August 2018

Here are pictures from the month of August, minus the trip to Texas. Friends joined us for a lemonade stand.

Backyard swinging is always fun!

We enjoyed a trip to the Magic House.

They had a cool exhibit of tunnels and slides made from tape.

"Painting" the ice blue for the Blues.

The kids cashed in their reading prizes for snow cones.

Our first day of school was really the third day for everyone else at their school.  The kids missed the first two while we were in Texas.  Patrick is starting 3rd grade and wants to be a video game programmer when he grows up.

Maggie is starting Pre-K 4 and wants to be Elsa when she grows up.

Jack is starting 6th grade and wants to be a NASA mission controller when he grows up.

Charlie is starting 1st grade and wants to be a billionaire when he grows up. 

I made the kids cookies for their lunches.

Hanging at a park after school.

More swings.

 Jim's ukulele is always fun for the kids. 

We love going to the pool!

Austin and Houston

In August, we drove to Texas for a week (8 days, actually).

Our first stop was Austin.  While A napped, I took the others to the Thinkery.

They had a cool, outdoor climbing area.

There was a lot of fun indoor stuff as well.

 It was fun to have a week with Jim not working!

We brought our bikes and rented a trailer for the girls.

We had great views along the bike path!

We went to Congress Avenue Bridge one evening to see the bats.

About 1.5 million bats fly out from under the bridge each night.

Hanging with Willie:

The kids enjoyed a fun toy shop.

Maggie tried on some cowgirl clothes:

Jim took a tour of Austin City Limits and got to hang out on Willie's balcony.

We found a BMX park and Jim took Jack and Patrick to ride there.

We also found a park with a fun playground.

 We rode the Zilker Zephyr Miniature Train!

We went swimming at Barton Springs pool.  It is spring-fed and the water is 68-70 degrees.  Brisk.  You can see Maggie walking down the ramp into the cold water below.  Jim and Jack went off the diving board!

 After Austin, we went to Houston for a few nights.  We enjoyed both the Health Museum and the Children's Museum.

There was a lot for the kids to explore.

We stayed with Jim's aunt and had fun in her awesome pool!

My brother's family drove down from Wisconsin.  They came over and swam one day.

Jim's uncle Ed:

On Saturday night, I met my parents to go to my cousin's wedding.

My brother picked me up in this cool Tesla.

Hanging with 2 of my sisters-in-law before the wedding (we miss Melanie)!

It was a beautiful ceremony.

There was lots of fun and dancing at the reception!

I managed not to get arrested by either of the officers at the reception.