Texas tour - Summer 2013 edition

In late June Shane had two weeks of block leave that we opted to take and tour Texas (seems like a reoccurring theme right?!).  My parents kindly offered to keep Matthew for a few days while Shane and I headed to the beach (pictured above).  Family friends let us stay at their condo for free and we jumped at the opportunity.  It was beautiful, and we had a wonderful time relaxing without a baby.  We joked that our hardest decisions were if we were going to the pool or beach first each day.  After a few days alone at the beach we headed back to College Station to spend some time with my family.  Although Matthew seemed to have a great time on the farm with his grandparents and cousins while we were gone.  When we got back we celebrated my sister's birthday, went to the movies with family, ate way too much, and played tons of games together.

 

 After some time in Galveston and College Station we headed to San Antonio for two days.  Sea World was on the agenda and so much fun for all three of us!  Pushing a stroller around added a lot more complexity to the day, but we wouldn't trade it.  Matthew's favorite show was the indoor pet show, which was very up close and action packed.  The pigs, birds, dogs, cats, and mice did tricks and had his full attention!  Most of the other shows were further away and hard for him to figure out, but mom and dad enjoyed seeing tons of great shows and animals together!  It was a great family day together with lots of fun memories.

 After the Shamu show!  The action even kept Matthew's attention for a little while.  He was very interested!

SHAMU!

Matthew got tired of the stroller after a long day.  He and dad were looking at the flamingos together.

 Matthew met his great-grandma in Boerne for the first time.  He loved playing with toys and crawling around at her house, and she loved watching him and talking about his sweet blonde hair.  We had a wonderful visit and all went out to Whataburger for lunch before hitting the road again!

In Odessa we spent a lot of time at Poppa's pool.  After much coaxing, Matthew got used to the water and actually started enjoying it! 

Shane, Matthew, Nanny, and Poppa poolside for 4th of July. 

 

 Nonna, Matthew and Shane before leaving Odessa. 

We went to Papa's new residence and visited him one morning.  We were very impressed with his new room and place.  Everyone sat outside in rocking chairs and watched Matthew crawl around and play.  

One final picture of our little family.  We had a wonderful two week tour of Texas, and such a relaxing time everywhere we went.  Though we spent many hours in the car, we had some great family time together and memories to hold us through these next few busy months ahead.

Ten Months!

 

{at 10 months Matthew...}

...wears size 2 diapers (finally!)

...can pick up his food and feed himself very well
...loves waving at everyone
...stayed 4 days alone with grandparents while mom and dad got away
...still takes 3 naps most days
...disobedience (and obedience!) is a daily occurrence now
...eats mostly regular food with small amounts of baby food
...loves to climb the stairs on his own when it's time for bed or a nap (or when he's disobeying!)
...started dancing when he hears music
...drinks water from a sippy cup
...babbles much more lately - we hear ba, da, ga, and goo
...(finally!) enjoys swimming/playing/splashing at the pool