Flying with Toddlers

We were all a little worried about flying to and from Austin with three kids. Clara is great at flying but Bailey and Emmett are both at the age where they just want to run around and not be contained. Turns out we didn't have much to worry about and they all did great. The trip there was fantastic. We left Fresno super early and the kids were still in their pajamas. They all did great on the first flight and we had a short layover in San Francisco with just enough time to grab breakfast. (On a side note SFO is the craziest airport. I've never seen so much sushi in an airport and they had a yoga room!) 

Kids need a lot of stuff!

We hoped that all the kids would sleep on the longer flight to Austin but they did not like that idea. Emmett finally fell asleep on my lap holding onto his food container for dear life. Bailey got fussy so I gave Tia the ipad so she could watch Baby Signing Time. It worked and she ended up falling asleep but Clara got really jealous that Bailey was watching a show on the ipad which she's never done. I finally broke down and let Clara watch a Doc McStuffins episode on my phone through the United App. I have never resorted to technology to keep her well behaved before but I couldn't really argue with her on a plane when Bailey was using our ipad to watch something. It kept her entertained and then she agreed to rest when it was over. She didn't fall asleep but she was at least quiet. She also had two juices, and Emmett had a cookie...all the rules go out the door on a plane!

The trip home wasn't quite as smooth, but the kids hung in there. We left Austin at 6:00 PM and they were all exhausted. They all fell asleep pretty quickly but Clara did not stay asleep for long. She proceeded to wake Emmett up, but luckily he can deal with not a lot of sleep as long as he is well fed! Our layover in LA turned into a nightmare when our plane got delayed in San Francisco. It had to go to San Diego from there and we ended up not leaving until almost 1:00 AM (so 3:00 AM Texas time). I thought it was going to be a disaster but the kids ate, played, and watched the planes (Emmett was obsessed with them). All of the kids (and me too) managed to fall asleep in the terminal and stay asleep on the entire flight home! Bailey and Emmett woke up when we landed but Clara stayed asleep until we got home. It was the longest day ever and the kids did so great! We were all glad to get home!

#OmGees

My sweet cousin Katie and her fiance, Chris, got married on July 31, 2016. I wasn't sure about taking two kids to a wedding, but it turned out ok. As my cousin Jennifer and I decided, it would probably have been more fun without kids (especially little ones), but we still had fun. Clara was so excited about the wedding and had picked outfits for her and Bailey ages ago. She was excited to get dressed and actually sat quietly through most of the ceremony. The wedding was beautiful, but so so hot. The ceremony took place in a big room that had screens instead of walls. It was probably hotter than being outside and everyone was sweating. Emmett was at the worst age where he just wanted to walk around and refused to sit on anyone's lap. Bailey rolled around on the floor and then she and Emmett ate snacks we threw at them. I picked Bayleaf up at one point because she was running around crazy, and put her on my lap. Then Clara got jealous and insisted on sitting on my lap. I think we were all happy when the ceremony was over!

Waiting for the wedding to start

Zianne

Talitha

Those thighs!

Katie and Uncle Pat

Mr. and Mrs. Gee!

We took some pictures outside and then headed inside to glorious air conditioning! We enjoyed great food (a taco bar), but eating with Emmett was a little tricky since he just wanted to run around. At one point I saw Z and T sitting all by themselves and I was so impressed with how quietly T sat in her own chair for five minutes! Emmett would have been on the ground bleeding if I left him in his own chair for even a minute. Clara and Z colored and played together and it was fun to watch the second cousins. They are both so much like their mamas that it made me laugh!

Sisters with the same dress!

Licking the water off the soda can

Lemon flavored water or "juice" as she called it

Coloring with Z and Aunt Beth

This picture makes me laugh

After some yummy cupcakes we hit the dance floor and the kids had so much fun! Clara and Bailey danced away and it was so cute! The kids were all tired but remained happy. We sent Katie off in a tunnel of sparklers and Clara was so excited to have her own! It was a great wedding and so much fun! We all decided that Katie is the sweetest cousin (quite a feat out of 15 cousins!) and we wish her and Chris a zillion years of happiness!

He's always happy if he's eating

The little second cousins, Clara refused to be in the picture