Deep in the heart of Texas

We all had a new and different Christmas this year - on the beach! It was a neat adventure and we had a lot of fun. Santa Claus brought the presents to the hotel and delivered them on a luggage cart. We saw lots of jellyfish on the beach and even a dead dolphin. We also went to an indoor waterpark called the Schlitterban. It was pretty cold but a great experience (Fred's first big waterslide!)

In Houston we were able to go to shopping, Costco, a neat park with paddleboats where we saw lots of different birds and turtles and trains, the children's museum, and many other exciting activities. Fred and I also got to go horseback riding at the ranch and it was amazing. Fred and I also got to have a great dinner and see Tron at the 3d IMAX which was super fun too. I need to be better about taking pictures but I did get some great ones from our time at Christmas. We can't wait to go again!

And some videos from Fred's new flip video recorder...

Almost there...

Fall Happenings

This fall Luke started soccer. He has had a lot of fun at practices and a little less fun at games. It was neat for us to be able to watch him out there kicking and dribbling the ball. His team was called Lightning and Luke would run like lightning all around the field during the game. He was a little hesitant about the ball but he always stayed right there with his teammates and the action. Luke says that his favorite part of playing was all the people that he was able to play with.

Fred went out elk hunting this year and managed to hit one on opening day. His hunting buddy also shot this same elk so we know it was good and dead. There was a lot of butchering happening in Oct complete with summer sausage smoking to complete the elk meat packaging.

It was also Luke's 5th birthday on the 17th. He got to have 2 different parties. The first was a party on his bday with some of his friends. He wanted a diesel train party with a Hot Wheels cake. There was not a lot of diesel train party paraphernalia so we mixed it with some other Hot Wheels themes like a car pinata. The second party happened when Grammy, Grandpa, and Leyla came to celebrate. He had some fancy birthday cookies and had a lot of fun with the special visitors.

To round out Oct was of course Halloween (Luke was Thomas the Train and Logan was a Dragon). We got a LOT of candy and should be stocked until at least Easter ;). The Taos Balloons were the same weekend and they were as pretty as ever.

Bed is complete

To follow-up this post here is a picture of the completed bed...

Hawaii 2010

We went to the Big Island, Kona-side this year. It was just Mom, me, Luke and Logan. It was very beautiful there and we were definitely becoming accustomed to island living. It was really good for all of us to have special time with Mom/Grammy too.

We visited lots of beaches...Old Kona Airport which was nice with tide pools, Hapuna beach which is one of the white sand beaches often shown in tropical paradise cameos, some small sheltered beaches right on Ali'i Dr, and others. It was absolutely a wish come true to be near the ocean. Logan and Luke were apprehensive of the waves and all the water but as the time went by they became more confident. Some of their favorite games were running from the waves and sitting in the shallow area and letting the water come and go. They loved watching the boogie boarders and surfers. There was a pool at our condo as well and they were like little fish with their swimmies on..

The food was excellent overall. A particular favorite eating spot while we were there was a place that served breakfast in the AM and was called Java on the Rocks and then in the evening served dinner and became Huggos on the Rocks. Luke, in particular, was fascinated with the name change. Several mornings Luke, Logan, and Grammy went here and saw dolphins and turtles. We had some amazing dinners and my favorite was actually at the Huggos restaurant. Some fish, Ono maybe, prepared with an Asian sauce and mushrooms mmmm mmmm!

We visited the volcano national park, the site of Kilauea. This was pretty amazing. We were not able to actually see lava this time due to the hiking distance required but Luke and Logan became Junior Rangers and we saw lava tubes, steam vents, and the noxious fumes rising from the top of the volcano. We have a reason to go back to see the actual lava when the kiddos are older. There were even some tributes made in the form of leis to the Hawaiian goddess Pele.

We also discovered an amazing playground complete with a train, boat, whale and castle for exploring. We rode the trolley and Luke and Logan played monkey boys. We also went to a Luau. It was my first and I have to report that the food is not exciting... the shows were really neat until we got rained out. Luke LOVED the dancing. His whole body still starts to hula at the hint of a good beat. On top of all that my Mom and I were able to get in some good tennis and a pedicure :) The trip ended with an unexpected accident which brought us to Oahu where we saw Waikiki beach and Diamondhead. Oahu is definitely on the list of places to explore in the future.

PS David, the spider shot it for you!

Kid's Fun Run

For family night one evening we got together with our friends at Fred Baca Park so all the kids could have some fun running their hearts out (and the grown-ups could eat pizza :). We did some little dashes and also some relay races. They got their prize bags at the end. They all seemed to have a great time and this could definitely be a repeat activity.

School Days

Luke and Logan started school today. It is the first time they are going to a school program...ever...since they were born...sniff. Luke goes every weekday from 8:30 to 11:30 and Logan goes two days for the same time. They were so excited last night they had trouble settling down. They even got an encouraging call from Mickey Mouse as well as some Skype encouragement from Grams and Grandpa. At the drop-off they did wonderfully. Logan hugged me for a minute then off he went playing. I hung around in Luke's room for about 5 minutes then he told me he was ready for me to go. So I went...at pick up, they had their projects and stories and Lukey checked to make sure he got to go back tomorrow...one sleep...good. Luke got pizza for breakfast which I thought was interesting and that is pretty much the first day.

Beastly!

Beets that is - - the farmer's market is in full swing and man, is it a good year. There is an abundance of everything...tomatoes the size of one's head, greens, summer squash, and wonderful beets, 4.5 pounds in one bunch!!! Thank you rain :)



Another group of beasts to note are our new chickens (new since June but who's counting). We got four Black Brahma hens. They are very friendly and one might even call them pushy and obnoxious. They will beg food off of an innocent person trying to eat outside. As the photo below shows, they also take a look in the house for goodies (although they have never actually come in thankfully) . They do a good job of giving us great eggs for all their personality it has been great fun having them.

New stools

For Grammy: so you can see the new addition...we got them at Target

Mini vans are cool

Hunger Games

Another great young adult series that I am excited about...count it down with me!

Mountain biking

I thought it would be a fun activity to buy a lift pass at Angel Fire and ride down. It was a lot of fun but what I did not realize was that this was actually a sport unto itself called downhill with special equipment. Needless to say, it was a little scary. Here we are after we did a full day of biking

Where a kid can be a kid

Logan is now 3! He is getting to be such a big boy and doing a lot of things himself. He is a very happy guy and is really into trains right now. He also loves fishing and can cast and cast without getting tired. His favorite color is blue. For his special day, we went to ABQ and went to Chuck E Cheese. They loved the pizza, games and prizes!

Summit

Before our friends left we wanted to make the hike up to the summit of Wheeler peak which happens to be the tallest mountain in NM coming in at 13,161. It was beautiful, although quite the climb as we chose the short hike (aka straight up the side). We were able to see a sheep family as we reached the summit and before a loud group of hikers scared everything else away...

Sportsman's Warehouse

Fred has been lucky enough to get a scope for Father's Day, a shotgun for his birthday, and a rifle. He is all set for killing things...

Here are the kids at the warehouse

The long road home

On the way home from our ranch trip we stopped for some adventures in Moab, UT at Arches National Park

Climbing



Delicate Arch in the background



One of the window arches



It was hot!

Utah (Version II)

Yes, we were lucky enough to be able to go to Utah a second time with some different friends. They have a ranch about 45 minutes from Provo that has been in their family for generations. It was a really neat place and they had a lot of 4th of July festivities.

We were able to stay in what they call the little cabin which was a great, quiet spot to stay



There was a swimming hole equipped with a canoe that the kids spent a LOT of time in



We went to the Oakley Rodeo which was the kids first





Christmas card?



One of the festivities for the fourth was a kid's doughnut eating contest and Luke did a good job. He was interested to find out that one doesn't even use their hands in such events. Logan was happy to have a doughnut and not competitive at this point





There was root beer for the adults



Face painting and a water balloon toss







Here is a smashing shot of Luke in a visor he made together with Grammy



My favorite part was getting to go horseback riding the kids favorite was probably the four wheeler rides







It was a truly fantastic time!

Soccer camp

Luke went to soccer camp this year. It was a week long camp and he did great and had a lot of fun. They played lots of games getting used to the ball and Luke picked it up really well.

More camping

This time in Pagosa Spings. The camp was absolutely beautiful with trees and a lake right in the mountains. We, of course, had a chance to soak as well.

Breakfasting



It rained a bit so kids got dirty







Ahhhh Pagosa Srings

Luke took this shot