The State Fair of Texas

Last weekend, we spent the day at the Texas State Fair. It was fun for the kids, but a bit crazy for the adults. Tyler says he will never go back. We happened to go on a Saturday that happened to coincide with a Texas Tech/Baylor football game, so there were way too many people. Some aisles were so crowded with people that you just had to stand still before being able to move forward an inch. Imagine that with a stroller and two little girls who I was constantly having to keep my eyes on. Luckily my parents were with me. My recommendation is to go on a weekday and plan on spending all day because there were lots of things we just didn't have time to do. We started our trip by taking the DART train ride, which the girls were excited about doing but once we were on the train and forced to sit for about an hour, I think they got a little bored.

Aubrey was happy as long as she could tug on my mom's earrings.

Abby was good the entire time except for asking my dad how many more stops about every 10 seconds.

Tessa was the main concern considering she wouldn't sit still for more than 1 minute. She kept changing seats including the stroller where I should have just strapped her in.

Once inside the fair grounds, we listened to a Drum and Bugle Corp and then headed to the animals. We saw lots of baby farm animals and stopped at multiple places where we could take pictures. I liked this one because Aubrey actually looked at the camera.

I love how the girls are looking at each other in this one.

Abby was a part of a Backyard Circus as a butterfly ballerina. She did a great job!

I think the girls' favorite part was the hands-on farm we found where they walked through with an apron and basket and got to collect fruits and vegetables, plant seeds, feed the animals and ride a tractor.

They finished the trail by getting a dollar for their work and spending it on goodies in a store. It was very cute. Luckily they even had some photo spots.

Unfortunately, I forgot my camera again so these were all taken on my phone when I thought about taking a picture. My favorite part, no pictures, was the light show that included music, fountains, fire flames, and fireworks. They used mist from the fountains to show pictures in mid-air to go along with the music. I thought it was awesome. The girls got a little scared from the flames and loud fireworks.

We also enjoyed the expensive food. We had fresh lemonade, foot long corn dogs, corn on the cob, and my favorite of the day - fried cheesecake. Yummy!

The most exciting thing that happened was right after we got into the fairgrounds. While trying to maneuver through the crowds, a guy and girl wearing Texas Tech shirts, stopped me and Tessa and asked if we wanted a huge Hello Kitty stuffed animal he was holding. He said they had been standing there trying to find someone with a little girl to give it to. I told him I had three girls, so sure we'd take it. My mom asked how the game had gone and he said Texas Tech had won and that's why he was in such a giving mood. I thought that was funny. And I was happy that we had gotten something quite large without having to spend all that money it would have cost to try and win it ourselves!

We worried about all the crowds trying to catch the train for our ride home, but it wasn't too bad except for the fact that we had to stand for the majority of the ride because of all the people stuffed onto the trains. Abby sat by a lady who was also named Abigail so she enjoyed that, and luckily everyone was nice considering Aubrey's stroller blocked the entire aisle. And Tessa made it all the way to the car and a fast-food place on the way home with having complained about needing to go to the bathroom from the minute we stepped onto the train, of course!

Now for a treat if you stayed long enough to read the rest of our adventure that didn't have pictures. A picture of the girls in our front yard where our neighbor made a fun little flower garden for the kids to enjoy. I don't remember why Abby was so grumpy, but I thought it was funny how opposite she and Tessa look. And of course I couldn't get Aubrey to look at me long enough to get a picture with her face.

We're definitely enjoying the fall and our wonderful sunny, cooler weather. We spend at least some portion of our days outside and we love it!

Museum of Science & Nature

We spent our Labor Day at the Museum of Science and Nature in Dallas and we had a blast! This museum is tailored to kids ages infant to like 7 so it was perfect for our family. My parents were in town, so we went with them and my brother and his family. The girls really enjoyed it and the prices were awesome. Here are the highlights:

Note: I forgot my camera so unfortunately all these pictures were taken on my phone, so if there is any movement whatsoever, the picture comes out blurry. At least you get the idea anyway...

The kid's favorite exhibit was the fire truck complete with slides. You could dress up like a fireman and take a turn on their truck. Tessa preferred sliding while

Aubrey took the wheel.

Abby chose her own pose with the Woolly Mammoth outside the Nature Building.

The girls (and Dad) loved the entire section they had on lights and vision.

Don't you just love Abby's face?

One of Aubrey's favorite sections was the room dedicated to bodies of water. This is the most blurry picture, but I loved it because you can see the size of the huge ducks they had, which of course Aubrey loved and got mad whenever someone took them from her. She tried multiple times to walk away with one.

Tyler was awesome at making huge bubbles. I love this picture because besides the fact that the huge bubble is perfect, it has the words "bubbles, bubbles, bubbles" right in the middle of the bubble! How awesome is that?!? I couldn't have managed this picture any better if I were actually trying to accomplish it!

They had so much to see and do at the Museum of Science and Nature. It's definitely a place we would go back to. And I was happy to spend the time with family and especially with Tyler on one of his few days off. I highly recommend it!

School, Birthdays, and Girls

So Abby is officially in school. It's the beginning of her second week and she even rode the bus for the first time this morning. She loves it so far!

I took lots of pictures the first day as we walked her to her classroom.

Here she is in her classroom. I didn't cry but did get choked up as I'd see her face - determined yet scared. She didn't cry at all, but you could tell she was nervous. She was awesome. She told me she only cried once that first day when they were waiting to be picked up after school and she kept hearing numbers called and seeing kids leave, and she thought she was going to be the last one there.

We celebrated Tyler's 33rd birthday a little over a week ago. I tried a new chocolate cake recipe that turned out super yummy.

The girls decorated signs that we hung in the house with balloons.

I also helped celebrate two of my friends' birthdays by having a wild girls night out that included getting our eyebrows "threaded." Apparently it's the new thing to do, but I'm not gonna lie - it hurts! The whole time she was working on my first eyebrow, I just kept thinking I have to go through with this horrible pain again on the other side. Here's a picture of all of us.

And the passing of the "Sisterhood of the Traveling Shoes" occurred at dinner. I've had them since my birthday and I added my "touch" before passing them on. Kasia and Diane each opened one shoe. Cute right? I crocheted and attached two flowers. So pretty - I know. :)

My parents spent a vacation on the island of Grenada and brought back cute outfits for the girls.

Now that Aubrey is home and spending more one-on-one time with me, she likes to try and be more like her big sisters all the time. Unfortunately she says "poop" all too clearly, but at least she understands what it's all about.

The Summer

We finally got some new family photos so I had to add one to our blog, and decided I might as well add a post of some of the fun things we've been doing this summer including a trip to Utah and lots of water play.

As we drove to Utah, we stopped at a park for lunch to break up the long drive. The drive there was great up until that final mountain pass which got Aubrey sick about two blocks from Tyler's sister's house. The drive back was even worse. This time going through Colorado mountains, it did not go over so well with Tessa's proneness for carsickness. I was never so happy to see the flatness of Texas as we drove home. Here's the girls at a park in Monticello, UT.

We spent a day at This is the Place Monument. Tessa got to help drive the horse-drawn carriage.

Aubrey loved trying to do everything the big kids could do.

Here are some of the cousins. I love how Aubrey is happy to have her picture taken. Abby? Not so much.

Do we see another optometrist in the family? That's Tessa working on Grandma.

The girls did a fashion show with their cousins' dressups.

We've done a lot of swimming this summer, but here's one time I actually had my camera. It was during a playgroup at a splash park. Aubrey finally decided the water was okay, but she only got close enough to touch it with her fingertips.

Abby chose her own pose for her picture.

I don't know if Tessa saw Abby's pose or if she decided on this herself, but I thought it was funny and super cute.

Here are the girls outside while Dad worked on the yard. I couldn't get Aubrey to sit still long enough, but this is a great one of Abby and Tessa.

We're enjoying our summer and not looking forward to its end. Abby starts school in just three short weeks!!!

I can't believe it!

Fourth of July and Pies!!

So an eventful weekend for the 4th of July! We spent it with family. My brother, John, flew in from Utah and he got to hang out with us before we drove back to my parent's house. Here he is with Aubrey. This picture keeps changing to sideways when I upload it, but oh well, it's still cute.

We started the weekend off with our ward pancake breakfast which included a bike parade. We decorated Abby's scooter using all the red, white, and blue items she could find around the house.

Tessa and Aubrey were going to ride in the wagon, but with rainy weather, we opted out of that.

Tessa was fine using her umbrella instead.

After Tyler's work, we drove out to my parent's and got together to watch the fireworks. We were a bit farther than we should have been, but we still saw them and enjoyed the time together, at least until Tyler and I had a to make a quick getaway to get Tessa to a potty. So we missed the finale, but Abby got to stay and tell us all about it when she came back with her aunt and uncle.

Someone in the parking lot played patriotic music pretty loud for everyone to hear, so John took a turn dancing with Tessa.

Tyler wouldn't give me a serious face for a picture, but I thought this one turned out cute anyway and I love that you can see Abby's nails that we painted the day before-red, white, and blue stripes.

Tessa got to sit on the van for a minute when she got too antsy waiting for the fireworks. Luckily it wasn't for long, because she made me very nervous up there.

We finished the weekend eating lots of food, playing games, swimming, and celebrating birthdays. We had a great time.

As for my Post Title of PIES, I've been attempting to make pies on a regular basis ever since Tyler requested a pie for Father's Day. I found a sure fire way to make pie crusts that are super yummy, so it makes me want to try more. Here are a few of my pies I've made recently:

The one that started it all - Fresh Strawberry Pie

A Peach Pie with Streusel Topping

And my personal favorite so far: Lime Meringue Pie, which I forgot to take a picture of until after we starting eating it. Yummy!

Anyway, it's been a fun and tasty hobby to try. Too bad it interferes with my exercise and diet plan. Oh well, it's summer time right? Why not enjoy it?!? We definitely are!

Birthday Parties!!

Well, it's been a couple weeks now, but I officially hit a new decade last month.

I turned 30 - GASP!

It hasn't been too bad actually and with three kids I figure it pretty much makes sense. I'm not a youngin' anymore, and that's okay! My "older" friends welcomed me into the 30's club and I came willingly. I had a great day and week thanks to my family and friends. During the day of, I told Abby we could do makeovers, so she became the stylist and did makeup for me and Tessa. Here are some shots.

She did a great job even though you can't see all the different colors and types of makeup. She used every piece of makeup I owned and she owned, so I had probably 15 different lipsticks/chapsticks/lip gloss on at the same time. Beautiful Tessa:
With our stylist:

The girls. Luckily Aubrey missed out on the messy makeup while napping.

My parents passed through town and took us out to lunch which was fun. And Tyler made my favorite flavor cake - lemon - and got fancy with it. It turned out great and it was super tasty.

Tyler took me out to dinner, yummy Olive Garden, and when I came home, there were people in my house for a surprise party. It was a total surprise, and even with Abby's accidental hints I didn't really know because all she did was confuse me with what she said. It made more sense after I knew however. :) It was so much fun!

Then later in the week, my friends took me out for a girl's night out which was awesome. We ate mexican food, my favorite, and then had dessert and a movie at my friend's house. It was a blast. And the highlight of the night had to be the passing of the Chinese Laundry Party Shoes. These shoes were found at TJ Maxx for a bargain of 70 cents!! We were there for another friend's birthday and after all trying them on and them fitting all of us (pretty much), we became the Sisterhood of the Traveling Shoes because these shoes were MAGICAL! :) They became red-soled shoes after another girl's birthday when she wore them and they fell apart after like 15 minutes. But now they're good as new. I just have to figure out how to put my "touch" on them before passing them on to the next birthday girl. Aren't they awesome though?!?

Thank you ALL for a memorable passing into my 30's! It couldn't have been any more fun.