Ok, here we go. We had a big summer. Really big. Mexico to Canada and everything in between. Beaches and mountains and deserts and cities and one horse towns. Family and friends and even a couple of black bears. Of course, my intention was to dutifully record all the goings on at the time they were going on... Didn't happen. So I am going to do my best to get caught up, a little at a time.

MEH-HE-CO (PART UNO)

Brian turned 40 this summer. He wanted to celebrate by getting as far away as possible, so he booked a trip to Mexico about 6 months in advance. This is not the way we usually operate, but it was fun having all that time to anticipate our vacation. He wanted to go somewhere where he could do nothing but surf and watch world cup soccer, which sounded good to me. The kids are old enough to where I hoped we could all actually relax a bit. I just wanted to sleep in and read, and the kids wanted to swim and play on the beach. Win for all. It was the first time we had all flown together as a family, and aside from Autry repeatedly trying to run off in the airport (the moving sidewalk was a big hit, she used it to elude capture amazingly well), it went very well.

We got to see Lydia at the airport, she was flying to Norway for Rose's graduation at the same time. We flew from Austin to Houston to Puerto Vallarte, Mexico. As soon as we arrived the kids started saying "Hola!" to everyone they saw. After we got the luggage we crossed the street to catch a bus to Punta Mita. The bus ride was CRAZY. Take everything you imagine about riding a bus in Mexico and add three little kids and about 10 pieces of luggage and a driver who was probably insane. Lots of bouncing and sweating and brake slamming. The kids thought it was fabulous. I kind of did too, it was so fun to be out in the world like that with our little family. Punta Mita was at the end of the road, about an hour north of Puerto Vallarte. It had one street for tourists along the beach with some condos, hotels, and about 10 restaurants, all facing the water. The rest of the town was pretty typical small Mexican town, little kids running around selling Chiclets and lots of stray dogs. It was a very quiet little town and we felt safe, even though Mexico in general is not the safest place right now. Our condos were gated with a 24hr guard. It did make me a little nervous that there was an army post with heavily armed soldiers in the main street. Brian told me later that there had been some sort of an "incident" in a town nearby while we were there. In general the town was very quiet, the few tourists that were there were mostly Mexican families. A lot of times we would have the entire restaurant to ourselves. They filled up a little bit during soccer games, but were never crowded. Our condo was really nice, two bedrooms/bathrooms, nice big living room, kitchen, and big, private patio. It was nicely decorated and comfy. Only problem was that our AC never really worked very well. They were working on it when we got there, and even though they thought it was fixed, it never shut off and never really seemed to cool things off as well as it should. The condos had a nice pool with a hot tub. The kids were super excited to be able to swim in the hot tub, as the one at the Dunes in Port Aransas is "NO KIDS ALLOWED". We were a block off the beach and sat on top of a little cliff, so that we overlooked the restaurants and the ocean beyond them. To get to the beach we walked out of our condos, turned left down a steep hill, and then walked through (or between) the restaurants.
*Having some issues with pulling photos up... I'll post them when I figure it out.

Tidbits

Sierra and Autry are discussing names for their future children. Some of Autry's are - Alexis, Perfume, Melody. Sierra's - Apollo, Cedric, Celine. I ask Luke if he knows what his kids will be named, and he replies, "I don't know what their names will be, I'll have to argue with my wife about it for a while."

Autry wants me to spoon-feed her cereal. Exasperated, I ask her if I will still be doing this when she's in college. She chuckles loudly, and says, "Mooom. I'm not ever going to college." Sigh.

Autry likes to tell us that we are "breaking her feelings."

Luke gets worked up when Autry starts using what he calls "princess language." Phrases like, "dream come true" make him run, screaming, from the room. This is used to her advantage.

Dat wat.

One of my favorite things that Autry says: "It's just the problem is just that I'm thirsty/hungry/scared/not tired/to tired/insane to stay in bed. Dat what." The "dat what" kills me. Although, it is really only cute the first time, by the tenth, not so much.

The Ballerina and the Bathrobe

Random Funnies

I just heard Luke ask Autry to hand him something in the bedroom.
"Luke. I am NOT a waitress."

The other day Luke was telling me all about this VERY HANDSOME character in his universe. He was going on and on about how handsome he is and how all the girls want to marry him. Even more handsome than you, I asked? He was quiet for a moment. "Of course not. But I'm already married. All the girls gave up."

I can't imagine where they pick these things up...

Autry and I were driving through downtown to get to her ballet lesson.
Mom.
Yes?
You should never bite houses, ok?
Ok.
Because if you bite houses all your teeth might fall out.
Ok.

Autry to Luke: "Luke, you are a delicate hero."

My big girl

Tonight Sierra had gymnastics, and we realized after we got there that it was parent watching day. Brian was home with Luke and Autry, but I watched from the track that circles above the gym floor. Having a solid hour alone just to watch that girl was such a treat. She is suddenly so beautiful and grown up. I loved watching her little mannerisms, hand movements and hops that I am so familiar with. She kept shyly looking up at me the whole time to make sure I was watching. I was. After gymnastics she was really excited and chattered away. It was so much fun, it is usually hard to have a conversation because she is ALWAYS reading. ALWAYS. She gets really antsy if she doesn't have a book with her, like an addict worried about where they will get their next fix. Any time she chooses to take a break from reading and interact is exciting. Now that she has her own bedroom (after sharing with Luke and then both kids for the last three years) I see even less of her. She shuts the door and listens to music, keeps everything extremely tidy, puts away her own laundry basket, gets up in the morning on her own. She has also been much more helpful and cheerful in general lately. She is so funny and clever and geeky in such a terrific way. I think a lot about her as an adult, it's not to hard to imagine, Brian calls her and her friend Mia the little old ladies. They love that. But it's true, she has been an old soul from the moment she was born. Much more intense and serious than either of her siblings. Although she definitely can get worked up, her affection is much more subdued. She will not throw herself at you, like Autry, or talk your ear off, like Luke. So those moments when I have her all to myself are just golden.

In the last couple of months Autry has:

1. Fallen flat on her face in the living room and knocked her two front teeth out of place. At least they are baby teeth, but they are now grey and will remain that way until they fall out, which, if she's anything like the rest of us will probably happen when she is 16.

2. Fallen off the playhouse ladder. Thank God she didn't break anything, but she did manage some pretty good scrapes.

3. Caught her right index finger in a falling hammock, resulting in a rush to the ER, four stitches, and a month of really dramatic and annoying bandage changes. The "dissolvable" stitches she supposedly has are not "dissolving" so the tip of her finger looks likes someone tied it on, even though the wound has healed. Her fingernail is also a lovely shade of black.

4. Fallen flat on her face off of Sierra's bed during prayers and busted her bottom lip wide open.

Also, did you know that it has been proven that red heads have a lower pain tolerance than the general population? Really, there are studies. They require more anesthesia during surgery and react very strongly to pain. If anyone doubts this, please, spend a day with Autry. She WILL hurt herself in some way, and she WILL FREAK OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!! She fell off her trike and refused to straighten her arm for hours. I was really starting to worry until Nikki and I made her reach for a piece of chocolate. As soon as she realized she had to stretch for the candy she was healed!