Finding joy in the everyday
Eek! My sister is having a boy! My boys are very excited about this. 🙂
This little bit was hard to capture. She wanted nothing to do with standing still or smiling for the camera. Lots of action shots!
Isn’t she a pretty mama?
The second day in Castroville was pretty much just spent exploring and being with the cousins. I love the freedom they have when they are here to be truly wild and free.
I couldn’t stop capturing the spring beauty that was just exploding while we were there. I took so many photos but these are a few favorites.
Lucas and Sofia loved visiting the horses. These two don’t always get along so well but it was great to see them buddying up and hanging out more.
And of couse this cutie and her mama in the garden.
I let the boys have my camera for a bit while we were in the poppy fields….
The first two are by Lucas and the last two are by William. All edited by me. I think they did pretty well.
March was a busy month for us. It seemed really long but ended quickly. It’s a fun month of birthdays and Spring Break so we stayed busy but managed to squeeze in our annual trip to see the poppys. It was the last weekend of March and they were still impressive. It’s always a highlight to our spring to these beauties and spend time with family.
William requested a LEGO party this year and I am so thankful he didn’t ask for a LEGO man cake, just some bricks. Can do!
Thankfully we had a nice day because he wanted to do the park again.
I found the tutorial for the cake on the Betty Crocker site. It was fairly easy to do but the icing took longer than I expected. Still, he was happy with the final result and that’s all that matters.
We did two games, one was guessing how many LEGOs were in this container and the second was a LEGO relay game of sorts. Each kid tried to race a spoon of LEGOs to another container. The one who got the most, won. The kids loved both of them!
William was very excited about being 7. I keep trying to tell him that he’s not allowed to grow any older but I think it’s getting old. I miss my baby days sometimes but watching this kid grow, learn and become his own person is a wonderful experience as well.
His last night as a 6 year old.
I try to have some kind of decoration to greet them when they wake up. We’ve done streamers on the door, piles of balloons in their room or right outside the door. This year I went with a big 7 on the wall.
Breakfast and a present to start the day. A LEGO kit of course.
My mom meeting fell on his birthday so we picked up donuts to share with his study hall friends, forgot to get a photo of that but all the kids enjoyed celebrating with him.
This big kid can make scrambled eggs all by himself these days!
He chose one of his favorites, The Salt Lick for dinner. We were all pretty happy with his choice.
Since we were having his birthday cake on Sunday for his party, I stopped at a local bakery for a few cupcakes so we could celebrate after dinner. We couldn’t light all the candles with the wind but he managed to beat the wind to two of them.
Then we surprised him with his first movie theater experience to see the second LEGO movie. James said this was his face pretty much the whole time but he loved it.
William, I hope you always know how much I love you. It seems like these 7 years have gone by much too quickly and I wish I could slow down time to savor each and every second. You are becoming such an awesome kid. I love your imagination, creativity, eagerness to learn (in your own style), your observations of the world and inquisitiveness. Never loose your curiosity. I pray for you everyday that you would use your gifts to glorify the Lord. I am your biggest fan. ~Mom
Current favorites: LEGOs, Puppy Dog, bike rides, walks, the park, art, Co-Op days, reading books, iPad time
Food: Oatmeal, pretzels, chips, mac n’cheese with tuna, Italian Wedding Soup, cinnamon applesauce, pizza, cheeseburgers, seaweed, waffles, pancakes, cupcakes, donuts
What do you want to do when you grow up? Be the first rock star on Mars
More favorites from our visit to the LBJ Ranch.
Scenes from the Sauer-Beckmann Farm.
After the farm we drove to the other side of the Pedernales River to visit the Texas White House. The cattle were a big hit with the kids.
It’s funny how much the boys loved driving over the cattleguards. William was excited to walk over them too.
Johnson’s home, the Texas White House.
Taking the oath to become Junior Rangers.
We loved our visit to the ranch and I love experiencing these adventures with my boys. They had a hard time leaving!
On March 1 we joined some homeschool friends in Stonewall near Johnson City to explore the LBJ State Park and Ranch. I think the last time I had visited was back in my own homeschooling days with my siblings and Aunt Virginia. I still remember posing by LBJ’s statue with her, all of us pointing our fingers. I need to see if I can dig up the original print.
Anyway, I enjoyed being able to take the boys out there to see and experience this amazing space of Texas. I don’t remember a whole lot from the previous visit so I was almost seeing it for the first time as well.
We spent most of our time at the Sauer-Beckmann Farm seeing what rural life was like in the early 1900s. I liked how they had the dining room in the breezeway between the main house and the kitchen.
The all important front porch and swing which a few of the boys really enjoyed.
We got to see the sweetest cow, a newly birthed lamb, horses, a large pig, a turkey and some chickens. It’s a living history farm so park rangers are dressed in period clothing tending the farm, eating lunch and taking care of the land.
There is also a herd of bison on the property but they were in a pasture farther away so we didn’t get a close up look unless you count this statue.
Visiting the ranch can fill an entire day with seeing the farm, exploring trails and then driving to the other side of the river to see Johnson’s birthplace, the Texas White House and family cemetery. I have another post coming with a few more photos that I grabbed on my phone.
I always try to get away to my sister’s house in the spring, especially to see the poppies put on their annual show. We made it in time this year despite being sick for a week before we left. It was a lovely break and the boys and I both really enjoyed visiting the San Antonio Botanical Gardens.
These flowers are the product of my sister’s handiwork. She and Matt have been working hard on their property to create a beautiful and natural meadow like setting.Â
I had visited the gardens last year but they have done extensive renovations since then and it’s just gorgeous. The kids really loved the Family Adventure Garden. We are already talking about our next visit.
Easter weekend gave us the opportunity and lovely weather to do a quick stop in an obliging field of bluebonnets for a few photos. Can’t miss out on this Texas tradition.
Elizabeth Hafner 