4th of July Weekend

Well, I can't say our 4th of July turned out the way we expected....but it was still fun!  Our original plan was to meet my parents at La Torretta on Lake Conroe for the long weekend.  On Friday, we got all packed up and made our way up to Conroe.  We had a 2 bedroom villa on the lake booked for our stay at La Torretta.  Due to the cerclage I can't swim in lakes (I was even told to steer away from public pools).  With that being said, this lake trip was going to be nice because our jet skis could be pulled right up to the villa.  I'd be able to watch everyone, get a good lake view and we'd have the hotel pool to keep William occupied.  WELL....long story short, when we arrived we were told the people in our villa were refusing to leave.  So instead, the hotel put us into a villa on the golf course that had a sliding glass back door that didn't lock.  As you can see from the pictures below we ended up back at home!!  My poor parents drove hundreds of miles, with the jet skis, all for a long weekend in the burbs.  :)  Friday night we went ahead and stayed in the Woodlands because we'd scheduled a 3D ultrasound in the area the next morning.  La Torretta really messed up our plans!!

On top of all that Gordon and I had bought tickets to the Garth Brooks concert at the last minute.  So, after dinner on the lake and unpacking William at the hotel we headed into town.  After baby girl comes dates like this won't happen for a while....so, I'm glad we did it.  We didn't crawl into bed until 2am!!  But, it was worth all the yawns.  Mr. Garth put on a great show.  

The next morning, July 4th, we headed to our ultrasound (and got zero pictures of baby girl) and then back home.  We went to our local parade, had dinner at one of our favorite places and did some fireworks.  To say William had a blast is an understatement!  He talked about our firework show (which was mainly sparklers and smoke bombs) for weeks.

The boys went shooting on Sunday morning so Nana, William and I headed to The Downtown Aquarium.  William loved looking at all the fish, the train ride was obviously a hit and the stingrays were super fun to feed.    

It may not have been the weekend we envisioned but we still had a blast and made lots of fun memories!!

Independence Day

On the last day of our trip to the JW we said goodbye to our sweet baby boy so he could go to CampNanaPapa!  William stayed in San Antonio with my parents another night before heading to West Texas the next morning.  Leaving William in San Antonio made things a little easier since I knew there was so much entertainment at the JW.  I still cried my eyes out on the drive home to Houston.  Unfortunately, Gordon had to leave town that week for business so this momma was on her own.  I was pretty disappointed about how the scheduling all worked out....but I ended up having a fun few days alone....happy hour at Perry's, went to see Maleficent, did some shopping, got my hair done, got a mani/pedi and when I got up in the morning for work I was out the door within 15 minutes!
 

Lunch Date!

Thursday afternoon we headed to West Texas for the July 4th weekend and to get our baby.  :)  Before heading to the airport we had a fun lunch date at Benjy's.  Thanks Nana and Papa for taking care of our sweet little buddy.  It was great to have some "ME" time.

{Playing with Uncle D} {Living the Good Life} {Fireworks!} {Watermelon with Skye}

We had a great weekend just relaxing at the house.  We hit up some of my favorite lunch spots, got to visit with my Grandpa and GG, took some long naps, stayed up way too late talking the night away, and got lots of pool time in.  We even did a few fireworks with William.  He couldn't decide if he loved them or hated them.  He would cry "bye bye" and a minute later tell you "more".   

{Feeding the baby goat at Pop and GG's} {SO happy to see our baby} {Lunch with D and Skye} {He had a fun weekend with Nana and Papa} {love} {Summer Mummers} {Watering with Nana} {Bubbles!}

Saturday night we got a babysitter so we could go to Summer Mummers.  It was a last minute decision so we didn't have the best seats.  I'm so glad we decided to go because we all had the best time!  You can't beat laughing the night away with your family while drinking beer and throwing popcorn.  

{To say he loved the Polaris is an understatement} {Learning from the best}

We even made time for shooting while we were in town!  Fun times.  I always hate leaving but luckily we'll be going back in September.  Until then I'll harass Gordon about moving back to this beautiful desert town. :)

4th of July

 

 



These two pictures could possibly be my all time favorites!  Both of my boys.  My cup runneth over. 

• Playing on the jet ski
• Checking things out with Papa
• Life jacket, check, puff, check!
• Bathtime with Daddy

I know I'm a little late on this post but when you take a billion pictures it's hard to narrow them down!  So, obviously we spend our 4th of July weekend at Lake Houston with my parents.  Gordon and I both had to work on the 5th (and needed a babysitter since daycare was closed) and my dad was itching to get the jet skis out on the water so they headed our way.  None of us had ever been to Lake Houston so we were all pleasantly surprised.  Honestly, it's become one of my new favorite places.  It's not like your typical lake....lots of people, tons of boats, rough water.  It was such a quiet, peaceful and beautiful place.  The water was perfect for jet skiing!  As Gordon and I rode around together one afternoon I couldn't help but wonder how some people don't believe in God. 
Little buddy even got to go on the jet ski!  Since the lake wasn't crowded we drove him around for 10 minutes in the morning and again in the evening since he loved it so much.  William gets a little startled by loud noises so I was worried he'd just cry.  As soon as we got going (not very fast) and the wind was blowing in our face a little he just smiled.  He smiled the entire time.  He is a true water baby!
As you can see in the pictures above.....he had a little emotional breakdown.  He was fighting a cold the entire weekend and the 4th of July was his worst day.  Nobody got to sleep through the night all weekend long.  I know I say a lot how good of a baby William is.  Maybe I should clarify.....all babies are good!!  It's just that some babies are more fussy, have more gas pains, are colicky, don't sleep as well as others, get more ear infections, require more food and more often.  The list goes on and on.  I guess William is just easier than I expected him to be (I prepared myself for the worst)!  But, believe me, he has his moments.  ....we wouldn't trade a single one of them!

•  Playing in the pool
• "I wanna be cool like my uncle" shirt from Uncle D
• Playing the drums with Papa and Daddy

William's first 4th of July

Well, I can't say we had an exciting 4th of July but it was nice to have Gordon home with us!  As you can probably imagine there isn't a lot we can do with William right now.  It's just too hot outside.  Even the shade is pretty miserable.  We did sing the song Yankee Doodle for the first time and did you know one part of the song says "Father and I went down to camp Along with Captain Gooding!"
HAHA.  We also did a little firecracker cheer.  Gordon would die if he knew what I was singing to William was a cheer we did growing up.  Firecracker, Firecracker, Boom, Boom, Boom!

This bouncy seat isn't so bad after all!

We did all our normal everyday stuff yesterday....change diapers, feed baby, pump, do dishes, wash bottles, shower, and do laundry.  Grant and Emily came by for dinner last night.  Gordon cooked for us on the Green Egg and after dinner we all went on a walk. 

I got creative :)
AND I did this while holding William!

Hanging with Aunt Emily

Walking...note all the construction!

We could hear the downtown fireworks last night....can't say I really missed them.  Don't get me wrong.....they are beautiful....but the traffic it creates is AWFUL.  As in get stuck in your car for 3 hours terrible!  It was worth watching when I lived in Midtown and could walk home.  Now, not so much.  I'm hoping that next year we can go to Midland where things are a little more simple.  The best part will be swimming all day at my parents house!  I can't wait for those types of fun days.  I do love cuddling with my sweet baby but look forward to teaching him to swim, hearing his little voice, watching him walk and crawl around....
Like I've said a thousand times since April 19th....Life is GOOD.  When I start feeling sad about going back to work I just try to think about all the fun times ahead of us.  :)

So blessed to live in the USA

Let me just tell you that there are NO 4th of July or Red, White and Blue outfits for preemies!  William is still wearing preemie in the brand Kissy Kissy and NB in Carters.  Preemie outfits that say up to 7lbs still fit really well too (from Gap etc).  At least his cute little hat was red, white and blue! 

Best way to end my first 4th of July...
with a bath!