Summer Road Trip

Josh, Jack, and I are just wrapping up our first summer road trip as a family. First we headed to San Angelo, then Abilene, and then down to the ranch in Junction. We left last Friday and Jack did surprisingly well in the car for 8 hours. It helped that I kept my expectation really low from the beginning and imagined making many stops. But he was such a champ. We made a little stop in Austin to grab a bit to eat and allow the little man to wiggle awhile. We made it all the way to West Texas by nights end.

My mom has been dying to show off her new grandson in the grand old town of San Angelo, so we made this our first stop. She even planned a little coming out party to introduce him to the town. On the day of the party I spend the day making sure Jack was well rested and happy for the party. Well, we got the little man dressed and prepped... let's just say he wasn't his normal happy self. He spit up so much we had to change his outfit and he made his pout face more than a few times. But everyone was very kind and knew what to expect from a baby his age. It was nice to have so many people admiring little Jack. Apparently he is super cute?? :)

Next we headed to Abliene to visit Josh's grandmother and Uncle Steve. Grammy loved getting a visit from her first great grandson. Jack also loved touring Uncle Steve's wood shop where he was the first to ride Steve's soon-to-be master piece. He hopes to finish the horse sometime in the near future... perhaps before Jack turns 6? Or perhaps 8. Grammy made us a great meal including pizza and cheesy potatoes. She even had a cake made at a local bakery to celebrate Josh and I's upcoming three year anniversary. We had a wonderful visit and even got to chat with Josh's dad on Skype. To see more pictures from Abilene click here.

Next stop? The ranch! We had been looking forward to spending some quality time together as a family down at the ranch. My sister and her Josh were also meeting us there. Oh, and let's not forgot Dodger.... he tagged along too. The ranch house has recently been updated so I enjoyed seeing all the improvements.  To see more pictures of the ranch and ranch house click here.

Once we had all of Jack's stuff unloaded (it filled the back of the car to the top) we were ready to have some fun. The week included kayaking, cheese dip, board games, cheese dip, picture taking, cheese dip, star gazing, cheese dip, swimming, cheese dip, ranch driving, cheese dip, and more kayaking. Thanks to Jack's wonderful Gigi Josh and I were able to spend some time together and enjoy many ranch activities. We were even able to take a kayaking day trip. We had a great time despite some minor setbacks, including low water (means dragging your kayak), sinking kayaks, tree branches, and lack of hydration.

On Friday night it was Josh and I's three year anniversary. It had already been a great day. We both said it was the best anniversary yet- mainly because we have Jack now! But little did I know the day would get even better. After dinner Josh and I had already planned to do a little star gazing. You forget about the stars when you're city living. Josh and his sneakiness somehow put together a cooler full of champagne, chocolate covered strawberries, bananas, and pineapple during the day. We went down to the dock, listened to the springs, gazed at the stars, and talked about how lucky we are. :)

Poor Jack also endured many, many mini photos shoots. We just can't help it... the boy is just too cute. Here were some of our favorites.

We had a wonderful time at the ranch.