texas trip

somewhere over the rainbow......my brother and i would not live so far apart.... but to make the best of his new address in texas we took our first trip as a family to visit. the best part was when samantha first saw blake in the airport and she went running into his arms with kisses and hugs. it put a lump in my throat as i watched the love they have for each other. no matter where we are when we hear a siren or see a police car, she says blake and thinks of him. we do skype as much as we can so she can see his face and we make lots of artwork, colored just for him to send him in the mail. needless to say samantha was thrilled when we arrived! she partied like a rock star....staying up late, napping on the fly, drinking her weight in apple juice and being showered with attention. here are our pictures....thank you blake and mandy for having us!!!!!

early early early...waiting for our 5:30 am flight

lunch at Keima boardwalk. notice her texas shirt that tyler picked out in the walgreens on our way...ha

checking out the crazy fish....

a big highlight for samantha...riding the choo choo train that went all throughout the Keima boardwalk area








always wanting to hold blake's hand....

not sure if this was before or after she dropped her strawberry icecream cone smack on the floor...hehe

opening up her easter basket from blake and mandy..she loves carrying it around!

my favorite day....hanging out at Old MacDonald's farm...loved every minute of our family time together and samantha's face when she got up close with a new animal...


riding another train...EIEO train gave us a good preview of the farm

of course she has a preference for ducks...

waiting in line for a pony ride...she picked out which one she wanted, it was her idea, all kinds of excitement....then after waiting in the long line she changed her mind at the last second...clinging to her daddy for her life. ha

feeding time...



petting a deer with her pop pop

loving the bunnies

one of the best parts...a baby baby goat was so friendly

enjoyed a delicious lunch at a local bbq joint, right around the corner. smoked brisket sandwich...yum

that afternoon we did some shopping...the cutest, little quaint stores. this toy store was a huge hit! couldn't get enough of the entrance way.

hanging out and eating smores by their fire pit

a new day.....we traveled to Galveston. Mandy's mom was able to get off of work to come with us to show us around and give us all the historical facts. amazing how they have rebuilt and recovered since Hurricane Ike a few years ago.



my favorite....black and white milkshakes....