Spending the 4th of July in Del Rio with our friends was our first big trip of summer. We rode in style, taking Dirk's brand new bright red truck on it's maiden voyage. Spending the weekend with Jeffery, Hillary, Sara, Donnie, Amber and Joe and the Joplin and Marek kiddos was non-stop laughter and adventure! Tanner and Kennedy were such great babysitters, making sure Dakota and Jonah didn't fall off the deck or get carried away by vultures. We played along the banks of the Devil's River, saw plenty of animals- a skunk, deer, oryx, and some tomato worms so large I almost screamed! Ryder and Grayson kept us on our toes doing the "Nae Nae," and creating their own games. It definitely made Dirk and I see how much fun a full house must be! Amber and Joe pointed out all the amazing sights out there to see. I couldn't think of a better place to be celebrating our country's independence!
Another highlight was visiting Cali Gaga and Papa in California. We went to the Jelly Belly factory and learned about how jelly beans are made- and more importantly got to sample several! The next day, we saw silly playful monkeys, giant sleepy bats, big fat billy goats, and hungry swaying elephants at the Oakland Zoo. We played a few hilarious rounds of Heads Up at a bar at a pizza parlor (due to trying to eat dinner before 5 pm! ha), got to play catch up with our friends The Hennings at a picturesque vineyard, and Dakota had such a good time getting to know Meeko and Missy. They were such sweet kitties, and we figured out that cat toys and baby toys are pretty much interchangeable. The weather and scenery in California was a perfect backdrop for our first visit there with Junebug. She did great on the plane too!
At the end of July, we headed out to Wimberley with my family. We lived it up in the hill country; checking out the famous local swimming hotspot Blue Hole, and swinging off a link chain into the clear water. Nana and Nono and Dirk and I were the only ones to jump and the hardest part was knowing just how cold the water would be once you let go of the chain! Braving it in our swimsuits, we snapped this family pic before we left.
It was great to have a weekend to completely relax. Derek, Dirk, and I knocked out some puzzles! Devin and Dakota enjoyed their second vineyard together (I'm noticing wine is a theme in our vacations…) The view from Driftwood estates was unreal. We played putt putt at Hill Country Golf and Guitar, and learned Devin is a fan of golf balls! Jenn introduced us to real root beer floats- yum. And Nana and Nono let us get some extra Zzzzzs in- hallelujah! One of my favorite afternoons was jumping in the pool and trying to make a family tsunami by running along the outside of the pool.
We also got to hang out with Mimi and Tpaw this past weekend and had fun showing them some of our favorite places in Austin. It was over a hundred degrees, so Mimi and I took Dakota to another one of her favorite places, the splash pad off South Lamar. She is a fan of the "wa-wa" and of all the other little kids that come here to play. I can't tell what she is most fascinated by; the spraying water or the other toddlers! We had a relaxing movie night and ate at the very popular Bacon- there was a line out the door EVEN in the heat!
Dakota is walking so well now, and is so precious when she drops to her knees to crawl over the cracks in the sidewalk. She waves at everyone still! She is working on blowing kisses, but most times they come from her forehead. She can say, "Lou, lou" and "No, no, no." Watching Sesame Street one morning, we saw how much she loved the Elmo Slide, so we have been playing it for her. When she's on a roll, she'll walk around moving her arms frantically saying "Flap, flap" which sounds more like "fwap!" I love to watch her dance; she drops her butt down low and just bounces up and down. She also loves to stick her tongue out and spit. Thinks it's the funniest thing ever! Sometimes we take turns fake laughing at each other, and tonight when trying to put her down, she couldn't stop playing hide and seek with one of her onesies. She would slowly place it over my head, and then quickly jerk it back and laugh when I smiled at her. She was so sleepy though, she would crash on my shoulder. But then seconds later, she would start up again! I love this silly girl and how joyful she is.
Even though we're actually headed into 14 months, I never shared her final 12 month picture. Here it is- what a life changing year it was!
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