And then there were 4!

Wow. It's been a long time!

2012-02-06T14:40:00.009-06:00

Howdy all! It's been a while since the last post.

In the last 9 months, Chris and I celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary (now we're almost to 7), Christopher played on his first T-ball team, we lost one amazing woman, Benjamin turned 2, we went to the beach, the boys started school, I became an aunt again!!!, Christopher turned 4, we dressed up for Halloween, we ate lots of Thanksgiving turkey, we decorated the house for Christmas, we celebrated Christmas, we rang in the new year, Christopher informed me he would be turning 5 this year...holy cow!, we wore shorts in January, we registered Christopher for his next T-ball season, and now we're about to celebrate Chris' birthday.

Hopefully, we'll be catching up and filling in a few of the details from the last 9 months since our last post in the next few weeks...I guess I should go tell Chris he has a few blog posts to write...

Since it's been so long, here are a few of the boys' school pictures. They were taken November 2011.

Crazy Pop!

2011-05-11T22:29:00.000-05:00

CRG and Cousin A enjoying the making of "crazy popcorn". Anytime cousin A comes over it's one of there favorite things to do. They actually ate all of that popcorn by themselves!

Cascerones!

2011-05-04T21:07:00.004-05:00

Ever since I was little we would spend a few months out of the year eating a lot of eggs getting ready for Easter. The egg would be carefully cracked so only a small hole at the top was made. Then the saving would begin. Hopefully, by the time Easter approached you had enough eggs to do some serious damage to your family.

This year Katy and I made Cascarones, otherwise known as confetti eggs, for the first time. After serious egg eating we ended up with nearly 10 dozen perfectly cracked egg shells. Katy and the boys dyed every egg, with some help from cousin A.

CRG and BJG had lots of fun hanging out with Cousin A and prepping all the eggs for confetti. Of course we left that for Katy and I to do. Can you imagine the mess of 2 3years old and a 1 year old trying to fill 120 eggs with confetti? Instead, just 2 days after completing this project they were all smashed except for one straggler. We'll see when that one comes out....and who deserves it the most! Hope everyone had an outstanding Easter!

The Ice Cream Truck

2011-05-03T18:33:00.003-05:00

Remember when you were a little kid and you would hear the ice cream truck off in the distance? I remember running inside and seeing how much change I could corral in the cushions or find laying around. Then all the kids from the street would emerge about the same time, listening carefully trying to find what direction the ICT was coming from. If you were able to come up with about a buck you could seriously do some damage and get whatever you wanted.

Hello 2011. Who knew a bomb pop could cost $2.25? I'm almost certain I could by a 6 pack of them at HEB for about $3. I know, I know...it's the novelty of buying from the ice cream man, but that novelty wears off real quick when you lay down a $5 for 2 bomb pops, get 50 cents back and watch as about 1/3 of the popsicle actually gets eaten while the other 2/3 ends up on the face, ground, shirt, chair, dog's mouth....well, you get the picture.

Granted, this was the first time for the boys to get something from the Ice Cream Man. Next time we hear that evil sound spewing from the his speakers I'll be sure to stay inside.

The "Radio" and "Carnivum"

2011-02-21T20:15:00.002-06:00

Say what? The Katy Rodeo and Carnival are coming this week. Around these parts they're known as the Radio and Carnivum. CRG has been looking forward to this for a long time. Last year, he was sick when everything came to town so we missed it. I'm warning everyone now....he's been training for the stick horse race for two years now. What have you done lately to become a champion?

This past weekend was pretty un-eventful. CRG had baseball practice and I was able to rake about a quarter of our back yard. How is that we only have one little tree, but our whole backyard is full of leaves. Oh yeah, thanks neighbors. Is it kosher if I rake them in piles and put them over the fence? I mean, I'm just giving back what is rightfully theirs...right?

Speaking of neighborly neighbors....does anyone have experience with neighbor dogs who don't quit barking? Seriously, they never stop. Never. Do I buy bark collars, put them on their door step, then ring and run? It's to the point we don't like to let our dogs out because WWIII happens at the fence. Suggesstions?

Thanks for listening. Don't worry, I'll make good on that picture promise real soon. Don't be too greedy, you just got 3 posts in less than a weeks time.

....Think Big! Work Hard! Have Fun!

2011-02-17T21:02:00.002-06:00

$500 Monopoly Dollars to the first person who texts Katy or I with the musical group who sings that tune. Ready, Go!

Last Friday was my 31st birthday. Just another day really, but it may have been my best birthday yet. Why you ask? First, I was off as I hadn't started my new job yet so I was able to spend the day with my wonderful fam. The day started with breakfast at my mom's: chorizo, beans, potatos, tortillas...Yum! Katy and I went home and just hung out for the majority of the rest of the day.

The fun started that night. For Christmas we bought CRG tickets to his 2nd concert, Imagination Movers-Live from the Idea Warehouse! We took CRG to this concert a little more than a year ago, but I don't think he really knew what was going on. Since we all know how impatient 3 year olds can be we didn't tell him where we were going until after we parked at the Verizon Wireless Theatre. He was excited and couldn't wait to get in. Last year, the place was packed. This year, the place was half empty. It was actually nice. We pretty much had a whole row to our self which gave CRG, err Katy and me, plenty of room to dance. Seriously, it was one the best birthday nights ever. Choo Choo Soul opened for IM and put on a great show. Of course the Movers had the place hopping all night. We were fortunate enough to get a high five from Mover Rich during the show. Afterwards, we took CRG to the stage to show him all the musical equipment the Movers used. CRG received a guitar pick from one of the stage hands while we were down there which made his day. Even though CRG didn't dance as much as some kids, or his parents, he still had a great time.

I'm sure some would rather spend their birthday at bar with shots or out with friends, not that there is anything wrong with those things. Seriously though, I wouldn't trade my life for anyone elses right now. I had such a fun time at a kids concert filled with toddlers. To see CRG's eyes light up the way they did - it was all worth it. Birthday, it's just another day really. What are you going to do with your day to make it great?

Where have you guys been?

2011-02-16T16:58:00.002-06:00

Wow, I can't believe it's been since August since we've seen you. It's amazing how life happens so quickly. I apologize for being so distant lately, but this is a two-way relationship you know. I haven't heard from you either.

Here's a quick synopsis.

CRG turned 3 - Holy cow!!

Football season has come and gone since we talked last. I had a good one, how about you? Lots of tailgating was done and many good times were had. I was able to go to the Cotton Bowl this year as the Ags somehow laid another egg on national t.v./bowl game.

Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas came and went. Isn't it amazing...the build-up for holidays is huge. Then, in a matter of hours it's gone. Before you know it Valentine's Day candy and cards are in your local store. What...V-Day already passed two? Shoot!

BJG is 1 1/2. He and CRG are pretty much the same size now....that's awesome.

Recently BJG defended himself for the first time against CRG. CRG didn't know what to do and all I could think of was, "It's on now!"

I turned another year older and Katy is getting ready to.

I started running again. Thanks goes to those that are willing to meet at 5am!

I also started a new job recently, so here's my plug. I'm still doing the same thing, but now for a major company. If you have the need to purchase a home or refinance your current one please give me a buzz.

I know, I know...all of you are saying, "what are all these words? we want pictures!" Well, let me see what we can do. I PROMISE to be back soon. With pictures in tow.

Peace!

BJG turned 1!!! (5 weeks ago)

2010-08-31T20:53:00.009-05:00

Like I mentioned in past posts, we have a lot of catching up to do. Why don't we just start from the top. Hello, we're the Garcia's......and you are?

BJG turned 1 on July 23rd. I'd always heard that time flies when you have kids, but I didn't expect it to go so quickly. It seems not long ago, we welcomed CRG to this world....now, he has a buddy to grow up with. BJG's first year absolutely flew by. We're so glad that our friends and family were able to celebrate his birthday with us.

BJG's day started very early with a surprise visit from Grandma. And of course, she couldn't come empty handed. Luckily for us, we didn't have to make breakfast! A gourmet feast of donuts and cinnamon rolls were had by all!! And yes, that's a candle in that cinnamon roll.

Birthday Cinnamon Roll!
FIRE!!!

Katy decided to make BJG's cake. Well, she has this little motto, "Go big, or go home", and she means it! Katy went way above and beyond this year with her creations. After lots of research, she decided to do an ocean theme with a turtle cake for BJG and an ocean for everyone else. Katy made the cakes on BJG's birthday (Friday) since his party was the next morning. CRG was definitely interested in helping out. For those of you who ate the cake, this next picture was taken after everything was baked....I promise!

The party was lots of fun. The little ones played in a baby pool and on a slip-n-slide. BJG, CRG and their buddies enjoyed the water while we enjoyed watching them.

Turtle, Turtle!
The Beach Cake

Is that cake for me?
The Fam
What do I do with this?
Ohhhh! Fun!!!

Please enjoy out little peek into our world. Hope you enjoyed it!!

BJG's 1st Haircut

2010-08-31T20:07:00.005-05:00

Here comes what I hope to be a flurry of blog spots. We're going to try and go in chronological order so today I give you BJG's 1st Haircut.

On June 17, BJG went in for his first hair appointment. Yes, he had an appointment for a cut. Thankfully, we know someone who does hair and is great with our little ones. Thank you Christina!!

BJG's Before Shot with Mom
Be still BJG, be still.
You're going to cut around my ears??!!
So when do I sit under that dryer thing?
Just about done....
Ta Da!! He looks like a million bucks!

Thanks for letting us share a little bit of us with you. Hopefully, this is just the first in a series of new posts. We look forward to hearing from you!!

Wow....

2010-08-31T13:21:00.001-05:00

Has it really been that long since we've let you in to our little world?

Stay tuned.....

Summer Fun - 4th of July

2010-07-12T13:13:00.006-05:00

It's been so busy for us lately, how about you? Maybe that's what happens when you have kids who are old enough to play and want to do things. Don't get me wrong, we've enjoyed every minute of it, but I'm tired!

BJG has had a slew of "firsts" recently. First pool party. First 4th of July. First time climbing the stairs. First Oreo. And so on.....Oreo, you say? Must have been Dad, huh? :)

We spent most of the 4th with my family. Burgers, sausage, dogs, watermelon, slip-n-slide. Yep, it was a pretty good day! That evening we met Jim and Avery at the Falcon Point Clubhouse to watch the Katy Mills Fireworks. We had an awesome view and the kiddos loved it. Last year, CRG was still a little scared of the noise that fireworks made. He absolutely loved them this year! He also loved having his cousin Avery there too! They danced and ran around all night....then crashed hard! Thanks to Aunt K for spending the day with us. We're so glad that you came out and hung out all day!

First Pool Party
First Oreo
Random picture of how BJG eats.
Getting ready for fireworks
Watching fireworks!
Fireworks

We hope you had a wonderful Independence Day and have had a great summer so far! See you soon!

Father's Day and a few pics

2010-06-25T15:57:00.003-05:00

Father's Day 2010 was a good one. I woke up to two boys on top of me with a card that had CRG's recorded voice saying "I wuv you, Daddy". It was the greatest card. Ever. After an enjoyable breakfast and morning of fun we headed to my mom's house for lunch with the fam. Grandma's fried chicken was had by all followed by too much dessert...as always.

I even played a little sand volleyball with my uncle's church league Sunday night. I thought for not touching a volleyball for almost 2 years I did pretty well. I definitely had a lot of fun.

Here are a few pics to hold you over until next time.

CRG and BJG having a good time.
BJG on Father's Day
Great-Grandpa and CRG

1 Week Anniversary!

2010-06-24T20:15:00.002-05:00

So today marks our 1 week anniversary without a diaper on CRG's hiney! Also, it marks a week without an accident. (I'm knocking on wood now!) We are so proud of CRG and are very excited that we are only buying diapers for one!

There's a potty going on over here...

2010-06-10T20:58:00.002-05:00

For those that think this is too much information, stop reading here. But don't worry, there are no pictures.

We are on day 4 of potty training with CRG. We knew what to expect, sort of. An accident here, nothing going on over here... For the most part CRG has taken to chonies very well. What are "chonies", you say? Well, it's Spanish for underwear. Your welcome, you just graduated Spanish 101. Anyways, CRG really likes his chonies and is doing great! On Day 2 he had his first #2 incident. We made it to the potty in time and sat there...and sat there....and sat some more. Finally, he got up and said "I did it!" Well, he didn't really know what he "did". **Warning, may be graphic for those without kids** When CRG stood up, he had a little "nugget" stuck to his hiney. I helped him get it off and place it in his potty and proceeded to show him his "good work".

Dad: Look what you did!
CRG: I did it!
Dad: Great job, CRG!
CRG: (nervous voice) That came out of my hiney?!
Dad: Yes it did.
CRG But, why???

I had a hard time not laughing at his inquisitiveness, but managed to get his chonies back on and reward him for his deposit. =)

Again, we are only on day 4, but he's doing great. He went all day today without an accident and has been SO good about telling us when he has to go. We're hoping that tonight is his last night to sleep in a diaper. Tomorrow night, we're going to let him sleep in his undies. Wish us him luck!

Fayetteville Power Plant Lake

2010-06-08T17:01:00.004-05:00

We had a great weekend at the lake with friends Tracy and Nathan. Thanks go to Katy and Tracy for setting this up a few months back. We got in to Fayetteville Friday evening and immediately fired up the grill for burgers and hotdogs. After dinner Nathan, Tracy and I took their boat out to set up jug lines. We thought there might be a few bugs out there (it was very calm), but we had no idea we were headed into a wall of bugs. Seriously. I'm pretty sure all of us ingested a few bugs that first night.

Saturday morning all 3 of us plus CRG went out again to check and re-set lines. We made it back with enough for dinner, but opted to keep trying. CRG absolutely loved the boat and wanted to go "faster" all the time. BJG didn't get to go on the boat, but he had a great time none the less.

While the women and children took an afternoon swim Nathan and I hit the lake again hoping for more haul. We decided to keep it modest and kept only what we could consume that day. Unfortunately, the wimenz weren't able to see the coolerS full of fish. We thought we would do a good deed and spread the wealth with others. Pictures of the fish you say? They got lost somehow! The fish we did keep went straight to the belly Saturday night. Nathan did a great job frying fish, hush puppies, french fries and other food we couldn't finish.
After dinner, Nathan and I went out for an evening of fishing. We spent a good 3+ hours on the lake that evening and brought in a few more fish.

Overall, we had a great time with our friends and look forward to hanging out with them again. Hopefully, they didn't mind "babysitting" us too much since it had been a good 6-7 years since Katy and I last fished.

"but why?"

Enjoy the pictures!

From Collages

Memorial Day 2010

2010-06-07T17:40:00.003-05:00

Slowly but surely, you will be caught up.

Memorial Day 2010 was spent at Rock-n-Box Ranch. For the most part we sat, did nothing and had a relaxing weekend. CRG loved driving the ATV, swimming in the tanks and fishing. BJG had a great time swimming too, and really loved all the dogs (5) running around.

From Collages

Where do I start...

2010-06-01T10:52:00.003-05:00

Katy and I celebrated our 5 year anniversary on May 21, 2010! To celebrate, we had our first night away from the boys. We've been away from CRG for one night before, but that was because Katy was busy having his brother so that doesn't count. I had a hard time convincing Katy to stay somewhere over night. Luckily, I made a reservation without asking her first and it was non-refundable....so she reluctantly went.

We stayed in downtown Houston at the Hyatt Regency. After relaxing for a while we had a nice dinner at Brennan's. In September 2008, a two-alarm fire, which broke out during Hurricane Ike, engulfed the historic building in flames. 80% of the building was restored. Honestly, unless you knew it was the same building, you'd never know. Katy had the filet and I had the pecan crusted mahi-mahi. Both dishes were excellent! For dessert Katy had a slice of cheesecake and I had Bananas Foster. Apparently, this fine dish dish was created in 1951 by Paul Blangé at Brennan's Restaurant in New Orleans and named for Richard Foster, a friend of Mr. Brennan. Interested in making a copy of the original recipe? Find it here.

The next morning we went to The Breakfast Klub for breakfast. I had read about this place before and it sounded good. I didn't tell Katy where we were going, but she said that she had seen it on the Food Network. Yes, I had wings n' waffles and Katy had the french toast. Both were very good, but next time I would get wings n' french toast. Yummmm. I'll try and get some pictures of the wings n' waffles on here soon!

Before:

After:

Thank you to Gi-Gi, Pa-Pa and K-K for watching CRG and BJG for the night. We know they had a great time hanging out with all of you!

Update

2010-05-11T17:23:00.001-05:00

I promise I will have one soon.

Any requests?

Almost here!

2010-04-19T11:32:00.002-05:00

The Papp's will be here this Friday! We can't wait for them to join us for 10 days of family fun....and hopefully a guy's night or two!

CRG is excited! When asked if he knew who was coming this weekend he said, "my friend Kevin and Julie". It was pretty cute.

Can't wait to see you guys! Be sure to bring your little monkey too!

Family Photos

2010-04-08T10:31:00.008-05:00

We recently had family portraits taken by Sara at Sara Griffin Photography. Here are a few of our favorites.

Sneak Peek

2010-04-05T11:17:00.002-05:00

Thanks to Sara Griffin Photography for making this photo session very easy with 2 small boys. Check out our "sneak peek"!

http://saragriffinphotography.wordpress.com/

1911-2010

2010-03-22T11:11:00.003-05:00

Anastacia Campos, my Great-Granma, passed away yesterday morning. She would have been 99 on May 4.

What a wonderful life she lived. I'm very thankful that she was able to meet her 2 Great-Great-Grandsons.

Tracy in TX!

2010-03-15T17:48:00.005-05:00

We're always excited to see Tracy, even if it is just for a few hours. Since she moved to NYC (I know, I know....get a rope) we don't see her as often as we used to, but it's always like she never left when we do. CRG adores her, and had a great time playing with her. Thanks go to Uncle Robert for making crawfish, potatoes, corn, and a pork tenderloin for those wussies allergic to shellfish.

It's snowing........flowers.

Tracy holding BJG

Aunt K swinging with BJG

Paw-Paw pushing CRG and Avery.

Tracy helping CRG make Smores

Pictures

2010-03-12T09:59:00.006-06:00

Even though I failed with my camera battery last weekend at the Zoo, I remembered that I took a few pics with my camera phone.

Enjoy!

Two monkeys

Jellies!

Getting ready to ride the train

After the Children's Museum

I pity the fool.....

2010-03-10T12:05:00.003-06:00

That tries to call my home....during dinner time...to try and sell us something. My sweet little Katy worked them over! Vacation Network Inc. called last night and first got me. I don't mind giving them a moment to try and do their job. I actually like messing with them a bit. Katy on the other hand, is the complete opposite. After she took the phone from me, she immediately called them out as a scam. Long story short, I had a great time watching and listening to Katy work over the poor guy on the other end of the line. I'm quite certain the telemarketer had never had an encounter like that. WAY TO GO, HONEY!! Seriously though, I don't think we'll be getting those annoying calls anytime soon.

Oh well, there goes our free 8 day, 7 night vacation PLUS round trip airfare for two. It couldn't have been free, anyways......right?

Welcome Back...

2010-03-09T16:10:00.004-06:00

Miss us? Come on, you know you did!

So what's been going on with us you ask? Well, where do we start?

Katy and BJG spent 4 days in Ojai, CA this past weekend. Unfortunately, it was for her Great Uncle Bill's funeral. Fortunately, she was able to visit with family she hasn't seen in a VERY long time...some she had never met. I love the fact that she was able to see and go inside her Great-Grandma Consuelo's house. How cool is that!

Katy and BJG in the house.

BJG not only took his first plane trip, but also made his first trip to the beach.

The Pacific Ocean

Katy, Kim and Michelle representing Texas!

Katy and BJG at her cousin's beach house

BJG waiting for the funeral service

While Katy and BJG were gone, CRG and I tried to stay busy. CRG got to spend Thursday evening playing with his cousin Avery while I had a work function. He came home with pink eye. =/ At least he had a great time! Friday (before we knew about the eye) CRG and I went to the Houston Zoo and the Children's Museum. I took my camera, but forgot my battery. Go ahead...tell me how awesome I am. CRG loved riding the train. The train is so much longer than I remember. As a kid, I remember riding around the lake and that's it. Now, it actually goes all the way around Hermann Park. I like how after exiting the train, you HAVE to walk through the gift shop to leave. How convenient. We sped out of there, but many other parents were suckered into their trap. Over the next few days, CRG and I did a lot of hanging out. I think that may have been more fun then our Zoo/Museum trip. Just my buddy and me.

Saint Arnold Brewery

2010-02-11T11:34:00.004-06:00

Recently we gathered with another friend at St. Arnold Brewery for a combined 30th birthday celebration.

Click to enlarge and see all the fun we had!

Gratuitous Picture

2010-01-13T15:40:00.000-06:00

I was going through some Christmas pictures and found this. I really like this picture.

BJG likes food....

2010-01-12T16:40:00.004-06:00

....Imagine that. You probably can't tell from the pictures, but he does like it. And we like the faces he makes. =) This was his first try at squash.

CRG had a lot of fun watching me try and rake leaves in the backyard. I wasn't able to get that much done because a) CRG wanted to do what we captured in the pic below b) I had too much fun watching him try and run through the leaves.

I'll try and get better at doing this again.

Enjoy.

In case you haven't heard it......

2009-12-17T15:32:00.003-06:00

It snowed in Katy. How about that? CRG had a great time playing in the foreign substance and it made a great opportunity for a unique Christmas card.

The Fam.

CRG and Pa Pa

CRG

Dec 4, 2009

We hope that everyone else who was not accustom to our wintery mix had a fun time as well.

Thanks for Thanksgiving

2009-12-02T15:08:00.008-06:00

Almost a week later, we sit down and rewind the long weekend that was Thanksgiving. It's always nice to get the whole family together and just relax. Thanksgiving done right definitely includes eating more than you should and leaving one Thanksgiving dinner to head to the next. We always start the day by eating with my family, then end the day by eating with Katy's family. That being said, we enjoyed great food and more importantly great company.

(click to enlarge)

From Collages

Friday morning, myself and 15 other guys thought we could be 18 again. A flag football game was organized and played -with no injuries- to the best of our abilities. Team red won 6-4 over team yellow. I completely forgot that you use completely different muscles when you try and do something like this. At least 15 other guys were also sore the next day...

After a quick shower the fam met up with Katy's sister Beth, cousin Tracy(home from NYC) and their moms at Pappasito's. I took the boys home for an afternoon of more football (just watching this time) while Katy and the rest of the girls saw The Blind Side.

Saturday was spent with more friends and family eating too much and watching football. Katy and I, along with my G-pa and sisters, Brad and Jill, and his family took in the Katy vs. LaPorte high school football playoff game. Katy pulled out a 37-3 win to advance to the state quarterfinals this Saturday. Friday was Miriam's (my sister) birthday. After the game on Saturday, everyone flocked to my mom's house for more food and celebrations. Happy 17th birthday Miriam!

(click to enlarge)

From Collages

To tell you the truth, most of the weekend was a blur. I don't really remember doing anything on Sunday, but I do recall being very tired. I can't believe that it's almost Thursday, Thanksgiving came and went and Christmas is a little more than 3 weeks away. The neat thing about Thanksgiving, is we don't have to wait for one day in November to remind people what we are thankful for. It's something we should remind our loved ones every day. My grandmother told me the other day that she knew that I would be rich...and it would come sooner than later. I quickly realized that I already am. I have two amazing boys and wonderful wife who make me smile every day. I am thankful.

Katy's Ranch Weekend

2009-11-25T14:50:00.006-06:00

Katy spent last weekend at the Rockin Box Ranch with her Dad and the boys. Enjoy the pics!

Monday Funday!

2009-11-23T14:19:00.009-06:00

We have a lot of ground to cover today....

Our weekend started last Thursday. We took the boys to the annual City of Katy Christmas Tree Lighting at Katy Heritage Park. The boys had a great time walking (strolling) around the park, listening to Christmas carols and seeing Santa Claus. This is the first time that CRG did not cry when he saw Santa. He now calls him "Ho Ho".

Boys strollin' around.

Fiber optic snowman that CRG loved.

Santa!
Firetruck.

Friday morning I left for Oklahoma City while Katy and the boys left for the ranch. For Brad's 30th birthday (I can't believe I hang out with people that old) his wife, Jill, arranged for myself, Don, and Al to head to OKC for a guys weekend filled with food and football....and a few adult beverages too. Al and I decided to make it a road trip. Thanks to Al, I had my first experience at a Buccee's gas station. That place is crazy! We found a great hole-in-the-wall BBQ joint in Gainesville and were nicely welcomed into Oklahoma by a plethora of casinos.

Buccee's

Welcome sign to Oklahoma.

Friday night we went to the OKC Thunder vs. Washington Wizards basketball game and had a great time. The Thunder won 127-108 in a very dunk-filled, exciting game. After the game, we headed back to Bricktown to hang out and grab a couple of drinks.

Brad, Don, me, Al
Check out cool guy in the back.

Saturday was much of the same with some stellar Guitar Hero battles thrown in. Don was the runaway champ...which is saying a lot. Jill has always been far and away, the best Guitar Hero Rocker I have ever seen!

Don and Brad rockin' out.
The end to a great weekend!

Monday Funday!

2009-11-16T16:27:00.003-06:00

We're back!!

Friday, we spent the morning/afternoon with the Kaye family. They were in town this weekend for a family wedding (congrats Laura & Matt) and were able to have an extended stay. We met at Peckham Park to let CRG and Mason run around while Taylor and BJG watched. It won't be long before the latter two will be up and chasing their older brothers. Adam & Tab - glad we got to hang out with you for a little while. Have a safe trip tomorrow!

Saturday was a relaxing day for the most part. One of my best friends, James, was in town for a wedding (congrats Laura & Matt =) ), so we got away for a while and went to the Katy vs Stratford HS playoff game. It was great weather and Katy won 49-14. Go Tigers!

After church and grocery shopping both boys had a nice nap to prepare for an evening at Inflatable Zone. Happy Birthday Jaclyn! CRG loves that place. Really, I think he loves going from moonwalk to moonwalk just so we can chase him. He spent time in all 4 moonwalks especially liking the one with 2 basketball goals. If only he could run goal to goal without falling over. It's hard to run with a basketball in hand while Dad is bouncing next to him!!! BJG spent most of the time checking out all the kids running around. Again, another year and BJG will be right behind CRG...bouncing along!

Pics to come later!

Tuesday Funday!?

2009-11-10T11:53:00.007-06:00

Ehh, it just doesn't sound the same does it? Sorry we missed Monday Funday yesterday, but we'll get you caught up now.

Saturday, the fam (Minus BJG) went to the Katy/Cinco Ranch football game at Rhodes Stadium. WOW, what a game it turned out to be! After an early 14-0 Katy lead, CR tied the game at 14 early in the 3rd quarter. CR scored a late TD, but missed a crucial extra point to go up 20-14 with about 3:30 remaining. Katy marched right back down the field to take a 21-20 lead with 1:30 left on the clock. CR's ensuing drive marched them to Katy's 19 yd line with all of 10 sec left. A botched snap game them a 2nd try at a game winning FG, but luckily the kick sailed wide left. We all had a great time and thanks goes to my mom for watching BJG, allowing Katy to attend her 1st Katy game this year.

Josh, CRG, Andrea

CRG and Dad

Sunday was spent lounging around the house doing virtually nothing. Katy and I woke up not feeling well and BJG had a temp of 101.5. It was our day to take snacks to our small group bible study, so Katy spent some time in the kitchen making a yummy Mexican Spinach Dip, oatmeal choc. chip cookies, and caramel popcorn. After I delivered the goodies, we relaxed and played with the boys the rest of the evening.

You can really tell he has a fever, huh?

Monday evening we went to the annual Young Life banquet at the Merrell Center in Katy. Thank you so much Ryan and Amanda for inviting us! This was our first YL experience, but definitely not our last. It's amazing to see the fire for Jesus Christ that is inside these high school kids. If you can, get involved!!

Beds and Birthdays

2009-11-03T12:27:00.006-06:00

So it finally happened....twice. First, CRG climbed out of his pack-n-play yesterday afternoon at my mom's house. She thought he was sleeping while she was cooking in the kitchen....until she felt someone behind her. There was CRG, all smiles of course.

Then this morning. BJG decided to wake up pretty early. After Katy fed and stayed up with him for a while, I took him into the living room so Katy could get a little more shut eye. BJG ended up falling asleep, so I did too. I woke up to my favorite voice saying "Mommy!", "Daddy!". I thought Katy woke up and got CRG out of bed, but I couldn't find him anywhere. I heard it and realized where it was coming from....as I looked up all I see was CRG looking down at me with a big smile.

Daddy: "What happened CRG?"
CRG: "I fall."
Daddy: "From your bed?"
CRG: "Yeah..."

Today is November 3. A big HAPPY BIRTHDAY! goes out to our niece Avery and our good friend Brad. See you in a few weeks, buddy!

Avery just hangin' around.
Bubbles!
Al, Brad, Me, Don. Reunion Tour: Nov '09 - OKC

Monday Funday!

2009-11-02T15:07:00.005-06:00

Wow, where has the year gone? Can you believe it's November already? What a great end to October we had. As you know, Halloween was this past weekend. After enjoying a free meal thanks to Mission Burrito (free burrito with kids in costume) the boys took in a good nap to prepare for a night of fun with family. Katy made a tasty breakfast casserole accompanied by a large fruit tray. Since we never carved the pumpkin I decided to have a little last minute fun carving the honeydew and cantaloupe. After hanging out in the driveway for a few hours we took the boys to a few houses on our street. We struck out on our first two houses, but finally got some candy on our third. CRG enjoyed saying "Happy Halloween" and "Trick-or-Treat" when people answered the doors. He also liked giving candy to the trick-or-treaters, but always had to put one in his bucket too! We had a few surprise guests when my sisters came over dressed up with a friend. BJG had a wardrobe malfunction....turns out he is too big for the costume that CRG wore for his 1st Halloween and fit much better in the costume that CRG wore last year....when he was 1!

Hanging out.

Being chased by Paw-Paw.
My creations.
The pumpkin we never carved.
Aunt Andrea and CRG
BJG before the wardrobe malfunction.
My sisters Miriam and Lauren and their friend Gabby.
BJG
After the wardrobe change.
BJG was soooo tired....
...and didn't like the camera flash.
The lion always catches his prey.

Please leave a post with a fun moment from your weekend. We'd love to hear from you!

Widget

2009-10-28T15:06:00.001-05:00

Go Texans!

2009-10-27T12:46:00.005-05:00

So how do you follow up a great morning at the zoo? How about hanging out with your two boys watching the Houston Texans?!

Need I say more?

Monday Funday!

2009-10-26T14:54:00.007-05:00

Woo-Hoo, it's Monday!

What a great weekend we had. First of all, the weather has been absolutely amazing the last couple of weekends, and it looks like we're in for another when Saturday and Sunday come around. Saturday morning was spent with family at Cracker Barrell. We celebrated our SIL's 31st birthday. (Can you believe we hang out with people that old?) Just kidding, Kelli. You know we love you! The rest of the day was spent lounging around the house and watching a little football. CRG really likes to watch football. He likes to yell "touchdown" and chant "De-fense, De-fense". Saturday evening was spent with good company as a friend from our Bible study went with me to a local high school football game. Katy HS 21 - Taylor HS 10. Once again, perfect weather!

As previously mentioned, CRG received an annual family pass to the zoo. After finding out that the Houston Zoo was holding "Zoo Boo" we couldn't wait to take the boys. The zoo had a few stations to trick-or-treat, a pumpkin patch, and a few other activities for the kids. CRG got some great practice for Halloween. I'll let the pictures do the talking....

King of the Jungle....

and his running mate.
Decorating his pumpkin from the the pumpkin patch.
The lion tamer with her cub.
Trick-or-treat!
"Wheee!!!", said Katy.
Is that a prarie dog? No, it's a lion in a bubble!
I'm still awake!
Thirsty...
Looking for the lions.
Elephants!
Giraffes!
I see it!
Out!
Katy in her costume.
CRG's 1st tattoo.

Thanks for playing. We'd love to hear a fun moment you had this weekend.

How can you not love Clay's Restaurant

2009-10-21T16:53:00.003-05:00

A few weeks ago we celebrated Katy's Aunt K's 60th Birthday! Happy Birthday Aunt K...I hope you had a great time!

Here are a few pictures from Clay's. CRG loved seeing all the animals...as long as he didn't get too close!

Kelli, Aunt K, and Avery

Whoa horsey!
CRG and cousin Avery
PaPa and Avery

Monday Funday!

2009-10-19T11:22:00.007-05:00

Welcome to Monday Funday! This is our effort to take your case of the "mundays" and turn it into a Fun-day!

What a great weekend we had. Saturday was CRG's 2nd Birthday party. We couldn't have asked for better weather. All the kids had a great time jumping in the moonwalk, playing basketball, eating, and knocking the candy out of the pinata! Thank you to everyone who was able to make it!

Cake, cupcakes, and Oreo cookie balls Katy made.
Birthday Boy taking a swing at his pinata.
CRG and Dad having fun in the moonwalk.
Mom with CRG and his cousin Avery.

On Sunday, we took CRG to his first concert, Imagination Movers LIVE from the Idea Warehouse! Although CRG was a bit overwhelmed with all the lights and music he had a great time. He even got the courage to hold hands with his girlfriend, Shelby!

CRG and Shelby.
BJG stayed at home with Grandma and Grandpa.
Imagination Movers!
Mover Rich about 15 feet away!
Mover Dave also 15 feet away!

What a great weekend!! By Sunday evening, CRG was completely worn out, as were Mom and Dad! Like last week, please share a fun moment from your weekend with us! See ya next time!!

Small Picture Update

2009-10-15T15:24:00.004-05:00

This is a picture from our visit with my Great Grandma, or as I call her, Abuelita. I am really excited that our boys got to meet their Great-Great-Grandma.

CRG, Dad, BJG, Abuelita, and Grandma

CRG is 2 today!!!

2009-10-14T11:18:00.005-05:00

Wow, it's hard to imagine that just two years ago it was just me and Katy. Now, on CRG's 2nd birthday we also have a 2 1/2 month old. I love my family.

Happy Birthday CRG. We love you!

CRG was excited about his birthday muffin!

Chocolate chip muffin.

Blowing out 2 candles!

The Aquarium

2009-10-13T15:01:00.006-05:00

Katy's Aunt K was gracious enough to take us do the Downtown Aquarium recently. CRG was so excited when we told him we were taking him to see the fish. He had a great time and really loved the "choo choo train"!

Right after BJG warned his momma about the attacking tiger, Katy turned around and gave it a swift kick to the face and stunned it. This was the shot just before. CRG wasn't so sure about the ferris wheel (that thing is pretty big), but he still enjoyed it. I really like this picture of Katy and CRG with skyline in the background.
CRG was not going to take his eyes off the white tigers! He wanted to know where they were and what they were doing at all times!
3 out of 4 of us. BJG was fast asleep in his stroller.

Monday Funday!

2009-10-12T15:57:00.004-05:00

Today we start something new. In an effort to be a more regular blogger we implement Monday Funday. I'll be sharing a fun or favorite moment from the weekend before. Please feel free to comment with your favorite moment of your weekend.

Have a great week!

October 9-11, 2009:

We took the morning to head to Weimar, TX. Sound exciting so far? It really was a nice time. We took CRG and BJG to visit their Great-Great-Grandmother!! Yes, I said Great-Great-Grandmother. BJG had never met her and it had been a while since CRG has seen her. My Great Grandmother is now 98 and lives in a nursing home in Weimar. Unfortunately, we don't get out enough to see her. She looked really good and was very excited to see CRG and meet BJG. That's my favorite moment....having our sons hang out with their Great-Great-Grandmother.

In addition to visiting Great-Great-Grandma, we also made a trip to the Katy Rice Harvest Festival. Cousin Avery and Uncle Jim came along as well. We had a nice time walking around the streets of Downtown Katy. Avery and Christopher played a couple of games while Benjamin was being fed. Imagine...Benjamin was hungry. Overall, it was a great time!

Pictures to come soon.

Sorry I'm such a horrible blogger

2009-10-03T22:46:00.003-05:00

CRG requested to sit on the toilet and peed today. Woo-hoo!!

Thanks to Aunt K, we took CRG and BJG to the Aquarium and did everything. CRG loved the aquarium, riding the train, the white tigers, carousel, ferris wheel.....the boy had a blast. Katy and I had just as much fun watching him get so excited. Nice running into you Crawley family.

Man, the Ags looked good tonight.

BJG got baptized last weekend. Thank you to all our friends and family who were able to make it. We really appreciate you being there.

Holy cow, I can't believe CRG will be 2 in less than 2 weeks!

Man, the Ags looked good tonight....

Well hello there!

2009-09-15T12:58:00.007-05:00

It's good to see you, let's catch up a little bit.

Yesterday, Monday, September, 14th we had quite a scare. BJG woke up for a late night feeding about 1:30am and seemed a little warm. When he woke up for the day around 7:30am he seemed hot so we took his temperature. It came in at an alarming 101.5. We immediately called our pediatrician and took him to her office. Upon arriving, they advised Katy to head to Texas Children's Hospital's ER and called them to let them know we were on our way. **To rewind just a bit, about a week and half ago we took BJG in for a slight fever and congestion. They drew blood and took a urine analysis and everything came back negative.** Our pediatrician told us to be prepared to stay at TCH for a few days. Needless to say, we were quite concerned and scared.

The above pictures were taken in the ER room at TCH. Poor BJG went through blood being drawn out of both hands (the first time it was drawn, his blood clotted so they needed more.), rectal temperature readings, testing for the flu (a hose had to be inserted up his nose), and a urine test (they went and got it instead of waiting for him to pee - OUCH!) There was talk of taking a lumbar sample from his spine, but thankfully it was deemed unnecessary.

After spending our day at TCH, he was finally discharged yesterday afternoon. Remarkably, he continued to have a great attitude and was a trooper throughout the day (minus all the poking) and never seemed to be that bothered by the fever. When we left he had a 100.2 temp. We'll go back to out ped. tomorrow morning for a follow-up. Please keep us in your prayers. We've already been told if the fever is there again, we may be back at TCH tomorrow.

It was nice catching up with all of you. Let's do this again soon.

Time to Potty! Let's party!

2009-08-26T15:40:00.002-05:00

We had a monumental moment today as CRG made his first deposit in his potty today. A few weeks ago we thought he was ready to start trying to potty train. He kept grabbing himself so we decided to put him on the toilet. The only thing that came out of that was a large smile. CRG thought it was fun to sit on the toilet, especially when we would give him something to read! =) Fast forward to today....he decided to sit on his toilet. Apparently it took a little coaxing, but he made his liquid deposit right before lunch. What a big boy!!!

Gratuitous post

2009-08-25T15:49:00.003-05:00

I've been hammered for not posting anything in the last two weeks so here's a little something to get by.

1. I can't believe in less than 2 months we'll have a 2 year old and a 3 month old. I love my boys.

2. What a wonderful wife I have. Thank you for taking such great care of all of us.

3. Thank goodness for football season. My apologies to all the football widows out there. Get ready for football, Thursday - Monday, until January.

4. Fall temperatures, please come soon.

5. I really hope that we're able to go to MT this fall.

6. I can't believe that school started already. My youngest sister is in 7th grade and a cheerleader this year. The middle sister is a junior in high school and the oldest sister starts her sophomore year of college next week. I hope that all of y'all have a great year. We love you guys!

Our boys

2009-08-05T21:13:00.004-05:00

We are very fortunate to have a friend that is pretty good with a picture machine. Thank you so much SG for taking time out of your busy day to come over and capture some precious moments of our boys! BJG was 8 days old when these were captured.

In Daddy's arms.

I love this guy!
Our precious boys.

Our basket of goodies.

BJG loves being in Mommy's arms.

BJG has big feet.

CRG loves his little brother, BJG.

So restful.

Happy!

Thanks Aunt Lauren and Aunt Miriam!

2009-07-31T21:29:00.005-05:00

I'm glad you came to see me today...

Thank you for making my piggy bank!

Love,

BJG

Benjamin James

2009-07-30T16:13:00.004-05:00

Due to popular demand, we'd like to introduce Benjamin James Garcia.

First bath. Cheese.

Mommy and BJG
First swing ride.

Grandma Davidson and her grandkids.

Little hand, long fingers.

CRG being CRG

Mommy's hand and baby toes.

Hello Brother.

The Garcia boys.

My cousin is a Super Model

2009-07-28T20:59:00.002-05:00

Benjamin James Garcia is here!!

2009-07-23T20:20:00.004-05:00

Born at 7:16pm, weighing 7lbs 15ozs and 19inches long. Mom and Baby are wonderful!!!

More later!

An end in sight...

2009-07-20T11:40:00.005-05:00

Ok, so this is my first post. I guess we'll see if I do it correctly.

So for now Chris, Christopher, and I are continuing to wait for the newest addition to our family. There is an end in sight, as Chris likes to put it. If this baby does not come on its own before Thursday (July 23), I will be admitted to the hospital for an induction at 5:30 am on Thursday. Please keep us in your prayers!

Oh, as an update to Chris' previous post, he has been very patient in his waiting these last couple of weeks. Well, at least he has not been telling me every day that today would be a good day to have a baby. Thank you Chris!

Their Journey to Ethiopia

2009-07-14T12:00:00.002-05:00

Andy and Allison-

What a wild and awesome ride you've been on. Now it's time for you to bring your little girl home. She is your daughter. We'll all be praying for you.

http://sheisourdaughter.blogspot.com/

It's Sunday evening

2009-07-12T20:20:00.003-05:00

And there's no baby yet.

I have been blessed with a wonderful wife who in 1.9 pregnancies hasn't complained once! Sure, there are occasional aches and pains, but she has never actually complained about them, or been to the point where she wishes the baby would come out.

I know that sometimes I'm a little anxious for the baby to be here and I apologize for getting on Katy's nerves...but I can't help it. For the most part, I'll always be an excitable little boy stuck in a grown man's body. I promise to try and be more patient.

Anyways, I consider myself lucky to have Katy...and of course CRG. We look forward to meeting you Garcia Baby #2....as I patiently wait.

Love,

Dad

No baby yet...

2009-07-09T15:55:00.003-05:00

So instead I'll show you the sticky situation we got into recently.

After eating a good dinner, we gave CRG some ice cream...in his own bowl. He actually did really well eating all of it with a spoon.....then decided his bowl would make a nice hat. Oh well, that's what summertime is all about, right? Having a great time with family, eating ice cream, and putting the sticky bowl on your head.

What? Y'all don't do that?

See ya soon!

T.R.O.U.B.L.E.

2009-07-06T20:23:00.007-05:00

That's what I've been in. I've heard it from just about everybody. YOU NEED TO UPDATE THE BLOG!

So here we go....

About a week and half ago Katy and I took CRG to the Astros game. What is that you say? I've been talking too much about baseball? Well, then you update our blog. Just kidding. Astros--it's what we do. We had a great time hanging out in the Crawford Boxes. CRG really enjoyed being so close to the field. Unfortunately, Jose Valverde decided to give away the game with 2 outs in the ninth. Sweet! Oh well, not all was lost. Before the game, CRG got his 1st Astros Jersey. He'll be able to wear it for a few years since the smallest size they had was a 4! We had a really great time and it was probably the last time we'll make it out to a game for a while.

On Thursday, June 25th, we all went to Party on the Plaze at the Villagio Center. We ate at a relatively new Greek restaurant, Santorini's, and it was pretty good. Katy and I have never been in to Greek food, but we decided to check it out anyways. After a good dinner, we hung out in the plaza and let CRG run around and play. He danced to the band and splashed in the fountain. It really doesn't get much better than that!!

Astros vs Pirates, 6/7/09

2009-06-08T15:38:00.003-05:00

Another day, another Astros game. I took my little sister Miriam to the 'stros game. This was her first game since we took her to opening day last year. We both had a great and time and enjoyed a really fun game. We came really close to catching a foul ball....one came 3 rows behind

us and another about 10 rows in front of us. Unfortunately, the second one jumped over the visitors dugout and nailed a lady in the face. She was carried out in a stretcher, but seemed to be okay. She had to have left with a broken nose and whiplash.

The Astros played like a team on fire again, winning 6-4. More importantly, they have now won 7 out of 10.

M. Bourn at the plate.

Tejada ready to inflict some damage.

Miriam's favorite, H. Pence.

My beautiful sister, Miriam.

Us hanging out by the Conoco pump.

Astros vs Rockies 6/4/09

2009-06-05T16:14:00.006-05:00

We went to the 'Stros game last night with our friends Tracy and Nathan. As you may know, the 'Stros have been on fire lately winning 5 out of 6 games. Watch out National League, here we come!! The Rockies must have used their fear of the Astros to lift them past the rising 'Stros in a 10-3 Rockies win.

Depsite the fact that we were blown out, everyone had an enjoyable time. Thanks Tracy for making the end of the night exciting! ;)

One of my pet peeves at sporting events is when there is someone sitting behind you who thinks they know EVERYTHING! I consider myself pretty knowledgeable in most things sports, but I won't run my mouth and tell you so. Anyways, there was the guy sitting behind us last night...wearing a Rockies shirt trying to explain certain aspects of baseball to friends. Normally, I won't respond to these morons that state erroneous facts, but last night I had to say something. Seriously, if you're wearing a team's jersey at least know if they play in the National or American League. When my wife is laughing at your baseball knowledge, something went terribly wrong with what came out of your mouth!!

"You see, this game doesn't matter for either team. The only games that matter are divisional games. The Astros and Rockies aren't in the same division or the same league. The Rockies are in the Amerian League and sometimes they travel to the National League to play inter-conference games"

At this point I had heard enough of his rambling nonesense and I had to inform him that no, the Rockies were not in the American League...nor had they ever been, unlike the Milwaukee Brewers.

Thank you for letting me rant. Kevin, Brad and Adam, I know you'll appreciate this.

San Antonio

2009-06-03T17:19:00.008-05:00

We celebrated our 4 year anniversary with a trip to San Antonio over Memorial Day weekend. We stayed at Hotel Valencia, http://www.hotelvalencia-riverwalk.com/, and would highly recommend it to anyone who may be planning a trip that way. Katy was surprised with a prenatal massage upon check-in that she thoroughly enjoyed. CRG and Dad walked around the courtyard checking out the waterwall/firewall...which was also thoroughly enjoyed! We returned to our room to find 6 chocolate covered strawberries and a plate of fruit thanks to the Davidson family and the hotel staff. CRG and Dad took care of the strawberries very quickly!

After a short walk, CRG enjoyed his first experience at the Riverwalk. Being that close to the water, birds and ducks was completely his style! We had some good Mexican food and hoped to have a nice quiet evening. Someone decided to wake up at 1am, screaming, and made Mom and Dad completely forget about that quiet night. After a brief drive around downtown San Antonio, CRG fell asleep and we made it back to our room unscathed....so we thought. CRG decided after his nap that he was ready to play. Luckily, there was a 42" tv in the room that seemed to catch his attention. Who knew watching the Disney channel from 2-4am could be so relaxing? We do now....

On Saturday, we took CRG to Sea World. He was a complete trooper all day and then decided to pass out before we could even leave the parking lot!! He really enjoyed Clyde and Seamour, the sea lion exhibit, Shamu, and everything else he could lay his eyes on. After resting and showers we went out for another dinner on the Riverwalk. We had a great dinner at Paesanos(http://paesanosriverwalk.com/), which again, we highly recommend.

After a peaceful Saturday night, an excellent breakfast was had at Mi Tierra's in Market Square. Chorizo and beans were had by all 3 of us....yummm. We brought home empanadas and tres leches, Katy's favorite cake. Overall, we had a great weekend and enjoyed everything.

Baseball and Basketball

2009-05-25T15:12:00.006-05:00

Katy and I went to Astros game last Wednesday. They played the Brewers and won. Yes, I said "won". It hasn't happened much this year, so anytime that we can actually be at the game and watch them win makes it even better. Thanks to Grandpa, we had the fortune of sitting right behind home plate, just 7 rows behind the Diamond Club. We almost had a foul ball as well. A ball came straight over our head to the upper level...then fell down a level...then it fell down to our level...landing one row behind us, just 3 seats over. Here are a few shots. The first is Miggy at the plate. The second is for you, Beth...it's your boy Big Puma.

On Thursday evening, we decided to move the cars out of the driveway and shoot some hoops. And when I say we, I mean CRG and myself. Yes, CRG is wearing a Cimarron Elem. Superstar t-shirt and yes, it's a little big. That would be because it was my kindergarten shirt. He loves to wear it at night!! After lowering the goal, CRG decided that he was ready to dunk with the big boys. For all our friends out there that are about to have a little boy... Start working out now!! Picking them up time after time gets very tiring, but it's so much fun!

Mother's Day 2009

2009-05-17T22:05:00.005-05:00

A few pictures from Mother's Day weekend...

CRG and I enjoyed a bowl of cereal together the night before.

My lovely Mother and CRG
Avery in her jumpy...wearing a swim diaper.

Grandpa Davidson, Uncle Jim, CRG, and cousin Avery

My beautiful sisters and wife with CRG and me

We're Back!!!

2009-05-16T20:32:00.006-05:00

So it's been a while since we've been on here, so for now you'll see some pictures. These are from CRG's 1st Easter Egg dying experience.

Not too long after Easter we had a lot of rain....and I mean a lot. Twice within 3 weeks we had about 2"-3" of standing in our garage and were within about 1/2" of having water in the house! We got pretty fortunate this round...Luckily, CRG had his fishing vest on...he was prepared!

CRG and Katy met me for lunch a few days ago. We went to Mission Burrito for some gooood burrito bowls! Afterwards, we had the pleasure of watching CRG run around in the fountains at La Centerra.

Come back soon for a Mother's Day update!!!

Davidson Reunion/Easter Sunday

2009-04-14T18:30:00.009-05:00

Katy's family had a small reunion this past weekend. Her Uncle Billy came down from Petersburg, Alaska, and Great Uncle Bill came in from Ojai, CA. To celebrate, there was a big crawfish boil at Eve's Garden in Brookshire. Look it up, it's a neat place. Lots of crawfish and good times were had by all. Cornhole was played until the lights (sun) went out, and the little ones (CRG and cousin Avery) had a very exciting Easter egg hunt. Thanks to Jim and Kelli for bringing the bounce house. Thanks to Uncle Dicky for bringing hula hoops!

After church on Easter Sunday, we made our way to Uncle Dicky's for a little bar-b-q! Once the rain cleared, it turned out to be a gorgeous day. Once the grass dried, some serious badmitton took place! Again, a great time was had by all.

City of Katy Easter Egg Hunt

2009-04-13T22:24:00.005-05:00

The City of Katy had an Easter Egg Hunt for little ones a week before Easter. CRG and his cousin, Avery, went wabbit hunting...I mean Easter egg hunting. Honestly, I don't know if I'll ever go back. Unfortunately, it was very unorganized. Nevertheless, the littles one (those that were in the 0-2 age group) had a nice time. The 2-4, 5-6, and 7-8 age groups were absolutely crazy. Here are some pictures from the event.

Practice and the Real Thing

2009-04-08T18:40:00.006-05:00

Saturday, Katy's lovely sister Beth received 4 tickets to the last exhibition game for our beloved 'Stros at Minute Maid Park.....ahhh, Minute Maid Park. It's definitely my favorite park. I hope it quickly becomes CRG's favorite as well. Thanks Beth for the tickets!

Just enjoying the game.

An ode to the Dome Dog!

Katy's Icee that she really wanted, but never had. Thanks, Son.

Check out The Little Puma's!

The new restaurant dedicated to the original Killer B's, Big and Baggy!
Supposedly, this is what happens when Lance Berkman kisses you, according to Beth.

Monday night was Opening Day. I think it's probably one of the greatest days of the year. Seriously. Once again, I hope CRG thinks the same very soon. Katy may try and flush those ideas down the drain though. Well, maybe? Anyways, Opening Day was filled with a flyover by 4 Apaches that just returned from Iraq. Can you say Saa-weet! I'm a fan of flyovers....especially done by F-16's. Apaches are pretty dang cool too. Lyle Lovett sang the National Anthem and Katy spotted one of her favorite singers walking around the concourse, Paul Wall. Even though the 'Stros lost the game, we had a great time. Oh, and CRG is an official Astros Buddies Club member for the 2nd straight year.

Old friends.

Katy's favorite musical artist, Paul Wall. She was embarrased to take a picture with him.

Katy's favorite boot!

Dog Park

2009-04-05T14:17:00.003-05:00

Thursday, the city of Katy had an Easter Egg Hunt for dogs. Usually, we want nothing to do with these types of things. You know, a bunch of crazy people dressing up their dogs....to hunt Easter eggs....seriously? Well, Charlie and I had nothing to do Thursday night and admission was a bag of dog food which went to a local animal shelter. Why not help out the community and let Charlie enjoy the Dog Park? Well he was very excited to go, but he really wanted to look good for all the ladies. Sooooo, I went ahead and let him wear his favorite (and only) outfit. He wore an old Katy Tiger shirt with a couple of pom-poms sticking out of his collar. Katy also made him a nice name tag (out of duct tape) on the back of shirt that read, "Charlie, The Rally Dog". It apparently wasn't good enough for the judges as he didn't win anything. He quickly took off his costume and found a lot of dog treat filled eggs. The shot below was taken by someone from the Houston Chronicle, it can be found here. http://www.chron.com/community/photogallery/katy/photo_gallery.html Also, a picture of Katy, CRG, Charlie, and myself can be found on the front page of the Katy Times. You can pick up your copy at most local news stands and contact Katy for our next autograph session.

Our Friendly Visit: Part II

2009-03-28T14:40:00.007-05:00

After CRG had his first haircut last Friday afternoon, we met up with friends at Lupe Tortilla, another one of the Papp's favorites. In between a "guacamole" incident with Hailey and Kevin, and Julie spilling water on her pants (for the 2nd time), everyone had a great time. Thanks to Scott and Amy for meeting us Friday night.

After a nice breakfast at Grandma's, we met up with a big group of friends at Saint Arnolds Brewery. Who knew you could have so much fun for $5? Even CRG and Katy had a nice time trying the root beer....and it was good!

Again, after another restful night, us, the Papps, and the Garlands went to the Houston Zoo Sunday morning. Since the Papps were leaving soon, we decided to skip church and be at the zoo as soon as they opened, 9am. Even though it was the last day of Spring Break for many kids, we were very fortunate that there were not a lot of people there that early. The little ones had a good time, as did the big ones! Julie's favorite was definitely the baby giraffe. It was only about 50 days old...unfortunately, it was not very hungry during its feeding time. Sorry Julie! CRG enjoyed watching the elephants get a bath too! After a nice "patio" lunch at Cafe Adobe, we had to hurry home so K-Papp could finish packing and head for the airport. Sadly, Kevin had to head back a couple days before Julie. Someone had to make some money so Julie could stay with us and spend it!

First Haircut

2009-03-25T09:21:00.006-05:00

After we had lunch Friday afternoon, Christopher had his first haircut. It took a long time for this to happen. I've been wanting him to get a haircut for quite a while, but someone (Katy) wasn't ready for his hair to be cut. After much convincing from everyone, she finally agreed to make an appointment. In the first picture, you can still see CRG's curls on the back of his head. CRG did really well the whole time. He never cried or had any issues with someone touching his head. Luckily, there was a little girl about 4 or 5 years old right next to him. He was too busy flirting with her to be worried about his locks. After it was done, Katy was glad that we finally had his hair cut.....me too!

A friendly visit

2009-03-23T15:54:00.006-05:00

We've been lucky enough to have our good friends, Kevin, Julie, and Hailey, in town the last week and a half. We met Kevin and Julie about 3 1/2 years ago at the gym and quickly became good friends. Unfortunately, they moved back to Montana about 6 months ago. Hailey is now almost 8 months old and absolutely adorable!

Upon their arrival to Katy, we made a stop at one of the Papp's favorite food joints, Mission Burrito. After a night filled with burritos, the next day was spent at the Kemah Boardwalk with many friends. We had a nice time hanging out along the water, letting the kids play in the fountain, and of course....eating some good food.

Thursday, we met up with the Papp's again as they began their stay at our casa. That night we went to the Rodeo to see one of our favorites, Pat Green. As always, he put on a fun show!

Friday was a relaxing day, again spent with close friends. We took the Papp's to Mary Jo Peckham Park for a lunch picnic. Hailey thoroughly enjoyed the warm Texas sun. And, when CRG wasn't busy stealing the duck food, he had fun feeding them. We weren't able to play on the playground, but everyone still had a good time. The park was absolutely packed since it was Spring Break and a beautiful day...

the trip....to be continued....

Quick update

2009-03-23T15:37:00.005-05:00

A quick note to 3 friends who recently had babies. Congratulations Wendy, Tabaitha, and Kelly!

We recently had the pleasure of watching our niece, Avery, for an evening. Avery is 20 days younger than CRG, so they were ready to play! They enjoyed riding around in CRG's wagon, taking rides in CRG's dump truck, and dancing....Avery was getting down in her Red Sox pj's!!

mmm, cookie...

2009-03-12T11:03:00.004-05:00

A new Freebird's opened at I-10 and Bunker Hill Wednesday, but Tuesday they had a FREE preview. Not only did they give away free food, but free beer, wine, drinks, cookies, t-shirts and koozies. The next night he decided to take on the cookie.Have you ever had a cookie from Freebird's? They're kind of big, but that didn't matter to CRG. Actually, it's almost as big as his head! I was lucky enough to get a few bites in, but he definitely had more of it than Katy and I expected. He also got pretty excited when he finished it.

ONE WEEK!

2009-03-09T21:28:00.005-05:00

This is being posted a few hours early so it will be up all day tomorrow. Needless to say, CRG is very excited for a special visitor next week.

Kevin and Julie, we are also excited that you'll be coming too!

Andrea's soccer match

2009-03-09T21:08:00.005-05:00

My sister, Andrea, had her first game of the season Saturday morning. Katy, CRG, and I went out to catch her match on a windy, but beautiful day. They played a tough team that's been together for about 3 years, while my sister's team is in first year. Both teams had opportunities to score, but this game ended up being about defense and ended in 0-0 tie.

CRG had a fun time watching Aunt Andrea play from the coziness of his wagon. He also made friends with an old family friend and their little boy.

An afternoon at the park

2009-03-05T20:39:00.005-06:00

It was a beautiful afternoon today so we decided to spend it at the park. Here are a few pics from CRG's day.

Attacked!

2009-03-05T08:29:00.008-06:00

Last night CRG was supposed to be winding down after dinner and a bath. I figure, what a great time to try and get some good shots of our sleepy boy. Now that he's a little older, it's not everyday that he likes to snuggle up with you. However, get him tired and relaxed and he'll snuggle all night if you let him.

Instead, I got attacked. He thought that it was funny that I was on the floor, you know his level. He first ran into the camera lens with his green ball.

The following pictures are my account of the vicious attack that took place last night.

After CRG pinned me to the floor, Charlie (our choc. lab) decided to sit on me as well. It was an attack that I did not see coming. Looking back at the pictures I was able to capture I think that it was in fact a planned attack from a cowboy and his revengeful horse. I'll let you form your own opinion after seeing the following picture.

Katy Rodeo

2009-03-03T11:31:00.005-06:00

The Katy Rodeo was this past weekend. I'm sure that doesn't mean a whole lot to many of you, but for Christopher it meant that he could enter his first rodeo event....The Stick Horse Race. Let me mention that we have never seen a stick horse race the size of Friday night's. Katy and I have been to many Katy Rodeo's, but this was by far the largest and the longest. Usually, there are about 20 kids racing 15 - 20 yards. This night there were at least 50+ riders and they had to go about half the distance of the rodeo arena. CRG barely made it to the starting line when they said "Go!" Needless to say, he didn't come in last! He was definitely one of the younger competitors in the event. Next year, I have a feeling he'll be ready to run!

Saturday morning, we took CRG to the Katy Rodeo Parade. He enjoyed watching all the horses and firetrucks that came by, but especially liked the idea that people were throwing CANDY at him! It was a windy morning, so we had a bundled and tired little guy by the time the parade was over.

CRG's second fight

2009-02-24T21:00:00.006-06:00

It didn't take long for CRG to look for another fight. Monday afternoon, he and I were outside fixing our water hose when he took a spill. He cried a little bit, but nothing major. If you think he looks bad, you should see the other guy! His name is The Driveway.

Remember what fun high school was? How about Sadie Hawkins. The girl pays for a shirt, dinner, tickets....man, what a good time. I think we should have our own "Sadie" about once a month! I was able to relive some of that this past weekend as I took pictures for my sister. One thing I don't remember is having a group of 22 for Sadie!!! Holy cow! Luckily, a few of the couples migrated to their own groups so they were left with only 16. Here are a few pics from KHS Sadie, 2009.

CRG vs Elmo

2009-02-20T21:41:00.005-06:00

I'm sad to say that CRG was in a big fight today. He took on the defenseless Elmo. Now, before anyone gets upset that he attacked Elmo, I want you to know they are about the same size. And I'm sure he was provoked.

Christopher also went to his first futbol match today. We went to the KHS vs CR boys game at Rhodes Stadium. My intentions were to practice with my new camera catching some good action shots. It turned out to be a little colder than I expected so the only action I caught on film was Katy and CRG snuggling.

We left at halftime with CR leading Katy 1-0.

Day 2 of the blog life, post 2

2009-02-19T21:12:00.003-06:00

Here are a few recent pictures to get you updated. The first 4 pictures were taken at the new "Toddler Park" in Katy. The last one was taken just after Christmas.

Check out the sweet hair!

One of my favorite pictures.

He's getting ready for the Katy Rodeo!!!

I really like this one too.

CRG's new ride.

Day 2 of the blog life, post 1

2009-02-19T20:48:00.006-06:00

Every month Katy goes wild with a few of her girl friends. They all get together and run the streets of Katy, TX.....or not. She plays Pokeno (which I still don't understand) once a month with her friends. Girls night for her turns in to Guys Night for me and Christopher. We've been to the Christmas Tree lighting in downtown Katy, shopping at Katy Mills, gone out with Kevin (when he was here) and a few other things. Tonight we decided to go to my grandparents house. The plan was to go to Chick-Fil-A so Christopher (who will be known as CRG in this blog) could play on the playground. Grandma and Grandpa were going to go....so they said on the phone. Of course, when we get there they're dressed in their best, pajamas, and looked like they had no intention of going anywhere. Honestly, that's fine because I knew what the plan was. We would be eating Grandma's beans and whatever else she cooked that night. CRG is at the point where he likes to feed himself. Beans are really difficult. More so without a high chair. He had a few bites of beans, but most of them ended up on his pants, bib, and my shirt. Needless to say, he was more interested in playing than eating. My grandparents (his great grandparents) decided to solve the problem by taking CRG to "the stash". The stash is a 4 drawer rubbermaid container filled with cookies and candy. Long story short, CRG wanted nothing to do with dinner and everything to do with his "grab" for the night. It's basically like going trick-or-treating every time we go to Grandma's. The pic shown is today's grab.

By the way, I had to hide all his loot, bring him home and feed him something he could feed himself.....

Our first blog

2009-02-18T22:06:00.000-06:00

We've had many friends ask to start a blog so they can keep up with us. These friends have their own blogs and we take full advantage of them. We enjoy keeping up with y'all and seeing all the updated pictures. Now it's your turn. Let this hold you over until we figure out how to work this thing.