Austin - Lost Pines

We got back from New Orleans one weekend and went to Austin the next.  So, this trip was around mid-July.  Chris and Ian had some work to do in Austin so we tagged along and made it a weekend trip.

The Lost Pines Resort was awesome!  The kids LOVED the lazy river.  It is a very kid friendly place with lots of stuff to do, but we mostly wanted to hang out at the pool.

Ben loved the lazy river, but he might have loved the water slide even more.  They let me take him down the slide in my lap.  It wasn't very fast so I was able to hand him off to Chris at the bottom.  He wanted to go again, and again, and again.

There was a beach entry with sand to play in, and a kids' pool, and splash yard.  Even the big pool was shallow enough for the kids to stand in.  There was an adult-only area, but I only saw it as we went past it on the lazy river.

Sam and Ben had a lot of fun playing with Liam.  They got to be big buddies on this trip.

We played in the water for hours until Ben fell asleep in my lap.

Chris is missing from the pictures because he was not feeling well most of the weekend.  He stayed in bed most of the time and wasn't feeling well until several days after we got back in town.  Poor guy!

Here we are eating ice cream on the lawn after dinner.

We watched movies outside on the lawn both nights.  Sam wanted to live like this forever.  He especially loved all of the attention he was getting from his godparents.

In bed with my babies watching TV ... I was enjoying this and did not want to get back to the fast pace back in Dallas!!!

First Day of School

First day of school for Sam (1st grade) and Ben (3 yr pre-K). They've grown a bit since last year.  They were very excited, but Chris and I weren't feeling as excited after being up all night sick from food poisoning.

New Orleans

This is the last set of pictures from our trip 4th of July week.  We went to the Aquarium of the Americas and Cafe Du Monde.  We thought it would be a fun little stop and a great way to break up the ten hour drive home.

We had a great river view from our hotel room.

Riding the trolly from our hotel to Cafe Du Monde.

The beignets and chickory coffee were a big hit with the boys!!!

Later that night at Felix's Oyster Bar.  The oysters were great but the kids were not.  They'd had all the fun they could stand!

Mississippi Coast

We went to the Mississippi Coast for the 4th of July.  The boys were so excited to go to Mississippi and see Yiayia and Papou.  Even after we got there Ben kept asking me if we were still in Mississippi.

We took the boys over to Biloxi one day so they could play on the beach.  It was a gorgeous day and not too hot.  I always laugh at how much they like to grab handfuls of sand and just throw it into the water.

Ben and Sam were both a little scared of the water and waves last time we were on the coast, but they jumped right in this time.

Biloxi Lighthouse in the background.

Snack time is the best time!

Yiayia made pancakes ... yummy!

Drawing angry birds

The boys are really in to super heros right now ... mostly Avengers, Spiderman, and Justice League.

They were full, but dessert came out so the trap door opened.

Little Benny was pooped!  He tries so hard to keep up with big brother Sam, but he just isn't quite ready to drop his nap every day.

Breakfast just got easier. Benny has conquered feeding himself cereal.  Of course any cereal with marshmallows is the best kind of cereal.

We got to see Uncle Costas and Aunt Paola for the 4th of July.

Conner boys

It rained most afternoons on the coast ... a welcome relief from the heat.

We took a walk after the rain and the boys were endlessly fascinated at the pitcher plants.  We have a Walter Anderson pitcher plant print in our house so they loved making that connection.

So sad to leave Yiayia and Papou.  Can't wait to see them again soon!