life in august

We met cousins at Hawaiian Falls, which is always a fun time!

They rode the big slides...

And the little ones...

Grandma came as well :) She doesn't ride any of the slides, but enjoys floating in the Lazy River and Wave Pool with the kids.

Colby tagged along with Kevin to the "cardboard boat" making competition with the youth, and my friend Rachel sent me this picture...

The youth loved this activity, and the large Certifit boxes definitely came in handy!

We haven't had as many lake days with friends this summer, but this particular afternoon was a fun one.  The water is SO incredibly low, so Colby and Logan entertained themselves by digging "trip holes" in the black lagoon.  I later made them fill the holes so nobody actually tripped, but they had fun while it lasted. 

My kids especially loved that I didn't make them wear life jackets since the water was super shallow and the yellow barrier was closer than normal to the shore.  I watched many "balance challenges" before I put my phone away, haha. 

This playdate turned into a Perler Bead Parlor with Beck, Emery, and Staley Clayson.

I pulled out the playdoh for Colby on a random Saturday morning, and three hours later, the kids were still using their creative little minds. 

Brooke had a playdate that afternoon, so naturally Colby wanted a special date with Kevin and I.  I am pretty terrible at golf, but I made slight improvements to my swing. 

Colby, on the other hand, is a natural.

I love watching Kevin teach our babies.  It honestly makes my heart so happy that they have a wonderful Daddy who takes time to teach them in such a patient and loving way.  I think they know how lucky they are, but I also try to point it out to them. 

We didn't stay long before we picked up pizza, picked Brooke up, and headed out on the boat. Sunset boat rides are my absolute favorite thing.  And the kids are now super confident in crossing the wake, so that's fun.  

Kevin and I both took long naps one Sunday afternoon while the kids watched shows, but we did play games together that night to balance it all out.  We still love Kingdomino, and the kids love building random things when the actual game is over!

We met our friends, Brooks and Jen Taggart, at Hawaiian Falls and I actually let me kids roam totally free (with occasional check-ins).  They were loving life and I felt confident that they were being smart. 

Jen and I were laughing that we showed up in nearly the same swimsuit and matching mani/pedi colors, haha.  I have significantly less cleavage than Jen, but I thought we looked pretty cute :) Jen recently went through a divorce, so we had a lot of things to talk about while the kids entertained themselves.

Our last hoorah of summer was a day trip to Burger's Lake.  I've lived in Texas for a collective 13 years and had never heard of this place until 2 weeks ago, when multiple friends in different groups posted about going.  It looked awesome, so we decided to give it a try and it definitely lived up to the hype.  I was a little nervous at first because it gets deep in the center and you can't use lifejackets, but as long as I stayed close to the kids I felt confident that I could keep them safe. 

The kids loved the smallest diving boards, but were also eager to check out the high ones. I was surprised at how quickly Brooke wanted to try the 20' board and she didn't even show any signs of hesitation.  Colby needed a little bribe to try it, but I knew he'd love it and all it took was $1, haha. 

 There were teenagers who wouldn't even try it, so Brooke and Colby were feeling extra brave.  I jumped a few times as well, but screamed every time I went down, despite my best efforts to stop myself. But my favorite part was when Colby informed me that the kid behind him asked if I was his mom.  When he said yes, the kid told him, "Your mom is awesome."

The kids loved the sand beneath the water slides because it was so squishy and perfect for drip castles.  They also loved the slides, despite how disgusting the white one looked. 

The kids also loved the trapeze!  I don't have many pics or videos of them because Colby needed my help to get on, and Brooke needed to build up courage that she could manage the bar by herself, but I did get one video of Brooke and she insisted on getting a video of Colby and I.  I was just so nervous that she would drop my phone in the lake! (Thankfully, she didn't!)

We ended the day looking like wet rats, but it was a LOT of fun!  Definitely planning to go back next summer since 6 hours wasn't quite enough for these kids.

The kids have loved their summer tennis lessons, but we knew that this was the last class they'd attend before school started again.  Colby was pumped that he was the only kids to hit the target (twice) and make all the other kids run the courts.  The coach commented that Colby's celebratory cheer was the best he'd heard all summer, hahaha.  And Brooke's mission was to beat the boy that kept trying to pass her as they ran around the courts.  What can I say?  My kids like a little competition :)

We needed new tires on the Tahoe, so we drove into Dallas to go to Omar's Tires and Wheels.  We bought wheels and rims from them when we first bought the Tahoe, but sadly, it was already time to replace the tires!

Since we were already near the new Certifit location, Kevin took us inside to show us around. The new warehouse is HUGE!!

He is pretty disappointed that it won't be ready this year, so the company will resign the lease at his current building until they are ready to transition to the new space.  

Our day trip to Dinosaur Valley was cancelled due to poor river conditions, so we hit up Hawaiian Falls instead.  So grateful for friends (Joanna and kids) who met us there last minute!

We have been wanting to try the Coyote Drive-In movie and we finally made it happen!  I was worried that it would be grossly hot, but it really wasn't too bad.

We had the most perfect breeze as we set everything up, but as soon as the sun went down, the breeze died as well. And then a car parked next to us and ran their engine during the whole movie!

But when you have popcorn and candy, nothing is that bad :)

Such a fun night with the littles :) We should totally go back in the Spring!

A relaxing afternoon on the boat...

Followed by a Mexican-themed wedding reception that night...

Colby informed me that he was really glad Logan Funderburk was there or else he "would've been really bored."  We ended up with about a thousand glow sticks at our house, but I'm glad he had a good time. 

They even had a cute Photo Booth set up, so we ended up with some real gems...

We made the mistake of driving in one car to church, which meant that we were stuck waiting for Kevin in the parking lot for nearly an hour.  To pass the time, I turned my sunglasses (which were already missing one lens) into fashion glasses. I thought Colby looked awfully cute :) 

School started up again (separate post), but I took these pics on day two or three.  Brooke styled her own hair, so I had to document.

Colby was motivated to get there early to see his kindergarten teacher before heading to his normal class. (That became his regular morning routine, so hopefully Mrs. Salinas doesn't mind the visit from her past student.)

My first three days "to myself" were super busy with all sorts of essential tasks, so taking a break for lunch with my friend Ashely was definitely the highlight.  They moved a few years ago and attend a different school now, so it's always nice when we get to catch up.  I miss our afternoon chats at the playground after school. 

We deep-cleaned Brooke's room a few days before school to find the elusive chromebook charger she didn't use all summer, but instead of finding the charger, we found treasures to pass on to Parry.

Sunday Selfies :)

The missionaries came for dinner that night and the kids couldn't wait to make paper airplanes with them.  There was a whole competition going on who could fly one from the living room, up through the loft, and to the front door.  Kevin was the only one who succeeded, but they sure had fun trying.  

Brooke put these tiny lights (from the wedding reception) to good use on the pirate ship.  She then used it instead of her nightlight, haha. 

It was a VERY rainy Monday in Texas.  It literally rained almost the entire day.  While I was glad for some much-needed rain, it also caused a lot of flooding and destruction in the process. 

Kevin signed up for a sprint triathlon in September, so we joined him on his last-minute training sessions.  Not pictured: me having to go home during our run because my stomach was hurting so badly, and Colby falling off his bike when it got stuck in the mud.  

With school starting, the Pokemon trading scene was back in action!  It took us SO long to walk to the car because the kids kept stopping to make deals and talk about cards, haha.  

Brooke has absolutely loved her time in Activity Days, and I love when they want my help because I get to watch all the interactions first hand.  The girls all brought cookie dough, and they put together cards and plates full of treats for people needing a bit of encouragement.  Brooke even invited her friend Claire to come along. 

August was a busy one, and September is going to be just as busy with softball and baseball added to the mix!!