We went to Dallas this past weekend to attend my cousin Ryan's wedding, which was so beautiful, and it was equally great getting to see a lot of family I haven't seen in a very long time. We stayed with Lee's sister Mary Kathryn and her new husband Tim, and we are so thankful that they opened up their home to our three-ring circus! It was a whirlwind of a weekend packed with things to do, including Brady's photo shoot with MK (she's a photographer) before the wedding and our outings on Saturday after the wedding.
Here are a few samples from the portrait session:
That afternoon, our first stop was the American Girl doll store. The boys stayed at home, and MK, Becky, & I took Annalee & Addie. I had never been before, and am still amazed at that place! It is enormous! There are dolls on display everywhere, and each doll has her own accessories based on her theme; like the beach doll (I forget her name...yes they all have names) has a beach blanket, umbrella, sunglasses, etc. And the prairie one has a horse, wagon, etc. The girls (and I) were in awe. Annalee really wants one, and perhaps the coolest thing is that there are dresses that you can buy to match the one your doll is wearing! You can also get a custom doll to look like you: same hair color, eye color, and even freckles!
Annalee played with this doll and her bed for the longest time! Notice the matching outfits hanging on the rack above her.
Our next stop was a place called Pet Land, which I'd never heard of, and Becky accurately described as PetSmart on steroids. It's a pet store, but there are also all different kinds of animals, and most of it is hands on. They have mice, guinea pigs, bunnies, parakeets, and a whole wall of puppies that you can hold and play with. You just pick a puppy and they bring it into a little room for you.
Annalee petting a guinea pig
This bunny was very skiddish and tried to jump out of Becky's hands several times! Luckily when it finally succeeded it landed back in its cage and not on the tile floor....that would have been messy.
Annalee chose this chihuahua puppy to play with because it was the smallest dog they had. It was really sweet.
Addie wanted to hold it, but it kept running away; so when I told her to hold it tighter, she put it in a choke hold.
I'd say everything went very smoothly for most of the weekend, with the exception of Brady on Saturday night and all day Sunday. He was very fussy and cried a lot, which is very uncharacteristic of him. We assumed he was getting sick or something, but then last night I saw a new tooth coming in. Poor guy was just in pain! I gave him some Tylenol and he slept great last night, and seems much better now. However, I think we've soured Tim & Mary Kathryn on having kids...or at least delayed them a bit...after all his crying. Sorry guys. Hope you'll have us back sometime! Thanks for having us; we really had fun with you. Especially Addie, who spent all day yesterday telling us "I want go to Dawas (Dallas) and wiv (live) with Mary Kathryn."
