Gifts for Grams

Our Little Princesses have been visiting regularly for the past few months. It's such a blessing that they're only two hours away.

Princess E is four years old now and she regularly furnishes beautiful artwork for our refrigerator. Interestingly, she usually makes sure it is addressed to Granddad. It's been a pretty steady stream for a couple of years now and is always supplemented with new pieces when they visit.

When they were here two weeks ago, Princess E created a beautiful picture and presented it to me. I was delighted and went straight to the kitchen and put it on my refrigerator.

I always have paper, crayons, colored pencils, and a variety of other crafty supplies available. She used some stick on jewels that I got on sale after Christmas to enhance her work. She explained that this is a beautiful girl, and that the big jewels are the girl's hair and the small ones are the stars in the sky. I absolutely love it and love that she can explain her work.

The girls also left another lovely gift for us. This is what the door in my laundry room looked like after they left.

Here is what the entire door looks like. The top half of the door is painted with chalkboard paint. It's where I write Granddad's list of things to do. Fortunately, the girls did all their work on this door with chalk so I can just erase it. I would not have been nearly so happy if it had been crayons.

When I asked them about it, Princess E tried to tell me that Princess J did the drawing on the red part of the door. The problem with that is that Princess J is only two. If she did it, she's quite a prodigy. Don't you think? 

Weekend at Grams

This weekend we had a visit from all the kids and grands with the exception of our daughter-in-law, Marie. They came to celebrate a belated Father's Day with Granddad and a belated birthday for me. Marie enjoyed a girls weekend with some of her college friends.

On Friday evening we went to Doc's Seafood and Steaks on the Intercoastal Waterway for dinner.  It has become one of my favorite places. The food is excellent, the atmosphere is laid back, there is live music, and just look at the view. They also have call ahead seating so we only had to wait about half an hour for a table for nine. This is a tourist town in the summer, 30 minutes is a very short wait. Fair warning, if you go, be aware that this is dining on the deck. The air is cooled by the gulf breezes, not air conditioning.

In addition to my mother-in-law we were joined by Granddad's sister, Laurie, which was a real treat. She has a way with kids. They all love Aunt LaLa. And, since it's summertime, Travis' daughter, Madi, is here from Chicago. Nick got caught in Houston's Friday afternoon traffic, so he didn't get here in time for dinner.

On Saturday, we visited my niece Camey, whom you may remember from this post a couple of weeks ago. She and her husband Jason welcomed their first baby, Sway, on June 22nd. (I plan to call her Vicki Junior since she was born on my birthday.) Both of Our Little Princesses were so excited to meet their new cousin. They couldn't believe how tiny she was. Princess E actually got to hold her, with a little help from Grams. All the rest of the day, Princess J kept asking "Where baby Sway?" then she would say, "Baby Sway night-night."

Princess E would like you to meet Baby Sway.

Here are Baby Sway's vital statistics. She arrived on Saturday, June 22, 2013. She weighed in at 6 lbs. 5 ozs. and is 19 inches long. Mother and baby are doing great. And, suffice it to say, Grandpa Gary and Grandma Nancy are over the moon to have their first grandchild.

Speaking of Gary, we also visited him on Saturday. He had hip replacement surgery on Monday. He's being released from the the hospital today.

The main purpose for the trip this weekend was to take Granddad fishing for Father's Day. So on Saturday evening, they went fishing while I kept the princesses. Saturday was a hot day in South Texas. We're talking seriously hot. Officially, the high temperature was 107 degrees, an all-time high for June. Here is the thermometer in Nick's truck. Katy observed that every summer we come up with a new way to describe the heat in South Texas. The most common has been to say that "we live on the face of the sun." On Saturday, we were making comparisons to "the fires of hell." I'm just saying, it was really hot.

When they headed out to the island, I came home with the Princesses. Granddad had set up the wading pool in the front yard, so the girls cooled off while I sat nearby in a lawn chair and enjoyed a glass of ice water. I wanted you to see the pull-over swim towels I made for the girls. They're perfect for the beach or the pool. The princesses also like to use them at bath time. They were very simple to make. Here is a link to the tutorial on Ucreate which I found on Pinterest. It was very simple to make and I think they're going to get a lot of use.

After a dinner of peanut butter, apple, and honey sandwiches, we watched Ice Age 4: Continental Drift. Then I tucked the girls into bed and read until the fishermen returned around 1 a.m. They said they had a good time, but didn't catch anything worth keeping.

On Sunday morning, we picked up Mama Ruthie and went to her favorite taqueria for breakfast. As you can see, some of us were happier to be there than others.

After Saturday was so hot, we had overnight thunderstorms Saturday night. Sunday was overcast and delightfully cool. There were a few puddles of standing water which led to my favorite photo of the weekend.

I love photos that have these two together. The contrast in size is always charming to me. Granddad is 6'5" tall. Princess J is tiny by comparison, although she is tall for her age. I think Katy took this photo.

Needless to say, it was a wonderful weekend.