The Kirkland's Summer Visit

This past week Ian's family (minus Chris and Melanie) flew out to visit.  The boys are getting bigger and bigger, so there are so many fun things we are able to take the family to do together that we weren't able to go do when they were younger.  

We had so much fun doing touristy things and going to all the Austin hot spots and favorite eateries.  

Barton Springs Pool/Aquifer was a must.  The boys said it was freezing, but Gampa thought it was warmer than the California coast he is used to.

 The huge natural swimming hole was super busy that day, but everyone really needed a break from the 100 degree heat!

We also ate (although as a vegetarian myself, I just had coleslaw and potato salad) at "the country's best BBQ joint" - Franklin

 We ordered a family portion and everyone got a little of everything.  It was a total hit from all the meat-eaters.

 We were really smart (although I can't say it was planned) to head to Franklin at around 1pm - it opens at 11am for lunch and is open until they run out of meat.  Usually there is a 2 hour + line to get in and if you don't make the cut, sorry for you.  Driving up we saw the sign saying they were out of meet on the door, but when Stu and Ian went in to inquire, they said we could prob. just barely make the cut off.  We just scooted in and only had to wait about 30 min!  Score!

Here is Ian and I and Katie and I waiting in line

Gamma also came with an extra suitcase of Ian's old childhood toys and it was a total hit!  The huge play-mobile pirate ship was Elijah's favorite for sure and Joaquin was into the Star Wars figurines. I think the boys may be getting a bit spoiled from their California fam!  :)

 Another family favorite we had to stop by was the Hula Hut.  It has pretty much been a tradition to head out to the end of the pier in Austin and grab some Tex-Mex and Margaritas while we watch the sun set over the lake.  The boys love being able to watch the turtles swim by from their seat and everyone is happy!

 Gamma also smuggled some dark chocolate chips inside her suitcase, and the boys soon learned Gamma's famous Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe.  It was a special moment and the rest of the family reaped the benefits of cookies to eat while playing a family game of Trivial Pursuit Genius after the boys went to bed.  (I'm happy to say that Katie and I won!)

 There were many a family night of deep conversation until 3 am, computer craziness till the wee hours of the morning, and board games with stiff competition, pointing fingers, and lots of laughs!  It is always a blast being in the Kirkland Crew!

Gamma and Gampa got to stay an extra couple days and the boys had a blast just doing the things we normally do around here - going to our neighborhood swimming pool and park, as well as waking up the Grandparents early to start the day playing in the playroom!  

My sweet boys!

They can be very loving when they want to be!

 Joaquin and Gampa taking a break high up on the playground

Elijah and Gamma

 Elijah's climb

Joaquin headed down the super slide

 Joaquin and Daddy made it down the 3 story tall slide!

 I really tried to get a good family shot for Gamma and Gampa but of course Elijah wouldn't give me the satisfaction of looking at me and smiling at the camera.

 happy boys

 Elijah peaking out the spiral slide turret

 We also made sure to hit up Georgetown's famous Monument Cafe for breakfast before Gamma and Gampa left to head back home.

If you can't tell from the photos, we had a blast!  Every time we get together as a family it is so special!

Trip to the Beach

We took our summer trip to the beach this past weekend and the boys had a blast!  Uncle Bobby and Aunt Mary live in Corpus Christi - a few miles from Padre Island- so we drove down to see them.  They were amazing hosts and we were completely pampered and loved on!  The boys arrival started off with water guns and beach toys galore!  They knew we were in for a treat the moment we landed at the Hill residence!

 Saturday was a beautiful day and we woke up early to head down to the beach before it got too hot!  Texas beaches are so warm and the people are all so laid back.  You can still drive your cars on the beach so lots of people set up little tail-gate parties and just pack all their stuff in the back of a truck.  What a fun Texan way to hang out by the waves!

 The boys were anxious to jump in the water and had a blast trying to body surf and dig holes to put all their captured creatures into.

 Sarah and her boyfriend, Devon joined us at the beach and the boys had a blast playing with the "big kids"

 Joaquin loved digging up crabs and clams and showing me his treasures!

 I'm not sure if you can see it, but Uncle Bobby found a sweet baby crab and brought it over for the boys to hold.

 Kathryn took this photo of us in the water.  It is pretty difficult to get two crazy happy boys to sit still in the water long enough to get a family picture, but Kat did a great job!

 Daddy teaching the boys how to body surf the waves.

The boys building a sand castle / moat / big hole in the sand...

Kathryn, Sarah and Devon hanging out 

 Back and the house the boys found a shoebox full of Mardi Gras beads and they had hours and hours of fun with them.  Uncle Bobby was kind enough to get in on their bead games.

 Sunday afternoon we all headed to the Texas State Aquarium.  Here are Sarah, Mary, Bobby, Ian and the boys outside the entrance.  It was hard to keep the boys out of all the water activities long enough for a photo.

 The entrance to the aquarium is under a huge waterfall!  The boys loved it!  The aquarium houses all gulf coast marine life, so it was neat for the boys to learn about all the things that live in this area.

 Mary bought the boys little fish to feed the Sting Ray's in the feeding tank and that was a highlight of the trip for sure!

 We all had a blast!

Happy Father's Day, Ian!

 Elijah and Ian

Joaquin and Ian

You are such an amazing father, although I always knew you would be!

Cheers to you!

We love you!

Our 9 year Anniversary

Ian and I had a wonderful anniversary weekend!  Ian had secretly arranged for my mother to watch the boys all weekend, so it was quite a treat!  

Ian and I had been compiling a list of all the things we love to do (and used to do frequently) before our kiddos came along.  Most of them are small things, but as you all may know, when you are a parent, there are certain activities that are no longer as "relaxing" as they used to be before you were accompanied by kids under the age of 4.

Our list was simple:

-going to a show (a live music show that is)

-slow, relaxing picnic in the park with wine and food and a good book

-lounging around Barnes and Nobel reading magazines and checking out all manner of cool books

-thrift store shopping - taking the time to really treasure hunt and feeling great about your secret finds

So, come Friday evening, Ian and I were on our way to my parent's house to drop off the boys.  We then headed straight to our favorite hole in the wall Chinese restaurant and grabbed some take-out food.  The park was just around dusk and the lightening bugs were aglow (Ian's all-time favorite bug).  We had a nice, slow picnic in the park with our Chinese food and a great bottle of wine my father had given us as an anniversary gift!  It was heavenly and we checked one item off our list!

 Saturday morning we slept in till 9am!  Then we had a leisurely morning, grabbed some Starbucks and headed out to our favorite Austin thrift store: Buffalo Exchange.  I don't have any photos from our scavenging there - but I can tell you we were lost in our treasure hunting for a good 3 or 4 hours before we headed to the check out counter with our finds.  I found all my items on the 50% off rack (which is pretty darn cheap for second hand - I didn't pay over $5 for any of my new clothing finds!)  Actually, the most expensive item I bought were some shoes at $18...

Ian found some great vintage T'shirts, some shoes and some fun button up's!  By mid-day we were tired and headed home to watch Meet The Parents while we took our time getting dressed up for our night out on the town!

Now, I'm not sure if you know this, but it has been an anniversary tradition for quite some time now, to have dinner at the fondu fun house called Melting Pot.  So we put on my fancy new thrift store finds and headed out for some serious cheese and chocolate!

This is us waiting for our table to be set

Once we were at our table the lighting was incredibly low and romantic, so our flash photos came out weird and the ones without the flash were red - but at least we documented the event!

We spent Sunday morning hanging out at Barnes and Nobel reading and relaxing and doing nothing of importance at all.  It was wonderful!    We had nice sandwiches under the gazebo for lunch and then headed back to pick up our little guys.  What a wonderful way to celebrate 9 years!

When celebrating our anniversary, Ian and I have a tradition of telling one another the thing that we enjoyed most during this year of marriage.  Sometimes it is a particular event, sometimes it is a way in which we have grown as a couple or what not.  

This year Ian said he really felt like our working together and entrepreneurial spirit grew and deepened our relationship in new ways, and I completely agree.  Since Ian has been working from home this year it has been such a wonderful blessing to our family and a new balancing act as well.

Mine was sorta similar to Ian's in that I really enjoyed our "teamwork" this year.  I feel like we work so well together in the workplace, creatively, and as parents.  I'm so grateful to have such a perfect blend of personality traits between us that really make us a powerhouse couple.  

Of course, 9 years ago when we stood and made vows to one another we could never have guessed all the things that God had in store for us - but what an incredible adventure it has been so far and what an incredible man I have to share it all with!