Sweetberry Farms

Alex and Grandma went strawberry picking today just outside of Marble Falls.  I think Alex actually ate more than he picked.  We got to see a two week old donkey and feed the goats.  Alex got a little scared by the goats when they stuck their heads through the fence to grab the food, he eventually warmed up and was feeding them on his own.  He much preferred to more subdued donkey.  

 

At bedtime tonight he clearly said "baby" while reading Are You My Mother and pointed at the baby bird.  On a sadder note I think our baby squirrels have moved out.  We haven't had a sighting in almost two days. 

Curly Moe

It is very clear where Alex gets his hair from.

Feeding the Chickens

The library held a field trip to the kinder music farm today and Alex got to feed the chickens they had there.  The chickens were so tame that you could actually feed them right from your hands.  Alex ended up chasing them around the whole farm, he liked the music and dancing but the highlight was definitely the chickens.  Bok Bok.

How'd You Like Them Apples

This is the smile you get when you say "smile".

Our Awesome Playgroup

This is our wonderful playgroup The Social Butterflies.

Easter in Georgetown

We were so lucky to have Grandma Sandy and Stephanie visit us for Easter this year.  While they were here we took a day trip to the Waco Zoo.  This zoo was fantastic, so clean, big, kid friendly with very happy animals.  Alex loved it although I think he was a little shocked at first.  We also took them down to Zilker park to the train.  Grandma and Alex played a lot on the playground together.  We all enjoyed lunch at Chuy's downtown after.  We even got to decorate our eggs with them.  It is so nice to have family visit us.  We miss them so much.

I Voted Today

Today was a very momentous occasion for me.  Alex and I went down to the courthouse and cast my first vote in an American election.  The people were very friendly and offered all sorts of congratulations and I told them this was my first time.  The system was very used friendly and it took only a matter of five seconds, of course I only voted for the presidential candidate because I had no clue who any of the other people were.  Several people have asked me who I voted for which I thought was a no-no question.  I tell them I voted for the right person, I hope!!!  It definitely was a big day for me.  It felt good to be part of something that will be groundbreaking whatever way it goes.  I would post a picture but you can't take pictures within 100 feet of the courthouse (which I found out as I asked one of the officials to take our picture-oops).  I will also get to vote in the causcus next Tuesday at 7:00.

Zilker Zephyr

Today we ventured to Zilker park in Austin. The weather was so amazing we just had to spend the day outside. It was our first time taking Alex downt there and he loved it. We rode the train around the park and he was in awe the whole time. Watching the doggies, the soccer players, the ducks, the swimmers (yes the pool is open), and all the people. He especially loved the train horn and he even gave the conductor his own ticket. After the train we played on the playground and in the sandbox. To end our very fun morning we had lunch at Chuy's on Lamar. Alex was asleep in the car before we even left the parking lot. I love days like this.

Licking the Bowl

I taught Alex how to lick the bowl today. He definitely knows by looking at something when it is going to taste good. Maybe he has learned by reading my facial expressions after eating chocolate. We had a lot of fun licking the brownie batter, I had even more fun watching Alex run around the house like a crazy person for an hour afterwards on a sugar high.

I Want that Camera

Paying off the Jetta

Yeah!! No more car payments.  We received our car title in the mail yesterday.  I can't believe that we have both our vehicles paid off.  How nice it is not to have a car payment every month.  I am sure I can put that extra cash to good use!!!  I've already got my eye on a ride on John Deere for Alex.  Here is a picture of the title, which I will probably lose in a couple of months.

Valentine's Day

Alex and I went to two Valentine's parties yesterday.  Needless to say it wasn't the most nutritional of days for either of us.  We are just now opening all of his cards.  He really enjoyed looking at the pictures on the cards especially the ones with animals.  I thought I had managed to get rid of all the candy (aka. eat them myself) however I must have left one at the bottom which Alex found.  He has never had candy before but he immediately knew that it was something good and started ripping into it.  He is now on a major sugar high.  Of course he did share with the ride-on  horse and our dog and a few licks to me.  The sound effects he was making were priceless.  Now we are up to brush his teeth which is not an easy task.

Down at Fraggle Rock!!

I swore as a new parent I would never let my child watch television or get into video games, except maybe on the rare occasion something educational came on PBS or Discovery Channel. Well, that (along with many other things I swore I would never do, save those for another post) went out the window this New Years. Alex's beloved Uncle Phil gave him the first season of Fraggle Rock -yes the show we watched as kids, for Christmas. Jay and I thought it would be kind of cute to see his reaction to the Fraggles and truthfully we wanted to watch it too, plus it was a gift and it would be rude if we didn't watch it. We now watch one episode after dinner every night. He loves the Fraggles. He sits for the whole 30 minutes and watches their every move. He has his Fraggle chair or sometimes will lean on one of his toys right beside the tv for the up close and personal touch. One of his newest words is Gobo (but since he can't say "g" yet it's Dobo), he even recognized a Gobo puppet at the library the other day when it took me a few minutes to get the connection. I don't know if we are created a monster or have opened up Pandora's box but for now it is working. He occasionally will see the DVD box lying around and want to watch but is easily distracted while we get the box out of sight. 30 minutes of tv a day can't hurt, right????

Dog Food Obsession

This is what Sydney's water looks like these days.
Alex's latest obsession is Sydney and her food. He loves to watch her eat, help her eat and eat her food himself. We thought giving him the job of feeding her might teach a him little responsibility, help with hand eye coordination, and help Jay and I remember to feed her. He certainly reminds us every morning about his job. He is very good at pouring the food into her dish but still needs some assistance scooping it up. He hovers over her while she eats and sometimes helps himself. Today I tried to get the morsels out of his mouth and he just about bit my finger off. He had to go to the naughty chair for that one. He also loves the idea of giving Sydney treats. I say the idea of it because he tends to hang onto the treat for half the morning before Syndey actually receives it. It doesn't seem to bother the dog much as she is used to his ways by now.

Giddy Up

"Tex" is the new horse I found for Alex at the Goodwill store.  Couldn't resist.  The only problem with it is he tends to tip over when ridden too fast, so it's not very safe.  But we love him anyways!!  Once you learn his tipping point it's all good.  In this picture Alex isn't wearing his cowboy hat, but usually he does have it on.  

Cool Dude

Hey Dude-it's not so cool to put stuff in your ear!!

Our Little Cowboy

Christmas in Canada

This is us by the Ballingall family tree.  Everyone agreed that it was the best Christmas tree we've ever had in 37 years of trees that says a lot.  Jay thinks he had a lot to do with that since it was the first time he took part in the choosing of the tree.  

This is Christmas morning before the presents were opened.  I think we were actually waiting for Liam and Ava to arrive.  I bought Alex's elf outfit at a church bazaar.  Those church ladies really know how to do it.

Alex and His Cousins

These are a few pictures taken over the holidays in Canada at Grandma and Grandpa's house. Alex loves his cousin Liam, especially now that they can sort of play together. Liam is a great cousin. Ava will be lots of fun to play with when she gets a little older, right now she is fun to look at.

Mr. Bumblebee-Halloween

This Halloween Alexander dressed up as a bumblebee.  He had the cutest costume I found on Craig's List.  He wore black tights and the cutest little Striderite shoes.  We went to a Halloween Party at Andrew's house in Liberty Hill with all of the Social Butterflies.  We also went to a party at the library.

We went trick or treating to about a dozen houses in the neighbourhood.  It was actually a good chance for us to meet the neighbours that we didn't know.  Everyone loved Alex's costume.  We got to use Alex's little red wagon he got for his birthday.