We're Goin' to the Zoo, Zoo, Zoo...

We LOVE when Blake gets his day off for the month. It was beautiful outside, so we forked over a ridiculous amount of money to visit the Houston Zoo.

As you can guess, Alayna wanted to explore every nook and cranny of the zoo...on foot and uninhibited.

She really, really tried hard to catch this little bird.

Carousels...one can never get too old.

It's just so magical!
Well...maybe not for everyone.I can't believe how real this giraffe looks!

Sammie is making the appropriate elephant noises and action.
Alayna got quite a fright when this albino alligator decided to move...right towards her!
I had fun acting like I knew what I was doing with one of my camera lenses...gettin' up close and personal!
A few more snaps of our favorite animals of the day.

Yay for the New Camera!

I am LOVING my new camera that Santa brought me for Christmas. The fact that I know NOTHING about how to actually use it, and it still takes great pictures...makes it worth every penny!

15 Months Old

Weight: 21 lbs - 7th percentile
Height: 32 1/2" - 86th percentile
Head: 17 1/2" - 1st percentileAlayna is growing up so fast! She went from being a horrendous newborn, a rolly-polly baby, to a non-stop movin-babblin' toddler!

DRIVING to Tucson, Arizona

We officially went on our first road trip in the minivan. IT WAS GREAT! We took 2 eight hour driving days to get there. Candy, movies, Harry Potter book 7 and napping. Alayna was content as can be. Samantha played musical chairs and watched endless movies.

We joined up with Papa Holiday & Grandma Janice, Nate-Brit-Noah, and got to see Steve & Jillian & Addi's new house. Sam was in cousin-heaven. She just can't get enough of Drew, Summer and Dawna...and Addi, too!

I took Summer and Dawna running a few times, we ate tons of food, played games and went to a few movies. We also road a tram up the canyon and got to see the Tucson desert and cacti.

The 'Y' catcus.
Lots of trivia games and daily ping-pong tournaments.
We went to Eeegee's a few times for slushes.Found out Alayna is just like me...she likes her french fries dipped in a Frosty. Seriously, who doesn't?!We witnessed an accident in the middle of nowhere. I was driving and literally watched an SUV swerve off the road, over-correct to get back on, and flip! It rolled and flipped about 6 times...we couldn't believe our eyes. It was on the other side of the highway. So, we pulled over and Blake was the first on the scene. Miraculously, no one was hurt too badly. A mom, 3 kids and a dog. It got Sam asking many questions and reminding us to drive slowly.

Family Pictures by Taryn

Happy Birthday to Me!

Sunday dinner with my family.

Yes, I know there are a lot of candles!
Sweet Sammie, always reminding me that I am 3-3. Two 3's!

Alayna has found her sweet tooth.

We got a new game for Christmas called Blokus. It is super fun, but causing many family disputes. Basically, everyone is out to 'get mom!'