Texas Living

Well, since I completely stopped blogging last year, I figured I should catch up a bit! I briefly talked about us moving to Texas in the post about Gerrit turning 2, but we are quickly approaching our 1 year anniversary of moving here! Here’s a recap of our Texas adventure:

Fall 2016

We arrived in Texas right at the end of September, I believe. Andrew was here with us just long enough to help out when the movers brought our stuff, and then he was off to Colorado for some flight training before actual UPT started.

Gerrit’s first priority was obviously exploring the outdoors! The weather was still pretty warm when we arrived, so we were outside all the time (instead of inside unpacking…oops). But I really wanted to meet people as soon as possible, and living on base really helped us do that! We constantly met new people at the playground near our house, and having kids the same age is a good conversation starter. 😉

Andrew was gone for most of October and the first part of November, so Gerrit and I were on our own unpacking and trying to set up the house. We started going to a playgroup on base every week, which was a great way to get out of the house and meet more people. But honestly, our first couple of months here were VERY low-key since we were trying to focus on getting settled.

Winter 2016-2017

Winter in Del Rio is kind of a joke. It was quite warm in December! But we pretended it was winter and listened to Christmas music, decorated my little 4 ft tree from college, and made yummy Christmas cookies.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Andrew started pilot training the week before Christmas, which is why I tackled night weaning before he started. I knew Andrew would need good sleep at night, and I didn’t want to be interrupting his sleep going back and forth all night. And, who am I kidding, I desperately wanted to get more consecutive hours of sleep myself!!

Christmas was a lot of fun this year! Gerrit was definitely into the present-opening, so it was really entertaining to watch him. His big gift this year was a play kitchen (that happened to coordinate perfectly with my kitchen decor haha).

Andrew’s parents arrived on Christmas day to spend the holidays with us! We spent a few days in Del Rio, and we spent the last half of their trip in San Antonio. Gerrit loved having them here, and they got a healthy introduction to “Octonauts” and underwater life. 🙂

In San Antonio, we visited the Alamo, walked the Riverwalk, ate sushi, and visited the zoo! Unfortunately, I think all those photos are on my camera…which I left in the Midwest on one of our trips up there. But we had a great time in San Antonio!

One thing that started in the winter was rocketry. Andrew has enjoyed the hobby for a long time, and he gave Gerrit a simple beginner rocketry kit for Christmas. Obviously, Andrew does most of the work right now, but Gerrit enjoy launching them!

These pictures were taken in January… it was still plenty warm for short sleeves and shorts most days! The best part of winter in Del Rio was being able to be outside almost every day. I can count on one hand the number of times Gerrit put a heavy coat on, and even then it was usually just in the mornings.

We had a few visitors in January as well… our friend Steve from college came to visit for a few days to enjoy the warmer weather, and then my mom came for another round of Christmas gifts and Mimi fun. It was great to have visitors… not many people come to Del Rio for fun. 😉

Spring 2017

Spring started off with Andrew’s first solo flight in the T6! Gerrit and I went down to watch, but we pretty much just saw Andrew come back with his instructor and get tossed in the tank haha!

Shortly after my birthday and our anniversary, Gerrit and I packed up for a trip up to Ohio for my friend’s wedding! I was pretty nervous about our drive, since I was spreading it over 3 days to allow for lots of stops and early evenings. Andrew set us up with some DVDs of “Team Umizoomi,” I put together a Bribe Bag with little toys to keep Gerrit entertained when he got antsy, and we hoped for the best!

Things went really smoothly, for the most part. I originally planned stops for every 2-3 hours, but that proved to be a little too often! Gerrit definitely wanted to spend a good amount of time at the parks we found, so I started aiming for the halfway point in our day for one long stop (hopefully followed by a nap!).

There were Air Force bases near the areas I wanted to stop both nights, which was very convenient for us. Not only did it give me a sense of security, but it also was quite a bit cheaper for us. Traveling through unfamiliar cities alone with a toddler gave me a little anxiety, and having that sense of familiarity with each base put my mind at ease.

Despite doing very well in the car, Gerrit was thrilled to get to Dave & Emily’s house in Ohio on our last travel day! We were both sick of being cooped up in the car, and he was excited to see “his friends.” Yes, my friends are now his friends too, I guess, haha! My mom and sister came to the wedding as well, not only for the wedding ceremony, but also to help me out with Gerrit since I was in the wedding party! I’m SO thankful to have had their help, because it allowed me to really have a fun time celebrating Dave & Emily on their special day. 

 

After our brief visit in Ohio, we headed north to Michigan. My grandpa had recently been diagnosed with leukemia, and I wanted to take advantage of being in the area to see my grandparents and spend some time with them. We happened to visit the first week that my grandpa started receiving treatment, and I’m so thankful to have been with him when he was still feeling like himself. It ended up being the last time I saw him alive, and it meant to much to have those games of 7 Up, his time watching Gerrit play with his collection of semi trucks, and those hugs as we said goodbye. 

Gerrit was not very excited to be in the car heading back to Texas after our quick trip to the Midwest, but he’s a trooper, and we made it back home just in time for Easter. We missed the base Easter activities, but I had set up Gerrit’s Easter basket before we left, and I had some little treats ready for him for a backyard Easter egg hunt. He had so much fun! 

I think spring was around the time that Gerrit started showing interest in dinosaurs. He had watched “Dino Trux” for awhile, but really started enjoying “Dinosaur Train.” I had no idea how much I didn’t know about dinosaurs until he started watching that show. Since then he’s also fallen in love with “Dino Dan” & “Dino Dana” on Amazon Prime. I love it too, because, seriously, I learn a lot! 🙂

Anyway, there was a dinosaur exhibit that came to Del Rio in May, and we took Gerrit to see if he’d enjoy it. It may have been a bit early for that, because now, 4 months later, I think he would enjoy it a lot more. It was still something fun & different to do!

 

We spent an afternoon out at Lake Amistad at the end of spring, hoping to avoid the worst of the summer heat, but the day we went was still pretty warm! We took Gerrit out on a canoe for awhile, and I think he enjoyed it, but it was really warm. Later we met with some friends to go swimming off of their pontoon boat.

Summer 2017

We started off our summer in Texas by buying a screened in gazebo and some patio furniture. It seemed like a pretty good use of our tax return! We enjoyed it a few times in early summer, but, to be honest, it was just too hot to sit out there much in the dead of summer. Del Rio doesn’t get a lot of humidity, but it’s still like walking into an oven when you go outside. The heat is pretty intense, and a hot breeze doesn’t do much to relieve that.

Despite the heat, I tried to get Gerrit outside at least once a day, usually in the late afternoon to get the mail. We visited the pool on base a few times, and we set up our pool for awhile, but Gerrit’s favorite thing was playing in his sprinkler and just getting free reign with the hose!

We explored the area a bit more in June as well! Andrew and I went on a day date to the Val Verde Winery here in Del Rio to do a wine tasting. It was great to enjoy some yummy wine and adult conversation for an afternoon.

Gerrit and I joined some friends on a little mini road trip up to Sonora Caverns one weekday as well!

I was hoping Gerrit would walk most of it (without touching everything he wasn’t supposed to touch), but I ended up carrying him for the last half and came out a sweaty mess. It was a workout for me for sure! It was a really cool place to explore though, and I’m glad we made the drive up there!

I’m sad to say that my grandpa passed away at the end of June, so that meant another road trip for Gerrit and me. Several people suggested we just fly, but with how far we live from the airport (2-1/2 hours), the cost of plane tickets and airport parking, and the lack of freedom not having a car would mean, we opted to drive instead. Gerrit impressed me by doing really well again!

 

Although the reason for our trip to the Midwest was sad, it was really nice to be able to see and spend time with all of our family in one spot. We all happened to be in Michigan for my niece’s 2nd birthday, which was a big deal for me! I haven’t been able to be at any of my nephews’ or niece’s birthdays because of where we live. Seeing all of the cousins playing together is seriously one of my favorite things!

One thing we were sad to miss in Texas was being there when Andrew finished his T6 training and found out he had tracked to T38s! When Andrew and I had discussed the pros and cons to both the T1 lifestyle and T38 one as well as what would be a better fit for Andrew personally, we both were really hoping he would go to T38; we were excited he got what he wanted!

I decided to spend some time over in Wisconsin after our time in Michigan, since we hadn’t been there in nearly a year, and I was hoping to see some old friends! So after about a week in Michigan, we hopped back in the car and headed west. We drove straight to Madison area first, to see one of my best friends from college. It was a quick visit, but I always appreciate face-to-face conversations with friends when I can get them.

Then we drove up to my sister’s house to spend 4th of July with her and her family. I told Gerrit he had to take a nap if he wanted to go to the beach and see fireworks, and I’m glad he decided to cooperate.

He had so much fun in the sand and water at Lake Michigan, and although he said they were too loud, he really seemed to enjoy the fireworks show too!

After a few days with my sister and her family, we headed a little further west to visit my best friend from high school. She lives about a half an hour away from my dad, so we were able to see him and my mom one more time too. It was another quick visit, but I loved having a little time to catch up in person! Leaving from the west side of Wisconsin cut a few hours off of our return trip, which was a big bonus. Plus we drove through very few cities, so traffic was generally pretty good. I was glad to have an uneventful drive home.

Just a week after we got home, we drove to San Antonio with Andrew for his centrifuge training. We were able to enjoy dinner with him and his flight on the Riverwalk, and the next day while he did his training, Gerrit and I went to The DoSeum, a children’s museum.

I think Gerrit’s favorite part was the little town where he got to go grocery shopping, do some digging in the construction site, and take care of some animals at the vet clinic. We spent the majority of our 5 hours there! We got back to the hotel with enough time to relax for awhile before going out for sushi with Andrew and his flight. We were able to visit with a friend of mine from England and her sons the next day after brunch too. Another quick but fun trip!

The rest of the summer we tried to stay cool and not get too bored! There really are not a lot of indoor options for families in Del Rio, but we did go bowling a few times!

I had mentioned to Andrew’s mom that if they wanted to visit us sometime, they could come surprise Andrew for his 30th birthday. Well, they decided to do just that! It was so hard for me to keep that secret! I kept almost slipping up and saying something to Andrew, but luckily I was able to keep my mouth shut. I forced strongly suggested that we go out to dinner the night before Andrew’s birthday at a pizza place in town. He definitely did not want to go after a 12 hour day at work! But he grudgingly agreed. When we walked into the restaurant, his parents were already there at a table! It was such a fun surprise, and I’m glad we pulled it off for him. 🙂

Although their visit was short, we took them to the winery in town, had some yummy meals, and got in some some bowling. 🙂 Andrew was even able to bring them in to do one of the simulators! Gerrit loved having the company, and he was so sad to see them go.

We tried to go watch Andrew come in from his first solo flight in the T38, but… toddler life. I don’t know why I always underestimate how long it will take us to get ourselves ready and out the door. I did get this cute photo of Andrew and Gerrit after his flight though.

We finished up our summer with a mini vacation to Fredericksburg, TX for Labor Day weekend. It was just a few hours away, and I had heard great things about the area.

We visited the pioneer museum and learned about the German immigrants who settled in the area, did some wine tastings at a few different wineries, and enjoyed the garden and playground in the town square. I think we all had a great time there!

Whew! So that’s a year in Del Rio! We still have at least 4 months (most likely more) here, so I hope we have a few more little Texas adventures before we leave. And I promise to try to post more frequently so I don’t have to write a novel to catch up again. 😉