Out of the Sand

While in Galveston we spent much time on the beach but some of my favorite moments were just conversations in the car, silly or cuddly moments in our condo and a few of the sand-free tourist stops.







We had a blast touring the rain forest at Moody Gardens, especially the butterfly exhibit.



G could have stayed there for hours just trying to catch one.

The animals were amazing, terrifying, interesting and beautiful all at the same time.



Since it was a week day and school is back in session, we were one of the only families there that day. We got lots of attention from the staff. It was neat to learn fun facts about the animals and to have someone point out some of the harder to spot creatures. After a lesson on bats, G decided he wanted to try doing things upside down for a while.



He kept assuming this position and announcing, "I'm a bat!". Funny kid!

We even got to see a Dora movie in 4-D! It was a new experience for all of us and I think we were all caught off guard at the first blast of mist in our faces as Dora flew her plane under a waterfall.





G also took his first swing at Putt-Putt Golf in Galveston.



Yep, Hole-in-One on his first swing! He's a natural!

After playing one round he asked to "Play Putt-Putt right now?" repeatedly. Even at 8 am the next morning he was asking me if we could go play putt-putt. The last night of vacation we obliged with a trip to another one of the local putt-putt courses. Although there was no hole-in-one that night, we still had lots of fun.



Yep, that is the best the lady at the course could do.
Yep, I played putt-putt like that.
Yep, G has started saying yep. He draws is out. It's hilarious.

It was memorable family vacation. A week together, uninterrupted is a beautiful thing. We are all looking forward to future family vacations, possibly even back to (as G calls it) our little yellow Galveston house.

The Beach

We did it! We timidly ventured out on our first family vacation. Turns out there was nothing to be timid about because we had a blast!

We made the 6 or so hour drive to Galveston to play amongst the waves and soak up the last few official days of summer. Since having G we hadn't really ventured out, unless it was to visit family, so we weren't really sure what to expect or if we would regret the whole thing.

6 days of vacation later, we have no regrets, tons of memories and far too many pictures to show for it. So many pictures in fact that I am going to have to break this up to share it all.

The Beach:
Introducing G to the beach was fabulous. I have long been a lover of the beach or any place near water and I hoped that he would too. We had been talking it up for weeks and although he had no idea what he was in for her was excited none the less. Upon actually seeing the beach and putting his toes in the sand, well, we was a little timid at first, but he embraced it quickly.

He now loves to build sandcastles, search out seashells, jump over and run from waves, and to just sit and let the water wash over him.





Nolan took to the beach quickly too. He felt so at home there that he spent most of the time sleeping. He did wake up long enough to get his toes wet a couple of times and to join us at the tail end of our last night dinner picnic in the sand.





More of our fun away from the sand to come...

Pilot in Training

2010 has been busy and full of new experiences for us already! Matt was off to his week of skiing and red dirt country music in Steamboat, CO last week, so G and I took the opportunity to go visit the Ortiz family in Albuquerque, NM. It was G's first time on a plane and he was excellent! I had been anxiously awaiting the flight with dreams of being booed off the plane for having the baby that wouldn't stop crying. Luckily, on the way there we were accompanied by Emily and Jamison, two expert flyers.
Although we both missed Dad enormously, it was made much easier by the company in New Mexico. Emily and I have been friends since high school but have lived apart ever since, so it is always a treat when we get to spend time together. The moments when our children are playing together (well as much as a 6 month old can play) are cherished. I look forward to many more trips and visits as they grow! Or if my powers of persuasion get stronger maybe they will move back to Texas one day. Wouldn't that be a treat!
It was a relaxing trip with nothing on the agenda except for good food and good friends. We had a dance party, played with Beau the boston and snuggled. I got to enjoy my all time favorite breakfast burritos twice! I am still working on a way to transport a suitcase full to Texas successfully.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Push for Fun from Callie Newton on Vimeo.

The flight home was just me and G. Again, I was nervous about the flight, but hopeful that it would be similar to the first one. G fell asleep while we were boarding and slept until our drinks arrived! Oh, I was thankful! When he woke up he was delighted to see the two cute Alabama students who were sitting next to us. This was his hardest flirting session to date. He smiled and cooed between ducking his head into my shoulder. Only to repeat over and over again. They were smitten! After two successful flights it looks like we might just have a pilot in training.
It made for a memorable yet exhausting week, so as I post they rest