Brooks and Delaney love...

...crawling in the tunnel together.

...going to baseball games together.


...playing at the splash park together.

...taking baths together.

...reading books together.

...and posing for pictures together.


These kids just love to be together...and it makes me so happy.

Poolside

Brooks has done a great job swimming this summer. He's kicking his feet, using his arms, and taking a breath.
Here's our little fish in action.

I love that we have a pool in our neighborhood. There are some afternoons that we'll just head up there for an hour before dinner. Even with me going back to work we have time to go up to the pool.

My 10 month old...what?!

Has time really just flown by so fast that my baby girl is already 10 months old?




Likes: Any food she can pick up with her fingers and lots of it, her paci and blankie, crawling, bath time, her brother, putting things in her mouth, walking with her push toy, throwing all her blankies out of her crib, drinking from mommy's water bottle, dancing, eating, her silly daddy, having mommy pick her up after school, airplane with daddy, standing up, reading with Brooks, eating, crawling in the tunnel, babbling and sleeping

Dislikes: Getting out of the bath, the word "no", spaghetti sauce, getting dressed, getting her diaper changed, teething (I think that goes for all of us), falling down, getting stuck under the kitchen table, Brooks' bear hugs, not getting attention, and running out of food

Some new things: The other day Laney was laying on the floor with Chad and she said "dada". It was her first real meaningful word. I thought Chad was going to cry.

Just some pictures of my sweet Laneybug from this past month...

Things to do when it's HOT outside:

#1. Make some Watermelon Granita. It is seriously delicious and so refreshing on a hot day.

Here's the recipe:
Ingredients
4 cups (1 3/4 pounds) cubed seedless watermelon (from a 4-lb. melon)
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
Preparation
Purée all ingredients in a blender until smooth. Pour into a 9x9x2" metal baking pan. Freeze mixture for 1 hour. Stir, mashing any frozen parts with the back of a fork. Cover and freeze mixture until firm, about 2 hours. Using a fork, scrape granita vigorously to form icy flakes. If you want it can be made 3 days ahead just cover it tightly with foil and keep frozen. Give it a quick scrape before serving.

#2. Spend some time reading books.


#3. Go to the pool as much as possible. We probably go to the pool 3-5 times a week. I'm so thankful that we have a community pool! My Dad visited recently and we went to the pool with the kids. My dad was a great swimmer/diver growing up so he was so happy to see Brooks in the water and swimming so well.


#4. Visit your local waterpark. We went to Volente Beach here on Lake Travis with Team Hancock. Brooks LOVED going down the big slides. The tunnel slide was his favorite. I think he just really enjoyed being able to do the things that Bryan and Dawson and Megan were doing. Here's Brooks and Dawson in the pool after coming down the slides (the water isn't dirty, it's just lake water):

Laney was such a trooper. Well, actually, she was a little grumpy due to a cold and some teething pain plus she was going with no nap (it was kind of hard for her to nap when it was 105 degrees outside). But, she had her happy moments being passed around. She especially enjoyed her time with her Daddy:

The kids were wiped at the end of the day:


#5. Explore a museum. My mom was in town and we left Laney behind and took B to the Children's Museum in downtown Austin. He had a great time going from room to room getting his hands on all kinds of fun things.
Serving Gammy some food:

Brooks and Gammy pulled on the rope to launch a pig on a parachute:

Learning letters with Mommy:

He even made a rocket out of all kinds of scraps:


#6. Play ball inside. I hate that it's too hot to go to the park, but Laney and Daddy pitch the ball to Brooks in the living room instead (it's become a nightly event). Everyone was quite entertained.



#7. Clothing is optional. If you haven't figured that out by all our summer pictures then you haven't been paying attention. Brooks is usually running around the house in his underwear and Laney is crawling behind him in her diaper. It's too hot for real clothes.

Mini-Vacy Part 2

After our Team Hoffman trip to San Antonio we met up with the rest of the family at The La Cantera Resort. That meant lots of cousin time and lots of swimming for Brooks. It's always so great getting together with all the family: That's Birdie and Scoops + the six adults + twin boys + two five-year olds, one three-year old and the peanut = 14 Happy Campers.
This is what we looked like waiting in the hallway for our room keys:

Brooks and Laney spent some time before the pool wrestling around on the bed:

And after my kids napped they got to join the crew down by the pool:

The hotel had a huge fire pit and provided all the goodies for the kids to make s'mores (which Brooks thought was totally cool, but unfortunately I forgot my camera to capture that memory). There was also a huge movie screen outside once it got dark and the kids stayed up late a bit to watch "Gnomeo and Juliet". The next day was spent entirely at the pool. Birdie and Scoops made sure to get a picture with all the grandkids before getting in the water:

Then...it was pool time:


Brooks has spent a lot of time this summer swimming and he's gotten so good. He swims totally by himself: kicking his feet, using his arms, taking a breath when he needs it, and treading water. I'm so proud of him.
Here's the little fish in action:

As if swimming, s'mores, and movies weren't enough, the hotel also had a tennis court full of inflatables. Brooks and Brodie played over there a bit, too:

It was a totally fun weekend with the family and a great way to wrap up our summer fun because school is starting soon:(

Team Hoffman on a Mini-Vacay

Well, with all the running around and visiting friends/family that we've done this summer, we thought it would be a good idea to have a little getaway...just the four of us. It was Chad's idea - and it was a great idea! We had such a wonderful time just hanging out and exploring some of San Antonio. It makes me so happy thinking and dreaming about all our future family vacations: All the places we will see, activities we'll do together, all the junk food we'll eat, and all the nights in hotel rooms, etc. We got up Friday morning and drove down to San Antonio and headed to The Children's Museum.
His favorite part was flying the plane.


We were his passengers.

Brooks and Daddy acted as paleontologist.

Laney had a great time just watching...

...and she also got to play a little in the "toddler" room.

Laneybug just practicing her ballet skills.

And even at the museum, Laney could not escape her brother's love.

After the museum we checked into out hotel. We stayed at Embassy Suites because it is essential to us when traveling with the kids that we have two separate areas so when the kids are sleeping we can still hang out. Essential. The kids napped and we just relaxed. When the kids woke up all refreshed we headed down to the River Walk to sweat off a couple of pounds.

(I'm really bummed that Brooks smiles like he's in pain. We're working on it.)

Our hotel had a free happy hour with all kinds of yummy snacks so we just pigged out there and then got ready for the pool.
Brooks and Laney - together as usual.

Laney is always happy in the water.

And after a long, exhausting day there's nothing better than snuggling in a king-sized hotel bed.