Our First Week

(More pictures coming. My mouse pad is sticking so I have to fix that before I can copy and paste more pictures in)

Our first week as Texans was pretty low key.

Saturday night/early Sunday morning the troops headed out so we were left with our apartment all to ourselves. It was strange to have the house so quiet. We haven't been alone with just our family in several months. It was interesting.

Sunday was a disaster. Weston was not doing well with all of the changes so add church on top of that - asking for a meltdown. It was pouring rain all day so when we arrive at the church building I am debating whether or not to take out our umbrella. Funny thing is that there was not an umbrella in sight! No one used them! So, I didn't want to stick out even more by being the only lame person that were using an umbrella in the pouring rain. Who does that? So, we ran through the rain and arrived through the doors quite wet.

We made it 20 minutes when they both lost it. Weston had one meltdown after the next and Natalie was so tired all she could do was cry (but of course not sleep). So, we figured we had tortured our kids enough over the past few days and called it good for the day. Hopefully we have better luck next Sunday.

Monday was Roland's first day of work at Raytheon. He loved it! He is not only excited about his new position and the things he will learn and do, but he is also excited to work for this great company. I think more than anything he is excited to not have to be on the phone in a customer service position, and best of all, he is treated like an adult!

The kids and I spent the week in the apartment. I had a really hard time finding any motivation to move let alone gather the kids together and head down the stairs to the car in the rain. We spent the long days playing with toys and trying to unpack and organize the house. I was impressed with how much I was able to get done but was feeling rather down and extremely unmotivated.

Roland noticed my lack of motivation and fatigue and asked how I was feeling. I hadn't really noticed, but I guess I was rather depressed. I think the reality of everything finally hit me as I was sitting here alone in the apartment with no one that I knew within 1500 miles of me. I was drastically wishing and hoping for some adult conversation and human interaction and was craving sunlight. The combination of all of these forces did not fair well on my mood or demeanor. My poor kids and husband.

Luckily Roland is a smart man and he insisted we get out of the house. We spent the evenings grocery shopping and spending time at the local parks. It was certainly nice to get some fresh air and it did rejuvenate me quite a bit. Weston and Natalie loved being outside. They both were fascinated by the lake and neared the edge several times in hopes of a better view of the water. Natalie was very frustrated each time I would gently guide her waddling body away from the water's edge. Apparently I don't win mother of the year award for that one!

Friday was Roland's day off (thank you Raytheon for awesome work schedules!) so we decided we would check out the Dallas Zoo. Staying true to our navigation attempts in Dallas - we got lost. We have not made it anywhere yet without getting lost along the way. These are the most confusing freeway systems I have ever seen. We did eventually make it though and we had an absolute blast.

Roland had never been to the zoo with the kids before so he enjoyed this time to see the kids' enthusiasm about the animals and other fun things to do there. They have a really fun "children's zoo" within the zoo that is catered to toddler age kids. There are fun things to climb on and slide down. There is also a "petting zoo" that Weston thought was so much fun. He got to pet a little bunny and was all smiles the whole time. He is so gentle and soft. It was fun to watch his excitement.

There was also a giant fish tank of large fish. Weston started screaming "bush, bush" (his interpretation of fish) and ran over to the tank of leaping fish. He screamed each time they lept into the air. It was all fun and games until he watched them from the side and their giant mouths came towards him. He did not find that very amusing.

Natalie decided to spend this entire time sleeping. The poor little girl was so exhausted. When she did finally wake up, she was on the go. She refused to be restrained in her seat and insisted on walking everywhere we went. She and Weston even decided to push the stroller for a bit.

I think one of the highlights was definitely the tiger. After approaching the tiger habitat and seeing him far off in the distance we knew there was no way that Weston would be able to see it. We all walked away rather disappointed, especially Weston who had been looking forward to seeing one of his favorite animals. He kept repeating "tiger - rowr!"

As we were heading the opposite direction we spotted him through some trees. Roland grabbed Weston and tried to point to where the tiger was underneath all of the brush. Just then, the tiger decided to get up and go get a drink. He was walking right to where the overlook window was! Roland grabbed Weston and darted for the window. I made it inside with Natalie in time to see the tiger lazily making his way towards the window to take his drink. Weston stood mesmerized. We must have stayed in that habitat for at least ten minutes. Weston just sat on his little window sill perch and quietly ate his snack and watched the tiger. He was very amused.

We also attempted the monorail. They have a 20 minute narrated monorail ride through the zoo that lets you see the animals from another view. The poor kids were tired, hungry, and Natalie didn't feel well. So, there was lots of crying, wiggling, and pouty faces. But, we made it through. Roland and I thought it was interesting, Weston was entertained for a little bit, but Natalie just didn't care for it at all. We decided to call it a day at that point.

Saturday was filled with more fun at the park. I witnessed someone flying kites for the first time since I was a little kid. We decided that we needed to go out and buy some kites and try it one of these days. Weston and Natalie were so cute. They both were just on the go. Weston spent the majority of the time we were there picking flowers and chasing birds. He is adorable. Every wildflower he would see, he would stop, hunch over, say "fwower!" and pick it. He had flowers falling out of both hands. He just couldn't resist.

He was also fascinated by all of the birds. There was a little section covered in trees and little birds were walking around under the shade of the trees. Weston would come barreling through screaming "bird, bird, bird!!!" and would look with confusion and frustration when the whole throng would fly away in one giant display. When another would brave it's way back down to the ground, Weston would spot it out and immediately begin running after it again in pure excitement and joy. Once again, the bird would fly off into the sky leaving behind a visibly upset little boy. This went on for over a half hour. Weston just could not understand why the birds would not stick around and let him play with them.

Natalie was just content to walk this whole time. She just went off exploring and picking up all of the sticks she could find. Apparently sticks make good chew toys. She is so funny.

It was a good week. We had our ups and we had our downs but this place is growing on us. I bet that at some point we will be able to call this place home. We certainly miss our home in Arizona but look forward to see what this place brings us. Roland absolutely loves his job, so that makes up for everything!