Soakin' It In

I certainly won't be seeing weather like this again for quite awhile. Sure everybody's wishing for some cooler temperatures, but I'm loving it! I'm wearing my flipflops and not even complaining about how flat my hair is in this humidity.

H-Town Girls

I got to see some of my Houston girls tonight. So much fun!

Look Who Had Breakfast With Me

It's Allison (my friend of 20ish years) and her daughter Gwen. And though Allison and I quite enjoy being thought of as cute and fun, we're totally okay with Gwen stealing our thunder!

Nothing Tates This Good in Colorado

Sure it's a Sunday after church, but how could JD and I not celebrate seeing each other without a margarita?

What's Cuter than Kids and Ducklings?

Not much.
Except maybe Kyle eating the tortillas as fast as the ducklings did.
And yeah, we're in Texas, the ducklings are close enough to the border that they appreciate a good tortilla as much as we do.

Alright! You Win...

My jealous nature has been kicking in all day. If you don't live in Texas, have relatives in Texas, or have Facebook friends from Texas then you might not know: IT'S SNOWING. I, for one, am quite aware that is snowing in and around Houston since I've received 2 phone calls and an email with photographic proof from Granny Sherry, a call from my mom, and seen that every single Facebook update from anyone living even close to Houston has been about the snow. Okay, Okay, Y'all win. It's snowing in Texas and not here in Colorado. My yard is brown and yucky. And Houston, well, you're just a gorgeous Christmas wonderland of snow and magicalness. I'm even big enough to post a picture of Granny Sherry's "snow covered" yard. (And yes, even though I'm a native Texan, I'm allowed to put snow covered in quotes since I live in Colorado now.) So, a tip of the hat to you, Texas snow. Toche'.

But truth be told, I'm way too competitive to just let you win and walk away.

Beat this, Houston!

That's right. 7:00 AM, 5 degrees, Baby!

Rocket Men

So let's play "Guess Where I Am" again. And this time I'll give you a big hint. It's soooo much better than a coffee shop!

I'm at the mall! (Memorial City to be exact.) But it gets better. I'm at the mall....and I'm ALONE! I know! After a breakfast at IHOP ("IHOPS" as JR calls it) with a table full of people with the last name "Ingersoll" (except for Harry), I was dropped off all by myself! I called my mom to check in with her and when she asked me where I was I said, "I think I'm in heaven!"

But before I head off to shop all by myself...at a real mall, I have a picture from the Rockets game for you. The whole purpose in going to the game was to take Harry since he's a huge fan. (Not of the Rockets, but of the NBA in general.)But according to Jason it was JR that enjoyed it the most. Jason said JR screamed and cheered the whole time.

Me: What was he screaming?

Jason: He was just going crazy and screaming "DEFENSE! DEFENSE!"

Me: The whole time?

Jason: No, only when the other team had the ball.

Me: Wow! I'm so impressed he knows what 'defense' is! (Obviously, we're not a big sports watching family, to say the least.)

Jason, who was more excited about the Rockets Dancers, said JR was very upset by the halftime show and covered his eyes while the girls danced. (In contrast, that was probably the only time of the evening that Jason perked up.) Rocket Dancers aside, JR came home thrilled that "our team won" thanks to his super-fan abilities.

Tubing, My Way

When Jason was younger he had a tradition of tubing and camping at the Guadalupe River over 4th of July holiday. Personally, I can't think of anything worse. For you non-Texans, tubing the Guadalupe isn't what I'd call fun. It sounds like fun, but every single time I've ever been I would say to myself, "I'm never doing this again!" The water isn't the cleanest, it's a long ride down the river in the Texas heat, and the river is always filled with more Drunks than Sobers. Add to that mix a campout in a tent...in the heat. Um, no thanks. Thankfully I never had to be a part of that little tradition. The first year Jason and I were dating he spent 4th of July at a Hard Rock Cafe in Australia. And after that, the annual trip just fell apart (Woo-Hoo!) But with Jason in Colorado, he'll be happy to see that his family was reliving his old tradition the best we could. Of course we were nowhere near the Guadalupe, but I did take the kids swimming. Doesn't just having them in the water count?

JR's version of a Guadalupe River rope swing.


And you can see how excited the babies were about the duck floaty...that counts as an innertube, right?



Check out Kyle's face...I guess he loves to "tube" as much as his daddy. I'd call that relaxed!

That's Incredible

We're whittling down JR's "Must Do in Texas List" as tonight we hit Incredible Pizza. It was my idea to go during the dinner hour to avoid all the daycare, daycamp, churchcamp groups. But, it just so happened that Wednesday night is "unlimited games for $11 night". Needless to say, everybody 6 and under took full advantage. (Sorry for the picture quality, my parent's computer doesn't have editing software.)

A random lady asked me a question about Reed and called him "her". Um, just so you know...if I actually had a girl she would be completely drenched in pink, tutus, tiaras, and hair bows...not orange plaid overalls.


On a postive note, look how manly Kyle was tonight. Riding a horse, no purse, and nobody referred to him as 'her'!


We learned quickly the babies had to ride the train separately. Reed was in no way, shape, or form going to let Kyle drive. He wouldn't even let him touch the steering wheel.


JR and Hannah (my mom's friend, Karen's, niece) were so busy this is the only picture I was able to get of them. Too bad JR doesn't have my flair for the dramatics...

Wet and Wild

Okay, so Schlitterbahn Galveston isn't quite New Braunsfels Schlitterbahn, but for our needs, it was perfect. It wasn't crowded at all yesterday so JR was able to ride everything he wanted as many times as he wanted. It was an exciting day with JR proclaiming the Thunder Tub (which he calls "Thunder Tube") his favorite ride, and I was again impressed with my husband's athletic ability which he displayed at the Boogie Bahn. Jason can actually ride a boogie board better than some of the teenage boys! The babies played in the kiddie area all morning, then went back to the hotel with Granny Sherry for a big nap. They all returned about 5ish to finish up the day. We declared the day a complete success since:
A. We got there right before it opened at 10 and didn't leave until 7:15 (it closes at 8:00)
B. Nobody was really sunburned. You can see from the picture I stole JR's sunhat about halfway through the day. He wasn't wearing it, and my milktoast skin can always use some extra protection.
C. Everyone had a thoroughly happy day. We saw plenty of kids melting down and crying, but none were ours!

D. And you know it was a successful day when a 6 year old boy's eyes look this tired while eating dinner.

Space Cadets

Two posts in one day? I know, Woo-hoo! We spent the afternoon at Space Center Houston (JR calls it "The Space Museum") with Favorite Cousin Caleb and his brother Cole. According to FCCaleb's mom, Kristi, Cole was told something to this effect this morning: "Cole, JR is my favorite cousin. We are so close that we are like brothers, but we're not. You will not play with us." Well, at least Cole will have the babies to boss around when they get a little bigger.
We've been to the Space Center quite a few times, but JR continues to love it. They have a huge Star Wars/George Lucas display going on right now, which the boys loved. Here they are with their protective eye-ware getting ready for their favorite "game".

Best I could understand they were shooting small Nerf type balls out of guns at "the bad guys", which seemed to include Darth Vader. I was trying to understand if "the bad guys" were posters, statues, computer images, or real people. I never did get a strait answer, but I'm confident they weren't real people.

Here they are at "Mission Control". I overheard JR telling his crew, "Um, if your rocket explodes, you're going to need to get out of there." That's JR for ya, cool under pressure and always gives great advice.


And here they are (Cole included) flying the Space Shuttle. (Yes, the are laying on their backs with their feet in the air.)


And if you're wondering about the babies, they had a fine time too. Although Jason did report that they had a knock-down-drag-out-fight over sharing an ICEE in the food court. Too bad I wasn't there to take pictures of that!

Jiggity Jig

We pulled into Houston about 6:00 PM last night, and we are definitley making up for all the heat and humidity we've been missing out on. Jason and I laughed that this was the first time we have sweated this year. JR wanted to take his daddy and his grandpas out to eat last night. JR's treat. (Which means JR paid with the money I handed him.) He thought long and hard about where everybody would enjoying eating, and decided on....James Coney Island. So here are all the dads and grandads. Aren't they all so cute?

!

Spring Is Sprunging...I Think

I was really starting to like the weather here. It was getting up to about 60 degrees each day, the sun seems to shine all the time, and besides having to put lotion on my hands constantly, the dry climate really is enjoyable. I had convinced myself it was going to be smooth sailing all the way to summer. I was wrong. It snowed today. Okay, so it wasn't a big snow (Denver was supposed to get 2 feet!) But it did snow all morning. Evidently this is what spring is here in Colorado. Days of nice, warmish weather mixed with days of snow showers. Of course I'm used to spring in Houston, which is a few weeks of nice days before it gets too hot and humid to even go outside...and a couple of tornado watches thrown in for good measure. The locals here seem set on it being spring, and didn't revert back to their winter clothes for the snow. One of the high school girls was wearing shorts at the bus stop this morning, and another one of my neighbors was out in her front yard also wearing shorts. If this same weather was in Houston I can assure you we Texans would have had on every scarf, hat, and coat we could find. And being that I'm a native Texan, I sent JR to school in a heavy sweatshirt (over a T-shirt) and also made him wear his coat. When I picked him up from school today guess what he was wearing? Yep. Apparently JR has localized himself. There he stood wearing only his T-shirt. What can I say? Happy spring!

All Winter in a Day

Back in my teaching days I used to teach a short story called, "All Summer in a Day" written by Ray Bradbury. In the story the kids live on Venus and they only have 1 hour of sunshine every 7 years. Of course during that hour the kids are let out of school to run around and experience "summer". It started "snowing" here this afternoon while JR was a taekwondo, and I was sad he was missing it (I know, I just need to wait a month and he'll get to see it snow plenty of times). But being a native Houstonian, it's a HUGE deal to see snow falling from the Texas sky. When I picked JR from taekwondo (it was already done snowing)

he said, "Mommy! It snowed!"

Me: Did you see it?!
JR: Yes! Master Lee let us run outside and see it!

That was when I was reminded of "All Summer in a Day". Master Lee let a class full of kids run outside and see it snow, and I was thrilled he let them do that. Here in Houston we've got "All Winter in a Day". It was hot and humid yesterday, "snow" today, and it's supposed to be sunny and 58 tomorrow. And because it was too warm for the snow to stick on the ground, I took a picture of the snow on my sleeve for proof!

A New Fave

The part of Houston we live in is really an older part of town. It's the suburbs that get all the really great new stores and restaurants. I'm so excited, because finally, we've now got something brand, spankin' new. And let me tell you, it is brand, spankin' new fabulous! The new H.E.B (big grocery store chain in Texas) opened up on Thursday and we made our first trip there today. Unfortunately for us, we'll only be able to enjoy it for a few more weeks before the move, but I'm thinking I can find a reason to visit everyday. The excitement started in the parking lot when we discovered they have the "duly carts" (as Jason calls them). Since the babies have been born I haven't been able to go to the grocery store without Jason because if you have two car seats in the cart, there's no room for the food. I wish I'd had my camera because Kyle and Reed looked so cute sitting next to each other in the cart. They looked as happy to be there as everybody else. I'm telling you, this H.E.B is so great, it's almost up there with Super Target. The "beauty" aisle looks like a Sephora and the book and magazine section looks like a Barnes and Noble. Not that I would ever buy anything at Barnes and Noble, I'm much too conservative for that...I get all my books from a great little place called the Public Library. They had a section of Christmas decorations to rival Hobby Lobby, two rows of pinatas, and a RediClinic! They had a wine tasting going on...which totally took the edge off the big crowd, a huge meat department, and seafood department that could double as a trip to the aquarium. When we were finished shopping there were 25 checkout lanes to choose from. 25! I love my new H.E.B.! I love it so much I just might start cooking...well, maybe I don't love it that much!

A Change We Can Be...Wrapping Ourselves Up in Coats About

Jason and I have been doing a little Durango research in anticipation of the big move, and though we do know a thing or two about cold weather, (I've been known to ride JR to school on the back of my bike in the snow...how Chinese is that?) it sure is easy to forget. These statistics seem a bit daunting...but I believe we are up to the challenge!

*An apology to all my non-American readers, all measurements will be given in US Standard Units.

Average High Temp January:
Durango-35, Houston-62.3
Average Low Temp January:
Durango-3.9, Houston-41.2
Average High Temp July:
Durango-86.8, Houston-93.6
Average Low Temp July:
Durango- 55.8, Houston-73.5

Change doesn't stop in the temperature department. Check these out!
Population:
Durango-15, 878/ Houston-2.2 million
(and to really blow your mind, the population of Beijing- 17.4 million)
County Population:
La Plata County-48, 019/Harris County-4 million
Geograhpy:
Durango-4.37 square miles, Houston-601.7 square miles
Durango-6,512 feet above sea level, Houston-50 feet

No where near the culture shock we had in Beijing, but it certainly isn't Houston!