July 4th Weekend

This July 4th weekend was filled with a couple of firsts for the Taylor kids. Every year since Jackson was born we've spent New Years and July 4th in Leakey with Leslie, Ross' sister, and Philip. Every year there has been a burn ban because there hasn't been enough rain. This July 4th weekend was different though! The area has had enough rain that we were able to do fireworks and float the Frio river!

We arrived the afternoon of the 4th, and I managed to capture a few pictures of Jackson and Audrey before the celebrations began. The top pics below were taken at our house the day before, and the bottom pics were in Leslie and Philip's front yard.

Leslie and Philip provided some poppers to play with on the driveway, and Grandmother provided some cupcakes to celebrate America's birthday. The kids had fun pulling the strings and watching the streamers fly, and they especially loved throwing the little poppers on the ground or stepping on them. In the end, they were covered in icing and sawdust, so it was a perfect time to send them to the pool!

All of the kiddos had fun splashing around in the pool throughout the weekend. They dove for rings, practiced holding their breath and swimming, and took turns jumping off the diving board!

As if that weren't enough fun for one day, fireworks were next on the agenda! Neither of our kids has ever seen fireworks, so this was an exciting moment for them! I loved watching their reactions. We started with some little ones, which got them over any potential fears. Then we moved on to some that went into the air, which amazed them. Then we let the ones who were brave enough play with sparklers, and as it began to get darker, the bigger and higher fireworks came out. Of course, the big kids (a.k.a. the Dads) enjoyed lighting these just as much as the little ones were in awe watching them.

I also have to admit our kids were awed by the stars out there. Living in Houston and going to bed pretty early, our kiddos haven't seen very many stars. It was a perfect way to spend the 4th of July!

Friday morning we made our way down the road to float the river. The kids helped pick out their tubes, and we caught a shuttle to the drop off point. The water was cool, but it felt great on a hot summer day. They had fun hoping in and out of the tubes to swim and float down the river. It was relaxing and fun most of the trip. It ended up being a little longer of a float than originally planned, which left everyone a little tired and hungry by the end, but Jackson and Audrey did great despite ending well past lunch time and ultimately at the tail end of nap time!

Saturday morning was the Leakey July Jubilee Parade. We arrived just in time to check out the local helicopter that provides life flight services and watch it take off.

We then settled into our spots and waited for the parade to start. We were all grateful to have found some umbrellas in our cars to provide a little shade while we waited and had snacks.

The parade started with the Star Spangled Banner, the waving of our flags, and a tribute to the soldiers who protect our freedom!

Then there were cars and floats throwing beads and candy and toys! This also included a special appearance from Tow-Mater!

Everyone got a little more patriotic...and silly as the parade went on!

After the parade we found a local spot for lunch. Then Philip and Grandmother took the kids home for a nap while the rest of us did a little shopping at the Jubilee festivities. We brought home funnel cakes to reward them for their good deed.

While Audrey and Mitchell took naps, Jackson got to spend a little 1-on-1 time with Grandmother at her house. They rode the Polaris and went to visit Granddad.

When they got back, we were back in the pool! Jackson quickly joined the fun, and they splashed until they were exhausted. After dinner, Uncle Philip had a special treat. He let all the kids go for a ride on the backhoe, and Jackson got to drive!

It was a great July 4th Weekend! There are a few more pictures in the album.

Fall Festival 2012

JSC's daycare had their Fall Festival the week before Halloween. The kiddos had fun getting their hair painted, playing games, and even doing a cupcake walk. I didn't get a lot of pictures because both Ross and I volunteered to help with the activities, but I was able to capture a few shots from my seat...

Stone Family Reunion

The annual Stone Family Reunion was held over Memorial Day weekend this year, and just about everyone was able to make it this year. It was great!

Before the actual family reunion festivities kicked off, Ross and I made our way to Mudbug Madness with Leslie and all of the kiddos. I used to work at Mudbug Madness with my Dad when I was growing up, so it was fun to be in town while it was going on. We enjoyed some great food and music and look forward to future years when JD is able to participate in more of the kid activities. Having a broken leg kept him from being able to do some fun stuff. He did get to make some sand art and get his hand painted though, so he did have fun! The festival plaza was packed, so we ended up finding a shady spot on the ground by one of the bands to eat our food. The kiddos enjoyed some fried fish while the adults had some crawfish. Then we introduced them to gator-on-a-stick, which was a hit! Audrey especially loved it. Here they are just before we left. I think they were all tired and full!

Saturday evening the family reunion fun began. The schedule of events was the same as previous years. We had dinner at Aunt Dottie and Uncle Jim's on Saturday. Then we had brunch at Susan and John's on Sunday morning, and we headed out to Uncle Ronnie and Aunt Laura's for an evening of swimming, soccer, food, and karaoke! There were a little over 40 family members in attendance this year with almost half that number being kids.

Jackson's favorite part of the weekend was the puppet show Aunt Carol and his cousins put on. Jackson got to be a cow and a pig, and Aunt Carol was sweet enough to let Jackson take his nap with the pig that day. Audrey's favorite part seemed to be swimming. This was her second time in the pool this year. Her first trip was a little cold, but she LOVED it this time! Here are a few pictures from Saturday including one of Ross' Grandfather, Jim Stone, who is the head of this incredible family. There are more pictures of the puppet show and other fun activities in the album.

Kemah Kids

On Sunday we made our way to Kemah for a kids festival they had going on last weekend. They had a couple of local dance groups performing along with several tents with fun activities, face painting, and the ever popular fountain.

Jackson loved watching the dancers and wanted nothing to do with playing in the water. Audrey, on the other hand, wanted to play. She wasn't 100% sure about the fountain, but she definitely checked it out.

Right after this picture, the water sprayed her in the face! She wasn't a fan of that, but it didn't stop her from going out again after a little while.

Jackson never wanted to put on his swimsuit, but he did eventually wander out into the fountain.

The highlight of the day for Jackson was getting Elmo painted on his hand!

There are more pictures in the album.

Ballunar Festival

Today we made our way to the Ballunar Festival with our friends, The Newmans. We never actually got to see any hot air balloons while we were there, but we still had a lot of fun.

Jackson got to pose for a picture in a space suit!

Then we watched some model rockets launch. Neither Audrey nor Jace were too excited about the blast off noises. Jackson was okay for the most part and was curious about everything.

After the rockets we watched some remote control planes flying around.

We spent a good bit of time camped out in the grass taking everything in. Jackson also got to do a bouncy obstacle course a couple of times and loved it!

The other exciting event was the skydivers floating down. It was impressive to see so many of them at once.

It was a great way to spend the afternoon, and we were thankful for beautiful weather and temperatures! There are more pictures in the album if you're interested.