a white christmas!

elevation: 11,570

temperature: 4

What a great Christmas! It went a little too quick, but I guess all things good usually do. It started by the amazing fact that there was that frozen white matter falling from the sky on December 24th in Round Rock, TX. Amazing! Santa came early because he didn't want to miss Grace since she would be traveling on Christmas morning. Too bad that the first gift she opened scared her and she was leary of everything else she opened... We headed up to Denver where it was a VERY white Christmas. We took a day and drove to Vail. No skiing, something about a sister-n-law that was 39 weeks pregnant, two little munchkins, single digit temperatures and just not enough time! We rode the gondola up to the top of the mountain, froze and enjoyed the views and watching the little Texan frolick in the snow, and strolled around the cute ski town.

Sunday it was the Colts game and everyone was decked out in blue and white. Too bad it wasn't the greatest game to watch.

Next thing we knew it was time to fly back to Austin. Luckily our flight at the end of the day wasn't delayed too bad between the holiday weekend, the weather, flying at the end of the day, and the stupid terrorist stunt that was attempted over the weekend.

And now as I am writing, we have our new niece, Kalina Reese Lumabao Carrington, born this morning and it looks like mom and baby are doing well.

making hand prints with Grandma Pat-Pat

cutie, Tatum, about to become a big sister

what is this white stuff? and why do I feel like a grape marshmallow?
good mamas, getting ready for game-day

Vail, CO

cousins, beautiful girls

the elusive Pocky captured on 'film' as well as Grandma Pat-Pat

at the top of the slopes in Vail, CO

yes, those are frozen boogers... it was in the single digits! cold for the little Texan...

4 days and counting...

'...while visions of sugar plums danced in their heads...'

and drool ran out of their mouths

I still just want to touch that light!

pretties...

ah, the holidays are here...

Thanksgiving with Mimi and Grandpa in Chattanooga, TN. Then we'll be up with Pocky, Grandma Pat-Pat, Uncle Matt, Aunt Christy, Tatum and 'Flounder' baby TBA in Denver, CO. A little adenoidectomy and ear tube redo in between and hopefully we'll all be healthy!

It was pretty neat to see my daughter play with the same toys that were from my childhood

'Just look, don't touch the pretty'. Grace is doing pretty good about refraining but she always does a little 'potty dance' like its killing her to not touch the light. Like mother, like daughter, the bubbling light as always been one of my favorite things to put out at Christmas time, though no 'potty dance' for me :)

We don't get the change of seasons or the leaves like this in Texas

We went to the aquarium in Chattanooga, possibly more for our entertainment, but Grace really did seem to enjoy the penguins and all of the fish

We went to see the Christmas lights in downtown Chattanooga and the boats on the river that are decorated in lights (by some accounts, very redneck, but it IS pretty neat)

White and Nerdy- this one's for you, Uncle Ray!! Missed you! You, too Mel, but you're exempt from the white and nerdy :)

bubbles!!!!!

there's nothing like unwinding at the end of a stressful week with a nice relaxing bubble bath

what stress??

happy halloween!!

a little something to wear to school on Friday...

the ladybug

who needs candy... what's in this jack-o-lantern?

doing pretty well...

You know... in my pediatric nursing rotation they encourage play-therapy with the kids because their actions reflect alot about their home-life that they are unable to express otherwise. I wonder what Grace is trying to say about our parenting??:)

the frazzled mother

It cracks me up to watch Grace. She's had this doll since her birthday and had no interest in her whatsoever. So much that if I put her in the play stroller, Grace would fling her out. All of a sudden Sunday night she has started to try to sit the doll with her on her special seat. It has only expanded from there to taking her for stroller rides (in the form of bumper cars) and at the end of the day she puts the doll to bed. That part is at least reassuring to me about Grace's perception of our parenting :), its really cute to watch her cover her up with the wadded up blanket and then pat the doll on her back to help her fall asleep.

Things have been pretty good/interesting/busy here. I'm not sure where the month of October has gone, I thought it just started... Dan has hired an assistant coach that can't start soon enough- he's been incredibly busy. Their season is about to start with the team heading to Little Rock, AR to swim in an invitational this weekend. Coaching must be rough; I woke up last Thursday morning to a text timed from 6:34 a.m. saying, "I think I broke my ankle." Hmmmm... Luckily (I guess) it was a high ankle sprain. Thank goodness for the on-site care of the athletic trainers. It has gone through a rainbow of colors, looking pretty impressive.

I ran the LiveStrong Challenge 5K with my friend Jodie and our girlies rode along with us in their strollers. I think Grace liked cruising at the faster speeds. I was bummed that I did not catch a glimpse of Lance Armstrong though.

We went to see Third Day in concert last week. It was Dan's birthday present. The concert was awesome!! It was a pretty intimate setting. The music is much like the praise music from Hope Chapel in NC or Celebration Church here x 10. It felt like we were at the best Sunday morning praise ever. They were so down to earth. At one point when it went dark between songs, the band reappeared in the middle of the audience and played acoustic, taking requests from the crowd. Awesome!!

I think it is finally safe enough to mention that our house is sold. We were set for a 10/22 closing but then there a few paperwork hold-ups and it was put off to 10/29. So here we are the night before, a thousand signatures done and notarized, monies in place, papers overnighted to San Antonio and hopefully no last minute phone calls!

carving the jack-o-lantern

Fall

Miss Pretty

Grace Church, circa 1881, in downtown Georgetown, TX

Here are the yellow bikes that are part of what makes Southwestern University famous. These yellow bikes are all around campus with the understanding that you might ride one to class and then someone else will ride it to lunch, as long as they don't leave the campus

pumpkins galore!!

Today we headed west into the Hill Country to the town of Marble Falls to go to a pumpkin patch. The Hill Country is beautiful, its like a miniature version of the Blue Ridge Mountains. And its only 30 minutes away! It was tons of fun and believe it or not, the jacket and fall-ish clothing was not staged. It was only in the 50's today and it felt great!

It was a good night to make chili and Dan has the gas fireplace going as we speak. No, its not that cold nor is our blood that thin, but you have to take what you can get sometimes. Just 2 days ago it was in the 90's!