The Walker's

Christmas!

2009-12-27T13:12:00.000-08:00

Our cute little snowman sat outside on the bar for most of the day.

Creative aunt Carol gave him mini snickers for eyes and a hotdog for a nose.

Not a great picture, but all three of my boys were sledding down the hill.

David and Grant are so proud of their snowman.

Joseph...aka Tate.

Chloe was Mary and Tate was Joseph. Grant was supposed to be a wiseman but he got stage fright

Tate got a real guitar from Mimi and Daddo. He loves to play guitars with his Daddo!

Chloe doesn't usually wake up early so on Christmas she was quite surprised when we were up at 6:45!

David's Papo came from Denver. Matt, Emily, and Ella came from Ft Worth.

Tate wanted a Wii for Christmas but he is just as happy with "Big Buck Hunter" that Nana and Babbo gave him.

Back at home in Austin checking out what Santa left on December 26th.

Grant opening his presents from mom and dad.

Tate's other present this Christmas.........

................................his second deer this week! He has never killed anything before and he got two deer in one week! He was SOOOOO excited!

For Christmas this year we went to Weatherford. I am so glad we did because it SNOWED all day Thursday! The boys were so happy and shocked to see snow. Weatherford hasn't had a white Christmas since I was in Kindergarten! The kids and the uncles loved playing, sledding, and building two snowmen. We came home on Christmas afternoon because David's grandfather from Denver was in town as well as Uncle Matt, Aunt Emily, and cousin Ella. We enjoyed having them come over on the day after Christmas to have brunch with us after the boys had opened their gifts from us and Santa. It was a great holiday!

December fun

2009-12-21T06:06:00.001-08:00

Tate saw Santa in Johnson City, he finally sat on his lap alone!

This was the only way we could get Grant close to him.

Every year they decorate the PEC building with millions of lights!

Trail of Lights with friends Blake and Barrett.

....at least Brooklyn would smile for the camera.

Getting ready to decorate the gingerbread house after a bath, what was I thinking?

it was starting to lean.......

so we ate it.

Tate got what he wanted from Santa this year.....

he shot his first deer! He was SOOOOO excited!

We have been so busy this month and it has all been a blast! Tate is out of school and loving sleeping late but continues to ask "If I were at school right now, what would I be doing?" I think he might miss it just a little bit. We are heading to Weatherford in two days and will be back on Christmas night to celebrate with David's family. Merry Christmas!

Thanksgiving 2009

2009-11-30T14:24:00.000-08:00

The Pilgrims who came to our Thanksgiving (aka Chloe, Grant,& Tate)

Roasting marshmallows around the fire pit

We had a great thanksgiving in Weatherford this year. We went up on Wednesday and came back Saturday. We enjoyed seeing alot of our family and the kids loved playing at Mimi and Dado's house. Creative aunt Carol made pilgrim costumes for Tate, Grant, and Chloe and even paper mached a turkey and pie for her her pilgrim pageant that was held after we ate. David enjoyed going to my dad's ranch to hunt and finally shot a doe! He was thankful for that..... On Thursday night we went over to David's sister, Emily's house to see Ella, Matt, Nana, and Babbo. On Friday we hung around the house and that evening we made smores on my parent's fire pit and sang songs around the campfire, it was truly a Norman Rockwell picture. We are home and ready to start preparing for Christmas!

Halloween 2009

2009-11-03T12:31:00.000-08:00

Nascar Tate

Brooklyn and Grant

waiting patiently

Did you know Jeff Gordon is friends with Colt McCoy?

Look who we found! Tate's teacher, Mrs. Haschke, lives in the neighborhood.

Halloween was great this year! Tate dressed up as a race car driver and Grant was a builder (however if you asked him he really wanted to be a monster!) Our friends, the Reaves, came over and went with us. Most of the neighbors were out either in their culdesacs or their front yard so it was easy for the kids. Tate and Barrett ran ahead of us to get as much candy as they could and Brooklyn and Grant walked with the parents and enjoyed seeing all of the spooky halloween decorations. It was a fun night and I think the kids really enjoyed it!

Fall Fun

2009-10-21T13:48:00.001-07:00

We went to Marble Falls to the Sweet Berry Farms pumpkin patch this weekend. We had never been and were excited to go. However, when we got there most of Austin and the surrounding towns had made the journey there as well. There were hardly any pumpkins to buy (they were mostly the broken ones with flies swarming around them) but we enjoyed the hay ride and the boys loved the round bales of hay to climb on. It was a fun trip regardless of the crowds and we hope to do it again next year....maybe on a weekday, though.

Tiger Tate

2009-10-21T13:44:00.001-07:00

Tate is loving taking golf lessons from Coach Brandon again this fall. He has been in this class since he was three.

Lubbock

2009-10-13T06:03:00.000-07:00

Mommy and Grant at the pep rally

Tate and Grant in front of the bonfire.

Grant trying on the merchandise at Red Raider Outfitters.

Tyler, Tate, Logan and Grant in Memorial Circle giving the guns up.

Our family in front of Will Rogers who was, uncharacteristically, not wrapped in the traditional red crepe paper.

We went to Lubbock this past weekend with our friends Troy and Tonya Clifton and their boys Tyler and Logan. We had a great time! We left Friday morning so we were able to get their early enough to see the homecoming pep rally and bonfire that night. The boys loved every minute of it even though it was freezing and a little rainy all weekend. Unfortunately, my camera battery was low so I didn't get as many pictures as I had hoped. We beat Kansas state 66-14, so it was definitely worth the cold weather and long drive and we were so happy to show our boys the great city of Lubbock where so many wonderful memories were made.

Seattle

2009-09-09T13:27:00.000-07:00

In front of the Pike Street Market

At the Pike Fish Market...couldn't get a picture of the fish tossing.

Sue with David and Emily

Fox Farms Lavender Farm, where the wedding took place.

Me and my sweet husband.

During the Ceremony. Yes, that is a picture of the Michelin Tire Man. Each section of the table had these pictures that were important to Scott and Shannon (Walker Tire ).

The beautiful bride and groom....check out the red shoes, so cute!

The craziness back in Austin! Poor Chloe, her face says it all!

This past weekend, David and I went to Seattle for his cousin, Scott's wedding. All of the Walker's were there and it was alot of fun! We had never been to that part of the country before and it is so beautiful! We saw Mt Ranier as we flew in and it is HUGE!!! We also enjoyed the downtown area and of course Pike Street Market. That is where they throw the fish, gross, but cool to watch! The wedding on Sunday was at a lavender farm on Vashon Island. It rained and was pretty cool that day but the wedding was great. The boys stayed in Austin and my parents, Aunt Carol, and Chloe came down to babysit. They had tons of fun. They took the kids to Zilker park where my dad and both boys canoed, Cabela's, Waterloo, Austin Scoops, and The Oasis. They really made the most of their Austin weekend! Thanks Mimi, Dado, Carol, and Chloe!

Grant goes to Preschool

2009-09-01T13:23:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Grant started preschool. It is the same school Tate went to for four years and we have always loved it. He was very clingy to me last week at "Meet the Teacher" but went right in yesterday morning without even a goodbye for mom. He saw that all the kids were playing with playdough and got excited and sat right down (we don't do alot of playdough at our house...it's a mess!).He will be going Monday, Wednesday, and Friday this year and I think he is going to love it!

On another note, Tate is now doing much better in Kindergarten. It just took him some time to get used to. He has bought his lunch the last three days, gone to a playdate, and says he kind of likes school.

First Day of Kindergarten

2009-08-25T09:08:00.001-07:00

Tate started kindergarten this week and it was a little difficult. I know it will get better but he was very nervous as we went into the room and basically wouldn't let us leave. We finally convinved him he would be okay and he let us go. Shortly after we got home the school called and wanted us to know that he was doing fine and we had nothing to worry about. I was so relieved! When I picked him up he seemed happy but had told the teacher he would not be returning the next day. He finally told me he had a pretty good time and would go back but only if he could ride the bus and buy his lunch. Well, he won't be riding the bus for a few weeks and he changed his mind about buying lunch but returned today. He cried a little when I left him but I am sure he was fine afterwards. He has a hard time with transitioning from mom to class, he did this in preschool. His teacher was so nice and talked to me alot after school yesterday and said he had fun and participated in everything they did. I know it will just take some time and he will love it...I hope!

The night before.....

2009-08-23T18:13:00.001-07:00

Lunch made- check
Backpack filled- check
Forms filled out- check
Bathed and in bed by 8- check
Kleenex in mommy's purse- check

I think we are ready for tomorrow. He keeps asking me to tell him what it is going to be like and I do my best but the truth is I just don't know. I keep getting a lump in my throat when I think about dropping him off in that room full of strangers but I know God will take care of him. Here's hoping for a great Kindergarten year!

Happy Birthday Tate!

2009-08-20T12:44:00.001-07:00

The birthday cupcakes. Thanks Aunt Carol for making the cute racing flags!

Tate and Grant in a bounce house.

Sliding down the tall slide.

Barrett, Coby, and Tate

Tate and his favorite girl, Paige.

Opening presents!!

Eating pizza with friends

Tate and Brooklyn eating cupcakes

Today is Tate's 6th birthday! I can't believe he is already 6 and starting Kindergarten next week. How time flies! We celebrated his birthday last week with a party at Locomotion Inflatable play. He had a blast with his friends and it was a great end of summer celebration.

37 years!

2009-08-12T06:00:00.000-07:00

Today my parents celebrate their 37th wedding annivarsary! Happy Annivarsary! We love you!

Colorado

2009-07-28T14:21:00.000-07:00

Grant did great on the airplane!!!

The cousins playing in the pool. Hope the neighbors didn't mind my kids showing some skin!

Tate in front of the river in Breckenridge.

Four generations: Papo, Nana, David, Tate

The cousins: AiPei, Ella, Tate, Grant

That's Tate at the top!

Sweet brothers....you can't see it but they were sitting in front of some small fir trees. They were amazed at all of the "Christmas Trees!"

Hiking on the trail

At the top of a mountain

We just got back from Denver CO and we had a great time! We enjoyed hanging out with all of Nana's side of the family. Her dad and three sisters and their kids all live there. On Friday we went to the Denver Zoo. David's uncle volunteers there on Fridays and so we were able to see the show he helps with and take a behind the scenes tour of a bird show. The boys really liked it and we were happy to hear about all of the animals from someone who really seems to know. That night we went to Aunt Judy's house for dinner. The boys liked playing in her baby pool with her little girl Ai Pei. She and Tate are a year apart and they play very well together. My boys looked like little hicks in their diaper and tighty whiteys but we didn't bring their suits with us to her house. On Saturday, David and I took the boys up to Breckenridge. We loved being there! The weather was so nice and the mountains are beautiful. On Sunday we went to the base of a mountain where they have things for kids to do. Tate really wanted to do the rock climbing wall and he did great! It took him no time to get to the top and ring the bell. He and David also rode on the "Alpine Slide". It is this cool slide down the side of a mountain that you ride a scooter down. I really thought he would get scared when he got to the top but he didn't and wanted to ride it again. My favorite part was riding a ski lift up a mountain and exploring all around. It was gorgeous! Tate's favorite part of the whole trip was probably going hiking. We found a few trails that took us over bridges and through the beautiful pine forest and Tate was our leader. He literally wouldn't let anyone get in front of him, I think he would have liked to have camped out there but mommy would never go for that:)

We really had a blast in Colorado. David's parents and sister, bro in law, and our niece, Ella were all there and it was fun being with the entire family.

Hot Fun in the Summertime

2009-07-07T14:18:00.001-07:00

Other ways to stay cool? No Clothes!!

Proud, naked Grant.

Tate with a loud popping firework.

It's hard to see in the daylight but he is holding a sparkler. It just gets dark so late we went ahead and started the festivities early.

Chilling in the pool with Grant, Daddy, and Nana.

The boys and mom in the canoe.

The view from my seat, I liked the way Grant held onto his oar like that the entire time.

Grant is ready to go!

Boys ready to get in the canoe.

We have been trying to find ways to stay cool in these crazy 100+ degree days. On Friday, we took the boys canoeing at Town Lake and then to Barton Springs to swim. The boys LOVE the canoes and even Grant is still and quiet for the whole hour we are out. We had never been to Barton Springs before and have been wanting to experience the year round 68 degree temps that people seem to love. It was very cold but really felt good!

Also, on the 4th of July we went out to David's parents house because his sister, bro in law and our niece, Ella, were all there to celebrate. The boys had fun with the safe fireworks (sparklers, snakes, pop things).

Annivarsary trip to Cabo

2009-06-30T10:48:00.001-07:00

We had a wonderful trip to Cabo last week. The weather was perfect, the food was good, and the drinks were fantastic! It was so nice to sit by the pool and relax and be together. We didn't do alot of activities which was fine by me. David and his cousin Scott, who happened to be there the same week we were, went fishing one day and he loved it! He caught a marlin and some mahi mahi that we got to enjoy for dinner that same night. It was delicious! We took a sunset dinner cruise one night that went out around the Lands End arch that divides the Pacific Ocean from the Sea of Cortez. That was really fun and beautiful to see. The beach was very pretty with clear water but very very cold (pacific side). We enjoyed walking up and down it and looking at all of the pretty resorts that line the beach.

The boys had a great time in Weatherford thanks to my parents and Carol, Chloe, and Uncle Jimmy. They really didn't seem to miss us at all which was nice. We had a wonderful trip and hope to go back there again...soon!

Tball party

2009-06-03T18:01:00.000-07:00

Tate throwing a water balloon at Coach Greg

Grant sitting with the team, he thinks he is one of the big boys!

The Orioles 2009

Finally...the trophy!

Last night we celebrated the end of tball with a party at coach Greg's house. Both boys had a great time and it was nice to hang out with the parents we spent so many evenings with this spring. We are really going to miss this little team. The Orioles had about 7 brand new kids (including Tate) and the coach was brand new to tball but we managed to make it three rounds in the end of year tournament and got 4th place out of about 10 teams in our division! Tate was so excited about the party because he would receive his trophy that he has been waiting for for about five months! Unfortunately, when he was getting out of the car last night he dropped the trophy in the garage and it broke into a couple of pieces but we fixed it this morning with the trusty glue gun.

May

2009-05-27T14:39:00.001-07:00

May has been busy with lots of fun activities. The boys have enjoyed going fishing in the evenings at a pond by our house and they love it. Grant likes it more than anyone and I have even been known to catch a few in this pond, too. Last week Tate graduated from preschool. Poor kids tripped and fell as he ran up to receive his diploma but thankfully it didn't phase him too much. Let's just hope he doesn't do the same thing at his high school graduation. I also got to attend the Mother's day tea at his school and that was really cute. The kids dressed up in aprons and chef hats they had made and sang a few songs. It was sweet and Grant really wished he could be up there with them....next year he will. We have been to many birthday parties, a beautiful wedding, and are beginning to enjoy our new gym's pool alot. We are off to a terriffic summer! Showing off his fish

Grant like to do it "by myself!"

BIG FISH!!!

Tate in the middle on the back row in his chef hat and apron.

Chef Tate

Brothers

My sweet boys

Graduation. Tate in the green stripes, still contemplating the fall.

Tate and Ms Krista

Tate and his buddy Cade.

Barrett, Charlie, and Tate

It's official....

2009-05-05T13:31:00.002-07:00

We are signed up for Kindergarten! How can that be???? Doesn't he look excited?

We went today and filled out a mound of paper work and stood in line for a very long time. The best part was the tour of the school that we go to take. Tate liked the music and PE rooms the best. He asked alot of questions when we went into a real kindergarten room and it brought back so many fun memories of my teaching days. Overall, I think he will enjoy kindergarten, however if you ask him now he says he's not ready to go and wants to stay with mommy forever. Sweet, I know, but really, I think he is ready and I hope it will be a great year!

San Antonio Zoo

2009-04-23T10:33:00.001-07:00

Studying the map. "Where should we go next?"

Still studying the map........

"That's it, I'm going in!"

The little guys liked the prairie dogs.

Looking at the monkeys

"Did you see that?"

Tate and the elephant.

They climb on everything! We couldn't get them to all look at the camera.

On Monday we went with some friends from church to the San Antonio Zoo. It was alot of fun. The weather was perfect and the boys had alot of fun. Grant even managed to stay in his stroller for about half of the time! I just realized that almost all of my pictures are of the kids and not the animals, oh well, they are all alot cuter!

Easter Weekend

2009-04-13T06:02:00.000-07:00

This weekend was alot of fun! David's sister and bro in law and our niece, Ella, were in town from Ft. Worth and we got to hang out with them on Friday night. On Saturday we were determined to get a few pictures in bluebonnets since we haven't really done that since Tate was a baby. We went to the "big ditch" as Tate calls it by Chuy's and Costco and found a few small patches to take pictures in. Grant was not at all interested in the pictures and didn't want to sit down so we got some nice ones of just Tate and a few of me with the boys and David with the boys. And of course, since we were in the Chuy's parking lot we felt obligated to eat lunch there, it was SO good!! On Saturday night David and I went with some friends to see Pat Green at Nutty Brown. It was a great concert and a very late night for us, but I am so glad we did it. We woke up early Sunday morning to rain but were promised by the local weatherman that it would clear up for egg hunting by the afternoon. What do you know? He was right!! The boys had a great time hunting eggs and Nana brought over four dozen confetti eggs for the boys to crack all over the yard. I think Ella was the only one who escaped the confetti in the hair. They had a great time and everyone took long naps afterwards so it was a great day and we had a really fun weekend.

Grant is 2!

2009-03-30T06:14:00.000-07:00

March 28th, 2007

March 28th, 2008

On Saturday Grant turned two years old! It is hard to believe he is 2 even if he has been displaying characteristics of a two year old for quite some time. We had a jungle themed birthday party with a few of his buddies and it was alot of fun. The weather was a little chilly but the kids had fun on the bounce house and trampoline and we enjoyed having friends and family there to celebrate. He had a double ear infection all week so he wasn't his normal self but I think he had fun anyway. Grant is such a fun little boy, he absolutely LOVES his brother and wants to do whatever he does. He seems to be talking alot more than Tate did at this age and will often ask "whatcha doin, mommy?" He has a new found love for scooters and is really good on Tate's old three wheeled one. He's a pretty good eater, too. He really likes vegetables with his favorites being broccoli and squash but doesn't like fruit or bread at all. He will start mothers day out in the fall and I think he will love it. He likes to go with me to take Tate to school and often walks in his classroom and doesn't want to leave. Grant loves his friends and talks about Dane and Brooklyn alot and loves to see his friend Owen at ladies class and on Sunday. My parents and sister and Chloe were in town this weekend for the party and he is definitely Dado's boy (much like Tate was at this age). He loves to be around Dado and he know Dado will let him do pretty much whatever he wants. He also enjoys holding his cousin Chloe. We had to make sure he didn't "love" her too much while she was here.

We love that little boy so much and look forward to watching him grow up! Happy Birthday Grant!

Spring time fun

2009-03-22T13:58:00.001-07:00

Tate helped wash the car.....

for about 3 minutes. Then he got bored.

Grant is excited about all of the vegetables he is planting!

Tate carefully plants the onions and tomatoes

"It needs more dirt, here, let me help!"

Grant and Carson on the little four wheeler.

Look at all of the fish!

We have enjoyed the beautiful weather we have been having around here this week! For Spring Break the boys went to my parents house for about four days and had alot of fun. They got to see their cousin Chloe and aunt Carol and Uncle Jimmy who they love. When they returned we washed my car (which it BADLY needed) and planted a small vegetable garden. David has been wanting to have a garden for a long time so he decided that since we had extra room in our back yard we should plant a few things. I am getting really excited about it and hope to reap a bountiful harvest of onions, tomatoes, squash, peppers, and okra in a couple of months. The boys loved helping plant the vegetables and hope they are equally excited about eating them . On Friday David took the boys to his hunting lease to camp and fish and hike with some of the other families that are on the lease. They had a blast and came back sunburned, dirty, and stinky! I enjoyed a couple of days to myself and it was so nice!

Tball Tate!

2009-03-09T19:04:00.000-07:00

Warming up....

Stretching...............

Tate at the plate

Playing catcher

He got bored and decided to sit down

SLIDING!!!!!

Tate had his first tball game tonight and it was SO much fun!! He was so excited about it. He put his uniform on around 3:30 for his 5:45 game. He did a great job at bat and got to play in the outfield, shortstop, and catcher. He caught two nice groundballs and he got to do his favorite thing of all- SLIDE into homeplate! He had alot of fun and to top it all off he got a ringpop from the concession stand after the game. He was so happy!

Bowling

2009-02-11T13:42:00.000-08:00

On Sunday we went to a birthday party for one of David's coworkers. It was at a bowling ally. We weren't sure about taking the kids but they had a blast! Tate loved bowling and couldn't hardly wait until it was his turn. On both games he came in 3rd place out of four people on his team! Grant really enjoyed the arcade area, he didn't need any money he just pushed buttons and really loved it. It was a great time!