Texas Adventures: Party!

Warning: This post is picture heavy.  

But how else can I show you what the beautiful party and all of our fun?  

Also, there are several party-goers who are not pictured below: Lucas and myself (because apparently I have become accustomed to focusing on the kids and not us), Grant's dad and his guest (because I didn't get any flattering pictures and I thought it was rude to post unflattering pictures of people with whom I am not closely acquainted...and yes that means I will post unflattering pictures of people with whom I am closely acquainted.  You've been warned), and my mom (because even though I have a picture of her that I LOVE, she didn't like it and requested I not post it.  So I am honoring her wishes).

Just a FEW of the gorgeous decorations completely put together by my talented sister-friend.  Can you guess the theme?

 Party people having fun!

The Birthday boy with his mama.

Mother and daughter.

The twins with Aunt Lala (who put together the fabulous favor bag including many of the treats you see in this picture) - I love how it looks like Ryan is tipping his hat and saying, "Howdy, Ma'am."

Auntie Rosie and Aaron (his first time meeting the whole family...I think we passed).

Mother and daughter

Twinners enjoying the party.

The cutest cowgirl in Texas!

While the treat table was a HUGE draw for my children (I'm pretty sure Allie had at least 10 red vines...), the presents under the table were intriguing.

Initially, the birthday boy was opening presents alone with his dad...

...but it wasn't long before eager cousins pushed closer to...um...offer their help.

And Allie couldn't stop trying to kiss him/petting him - because even at this age they understand that the birthday honoree is important, being tight with the birthday honoree is a bit of an honor, and having an "in" with the birthday honoree makes it more likely that he will share his new toys...

Next up - a photo op of H in his adorable birthday hat!

Which he pulled off in less time than it took to put it on...

 Then cake!!

 Looking cool while we sang "Happy Birthday."

At first he was hesitant...

...then Daddy helped him try something and he didn't seem to be a fan...

...then he decided that feeding Daddy would be the best way to go...

...ultimately, though, he seemed to like it!

 Playing with the toys once the party events settled down.  This toy was, by far, the favorite toy.  It was shipped in by the family who couldn't be there (Uncle Logie and Aunt Mindy).  Not only did he play with it non-stop after the party, but even the next day he looked for it the second he was up and played with it as often as possible!

 Happy Birthday, H!!!

And congratulations to Aunt Lala and Uncle Grant for surviving the first year!!

 Oh, and the twins review of the party?

Allie said she "LOVED" it, and Ryan requested more the next day :)

Texas Adventures Part 2: Water Babies

I mentioned before that the twins were so excited to wear their new swimsuits, but they also got to wear their brand new floaties!

A friend of ours had these for her daughter last year, and it was amazing.  I wasn't so thrilled with the ability of the suits with the built in vests to keep their heads above water (they tended to tip them forward), but this has all of the flotation in the front and secures with a buckle!  They were amazing.  They could literally swim on their own (we were always right there, of course, even if you can't tell by the picture).

 They loved the freedom!

 It is always fun having a pool to play in, but we also were excited to get back home to our lake - you just can't replace the fun of a sandy beach.  Now that I feel confident in their floaties, we will hopefully make it to the lake a lot!

Texas Adventures Part 1: Riverwalking

Fast forward a few days and 18 hours worth of road trip and we are in Texas!  While the main attraction was my nephew's first birthday party, we couldn't pass up the opportunity to experience the Riverwalk and Alamo.  Did I mention that, in Texas, my mom, the twins and I joined up with Lucas, Nana, Poppy and Little Grandma at Lala and Uncle G's house?  They aren't pictured here, but this was a big family adventure!

I told Ryan we were going on an adventure and he immediately asked, "Will there be an elevator or escalator?" ...um...I don't think so..."Oh...well it will be okay, I guess."  Thank goodness the Riverwalk is actually right by the mall (where we parked) and we got to ride an elevator and escalator to get down to the water!  He deemed the adventure an instant success!

The twins were instantly enthralled with the bridge, and the water, and the boats!  I was terrified by how they constantly wanted to stick their heads through the bars...

We had Little Grandma with us, so instead of walking the whole Riverwalk, we did a boat tour!

After the boat tour we ate at one of the restaurants along the water, and then we headed over to (quickly) see the Alamo.  I know my children will probably not remember it, but I couldn't pass up the chance to get a picture of all of us at the Alamo to show they were there once!

We are not in the picture below, but I needed a picture with the classic roof line.

We also hit up a t-shirt shop for some souvenirs - a perfect end to a touristy adventure! 

Nebraska Adventures Part 4: The Zoo!

For a while, my parents have wanted to take the kids to the zoo where they took me when I was little.  This trip was the perfect chance!  

An unexpected bonus: the zoo membership Nana and Poppy got the twins for their birthday got us all in free!  So, we splurged on tickets for the horses and the train.

Riding the horses was a big deal because they went without me!  They looked so big on those horses.

Allie's horse was named Tinkerbelle.  She was so thrilled!

                                       

We saw some cool animals

 Being flamingos

 The noisy gibbon

Papa bought some food and let them feed the llamas and the goats.

Ryan and Allie checked out what it would be like if they hatched from an egg.

We spent some time hamming it up at the photo boards

We ate some lunch (you might think that is boring, but I ordered the kids chocolate milk...it was one of Ryan's favorite things at the zoo!)

When we were all finished, we went to the depot to wait for the train.

Waving at the train going by (it goes around twice)

The kids were so excited when we got on the train!

And I got the picture I wanted.  See, somewhere there is a picture of me, when I was about the twins' age, riding on the train with my parents and grandparents (I looked for it, but apparently I don't have a copy here...)!  It was so much fun to get a similar photo for my kids!