Austin, Texas

OMG, why did I wait 3 years to experience the bliss of Barton Springs? Last week I decided that we needed to experience more Texas. I woke up and asked my Facebook friends if I was crazy to go to Barton Springs alone with my kids. Many of them said "Oh, hell yes!" but AwesomeAllison said "Whatevs...I'll meet you there. We LOVE BS!" And now we do, too. Ahhhh...the fresh water (although there was A LOT of algae) felt sooo good.

Vinny loved the algae.

Emma and Jaxon

Ava and Jaxon

Jackknife!

Later, we decided to hit up another Austin hotspot for a yummy lunch and treat. First it was delicious shrimp cones at The Mighty Cone trailer then over to Hey Cupcake! for a treat. The girls have always wanted to visit the beautiful silver Airstream with a giant pink cupcake on it's roof. We are sad to report that the cupcakes were just ordinary :( But we had a great day :))

Fourth

Fourth freaking grade. I totally remember fourth grade. And if I recall correctly, a lot of crazy things started happening to my body that year. She is right there. She still wants to play Polly Pockets (for me it was CPK dolls) and doesn't fully understand why she has to wear certain undergarments every day. Everything I do/say/feel is SO ANNOYING to her but then she still wants to sit on my lap and be tucked in with a kiss. It is pull and push and she has just started to climb the first hill on this crazy roller coaster. But she is brilliant and beautiful and talented and confident and if I could somehow get her to remember this every day, I think we will sail through the next nine years.

Loss

The reason I have been avoiding my blog is that I have been avoiding writing this. Loss. Our family has suffered some tremendous loss recently. In the span of about 6 weeks, we lost two very close friends and my grandmother. The only death that was "expected" has certainly been the most difficult.

On June 22, my mom's longtime friend, Andy, died unexpectedly. He was like an uncle to us, forever present in my grandparents' home back when it really was the family hub. He was one of the smartest people I have ever known and a fucking cruiser. He didn't care about money or success or political correctness. He drove a rusty old Nova, smoked and ate whatever the hell he wanted. I'm pretty sure he had read every book ever worth reading. He knew everything there was to know about music. If you knew him, he was your fantasy phone-a-friend lifeline. I recently attended his memorial service. The room was filled with old friends and family all sharing the same kind of sentiments but I was most impressed by the presence of his second grade teacher. She was not someone he stayed in contact with. She just happened upon his obituary and felt compelled to honor his life. He was that kind of guy. He will be missed. Cruise on, Andy.

On July 1, we knew it was coming but we all hoped for a miracle. Wesley, the son of my mom's best friend, lost his battle with Leukemia. He was only 32. He was larger than life. He was just weeks away from getting a bone marrow transplant after finally finding a donor when his cancer returned with a vengeance. He had so much life left to live. A woman to be loved and wed. Children and grandchildren to be had. A niece and a nephew to watch grow. He wasn't supposed to die, dammit. Although I am thankful that he is no longer suffering, he has left a hole in our hearts. In his honor, I have registered to be a bone marrow donor. Please do the same. Rest in Peace, Big Man.

Lastly, just a few short days after I had last seen her, my Granny passed away. Although she was aged and ailed, she did not have any acute illness and her death was unexpected. The kids and I went to visit her on the last day of our vacation. I had just loaded my camera with batteries but I never pulled in out. Oh, how I wish I had. I never imagined that would be the last time we got to visit. I would have spent more time. I would have asked for her stuffing recipe! Grandma had a good life. She made some good kids and grandkids. We will miss her. Rest in Peace, Granny.

I traveled back to CA without the kids for Grandma's funeral. Although it was a sad time for our family, it was great to see all of my Aunts, Uncles and Cousins. We laughed so hard all day, and into the night. Granny would have loved it.

Grandma's Kids

All of my cousins




Dayna, Me, Jillyin and Brooke

Me and Peg

Dayna and Nancy

Mom and Nick

Vacation, all I ever wanted

Oh, I have an AWESOME idea!!! How about I take the kids to CA by myself for two weeks! WooHoo! AND let's fly Southwest because the added anxiety of possibly not getting 4 seats together just amps up the FUN factor! And, you know what would totally top it off? If my parents' house wasn't really toddler friendly. For good measure, if "I" could lose Vinny at a golf course this could be the best vacation, EVER! Except really it was. The kids were (as always) so easy to travel with. Vinny did do some damage at my parents' house but I don't think there was any permanent damage. And he was just making sure I loved him when he wandered away from my mom and made me cause a hysterical crying scene at the Rancho Bernardo Inn.

I'll try not to make this too long, as I've already shared all of these on facebook. You should probably get on there

My sister decided to change her Engagement Party into a wedding and Beto flew in for a short weekend. There is just something magical about family weddings. It was beautiful.

The Bridal Shower
My sister, Dayna, and I
Me, Mom and Dayna
The Rehearsal
Steve and Dayna
Tiffany, Dayna and I
Beto and I
A Decent Family Shot
The little girls: Sophia, Leah, Emma and Ava
Dylan wouldn't be excluded!

The Wedding
The Happy Couple
The Other Happy Couple
Emma and Leah
Flower girls: Ava and Sophia
Emma caught the bouquet!
My sweet girls
The cousins (minus Vinny-we were afraid to lose him again and he stayed home with a sitter.)
Me, Sis and Mom

After we recovered from the wedding festivities, we had lots of amazing fun with some of our very favorite people. We hit La Jolla Shores and Mission Beach a few times.

We spent a day at Balboa Park. Like a good little evolutionist, I took the kids to the Museum of Man.

Me and the Kids
NooNoo and the girls
Ava, pointing to the skull that looked most like Beto :))

NooNoo and the kids at the Organ Pavillion

Ava, Vinny and I met Dawn and her kids for a playdate. Then we headed out to Alpine for a fun-filled Smith Day!

Brandon, Jenna and Ava

My little brother turned 30. We went to his resort, I mean house, for a party. "Somebody" might have kind of lost Vinny again. "Somebody" can no longer be trusted.

My brother

Peg and Ava take the plunge!

Emma jumps!

And Dylan!

I think Emma eventually talked Leah into it :)

The birthday boy.

Finding Nemo.

Vinny got a skate lesson.

This makes my heart go pitter-patter.

Our trip generally coinsides with the opening of The Del Mar Racetrack season. We hit up a late Friday and I took the girls for their first time. They LOVED it and even got to cash a few winning tickets, unlike their mother.

I got to have a great dinner at old Town Mexican Cafe with two of the hottest Bs in town.
Jennifer, Janelle and I

And I got to see the most beautiful pregnant lady before she moved to CO.

Shawn and Leah

It was an amazing time with friends and family. It is always difficult to leave and every time we do, I wonder why we ever did :( Until next time, sweet CA.