Spring Break Fun

For Spring Break this year, we decided to stay relatively local. We spent a few days in Austin, then spent a few days at the ranch. We ended the week with some great friends on the banks of the Guadalupe River in Hunt, TX. It was a great way to spend the week. Neither place we went required much preparation so we could just enjoy our time together.


One of the things I love about the ranch is that it provides our kids with opportunities that they do not get here in the city. This tree is their newest project. They have been tearing off the dead bark and then using the bark to smooth the inner tree. They have spent hours doing this. They all work together and it is so fun to see their creative minds at work.

Megan and Jacob absolutely love each other. Here is one of their many fun activities.
Tyler amd Matthew chilling in the morning before the day gets going.
Megan and Alli - the only other girl on the McHorse side of the family.

Kevin, Tyler, and Megan about the brave the frigid waters of the river. Kevin was such a great sport knowing that there was no way I was getting in the water. Thankfully for him, he only had to get wet from his knees down.
Our friend Todd and their giant and very sweet dog Kiera.
Megan trying to warm up after tubing the freezing water.
Campbell and Megan. Campbell is actually in Tyler's class at school and was last year too. She is such a fun girl. She and Megan really hit it off and had a great weekend together.


BURRRRRRRR!!!!

Tyler and Graydon exploring the water's edge.

Pictures

Last month, Megan had Opposite Day at school. She decided to dress like Tyler and also wore some of his clothes backwards. She was so excited about the plan she and Tyler devised and I cracked up at her very masculine outfit and big white bow in her hair.



Snow in Austin - quite an exciting day. However, after having the experience of lots of snow back in December (in Colorado) and being dressed for the cold in Colorado then, Megan was not nearly as excited as she might have been before she had the experience of so much snow. She did join us and G'daddy for an afternoon snow ball fight. After she got cold, she went in and watched the fun from the warmth of the house.

Back in Business...

For the time being anyway. Since some of my friends have told me they think I don't have a blog anymore I decided it is time to get back in to it, for a while anyway.

I feel like I frequently post pictures of my kids sleeping. However, I feel like I need to hold onto these precious moments, so...

On school breaks or weekends, Tyler and Megan often want to sleep together. When they do, they always sleep in Tyler's bed since it is bigger and Tyler doesn't have much desire to sleep in Megan's room. However, this one night he was willing because she had just gotten a really soft and comfy blanket for her bed so he gave it a shot. Mind you, she sleeps in a twin and he sleeps in a full so we were curious how it would work out. They fell asleep without incident and this is how I found them shortly thereafter, hands clasped together. They looked so uncomfortable that Kevin moved Tyler back to his bed when we went to bed. The next morning both kids were so mad about the move. Needless to say, we won't do that again!



While I would love to deny it, I know there will come a day when they have no desire the sleep in the same room much less the same bed, so I am going to cherish these nights when they want to be together.

Newsflash

For well over a year now, Megan has been very vocal about the fact that she will not learn to drive when she comes of age. She has given us many reasons, the most common two being that "it is boring" and "Tyler can drive me places." No matter when or where she was asked, she stood firm on her decision NOT to drive. Well, it happened, which we knew it would eventually. She has changed her mind. She is now going to drive and move out of our house some day (another thing she was not going to do).


The look on Megan's face in this picture is what makes me a little concerned about this latest development. She likes power and speed; two things a parent isn't super excited about when their children start driving.

Tyler's Best Day

I apologize in advance that I don't have pictures of "the best day;" we were just too busy having fun to capture much on film and the pictures we do have are on Kevin's camera and haven't been downloaded.

It was the 16th of January, the day after Tyler's 7th birthday. We started the day with breakfast tacos - an all time fave around here. Then we headed to Tyler's basketball game. He has entered into a new league (both literally and figuratively) this year and it is a blast to watch his games. The progress he has made since his first encounter on a basketball team is truly amazing. The game ended in victory (always a bonus) and we dashed off to meet some of his cousins for lunch. Andrew, Matthew, and Jacob had come into town to help Tyler celebrate his birthday. After lunch we went home briefly before his birthday party which was at the Main Event. He and lots! of friends there and they played glow in the dark mini golf, had pizza and cake. He had a great time (Kevin and I found it one of the most stressful birthday party venues around and were missing Pump it Up). Once we made sure all of our guests were accounted for, we went straight from the birthday party to the Texas/Texas A&M basketball game. While I have come around to be happy to cheer for the Longhorns most of the time, I still just can't get excited about them beating the Aggies and still usually hope the Aggies will when the two teams play (although sometimes I am quiet about it). However, at this particular game I was conflicted. It had been such a great day for Tyler and I knew that his "best day" would be impacted by a Texas loss. My mommy instincts won out this day. The game went into overtime and I was hoping Texas would win, because in Tyler's world a win would be the perfect end to his "best day." They did end up winning and Tyler went to sleep smiling that night. It is such a joy to see everything go right some days and it was a great day for all of us!

Happy Birthday Tyler!

Seven years ago today, our world got so much brighter. Tyler made his quick entrance into the world in the early afternoon and we have been blessed by his presence ever since then. We continue to be amazed at how much he matures each year and how "big" he is getting. This year has been no exception. He had a great kindergarten year and going back to school after a great summer was a breeze. He is reading like a champ and got some great math skills passed on from his Pops. In spite of this, his favorite activities at school are still PE and recess.

Some things about Tyler right now:

*How much he loves our dog Kanga. I got to take Kanga to his class yesterday for Show and Tell. He introduced her to the class and then facilitated his peers asking questions and comments about her. He did such a great job (and so did Kanga). It is really fun to see him do these things since he is not into giving us many details.

*How he still refers to his friends from church (also preschool) as his buddies, which he began when he was 3. They are such a tight knit group of quality boys and we hope and pray that they continue to stay close as they grow older.

*This year he has definitely become less into showing affection (which he was never huge on anyway). It makes me so sad that it happens so early. He still indulges me sometimes, it is just less often than it used to be.

*We all survived him getting his tonsils out this year. While none of us ever want to repeat the experience, it was worth it.

*When he has breaks from school, he will let Megan sleep in his bed. I cherish this knowing that it won't last forever.

*There could never be enough cousin time! He loves all of his cousins so much and thoroughly enjoys spending time with each of them.

*He reminds me of his daddy almost every day.

We are so thankful that Tyler is in our lives. He has such a kind and gentle nature, never intending to hurt anyone. Like I say every year, I can't believe he is already 7. My once VERY chubby baby is now a very slender boy who still continues to amaze us every day!

Happy 7th Birthday Tyler!!! We love you!