San Antonio Riverwalk

We are only going to be living in San Antonio for 5 months. Well, now more like 4. We've been told there is "sooooo much to do" around San Antonio, so we've started making a list! One of the things we heard about was the Riverwalk. It was a nice morning (aka, not too hot!) so we decided to check it out today!  The Riverwalk was really neat. Lots of shady sidewalks and paths that wind along the river. There were River Taxi's giving tours. People running. It was gorgeous. (I should also mention that the second we walked down the steps to the Riverwalk, I whipped out my camera and turned it on to see it tell me "Battery Exhausted." Great!! Thank goodness for my phone!! Not the best pictures, but better than nothing!)  So we walked all around, in through tunnels, over bridges! We all found it pretty cool!! We tried to find a restaurant, but we apparently weren't in the right area because we found nothing! So after walking and walking (also should mention we forgot the stroller and Grant got a blister, so the walking after a while was not fun!) we decided to head back to the car and drive to a restaurant. But I did manage to snap a few pictures of my little family enjoying the scenery! Next time we go, we will be more prepared: camera with FULL battery, shoes AND socks, stroller, and a restaurant in mind!  

Old Becomes New

On our trip back to Kansas, we brought back more than we came with. Too bad it wasn't closer to Christmas, because if it were, we wouldn't have had to do any shopping for Grant!! At Levi's parents house, we brought back Levi's old train set and his old race car set. From my parents house, we brought back my ENTIRE collection of Beanie Babies. (A big thanks to our parents for holding on to our junk  treasures for so long!) All the toys were an instant hit (and I'm not talking about just the two smaller boys...)  Levi, Grant, and Wyatt have sat at the race track and train track for quite some time! Levi had to glue down the train tracks to actually hold them together! And he's changed up the race track numerous times trying to find "the best route."   And I can't tell you how many Beanie Babies Grant has taken to his bed each night! He also really enjoys having "Beanie Baby fights" which always produces lots of giggles!  I love that Grant loves listening to stories about Levi and I playing with our toys when we were kids! I can only imagine the stories he will tell his kids one day!

Whirlwind

The movers came August 3rd. We got our moving truck August 8th. We drove to Pensacola, Florida August 10th. We drove to Katy, Texas August 11th. We arrived in Universal City, Texas August 12th. We unloaded, unpacked, organized, decorated. Then we packed suitcases and reloaded the cars. We drove to Enid, Oklahoma August 16th. We drove to Grinnell, Kansas August 17th. (Are you tired yet, because I sure was!) We enjoyed 9 full days of fun with the Broeckelman/Harris families!  We drove to Kansas City August 26th. We had a jam packed 8 days there with the Isenburg/Van Allen families! I drove Levi to Enid, OK September 3rd. He worked for a week, we played in KC for another week. We met Levi in Norman, OK September 9th. We drove back to Universal City, TX on September 10th. We unloaded, unpacked, grocery shopped, set up utilities, and maybe slept a tiny bit.

And that brings me to today- Tuesday, September 13th. What a crazy crazy crazy these past 31 days have been! I expected THE WORST so I was prepared for everything!! Honestly, the boys traveled much better than I did I think (Party because they watched their DVD player and I had to listen to it- that would make any adult go crazy after 20 hours in the car, but better than the screaming, right?).  Wyatt had a few nights of waking up at some point wondering where the heck he was- afterall, he did sleep in quite a few different beds, heck- even I did that a few times! But he was a trooper! Grant was awesome! We had to make a quick trip to Urgent Care the night before we came back to Texas for a major sinus infection that moved into his eyes- poor buddy woke up saying, "I can't open my eyes!"  But even through all that, he was amazing!!! 

The best part of this crazy whirlwind was that we were a family. Together. Day in, day out. For 31 days (minus the 6 days Levi was in Enid alone). I remember thinking on the day the movers showed up at our house that this was going to be the longest, craziest month and I would just be thankful if I even survived it. I think, if I had to to do it all over again, I would because how often does a family get to spend 31 days together without having to actually be somewhere!?!?! I guess it's a good thing I enjoyed it- because we get to do it all over again in 5 months!!

YIKES!

The Farm

Today, we all headed out to The Farm. My grandparent's farm that is. Levi's parents live on an actual farm and his dad is an actual farmer. But I will always consider this my grandparents farm a "farm." No crops are actually grown here, but there are cows so that probably counts for something. Boy, do my sister, my cousins, and myself have some great great memories of going to The Farm. We have countless forts scattered all over the 80 acres. There is even a Radio Flyer wagon still lurking in one of the forts! Our boys are getting older now that they can start exploring the farm, and boy, did they loved it as much as we did!! Gigi has lots of fun treasures at her house that the boys just adore! And Old Papa has cows!! So the boys love being there!! Some of the cows are about to have babies, so we went to check them all out. Wyatt was probably the most excited- he stood at the fence and waved and "moooo-ed" the entire time. The bigger boys were more fascinated with skidding their shoes on the rock road. I know as they boys get older, they will start venturing off into the woods making their own forts, finding cool "treasures" (I remember finding an old jar of Dippity-Doo hair gel and thought it was the coolest thing!), seeing if there really are rattlesnakes in the barn or if Old Papa just wants to keep the kids out, and maybe- just maybe- they will actually find the long lost Radio Flyer. Oh, the exciting memories to come!!!

Cousins = Friends

Grant adores his cousins, Mason and Luke. Wyatt does too!! Grant very frequently says, "I miss Mason and Luke" when we are at home in Florida (or I guess I should say Texas now!). He soooo looks forward to our Kansas visits so they can play! And we have definitely done our fair share of that since we've been in town. They've had sleepovers, played in the treehouse, rode bikes, went to the Farmer's Market with Mimi and PawPaw, played LOTS of guns (which is something Grant only does with Mason and Luke. Probably because I'm not buying at toy guns for as long as I can help it!), gone to the park, dug in Mimi and PawPaw's front yard, and with all that- gotten very very VERY dirty!! Those boys sure love each other and I'm looking forward to the day we live closer so they can play ball together, have many more sleepovers, and be great friends!! I have great memories like that with my cousins and I can only hope my boys do too!!

Fountains and Frames

My parents were supposed to be getting new siding on their house this week during our visit. So we had lots of things planned to stay away from the house! One of our activities was to head out to Zona Rosa. I'd taken the boys there earlier this spring and Grant LOVED playing in the fountains there! Wyatt wasn't so sure of them. But this time during our visit, both boys got in on the action. Wyatt loved the element of surprise since you never knew which fountain was going to flow and when it would stop!! I about died laughing just watching him! Grant had a great time swatting at the fountains. He said he was playing baseball!

My favorite part of Zona Rosa was checking out this place called Vintage Market. We got an old window that pretty much looks like this and I am so excited to get it home and put some family pictures in it!! Hello new picture frame!

Oh Pinterest, how I love you and your clever ideas!

Popsicles and Pancakes

Two things that are always available at Mimi and PawPaw's house- Popsicles and Pancakes!!! Mimi always makes fresh pancakes in the morning, upon Grant's requests. And popsicles are always ready for the bathtub (less clean up that way!).  What more do little boys need??

New Kicks

I had to buy Wyatt a new pair of shoes. He's been wearing Grant's hand-me-downs (which is funny because they were Grant's first pair of shoes @ age 9 months) and the shoes he was wearing never really fit him all that great anyway- Grant had extra-wide feet. But as I was putting them on him the other day, he seemed bothered by them. As I was trying to cram his foot in there, I noticed they felt tight. I reached in and there was a wadded sock in the toes, so I figured that was the problem. After trying to put the shoes on again, he still seemed bothered. Sure enough, his toes were at the tippy top of the shoes. I knew it was coming because about a month ago, I got his feet measured and he needed a size 5 and his current shoes were 4.5. Since we are out in Western Kansas right now and there aren't many shoes stores, I just ordered from good old Zappos. They were delivered last night and as soon as they were out of the box, Wyatt just had to wear them! He just gotten out of the bathtub and didn't even have his pajamas on yet, but the shoes HAD to go on and we HAD to go outside. He loves his new Nike Shox!! I know, I'm a spoiler. What can I say, I have a thing for shoes- even tiny ones! And I think Wyatt does too!

Kansas Tourists

We took these Kansas cuties for a little Kansas Tourism this morning. We visited the Buffalo Bill statue and Oakley Welcome Center in good ole Oakley, KS. The boys and cousin Haylie saw the giant statue, looked at the sunflower field, and saw did the face cut-outs of Buffalo Bill. Grant looks kinda weird in a mustache and beard. Levi made me and Grant jump for joy in front of the statues. I'm just happy my feet left the ground!  After that bit of tourism, we headed over to the Fick Fossil Museum in Oakley. We saw lots of shark teeth, some cool fossils, a big buffalo, and lots of other cool old stuff. Levi and I even put our faces in the Buffalo Bill and Annie Oakley cutouts. What do you think, should I get bangs? I guess the only stop left on our Oakley tourists travels should be The World's Largest Prairie Dog. Nah, I don't think so......

Mowers and Tractors

It's always on our to-do list to go for mower and tractor rides while visiting Grandma and Grandpa's house. It's been one of Grant's favorite activities ever since he was a little guy. Wyatt had never been able to go for a ride on the tractor or the mower, but he sure was excited to have his chance this morning. Grant too, of course!! Daddy took both boys on the mower for a while. I went out to take their pictures but they were no where to be seen, and for quite some time! They must have really enjoyed themselves since they were gone so long! I finally snapped a few pictures of them as they came back in, and they were all smiles. Then, after the mower ride, it was Grandpa's turn to give the boys a tractor ride. He revved up the "little" blue tractor and they were off! I kept hearing the horn go "beep beep" every few minutes, so I could only imagine what was going on inside the tractor. When they returned, Grant said, "I was being soooo goofy."  When Grandpa came in, he said they were all being goofy on the tractor, but Wyatt was probably the goofiest!!  Sounds like big and little boys alike all had fun!!!

Mr. Bubble

One of Grant's favorite past times is taking baths. Some days he may take 2 baths, just for fun! Yesterday, at Grandma's house, he really wanted to take a bath in the middle of the afternoon. Sure, why not!! When we went up the bathroom, we found some Mr. Bubble bubble bath next to the tub. Grant doesn't take bubble baths too often, mostly because he can't find his toys to play with when the water is all bubbly. But he wanted LOTS of bubbles in the tub, and that's just what we did. They were the best kind of bubbles too- fluffy, sticky, and light! We made him look like Santa, gave him crazy hair, blew bubbles all over, and buried his body in bubbles!! When I was drying him off, he said, "We goooootttaa get some of these bubbles at our house!" 

 We can do that buddy, just for you!!

Kitchen Sink

I was lazy and didn't feel like going upstairs to give Wyatt a bath and taking the time for the water to warm up and fill up. So I just used Grandma's kitchen sink. It's one of Wyatt's favorite places to take a bath, so I knew he wouldn't mind. As soon as I got Wyatt in sink, Grant wanders in and wants to join Wyatt. So I cleared out the other side of the sink and they took a double bath. Those two sure had fun "cracking" plastic eggs and filling up the pretend muffin tin. Thank goodness Grandma has a nice big, deep sink so her crazy boys can take kitchen sink baths!

Cousins in Colby

It was a gorgeous day in Kansas, so we took the kiddos to Colby, KS to play in the big park! We got to drive in Grandma's new Suburban and Grant loved the DVD player with the super cool headphones, plus he got to sit in the 3rd row, or the "waaaaay back" as he calls it!! Wyatt and Haylie happily sucked their thumbs the whole way there! Grant's favorite part of the park: the zipline and riding Chomper (the little dinosaur). Wyatt's favorite part: swinging and sliding. Haylie's favorite part: pouring mulch all over her hair!! They all had so much fun and there were lots of smiles to be seen! The only thing that would've made this trip more fun is if Little Piper were there to join in the fun! 

What's Left

We are moving tomorrow. There was hardly anything left in our house today. Which is why we spent most of the day away. The couches were packed. The chairs were packed. The toys were packed. The beds were packed. But the TV's were not. Grant and Wyatt spent some time having picnics on the floor and watching some TV while I finished the packing. Grant has even been "camping out" in his room with his Thomas tent and sleeping bag. He has LOVED that! They have been such troopers through all the chaos! There were tears involved a few times- "I want my stacking robots!" "I want to play with my sea creatures!" But they did make up for it by running laps around the empty living room!! We head out tomorrow for our long, long, LONG adventure! This blog will probably be left behind for a while, so stay tuned....

Home Haircut

Wyatt's had a few haircuts in his short amount of time of actually having hair. But they never seem to go smoothly. Lots of crying, lots of screaming, lots of snot. Its always a huge mess. So, now that Daddy is home, he can resume the duty of home haircutter! Grant was always really bad with haircuts too, but once Levi started doing them, he never fussed at all! I was curious as to how Wyatt would react. He got buckled in his chair and put his finger to his lips, and I could just tell he was trying to figure out what was about to happen. Daddy got out the clippers, Wyatt touched them, he giggled and let Daddy get to work! He really liked spraying his face with the spray bottle for most of the time. Overall, he did great. He did fuss at the end, just because he never sits still for that long, so he was ready to get up. Daddy did a good job too and my little man looks so handsome!

Little Man

I've started catching glimpses of Wyatt looking more like a Little Man and less like a Little Baby. I noticed him sitting at the little table and chairs the other day playing with a robot. He had on a romper, but with him sitting down, you can only see his collar of his shirt, making it look like he was wearing just a polo. He was so deep in thought and concentration. It made me catch a glimpse of what he'd look like if he were sitting at a desk at school. I'm just so amazed at how big my baby is getting!!

17 Month Stats

Wyatt's not techincally 17 months quite yet, but he will be next week. And since we'll be traveling all over God's Green Acres, I went ahead and took him in for his 15-18 month checkup now. He got his shots and was sooo good! He cried for about 2.2 seconds, and the second he got his lollipop, he was all smiles!! Here are his 17 month stats:

Weight- 21.5 lbs (5-10th percentile)

Height- 31 in (10-25th percentile)

I didn't get his head, but its round, so I think he's all good. 

All in all, he's still just a little guy. It's so funny because Grant was just so huge at this point! Wyatt wears 18-24 month rompers and onesies, but when it comes to separates, he's still a solid 12 month, sometimes even 9 months when it comes to shorts. He is wearing a size 4 diaper and a size 4.5 shoe. Even though he may techincally be small, the fact that my littlest guy is so big still amazes me!

Doesn't even look like the same little boy to me!!! Where did my little baby go?!?

Bed and Breakfast

The movers came yesterday. They took all the furniture that will go into storage in Oklahoma. We are taking the bare essentials to Texas. Grant's mattress made the cut, but the bed did not. So, for the next 6 months, Grant will be sleeping on a mattress on the floor. I think he likes it so far! He obviously doesn't have a bed rail up, which he thinks is cool. This kid is such a crazy sleeper that we've kept his bed rail up since we transitioned him to the big boy bed. Who knows how many times he would've fallen out of bed without it! So I think he likes that freedom. He still stays in his bed til we get him in the morning or after nap, so hopefully this doesn't stop that from happening still. 

Last night, he wanted to pull his mattress out to the living room and pretend to be at a movie theater. I don't know what movie theaters he's been to that have mattresses, but I would quite enjoy that. (Maybe its because he's never been to a movie theater!) So I decided to give him a Bed and Breakfast this morning! When he woke up, I pulled his mattress out, gave him some cereal and he watched his morning cartoons! Of course, Little Brother had to come enjoy the fun too!

What a life these boys lead!! :)

Beach Playdoh

We are living in Florida for 4 more days, but the closest we are getting to the beach is with playdoh! Sadly, its just too hot to do the real thing! But Mimi sent the boys this bucket of Beach Playdoh last week and one of the containers of Playdoh is called Sand Sensations. It really does feel like wet sand, only a bit stickier. But Grant thought up a great idea to make the beach, the ocean, and a sandcastle. He got out his seashell collection to add to the fun! Wyatt just played with his red Playdoh. Not sure what his grand idea was, but he was concentrating very hard while doing it! (I love his concentrating face!) Building real sand castles would've been fun too, but this sand castle we made in the air conditioning, and that wins in my book!

Our House

We had three weeks. Find a house. Buy a house. Close on a house. Move into a house. In a different city. Cue 8033 Fleur De Lis Drive. July 17, 2007. Levi and I bought our first house. Who knew this eyesore of a house could turn into our beautiful home. It was not fancy, not big, not dreamy, but it was ours. I'd be lying if I said there was an inch in this house that Levi never touched. He did everything to this house to make it a home. Not to mention, this is the house where we've watched our baby boys grow into bigger boys! It's hard to believe that in a matter of 9 days, we will never see the insides of this house again. I'm excited to move on, get out of Florida and get closer to home. I'm excited to have a little more space, at least in our next temporary house. But it will be weird. Houses come and go, and that's even more true for military families, but the memories we have will last forever!

Here is a picture of Levi and I just months after moving in. I was pregnant with Grant. 

And here it is now...

Dear God, In my next house, please let me have a playroom and an easier street name!