sometimes you just have to pull over

An impressive longhorn

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a gorgeous day

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a field of bluebonnets

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a quick stop on the side of the road to snap a picture

Only in Texas!

farm fun

Sunday we headed over to Sharon and David's to check out their new horse. The boys LOVED holding their baby chickens, feeding the horse, checking out the goat, climbing in the treehouse and running around with their friends.  It was like heaven for little boys!

 Lauren wasn't too sure what to think of the little chick.

We had a great time and the kids are already asking to go back to visit!

soccer games with Gege and Grandaddy

Saturday Gege and Grandaddy got to go to the boys' soccer games to cheer them on.  Ethan and Austin were so excited to have them there!

Ethan's celebratory dance

I'm so glad they are loving soccer!

Austin's 4th birthday camping party

Sunday we celebrated Austin's fourth birthday with a camping party!  He was so excited to have his friends and family over to play.  When we sang Happy Birthday, he had the cutest look on his face.  He was so happy!

I had fun decorating the cupcakes like bugs, campfires, fish in water, worms in dirt and tents. 

The kids had fun picking out their favorite cupcakes.

 

We set up the tent for the kids to play in.

Eric's parents brought their boat and the kids loved playing in it.

 

We gave each of the kids a brown paper bag to go on a scavenger hunt for plastic bugs we had hidden in the yard. 

We had a campfire and roasted marshmallows.  If you have never tried Nutella on your smores, you are missing out.  It's divine!

The kids had a blast playing in the dark and went to bed the latest they have ever gone to bed before.  They were just having too much fun and so were we! 

Happy Birthday Austin!  We love you!

this little piggie

Austin's big day

Austin spent his birthday eating pizza, going for a nature walk and eating ice cream with Grandma and Grandpa.

Our picnic at the park.

The boys took turns pretending to be a troll under the bridge. Any time Ethan tried to pick what game they were playing throughout the day, Austin would say "It's my birthday, so I get to pick!".

He picked out his favorite shirt to wear too.  I love this sweet, spirited little guy!

We had a family dinner outside and celebrated Austin's birthday with cake.  In honor of Earth week, we ate yummy recycled birthday cake.  Austin had a wonderful birthday and we are looking forward to celebrating again this weekend with family and friends!

picnic anyone?

It's done!  Remember when I dropped it off on Sunday?  Most longarm quilters take months to finish a quilt, but 48 hours after I dropped it off, it was ready and in my eager hands.  I will now always use Bluebonnet Star Quilting for my quilts!

The front of the binding was machine sewn on for me, but the back still needed to be hand sewn.  I was so excited to see the quilt done, I finished it in less than a day.

Once the binding was done, I threw it in the washing machine.  Since I didn't prewash the fabric, I was anxious to see what magic happened when I washed and dried it.  When I took it out of the dryer, it was beautiful and all puckered up.  It now has a vintage look that I just love.

 

I absolutely love it and I can't wait to get started on another one!

Happy 4th Birthday Austin!

Happy Birthday Austin! You are a kind, adventurous little boy and we love you very much!

our tribal elder's birthday happy hour

Last night we celebrated Erica's birthday at Z' Tejas, just like we did last year and the year before. 

We had the best time eating yummy food, drinking amazing margaritas and celebrating!  Happy Birthday Erica!

hard to say goodbye

My picnic quilt is all done.  I pieced together the top, bought the batting and made the backing.
 

Yesterday I dropped it off to a wonderful lady with an awesome machine.

Saying goodbye to my quilt was hard, but I will be so excited to get it back!

green thumbs

When the boys decided they wanted a garden, Eric got together the supplies to build them a planter box. The boys were great helpers and they built it together.

This week we planted some potatoes and onions in the planter box.  We also got some hanging baskets for our strawberry plants.  They boys are so excited about their new garden and we are looking forward to harvesting our crops.

Cheeeese!

Our bluebonnet photo shoot didn't go so well.  As we pulled up it started raining and we had a couple minutes to take these before it started up again.  It had such good potential, but not quite was I was hoping for.  Hopefully we can try again soon!

fabric, fabric and more fabric

I love shopping for fabric online. I love searching for the coolest fabric at the best prices.  I really love when the shipment comes in and I can drool over it.  When I saw these girly fabrics, I couldn't resist.  I'm planning to make covered notebooks or crayon rolls with them.

 

Love these Heather Bailey fabrics.  I'm still on the hunt for one more peach one to tie it all together.  I'm going to attempt to make Lauren a scrappy little dress with it someday.

You will just have to trust me on this one.  I know it's a little wacky, but I'm going to try to make a cool camper quilt.  Hopefully I can pull it off!

I'm going to make Lauren an apron out of the fabric from her first birthday. 

I have never successfully followed a pattern and the only sewing I feel half way confident about is quilting.  Hopefully I can pull these off!