Day #7 & 8

Again, no pictures taken :0( . Day 7 was spent driving back to Houston. This time we were all tired and grumpy. Poor M had reached his breaking point and cried for about 30 minutes of it. We got home in the afternoon and kind of crashed for awhile. We later went out for our final diner and spent our last night together.

Day 8 was up early and to the airport. This airport was HUGE compared to what we flew out of and depite getting there over an hour before our flight we barely made it - thank goodness for three kids and a stroller that put us in a special security line or I don't think we would have made it on time. We had to take a train to another terminal with lots of walking.

Of course we did make it and our flight back went as smoothly as the trip there. It was bittersweet to be home. We were happy to be in our own home and own beds, but we already missed the P's. Already making plans for next years visit. We soooooo wish we lived closer. I am working on J to move here ;)

Too Cool

So while I was hiding out in one of the air conditioned restaurants I decided to check my email. I first opened an email from Youtube saying someone was trying to get ahold of me. When I opened it, the email stated it was from the Jay Leno show and they wanted to use my video. Um, yah right. I deleted it assuming it was spam. I look further up on my email and there was another email, this time to my personal email account. I opened it and again someone from Jay Leno trying to contact me and this time it included a number. I figured why not and I called.

Well it turns out it wasn't a scam. Jay and his staff saw my video and thought it was funny and wanted to edit it for a bit they were doing that night. So I gave my permission and called my parents to make sure they recorded it. Sure enough it was used and later linked on the internet.

It was a video of K having a huge tantrum at around 7 months old. This video has been on Youtube for years. How funny that Jay came across it and used it!

Day #6 Part Two

SEAWORLD!! Okay...we had a lot of fun...but it was frick'in hot. Like really frick'in hot! There were several times I pulled the kids into indoor exhibits or restaurants and we just sat there. I felt bad about it, but OMG. Did I mention it was hot? We all, well, mostly me, left the park with a raging sunburn. But, I guess in the end it was all worth it.

Day #6 Part One

We woke up early Monday to get our annual group photos of the twins. I was able to borrow some beautiful dresses from a friend of mine and we dressed the boys alike. As usual there wasn't a single picture where they all looked 'good', but we were satisfied with our results.

When I arrived back to the hotel room to prepare for SeaWorld I received a call from my bosses. Every year my state chooses 100 nurses to specially recognize for excellence in their field. I was one of those chosen! Pretty cool! I get to go to a Gala and my work will also do something special for me. What a nice bit of news while on Vacation.

Day #4 & 5

Day #4 was spent low key. J was sweet enough to host a Scentsy party for me while I was visiting. So Saturday we had a Scentsy party with great food and great company. J did really well and earned some great rewards. Surprisingly not a single picture was snapped.

On Day #5 we began our 'trip' to San Antonio. J had arranged for us to spend two nights in a nice hotel. We would travel today and then tomorrow head to SeaWorld for the day. It took about 3 hours to get there and despite some crummy GPS directions we found the hotel. It was a gorgeous place with a beautiful water park. I would have loved to stay there for DAYS!

View from our room

If he's doing this at 20months do I have any hope when he's older?

Day # 3 - Splash Park!

Today we went to a local Splash Park. Another FREE and fun event for us. The kids splashed away in the Texas heat. Another great activity with lots of fun and playing.

Day # 2 - Children's Museum

In an effort to keep things low cost, we decided that except for our big trip on the weekend (more details to come) we would do free or cheap things. We are both single moms on a tight budget...and did I mention that two days before we left I had to replace my hot water heater?? (Grrrr...)

Our first 'event' was a trip to the Houston Children's Museum for free night. While this museum was way cool and I could totally see my kids spending hours here, I believe everyone in Houston was there that night! It was insanely crowded and a little overwhelming. We did spend over an hour there and I think everyone had fun. M even found the one solitary mud puddle to sit in!

After the Museum it was off to McDonalds for dinner and then back home for the night :0)

Mook using the phone that the Smurf is holding...he's such a nut :0)

Our Yearly Tradition...

But this time we traveled....to the P family!!! The past two years the P family has driven from Texas to come visit. This year it was our turn to travel. Since the drive was going to be about 20h and since I only had to buy three plane tickets, I decided to fly. Although this decision was the most intelligent one, it created a lot of panic and anxiety in me. I HATE flying. I get very anxious and very sick. I worried about it for weeks, but in the end, it was only slightly stressful and things really went pretty well.

We got to Texas Wednesday afternoon and spent the rest of the day just hanging out. It was super cool seeing our best friends again and we could tell the kids had missed each other from the year before.

I took a ton of photos but I will try to limit my uploads to one of two favorites of each child :)

Dad Update

Wow, guys. I have stunk at this blogging thing lately. I must improve!

My dad got his biopsy results back. Only one polyp showed precancerous cells. Everything else was benign. Wonderful news. Now the not so wonderful news is that even though it's not cancer, his colon is so unhealthy, it really does need to come out. Right now my dad has a follow up visit with an expert in this field and then a final decision will be made. We are hoping a colectomy - removal of a section of the colon - rather than a colostomy, but that decision will probably be made during the surgery itself.

So, while not 100% good news, it was probably the best possible outcome given the circumstances.