Ready for the Holiday Weekend

For three years now, we've visited the Arboretum cows during the week leading up to Labor Day. I hadn't intended to make it a tradition, but I suppose it is now. It's a fun little outing and we weren't the only family with the same idea this morning. The buddies especially love the fountains but are always miffed that I don't let them splash in them. There are signs posted everywhere asking patrons not to, or I might. Today, we tossed pennies and made wishes. Ben wished to be able to run up the stairs some more. And then he did. Ace, as always, wished for ice cream. He's a kid after my own heart.

Hot Sauce Festival

We took the kids downtown today, to The Austin Chronicle Hot Sauce Festival. I love a good festival. I love the music, the food, and I especially love a good theme - and hot sauce is a good theme!. We sampled a few great salsas - Ace was not pleased by the habanero hot sauce, but Ben said he liked it.

The highlight for our boys was the chance to have their faces painted. They've been asking since our trip to the Philly Zoo earlier this summer. Both chose Elmo today, although I tried to persuade them towards other choices. You can never have too many Elmo's, according to our face-painter.

After a short while, the tasting lines grew a little long for the buddies, so we left the park, grabbed a quick lunch with our friends, and headed home.

Bum...Bum...Ba...Bum...Bum...Bum...Bum

This evening, we attended a Beijing Olympics Party. Our hosts made delicious Chinese dumplings and had several Chinese sodas for us to sample. The buddies were so excited to eat dumplings, since their favorite tv character enjoys them. They were delicious! And Ben, who thinks he speaks Mandarin, said, "Xie-Xie, Miss Elaine" after slurping his down.

Steve and I volunteered to coordinate games for the kids and we got started right after dinner. Thunderstorms thwarted our backyard plans, so our friends pushed back their furniture and we held our meet indoors. The kids marched in to the Olympic Theme Song during opening ceremonies and then we began our games with a 100 meter dash. After a couple of false starts by a few of the 8 three year olds present, we finally got it right. Next up was the hop-ball race, followed by the balance beam. Then, each family chose a song for the floor exercises. Since none of the kids could resist dancing, the floor exercise event turned into one big free for all of giggling pre-schoolers. Our Summer Olympics completed with a water balloon shot put competition on the back porch. Then, we held an awards ceremony where each of our Olympians earned a gold medal. Everyone stood so proudly and so seriously during their turns on the podium.

Barton Creek Greenbelt

The buddies and I joined some friends at Austin's Barton Creek Greenbelt for some outdoor fun this morning. The greenbelt is a beautiful stretch of land, just minutes from downtown, yet a world away from the business of the city.



We hiked along the long, winding, wooded trails and admired the views. I don't think this is an outing we'll tackle again without a higher adult to kid ratio, since some of the cliffs along the trail were pretty treacherous, but it certainly was beautiful. And the buddies loved talking to all the friendly dogs we met, who were out for morning walks with their owners.



The trail ends at a natural spring, but sadly for us, after a long, dry summer, we only found a dry creek bed. That didn't stop the buddies and their friends from having fun. They loved climbing on all the rocks and even slid down a few of the ones worn smooth by years of running water.

View all of our pictures here.

For Sale: Twin Boys

Price: $917.96 (or one 42" flat screen LCD 1080p HDTV)

Thanks to their antics over the weekend, we have a box large enough to ship them. We'll even throw in two plastic baseball bats* for free.

*Not recommended for indoor use.

Yesterday's Project

We are laying low because Ace's "nose is sick". So, yesterday morning, I convinced Steve to temporarily lift my ban on power tool usage (put in place years ago for a very good reason). While the buddies played in the yard, I sanded, scrubbed, and stained an old table in need of some serious TLC. It turned out great! And Ace and Ben are excited to have a new place for their tea parties.

Before:

After:

Music at Ruta Maya

This morning, we checked out Ruta Maya's Free Sunday Family Kid Show, a fun musical event for the whole family. Ruta Maya is a cool little coffee house that serves only organic, fair-trade coffee from the Americas. And they offer lots of entertainment to boot!

Today, all four of us enjoyed music by the Sarah Dinan Band. She regularly told the little folks in the audience that it was okay to sing along, dance along, clap their hands, or just sit - whatever made them feel comfortable (and as long as the adults with them were okay with it). That is our kind of show! Ace danced so hard during a Celtic song that one of his crocs went tumbling over the balcony. By the time I made it down the steps to retrieve it, some kind folks had already tossed it back up. Ben danced along for a few songs but then found the many toys scattered about the place way more interesting. It was a fun outing that we'll definitely have to repeat.

Water Fun

Just some cute pics of the kids from the past few days. We love summer!