Lake Newbies

On Memorial Day, we had the pleasure of taking Jocelyn and Jason to the lake for their first time. They were a bit hesitant at first, but once they got in the water and realized how buoyant their life jackets made them, they had a blast. Everyone got a turn on the tube, and though sometimes it got a bit front heavy and went under, it was still tons of fun. Also, Trung actually water-skied for more than a few seconds...whoo-hoo! What can I say, I'm a good coach. :P

Jason, Cora, and Jocelyn

The floating Ly's

Look, Mom, no hands!

Whipping it with that ponytail

Family in San Antonio

We went to San Antonio for the day to see my aunt (my mother's younger sister) and uncle; it is their first time in the US. I have not seen them in 13 years, so it was very nice seeing them again and introducing them to my family. We had a lovely lunch, dropped by a shopping center for me to hit a Gymboree, and then Trung dropped me off at San Marcos Outlet. I went shopping with Cora and the gang, and didn't get home until 9; we literally shopped until we dropped.

Cousins and cousin's kid

One big happy family

Sophie was very excited about her red envelope

Sweet Sisters

Showing the love

Staying busy with their Leapfrogs

Avery Ranch Pool Party

My friends Isabelle and Matt invited us to their community pool to hang out for a couple hours. The sun went away and the sky was a bit cloudy, but where there is water (and water guns), we always have fun.

Lydia and her piggy

Warming up a shivering Sophie

Getting a spray down by Matt

Sophie's star

Pay back time...what a wonderful husband!

The Ly family enjoying every bit of summer

Golden Corral

We joined the madness during the grand opening weekend of Golden Corral. All the food was good and a chocolate fountain was icing on the cake. We probably won't be going back anytime soon since Trung is not into buffets, but it was an interesting experience.

Sophie had such a good time that she did a little dance. Her outfit and style of dance reminds me of Austin Powers.

Wesley turns one

Our friends, Nina and Erlander, invited us over to their home to celebrate their son, Wesley's, first birthday. The girls LOVE birthday parties even when they don't really know the birthday boy/girl because what's a party without CAKE?

Definitely Daddy's girl

Wesley just testing the ropes

Sophie went for a little taste

Clean up time

Bubble fun outside

Sophie checking out Lydia's bubble

Notice the "burst" of Chris' bubble

Over a year later...

I hosted a girl's night at the house, even though Trung was home. After some appetizers, we watched the musical "Nine", which was slow at times, but overall, not too bad. It's always fun hanging out with the girls and drinking wine. :)

Wendy's 30th Birthday

We joined Wendy at Chuy's to celebrate the next decade of her life. Happy birthday, dear friend!

Cutting the cake like newlyweds, with Kaitlin sitting in the background :P

I can't believe we've known each other ten years this summer!

Mother's Day in New Braunfels

After church, I dragged Trung and the girls to New Braunfels to listen to a "timeshare" spiel. We first dropped by San Marcos outlet for lunch and to do some quick shopping. Then off to New Braunfels, where we listed to a 90 minute spiel and I picked up two vacation packages. We ate dinner at the Grist Mill, which I had gone to maybe ten years ago. The weather was off and on all day, but of course, during the few minutes it took me to walk to the restaurant to put our name down, it poured rain. Fortunately, the sun came out soon after (and freed more outdoor tables) and we were able to enjoy a lovely dinner.

I found it ironic that Iron Man 2 came out this weekend

Mother of Two

When a Kleenex is not within reach, Mommy's skirt comes in handy

Loving the cool whip

Got milk? er, whip?

Gruene Hall (in the background) is the oldest dance hall in Texas!

Artistic Sophie

A Party Day

I attended three parties today and had a lot of fun, but I think I may be too old for this now. :/ We attended our neighborhood pool party around noon and ate yummy submarine sandwiches from Thundercloud Subs. We had initially planned on swimming, but the weather was so windy and chilly that Trung and I jogged to the pool and back instead. After lunch, the kids painted flower pots and got to plant some flowers, which we will now be watering every couple of days along with our basil plant.

A nice field of flowers on the way home from the pool

After naptime, we headed downtown to the Austin Children's Museum for Conrad's second birthday party. We had never been before and it was a very fun place (for the kids). We got free passes for next time, so we plan on coming back again.

Experimenting

Sophie trying to catch a floating ball

Conrad getting some help from Mom and Dad in blowing out his candle.

When we got home, Trung and the girls ate dinner, and then Sarah and I went to our friend Ravel's 30th mustache birthday party. No 'staches" here, but we still had a good time eating delicious food and running into old friends. It was nice getting out of the norm of kids running around to a bunch of adults just chilling, even though I was still talking about the kids and busting out our family picture. :P

A trio of former triatheletes

Sweet Berry Farm

A bunch of my friends and their families were planning a trip out to Sweet Berry Farm in Marble Falls to pick strawberries and we decided to join them. We had a late start since we woke up late and dropped by Chinatown to pick up Vietnamese sandwiches for lunch, but we finally arrived while everyone was still at the farm. The girls had a wonderful time picking (and eating) the strawberries. The cloudy weather was just right for being outside with no shade, but the sun came out only a couple hours later. The hour and twenty minute drive was quite a trek, but maybe we'll be back for blackberries.

Squinting sweeties

Sophie tickled by something I said, I'm sure

"See, strawberry!"

An unusually shaped strawberry

Taste testing

The girls love their fruit

Sophie pouting after getting in trouble for eating a strawberry without permission

Our little basket holder

The signature pose

Ladybug ladies

The Ly Family at Sweet Berry Farm

Feeding the hungry goats some grass

Trung pulling an onion for me. Fortunately we were able to pull WAY bigger ones later.