January 2017

PARK DAYS

Everyday isn't perfect, but we've had some nice sunny days this month.  Audrey loves swinging, riding the animals, and the slides.  Here she is doing her pout face because she doesn't want to get off.  

TRIP TO MARBLE FALLS, TX
My parents came down to spend a week with all of us.  We stayed at some condos in Marble Falls, Texas.  It was nice for the kids to have some time to develop a relationship with their grandparents whom they don't get to see very often. 

 We had some really warm days (86 Degrees), so we took a trip out to Llano Slab.  We saw a beautiful blue heron, and the cool water felt great.

 The kids had fun exploring with Dad.

 Audrey built her first sand castle and thought it was fun to bury her feet in the sand.

 Nathan built a tunnel and a slime castle (a sand castle covered in slimy moss he found).

 We spent a day at the Hill Country Science Mill in Johnson City.

 The kids had fun exploring and learning about physics, natural history, and microbiology.

 Audrey loved the toddler, play area.

Building race cars with Grandpa

 Learning about fractals

 We drove by LBJ's boyhood home in Johnson city

 We saw a lot of deer

 The kids enjoyed visiting a living history farm.   Here is Abby trying out the Sleeping Beauty spinning wheel.

LONGHORN CAVERNS













We stopped by Longhorn Caverns on the way back to Waco.

 The girls really liked "Crystal City," an aptly named portion of the cave.



The queen's watchdog: this dog-shaped rock formation was naturally formed by water.


Exploring the caves.



The caves had a very interesting history.  It was used as a secondary emergency underground bunker during the Cold War.  There was a hostage situation there with the Apache, and during the early 1900s it was used as a dance hall and restaurant.  



At the look out tower with Grandpa.

 On the ride home Audrey grabbed her potty seat and put it on her face and said, "I'm a purple lion."

MAGNOLIA MARKET

Abby and Maddy trying out the double swing.

Nathan and Christian

In the garden with cousins

On the big swing with Grandma and Grandpa.

ARMSTRONG BROWNING LIBRARY

Sometimes it takes someone visiting to get you to visit some of the sites in your own town.  We visited the Armstrong Browning library for the first time with my parents.  There were some beautiful stained glass windows of places in Italy along with excerpts from some of Browning's poems.

The meditation room with its thumb pressed gold dome.

The kids were pretty impressed.   They said it was the fanciest place they have ever been.

A replica of Elizabeth Browning's sitting room.

The kids on the balcony overlooking the meditation room.

We three kings--the boys sitting on the throne chairs.

WIZARD OF OZ

The Mayborn has a new Wizard of Oz exhibit that is super fun for the kids.

Our little Audrey munchkin under the rainbow.

OTHER FUN

Aunt Rachel makes up for not having girls by doing my girls' hair.  They love it.

We went to look at some houses to see if we wanted to buy anything.  Audrey found a baby doll and a bumbo seat at one of the houses and decided to take care of the baby.  She is going to be a great big sister.  Since she has been potty training lately, Audrey was very interested in the bathrooms.  She would open a bathroom door and say, "Look!  It has a potty.  With a flusher!"

The kids are progressing in gymnastics.  Abby and Maddy are getting really close to being able to do back handsprings.  Audrey is excited for when she can do gymnastics when she is bigger.