Jennifer – Page 238

Ruidoso, NM

Posted on June 13, 2009 by Jennifer

Last weekend was a long weekend for James and I. We traveled to Ruidoso, New Mexico with James’ parents and nephew Dawson. Initially, his sister Tami was supposed to go with us also, but she couldn’t get off work. The trip was a lot of fun.

Friday, June 5, 2009

We left Midland about 9:45 AM for the 6-hour drive to Ruidoso. Our first stop once we arrived was the Billy the Kid Scenic National Scenic Byway Visitors Center.

Joe, Dawson and James

We stayed at the River’s Edge Cabin. It was a really nice cabin, although the river out back was disappointing since the embankment was under construction. The cabin had games and we played an hour long game of Uno after arriving. I eventually won. Dinner was at Cafe Rio, which had excellent hand-tossed pizza. We then went to Pillow’s Funtrackers, where we played a round of miniature golf.

James and Olivia

Deer (seen near the cabin)

Saturday, June 6, 2009

Flowers (seen near the cabin)

Flower Close-up

We lucked out. Saturday was one of two free fishing days a year. So we dropped off Joe and Dawson at Grindstone Lake to go fishing. They had a raffle for the kids and Dawson got a New Mexico button-type pin and a goody bag filled with things like pencils and a Smoky the Bear ruler. While they fished, the rest of us went shopping in mid-town. Lunch was at Lincoln County Grill and it was quite tasty. After some relaxing at the cabin, we drove up to Monjeau Lookout. We climbed the many steps to the top of the solid rock tower built by the CCC in the late 1930s. Today it is used as fire station lookout. At 10,356 ft., the view from the top was spectacular. You could definitely tell you were at a higher elevation since it was 5-10° cooler and quite breezy at the top compared to down in Ruidoso.

View from Monjeau Lookout

Dawson and James

Jennifer and James

Joe and Olivia

Dawson

After driving down the steep, mostly dirt road from the lookout, we went to the Flying J Ranch for their chuckwagon supper and western stage show. They had pony rides and gold panning for the kids. Dawson found 5 tiny pieces of fool’s gold. There was a gunfight between the “sheriff” and the two “outlaws” in the street of the “western village” before we went into the theater/dining hall to find our seats at table C6. After the dinner bell was rang by a little girl named Kate, we were directed table by table to the serving line. Dinner consisted of chicken or beef, beans, a foil-wrapped baked potato, chunky applesauce, a biscuit, and a piece of spice cake. After everyone finished eating, the Flying J Wranglers put on a show that consisted of western singing and some comedy and was very entertaining.

Dawson Panning for Gold

Sheriff During the Shoot-out

Sunday, June 7, 2009

After spending the majority of the morning relaxing at the cabin, we went to Kidz Konnection, an awesome playground where James had as much fun as Dawson.

James Goofing Off

Dawson

Joe and Olivia

We then had lunch at Casa Blanca Restaurant. They served tasty Mexican food and had excellent service. Afterward, we dropped Dawson and Joe off at the cabin since Dawson didn’t want to go to the horse races and it was very windy. The rest of us then went to Ruidoso Downs, the first time I’ve been to a race track. The first race we watched was the 6th of the day. James picked #4 Eyejesslovelouisiana, Olivia picked #5 Jess a Candy Gal and I picked #10 Jess Sippin. If we had actually bet, Olivia would have been richer as #5 won. We also watched the 7th race, a Thoroughbred race before heading to the Racehorse Hall of Fame on the second level of the grandstand. We then caught the 8th race from the second level of the grandstand.

6th Race

8th Race

We cooked Salmon Macaroni Bake at the cabin for dinner, followered by viewing Kung Fu Panda before going to bed.

Monday, June 8, 2009

We left the cool cabin getaway by 8:30 AM New Mexico time and arrived back in Midland at 3:30 PM. James and I had initially planned to continue back to Austin, but ended up spending the night and getting back to Austin on Tuesday.

Nashville Scrapblog

Posted on June 5, 2009 by Jennifer

For my in-laws, I decided to do a combination Mother’s Day/Father’s Day gift. I made a scrapblog of the trip we took in September 2007 together. We went to Nashville, Tennessee for Barrett and Rachel’s wedding and did some sight-seeing while we were there. We’re giving a hardbound book of it to them this weekend when we see them.

South Padre Island

Posted on May 31, 2009 by Jennifer

Every year my family gets together for a family vacation. Usually we go in August or September, but with three babies scheduled to be born between August and November, an earlier trip was a necessity. This year, we went to South Padre Island. James and I had never been to South Padre before and we had a lot of fun. Check out Dzubi Dzubi Dzu and SEW Very Blessed for Julia’s and Sarah’s commentary on our trip.

Thursday, May 21, 2009

Jason, Julia, James and I joined Sarah, Brian, and Cameron on their plane to Harlingen when it stopped in Austin. Cameron ended up spending most of the flight sitting with James and I. Cameron really likes his Uncle James. He also enjoyed shutting and opening the airplane window shade.

From Harlingen, it was about an hour drive in the two rental SUVs to South Padre Island. After getting settled in at the Redfish Inn, we went to eat dinner at the Shrimp Haus Restaurant, next to Schlitterbahn Beach Waterpark. My Dad and I had read a really good review in the June 2009 issue of Texas Highways about this restaurant, but we were all gravely disappointed. Afterward, we walked the boardwalk to the beach where Cameron got his first taste of the Gulf of Mexico and got soaked in the process.

View of the Gulf

Friday, May 22, 2009

After eating breakfast, we drove to Brownsville, about 45 minutes away, to go to the Gladys Porter Zoo. There were a bunch of school children at the zoo, but it wasn’t too crowded besides them. The Gladys Porter Zoo is one of the first zoos to utilize cage-free exhibits. I think my favorite exhibit was the Western Lowland Gorillas.

Mexican Spider Monkey

Butterfly (possibly a Tawny Emperor)

James and Jennifer in Front of the Gorilla Exhibit

On the way back to the island, we stopped in Port Isabel. We climbed the 75 steps of the Port Isabel Lighthouse, which was originally built in 1852. The view from the top was outstanding.

Port Isabel Lighthouse

After relaxing at the inn for a little while (so Cameron could take a nap), we returned to Port Isabel and ate dinner at Marcella’s Italian Restaurant, which was much better than the Shrimp Haus the night before. Afterwards, we watched “Will Some,” the fire-eating pirate perform some tricks before boarding the Black Dragon for some high seas adventure. We learned the pirate code. Jason, Julia and Brian practiced their fighting skills with water-shooting pistols. We saw dolphins, including a baby and his mama, in Dolphin Cove. The pirates gave us a pirate look even if we didn’t necessarily want one, because it was all about equality. For James, they just added curlicues to his mustache. Brian, Jason and Julia played hot potato with a rubber crab and buckets. Jason and Brian did the pirate limbo. The evening ended with a good view of the fireworks over the Laguna Madre bay.

Fire Breathing Pirate

Queen of Isabella Causeway

Julia, Jason, and Brian Participating in a Water Gun Fight

Sunset over the Queen Isabella Causeway

Cameron, Mary Ann and John as Pirates

Saturday, May 23, 2009

After breakfast at the inn, we went to the gulf side of the island to hang out at the beach. We jumped in the surf. I ended up losing my sunglasses when an especially strong wave knocked me over. We built sand castles. Jason asked two sun-bathers to judge for us and they picked Sarah and Brian’s sand creation.

Jason and James in the Surf

Cameron and Jason Playing in the Sand

Group Photo on the Beach

We cleaned up and had lunch at Tom and Jerry’s Burgers and Beer, a decent restaurant on the main drag. This was followed by our annual stockholder’s meeting on the covered porch of the inn. We had dinner at Louie’s Backyard, which had good atmosphere, okay food and excellent dessert. Dinner was followed by the adults playing a game of Cranium that Jason and Julia won.

Sunday, May 24, 2009

Group Photo on the Veranda of the Redfish Inn

Brian, Sarah, Cameron, James and I went to the beach after breakfast. Cameron was no longer distracted by playing in the sand. He fearlessly ran into the water. He wanted more wave action.

While we were at the beach, the rest of the gang went in search of paddleboats to rent on the bay side of the island. When they didn’t find any, they rented a 4-person covered bicycle that the four of them pedaled and Jason controlled directionally. Based on the pictures they took, it looked like fun.

Julia, Jason, John and Mary Ann Cycling Around Town

Lunch was at the Padre Island Brewing Company. Brian, Dad, and Jason sampled the five beers they brew on site. Lunch was followed by a nice nap. I think all that fun in the sun wore me out. Dinner was at Scampi’s Restaurant, which happened to be across the street from the inn. It was by far the best meal we ate all weekend. We again played Cranium after dinner and this time James and I won.

Monday, May 25, 2009

After a relaxing breakfast, we packed up and drove back to Harlingen to catch our flights home. I was sad to see the trip end, but we had a lot of fun.

Baby JAM Update

Posted on May 25, 2009 by Jennifer

The pregnancy has reached the half-way point, week 20. The pregnancy has been great. I had no morning sickness or fatigue during the first trimester. The second trimester has brought on some fatigue, but otherwise I feel great. I haven’t gained any weight yet, although my weight has shifted around since my belly is starting to be noticeable and my bras no longer fit correctly.

I had wanted to do weekly photos of my profile, but that hasn’t gone quite as planned. Below are the three profile photos I’ve taken so far. I’m going to try to continue on at least every two weeks from here on out.

Week 16

Week 18

Week 20

Last Wednesday, I had my 20-week appointment with my OB and everything looked good. Thursday morning, James and I went to have an anatomical screening at the Texas Perinatal Group. It was really neat, because we got see Baby JAM’s heart beating and the upper lip and brain development looked good. The doctor said everything was right on schedule and estimated the baby weighed 11 ounces. We also decided to find out the sex of the baby. I know I’ve told everyone that I didn’t want to find out and James said I would change my mind, but my OB recommended we find out since I had a gut feeling about the sex of the baby. She thought it would be better to find out now instead of us to going the next 4.5 months thinking the baby was a boy and possibly being wrong. So check out the video of Baby JAM’s heart beating and the ultrasound photos and see if I was right.

Head and Body of Baby JAM

I'm a Girl!

Evans Family Reunion

Posted on May 16, 2009 by Jennifer

The last weekend in April, a big group of people got together in Midland for a family reunion. Everyone there was related in some form or fashion to Freda and Cecil Evans, James’ grandparents. It was a lot of fun. We got to see a bunch of people we hadn’t seen in a while.

The first activity was Saturday lunch at Tampico Spanish Inn, a favorite Mexican food restaurant in Midland. While there, we were able to get a group photo. It pays to have a tripod in your camera bag like I do.

Group Photo at Tampico

Dawson and his mom, Tami

After visiting at Granny and Pawpaw’s house, we went to the hotel that a lot of people were staying at to watch the kids go swimming in the indoor pool while the adults chatted.

Siblings Dale and Kay (2 of Freda and Cecil's 4 children)

Olivia and her daughter, Tami

Cousins James and Larry III

Braiden (one of the great-grandkids)

Barrett and Rachel (newlyweds, comparatively speaking)

After dinner with James’ parents, Tami (James’ sister), Randy (Tami’s boyfriend), and Dawson (our 8-year-old nephew) at the Cracker Barrel, we went back for more visiting at Granny and Pawpaw’s house and some genealogical research for me.

Freda and her daughter, Kay

Sunday entailed more visiting, watching the “kids” play in the yard, and a fried/grilled chicken dinner from KFC.

Jason (one of the grandkids)

Three Generations (Kay, her son Larry III, and her mom Freda)

Group Photo (most of the great-grandkids and a few grandkids)

Rachel and Barrett

Cousins Carleigh and Sassy

Braiden and James

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