The good life

Since I go bonkers just sitting around doing nothing, we have tried to keep ourselves busy this past week. And oh what fun we had! Ben is just my favorite little buddy! It’s ridiculously hot outside right now, therefore water is a must! We even hit the neighborhood pool filled with kiddos who go to my school, but they were sweet so it was okay :) We had planned to drive down to Austin on Friday, but Daddy called Thursday around 3 and asked if I wanted to go after dinner. I had a million things to do before we left, but agreed and I’m so glad we got there Thursday night. It was like having a whole extra day. Ben was amazing down there. He is continuing his quest of having all his family members tied around his fingers. B and I were able to sneak away alone to see a movie and have lunch one day and later go to dinner with Tommy & Kristin and Tina & her boyfriend followed by a comedy club with the rest of the ‘cousins.’ While we were off having fun, Ben soaked up some one on one with Grandma and Grandpa. Grandma loves how he signs for “more” and gives him food just so he’ll do it, even when I tell her not to!!! She pulls the grandma card on me so I guess she can since that’s her job to spoil him. Sweet Ben now likes donuts… thanks! We finally got to have dinner Saturday at Flores (their FAVORITE little restaurant) and Ben looked like a little boy in a 3rd world country shoveling rice and beans into his mouth. It’s embarrassing to take him to restaurants sometimes. This was followed by ‘Family Game Night’ which we introduced to Tina’s boyfriend. Poor guy, maybe it was too soon??? B and I were still laughing about it tonight :) We had such a fabulous time and totally blew our diet. Thank you Tina, Grandma and Grandpa for a super fun weekend! Ben loved peeing on your floor and playing with your cup holders.

The camera came back from it’s vacation on the shelf. Woohoo!

We tried to meet Addie & Michelle and Mayson & Ashley at the library for story time on Wednesday, but arrived too late so to lunch we went followed by a stop at Dimples for some cupcakes. They have little kid furniture and Ben walked right over and waited for his TWO dates to join him. My little stud.

Thursday we met Ashlee and Wyatt at the Splash Park for some fun. Wyatt gets the idea of a splash park. Ben, on the other hand, walked around trying to steal cups that belonged to other kids. An old, dirty cup caught his eye and that is all he wanted. A little girl pushed him down and made him cry when he bent down to see her bucket and the Mama Bear in me kicked in. NO ONE hurts my baby! I’m well aware that Ben beats other kids up (just ask Mayson), but this girl was at least 3 or 4 and he’s just a curious baby. She did apologize, but still!!!

Enjoying the hammock with Daddy in Austin

Jim-Jims! Jim-Jims has to be one of our favorite desserts. Once you have it, you can never have a snowcone again- it’s FAR superior! After a visit to the UT co-op (Ben needed some UT gear for the upcoming season) we made a little detour for some water ice. Ben is doing the sign for more here. He went nuts for Jim Jims just like his parents, that’s our boy :)

Playing at Zilker Park

We took him on the Zilker Zephyr train around Barton Springs. He was bored with it after 5 minutes and started playing with the screws on the seat instead. Typical boy.

This is how Ben rides.

Yes this is a picture of a picture and yes I realize we used to be quite skinny…BUT, we showed this family reunion picture from ‘02 to Ben and asked him where Daddy was and he got it every time! He would study the picture and start at the top and look all around and then put his finger right on B’s head each time. I’m sure this is nothing special, but I like to think he’s a genius!

On our way home we stopped at Nick and Sheri’s to pick up a grill they no longer wanted. They’ve just put in a pool and outdoor kitchen and their house is like a seriously like a resort. The infinity pool has bar stools IN IT. Who needs to go on vacation when that’s in your back yard? Anyways, they have a little boy, Nicholas, who is Daddy’s youngest cousin (3 years old). Ben liked his swing and convinced Sheri to push him over and over and over while they watched the golfers.

cute cousins

Ben lucked out and had fast food for lunch. Poor baby was so tired he fell asleep with part of a chicken strip in his hand. He has crumbs all over his face and shirt.

To continue our fast food habit we stopped at Bush’s for a potty break and some ice tea and rolls. Too yummy for words :)

Why not continue to eat junk for dinner? Tonight Ben had pizza for the first time. I think it might replace mac n’ cheese as his favorite. We let him eat on the couch and he looked like he was in a state of pure bliss at one point with a huge smile on his face and his head leaning back. Such a goofy kid :)