Morgan

We had to say goodbye to one of our family members and best friends today. It was one of our saddest days.

 

When we took Morgan to the vet, David knew it was time to make a sad but necessary decision. We had noticed a change in Morgan over the past few months but mainly chalked it up to her age. David admits to a little denial on his part as well, since after all, Morgan was his #1 (he literally told me this early on that the best I could be would be #2). She became more sluggish and was no longer quick to play or run to the door to greet guests. She panted at times, even during rest. We had to start taking her out front to go to the bathroom since the backyard's stairs were difficult for her. Things then declined quickly this past week, as she began vomiting and peeing in the house a LOT. We knew something was up.

 

The vet did a brief examination and told us that all of her peripheral lymph nodes were swollen, and they weren't just a little swollen. They were huge. Malignant lymphoma had spread.

 

It was so hard to say goodbye as her sweet, naïve eyes were just looking up at us in that vet office. Morgan was around for all of the firsts of David and I. I haven't known David without Morgan up until today. She made it through a couple housing moves and an adventurous toddler who considered her his personal vehicle and pillow.

 

We, especially David, gave her the best life! I'm not sure of many other dogs that receive the amount of love and attention that Morgan received. She will be missed!

 

 

 



Back to school... back to school...

Nico was very cheery and ready for school on his first day back!! (Phew. Big change from last year.) He had a few mini chocolate donuts as a treat for breakfast before he was on his way.

Turns out he had a great first week and is doing well adjusting to being in a new classroom!

Lake Austin boating adventures

The one thing that is better than having a boat... is having some of your neighborhood friends with a boat!!! We went out on a little boating adventure around Lake Austin today!

We cruised the length of the lake for the first bit and admired all of the million dollar lake homes and beautiful rolling hill views! We then parked it for some swimming.

Nico loved getting a running start and jumping in. And he was only slightly freaked out by the many turtles surrounding us. The only downside of this trip is that the propeller gashed David in between his toes when he was helping pull it out of the mud. It was disgusting and required a detour to get some additional first aid kit supplies! There was a high entertainment value watching him maneuver off the boat and onto the raft while trying to avoid getting his toe wet.

 

The lake was pretty calm and perfect for tubing! This was Nico's first tubing day and he was a little apprehensive about it, but he lasted! When it was time for the adults to get on, there was no mercy. Kristen and I both temporarily lost the bottoms of our swimsuits when Richard flipped us off! About this time, David decided to forgo worrying about his toe. He wanted a ride too!

 

 

Evidence of a successful trip!!

 

First Thursdays in Dripping

My mom and I wandered down to Dripping and check out their "First Thursday" event this past week, where all of the stores and restaurants remain open late. Seems like a fun mother/daughter thing to do?! It's funny that we literally have had this little night planned for a couple months now. (That's what it takes around here to get on their schedule with all of their traveling!!)

We started with fancy tapas and spritzers at the Mercantile, which is a cute little place that we had been wanting to try.

We walked around to some of the main stores for a little while before landing at the Barber Shop. We couldn't leave Mercer St. without stopping by here!

 

 

This sign cracks me up.

 

 

We had nice quality time just the 2 of us, which is something that doesn't happen too often! Downtown Dripping has a handful of cute little bars/restaurants and shops, but there really still isn't much to it... yet! Hoping that with the growth in the area, some more fun places will pop up down there!

 



Nico's big birthday party weekend

Nico has been beyond pumped for this party, asking us every day if it's "the day of his birthday party" yet?! We rented out the Hoppin House for a couple hours! It's a cute little place that has a handful of different bounce houses and slides for the kids to just run around and be crazy.

My parents helped with the cake and cupcakes again this year, and they did not disappoint! Always fun to see what design my dad comes up with for the cake!

Nico had about 20 kids there, half from his preschool class and half from the neighborhood. The Myers' brought Braxton and Ainsley up from San Antonio to join too!

The kids played for a large majority of the 2 hours. It was hard to keep track of Nico most of the time! He loved both the big slide and foam pit the most.

An attempted group photo.

 Pizza and cake time!

Happy birthday to you....

The party was a success!! We had such a good turnout, and most importantly of all, Nico had a blast. We went back home to open gifts and hang with the family for a while.

This is about the time I said, "take a few pictures of Nico and I. I'm not in a single picture from the entire day!"  :)

 

The fam left after gifts were opened to barhop downtown, and David and I stayed back for the birthday boy's naptime. It definitely didn't take long for him to pass out. Afterwards, we met up with them at Shoal Creek Saloon before going to dinner at Threadgills!

 

 

We met up again on Sunday to give my dad his gift, a new set of golf clubs, so that he could no longer give Ryan grief for having some of his! It was a funny reaction, and admittedly an interesting gift for him.

We then had a fun dinner at Saltlick! Sundays are the best there. 2 words. Au gratin potatoes.