Mom's night out at the Rodeo

My friend Michele and I decided to hit the Faith Hill concert at the Houston Rodeo a couple weeks ago. We had a blast! It felt so great and relaxing to be out on the town, no kids in tow. And Faith Hill, well what an amazing voice. We jammed along to the songs we knew and I found myself blaring out a word or two.

Michele and I met here in Houston and I'd have to say she is my closest friend here and will always be a close friend no matter where we end up down the road. I'm so fortunate to have met her and her wonderful family. Her husband Ron is a riot and after hanging out with the two of them, Matt has one or two "lines" that Ron has said and has to be repeated because it was so funny! He just gets a kick out of him. They are just the type of friends that would do whatever they could to help you out if you needed it, or to make you laugh when you need a good chuckle. I know I don't tell her enough, so Michele if you're reading this, thank you very much for your friendship and for everything you do for me and my family.

Grandma and Grandpa's House

Along with our great couple days of skiing, Andrew and Grace enjoyed every minute of their stay at "Grandma's" house. Sorry Kent, no disrespect to you but I'll tell you what, all those kids think about is Grandma. When we come to visit, it's nothing but play, play, play. And treats too of course. I mean, what would Grandma's house be like if you couldn't get away with 1, 2 or 20 things you normally can't at home, right? That's what going to grandparent's houses are for. And Kathy (Matt's mom) spoils those kids like there is no tomorrow! I LOVE it! Just seeing how much fun they have is worth every minute to me.

They enjoyed going to Fat Cats arcade and glow-in-the-dark mini golf, having sleep overs with their cousins, visiting their cousins in Toele and going bowling, and sledding in the snow every day. And Matt built a snow cave for Andrew, which he thought was pretty cool. Overall, our trip went way too quickly, as always. We can't wait to visit again.

Utah Trip- Skiiing

Talk about spring skiing. This was the best time I've had in a long time of skiing. The weather could not have been more perfect. We were down to ski pants and long sleeve shirts! AAAAHHH! Both Andrew and Grace did such an awesome job and we were really surprised that Grace kept it up for a good couple hours. She didn't whine or complain hardly at all, which is pretty amazing given the fact that this was her first time and I think it's hard for little ones to understand that their pretty much tied down to the ground with those skis on. Nonetheless, Andrew did such a great job, wanting to go down the hill over and over again. The second day skiing, he wanted to go up on the gondola and ski down. So sure enough, that's what we did. Although we all had a few tumbles, he kept getting up and doing it again. At one point, Andrew and I are riding up the chair lift and I'm thinking, this is a vacation. Feeling the warm sun on my face and spending the day in the mountains was fabulous...and with my whole family at that. It's nice that Grace is to the age that she can participate in a lot of the things we do, which means both Matt and I can as well.

And lastly, can I tell you how patient and fun Matt was with the kids, teaching them how to ski. He never lost his cool and was constantly telling both of them what a good job they were doing. He even came up with this cute song for Grace: Put your hands on your hips and make a big A, make a big A. Go skiing all DAY! The "all day" part has to be sung VERY low and monstrous. She laughs every time they sing it. And not only that, Matt is such a good skier. I was completely enamoured with him, watching him cruise down the mountain, going on jumps, and taking on the black diamond runs. It was pretty HOT!

Wearing Mommy's "Shirt"

Okay, some of you might be offended by these photoes, but Grace asked me repeatedly to "wear Mommy's shirt" so I put it on her and she thought she was the most gorgeous, awesome, girl ever! Just look at the smile in the bottom picture. Could she be any more happy? I just couldn't resist posting it. Too cute!
Lately, that's all she wants to do. Put on makeup ( she has to use her plastic barbie set), put on my shoes, wear my headbands, do whatever I'm doing. She has become my little shadow and I LOVE it, most of the time. I hope to introduce her to soccer and sports here shortly though before she gets too prissy for my taste. I don't know about the whole princess thing. I was such a tomboy growing up that I wasn't really into barbies, or tea parties or dress-up. Oh well, if that's her thing, that's her thing right?

Lions and Tigers and Bears, OH MY!

We visited the Houston Zoo mid-February and had an absolute blast! The weather was in the low 70's....AHHHH! And the last time we were there, Andrew was a little 2 year old and I was pregnant with Grace. Just where does the time go? It was surreal seeing a couple of spots where we had taken Andrew's photo, a good three years ago. Honestly seems like yesterday.

This was Grace's FIRST trip to the zoo and she couldn't believe all the animals! Some of her favorites were the giraffes, elephants, and orangutans. I think we sat and watched the monkeys for a good 1/2 hour. What is it about those animals that is so intriguing? Is it the fact that they are an animal most similar to humans? Perhaps so, but this was definitely the highlight of our visit. Watching the baby monkeys cling to their blankets, or eat fruit with their hands. Just amazing animals!

Andrew loved playing at the kids zoo, sliding down the slides and pretending to be a prairie dog. The highlight of the zoo for him was seeing the monkeys and elephants. He couldn't believe how big those animals are in reality. And the way they use their trunks to eat and drink. Almost like an arm of sorts. Too cool!