New Car

Charlotte got her first car today. They grow up so fast! She was given this wonderful, gently-used car from her cousins, Anna and Ben, She tested it out in the driveway after school today. What a great way to spend a lovely afternoon! Char loved getting in and out and closing the door. She is a little too short to be able to push it with her feet very much, but she was getting the idea. She loved it so much she cried when she had to come in!

Indoor Picnic

On Saturday night we had an indoor picnic and watched the Longhorns play football! Go Horns!

A PW kind of day

A few years ago my mother-in-law got me hooked on the blog "The Pioneer Woman". If you have never been to it, you should check it out. She has sections on her family's life on a ranch, cooking, photography, home & garden, and entertainment. I have tried a few of her recipes here and there and they have always been wonderful. Her lasagna recipe makes my mouth water just thinking about it. Recently, she has been on the Food Network doing a 6 series Saturday morning cooking show. This past Saturday I was inspired. Since that happens so rarely with me when it comes to cooking, and since I even more rarely getting the "cooking bug" I decided to spend Labor Day making the three recipes she did on the show.

We started Monday morning with Lemon Blueberry Pancakes. Yummo. I froze the extras and had them this morning, and they were just as amazing.

Then, for dinner that night we had sliders and homemade mac 'n cheese. Mark and I decided we would serve sliders at any cookouts we host from now on because then people can graze the other food as well and not feel guilty. The mac n cheese was good but I think I overcooked the macaroni and it got too mushy. My fault, not PW's.

Overall, it was a great day full of yummy food and relaxation!

Time at the park

It was such a beautiful morning! We could not be happier about the "cold" front blowing through. Anything to not have 100 degree temperatures! This morning we walked to the park that is about a mile from our house. Since the weather was so nice, I pushed Charlotte in her stroller so that I could get in my exercise for the day. She is a very proficient walker and getting quite good at running as well. She can also walk up the ramp, climb the stairs, and slide on her own. All of that add up to much less work for Mama at the park!

Charlotte sliding by herself. She also learned to slide in the tube slide to her left. I didn't get any pictures of that, but I got a great video.

Swinging is so much fun!

Then we fed the ducks. Normally you can't get this close to the water, but the water level is so low you can walk right out there.

Then, it was snack time, of course!

It is so sad to see how low the pond is. Normally the water comes all that way up to the tree roots. We desperately need some rain.

Here are some cute videos of our playtime at the park.

Mission: Impossible

It is absolutely impossible to get a good picture of Charlotte at this age. There are two stumbling blocks in my way:

1) She won't stay in one place for longer than a half a second.

2) If she does sit still for 3+ seconds, she refuses to smile upon command.

This morning I was trying to get a picture of her in her cute Longhorn outfit to commemorate the first game day of the season. The pictures are below. I will let you be the judge of how well our photo session went. (P.S. It probably doesn't help that she was hopped up on sugar from the donuts she had just consumed.)

"What, Mama? You want me to be still for a picture? I thought you said to run around."

You can't catch me.

This was my attempt to get a picture of her sitting in the chair.

The mischievous look on the her face says it all, little rascal. And, why yes, that is a Longhorn cheerleader doll she is carrying around. We took a trip to the Dallas co-op for a burnt orange bow and somehow Char ended up with a doll!

Then we tried to get Daddy involved - nothing but stone face.

Oh, well. I hope those Longhorns are running as fast as this little Longhorn was today! Hook 'em!