Kingwood

After our quick trip to Nashville, Levi and I went to visit Pops and Grammy.  Grammy had a hip replacement just a few weeks ago, so we went to entertain and take care of her.  It was such a fun week!  We watered flowers and enjoyed the new deck,

played with some new toys

including a US map puzzle (and if you know Mat at all, you'll know how appropriate this puzzle is!!)

and went to the mall to build a bear (or puppy) and burn off some energy.

The first animal he was drawn to was a rainbow striped teddy bear, but Grammy and I quickly averted his attention to this soft puppy.

Giving his new puppy a fluff bath

One day we drove over to see Pops at his office so he could show off introduce Levi to all of his co-workers.  Levi even picked out his yellow tie shirt to wear to work.  He had a blast at Pops' office!  He got a cookie that he loved (even though he described it as crumbly) and spun in circles in Pops' chair.  I'm kicking myself for not taking a single picture while we were there!  The other day as we were driving around, Levi pointed to a random office building and said, "There's Pops' office!"  I told him that Pops works in Houston, and we live in Austin.  Levi's response: "No Mommy.  Pops' works in the WOODLANDS!"  Little stinker!

 We ate at several of my favorite restaurants, and Grammy and I were even able to go get pedicures.  Isn't it funny how pretty toes can make you feel so much better?!  Levi and I were so glad to get to spend the week with Pops and Grammy.  On our way home Levi made this face and said in the most pitiful voice, "I miss my grandparents!"

So Our Kids Can Be Friends

Every summer since we graduated from college, we've had the chance to get together with our friends and catch up.  It's called our "So Our Kids Can Be Friends" weekend.  Levi was the only kid there this year, but next year he'll have some friends (and a brother!) joining in on the fun!


We spent our time together in Nashville this year where Matt and Chrissy, Jeff, and Traci live.  We were able to go on a tour of homes which even included Traci's brother and sister in law's house.  Brad, Rachel, and their kids Bryce and Avery were so nice to open up their home (and toys) to us for the day on Saturday.  We played with the chickens, swam, grilled some delicious food and even had a campfire with s'mores down by the pond.  We did a lot of talking, a lot of eating, and a lot of laughing!    

The guys almost always spend some time throwing the ball around.  

I love seeing Levi's little glove included with all the big guys' gloves!

Grumpy boy...

Delicious, sticky s'mores!

I say this every time we have the chance to spend time with our friends, but we are so truly blessed with these friendships!  I love that we've been added a few new friends to the mix, and I can't wait for us to add some more little friends for Levi.  Already looking forward to next year...

Future Picasso?

Another one of Levi's new favorite things are watercolors!  I tried to teach him to dip his paintbrush in water, then paint, and then put it on the paper, but my little independent guy has his own ideas about what to do.  Most of the time, he dips his paintbrush in every single color, then the water, and THEN his paper which result in some very watery, very brown pictures.  But they are his beautiful pictures, and we love them!  :)

The other day, I was in need of something that would keep him entertained while I packed, so I stuck him in the empty bathtub to paint. (Thank you, Pinterest!)  He was so focused on his pictures, and he had a blast!

Summer Time

I love just about everything about the summer (I could do without the heat), but one of my favorite things from when I was little was running through the sprinkler.  Last year Levi was too nervous to enjoy the fun, but this year he L-O-V-E-S it!

It took him a minute to warm up to it, but once he did, he had so much fun!  He chased Dad, pretended to drive his race car through the "drive wash" and had fun watching his footprints on the driveway.

I'm so thankful for my summers and to have some time at home with my little guy!

Boy or Girl?

Before our big ultrasound with Levi I went through a few of the old wives' tales about gender prediction.  It was fun to see what they all thought- of course they were just about split evenly on the actual prediction.

Tomorrow we get to go see Baby and will hopefully find out if we will have a sister or brother joining us.  Levi thinks it will be a sister.  He seems to be fine with either option as long as he still gets to be Levi!

Here are the "tests" I did last time updated with current information:

- My age at conception and the year of conception equal an even number, so I'm having a boy...or girl, depending on which website you look at!

- Since I was very sick this time around, I'm having a girl.

- My hands and feet are not dry like last time, so I'm having a girl.

- My baby's heart rate is at least 140 beats per minute, so I'm having a girl.

- According to the Chinese gender chart, I'm having a boy.

- I sleep on my left side, so I'm having a boy.

- Since I refuse to eat the heel of the bread, it's a girl. (What?!)

- Since I'm craving sour things (lemonade, pickles...), I'm having a boy.

Baseball Game

Tonight a few of our Summit group kids were singing the national anthem at the Express game with a group from their school.  Levi wasn't too excited about the baseball game, but he couldn't wait for a hot dog!  In fact, he screamed for his hot dog all the way through the national anthem!

After we had our hot dogs, we sat down to enjoy a few innings of the game.  Levi entertained himself with his catchers mitt.  He pretended to catch Mommy, Daddy, himself and his water.  He also spent time pretending he was Captain Hook on a pirate ship.  He kept yelling "Ahoy mateys!  We found something!" to the people a few rows in front of us.  He'd stand in front of his seat rocking back and forth.  

Showing me his "noculars" (binoculars) that he made out of a ticket.

This got us about an hour and a half into the game, and then we headed home early.  It was a beautiful night.  We all enjoyed being at the ballpark for a little while, and we were so proud to watch the guys do a beautiful job with the national anthem! 

You're the Best!

Levi's newest favorite game is my favorite game too!  He likes to play it at the most random times-like when we're eating dinner.  It goes a little something like this:

L: Mommy, you're the best (while he wraps both of his arms around my neck)
M: No Levi, you're the best!

L: Nooooo Mommy, you're the best!

:)