One Last Day Together

Sunday morning started out with everyone hungry.

Ben loves to play in the cupboards.  I took two dozen pictures like this.

Melanie is eating her dad's hot chocolate with whipped cream and sprinkles. Dave is thinking that's a nice touch.

Julia made her own breakfast.  I added the cup of milk.

Julia and I shared chapstick this weekend.

Nate is such a happy, fun kid to have around!

Nate and Jacob spent quite a bit of time trying to play with Percy.
Jacob took this picture.

Nate took this excellent picture.
There was only one episode of a cat flying through the kitchen.

Many activities occupied Sunday afternoon.  Dave brought a 500 piece puzzle.

This was a special, custom puzzle which made Ella laugh and laugh. I missed the joke.

The truth was, there was a lot of laughing.

We sneaked up on a lizard in Corinne's backyard.

Jacob practiced riding his new unicycle.  At first, during the rain, he worked in the garage.

As Dallas dried out, we went outside to cheer him on.

Little by little, he made progress.

Aunt Carolyn is asking Ben if he wants a turn.

Ta da!

I happened upon this random scene yesterday.  It's why I keep this blog.

Company Already

We are having a wonderful time in Dallas.  Matt's family came to welcome Corinne to Texas.

Yesterday we visited the Dallas World Aquarium, one of my favorite places.

I saw things I had never seen before.

I love watching grandchildren have a good time.

It appears that other creatures like watching my grandchildren, too.

Seeing these two together melts my heart.  They always have such a great time.

These two melt my heart, too.

The aquarium has lots of interesting monkeys.

Ben saw a cat.  He can say cat, and sock, and fish.  He knows where my nose is, too.

Julia knows where the best ride is.

Ella and Melanie know their way around the aquarium, but they keep an eye on me to make sure I don't get lost.

We all know I am easily distracted.

There is no risk of losing me with kids who stay near.

Jane was my spotter.

Julia kept an eye on Papa Ben.

It's fun to walk and talk and receive lessons on mammals from smart grandkids.

Kate drew pictures of some of the animals.

Yes, this became a trend.

Back at the ranch, we had a little party.

We celebrated some recent birthdays.

We had candles, but no matches.  No neighbors were home.

This was dinner, to be honest.

Ben got some extra vitamins.

Even though it rained a lot yesterday, we still played outside.

Corinne's new home is on a fun street.

Uncle Dave and Ben bonded. 

Jacob got a unicycle for his birthday.  Dave assisted in the learning process.

Ben found a source of great amusement.

Julia found it interesting, too.

I am certain no one found this as fascinating as I did.

Of course we played Mexican Train.  Melanie took this fabulous picture.

If you are thinking Jacob knew he was going to win, you would be correct.

I need to mention that we had butter chicken at Jeff's during the week.  It was delicious, as usual.

Everyone agreed.

Dave, of course, always makes us his famous hot chocolate for breakfast.  He has mastered this.

Corinne is settled.  Ben has a new chair which he loves.

Sometimes I don't exaggerate.

Ben is finding many things to explore.

Even Percy is starting to feel at home.