Austin, TX - Kids' Visit

In early July, I had the unique pleasure of having all of my children under one roof here in Austin, Texas.  This is really special, but even more so as my brand-new grandson added even more joy to the mix.  The group is so fun to be around...they love having fun together.  I particularly enjoy watching the youngest - G-Man and L - play with their older siblings.  It's hard to describe the joy in my heart when all the kids are together.  I love my kids, and love their spouses.  This is truly what it's all about...

We loved being able to hold the baby...even though it had only been a few weeks since we last saw him:

Of course...my son had to try and photo bomb the moment...

He was a precious little angel...and I even loved watching him sleep.  After all, it's hard to be a baby...

L became infatuated with the baby.  She would run around the house saying his name and watch him constantly ; ) Here's an example:

G-Man idolizes his older brother, and his brother is patient with him.  They have a lot of fun together.  How lucky am I to have these boys in my family???

When the little ones were asleep, we had a chance to play cards together.  We wanted to introduce my son and his wife to a game that we learned during our family reunion in June.  They didn't have a chance to attend, as my grandson arrived just days before the reunion.

We decided to have Baby L take his first dip in a pool.  His mother was well-prepared, of course.  He looked awesome heading to the pool:

The water was quite warm.  The Texas sun had heated the pool - as it does every summer - and the water was about 86 degrees.  Baby L actually loved being in the water...he fell asleep ; )

OK - another shot of the boy.  This time, he looks like he's hold his mother...wrapping his little arms around her:

While in Austin, we decided to take the family to a fun even called Trailer Food Tuesdays.  On the last Tuesday of every month, several of the local food trailers gather at the Austin Long Center and give folks a chance to try a limited menu from trailers they might not be familiar with.  It was a warm day, but when the sun went down, the breeze made it a perfect evening.

The view from the Long Center is gorgeous.  That's the Austin skyline in the background, around sunset:

My oldest kids...about to enjoy a frozen custard root beer float...

My oldest daughter's husband...holding the new baby.  I guess Baby L looks scared ; )

We sat out on the lawn on a perfect night and enjoyed food from a Thai trailer, BBQ trailer, hot dog/sausage trailer and topped it all off with the ice cream desserts:

Here's a little video clip of everyone on the lawn in front of the Long Center:

At home, L had a blast playing with her older sister.  I know that I'm too tall and too old to bounce around the house like this:



We took the kids to Rudy's - a sort of BBQ tradition here in Austin.  It looks like G-Man enjoyed himself ; )

At the end of the day, everyone was exhausted from all the fun.  Even mom took advantage of the sleeping child and decided to take a little nap of her own.  Too sweet:

It was a quick weekend, but I sure appreciate the older kids and their spouses making the effort to come to Austin.  I love every minute that they're here and we had a blast hanging out with each other.  As Baby L grows up, trips to Grandpa's house will be an adventure...I promise ; )

Here are some pictures that I made everyone pose for.  I wanted to document this time together and my wife was kind enough to indulge me...