Hawaii Comes to Texas

So my sister and her family came to visit us on their way through from Hawaii to North Carolina.  They moved to Hawaii the same time we moved to Alaska and so after their three years in Oahu they were being stationed in North Carolina which is exactly where they lived before they packed up to move to Hawaii....this whole military thing is always so confusing to civilians and I can see why.

Anyway, they flew from Hawaii to San Diego, picked up their truck they had shipped there and made a two day drive, arriving on July 3rd, to be here in time for the 4th of July festivities.

Not knowing if they would be up for it, we mentioned there was a small town parade a few towns away and they were super psyched.  We headed to Comfort, Texas for their 4th of July parade and it did not disappoint.  It was total small town fun.  The parade was perfect. Here we are all snug on our blanket, prime spot along the parade route (perfect for children catching candy from all the large floats and moving vehicles)....

Waiting for the parade to start...

getting Hula lessons from my niece Chloe who had been taking lessons before they moved....

and ahh yes...unable to resist purchasing lunch, here we are eating brisket plates, VERY Texas...

...we headed back out in the evening to see our local fireworks here in town which was a festive end to a very fun and patriotic day.  I always get a little teared up at these things...I know it's because I love being an American but man show me a float of veterans and I am a puddle...it just means so much to know people are willing to sacrifice themselves for the safety of this country. 

Mick and Deanna and Chloe were here for almost a week and it flew by so quickly.  We had so many things going on.  Things like this....

Randy's Pay Dig

Ok..now you are probably going to think this is weird.....crazy.....odd...strange...and you are correct..but it was also great fun.

This guy...out in Comfort, TX ...has private property where he has found artifacts, like arrowheads, and you can pay him to give you loads of dirt that you sift through and hope to find stuff.

 

The guys took the kids out early one morning and got started while Deanna and I lounged for a few minutes and then made a Starbucks run...

We met them out there about 2 hours after they got started and when the call came that we should bring more cash we knew we were in trouble....they were hooked....

so we found our families digging happily through these mounds of dirt and they invited Deanna and I to try.  We resisted at first but the temptation was just too much.  Miles gave me his gloves and invited me to take his spot.  I walked up to the table and looked down and not even having touched the dirt yet held up this...

and said "Is this what you are looking for?"  Oh yeah..I found an arrowhead in zero seconds flat...that's how I roll...thinkin' about becoming an archaeologist now!

At some point the girls decided diggin out was over and actually burying treasure was in.

I won't mention how much we spent to dig in the dirt but they all had a great time and found these treasures...which if you've never hunted for buried treasure creates quite a sense of excitement and pride.

We did lots of other things...the guys and kids went to a movie while Deanna and I looked at baby things and registered for their baby due in November.  It's a girl so we looked at lots of pink things and I, again, marvelled at all the things that have come out for babies since Brooke was born...incredible! I could so be a way better parent now with all these new fangled contraptions!

One of the things Deanna and I took the girls to do was Build A Bear.  We've been a zillion times and Brooke loves it more with each trip but....

Chloe and Deanna had never been, so this was a whole new experience for them.

After we hit Build A Bear we got ice cream. Brooke and I shared a banana split...it was soooooo delicious.

Somewhere in all of this craziness my sister and her family took Brooke to see the circus for her birthday gift.  Brooke had some serious fun.  And she came home with so much circus gear to boot.  It was a wonderful gift that I know she won't forget. 

On their last here we headed to Sea World.  Now thanks to their "Here's to the Heroes" program, which allows military members and their families free tickets, we were all able to get in free. We fed the dolphins and saw Shamu....

  

...ate lunch and headed to the water park.  Yes the admission may have been free, but this day itself was not, but a fun day it was!!  We capped off their trip with a little dinner at Mamacitas and then the trip was over...crazy fast!

I'm so glad that they were able to stop by and hang out with us. Hopefully we'll see them again very soon!