Inquiring Mind

While inspecting a scrape on his foot, TJ says

"Where does the skin go when you hurt yourself?"

Lake LBJ 2010

Some pics from our annual trip to the "blue house" on Lake LBJ...

Stopped along the way for a roadside bluebonnet pic. This was in March when they had first started blooming and they were so thick and beautiful!

Lots of boat rides.

He loves to go super fast!


This trip was special because all the grandparents got to join us for a day too!

Relaxing by the lake.

Childcare so mom and dad could do some real fishing.

My dad checked drive a boat off his bucket list.

The kids got lots of extra attention.

It really was a win-win-win situation!

Thank you Grandma, Pop, Grandma & PawPaw! Hope you enjoyed it as much as we did.

Perch fishing off the dock.

The fishing wasn't as good as it usually is out there, but we were at least able to fill an ice chest by the end of the trip.

Alli taking her turn at the wheel.

More perch!

We look forward to this trip every year and I think it will only keep getting better. Such great family fun!

Fun Videos

Just some cute videos (or bideos as TJ says) that I wanted to share...

We had quite the rainstorm a couple weekends ago and it left a flowing creek in the back yard. The kids had a blast running, splashing and floating their boats all the way down it. It's not often that we get to play in the rain around here. Sorry about the loud background noise- Dwaine was pressure washing the back patio- thanks Travis for letting us borrow it!

T-ball practice. Not bad considering we rarely do this. Maybe we need to start doing it more often!

TJ's awesome dance moves!

Kindergarten Round Up

Well, it's official. Alli is enrolled to be a Helotes Bulldog next year. And if the way I handled registering her for kindergarten is any indication of how I will handle the first day of school, then I will be in need of some serious therapy on that day. That is a warning for my friends and family. Let's just say more than a few tears have already been shed.

I can't even go into all the emotions and thoughts that are swirling in my mind, but in simple words, it is the end of an era. Not to mention the beginning of so many new things that I'm not sure if I'm ready for yet. I am just having a hard time with the idea of dropping her off and being away from her 5 days a week. And what will TJ do when his full-time playmate is out of the house so much? Okay, so maybe I can go into some of the thoughts, but there are many more. My sweet baby girl is growing up and I want to push "pause" but I can't.

Alli, on the other hand, is so thrilled about it all. She absolutely LOVED the school and can not wait for this next step in her life. I even shot a video of her standing in front of the school after registration saying things like "This is my new school and surely I am so excited about going to kindergarten because this is the best place I have ever been." I mean she went on and on and was speaking as if she was standing in front of an audience. It was adorable! Well, I accidentally erased that video from my camera. Oh yes, I did. So hopefully, we can recreate something similar on that first day. You better believe I'll try!

The most adorably sweet, smart, funny kindergarten student-to-be in front of her big new school. Can she really be big enough for this?

The Dement Ranch

Back in January, we bought our very own ranch- something we've been trying to make happen for many years now. The wait was well worth it because this particular piece of land is so much more than we ever imagined we would have. It's almost 150 acres near Camp Wood, TX and it has a little bit of everything- scenic hills, 2 Indian mounds, lots of dry creek beds, some beautiful valleys, 2 deer feeders, and lots of places to hike and explore. And it's just a few miles from access to the Nueces river and some really nice parks.

Dwaine and the kids standing on an overlook point.

Same overlook, different view.

Ranch hand in training watching daddy work on the first task after signing the papers- posting some private property signs. It took a while for it to really feel like it was ours, but lots of hard work later, it has sunk in! Getting our name on it helped...



Dwaine and I worked long and hard getting this gate entrance erected one weekend and then Corry helped with some finishing touches on another visit when the Westinghouse family was able to spend a day at the ranch with us.

Alli and Autumn having fun striking some movie star poses. I love this pic!

Alli and TJ posing for some pictures in one of the creek beds.
A picnic in the valley- this is my favorite place to relax and have lunch.

Autumn, Alli, TJ and Shelby celebrating after a little rock climbing- they made it to the top!

This fallen tree created the perfect picture opportunity.

The boys being boys.

More ranch hands in training.

Helping feed the deer.

Stay tuned for more pictures and updates as our cabin is almost complete! We have had lots of fun camping and the kids enjoyed sleeping in the tent, but having a bed, some recliners, a front porch and a fireplace will be a nice change.

The Easter Story as told by Alli

Palm Sunday...


The Last Supper and the betrayal...


The death and resurrection of Jesus Christ...


I'm not sure if she learned all the details at church, school, one of her bible CD's, or from us reading her Bible, but I was pretty impressed with how much she knew!