Under the stars!

What a fun weekend we had!  Our mini vacay to the mountains was one of those spur of the moment, last minute trips that turned out to be way more fun than anything we could have planned!  Since Dusty's fishing trip fell through, we decided to head up to Balch Park with Chuck and "the other Dusty" and their families.  We scored an RV from a friend at the last minute too.  (The only way you would have caught me sleeping up there with Lila was going to be in an RV!)  Addy was so excited...and so was Duke!

 We got up there late afternoon on Friday and set up camp.  The kids wasted no time getting dirty.  Addy's name this weekend became "the dirty one".  It was clear she wasn't afraid of the dirt because it was ALWAYS all over her...even if I had just wiped her down.  I gave up on keeping her face clean about 2 hours into the trip.  Lol.  Our good friends, the Yorbas, came up Friday evening to roast some marshmallows and let the girls play.  (One of the pluses about living here is that we are only a 45 min drive to the campsite at 7000 ft elevation, so it makes it very easy to drive up and hang out for the evening/ afternoon.)

We fished on Saturday.  The ponds were all super crowded so we didn't catch much, but it sure was peaceful.  The kids, once again, had a blast at the pond.

Lila was a trooper the entire trip; like she was born to camp!  She was so go with the flow the whole time.

The trip turned a little "Griswald" on the way home though!  About 20 minutes into our already slow drive down the hill, a Tahoe coming the other direction took a corner too fast and pinched us against the mountain popping one of the trailer's tires and damaging the rim.  Of course, the spare was not with us.  Oops!  To make matters worse, the cell service is spotty at best.  After calling friends to see if they could come up with a spare and attempting to use Dusty's truck's spare instead, Dusty decided to try the trip down with only three trailer tires.  It worked!  We crawled down the hill and finally made it home 3 hours after we left the campsite!

We definately had a great time and are so glad to have had the RV.  Dusty was so happy to be up there for his birthday where the biggest worry was what kind of beer should he drink!  Duke also was a trooper.  He hasn't moved off the couch since we got back last night.  Poor guy is getting old.  It was a great time and really felt like a little vacation.  We can't wait to do it again!

Two Months.

As of last Friday, Lila is 2 months old!  Time is flying by!!

She weighs 12lbs 12oz.

She's 23in long.

She is still on the boob and is a great eater. Dusty successfully gave her her very first bottle last night with Addy's help! Now I feel confident in going out for an evening and sending her to daycare. 

She smiles like crazy.

And her and her big sissy are IN LOVE with each other!

Happy 4th!!

Our 4th of July celebrating was spread over two days this year.  On the actual 4th, Dusty had to work, so the girls and I (don't forget Duke!) started the day off with cuddles and cartoons!

We spent the evening just layin' low at the house and enjoying the AC in this record heat wave! We had chili dogs, rotel dip, and cookies to celebrate.  And our firework watching was done on the tv. With as much as Dusty has been working and how hot it has been, he wasn't interested in doing much else!

The next day started with Addy's last swim lesson of the summer!  It was fun day and our girl braved the giant slide!

Once Dusty got home from work we headed to a 4th of July party at our friends' house where there was good food, fun, and swimming!! Eight adults, eight GIRLS under the age of 6, and lots of laughter!  

So much fun!!

Grandma & PopPop's Visit!

We had been looking forward to it since the holidays...my parents' trip out here.  It seemed like they would never get here!  Once they did, it felt like they were here and gone in the blink of an eye.  We had so much fun with them...so much so, they already booked their next trip back before they even left last week!  Four more months!!

Addy was super excited the day they got here.  (Most of y'all probably saw the daily countdown on Facebook!)  Honestly, we spent most the week just hanging out at the house spending time together.  Addy and Grandma baked cookies...which were so yummy that when we ran out, Dusty volunteered to make more!  The guys and Addy went fishing, drove up the hill so my Dad could take some pictures.  We went out to eat a couple of times, but mainly just laid low.  It was so nice.  We celebrated Father's Day, Addy's 4th birthday, and Lila's first smile!  

Just hanging out...

Cookie Time!

The FIRST "real" smile!!!

The ladies...

For Father's Day, we watched NASCAR and went out to dinner.  (Quite the perfect day for my hubby!)

For Addy's actual birthday, we went to the Fresno Zoo.  Addy has only been to the zoo (Dallas) once when she was 2...and she had no recollection.  Lol.  She was OVER THE TOP excited!!!  We really lucked out with the weather too....stayed in the 80s all day!

Feeding the giraffes with PopPop

Feeding the stingrays

Mom playing with Dad's camera...lol

Addy had a blast at her birthday party.  Her sweet little friends all came to celebrate with her!  She, of course, was spoiled with presents, cupcakes, and princess decor!  

We truly did have a great time while they were here and it seemed like it was over before we knew it.  The day they left was so hard...my Mom and I were both sobbing most of the day leading up to their departure.  Lol.  The goodbyes never get any easier.  I never ever thought I would live this far from home.  I've had people say to me from time to time, "I don't know how you do it...live so far from everything you've ever known."  I just do.  I'm still homesick.  I still miss my family like crazy.  And I still have days where I wish I were in Texas.  But this is where I am supposed to be right now; I believe that in my gut.  The thing is that no matter where we live, Texas or California, one of us will always be sacrificing something.  Marriage is a compromise, right?!  We certainly didn't plan to be where we are now, nor could we have predicted it.  Our path led us here...who knows where it will lead in the future.  I'm just happy I have the amazing support and love of my mom and dad...don't know where I'd be without it.  They will probably never tell me how hard it is for them that we are so far away, but I can imagine.  The thought of either of my girls growing up and being more than a few minutes drive away rips my heart out.  I am so lucky.  They are THE best parents.  I really did win the lottery.

Until next time...