tourist for the day

we had such a great time with mom and bob we decided to keep them here :-). actually, we started out their trip with an afternoon at the stockyards. we saw a cattle drive, among other neat things. and hannah definitely got spoiled with things like a pony (above) ride and a real longhorn ride.


she was definitely a hit with the cowboys. something about those boots! and blonde hair and blue eyes: who could resist?

we tried to get her in our picture, but let's just say she doesn't like to participate in pictures.

the next day we hit canton trade days, which happens one weekend a month and draws thousands upon thousands of people. you need a few days to really see everything. all kinds of stuff. and of course, food. this was bob's first turkey leg. he also had his first margarita here, but i forgot the camera in the car. i'm 1/2 way thru the pregnancy, and starting to miss margaritas!

so i dont' do serious very well, it's actually scary! hannah and daddy chillin at our picnic lunch.

we also hit the dallas arboretum, which was quite spectacular. wednesday was buy one get one free! it was a gorgeous day, and we walked around for hours.

i started out with hannah in the stroller, but the vast majority of the time this is what we saw as we chased her around. very adventurous. and slightly rebellious :-)

in addition to the flowers they have all kinds of parks and fountains and ponds and stone gardens, and things like these deer that hannah liked.

so they also had all kinds of houses and boats and play structures from various children's books. this was hansel and gretel. the only way we could get her to sit still was bribery with a cracker. at least she was willing to share.

it was a welcome relief to find this little fountain oasis, where the kids (and others, i guess :) can take off their shoes and jump around in puddles. four giant frogs spray up in the air, and hannah had a great time.

alas, this moment didn't last long enough! this bench was at the top of stone steps, surrounded by little gardens. i told patrick if he ever wants to propose again, that would be the place.

next was a little period outdoor museum, sort of interactive. we were all pretty tired and dirty by then, but it was really neat. a history of settlers in texas, complete with teepees and wagon trains.

long day!

as these current economic times don't seem particularly conducive to economic sales, we are considering all our options. perhaps we'll take up farming like patrick's previous generations.

we fit in a great trip to central market, patrick's softball game, and a few drs appointments. one of which was our sonogram, as you may have noticed. we are expectantly awaiting a new little boy, who appears to be strong and healthy and on the big size! at night when i'm going to sleep (or trying to) i can feel him move quite a bit now. it's so special to share that with him, even though he'll never remember. i sure do.

happy easter folks. He Is Risen!