Swimming Holes of Texas

Over Labor Day weekend we found the best swimming holes!  I can't believe it took us this long to investigate these gems but now that we have found them, we will be returning often.  Let me also say that this summer has been absolutely brutal for heat and drought.  In Austin we had over 70 consecutive days above 100 degrees!  That kind of heat makes you want to stay comfortable inside your air conditioned home; the thought of going outside is exhausting.  Over this past weekend we had a slight reprieve and it dipped just below the 100 degree marker so we ventured away from a/c.  On Sunday we tried taking a trip to the famous Hamilton Pool Preserve near Dripping Springs.  It's a beautiful water hole with a waterfall.  Unfortunately we didn't know that they limit the number of people in the Preserve at any given time so when we got there it would be at least a 2 1/2 hour wait to get in.  Luckily the park ranger informed us there was another area we could go to just a quarter mile up the road that was nice and you could swim in the Pedernales River.  So we went there instead.  It's called Reimer Ranch and it was perfect!  There is a large rock beach area where you can spread out and the water was a perfect temperature - probably 75 degrees and came up to my shoulders.  We spent a couple of hours there and Amelia had so much fun.  We still wanted to see what Hamilton Pool was all about so we decided to go the following day since it was a day off for us.  We got up early on Monday and planned to be at Hamilton Pool no later than 9am when the gates opened.  At 9 am we pulled up to the gates only to find out it was closed due to the wild fires in the area.  It's important to note that so much of Central Texas is currently on fire and it's extremely devastating; we can only hope they get the fires under control quickly.  Like I mentioned earlier, we have had unbelievable drought in this region so everything is as dry as a bone.  So, it was a bummer we couldn't go to Hamilton Pool again, but we weren't going to stop there.  Amelia kept asking us when we were going to go swimming because she was dressed and ready for the occasion.  Thanks to our trusty smart phones we were able to find another swimming hole in Wimberley that had good prospects.  So we set out for The Blue Hole in Wimberley and it was  a great find!  The water was absolutely freezing at first touch but it warmed up as the day went on.  Overall it was such a fun weekend!  I'm glad we have these kinds of adventures to be had in our back yard.  Enjoy the photos.

Enjoying a PB&J

Mommy & Amelia in the Pedernales River!

Daddy & his little girl

Amelia had so much fun!!

Yes, that's another PB&J.

We don't have enough of these photos.

Fun at The Blue Hole in Wimberley

"Blast off!"

"It's cold, Daddy!"

Little Burrito

Family:)

"Ta-daa!"

All smiles!

First Austin Playdate

I may have mentioned that we moved to a really great neighborhood and our two neighbors have little girls Amelia's age.  We invited them over this past weekend to have our first Austin Playdate:)  The girls had lots of fun and Amelia was very good about sharing her toys.  Here are some cute pics, enjoy!

It's a Glamour Shots pose!

Checking out Amelia's kitchen:)

Friends

Let's put the baby doll in the oven.

Secrets...

Girl talk

Let me have some of your Goldfish.

Do you have different Goldfish than me?  Let me see.

Sweet flower

Little buddies!

2 Year Check-up

Amelia had her two year check-up and I wanted to post her stats so we can keep track.


Weight - 24 lbs    25th percentile
Height - 33.5 in.   50th percentile


Not bad!  Our pediatrician is using the WHO health charts to measure which is great for us because it puts her higher on the scales.  Compared to U.S. babies she's practically starving.  But compared to the rest of the world, she's just slightly petite!  Thank you, Asia:)  I'm still able to fit her into 18-24 month clothes and we'll be in those for some time still.  The next size up is 2T which is huge on her.

Funny things Amelia says...

Now that Amelia is talking, some of the stuff she says is worth recording.  I can't film all of it but I can put in print so at least we will remember it through the years.  As a side note, the kid never quits talking.  It's a constant stream of words, thoughts and songs.  Let me say that it is never a dull moment around here!

Amelia speak:

"Are you kidding me?"  -  and with all of the inflections associated with that phrase.  She heard me saying it one day when I was mad at something Martin did.  It hasn't stopped being funny.  She sometimes says "Are you serious?" - equally as funny.

"Knock it off, Daddy"

"Oh shit!"   -  we're trying to discourage this one but she actually used it appropriately the other day when she dropped her cup. 

"I wanna carry you"  -  meaning she wants one of us to carry her.  She will also say "I wanna hold you" and it means the same thing.

"Mommy feel better.  I hug you and you feel better."  -  this one melted my heart!  I told her not to drink from my glass because I wasn't feeling well.  Then she said this to me!  It was so sweet!

"Mommy farted"   -  actually I didn't, although sometimes...  I'm pregnant so gas happens.  Either way, whenever she hears a sound that is similar to a fart she assumes someone farted and likes to call it out.  She did this to me at Einstein Bagels the other day and people started laughing.  I think it was the sound of the chairs moving.  Really!

I'll make sure to post more as she comes up with it.

Happy 2nd Birthday, Amelia!

It was more like, Happy Birth-week for Amelia.  We celebrated all week long.  On her birthday, Tuesday July 26th, she woke up to get some of her first presents - a Radio Flyer tricycle with basket and bell and two pair of Adidas kicks (thanks, Tildyn!).  Then she had celebrations at her daycare that afternoon.  Then Martin and I picked her up early to go to the pool.  Then...  we had dinner with friends and Phil's Icehouse where she and her friend Piper got to play on the playground and have Amy's Ice Cream!  It was a full day.

My girl likes her shoes!

They have the same shoes!!!

"Whoa"

With her friend, Piper

The girls enjoying some good ice cream

Remember I said it was a Birth-week celebration.  All of the first festivities happened on her actual birthday which was Tuesday.  The days after we kept singing "Happy Birthday to Amelia".  Then Saturday we had her party in Houston.  It was Hello Kitty themed and all of her friends were there to celebrate.  It was so much fun even though it was 100 degrees outside and wet from the earlier thunderstorm.  Still, she had a great time.

Saoirse, Sophia & Ava

Gimme a hug

Laura & Jack

Perrine and the Gilbride girls

Strawberry cupcakes with strawberry icing.  Yum!!!

Ava & Kaitlin

Presents!

"Mine"

"Cheese"

And that's it.  There are hundreds of photos but I tried to keep it to a minimum and post good ones.  

To our sweet Amelia,

   I can't believe you're two years old.  You have made us smile and laugh more than we thought was possible.  You bring a joy to our family that is beyond measure.  We love you so much.  Thank you for being you.

Love, Mom & Dad