Surf's up, dude

To round out our lovely Father's Day, David pulled his stand-up paddle board into the pool so R and Greta could have a "ride."
He helped Reese up...


She's a natural!

And also swims like a little fishy--it still hasn't stopped amazing me!

Next up, Greta.

D wants to take her out with him and have her ride on the board while he paddles up and down Lady Bird Lake.

So there was some practice with both of them on the board.

It seemed to go well!


But we couldn't keep R off of it, in the end! She wants her own surf board.

She's sitting on my lap right now, and she just told me, "I don't like Daddy's surf board because it's not pink." Ah, so. She had me fooled.

Dads are super rad!

Reese is determined that this is the "best Father's Day EVER!!!!!!!" She's been saying that all day--after running in at 9 (aaah, sleep) and yelling, "HAPPY FATHER'S DAY, DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAD!" And, "open your card, we got you a life vest to wear while you surf and a shark, too!" (We got him a vest and a silly shark pool toy, FYI) (BTW, don't ever tell R what you are giving someone, the cat always comes out of the bag)**.
We had a lovely brekkie, went to the park so Greta could play fetch (and run off some insane puppy energy), then went to brunch at Lambert's with my parents.
Here's the man of the day with his sweet girl, pre-brunch.

Eskimo kisses!

Pausing from watching Snow White on Ma Pam's iPhone so she can take a pic with Papa....

And a pic with Ma Pam....

Yes, we were playing pass-the-child: next up, Mommy!

Happy Dad's Day to all the great daddies out there! xoxo

**Like when she said to me, literally in one breath, "I can't tell you what we got you for your birthday it's a purple dress."

Sea World or Bust!

My friend Cord organized a group of us to head down to Sea World in SA, TX yesterday--we genuinely had a blast, from the trials and tribulations of actually getting there to the theme park experience in all its glory--really good times!
Tatum, resting on the way down.

Reese, doing a good job of "hiding" her excitement.

Kelsey...more of the same. These girls clearly did not know what was waiting for them!

All four girls, Ainsley included, ready to go in their strollers! They're catching on to what we're doing!

The adults were Cord, Shannon, Shane and myself. Cord helped me out, carrying the girls up the nets so they could slide down the big slides.

Apparently the slide didn't completely do its job--they had to walk off it each time!

Coming down.

Even though we lucked out with the weather (cloudy and breezy) and the crowds (not too bad), a popsicle was still a much-appreciated treat.

As you can tell.

We fed the dolphins at the end. Very sweet. We also saw Shamu, ate lunch, rode a couple of rides, and saw penguins (I opted out as the smell was rather unpleasant).

What a great day! And let me tell you what a weary bunch we were on the way home (although it was a much faster ride back than down)....lots of sleepy girls and grown-ups....
Still, it was a really great adventure and everyone involved seemed to have a blast! Let me know when the next day trip is planned--count us in!

Dancin' fools!

Apparently, this is all I've got lately. Dance class, weird dudes dancing, more tutus, etc. Props to Shannon for the cute pic; as Ash commented a few posts back, is there really anything cuter than little girls in tutus? If so, I can't place it....



Dance class continues to be a big hit. As in, R wanted to go back multiple times today and is pretty sure she's going again tomorrow. "Right now" is the return time of choice. Too bad it's only once a week. But I'm definitely looking into continuing classes second summer session and into fall....

Dancing streak

If you have 3 minutes to spare and want to watch one crazy dancing guy start an enormous festival dance party, give this a try:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GA8z7f7a2Pk
Apparently, this happened at Sasquatch Festival a few weeks ago. It totally gave me goosebumps--goofy dancing guy starts a huge party! Also, I would like to attend this festival--how beautiful is that setting? Enjoy!
P.S. Normal blog postings will resume as soon as I can peel myself out of this puddle on the ground and get moving again. Good Lord, it's waaay too hot for June, y'all.

One more dance class pic...

Shannon sent me a really cute pic she got with her camera of A and R. Had to upload it to share. That's it for dance pictures, at least until we go back on Monday! Have a great weekend!

We get together and we dance, dance, dance

Reese's first dance class! Ballet and tap rolled into what the studio calls "Creative Dance"! Loads of pictures that are so cute you can hardly stand them! Let's start.
We went and signed up for the class that we heard about from our friends Ainsley and Shannon. They are taking at a cute dance studio that is relatively new. We took R to sign up last week, and purchased shoes at the studio. The excitement begins! Then we went to Academy to buy the necessary clothing and the excitement mounted! Especially when R eyed the very frou frou outfit she insisted on wearing to the first lesson. I was pretty excited to find that it was on clearance for $8. Anyway, before class today, we had to pose and show off our beautiful ballet ensemble...
En pointe! (Or "Billie Jean is not my lover," I can't decide)


More Twyla Tharp-ish....


Or just a happy dance...


Can't wait for class!


Just before class starts, with A and S


A giving her sweet daddy a kiss. R, ready for class. Please note the color spots in a circle. R was very diligently sitting on hers. Three guesses which color she claimed.


Not moving off the pink spot...not gonna do it!


Pics during class were difficult due to the ineffective "one-way glass" they have installed. Every single child waved to us at some point. Here are A and R after their class. The class was really cute--the first half hour they did in ballet shoes and the second half in tap. They did balance work, work on 1st position (which we need to, erm, practice), "parading" in tap shoes and a dance that seemed to involve different body parts.


A ever-so-daintily examining her stamp. Check out the tutu--loving it!


Contain your enthusiasm, girly!


No seriously, girls....not too much excitement!


Despite the dubious faces, these kiddos had a grand time! R running off a little steam after class. It was such a cute hour to watch. I'm so glad S and A let us crash their planned class--we had a blast! And I can't wait to see what other cute things they do.


(Bonus points for the first to guess the song reference in the title...Monique?)

Need advice

**GROSS OUT WARNING***
I added a pic of the bruise below--it's the best I could do while retaining some modesty, but it's a real whopper and I just had to share for those of you who enjoy a good gross out. The thing you can't see? That it is raised about 1/2--3/4 of an inch off my leg. Yikes....

So, being the grade-A klutz that I am, I took a pretty major spill in the shower yesterday. I somehow managed to get my foot caught under the shower door, while falling and landing on the step, on my hip/thigh. I have the nastiest bruise possible, a huge welp that takes up about 1/3 of my thigh, feels solid as a rock, and is raised a half inch. Did I mention ouch?? I am icing it and taking pain meds, but am wondering if anyone out there has any advice on a way to treat bruises, if it's possible? It seriously hurts when the sheets touch it--sleeping was not an easy feat last night. Any and all advice is appreciated. And I will post later with pics. R has her first dance class today, which should be entertaining...

It's a nasty one....


Consider yourself warned....

A quick laugh...

Here are three funny sites/videos to check out if/when you want a quick laugh.
If you like or even just remember "Total Eclipse of the Heart" from the 80s, you must must watch this "literal video," where the singers dictate what happens in the video. OMG, I can't remember when I laughed this hard. "Mullet with headlights..."
Anyway, two others I have also been enjoying:
Cake Wrecks, a site dedicated to really bizarre and often just badly made professional cakes.
And one we can all relate to, at least in some capacity: Awkward Family Photos. I think it explains itself.
See, I promised I wouldn't post about illness in this one....