Galvez with the fam

We went to Galveston with all my family in July.  It was great for newby parents Aaron and Elise as well as for the Houston crew in terms of travel distance.

Getting ready with lots of fluids.

And trying on Mommy's hat.

And we tried some of the Dohalicious Shani.

Then we headed down south and met the fam at The Spot.  Our new favorite place to eat because you can sit up on the deck and watch the crowds on the seawall.

A bit of fogginess on my lens trying to get the practicing surfer.

Fishing.  Lots of fishing.

And Aggie golf.

Not liking the crocker fish.  Too loud and startling!

Riding the boat in the evenings and watching the sunset.

Boat driver

Lots of shuffleboard

And night fishing.  Yes folks, my dad stayed up until almost midnight fishing with the fellas.

One day it was overcast and dare I say a sprinkle of showers.  We packed up to go to the junk shops and to play putt putt.  Justin and I had fun with faces.

The fat lip pouter

The sass

The yo-yo-yo

The goof

The overly bright smiler

Loving the colored shells of the hermit crabs

And rocking while looking at the ocean

Gimme some putt-putt

Where's Waldo

More shuffleboard

My family has always loved eating on the beach at dinnertime.  This trip proved no exception as some of the mornings were clouldy and the evenings were clear and pleasant.  I had brought chicken from Derek's favorite place that he found while googling best fried chicken, Barbeque Inn.  It didn't disappoint!  But let's face it - the legs are always better than the breasts.  I believe I ate 4 of them.

Surfing is always best when tried in warm, brown as dirt, water.

The best fans around

Daniel's first beach trip

What else are uncles for unless they bury you in the sand?

We were all laughing until the atmosphere changed to panic when Justin realized the weight of the sand.

Proof we were there






The whole crew

We found lots of creative ways to jump in the canal

And we were never in want for tunes thanks to Shane's waterproof boombox system.

Roxy had been diagnosed with a pulled back several days prior to this trip so she stayed at the house the whole trip.   Her and Snickers were always on close lookout for fallen debris in the kitchen.

Staring in the distance

Shane practicing his swing across the canal

Blurry fun of the cousins.  Justin just loved reading the Daniel, making him laugh, and all the fun things boys that don't have siblings get to do.

Aaron and Elise going for a drive.

And we had a little photo shoot of the new family.

We managed a few smiles.  Daniel gets pretty somber when he sees the big camera.  Sweet thing these days can't stop smiling!

The happy family, who these days get more sleep.

I loved this trip for so many reasons. Such a blessing to have a family that loves each other and gets along. And most importantly, spurs each other on to love and good deeds to Him that receives all Glory!

Waco in July w/ Junods

Right after the 4th we drove to Waco for a quick 24 hour trip with with Junods.  My in-laws were gracious to share their pool even though they were out-of-town.  It was my dad's birthday, and since he had never seen the Michaelis' new pool, he decided to come enjoy the refreshment.  And play lifeguard.

Lots of 1, 2, 3, jump! going on.

Then we tried the Three Musketeers.

Love this photo!

We had some visitors for a bonafide playdate.  Fun way to see lots of friends in a short amount of time!

There were dogpiles.

And group photos. 

Right after swimming we went straight home to a grilled feast by the birthday boy.  Then we celebrated with cookie cake.

Cookie cake lovers.

Blowing out the candles.  We went to Dillard's a few days before to find something for Dad's bday present.  Justin walked right up to a shirt and said that was the one.  The Dillard's associate smiled and said it was actually the best quality combo with selling shirt.  Justin with the good eye.

Pulling out the old baby toys.

Georgia wondering why she is not on this instead of the JT man.

Tears streaming as we said goodbye as this was the last time I got to see these precious kids until Christmas.  Miss all those sweet cheeks!

CBB 4th of July Parade '11

We started off the weekend of the 4th with a neighborhood parade that the social chair planned very last minute.  That would be me.

Thankfully we have neighbors that have been on either side of the parade for years that pulled through with me.

Everyone was sporting their red, white, and blue.

We even had neighbors along the route cheering us on.

As well as neighbors that participated in the ride.

Kids, and adults, followed the firetruck with the siren and the microphone attached to the boombox playing patriotic tunes.  Hilarious.

For the record Justin didn't want to participate in this until he heard the Wilsons were going.

Everyone got to hold the water hose.

And then everyone ran into Addie Young's yard and got sopping wet.

And we didn't even want to come in the first place.  Farse!

The next day we woke up with strep.  So we didn't travel to Galveston with the fam and stayed at home watching Sound of Music, our go-to with the sickies.

Love our neighbors!