Girls Weekend

Rachel and I decided a few months ago that we needed a weekend away...just us. It didn't take long for us to pick a date and plan. Last weekend, we stayed at the Hotel ZaZa in Dallas and had an absolute blast. Rachel has two boys: Joaquin (8 months) and Elijah (20 months) so she certainly has her hands full back in Austin.

It felt like a total escape. I can't count the number of times we would just look at each other and say, "is this real?!?"

We went to Avanti (Italian) for dinner on Friday night and enjoyed live classical guitar and jazz. We both got pedicures at the spa, watched a movie, ordered room service as much as humanly possible and just had fun catching up. Rachel is an uber talented photographer and snapped a few pics over the weekend.

Rachel and Mel before dinner

My tattoo :)

Look girls-- I don't have bedhead. HA!

Rachel, I love you so much! Thank you for being such an amazing friend. I love your boys and Ian is the luckiest man in the world. Of course you are pretty lucky too.

We kept talking about how "wealthy" we are-- not b/c of spa days, or hotel visits...but because of our amazing friendships, selfless and adoring husbands, children and our relationship with God. We are so blessed.

Alexisms

I think God has made Alex my guardian angel this past week. After doc appointments and meeting with a nutritionist, I am spending hours in the kitchen, and I know a lot of these foods are less than appealing. As usual, Alex surprises me. I would have guessed that Carson would be decently laid back and open to trying out the foods and Alex would be a nightmare. Um...total opposite! I really think I'd be ready to throw in towel if it weren't for the encouragement of my friends and fam....and Alex especially. She has been asking me which foods are healthy, etc.
Last night after cooking a huge meal, I was pretty discouraged. Carson just screamed through the whole process and literally wouldn't try a single thing. After spending much of my only MDO day in the kitchen, getting that response was less than inspiring.
Alex could tell I was upset and came over and put her hand on my shoulder and said, "What's the matter little fella? Do you want to talk about it?" Seriously!!
I died laughing! After I told her that I was upset about Carson not eating she ran after him, sat him down and gave him a stern talking to. I explained he is a baby and doesn't know any better, but she told me, "don't worry momma, I told him he needs to eat "healfee" and now he will obey." Ah, I love her.

A few more I need to make sure and note:
*Walks in to the bedroom at 7am announcing, "I can't get any more beauty sleep. I've had all I need."
* Alex went up to Nathan the other morning before work (completely decked out in princess gear from head to toe), put her hands on both of his cheeks and said, "Daddy, be brave. You must obey Jesus so you don't go to timeout at work."
*And everything is "dis-suck-king" aka disgusting. When Carson had a toxic diaper the other day she came to me and said "Ugh! Why does Carson keep pooping ALL the time? It's sooo dis-suck-king. You need to teach him to use the potty like me."

And it goes on and on...she makes me so happy.

Little Rock Trip

Nathan went with his brother and dad to the cabin for a 5 day hunting trip. They had a blast! It was so fun to hear all of their hilarious stories. Since Nathan was in Atlanta the entire week before, I decided to pack up and head with him to Little Rock so me & the kids could spend time with DeDe. 9 days alone = insane mom. 4 days alone + 5 days with DeDe = happy mommy and happy kids. We had a perfect balance of time at home and fun activities. Carson got to experience Chuck E. Cheese for the first time and we got to see Caden, Dru & Eston for a 1.5 days too which was wonderful. We celebrated Dru's birthday by taking all 5 kids to Coldstone Creamery. Here are a few pics from our week:

Mel with Alex & Eston

Look at all of Carson's hair!

His favorite chill spot

Alex had a blast at the tubes.

Carson chased his sissy up the slide

They played so well together

Handsome little man

Fun times in the bath

Buddha belly shall lead the way...

My beauty

Alex had so much fun on the rides

All smiles

Carson bailed so she took over the Barney-mobile

Al and mommy tried to convince Carson to try a ride....not so much.

Smitten with Chuck E. Cheese

Carson attemps whack-a-mole

Sweet Alex teaching Carson the art of ticket stealing. Just kidding, she earned those.

"Team Captain" growing weary...

Alex shows off her winnings: a princess crown and big sucker

Poor Pops was such a great sport. Alex enclosed him in her trap of fun.

Happy boy after bathtime. Look at those teeth!

--

As always, we had a blast! Thanks guys for the outstanding stay.

Beautiful ballerina

During our stay in Little Rock, Alex decided to put on a little ballet recital for the fam. Of course she is missing tights, etc., but I had to take advantage of the opportunity and take as many photos as humanly possible. She absolutely adores her ballet class. I always have Carson with me at drop off, so I am never able to sit and watch her dance. I am very excited to see her big recital at the end of the season. Isn't she adorable?

I think this is my favorite! Look at that hiney.

This looks more like a cheer pose, but I'll take it!

SUPERSTAR!!