Almost two weeks ago, we were here at 5:30 in the morning:
and then spent 3 1/2 whiny hours here:
And then we were in San Antonio!! Look, it's Brielle!
After a delicioso breakfast (even though it was noon to us), we hopped in the car and headed to Austin to meet Glen and Nicole as they were driving in with their moving truck all the way from Utah!
(I didn't take any pictures of their adorable fancy-schmancy apartment, but that's what would be inserted here if I had)
On the way back to S.A. we saw a sunset like only Texas can do . . . .
The following morning Annie woke up extra early to eat breakfast burritos and torment Harry-dog. :)
Then we had a baby shower for Carolyn, the mother-to-be of the second Ellsworth granddaughter!!
We girls all met up at the Guenther House, a gorgeous old stone restaurant on the River, for a baby shower breakfast.
A few days later, we got into the car again to head to Canyon Lake!
The nine of us shared these two little cabins--so comfortably!
I got in some much-needed girl-talk . . .
And we played so many games!
All of us in the first cabin woke up early the next morning to take a refreshing dip in the lake!
True to form, Annie spent no time needing to warm up to the idea of getting into the water, especially with awesome Uncle Steven at her side.
Then we all got in a boat and headed out on the lake!
The boat brought with it all sorts of fun goodies. Cindy quickly showed us all up by SLALOMING on the water ski!
Then Brant hopped on and did amazing too!
And Glen! WAHOO!!
Then we pulled out the kneeboard. Nicole was the first to jump off the boat and try this one out . . . She did a 360!
Okay. Then I decided, after so much prodding, to try it out myself. So I know that a kneeboard is like the easiest thing to get on and shouldn't be too intimidating.
But I was terrified! Here is a progression of my first-time-ever experience being pulled behind a rather-fast-moving boat.
Yay!!!
So here's what Annie did while we were out on the water all day:
She was so comfy in her little sleeping quarters!
We spent two more days back in San Antone. Annie got to have her nails painted for the first time by GramE:
And then she got to show them off to everyone!
We worked a little bit more around the house before heading off . . . Annie got a few more kisses from Uncle Glen . . .
And here's one last picture in Texas of my little hillbilly baby in her overalls showing off for everyone:
Then we came back to good ol' Pennsylvania!
Instead of unpacking, we hurried and got dressed for a dinner party! But first Annie wanted to have a photo shoot at her favorite spot of late: the changing table and mirror--
At the end she made a little bed and pretended to go to sleep . . .
The table's all set . . .
And the gang's all here! And they brought the food! (Spencer and Heather were especially exciting to see again because they've been gone all summer long!)
oooo steamy Heather!!
They created this incredible shrimp pasta with fresh vegetables in the sauce. This picture totally doesn't do it justice.
Now in the days since we've been home, Brant's been preparing for his first day back to school as a PhD student! Today was his first day. He left in the morning for a full day of work, came home for a short 20 minutes for dinner, then left for a three-hour evening class. That's pretty much the way life will be like for us now for 4 out of the 5 weekdays. But it's a great time that we've been looking forward to, really. Brant and I are both so happy he's going to be in school again. We are a family that enjoys being in education. :)
Today Annie and I started the school year off right by trying to get our house organized, especially the library, so Brant will have an inspiring place to do his schoolwork.
We whiled away some more of the long lonely hours with another changing table photo shoot. This time Annie opted to give herself a sponge bath with baby wipes.
This was the first time, I think, that she's discovered this picture hanging there. She was really excited to see the baby in the mother's arms.
So much so that she knocked the picture out of place trying to touch the baby!
So, yeah, since the school year has started, I guess the summer is pretty much over. I couldn't be more excited! It has been a wonderful season full of so many awesome trips and adventures, just the way I like it! But I'm ready for the heat to go away and to start doing the activities that fall ushers in. The first of which---Annie's birthday!! She turns 2 in almost a week! In the spirit of this momentous occasion, let's now take a quick glimpse back to a changing table photo shoot of yore . . .
(Annie at 2 months)
