Snow in Texas!

Snow in Texas, especially Houston, is a pretty big deal. When forecasts started predicting snow a few days out, I rolled my eyes, but it turns out they were right! I got just as excited as a native Texan about it, and Emmeline didn't have to wait until Wisconsin to see some snow.

Thanksgiving

We got to start a few fun traditions this year, including a thankful pumpkin, and turkey pancakes for breakfast!

This year one of Emmeline's friends, Everett, and his family invited us over to their family's Thanksgiving. Emmeline and Everett had a blast together, and we enjoyed the company for the afternoon. It was nice to have somewhere to go since we couldn't be with our own families.

Halloween & Fall Fun

Another year of fall and Halloween fun. Once again, the weather proved to be rather miserable for most of the month, but we still managed to have a blast celebrating the "fall" season! I let Emmeline choose what she wanted to be for Halloween this year, and after much back and forth between a buffalo (a highly discouraged this one, way too hot!), a cat, an owl, and a dinosaur, she finally landed on an owl. It was fun to make and turned out pretty cute!

Paris Part 2: Walks, Sights, and Food

What Paris post would be complete without mention of the walks, sights, and food? It was fun to revisit many of the places we frequented when living there, and check out a few new things.

Paris Part 1: Paris with a Toddler!

Oh, Paris! After 2.5 years away, we were able to spend several weeks there again when Nick had a business trip there. This time Emmeline got join in on the fun, and I think she fell in love with it as much as we did!

Canada: A Whole Lotta Smoke, Some Beauty, & Calgary

From this point on, our trip was marked primarily by the prescense of wildfire smoke, and a lot of it. Apparently, this has been fairly common with summer with very little rain and wildfires all over British Columbia. Things will clear up for a few days with good winds and then go back to smoke filled. Sadly, there was no way to predict how the next day would be, but we never did see those goregous blue skies again. We still found lots of beauty, and we can only imagine how truly beautiful this area must be without the smoke!

Canada: Beautiful Canmore & Banff

This is maybe the strangest trip we've ever planned: booked plane tickets 9 months in advance (which we never do) on a whim and cheap tickets, and yet probably the least amount of planning and prep before we left for the trip. Despite the wildfires in British Columbia sending smoke our way for the majority of the week, we still enjoyed our first trip to Banff National Park and Emmeline's first trip to Canada (and another country)!

Hurricane Harvey

Well, I guess we've officially survived our first hurricane since moving to Houston. While we weren't affected as much as many others, I figured it was worth making note of!

Paris Lake Reunion

About 6 months ago, Lindsey and Justin mentioned a trip to the US in August. Our Paris group quickly aligned on a weekend for a reunion. Although we didn't plan on the hurricane, it was still a blast of a weekend hanging out with everyone again (with a few kid/dog additions!)

WI Visit & Emmeline’s 2nd Birthday

We decided we needed to escape the heat of Houston and headed to Wisconsin for a couple of weeks before Emmeline's birthday. Although a bit on the cooler side for August in Wisconsin, it was a welcome break for us, and Emmeline loved all her Grandma and Grandpa time.

2 Years

Two! For some reason two just seems so much older than one. In some ways it's hard to believe it was already two years ago that we were anxiously awaiting her arrival, and in other ways, it feels like yes, it was definitely two years. She has grown up so much, especially the past few months, and is definitely a true toddler now!

4th Of July in New Mexico

We spent the long weekend just outside of Taos enjoying family and views (and no humidity)! We'd never been to New Mexico before, but it was truly beautiful, especially in the north as you enter the southern part of the Rocky Mountains!

Hawaii: The Food

The last Hawaii post—it’s only taken me almost 2 months to get them done! Ha! While we made the majority of our meals at our Airbnbs or had pre-packed hiking lunches, we did manage to try some local cuisine in our time in Hawaii.

Kauai Part 3: Beautiful Views

This post is mostly pictures. Kauai is so gorgeous, especially the north shore. These are just a few of our favorite views from our week spent here.

Kauai: Part 2: Na Pali Coast

Oh the Na Pali Coast! There really is nothing quite like it anywhere else in the world. Rugged cliffs and peaks meeting the ocean for 17 miles of Kauai's shoreline, with hidden beaches and valleys at every turn. There is no road on this part of the island so the only way to see it is by hiking, boat, or air. We took advantage of two of those ways.

Kauai: Part 1

Oh, Kauai! Our favorite of all the islands we visited. From Hilo we flew to Lihue, where we were greeted with beautiful weather. Our week on the island flew by, and even in the rain we discovered how beautiful it is!

Oahu

Kauai was next up on our Hawaii adventure, but there’s a lot to tell about it, so I’m going with Oahu first since it’ll be easier to finish! With just a few nights there we hit up all the major sites (Pearl Harbor, Waikiki) and managed to do a driving tour of most of the island. While not our favorite island, there are definitely beuatiful parts and we are glad we went because now we don’t feel the need to have to come back!

Big Island: Part 2: Volcanoes & Lava

The main reason we wanted to go to Big Island was for the volcanoes/lava. It did not disappoint; in fact, it exceeded even our highest expectations!

Big Island: Part 1

Our first stop in Hawaii. Well, technically our second, since after we landed in Honolulu, we had to recheck our bag for our flight to Hilo just a few hours later. Big Island was a great introduction to Hawaii, and we stayed quite busy in our 3 days there! First off, Hilo airport is amazing. We were driving away in our rental car literally 10-15 min after pulling up to the gate (including getting our checked bag). Turns out you only need to be back at the airport 15 min before your flight too; it's so quiet!

Colorado Fun

Nick attended a conference in Colorado Springs last week, so Emmeline and I decided we should definitely tag along. Colorado never disappoints, but what a fun week it was!

Easter Celebrations

Emmeline was old enough this year to actually understand a bit of Easter. Despite moving around Easter (hence the delayed post), we managed to still find time for a few fun celebrations.

Tour de Parcs: April Edition

We didn't make it to as many parks this month. Between moving, sickness, and Easter, it was busy!

Tour De Parcs: March

I recently grabbed a copy of The Woodlands Township’s parks, thinking it would be fun to visit them all with Emmeline. Well, I had no idea how many parks are in The Woodlands: 139! So, slowly, we are making our way through the parks that have playgrounds (about 85). Here’s the ones from March!

Bluebonnets

When you live and Texas and have kids, I’m pretty sure it’s an unwritten law that you have to take a picture of your kid(s) in a field of bluebonnets. So, I set off to do that.

Rodeo Fun!

Well, we are officially embracing the Texan lifestyle. From trail riders and Go Texan Day fun to BBQ lunch at Dad's office, it was a busy week! Since we moved to Texas 8 years ago, people have been telling me about these trail riders. Every year before the rodeo, groups of people make their way from all over the state, and ride "trails" (now roads) into the rodeo. Dressed in Texan attire, riding horses and covered wagons, they slowly make their way to downtown over the course of several days, camping along the way. So, I decided this year would be a good year to go out and try and see them. When in Texas, right?

Skiing Steamboat

After some awesome ski trips in Europe, we decided it was time for another one, this time in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. Hannah and Andrew met us in Denver for a long weekend of skiing and fun. None of us had been to Steamboat before, and although it's a 3+ hour drive from Denver, it was well worth it, and the drive gave us a chance to catch up. We stayed in a cozy Airbnb near the ski resort, which was a perfect location: close to skiing and a free bus took us downtown when we wanted.

18 Months

Emmeline is officially turning into a little girl! It's amazing how quickly she picks up on things and how much she learns on a daily basis! These 3 months have been filled with lots of firsts: first church nursery visit, first camping trip, first YMCA gym childcare experience (it took a few weeks for her not to cry but now she loves it!)

Winter Camping, Literally

With a new tent in hand, we decided it was time to introduce Emmeline to camping! We recruited Kristy, Konrad, Maddox, and Mila along too, and made the short drive to Hunstville State Park. We thought January would be a great time for camping to avoid the heat, but we didn't quite count on it being true "winter" camping!

Christmas in Wisconsin

What a great time we had celebrating Christmas in Wisconsin. Emmeline got her first real experience with snow and cold (she's not a fan) and loved all the attention and gifts she received.

It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

Christmas is so fun with a little one in the house! Although, Emmeline doesn't quite grasp the entire idea of Christmas yet, she started to get excited by things this year and loved finding anything Santa, Christmas tree, or snowman related wherever we went!