Texas Time!

Well, here we are, approaching September and you haven't gotten a real update on our lives since Christmas. It's typical Sabrina behavior. Updating our blog with our end of 2011 and all of 2012 happenings have been on my to do list for a very long time. It's just not something that rises to the top of the priority list very often. I finally got some motivation to start. I am sure it has nothing to do with getting 5 points on my Feel Great in 8 Challenge for doing it :).

I am just going to pick right where we left off (besides that photo shoot we posted in March). We had a wonderful Christmas and fun family visitors. That very same Christmas day, after saying our goodbyes to the family, we packed up and started our trek toward Houston to visit Brett's sister, Carla, and her family. We made it to Van Horn, TX on the first leg of the trip and drove the rest of the way the next day. So really, the fun began on Dec 27th.

That is the day we headed to Galveston. We had lunch at the Rainforest Cafe and then spent time on the beach. It was a beautiful, clear day, The water was as clear as any Carla and her family had ever seen. Lucky us! We then headed to Moody Gardens and went to their aquarium and rainforest exhibits. They also had a big Christmas lights display that we walked through. The kids had such a great time catching up with their cousins.


The next day we stayed mostly at Carla's home, going to the local park, playing in piles of leaves and hanging out with the Kindreds. They got to meet Parker and then we went to dinner. It was soooo great to spend some time with them.


Because we can't sit still for long though, the next morning we packed up and headed to Dallas to watch BYU play in the Armed Forces Bowl. I love that we took this little extra vacation with Carla's family. We had a blast dressing up in BYU gear and cheering on the Cougars. It was a great game and as you can see from the pictures, our seats weren't too shabby - 2nd row if I remember correctly. I can't say I remember the final score though. I do know BYU won and it was an exciting game, so that's what counts.


We spent a lot of our time in Dallas just hanging out at the hotel, swimming, eating, playing with cousins. Adie's cousin, Amberlee, introduced her to the wonderful world of American Girl dolls. Before leaving Dallas, we took a trip to an American Girl store. It is insane and amazing in there. I remember reading the American Girl series and drooling over the AG catalog as a child, so it was even fun for me to walk around. Since that time, Adie has been working and saving all her extra money to buy herself her own AG doll. She is very close.


We made a trip to the Fort Worth Zoo on our final morning with the Gutkes. We did all the standard zoo stuff - saw animals big and small, rode the train, etc. Again, more than anything, it was just fun to be spending time together as a family. We went out to lunch and then said our goodbyes.

It was a whirlwind trip, spent mostly in the car, but the memories were priceless and the kids were champs as travelers. I think we've just subjected them to so many road trips they have given up even trying to complain about them. Carla and Jeff were wonderful hosts, their home is beautiful, their kids are so fun and we are so glad we were insane enough to drive to Utah and Idaho for Thanksgiving and then Houston right after Christmas. With those 2 trips we were able to see all of our siblings, parents and grandparents. This sentimental girls always loves the opportunity to do that. I'd do it again in a heartbeat!