World Series Baby!!

Saturday night we had the opportunity of a lifetime!  We went to the World Series in Arlington, TX.  The Rangers were taking on the Giants in Game 3 of the 2010 Fall Classic.  It was an amazing experience and I hope we get to go again sometime.  Thanks, Mom, for the tickets.  We really appreciate it.  We were truly amazed at how well the girls did at the game.  The noise and the crowds didn't seem to affect them very much. They behaved perfectly through about 5 innings, then the ice cream bought us some more time.  We left our seats sometime in the 6th-7th but wandered the ballpark a little.  I had never been out in the plaza in center field so that was pretty cool.  We were there until the bottom of the 7th and caught updates at all the tailgating parties on our way to the car.  Our route into and out of the Ballpark were amazingly empty.  We had ZERO traffic either way and probably only had to walk .25-.50 mile from where we parked. The weather was fantastic, the whole experience just couldn't have been better.  Oh and I have to admit, I teared up a little when Nolan Ryan came out to throw the first pitch to Pudge Rodriguez.  I grew up watching Pudge so that was pretty cool.  Yes, I cry over baseball.  Don't judge.

Of course, tonight at Game 4, George HW Bush and George W Bush were there.  That would have been cool to see.  And I like Kelly Clarkson but wouldn't have minded Lyle Lovett. 

Moo napped in the car on the way there.  This was probably the best thing that could have happened.

 Don't you LOVE it when a random stranger offers to take your pic!!!

She did a pretty good job! 

Kelly Clarkson sang the National Anthem.

The F-16 fly over did not scare the girls at all!

IT'S TIME!!

Ummm ... excuse me girls.  We're at the World Series. 

It's not time to play with cars.

She just wouldn't smile for the camera.

She did pretty well with all the noise and fireworks though.

She is waving her spoon around like everyone is waving their towels.

Pay no attention to the ice cream she's flinging around.

BOOMSTICK!

This was after Josh Hamilton's solo shot.

Looks like she's calling the home run but she's really pointing at the fireworks.

Yes, it's dark and she still has on her shades.

Running down the ramp.

We walked up and up and up and up then had to walk down and down and down and down.

Walking back to the car.

The girls were holding hands.

Too CUTE!



Thank you Texas Rangers for the World Series and the Game 3 WIN.  We love you!

Pumpkins

We visited the pumpkins last week and the girls had a blast.  The Arboretum does a great job with their pumpkin patch and on Mondays they have extra activities for the little ones.  We went with some friends and met some of our play group out there though chasing two toddlers in separate directions doesn't really leave much time for grown-ups and conversation. 

Megan was playing king Queen of the Hay Bales.  She climbed to the top and threw all the pumpkins down. She loved watching them roll and bounce.  Hope we didn't smash too many.

After they finished their lunch, they crawled around in this tree.  I think they were chasing the birds that were up in the tree.  They were having so much fun!

The petting zoo had brushes and Moo had a great time brushing the goats.

The kid-friendly hay bale maze.

Going in opposite directions.

No surprise there.

Blog slacker

I just don't have it in me to post anymore.  Moo is giving up her nap (much to my dismay) and it almost seems like this Kids Day Out school thing gives me less free time.  I think I just run around so much on the days they're in school that I don't take any time to relax.  I'm going to try to get back into the blogging rhythm but, let's be honest, don't expect much.

Especially now while the TEXAS RANGERS are kicking ASS in the baseball playoffs. Yes, I am an admitted Yankee Hater and it sure has been a GREAT ALCS, so far. 

GO RANGERS!!

At the very beginning of the season I said I was going shopping for a Texas Rangers sweatshirt because I was going to need it in October.  Ummm ... I never bought it and I think I might actually need it!!  We have already purchased tickets to Game 3 of the World Series.  So please, Rangers, beat the Yankees one more time so I can actually go to a WORLD SERIES game.  Please?  Do what the Astros couldn't do for me in 2005.  Thanks in advance.  Your loyal fan. 

um ... in other sports news ...
the Cowboys suck. 
My fantasy team sucks. 
The Aggies almost suck.

So thanks again, Rangers.  I appreciate it.

State Fair of Texas

I am finally getting to the post about our recent trip to the Fair.  It is a fun time of year and our trip has become an annual adventure.  I'm already looking forward to going next fall.  The girls had a lot of fun!!  I was worried about Megan in the crowds because she doesn't like sitting in the stroller anymore but it wasn't too crowded early in the day and when it got crowded later, she was tired enough to hitch a ride. 

We started in the Midway.  It was a perfect time to be there.  No crowds.  No line at the carousel.  They had a little greenhouse area (air conditioned too) where they set up some model trains.  Of course we had to stop in there.  The girls LOVED it.  Megan didn't want to leave.  Tantrum #1.

This booth had Dora basketballs so James tried to be the hero.

His shooting game is a little rusty ... but we didn't leave empty handed.

This was the closest thing to a family pic we could get. We're a circus.

Megan and Emily both wanted to stay at the fountains.

Tantrum #2.

What a pretty little girl!

Moo hitched a ride while Em caught some zzzzzzz's.

We decided to check out the dog show.  I wanted to see this last year but we didn't ever stop by.  We thought the girls would enjoy it and it would be a nice chance to sit for a while.  We even had some cotton candy!!!  wrong.  Moo had to go potty.  Em wanted to run amok.  The cotton candy was a nightmare, especially since we had to park the stroller and that's where we left the wipes.

Tantrum #3.

See the flowing snot from the tantrum?

The smile is a result of the cotton candy.

Back on track and cooking with gas.  The girls just love animals.  Petting zoos are always a hit and the one at the Fair is second to none.  They got to feed and pet a ton of different animals.  It was crowded but the girls didn't seem to mind as they ran from one place to the next.  I swear, I might have to buy one of those leashes ...

We couldn't convince Megan to do any of the rides on our first trek through the Midway (when there were no lines) but on our way out she decided she was brave enough.  This is the one she insisted on.  The little dragon roller coaster.  It's a little faster and jerkier than I expected but it was fun.  She didn't cry and even kept her smile for most of the ride.  She was sure in a hurry to get off when it stopped though.

We went on the silly little train next.  It just went in circles and there were noisy, flashing buttons for the little ones to push.  She REALLY enjoyed this ride.  The bad thing about the rides:  I had to pay to ride.  Made it a LOT more expensive.  But still worth it.  So. Much. Fun!

That was our last stop along the way.  We used every last coupon (all rides and food/drinks use coupons, not cash) this year.  We had some leftover from last year and we could have used them this year if I could locate them.  Maybe some year we'll get to use that $2 from 2009.  As for the Fair food, we didn't try much out of the ordinary.  They do contests every year for new fried masterpieces and this year's winners were Fried Frito Pie and Fried Beer.  We didn't try either.  They also had fried margaritas (made with funnel cake batter) but we passed on that too!  I did have some tornado taters - long thin spiral cut potatoes fried crispy and greasy.  Kind of a cross between french fries and potato chips.  Fantastic.  We also experienced some nachos, Fletcher's Corny Dogs, and Polish Sausage on a stick.  The girls shared some Dippin' Dots (which really is just gross).  I think that was all we had.  Next year ... I'm going for the deep fried butter. Yes, that's really a menu item.  Don't judge. 

First Day of School Pics

Yeah yeah so it's been a few weeks. Sue me.  :)  I finally got some time at the computer. We've been really busy lately. The girls are still not huge fans of going to school.  Em starts to cry before we get in her classroom, which upsets Megan.  Moo's teachers say she's talking more and smiling a little, which she hadn't been doing at all, poor girl.  She still doesn't want me to leave her but I think she settles down a little faster now.  I can't wait for the day that they go in without a peep - I'd be delighted if they would tell me to leave - but I think I'll be waiting for a while.  I have noticed some differences in them though.  We went to the mall last week and both of them just took off to play, even though it was crowded.  Usually they hang out with me and don't want to leave my side so that was huge!!  I saw Em walk up to some girl with a heart on her shirt and say, "Heart!" while poking the poor little girl in the chest.  Megan didn't totally freeze when other kids got too close so I know school is helping them.  I just wish I didn't feel like I'm leaving them to the wolves every Tuesday and Thursday. 

Megan's class is the Bees.  The teachers made shirts for everyone to wear on the first day.  Megan loves Bees so it worked out great!

If you don't know Megan, this is how she sucks her fingers. It's her version of thumb sucking or pacifiers.  We like to call it the "suck and cover".  She's been doing this since she was about 4-5 months old. It's especially cute when she's smiling behind her arm, which she's doing in this pic.

Em wouldn't stand still for a pic but I like this one that shows how big her bag and nap mat are next to her.

Walking past the playground. All smiles! They have no idea I'm going to leave them there for the day.



 The teachers had PlayDoh out for Megan's class.

It didn't distract her from the fact that we left.

Em's classroom.  I think she was excited she got to play without Megan taking stuff away!

At least she was comfortable enough with her surroundings to take a nap.

This is how she was when I arrived to pick them up.

It took a while for me to wake her up too!

Em eating a celebratory First Day of School Taco!