This past Thursday we made a day trip to Sea World! We were prepared but a little concerned about the heat with a 2 year-old and 7 month pregnant woman but we survived. Our plan was to hit the shows early so we could be at the water park by the afternoon.
Unfortunately Jillian wasn't too happy about riding in the stroller too much so Daddy had to carry her on his shoulders a lot. At least she realized very quickly that Mommy was not going to carry her around the park.
We headed to see Shamu 1st and Jillian was really excited!
When you combine the music from the show, Shamu, and the very excited face of a 2 year old, it makes for a very emotional pregnant woman...so yes, I was the crazy person crying when Shamu came out. I felt like an idiot but I couldn't help it! Jillian just looked so happy!




Jillian wasn't very interested in the ski show but she sure did like watching the "trains" (roller coasters) near by
We found a couple of rides that Jillian could do and she really enjoyed riding the horse.

By this time, we figured it was time for lunch and to cool off so we left the park for about an hour and a half to eat in the air conditioning and not have to pay a fortune for food. When we got back we tried some more rides.
Mommy was actually able to buckle herself into this one so I was able to ride with Jillian. She liked it at first but when they were unloading kiddos and we kept stopping, she was done! She kept saying that the seat was hot so she got out of the seat belt and kept trying to stand on top of the ride. To say the least by the time we got off, Mommy was frustrated and Jillian had had enough! It was time to head to the water to say the least

We were able to cool off and Jillian really enjoyed playing in the kid water area! After this everyone was in a much better mood! We hit one more show and called it a day. It was 10 before we got home! I never imagined that Jillian or I would make it that long but it was a good day! We will be more prepared and have a better plan next time. When we were in line for our tickets someone handed us an even better coupon than the one we had and it was good for a 2nd free visit so of course we have to go back now!

Room Updates

We have slowly been working on the kid's room all summer long. I finished re-painting all of Jillian's things earlier in the summer but have never posted pictures. This past week we have been working on finishing up Grayson's side of the room. We wanted to do a car theme since James had lots of toy police cars that we could use. James set out in designing cars and he got much more creative than I thought. It was his idea to create trucks that look like Grandpa and Papa's and of course we had to have a police car to tie in the toys. Here James is working hard cutting the cars out of the foam board. He is the artist and cutter...
I was the painter
The finished product


The next step is to get the crib ready with the bedding. Mom is working on the crib skirt and curtain. Now I just need to find someone who can help me make a crib bumper so if anyone has any ideas let me know. I thought I would be able to buy one but the colors just are not working out for me.

Port Aransas

We had our annual trip to Port Aransas with James' family this past weekend. We left on Wednesday afternoon just in time for Jillian to take a nap in the car. Unfortunately she never did. By the time we arrived, stopped for groceries, got our keys, etc., it was late when we got to the house. Jillian was tuckered out but she refused to go to bed without the Dora fishing pole that we had just gotten her. I may be biased but I think this picture is so cute...she fell asleep with her fishing pole in her hands and everything.
Thursday morning Daddy was ready to show Jillian how the fishing pole worked
I don't really know who was having more fun - Jillian or Daddy?
Jillian fed birds with Papa
and explored the decks with Daddy
Then it was time to head to the beach. We walked from the house and were just going to stay a little while but Jillian was enjoying the water and having fun

she really enjoyed jumping the waves with Papa and Daddy
She even cooperated for a few pictures

Well it's all fun and games until someone gets hurt...I guess at least it was me and not Jillian. I was out in the water with James' dad when something wrapped around my ankle and then it burned and really started hurting. When we got to shore some nice people beside us helped and from what the men gathered from my description and what the wound looked like, they determined that I had been stung by a stingray! They think the tail wrapped around my leg which is why I thought it was a mouth and then got me with the one barb. I ended up with one puncture wound. Luckily the barb wasn't in me and there was some people with peroxide and bandages to help bandage me up. It bled for a while but it throbbed and stung off and on for about 8 hours and it took a while for the swelling to go down. By Sunday you could actually see the bone in my foot again.

After this we decided to head to safer ground and enjoyed some time in the pool. Jillian was pouring water on Daddy's head from the water bottle.
We went out to dinner on Thursday night and Jillian decided to be photogenic and we got some pictures with Mommy and Daddy

I'm not sure what this pose is but its a little scary... and cute

The next day we decided to head to the beach again since everyone was there. We loaded the car with chairs and 2 pop up canopies and we were set. Jillian decided to help with the sunscreen and I think she had plenty!
Jillian was a little more scared of the water this time, probably b/c she had seen me get hurt the previous day but she still played as long as someone was with her. We all stayed pretty close to shore and ankle deep was definitely good enough for me.



Jillian enjoyed playing in the sand




Chasing seagulls
and picking up shells

All in all we had a great trip and we enjoy spending time with family each year