Who can say if I've been changed for the better...but.....

I have been changed for good.

Wicked!

 

I'm so grateful that our wonderful friends Toby and Amy and Jen and Paul went to see Wicked with us when it was playing in Houston this summer. Without getting too sappy and sentimental, I know that their friendship has made me a better person and I'm so grateful for them. None of them had ever seen Wicked, so it was really fun to see their reactions. Especially since it's one of my very favorite musicals.

The production was really well done - probably the best cast since we saw it in Chicago. I haven't ever loved Fiyero's character before, but he was one of my favorites this time.

After the show, we all came back to the house and Travis grilled steaks and fingerling potatoes. It was better than any 5 star steakhouse meal.

All in all, it was a good day - a good show, good food, and best of all, good friends.

The Great Crawfish Boil of 2013

 The Bounds and the Boyers hosted a fun crawfish boil this year. (To get a taste of what crawfish boils are usually like, see THIS post. This time, everybody brought salads and stuff to share, so there was a bit more variety. Whew!)

Kate LOVED the whole experience. She thought it was hilarious to poke the bag of live crawfish and see them wiggle and snap.

She was eating crawfish as fast as Travis could shell it. And when he wasn't fast enough, she started sucking on the discarded heads. Everyone said they were pretty spicy, but it didn't seem to bother her.

Jared liked holding and playing with the live ones, but he didn't even want to taste the cooked ones.

It was a beautiful day and we had a wonderful time enjoying the sunshine with friends.

Who's Ready for Lunch at Five Guys?

Not me. At least not yet. But I think its coming. Soon.

Turns out, I'm pregnant. 10 weeks today. Due February 12. I got to see the baby today, via ultrasound. Its a wiggly little thing. Everything looks healthy and normal.

So, what does this have to do with Five Guys? When I was pregnant with Kate, I craved their burgers. It was almost embarrassing how much I craved them. I would have eaten them for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I thought that this was just something I craved with Kate, but Travis reminded me that I craved burgers with both Megan and Jared as well (I craved Burger King of all places. Ewwwwwwww!). Not with the same intensity, but craved them still the same. Apparently my veggie-loving-self wants red meat when I'm expecting. (Maybe that's why all of my kids love steak as soon as they can chew it - it must be Travis's influence!)

So although I'm not ready to head out to get burgers for lunch just yet, get ready. I'm sure I'll be bugging y'all about going with me soon.

Dinner at P. F. Chang's

If anyone asks, Travis is a nicer person than I am. He suggested that we all (kids included) go out to dinner at P. F. Chang's. I was all for leaving the kids at home, with a babysitter, a box of Mac and Cheese and some semi-frozen chicken nuggets, but he convinced me that it would be fun to take them. And he was right. (Did I just write that? It's a good think he doesn't read my blog!) Kate fell asleep and Megan and Jared were really well behaved. It's really fun to get to go places with the kids and have it be an enjoyable experience.

Megan's Birthday - Post #1

On Megan's actual birthday, we were too busy with the baptism to celebrate much, so we had her birthday dinner (broccoli and cheese stuffed chicken and chocolate cake) on Sunday. She and Travis had found a recipe that called for 8 sticks of butter (that's 2 lbs!!!!!) between the cake and the frosting. Um, no. There is unhealthy (which I'm okay with in small amounts) and then there is just plain ridiculous. The cake they ended up making was plenty yummy and decedent.

 We will be having her friend party next week, so I'm sure there will be a post about that later

Swimming and a BBQ

After the baptism, we went to the Boyers for a BBQ and some swimming. The kids had a wonderful time and it was fun to just hang out and relax and enjoy all of the company.

Travis, doing what he does best:

Kate and Me:

Kate and Grandma Suzanne:

The evening was gorgeous, the sunset was perfect, the water was warm, the food was good. Does life get any better?

Sweet Potatoe Couture

Katelyn is a little Foodie.

How could she be otherwise, with Travis for a dad? He started feeding her sweet potatoes and oatmeal, and she LOVES it!