Battleship & the beach...

Battleship, TX

While Dustin & Natalie were here we wanted to take them to see the U.S.S Texas docked in Battleship, TX. Weston had been before but it was my first time seeing it. The U.S.S Texas served in both WWI & WWII. Despite the fact that it was ridiculously hot that day, it was really cool to see and was stocked with many large guns. :) 

 The boys trying out one of those large battle guns. 

 Warren & Dad scoping out their target. Weston's crank turned the entire base of the gun 360 degrees to set the direction and Warren's crank lifted the barrel up & down to set the angle of the shot. Ben takes cover. 

Sitting on top of the bullets that go in the guns. Each one weighed 105 lbs.  

 Here is one of the plaque's that describes some of the missions the U.S.S Texas completed in WWII. It carried approx. 5000 marines. 

In the officers dining room there is a display of all the "ladies" as Warren calls them. To learn about the ladies click here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IYzVm_3EBkw

Across from the battleship there is the San Jacinto monument. This monument was placed in remembrance of one of the biggest military upsets in US history. The US defeated Mexico in the Mexican-American War. After the defeat the United States would gain not only Texas but also New Mexico, Nevada, Arizona, California, Utah and parts of Oklahoma, Kansas, Colorado and Wyoming. It is also the highest monument column in the world and stands 570 feet tall. :) 

*****

 I started a new project in our kitchen which has been really time consuming (pics to come). This kept us from swimming like we usually do so we pulled out the slip and slide for a little fun in the sun one day while mom worked. :)  Subsequently, we now have a very large mud strip in our grass there but it sure was a great day. :) 

The boys played nearly all afternoon.

*****

Everyday is a good day for the beach! 

 Final goodies purchased and all packed up headed for Galveston!

Dustin & Natalie checking out the warm Galveston water. :) Weston & Ben search for seashells in the distance. 

 Building sandcastles and decorating them with seashells & feathers.

Flying Kites. Warren flying the dragon & Ben flying Buzz & Woody. 

Finn was such a sweet boy all day despite the heat. Watch out ladies, he learned how to smile! 

 We even discovered this baby eal on the beach. Dustin saw it pop right out of the sand and then it died. Not sure what happened to it but it captured our attention for a while. 

Who wants to Boogie? Warren had a blast as usual. 

It was Ben's first time and he LOVED it! He laughed & laughed. Check out the video below: 

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The Kite Dreamer.

We have had such a cold, long winter this past year in TX! The weather is starting to warm up and we couldn't be more ready. I am not complaining and my memory has not failed me. The many chilling ice box adventures I have endured throughout my life living in Utah and Michigan will forever be burnt there. All that being said, your blood changes when you move south.....35 degrees is cold to us! ;)

Last Thursday was such a gorgeous day! Despite my joy in the weather, I had been having a bit of a frustrating day and was tempted to dig into spring cleaning at home (which is usually how I vent out my frustrations) when my friend Janelle called. They were headed to the beach for spring break and they invited us to come along.

Warren has been wanting to fly a kite for months...but it has been so cold and not really windy enough. We kept telling him as soon as it warmed up we would take him to the beach because it is always windy there and it is also near some other good friends who live nearby.

Weston worked from home that day and we have been itching to get out in the sunshine. So, we hopped in the car and we were off for a little fun in the sun! We got stuck in bad traffic and after a 2.5 hour car trip and Warren asking us "are we getting closer?!" about 50 times we made it to Galveston.

Dad riggin up the chassy......

You must watch the video (bottom of this post) to fully experience and appreciate Warren's kite flying dream come true. He was just a... LITTLE excited.

Janelle showing the kiddos how it is done! See her cute little tum tum? Baby Jones is due Sept 2oth.

The kids had fun playing in the sand and collecting sea shells.

We had such a great time. Looking forward to more warm weather and future beach trips this year! It was just what I needed that day to lift my spirits and forget the things which are not important in life and focus on the things that are. Family & Friends. It was a great reminder to me, when life gives you wind... take your "wings", leave the "dirt" behind and fly with the angels He sends along the way. :)

You'll make someone's dreams come true.

Beach Boys

We had a fabulous day of sunshine, sandcastles, boogie boarding & collecting seashells on Saturday at the beach! We have been talking about going for a while and we finally organized ourselves and did it! It was Ben's first time and he LOVED every minute....along with Warren! (I love that his belly is sticking out here)

He loved sitting in the "waves".

He LOVED the sand. Sticking his fingers in was a very interesting and captured a good part of his attention. :)
Warren spent most of his time hunting for seashells and other treasures! Boogie boarding was his next fav. I think we will be going again soon for sure!

I can't get this video to post for the life of me but click on this link for a live show!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-yyfR1EPQ2s

Chillin at the Beach

We love going to Galveston. Warren loves gathering sea shells and building sand castles. He usually also loves crashing waves with us. We couldnt figure out why he was so scared this time. Especially since it had been a good 5 minutes before that Weston told him their were sharks in the water. ...hmmm....it was so odd. Dads are good for that kind of stuff. Maybe next time. lol