Sofia's First Race / June 5-7

On June 6th Sofia competed her first race. She ran the Heights Fun Run Kid's 1K.

Well, let's be honest.

She walked a block of it while holding Daddy's hand. But she crossed the finish line! And she had her own number and everything.

We made it a family affair. Louis, Emily and Papi had all come in town the night before. We (Louis) made an awesome (diet-friendly) dinner



and rested up for the big race the next day.

The next morning Grandma came over



and we headed out to Heights Boulevard. It's a beautiful street with old, historic homes and a tree-lined median. Dan and Louis ran it



and the rest of us walked while pushing Sofia in her stroller. Dan's goal was to beat his time from his last 5K. He did it!





Now it was Sofia's turn. Look at the determination.



Once she neared the finish line she got a bit shy. She usually puts her hand in her mouth when she's shy. It's better than her finger in her nose which is what she used to do when she got shy!



But she did it! She crossed the finish line. The crowd was very supportive of their littlest "runner."



She got a blue ribbon and I'm sure she won first place in her age division!







It was a lot of fun. Hopefully she'll stay active when she gets older and can tell people she's been running races since she was a baby!

We spent the rest of the morning and afternoon lounging around. Sofia got some bubble time outside with Grandma and Bobo.

"Bubbles! Outshide!"

That night I had to take everyone to our favorite park downtown, Discovery Green. I'm telling you they have the best burgers in town. And the bonus is that Sofia loves to run around there. I took about 500 pictures. Here are a few...





Sofia showed off her new run.



We visited the Listening Vessels again.









Sofia showed off her tummy



and showed Louis how to "Get down!" and how much fun it is to kick your legs back and forth when you're on the ground. For some reason she loves to do this. Now Louis does too.





She showed interest in the water fountain



so Louis let her experience it up close.



She showed interest in the beautiful flowers



so she decided to taste one.





She tried to take off on the park's SUV. Good thing her feet couldn't reach the pedals.



She loves straws although she can't seem to figure out how to actually use one with a drink. In time...







It was another great day at the park and luckily it wasn't so hot that we couldn't enjoy ourselves.

The next day we spent some time in a cool new coffee shop in the neighborhood. Sofia, like me, doesn't drink coffee. So she read a book.



Papi drank some coffee (strange, huh?)



and Louis very seriously held a scone.



Sofia was too cool for this place. So we left.



Papi and Emily hit the road and we talked Louis into staying another night! Then he and Dan were kind enough to finally install my new light fixtures in the kitchen. The one on the ceiling and the sconce above the sink.



And on another note, just last weekend I finally painted the kitchen the color everyone was wary of: dark brown. I must say, I love it. I was a bit nervous at first but it turned out even better than I hoped. Here are some before and afters:









It will look even better with a new kitchen table and built-in benches in the corner. But all that in time.

Anyway, back to our weekend: Sofia woke up from her nap and couldn't believe this bassinet was where she once slept! We just got it back from David and Julie. It's where Jakey was sleeping and where Sofia's future sibling will sleep and also where all of Sofia's Coussirat cousins once slept.



Since we were able to get Louis to stay we headed on over to Mel and Dee's house



to enjoy their awesome backyard. We grilled out and had a few beers.

Since it was so hot we brought over a little kiddie pool for Sofia.





She loved splashing around outside of it but for some reason she never wanted to get in. The neighbor, Savannah, came over to play too. First Sofia just checked her out.



Then she went in for a kiss.



Finally, she'd had enough fun. She and Jax stood at the door waiting to be let inside.



We had a great weekend!!!

Rangers vs. Astros - The Family Rivalry

Memorial Day Weekend
David, Julie and the boys came to Houston! It had been awhile since their last visit and we were so excited to get all the kids together and just hang out.

But more importantly, it was the Texas Tourney - the Rangers vs. the Astros,



brother vs. sister,



cousins vs. cousin.



The Rangers swept the Astros, 3-0. David was happy. Sofia was not.



Friday
They got in late Friday night. Sofia was spending the night with Grandma and Grandpa because Dan and I decided to relive the days of living downtown. While David and company were driving in we spent Friday night having sushi and drinks with our friends, Todd and Amanda. We were all set for a long night. Then parenthood got in the way. We were home by 10:30 - exhausted. That's pretty crazy considering that used to be the hour we actually started our nights but I digress. So David and Julie came in late. We put the boys to bed, had a beer, then put ourselves to bed.

Saturday
The next morning Dan and David went for a run and I picked up this happy little girl from Grandma's.



We headed to our favorite park downtown for burgers before the game. Luckily, the park is just a few blocks away from Minute Maid Park. Unluckily, it started pouring just after we got there.



But we didn't mind. We just hung out under cover and enjoyed each other and ate lunch.









Once the rain let up we headed over to the ballpark. Sofia took in her first look at a ballpark.



I think she liked it.



I know she loved clapping. Every time the crowd cheered, she did too.



She wasn't in the cheering mood for long though. She was tired. So I took her up to the handicapped seats where it was a bit calmer and she slept in my arms while I watched the game.

As you may know I'm not really the biggest sports fan. I've been known to say that football does not exist in my world. I actually like baseball, though not enough to be considered a fan. But that doesn't mean I don't want Sofia to be a fan.

So I dressed her for the part. (Emi I know her team will eventually be the Yanks but for now, until you mold her, she's an Astros fan.)



Then I felt left out so I even dressed myself for the part. I felt like I was wearing a costume! But it was fun.



After the game (defeat) we headed back to Discovery Green.



The weather was fantastic. The rain was gone. We could finally enjoy the park, the kids and some drinks.









Discovery Green also has a really cool art feature called Listening Vessels. Although you are many feet away from your companion, if you are each sitting within a vessel, you can hear each other. Even whispers. It's really cool. Here's David talking to Julie and Machi.









It had been a long, fun day. So we headed home.



Sunday
The next morning we were all worn out. We lounged around on couches.





And the kids played in their pjs.







Sofia must have missed her Bobo. But he's never too far. She knows just where he is on the bookshelf. Sometimes she carries his picture around and whispers, "Bobo." It is very cute.



After lounging all morning we finally got ourselves ready



and headed out to Cedar Creek to have lunch and watch the Rangers again. This time on tv. Another defeat for the Astros. This makes David happy. Jakey too.



We ordered Sofia a grilled cheese sandwich. But she was more interested in daddy's corndog,



and our guacamole. She loves to dip things. Notice the concentration,



and then the glee.



Jakey tried new foods too. But he learned something that day. Purple crayons...



are not too tasty.



Before we left we let the kids play outside at the fountain and make some wishes.





I bet Sofia's wish was that her cousins wouldn't go home. She had so much fun with them!



Once we got back to the house we lounged around the rest of the evening until it was time for bed. Everyone would leave the next morning but as you can tell, we all had so much fun! It's so nice to have family come in town.

Monday
On Monday Dan and I took advantage of the Memorial Day holiday from work and hit the eclectic shops on W. 19th Street in the Heights. Our main goal was to look at furniture. We want a special piece for our living room under the tv. And the Heights boasts great Antique shops.



We did find one that we like



but it may be a bit too small.

Sofia loved walking down the street.



She saw a baby bird on the sidewalk.



She calls them something that sounds like "boddie" and as soon as they fly away she yells, "bye bye!"



Except I don't think this one knew how to fly yet so we had to protect it from the very excited toddler.



After our little excursion we headed to lunch at my favorite Mexican restaurant, El Tiempo. I had to top off our weekend of healthy eating. Seriously? Really. During David and Julie's visit we ate like the world was going to end. And they're usually very health concious but it seems a vacation diet was in order for the Houston trip. Yeah. We ate burgers, corn dogs, Frito pies, you name it.

But I had an ulterior motive. It was my weekend of freedom. The week before Emily posed a challenge: see who can lose 10% body fat first. And Tuesday the games would begin. So at El Tiempo I promptly ordered one of these



and their awesome fajitas, which did not get photographed because I ate them before I even thought about the camera!

Sofia is usually pretty good at restaurants but she's definitely becoming more of a handful. This day she just required a little more entertainment. She took a few phone calls,



laughed at Daddy's jokes,



and mimicked Mommy when she said, "Shhh!"



It was a great day and a great ending to a great weekend!