Vail: Day One

We got to Vail on Sunday night.  We had a bit of a rough start (the plane was 50ft from the runway when we took off again--apparantly too much wind).  I was a bit panicked, but we were safe and sound, and in a summer paradise away from the heat of Dallas.   I mean...this is the view from our condo:

Monday afternoon, we hit up the Vail Village.  We wandered around and enjoyed the sunshine, and Knox loved all the doggies.  We stopped for every one of them.  The golden below was his favorite!

We found the brook running through the village, and Knox had to get close to feel the water.

He loved walking through the covered bridge over the water.  I love this picture of he and Aunt Kelly!

After all of our hard work walking around, we obviously had to get some Marble Slab.  Knox loved the freedom to eat his own vanilla scoop.

He's not only partial to dogs.  He also loves bears.  My parents have a stuffed bear at their house (Baylor) and he always gives him a hug.  The Vail bear was no different.  He got some lovin'.

Once we got home, Knox rode on his scooter...

and enjoyed happy hour with the guys on the patio!

 

We went back into town for dinner at the german restaurant (and enjoyed an amazing schnitzel), and before we could get home Knox had to touch all the bronze statues he ran into.  His favorite was the one with running water and a dog.  He's "doing what a dog says" right now...panting!

We got to bed early so we could head to Leadville the next day.

Houston Playdate

After the weekend of reunion festivities, we had the Kummers over for a little swim playdate before we headed back to Dallas.  Preston and Knox still play pretty independently, but the parents had a great time!  I'm excited to think about their next playdate...they'll both be running around like crazy!

Before we got in the pool (while allowing his sunblock to dry) we played with some bubbles.  He's obsessed...love his expressions in these pics.

Amy and Preston loved the mommy and me floatie...

And Knox loved the water guns.  I think he drank 90% of the water in it.

The dudes chilled on the sidelines for the majority of the time.

Then the popsicles came out.  Preston had never had one...but I think it's safe to say he's a fan now!

Once we got out, Knox was very interested in drinking all of our water.

My favorite angle of this picture is this one:

Love that tiny hiney!

Photo Booth Fun

Not sure why I'm screaming or cracking up laughing in all of them...must have been the crazies I was with :)

Reunited and it feels so good....

Knox and I left Austin on Friday to meet Stephen in Houston for his 10-year High School reunion.  Of course my camera died two pictures in, but we had a great time none-the-less. 

Kate and Sie...so glad they were able to come from DC.  It's been too long!

Have no fear, though.  I have some amazing photo booth shots that I'll scan in later...they are amazing!

As if Amy hadn't done enough planning the reunion, she hosted an encore at her house Saturday night.  We had a great time catching up with everyone, and stayed up WAY past our bedtime.

Lindy, Elizabeth and Paige

Sweet Jill came by...Braden will be here in 8 days (if not before!), with Abby

Not the best picture of me...at all.  But it was the only one we took.

The Todds

Amy had a ton of VHS videos, from pep rallies, school dances to senior pranks.  Pretty funny!

Just a few of my faves: Abby, Becca and Lindsey

And the group...10 years later!  I'm so thankful that Stephen has kept in touch with all of these people...I think I love hanging out with them as much as he does.  Can't wait for the next one!

Splishin' and a splashin'

We had dinner at the Hill Country Galleria near my parents the other night, and decided to go ahead and pack swimsuits to take advantage of the splash park.  It's always a toss-up if the kids will enjoy it, but this time they all did!

Papi (with his birthday present, a Threadgill's "Dang." shirt) was a trooper and played with all three kids the entire time.  We all took turns helping out, but he was in the trenches.  He secretly loves it, though!

Mackenzie usually takes a little bit to warm up to new situations...but she stripped out of her clothes before we were even ready to get in.  She was so brave, running through all the fountains, always with her goggles!  Knox loved watching her and the other big kids.

Both Conner and Knox took a little bit more time to fully enjoy the water, but they finally loosened up and had a great time!



She looks so grown-up here!  She loves wearing her goggles in the water...and also swinging.  After Papi's turn was up (he was very dizzy), she went around telling all of us that it was "our turn" to swing her.  She loved it.

Ignore me...but his face was too cute not to post!!

Mom bought both boys a "Cars" flip phone.  We only had one at the splash park, so we had to make sure they shared.  They look like they are having a discussion over it...too cute!

If you're in the area, go visit.  There's two ice cream places in walking distance, and quite a few great restaurants as well.  We love coming here...you should, too!

Sandy had a good excuse!

Since Lindsay and Jeremy now live in Austin, we had to take her out a bit early for her birthday (the 25th) while I was in town.  It's a little-known-fact, but Lindsay is OBSESSED with Sandra Bullock.  Sandra and her sister own two restaurants in Austin, so it was a bit of a no-brainer where we would dine.

Sandra was in town over the weekend, so I think Lindsay had a small glimmer of hope that she would be there.  Unfortunately for Lindsay, she wasn't there.  Fortunately for Sandy, she was in Wyoming with her hottie, Ryan Reynolds and sweet Louis.  Must have been nice...we forgive her :)

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We were so thankful that Jeremy watched his two and my dad watched Knox so we could have a night on the town.  We loved getting gussied up and having girl talk!

The cute restaurant, Bess Bistro.  They also own Walton's, just down the street.  It's an adorable little deli...I'll try it next time we're in town!

Hayley met us there, and I'm sad we didn't get a shot of us four.  We were missing Natalie, too!  She's due with her third in 3 weeks, so she has a valid excuse :)

Happy Early 31st Lindsay!  We love you!!!

Lake Time, part 2

If we weren't playing games or eating, we were in the water.  Friday we spent the afternoon getting acquainted with the lake, and we wakeboarded.  We had a blast, laughing at everyone's misery of face-planting in the water going 25 mph.  Hilarious. 

Later that night, we went to Gnarly Gars, a local "lake place."  Fried foods, swimsuits and cover-ups and these gnarly catfish.  People feed them, so they are more-or-less protected here...and they were HUGE.  Yuck.

Riding home was amazing.  Sunsets on the water are gorgeous!

The next morning we woke up, had breakfast and hit the water again!  This time, it was couples tubing.  We laughed so hard, that we were almost as much sore from that as we were from tubing.

After everyone had a go, we decided to head back and do what we do best, eat.  We brought down some snacks from the house and floated around the dock.  I tried the stand up paddle, which was fun but tiring.  I definitely earned my 7-layer dip (or at least that's what I'm telling myself).

Then the guys (and Courtney) started flying off the second story of the deck.  They had mini-competitions (who could do a 360* turn, even an attempt at a 720*), and we got some great pictures!

My favorite, though, was when Michael decided to give the camera a little "guns ablazing!"

We then headed inside for lunch.  Yummy burgs.  And maybe a little spritzer.

Most days after eating we'd hit up the hot tub or pool.  It was a bit more relaxing than the lake...bliss.

Our final water sport was wakesurfing.  I've never tried because I always thought it would be too hard.  To my surprise, it was actually pretty easy (well, getting up and staying up was) and I liked it WAY better than wakeboarding.  It will be my go-to next time!

As you can see, a great time was had by all.  Can't wait until the 3rd annual...only this time it might just happen in Mexico!!