Houston round 2

As I've said before, Houston is my home base when in the USA so after traveling around for a couple weeks it was nice to come "home".   My main plan for the last full week in Houston was to get my shopping done, do some fun stuff with Jacob, and to be packed before heading back to Stillwater for Labor Day weekend.  For the most part, I accomplished all of my goals.

One of the things I really wanted to do was take Jacob to the Houston Children's Museum.  I know he's still a little young but living in the Middle East feels like these type of opportunities are few and far between.  I can still remember going to the museum as a kid so I wanted to have that time with Jacob. I found a Groupon which made the trip pretty cheap so I figured if we didn't last long it would be ok.  I talked Mom into going with us so that I would have help and adult conversation.  She ended up being our photographer.  Jacob LOVED playing at the museum.  Most areas were too old for him but he was able to enjoy some of it in his own way.  He enjoyed putting all the eggs in one basket...literally.

 The museum had a toddler area that was perfect for Jacob.  He enjoyed going through the obstacles, driving the cars, playing with the blocks, and mostly playing with the kid sized door.  We ended up staying all morning, taking a break for lunch, and then playing some more.  By the time we left we had one tired happy boy!

My parents live a short walk away from a splash park so I was determined to take advantage of it.  Splash parks are actually more fun for me and Jacob at this age than the pool since his head doesn't go underwater if he falls.  Way less stressful and less work for me.  He had a blast and had zero fear of the slides.

Not many other pictures were taken (who wants to see pictures of me shopping?) but we had a great last full week in Houston.  On Thursday morning we drove to Stillwater to spend Labor Day weekend with the Gilbert family and then drove back to Houston on Monday.  Jacob and I flew out of Houston on Wednesday so really this was the end to our Houston vacation.

Time with the Sperling Family

It just so happened that Jacob and I's time in the USA would correspond with our nephew, Evan's, first birthday.  We were so excited to get to be in Oklahoma during this time to celebrate with family.  Jacob and I made it to Wagoner and then spent a day in Tulsa helping Jackie get ready for the party.  Part of getting things ready was to get both boys hair cut.  Grandma was excited to give Evan his first hair cut and Jacob his second. Kate was also really eager to help!

Evan's first birthday party was cookies & milk themed and Jackie's decorations were adorable. She is so creative.  A ton of Micah's family was able to make it to the party which gave us a chance to see everyone again.  Jacob really enjoyed playing with all the kids.  It was a great party. Evan was the cutest little birthday boy!

Once all the party shinanigans had died down and most other family had gone back home we headed to Wagoner.  Jacob  spent lots of time playing with all of Daddy and Uncle Andy's old toys and in the backyard swimming pool.  At one point Grandpa was even brave enough to get in the pool with the kids.

We spent a few evenings at the lake letting the kids play in the water while me and Grandpa rode jet-skis.  Gizmo has even learned to enjoy swimming!  I never thought I would see the day.  Grandpa and I took Jake on his first jet-ski ride.  He did great during the ride but HATED wearing the life-jacket.

I enjoyed getting to see Gizmo again!  It was so easy to leave him seeing how happy he is in his new home.  Thanks for being such great adoptive dog parents Shelly and Marvetta!

One of our last days in Oklahoma was Evan's actual first birthday so we decided to go out and celebrate together.  We spent the morning at the Tulsa aquarium, we considered the zoo but it was too darn hot!  At the aquarium we were able to feed turtles and stingrays and pet all sorts of fish.  The aquarium had beavers and an otter that were fun to watch.  Evan slept through the first part and Jacob slept through the last part.  The attention span of 1 year olds doesn't last long but Kate enjoyed all of it. When we were fished out, we headed to Los Cabos for a birthday lunch.  What a fun day celebrating Evan. 

 Jacob and I had a great week visiting Grandma and Grandpa, Uncle Andy and Aunt Jackie and cousins Kate and Evan.  Sadly, it was time to say goodbye and for Jacob and I to head back to Houston.