State Fair 2011

While Grandma and Granddaddy were in town, we headed to the Texas State Fair. When we asked G what he wanted to do, he promptly replied, "Um, see animals."
Our first stop was the HEB grocery store's Little Hand on the Farm. Gavin got his apron on so he could head out to do some chores. There were trees to water and peaches to pick. Then, there were seed to plant and water.

They were fast growing seeds because there were crops to harvest immediately. Gavin headed straight for his favorite cucumbers.

Gavin got to throw some corn in to the sheep.

Then, it was time to hop onto a tractor for a photo-shoot before heading out to take corn to the pigs.

Mama had to help a little with steering (and pulling) the tractor.

After all that hard work, G got to sort the items in his basket that he gathered along the way back into their correct bins.

All that hard work earned a paycheck to spend at the company store.

There were lots of great things to buy.

After some silliness, we headed off to a dog show. This is a three-legged dog that could jump really far to fetch the frisbee.
The dog show was loud and the acoustics weren't great, so we headed out to see the animals. Below is Boris, a big hog.

After walking through stock barns looking at llamas, cows, goats, and pigs, we went to the Petting Zoo. We bought a cup of food to feed the animals, though none wanted to eat from Gavin's shovel.




Gavin had a great time using the shovels to scoop the food in the troughs.

There was an area for a photo op, but G was more interested in sweeping with the broom than in posing with it. We had some lunch and then rode the lift across the fairgrounds. As we approached Fair Park, we asked Gavin if he wanted to ride the Star of Texas Ferris Wheel. Gavin promptly told us no. However, the lift looked fun to him. While Grandma and Granddaddy looked at antique cars, we rode across the park.

We picked up some fried Oreos for a snack. They were quite yummy.

After some pictures with Big Tex, we headed home. It was beginning to get crowded and G needed a nap. There's a lot to do at the fair. We had a great time.

Finally Friday Night Football

It seems like we always promise that we are going to take Gavin to go see some sort of high school game, but something always happens and we miss it. Last year it was a baseball game where the ref's didn't show up, a couple weeks ago it was a football game that got rained out. After the promise and then disappointment of no football, G was itching to see a game. We finally succeeded - we had refs, and the weather was awesome too.

He brought along his own ball, and was just taking everything in for the first 20-30 minutes when we got there. After tiring of watching the game, he wanted to play football with Daddy. After many passes and hand offs for touchdowns, we hear from the crowd "GAVIN, GAVIN, GAVIN!" Two cute little girls that Gavin goes to school with saw him playing football, and were yelling his name and cheering him on. It was too cute.

The kid has some good form, but we need to work on getting him a quicker release.

New Shoes

We had to buy G some new shoes over the weekend. At $50 for such tiny shoes (we had a coupon though), I was glad to see all the service that the boy was getting while being fitted for shoes.

They also had UGG boots for kids....ony $95, and your toddler could have the latest in shoe fashion. Unreal that these things even exist.

Sweating at the Ballpark

A few months ago I had the great idea of buying some Rangers tickets for September "when it starts to cool off". Things didn't go exactly as planned.

My first mistake was buying tickets on the third base side of the stadium. These seats were in the sun for the entire game. We got there in time for the first pitch, but as soon as we sat down, we knew how miserable it was going to be. The seats had been baking in the sun and burned your legs when you sat down.

After about 15 minutes, Gavin wanted no part of it. He and I went back to the shade of the Club level concourse and found the ice cream cart that sold $1 ice cream - SCORE! Gavin was charming all the girls that saw him because he was looking really cute with his shirt and hat, and he even insisted on bringing his glove and baseball to the game. One of the Ranger cheerleaders saw him and thought he was a super cute little Ranger, so she gave him a dog balloon animal. She made Gavin's week with that tiny gesture....

We didn't last very long at the game. After cooling off for a bit, we tried to watch some more of the game and Gavin didn't want any part of the heat. He was also tired from not having a nap, so we headed for the exits in the middle of the 4th inning. He still had a good time and that is all that really matters anyway.

The Things We Do

Gavin has been a busy boy lately. We have spent time splashing in the pool, attending the open house for the new Trophy Club Fire Department, and there has been lots of playing inside because it has been so hot this summer. Here's a few pictures from our latest summer adventures.

CR100 from the Sidelines

My nagging forearm injury kept me from racing in the Colorado River 100 this year. But I still wanted to see the race, and see the people that I have made friends with who race. So I decided to volunteer to help out with the race. Little did I know what I was getting myself into.

I was to be at the last checkpoint at 3:30pm and stay until it closed at 11:30pm. The last people to get to that checkpoint didn't get there till after midnight, and they needed my help at the finish line in Columbus.

Who says that canoe and kayak racing isn't a spectator sport???

Traffic jams were common on the boat ramps.

Lots of people ended up dropping out at this checkpoint. This is the last place before the finish that has public access. Once you leave this checkpoint, you have no choice than to paddle the remaining 36 miles. I would say that at least half of the boats that got to La Grange after dark ended up choosing to not finish the race.

I ended up working until 5:00am and then catching a couple hours of sleep before driving back to Austin. It was tiring, but I had a good time, and caught up with some old friends and made a few new ones too. Maybe next year I will be back racing again.

I Can Dig It

Gavin loves doing manly things. It should come as no surprise to anyone that he loves to dig in the dirt outside in the new raised bed that I made this summer. Every time that we go out into the backyard he grabs his shovel and starts digging.

All he could talk about was baseball when he got home today and that he wanted to play baseball. Then the minute he stepped outside he wanted to dig in the dirt. He is all boy without a doubt.

Steiner Ranch Get-Away

Over Labor Day weekend, we traveled to Austin. Due to an undiagnosed injury to his forearm, Dave couldn't participate in the Colorado River 100 as a racer this year, but he still wanted to be close to the action so he volunteered to work the race.

Gavin and I took the opportunity to go visit Avery, Rylee, Josh, and Sara.

Saturday morning, G and A worked up a thirst playing outside before it got too hot.Rylee was having a good time outside, too.Gavin is being silly in the picture below. He's trying to smile, boy is it a fake smile. The picture doesn't do it justice.

After some water outside, Sara lured the kids in with popcicles. We decided that a blue popcicle and the right clothes can make some cute little Halloween zombies--no additional makeup required.

Saturday afternoon and evening we chatted, played, and visited the nextdoor neighbors. Josh and Sara live in the greatest neighborhood, where people really are neighbors.

Sunday morning, we had outside play again, hit Rudy's for breakfast tacos, and got ready to head to the lake. Since Dave had worked from 3:30 pm to 5:30 am, he decided to nap while we went out on the lake. I didn't take any pictures, but Gavin was very brave and rode on the tube with Josh and Avery the very first time. We were going to let him watch A to see if he wanted to, but as Josh got in the tube and Sara helped A get in, Gavin said, "I want to ride. I want a turn." So, we put him on. We couldn't decide why he had his eyes closed. I think the wind was a different sensation. While I held Rylee (hence, no pictures), Sara took them on a nice ride. We picked up the neighbors, anchored, swam, had more tube rides and surfing by Josh and A. I was really surprised at how well that girl can surf behind the boat with her dad.

As we were winding down on the lake, we spotted smoke. As we got back to shore, we realized it was a big fire. Then we heard that the neighborhood was being evacuated. The plan of showers and dinner quickly changed. I entertained the kids, Josh unloaded the boat, Sara went through the house packing. Ash was falling in the air. We were hearing that it was taking 1.5 hours to get out of the neighborhood. The evacuation was mandatory. The power went out shortly after we got to the house. In about an hour, we were ready to go.

We pulled out onto Quinlan Park to this scene after only 100 yards. I had hoped the back up would be farther away.

We watched helicopters dump water on the fire. G and A fell asleep after a day on the lake. Miss R wasn't so cooperative, so I got in the car with Sara and the girls so Sara could attend to Ry's needs while I drove--or crept along.

It was a surreal experience. I kept thinking about TV shows and movies where people are stopped in gridlock traffic as they try to escape. My eyes were burning from the smoke.

As we got to highway 620 and looked over our shoulders, we could see the flames licking the sky. It took us about an hour and 45 minutes to get out of the traffic.

After a 9pm dinner, Josh & Sara went with two other sets of neighbors to a friend's house where the dogs could be happier than in a hotel.

At "press time" they are still waiting to get back in their neighborhood. The fire might be 25% contained. The winds continue to blow. About 40 houses had been destroyed this morning. I don't have a more recent number. I'll now have a very different reaction to wind, dry conditions, and fire.

This is a video that someone who lives in the northern part of Steiner Ranch took. It looks like a warzone.

http://www.cnn.com/video/standard.html#/video/us/2011/09/05/tx-wildfire-homes-destroyed.cnn

Little Shopper

Kroger now has kid sized shopping carts. Gavin no longer wants to drive the shopping cart car - he wants "my shopping cart". He's actually pretty good pushing it around the store. Occasionally you have to redirect him so that he won't hit someone because he is too busy looking at something to look ahead.

We were having some friends over for dinner awhile ago, so we needed to get some beer. Gavin of course had to push "his" shopping cart. He got a few comments from other shoppers about looking underage. Beer is also now called "brown water" in our house to avoid G telling any stories to people about Daddy drinking beer.