Archive for the ‘mi familia’ Category

Thank you all so much for your comments and suggestions for our dairy free lifestyle. We started this journey last week and have seen huge improvements in both kids. We haven’t completely eliminated all dairy but have cut out the major players like milk and cheese.

Since we now have time to focus on things other than nebulizer treatments, I would love to introduce you to the newest member of our household. No, we’re not pregnant but we have a new baby Golden Retriever named Oliver!

He’s 9 weeks old and was born on Super Bowl Sunday. He has the sweetest disposition and loves to play. The kids and I took a road trip today to pick him up about an hour and a half away from our house. They, including Oliver, were great!

Since we’ve been home, today has consisted of puppy scratches and nibbles. Pouncing. Chasing. Rolling.

Puppy breath. Chewing. On Everything. Toys. Crocs. Chairs. Rugs. My feet.

And swims at the lake. It was only fitting that we have dinner down at the lake to celebrate our newest arrival. With egg salad sandwiches, fruit and beer in the picnic basket we made our way to the lake to have dinner at the picnic table on the boat dock. Unfortunately, I forgot the camera so I’ll have to create a picture for you. Oliver romped around and swam. Makena fed the ducks. Keegan threw rocks. With beers in hand, Miles and I watched our new family frolic.

Oliver made a new friend down at the lake, his name is Ford and he’s a 10 week old Border Collie. Only in Texas do people name their dog Ford!

Has anyone seen the show? I think I’ve only caught a glimpse of it once but how fun would that have been when we were kids to go and compete on a show such as this. It brought me back to my elementary school days and Nickelodeon and what was that kids show where you got slimed? Gosh, anyone remember the name?

Anyhow, back to my dad. Remember when you were a kid and thought your parents knew everything. Well, somehow my dad does. At least he’ll always come up with a good answer or story to tell. That is what a daddy is for right.

Case in point. This weekend we took the kids and their cousins fishing down at the lake. We were stockpiled with the essentials: princess fishing pole (check), worms (check), beer (check). Out we went to catch whatever we could. Anything really. I hate to brag but I’m a pretty good fisherwoman. As a child, I spent countless hours on lakes, creeks and oceans fishing well into the night and early morning. Thanks Daddy.

So back to the lake fishing story. My hubby and his brother took all of the kids down to the lake to catch some fish. They had been down there for about two hours (with no fish caught) when I came down to check on the situation. I was down there for only a couple of minutes, threw my first cast and immediately caught a large fish. Although I like to fish, let me tell you that I don’t touch the fish and I don’t touch the bait. Ever.

Now here’s when my dad and all of his knowledge comes in. We looked at the fish and had no idea what it was. So, who do we call? My dad… he knows it all. He immediately identified our fish.

All of this to tell you that he’s got the answers, or he pretends to have the answers. Thanks dad. If you have questions about photography, he’s your man. If you have questions about photoshop, he’s your man. If you have questions about traveling, he’s your man. If you have questions about short cuts and back roads, he’s your man. If you have questions about camping/fishing, he’s your man. He’s a man’s man.

All of these pictures he took while we had our visit a couple of weekends ago. He’s my photography man!

Yesterday came and went in a flash. Thank you for all of your wonderful comments and well wishes to my little one. Before everyone got here she ran down to her room and put on a princess dress to wear for the party. I was thinking to myself ‘that’s not the outfit you are supposed to wear’ but it was her day and her rules.

The cold winds blew in and with it a flurry of activity. Car after car arrived and unloaded anxious toddlers ready to run and play. And off they went! At the party there was eating, drinking, cupcake decorating, kid crafting and good times. Wagons were pulled, pushed and ridden down hill by children young and old. Fires were roaring and marshmallows were roasting. There was singing, laughing, chasing and playing. Happy birthday baby girl!

‘Tis the season of Winter Fairs, Christmas Markets and Festivals. This past weekend was a whirlwind of events which looked a bit like this. Wake up, eat, load the kids into the car, go to a Christmas Fair, eat lunch, bring the kids home for naps, load the kids into the car, another festival, etc., etc., etc. It’s like the planning committees got together and said let’s schedule every fair/festival for this first weekend in December and see how the families handle it.


We spent Friday night in Fredericksburg for their annual German Christmas Market and Parade. There was a constant drizzle throughout the evening which kept us soaked. Nothing like the Christmas spirit! The parade was full of tractors, beauty queens, elves, Santa and even a few llamas.

Saturday morning we woke up to go to the Austin Waldorf School’s Winter Fair. There was lot’s of lovely crafting, food and activities. The kids made their own gnomes, hand rolled candles and snowflakes. We ended up spending most of the day there because it was just such a wonderful experience for the kids.

Today is GET YOUR HOUSE IN ORDER DAY so maybe I’ll have some time to finish up some projects I’ve been working on. Until tomorrow… have a wonderful Tuesday!

::where’s our food?::

Thanksgiving is about… being thankful, tradition, family, dressing up, dishes, football, parades, food and making memories. Hope yours was lovely!

::Keeges::

::Makena and her cousin Camden::

::Makena helping Grandma with the dressing::

This NaBloPoMo thing is about to do me in. How on earth am I supposed to think of something relevant to talk about every day? I do apologize for such a late evening post, but you see now I don’t have to post again until tomorrow night. Which gives me all day to lounge around (ha) and think of something to type. Because that’s what I do. I sit around, relax, read magazines and never raise a finger to do anything. Ha!

Let’s get real. Today I spent the day frantically running in circles trying to get ready for this evening. Miles’s grandmother is in town for Thanksgiving and tonight I cooked dinner for everyone. You know the way I handle stressful situations… I ignore them until the very last minute and then panic.

Case in point… what do I wake up to do this morning? I begin working on an advent calendar like this that I found late last night online. So I stayed up way too late cutting out little stockings to use for the advent calendar. Taught myself the blanket stitch, woohooo and finally got in bed around 1 am. I know, I’m crazy. So I wake up and continue working on my calendar. Six stockings down, eighteen to go. By mid-morning it hit me. My family is arriving very shortly and I haven’t even been to the supermarket yet. I load up the kids, remember I have some shoes to return to Marshalls. While at Marshalls, decide to pop into Old Navy because (thank you Jesus) I’ve lost some weight and none of my pants fit. I told you I would need a twelve step program to do this whole Handmade for the Holidays.

By now it’s lunchtime and any mother in her right mind would take the kids home. Not me…. let’s go to the supermarket. I should have known when I couldn’t find a parking spot or a shopping cart that it was going to get ugly. I ventured in, feeling the pressure surmount to cook a good meal for Grandmommy. Who, I might add, hasn’t ever met Keegan. Big pressure.

The supermarket was chaos, we got what we needed but not before I had to throw a few elbows and sucker punches. People are serious about their grocery shopping around the holidays. And why weren’t these people at work? Does the entire country get the week off for Thanksgiving?

Since it’s Thanksgiving let’s talk about what I’m thankful for. Family.

It’s now evening and I’ve somehow survived day one of Thanksgiving week. I was near breakdown earlier today but it all worked out. Dinner was lovely and the company was even lovelier. I hope you all survive Thanksgiving week without a breakdown. If you do find yourself in such a predicament, know you are in good company.

As I awoke to the smell of bacon, I realized that a fog rolled into the Hill Country overnight. Then it hit me. Miles let me sleep in. I rolled over, looked around, and took a deep sigh. Boy, do I love this man. Made my way downstairs to this…

Miles was in the kitchen. Both kids had been fed and were now playing in the pots and pans. Makena was actually standing in a pot while Keegan attempted to stir the pot with a wooden spoon. At first, I thought I was dreaming. Is Miles making breakfast? He was indeed.

Then I noticed some of the first signs of fall in our yard. We are surrounded mostly with oak trees and cedar trees but some plants are beginning to change color. Welcome fall and my new husband, I’ve been waiting patiently for you both.

This weekend we celebrated my nephew, Phoenix’s, first birthday. Let me just tell you that he’s the cutest little fella. My sister, Chelsea, had him all tatted up with pirate tattoos. Makena chose to wear her princess dress for the party and was immediately attacked with a pirate tattoo herself. She’d been marked! It was just so wonderful to have (almost) everyone together. Get well soon Papa!

Chelsea is a fabulous (my new favorite word… so get used to it) party host. She picked up great food from Whole Foods and made a fruit salad, green salad, and tortellini with sundried tomato pesto. Yummy.

I can’t believe Phoenix is already one. He’s running all around the place, takes a nose dive every once and a while and bounces right back up. He’s such a trooper. These moments are just going so fast… Happy birthday little bird.

As I stand there watching my little ones exchange glances it hits me… this is all going WAY TOO FAST. Not Halloween so much as my little ones. Just last year Keegan was my little baby, my little peas in a pod. This year he is trying his hardest to keep up with his big sister. The walking hasn’t come yet for him, which ya know, I’m just fine with that. It will come soon enough.

My little cowgirl Makena is all of a sudden a little girl. With dirt smudged on her face and a relentless, persistent attitude.

At times I wonder… will I blink and miss it all? So I continue to snap away to try and capture these moments on film to put in a book so I can sit with my little ones and look at how much they’ve grown. And probably cry.

I’ve been waiting to show you what I’ve come up with for the kids Halloween costumes. This past summer we went to the Blanco County Fair and Rodeo and took the kids to their first rodeo. While at the rodeo Makena had a newfound fascination with all things country. Let me tell you that I don’t even own a pair of boots or a pick-up-truck. Makena decided that for Halloween she was going to be a cowgirl and Keegan would be a rodeo clown.

I picked up Makena’s costume down on South Congress at Allen’s Boots. She is Dale Evans, or simply a cowgirl. She wore her Daddy’s old cowboy belt from when he was a child. The hot pink cowboy boots made an appearance as well as her cowboy hat. She decided that Keegan would be a rodeo clown. I made Keegan’s costume out of an old pair of overalls, bits of fabric, mismatched buttons, striped tights and a polk-a-dotted shirt. I found a Texas Ranger button to pin onto the front and a Redneck patch to attach to his back. This past Saturday we went to our neighborhood Halloween party so the kids got to try out their costumes. The had fun and the costumes held up great!