Summer...so far

Oh how I have missed keeping everyone in the loop with our life here lately. I am making a public statement that I promise to do better at updates no matter what it takes! :) Ok now that I have to confess yall have to hold me to it and if I start slacking email me and let me know...I need to be held accountable. Well we are off to a great summer so far. Lochlan got his first tooth the Monday after Mother's day... 4 days later decided he was ready to roll... 2 days after that he got another tooth and this time it was one on top. So now we have one on the top right and one on the bottom right. And let me tell you about 4 more are going to pop through any day. He has the little white lines and gums under 4 more areas. Bless his little heart I can tell they are bothering him so bad. :( When we were at the doctor last week I expressed my concern that he wasn't rolling very good yet but the doctor assured us that he just "had a lot of weight to throw around" (yes those were his exact words! ha!) He weighed 23lbs at his appointment last week and Landry weighed in at 32lbs. There is only a 9 lb difference b/t my 2 years and 7 months apart precious boys. The very next day he decided it was time to roll. So now he is rolling from him tummy to his back. He get's so close to rolling from his back to his stomach and works and grunts so hard when he is trying to do it so I predict a few more weeks and he will have that mastered too. I am clinging to every thing he does b/c now I know how fast this precious time goes by. I still feel like Landry should be learning to roll over and getting his first tooth. :( So let's catch up on a few things first..shall we? Landry started playing in a soccer league 7 weeks ago called Tiny Toes. We thought this would be something he would absolutely love since he loves ALL sports but especially after we saw his love for watching his daddy play in church league basketball. He has done great and has actually scored a few goals but to be honest I think he enoyed watching Austin play basketball more than he likes playing soccer. It's so funny b/c 30 minutes of the hour game they are "warming up, playing tag, and just being silly. And I'm not sure what I love more...the shin guards that look huge on him or the drink breaks that consist of sippy cups. He has had a good time playing and it's been a joy to watch him play and it gives us a glimpse of what we have to look forward to in the future if he decides to play sports(which i will be VERY VERY surprised if he doesn't)!

In April we took a long weekend trip with Austin's sister and her family to St Louis. It's always so good to get the kids together and let them play and rejuvenate their relationship and ours for that matter. We miss them so terribly bad and wish we could blink our eyes and get them to Tennessee with us! But since that isn't going to happen we have decided we were going to make this a yearly tradition. We love the city of st. Louis and all it has to offer especially for kids the options are endless. We took the kids to the FREE yes I said FREE zoo. Usually when you hear the words FREE you think ripoff. HOwever, this was the BEST zoo I have every been to other than the San Diego zoo with my family when I was little. Other than the cold weather(yes us tennesseeans are whimps. Since the west are use to that weather-or much colder they handled it like champs) it was a prefect day. The kids had a blast and the exhibits were very well thought out b/c they were very shallow but long which allowed you to be very close to the animals and you could see them no matter where you stood to look at them. We were there for several hours and still didn't see all the animals it had to offer.

We also went to the magic house which is a hands on childrens museum. Let's just say that us adults had as much fun if not more fun than the kids here! Such an amazing museum and very interactive.

Then this leads us to our last adventure San Antonio. Austin had to go out there to do some business the Monday after Mother's Day. I got the bright idea that I should bring the boys on a plane by myself and meet him down there on Wednesday and us have a little family vacation. Yes I know crazy idea right?! Well let's just say both boys were as good as gold the whole flight. When my dad dropped us off at the airport and I saw him driving off my heart started beating fast and I said to myself "what was I thinking and what have I done...come back daddy...come back!" But that was my only freak out moment. Thankfully, security was a breeze and TSA was very helpful and considerate. Once we got on the plane it was funny b/c everyone avoided us like the plague except for one sweet older man who not only got up and gave me his seat 2nd row from the front but also helped me with my bags and talked to me and the boys. But it was like a light switch b/c as soon as we landed EVERYONE and their mamma wanted to talk to me and told me how good my boys were. ha! Once we met up with Austin at baggage claim I was finally able to take a deep breath and exhale. I DID IT! I braved security line and check point, a 1 hour wait, 2 bathroom trips, entertaining for 1 hour before the flight and a 2 hour 20 minute flight ALL BY MYSELF! Let's just say I was a little proud of myself b/c this is coming from the mamma that has only braved 2 walmart trips in the past 8 months with both boys by myself. :) On Wednesday when we got there we went to the room and let Landry play in the "new house." This is what he calls all hotels/condos/ect. when we go on vacations.:) He jumped back and forth on the beds(hey boys will be boys-do't judge), played in the window looking out over downtown San Antonio, and explored every last nook and craney in the room.

Then it was time for dinner so we walked out the back doors of the Grand Hyatt and jumped on a river boat to go up stream. It was a nice relaxing night and very laid back.

On Thursday we took the boys to sea world and had a blast. We got there when the gates opened at 10 and didn't leave the park till they closed the doors behind us at 5. We all had a blast and both of the boys had as much fun as we did. The whale show was a favorite and we actually went to both of the shows they offered b/c we enjoyed it so much we wanted to see it again.

Landry rode a few rides and really enjoyed them all but the kiddy roller coaster. He wasn't big on that ride b/c when it slowed down his head slung back and hit the back of the seat. So needless to say when it came time for Austin and I to get our fix in and ride some roller coasters ourselves he boo hooed the whole time b/c it scared him that we were going to get hurt also. While at Sea World he saw a little boy getting his face painted like spiderman and asked if he could get his face painted. Sure why not! We are on vacation afterall and who doesn't like to get spoiled while they are on vacation. When it came his turn he chose to be a leopard and let me just say he is the cutest little leopard I have ever seen! :) He loved it and walked around the park roaring at everyone he passed all day.

Lochlan was such a trooper all day and rode in the stroller the whole time unless we were holding him during a show. I looked down one time and he had fallen asleep sitting up and had literally slumped overThe boys were WORN out when we were leaving the park.

We rode on the river boat every single night to and from dinner on the river walk. Landry loved this part and he enjoyed looking for turtles and fish in the water-which surprisingly they had a lot of. It was a great trip and we all had a blast. Our family battery is now recharged. On the way home Austin and I talked about how much fun we had and how we can't wait to take more trips together as a family just we had the vacation time to do it and unlimited funds to do it with! :)