Tinplate Trackin

The Austin Tinplate Trackers are a club of model train enthusiasts.  I'm not sure where on the hierarchy they rank...somewhere between people who build ships inside bottles and people who paint civil war figurines under one of those giant magnifying glasses with the light around it.  Regardless of how long they have until they evolve in to the internet age, or kiss a girl...Bryce and I took a trip to their open house to play with their toys.  For the event they rented an open storefront downtown and set up some giant train tracks.  For a few bucks, Bryce got to drive one of them for a few minutes...forward, backward, fast, slow, horn, smoke...the works.  Unfortunately we had to come home to our manually powered trains, but hopefully they're boring enough that one day he'll forget about them and actually take an interest in other things like sports or girls or daylight.

Here is Bryce's train

 Bryce dominating the controls

Checking out some freight cars

Utter amazement!

 

Rainy morning

aturday mornings are normally spent running at the lake and trips to the farmer's market for some fresh goodies (particularly kettle corn for the kids).  Well, it's raining here this morning and we're inside.  One of the best things we get from the market is fresh bread...so instead of going out today...we brought the market inside.  Paige dug out a Barefoot Contessa book and found us a recipe for some honey white bread...yum...so Bryce and I fixed it up.

Bryce hopped up on the counter to supervise with the adding of ingredients

Once we had everything in, it was time to Mix!

One last toss by hand before we let it rise

We'll see...hopefully we did a good job...lunch depends on it!

A Surprise Party?

 Bryce and Ivy got to go to a birthday party for a friend of ours in the neighborhood yesterday.  It was at a jumpy gym...which is a sectioned off warehouse type place with tons of inflatable thingies...not unlike the obnoxious Santas or snow globes people put on their lawns over Christmas...except much larger with a significantly higher chance of injury.  Both our kids hate them...but we're not ones to miss a party.  Luckily, they had lots of other toys and things for the kids to play with while we were there.

The funniest part was that it was a 'surprise' party for the little girl. Not only didn't her parents tell her she was having a party, but when we got there...they didn't tell her she was there for her party.  In fact, not until they brought out the cake with her name on it did they tell her the party was for her.  Either way...kids had fun, I got to test out my new camera, and we ended the night with Mexican food...can't be all bad right?

Just about done...

Enjoying the last quiet time of vacation.  Everyone is napping and I'm wondering when it'll warm up around here (was it that long ago that we had 60 days over 100?)  Been nice being able to spend time with the family and spend more than my fair share of time in pajamas.  Back to work tomorrow...2010...here we come!

Twist and Turn...

(Cell phone cameras were not made to explore your artistic side)

Make it tight! The first Saturday of the month Home Depot does a free kids' project. Today Bryce got to make a calendar. You should have seen him hammering it together. After he completed the project he got a calendar pin to affix to his very own Home Depot apron. This isn't new news to most of the kids there as I think there were some kids more decorated than a high ranking military officer.

While Ivy could have made her own, she decided it would be more helpful to supervise other people's projects since they clearly weren't able to follow the directions without her...nor would they have known where to find the glue or sandpaper.

Can't wait to go back and build again next month.

Happy New Year!

Well Happy New Year from the Texas Newmans...Russell, Paige, Bryce, Ivy, & Josie! This last week we had 2 honorary "Texas Newmans" when Unca Spencer and Aunt Joohwie came to visit. In fact, since they left on Thursday, Ivy has been looking everywhere for Joohwie...Joohwie? Joohwie?!?!?!

Spencer and Julie spent a nearly a week hanging out in the 'balmy' (well, compared to NY anyway) Texas winter. This trip was a mini vacation for them at the Casa de Paige bed and breakfast. Julie got to relax a little while we put Uncle Spencer through the real "what to expect when you're expecting" boot camp. He learned the ins and outs of trains, trucks, baby dolls, piggy backs, and piggy fronts. In fact, he did such a good job we thought about renting him out....look out for the Uncle Spencer doll coming Holidays 2010.
Well...we were so busy having a good time we only took these 2 pictures to chronicle their visit. So, to make up for our lack of photographic enthusiasm, I will pictographically describe their trip using generic pictures from the internet.

We started out by hopping in the And heading to a family party in San Antonio at
After we wore out our guests with family we took them to the Crown Jewel of their trip...a visit to
where we ate Monday, we hopped back in the And went down the road to
In Gruene, we shopped at the General Store and bought some treats. After that we headed to for some more Since the original point of this visit was to spend time with us and Juile's brother, Tuesday would have been the day Spencer and Julie headed to Michael and Amanda's to visit with them and their daughter. However, Michael and Amanda now live back in NY, so with a day to kill they drove to San Antonio to see And spent a romantic evening at the Hyatt Resort

(Resort pictured may not be the Hyatt; People pictured may not be Spencer or Julie; Romantic evening is implied)

After a nearly a week of travel and eating it was time to send them back to NY. It was a great visit and we'll do it again after Bryce and Ivy's little cousin is born.

School Party

Today was Bryce's school holiday performance. Perhaps you remember the Thanksgiving performance just a few weeks ago? Well, his showman skills have developed since then! He walked in shaking his bells, sang all the songs and even did the hand motions.
It was too cute. Ivy was busy greeting everyone in our aisle and going through their camera bags. She also discovered that the back of the pew is perfect for hanging. After 30 minutes of singing(that's a lot of songs) we all had pizza. A pretty way to end the 1st half of the school year.

Happy Hanukkah

We went to see some of Russell's family in Dallas to celebrate Hanukkah. To get in the holiday mood we went to Tot Shabbat on our way out of town. The kids sat on the bima and sang some dreidel songs. After the service Bryce made a menorah and then they each shoved in about 100 donuts. Then we hit the road.

Since we live in south Austin and we were heading to north Dallas it was about 4 hours each way but the kids were great in the car. Bryce loved playing with his 4 year old cousin Morgan. He didn't even mind that everything was princess themed :) Aunt Dot cooked a wonderful dinner, Uncle Marty was a big hit getting the kids all riled up before bed and Hilary and Scott were the perfect hosts. Hope everyone who celebrates Hanukkah had as much fun as we did to start the holiday off.

Happy Birthday Mimi!

My family came in to celebrate my grandmother's birthday. Bryce couldn't wait for cake! Russell played happy birthday on the piano (it helped drown out the bad singing) and then Bryce helped blow out the candles.

After lunch Bryce demonstrated how fast he can ride his tricycle. He even let Ivy take a turn.

Happy Thanksgiving

We went back and forth to my parents house for the holiday. Since my grandparents sold their lake house, my parents ended up with a full house. My grandparents, Uncle Mark, Aunt Judy and cousins Ryan and Austin all stayed. We wouldn't have had a bed even if we wanted one. Wednesday night was chili with the Barban group and Thursday was turkey lunch. The kids swapped personalities for the holiday. Bryce was friendly and had a great time. Ivy was clingy and not her usual perky self...she's teething and it's making her cranky.

Thanks to everyone that cooked, cleaned and entertained us. It was a great Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving at school

Bryce class performed some Thanksgiving songs and then we all had lunch together. It was hysterical. I don't think Bryce actually sang but he did a great job standing on stage. A couple kids ran out screaming, one by refused to wear his costume, another girl cried the whole time because she wanted to be an Indian, not a pilgrim. Ivy clapped enthusiastically the whole time.

Bryce is on the front row far left. His Indian headress covered his eyes most of the time.

Time to eat!

New York

We haven't been to Long Island since Bryce's 1st birthday so we decided it was time to go. This was Ivy's 1st trip on a plane and I was relieved that she did great. Both kids were wonderful travelers. Since it had been so long since our last trip we stayed busy seeing a lot of friends and family. Thanks to everyone that made the effort to get to know the kids. We also went to NYC and Bryce loved his 1st train and subway rides. He's still talking about them. They're pretty worn out from all the excitement.

Happy H(1)alloweeN(1)

Trick or Treat? Well...unfortunately this year our kids got tricked. I don't think when Paige asked them what costume they wanted to wear this year she expected the answer to be "I think we'll dress up as swine flu". I'm not sure why there's all this fuss about breeding vaccines and getting them to the public...they should just come to our house because apparently we have conditions just right to be a fertile breeding ground. In fact our house turned into an 8th grade algebra problem this week when H1N1 + H1N1 = H2N2. Well...technically I think the right answer is 2H12N1 but who really remembers that crap anyway?

So...this year, which was going to be our first real trick or treat experience, turned in to one more year of staying in the driveway. Of course we were the only house on the block passing out hand sanitizer and tamiflu to the kids, but I'm sure the local parents appreciated our concern for their kids. The kids also thought that by layering in a time change on top of their piggy flu, Paige and I were in kahootz with the doctor to force them in to one extra dose of medicine (which loses out 10 times out of 10 to Snickers and M&M's).

But, for all the fever and coughing this week, the kids were well enough to get costumes on (Bryce as Bob the Builder and Ivy as a Cheerleader) and man the candy bowl in the drive way for an hour or so and greet some trick or treaters. I think we'd be better off doing Halloween in Boca Raton as our kids would much prefer the 'early bird' crowd since they go to bed before things really get rocking and rolling. To pass the time Bryce broke out his tricycle and rode mad circles in the drive way while Ivy desperately tried to figure out how to open her bag of M&M's (which she did..promptly stuffed as many as she could in her mouth...and then spit them all over the driveway).

A little pre Halloween pumpkin decorating

Ivy got confused because we frequently call her pumpkin...so she thought she needed to decorate herself

Bryce the Builder ready for a Job!

Ivy sitting still long enough for a photo...just putting this thing on makes her start to do tumbling passes

Bryce anxiously awaits the trick or treaters

Ivy stealthily sneaking some M&M's...Bryce on the lookout patrol

Ivy retreats to her chair to try and figure out how to open those darn M&M's...Bryce got a little loose in turn 4 and crashed in to the bushes (top right :)).

New children's museum

Russell and my dad played in a golf tournament last weekend. They didn't play the best golf of their lives but the rest of us had fun. Mother took us to a children's museum in New Braunfels. They kids loved it! It was small but had things perfect for each kid. Bryce was so excited to see the big train table. He stayed there almost the whole time. Ivy loved grocery shopping. We took them to lunch afterwards. Bryce likes to order for himself now. When the waitress comes over he informs her that he'd like a drink and french fries right away. It's pretty funny...

The Rocky Dance

I usually reserve the Rocky dance for a particular run that I do around Austin. It's a long run where at one point there's a long climb up the hills of Mt. Bonnell. When you reach the park, there's a final dash up the stairs to the summit, where, once at the top....you do the Rocky dance.

Well, for Bryce's birthday, Spencer and Julie got him Rocky the Robot Truck.
For a while Rocky sat idle. If you pushed the button on top of his exhaust pipe he would talk and joke...occasionally even fart (yes, that's right, the truck farts). But recently, we finally figured out how to make Rocky come alive...and when we did, a whole new Rocky dance came to life.

Pumpkins

We thought Ivy was fearless. She will do anything but today she met her match...pumpkins. I took the kids to meet friends and take pictures at a pumpkin patch. Ivy freaked out when we got there. All her friends were very sweet and picked up baby pumpkins to show her that there was nothing to be scared of. She couldn't wait to leave. It was hard to take pictures of Bryce because he was having so much fun running around that he wouldn't stand still and smile. It's the thought that counts right?

On a side note, Russell took this picture of Ivy doing something that she loves, eating chili!

Birthday Party Crasher

Bryce's friend Morgan had a birthday party this weekend at the Little Gym. You might remember the Little Gym from Bryce's list of summer time activities. He seemed to have fun running around the mats at the gym and walking across the balance beams. I think he occasionally hung from some things, but generally he would stand to the side and mentally mock the other children...he's got a cynical side I'm telepathically cultivating.

Ivy on the other hand will literally leap at any opportunity to fall off something. Luckily the Little Gym is full of padded floors (although the way Ivy attacks that place, she'll more likely be in need of padded walls somewhere down the room...seriously...she's crazy). So...with an opportunity to hit the gym this weekend and crash a birthday party (read: sneak a piece of cake), Ivy was all over it.

Here you'll see Ivy playing under the direct supervision of a responsible adult who has her best interest in mind. Notice the safe proximity and spotting demonstrated by this person we'll call "Mommy".


In this video you'll see Ivy taking a more independent approach to her gymnastics career. It's probably advisable that she be spotted by some one (instead of perhaps...say...filming), but that's what you get when you leave Daddy alone with the kids.

But...as usual...she gets up with a smile (although it is hard to ignore the flash of sheer terror at about the 12 second mark...but without pain there would be no joy...right?). How much do you think it would cost to floor our house in those mats?

Requiem for a Nanny

2009 has been a difficult year for the Newman side of the family. With January came the passing of an Uncle who spent more time than any of us knew battling cancer. April came quickly after when on the 10th day, a Great Aunt - Auntie - left us after more than 100 years. The summer came and we started to heal. Ivy turned 1 and Bryce turned 3. Lots of firsts - walking and talking; more of the same - golf in the yard, tricycle riding, and too many cookies. Things were getting better. Then August came...and Nanny went. A car accident was the terribly tragic end to more than 95 years of life...not fair.

I'd like to think that there wasn't anything she loved more than us, her grandchildren...but that would be a lie. Her Great Grand Children brought more joy than a fresh bakery roll covered with fresh tomato and nice piece of American cheese. I'm told it took several days for the smile to go away from our last visit at the park in Waco earlier this summer. ...A gift I'm glad we were able to give her. And for Nanny...who was always quick with a quarter for the toy machine at the grocery store, or a bakery fresh cookie, or even a crisp $20 bill...her last gift to us (and our kids) will be something we can cherish for a lifetime.

So with our new piano so elegantly displayed, I'm thrilled to have music brought in to our house (although not as excited as Bryce was when the 'packer' truck showed up to deliver it). But more than that, I'm glad that we'll have something we can look at, and listen to, that reminds us of her.

With much love...