Summer in Oregon: Part 3

Well, not all of our summer was spent in Oregon… In July, we introduced Isla to her Texas roots and spent a week with family and friends in Houston and Austin.  It was a wonderful trip, filled with great people, copious amounts of queso, and singing round upon round of  “zippity do da” with Papa Sam.

Baby Girl loves her BBQ. She mowed down on brisket, smoked turkey, and turkey sausage. I couldn’t cut it up fast enough for her!We spent the middle of the week in Austin. Our first stop was to see our softball friends, JC and Christy, from Dubai. They are now settled in Austin in the most gorgeous old home, with the two cutest kiddos! Neither of us had children the last time we saw each other, so it was so much fun to introduce our little ones. Unfortunately, I didn’t think to take any photos of our time with them… mommy-brain fail. We enjoyed such a lovely afternoon catching up with this sweet family, reminiscing about our lives in The Sandbox and discussing plans for the future.

For the next few days we reunited with some of our other dear friends from the Middle East, Mike and Erin. They are also living in Austin now, and just bought their first home, which is just as cute as can be! Mike and Erin are so wonderful and the most gracious hosts. Every moment with them was filled with goodness… and queso… so much queso…

Before moving into their house, the son of the previous owners gave Mike and Erin a picture of his parents in the home. Later, as they began renovations and  removed the old wall-mounted phone from the wall, Mike and Erin discovered the original wall paper (as seen in the photograph) underneath. As a sweet nod to the home’s history they decided to leave it as is, and hung the photo next to it. Love it!

Mike, Erin and Isaac first met as art teachers in the Middle East, and Mike is now a full time artist! In addition to commissioned work, he creates incredible murals and street art all around the city of Austin. He even designed the Austin City Limits commemorative poster this year! We got to watch the master at work during our stay…

We wrapped up the back half of our week in Houston, spending time with my dad, sisters, and nephews. It was so wonderful introducing Isla to more of her family, and I loved watching her interactions with everyone! We also reconnected with another Dubai softball friend, Koryn, and her darling daughter Tinsley for lunch… yes, more queso!Isla thought Papa’s Donald Duck sounds were particularly amusing!

Isla had lots of fun playing with her Auntie Mary!