Lil' Punkins'!!

Right now during this time of year, it is very strange for us to not be dusting off our winter coats, hats and gloves and gearing up for winter!  Instead we are shutting off our AC and leaving our windows open since the first time we moved to TX!!  Although it has been a tough HOT summer, the high for Nacogdoches, TX tomorrow is 68 degrees, compared to a high of 46 degrees in Buffalo, MN!  This the first time i'm saying I LOVE this weather!!   Don't worry MN, apart of me is still there with you all in the chilly October weather that we do miss!

This week kicked off Halloween in our house!  Most of our Halloween decorations are still in MN, so we kept it pretty simple this year and put up a pumpkin door decoration, which i'm amazed is still intact and hanging without tears! :)  Andy, the girls and I got into full pumpkin decorating mode and painted Laila and Lainie's pumpkins!  We do plan on carving them as it gets closer to Halloween!  Laila being like her mom, couldn't let a blank canvas sit on her pumpkin for too long!  It was a fun, creative mess!

As well as painting our pumpkins, we enjoyed going to the Nacogdoches fair!  The girls loved the animal expo which included mainly cows.  Also the amusement rides and fair food made for a fun day!  The animals were of course a big hit for no one other than miss Lainie Lou!  At one point Lainie tried to climb into the cows pen and pet it.  The cow was not impressed!!  Andy and Laila rode a number of rides to which I was more nervous and scared to watch than Laila was to ride!  She for sure has Andy's thrill genes!!  Unlike Lainie, who was less excited and could hardly even ride the farris wheel!  The man operating the ride said her face said it all!!  Now we know! :)  We spent the great day with our TX friends the Meders, and John (MN)!

To end the great weekend, the girls, Andy and John went swimming for the last time on Sunday!  I myself can't believe swimming in the middle of October!  Laila and Lainie enjoyed every last minute of  it!  Bring on Fall!!!!  Till the next!!  EN

Goertel's In Nacogdoches!

The Goertel's (my parents) arrived in Nacogdoches!  Last week Andy, the girls and I were super excited to welcome our first visitors to Nacogdoches, TX!!  We were looking forward to showing them the full Texas experience that we have enjoyed for the past 7 months!

First of all, we couldn't of asked for better weather!!  Thank you TX!!  Our first stop was to the Lufkin, TX zoo!  This was where Laila met her friend the goose almost 6 months ago!  It's amazing to see how much the girls have changed/ grown since their last visit!  Lainie was running up to each animal with excitement, while Laila was making all the animal sounds to Grandma and Grandpa of the animals we saw.  Along with the zoo, we visited the Gardens of the American Rose Center, the Louisiana Boardwalk and enjoyed seeing the Mississippi River all in Shreveport, LA!

To continue the TX week, I took my parents to a real livestock sale!  I can just imagine all the looks we received from ranchers/farmers as we walked into the arena with two little girls and my mom dressed as an obvious tourist!  After the smiles, we were amazed at the steers and calves that were going up for auction!  Lainie (our animal lover) was so excited she couldn't stop calling out "puppies"!!  Of course she thinks everything is a puppy right now! :)  Laila was also impressed by how large their horns were!!  There were a couple times she asked if we could take one home with us!  Leaving the sale, I imagined all the steers and calves going to their forever homes!  (I can hope/wish right!?)  We ended the day with a visit to the Nacogdoches Humane Society.  Andy was lucky I didn't come home with a steer and/or a dog!!  Thankfully my dad was their to keep my mom and I on track and not let us make any big animal purchases! :)

Along with the great food and company, we ended the rest of the week with Millard's Crossing Historic Village.  What a fun place to learn and go back in time!  This is where the girls enjoyed their Easter egg hunt!  Of course we couldn't send my parents back to ND without taking my dad golfing!  Andy, my dad and I went golfing at Woodland Hills golf course Saturday morning.  Besides getting up early on a Saturday, it was a lot of fun!  We couldn't of asked for a better morning, weather and beautiful view!  To top the morning off, my dad got a birdie on hole 18!!  Awesome end to golfing!

It was sad to see my parents leave, but it was such a great visit!  I look forward to seeing them soon!  I told Andy it's easier for myself to leave and go home than it is for people to leave my home.  It makes you appreciate what you have!!  We look forward to more visitors during our time in Texas!!  Til the next!  EN