Reunion at Talbert Ranch

This past Sunday we made the short jaunt up to China Spring, TX for the annual Talbert/Langford reunion of sorts. My cousins Mike and Tracy drove in from California with their 5 year old twins, so the rest of the Texas-based family members joined them at the ranch for some good food and fun. Anyone that knows our family knows that you can't have a gathering without at least one photo shoot, and this year was no different with the 'tree house' serving as the backdrop. The most entertaining time was trying to wrangle all of the youngest generation of family into one shot, and then noticing all of their personalities coming through in the frame. Finally, it was great to see that my dear Mama T was up and about, and able to join in on the fun.

  

  

  

  

  

  

Week 24

This week was spent primarily as a recovery/ catch-up week. We returned from Galveston on Monday and were thrown back into the daily grind on Tuesday. Thankfully my mom, Momo, dedicated some of her summer break to visiting us here in Austin, so she drove down on Wednesday. She took over for much of the snuggle/playtime with Augie, so I was able to get some much needed work done.

In baby development news, our little guy has become quite vocal lately. He expends quite a bit of energy trying out various voices and ranges. He has also become quite fascinated with the face. One of his favorite new things is to sit right in front of you and put his hands all over your face, feeling for your nose, eyes, and mouth. Of course, he conveniently seems to always get a good grip on the hair too.

Also this week, August's second tooth made an appearance. The little guy has quite the bite now! We also decided to try to branch out from his pears, apples, and cereal routine, and threw some sweet potatoes into the mix. Needless to say, August is a BIG fan of the orange stuff. For the first time since we began feeding him solids, he ate the entire jar in one sitting. I guess he didn't inherit my sweet tooth!

Guptons Do Galveston

Thanks to Kevin's grandmother, we were able to take August to Galveston for his first Gulf Coast experience. For the past 4 years, Kevin's grandmother has treated the family to a water-side summer vacation. This year, Nana Gupton rented a fabulous house in the Beachside Village community, across the street from the beach, where there was more than enough room for all of us to spread out and spend 4 relaxing days with the rest of Kevin's immediate family and his Aunt Laurie, Uncle Ronnie, and cousin Meg. It was such an enjoyable time to sit around and eat delicious homemade food, play around in the sand, visit Moody Garden's aquarium and rainforest, and take in some of the eclectic character of Galveston Island. 

 

  

    

  

  

  

    

  

  

  

  

Week 23

I know, I know this week is only 1/2 way over, but it's just going to get busier from here so I figured I would take advantage of these brief few minutes and tell you about our week thus far. This weekend was a great weekend of socializing and productivity. We had brunch with our good friends, the Spradlings, on Saturday morning followed by an afternoon of a lot of browsing and a little bit of shopping. Sunday was full of conquering small projects in and around the house, and tackling the laundry. We needed a great weekend because this week has been quite busy with Kevin's paper deadline on Friday, and me dealing with a teether.

Yes, it's official August has half of a tooth. I can't believe it has taken so long to kind of rear it's pearly little top, but one of his bottom teeth has finally broken through. Now we just need it's next door neighbor to make an appearance and I think we will all be a little happier and more comfortable.

In further August news, he and Daphne officially played together this week! They've been buddies for a while, but this was the most interaction I've witnessed between the two. While I had Augie laying on his back on his palette on the floor, Daphne (aka D-dog or Doodles), came over and dropped her favorite bouncy ball at his feet. He started kicking her and at the ball like a mad man, and she would periodically reach in with her paws to grab the ball and move it over. I always thought they would be fun playmates, I just never realized that it would be so soon!

And finally, the biggest news of the week is that August is taking his first trip to the Texas coast this weekend! Kevin's Paternal Grandmother (Nana) is treating the Gupton clan to our annual summer trip this weekend. We're greatly looking forward to seeing the cousins that we only see once a year, rubbing our feet in the sand, and of course enjoying the good food and conversation.

Week 22

This week was a bit more challenging thanks to the impending arrival of two very pesky teeth. We believe that August has been in the teething process for quite some time, but it seems that his first two pearly's on the bottom are finally working their way through. We've tried homeopathic teething pellets, orajel, he wear's his amber necklace continuously, occasional acetamenophin,  he's chewed on frozen washcloths, poor Sophie the giraffe's right knee has taken a beating, yet nothing seems to completely console him of the teething beast. If you're not careful, he'll even start chewing on you...yes, he's attacked my chin, my knee, my collar bone, my bicep, and most uncomfortably, my hip bone.

So naturally, teething has made my day to day life a little more difficult as well. I've spent many nights and early mornings trying to make up for the work that I did not get accomplished during the day. And spent many hours trying to convince the little guy that sleep will help. He decided that he wanted to be rocked to sleep this week, so I guess I at least got a little exercise.

Needless to say, by the time Friday evening rolled around, I was in the need of some comfort and relief myself. After we got August fed, bathed, and in his jammies, we decided to drive across the river and treat ourselves to some nourishment from Whole Foods. It had been way too long since we'd perused the infinite aisles of prepared drink, food, and desserts of the grocery mecca. I almost forgot how happening and lively of a place it is at 9:00 on a Friday night. Just as I looked and felt like I'd been wrung through the ringer all week, we met the most interesting, complimentary people we've been around in a while, and even had a family picture taken by the nicest empty-nester(?). And of course while drooling over the cupcake case, we bumped into some of our other good friends that we hadn't seen in a while and had another nice conversation. It was such a great trip for both the spirit and the stomach, that (sushi and cupcakes, thank you!) as we were walking to our car, Kevin said 'we really should come more often'. I couldn't agree more, it was yet just another example of why we love the genuine uniqueness of Austin and it's people.

pedicure 

newest sleeping position

comfort food

Fourth of July

The quaint town where my parents live hosts quite a spectacle for the Fourth of July every year, so Kevin and I thought it would be a great opportunity to take August for his first Granbury festival. Though we didn't make it out for the parade, we took some time on Sunday afternoon to wander through the Arts and Crafts fair set up around the town square. Kevin and my dad were able to taste some traditional festival fare, and my mom and I managed to fit a little shopping in at some of the local boutiques lining the perimeter of the town center. In the evening, we just had to step out onto the front porch to watch several firework shows taking place around the lake.

My parent's also graciously offered to babysit August a few times so that Kevin and I could take advantage of their neighborhood, and go to the driving range and hit the 9-hole golf course for two separate rounds! (Though I'm not sure who was twisting who's arm in that arrangement!). We were also able to take all four dogs down to the lake for a little dip, and spent our fair amount of time swimming in my parent's pool.

Though it was only a three day weekend, we were also able to spend a lot of time lounging around and eating well too. We caught all of the World Cup quarter-final games and an entire Jaw's marathon. My parent's treated us to a local steakhouse so I could get my new york strip fix, and have I mentioned one of the biggest perks (literally) to our Granbury visits?...the almost endless supply of delicious coffee and espresso at the touch of a button. Needless to say, the weekend was a great re-charge to help us through the next couple of weeks.

All in all we had a wonderful time and look forward to making it a summer tradition with our newest addition.