February 28 - Hamilton

Last night Julia and I went to the Hobby Center of Performing Arts to watch Hamilton! This was her big Christmas gift and she was super excited to be there. The set was beautiful and we had great seats. The verdict? The show was amazing! In true Christine fashion, I fell asleep during part of the 2nd half (I'm sure the people next to me couldn't believe some crazy woman was sleeping) but overall, I still enjoyed it. We both agreed that "The Room Where It Happens" was the best musical number and the king had the most fun role.  

February 25 - Soccer & Zoo Fun

Sisters

Jillian's second soccer game was last Saturday. It was a perfect soccer day-clear blue skies and beautiful sunshine. Julia, Luke and I were at the fields cheering on our favorite blonde. Jillian did great, scoring 2 goals (one was in the wrong goal..but she was still excited LOL) and one assist. Great job Rainbow Unicorns! After the game, we headed to the shoe store to get Luke some new sneakers and then Jillian and I spent a few hours at the neighborhood park. It was a great day!

On Sunday, Jillian and I headed to the Houston Zoo. It was overcast and a tad chilly, but we had a great time seeing the animals, riding the carousal multiple times and riding the train. Jillian said she wants to go to the zoo together every Sunday, little cutie. 

Soccer Fun

Zoo Adventure

 

February 21 - Valentine Dance

The Brookside Intermediate 'Valentine Dance' was Friday and Julia had been looking forward to it for weeks. Eli, a boy from school and XC teammate asked her to be his date (which meant they met at the dance and danced to one slow song LOL). We carpooled with one of Julia's friend's, Ruthie. Ruthie's parents drove them to the dance and I picked up the girls, then took them out to eat at Chiptole and Menchies. The girls had a blast! They said almost everyone in the school was there and there was a lot of dancing. So happy they had a fun time!

In terms of the dress-we tried the mall and were not successful. I bought a really pretty pink one but she decided on this purple one that she borrowed from a friend. Meanwhile, she really wanted me to curl her hair but I couldn't figure out how to do it (attempted it with a flat iron and velcro rollers). I might need to invest in hot rollers or a curling iron. It's hard working with super long, heavy hair!

Julia and Ruthie

Julia and Eli

Julia and Gracelynn

February 16 - Trumpet

In middle school here, kids choose between band, orchestra, theater and art. After watching a video of the HS band perform "The King" in the fall, Luke decided band was for him. There is a 'band session' in the spring where kids meet one-on-one with the music teacher at their middle school and try all the instruments before making a decision on what to play. Luke didn't want to wait, he decided on the trumpet! I think my brother Greg played the trumpet (I have vague memories of him playing an instrument at some point) and my friend Tammy's daughter is the #4 chair at our HS, which is pretty incredible as she's just a freshman. We were at Tammy's house to watch the Super Bowl and Hannah started working with Luke on the trumpet. He loved it! She's going to give him lessons this summer and I can't wait to see how he progresses. 

February 10 - Rainbow Unicorns

The first practice of spring soccer was last night and Jillian was SO EXCITED in the days leading up to it. She has been wearing her cleats around the house and asked everyday "Is today the day I have my first practice?" Sometime I forget she's a pandemic child. Julia and Luke did so many activities while she just did ballet for a few months when she was 3. So she was extra excited for soccer! She signed up with her best friend from school, Penny, but unfortunately Penny is a year older and they are in different leagues. That's okay-more new friends to meet! Jillian was super excited to learn her new team is called "Rainbow Unicorns!" She claimed her foot hurt around the 50min mark but otherwise she had a great time The first game is this weekend and JD will be taking her as I'll be working at a school fair all day. I hope everyone is having a great week!

Love this girl!

January 31 - Unicorn Cupcakes

Happy Monday! It's a dark, dreary, drizzly here in Houston but this weekend was gorgeous. Julia, Jillian and I went to the mall on Saturday to find Julia a dress for her Valentine's Day dance. We didn't find one but Jillian had fun seeing everything at the mall. Sometimes I forget she's barely been anywhere public in the last few years so it was almost a sensory overload for her. While the girls were shopping, JD and Luke were at K1 track racing go-karts. There was a junior race going on and if Luke had been entered, he would have placed 2nd with his best time! He did a great job and won a few of his races with the other non-team kids. On Sunday, Jillian had a playdate with her friend Jemma, and then we baked unicorn cupcakes and delivered them to friends. Great weekend all around. And it was the first weekend all month that JD hasn't worked so it was great to have him home helping with the kiddos. 

January 30 - 3rd Tooth Down!

Third tooth down, the tooth fairy is coming tonight! Is there anything more adorable than a smile missing teeth. Love this little firecracker!

January 28 - Off To Regionals

 Congratulations Julia! Third place at Districts and off to regionals!! We are so proud!

January 26 - Green Goddess

It's a rare sighting folks...yours truly, dressed up in heels. I was in Tampa this past weekend for our Global Sales Meeting, our first in 2 years. This meeting is usually very upbeat, positive and fun to attend but this one was pretty stressful with long work days. I was able to dress up for an awards dinner on Saturday night. Fun fact-I bought this dress for $30 at a craft fair in November, great find!

Some of my work colleagues (all vaccinated :) ):

 

January 24 - Keystone

Happy January everyone! I am behind on the blog because work has been bananas. We spent New Years at Keystone with Bryan and had a blast! I booked the trip last minute so we were in a condo complex called The Flying Dutchman that was more like the Flying Dumpman (I can't take credit for that, someone used that on a blistering TripAdvisor review of the complex LOL). The condo itself wasn't the best but we were on the free bus route and were able to quickly get to/from the slopes with ease. Our first full day there, we went sledding and everyone had an absolute blast! The next two days, the kids did ski school and loved it.

Julia and Luke were able to take the chairlift up to the top of the mountain and ski with us afterwards which was really fun. Jillian spent her time on the magic carpet but she loved it! Our last day, we went into the main village and walked around. The weather was beautiful although super cold! It was -16 the night before we left and -9 when we drove out. The main highway was closed due to ice so we had to take winding mountain roads, which was not fun without snow tires but JD did a great job driving. The windshield did completely crack it was so cold but we made it home in one piece. Great time!!

So fun!!