Farewell My Friend

Well, the time has come to say good bye to one of our own. Ashley has been with us for a year, and while we've had our ups and downs (we can laugh about it now:)) we are going to miss her so much.  She started off as Juliana's nanny but has become a part of our family and the girls love her to pieces.  She is moving on up, all the way to Chicago.  I know this is a good move for her and we are happy, but selfishly we are going to miss the heck out of her.  Good luck Ashley - We love you and you know this will always be your home - Even though we made you give your key to Laura - hehehe

 Look at this face - Love!

 Miss ya girl.  See you soon.

Days with Baby Izzie

Our niece Isabella came over for some cousin time and it was so much fun.  Olivia was a bit disappointed I must admit because when I mentioned she would be coming over Olivia got a brilliant idea that she would babysit.  Babysitting would of course include holding her, reading to her, rocking her to sleep. . . . . . . NOT.  Baby Izzie was having none of that!



Then we rode our bikes (and Izzie rode the wagon) up to the elementary school and played on the playground.  The girl is a dare devil.  She has no fear.

Love that tongue

Our view going home

Kinder Field Trip

Juliana is going on her very first school field trip to the Dallas Zoo!

   Here she is on the bus with Daddy

 Here she is with Ms. Bustos and one of her besties Destiny

  And these my friends are some of my favorite photos EVER.  Wanna know why?  Because her good friend Destiny knows Juliana so well that she has learned her PODD communication system.  Destiny is communicating with Juliana via her computer.  Love it and I love these little girls.

 At the monorail

 Thank you Jesus for good friends.

Days at the Ranch

Another season at Spirit Horse has come and gone.  We will miss this ranch over the hot summer but can't wait to start back in the fall.  Juliana has been coming here for several years now and each season she comes away little bit stronger.  Thank you Crystal, Peter Pan and Mr. Charles for the wonderful work you do for these kids.

1st Swim of the Season

Despite the look on her face, trust me when I say that ALL the Brooks' were very excited to finally get out and enjoy some pool time

 

See, there's a big smile

And yes, that is Roger's finger in the picture

Here's the other little mermaid

And of course no hot day is complete without this. . . .

She has been dying to wear her BIKINI!

 

Snaggle Tooth

So lately Olivia has enjoyed spinning.  Not like spin class, but rather like twirling until you become dizzy.  She has gotten a few bumps and scrapes because of this past time but nothing too serious, so we just chalked it up to normal kid wear and tear, right?  WRONG.  At school she started spinning, got dizzy and took a tumble on top of a tricycle.  This is what occured. . . . . . 

 

I of course was devastated.  But I thought no big deal, right?  It's a baby tooth.  WRONG.  Dentist said if it is cracked all the way through the root it can damage her permanant tooth!  YIKES!  So off to the dentist we headed the next day.  Good news is that they were able to bond it so it looks back to normand and even better news it is not cracked!

Klyde Warren Park



For Mother's Day we decided to check out the nee Klyde Warren Park in downtown Dallas.  What's cool about this park is that it is located on top of a large bridge on the interstate.  You below you is literally freeway, and yet it is green and beautiful with lots of stuff to do.  You can rent soccer balls, croquet sets, all kinds of games, there is a dog park and playground for kids including a splash park.

 

In addition to all the fun things to do, there is also a huge line of food trucks.  Anything you can imagine from burgers, tacos, barbeque, sushi or ice cream.  Liv got a snow cone.

We all got gourmet ice cream sandwiches made to order!

 

Mommy and Livi Day





So after Mother's Day Breakfast, school is out and you take your little one with you.  It's a great excuse for taking a whole day off of work.  So we went home and got our matching comfy clothes on and officially started Mommy Livi Day!  First stop - Ice skating!  This was her first time.

And let's just say much harder than she ever expected.

But she never gave up!

Here we are sitting for a break.  Is it possible I had to look twice at this picture because I couldn't tell which was my leg and which was my 5 year old daughters leg.

I eventually convinced her to/peeled her off of the wall.

Next stop - Chuy's Mexican for lunch!

I freakin' love this salsa!  I'm pretty sure I could drink it alone and still love it.  It's just so fresh and simple.

Then they brought out some ranch for Olivia and she was in ranch heaven.

Here we are for the mustache contest

Best long and skinny goes to Olivia, Best Bow-Like Mustache goes to ME!!!