A Little Catch-up

It is a hot and muggy day here in MN.  We go out to do our errands and then we run back to the comfort of air conditioning.  Who knew Minnesota could be so s.t.i.c.k.y?  Each day as I inwardly grumble about the heat and humidity, I remind myself I'll be wishing for this in a few months.  :)

I have tomatoes which are growing and ripening on my deck.  I actually have enough to make some salsa.  Yum!  It's not that I can't get some at the store anytime I want them, but making some salsa with my own tomatoes will be fun.

Jadyn's swimming lessons are going well.  I am SO excited!  Our girl, who was so afraid to even get her face wet is now beginning to swim.  So very cute.  I will take more pictures of this and post them soon.

We recently took a family vacation to Texas.  We were away for 2 weeks.  We had a great trip.  We were able to spend time with many of our family members.  Some, we had not seen in years.  It was really great to reconnect.
We also went to Sea World and the Riverwalk in San Antonio.  Here are a few pictures from our trip.

Jadyn is playing with 2nd cousins at a family reunion.

Here is Jadyn, at the Riverwalk, in San Antonio.

Our next stop in San Antonio was Sea World.  We had a really great time, and Jadyn was so excited about seeing all of the animals.  It was a fun day!

dolphin visit

The Shark Cove.  I was kind of glad these guys were behind glass!  We also saw rays, pretty fish, and creepy eels.  Eels are just not the cuddly sort.  Ick.  You can see some in the next photo.

Seeing the Shamu show with the Orca whales was my favorite part of the day.  How I love these whales.  What was funny to me is that I had read in the literature about the show, and it said these whales are so majestic, that you may get a tear in your eye when you see them.  I was thinking, "Yeah, right."  It happened to me at the show.  Ha ha.  

  

We rode the Rio Loco ride and got soaked to the skin.  It felt good on such a hot day!

Here's a picture we took when we were visiting the alligators.  I enjoyed Jadyn's reaction when she saw them. She thought they looked scary, so did I!

  

Jadyn and Mom, at the end of the day.  Do we look as tired as we felt?

After San Antonio, we traveled to Lubbock.  This is where most of our family lives.  This is a picture of Jadyn and my mom.  My mom made this quilt for Jadyn.  She makes a quilt for each grandchild.  Jadyn's is #10 that she has made. She puts in tons of hours making these quilts.  

Cooling off in Grandma and Grandpa's yard.  

Here is a picture that I took, standing in my parents' garden.  The area of Texas where I was raised is pretty flat.  You can see for miles.  That is a field of cotton in the far background.  My parents don't farm cotton.  My dad was a police officer in the city.  They just wanted to live in the country and raise us out there.  I'm part city girl and part country girl.  :)

Here is Jadyn with my dad, working a puzzle.  

Here is Jadyn at a family meal with some of her cousins.  One cousin did not want to be in the picture.  :)

While in Lubbock, we saw all of our siblings, parents, and quite a few other family members.  We even celebrated a couple of birthdays.  

Good times, and always a blessing to see our family.