It's a bird. It's a plane. No, it's Santa in a jet!

Santa visited the 435th for the second year in a row to bring joy and gifts to all the Black Eaglettes. Gatlin missed the actual taxi because he was busy (read throwing a fit). Ahem. Anyway, once we got out to the tarmac, he began to enjoy himself and even hammed it up for the photographer, Alex. It was a better experience for Gatlin this year sitting on Santa's lap mainly because Santa presented him with a gift. It was a book that I purchased and wrapped for Santa to give Gatlin on the big day. Good idea, right? Wish I could say it was mine, but it wasn't. So, although we didn't get a perfect "sit pretty and smile for the camera while on Santa's lap", what we did get was a cute, genuine reaction shot of Gatlin receiving his book.

Our Rudolph jet!

Santa arriving in style!

"Oh wow, a gift from Santa!"

This is my first attempt with this blog thing, but I wanted to thank my wonderful wife for everything she does for our family. I am very blessed to have her as my wife and Gatlin, Scout, and Sortie's mom. HAPPY BIRTHDAY CARRIE!


We celebrated by going out to eat with Carrie's family throughout the week and on her actual birthday we had our wonderful neighbors over for a small party. I got the numbers backwards on the cake...She is really 23 :)

Love, Kyle

Carrie you get more beautiful with age!

I need a hug!

What happened to Texas Tech last night? Does anyone know why they didn't show up to play? I mean, that game was a good ol' fashioned spanking! Don't get me wrong, I am still a die hard fan and will support my boys til the end but, come on! They average 40 points a game and barely squeaked out 21 last night. I have never seen them play so poorly. I guess the excitement and nerves took over and they never calmed down. What a sad night in Raiderland and in the Goldstein household. I am still reeling today. I know, I know, it's just a football game. There's always next year.

Go Red Raiders!!!

I am very excited about this game today. We are #2 in the nation, undefeated, facing OU, #5. We are playing at OU which will make the game much harder to win as OU has only lost at home twice in the past 60 home games! Insurmountable odds? Absolutely not! I am hoping and praying my Red Raiders blow them away and, if you don't have a favorite already, would you do me a favor and GET YOUR GUNS UP!!!

"Dream Team" QB Graham Harrell and WR Michael Crabtree

We're the dancers

I was laughing so hard when I saw this Saturday night. Justin never comes on SNL and doesn't leave me in tears. So funny!

Camping Part Deux, Chubby Bunny Style

We decided to do a mini camping experience in the backyard last night with our neighbors again. Kyle set up the big tent and cleared a space in our mulch bed to burn a Duraflame log to roast marshmallows by. We straightened hangars, set out our chairs and lanterns and awaited the darkness to begin the repeat camping experience. We first all had burgers at Jordan and Kelci's house then moved the party over to our place. We got all bundled up as a cold front was beginning to blow through and began the s'more experience in the backyard. After about five minutes, a huge gust of wind blew our fire out and the camping was officially moved indoors.

We lit our gas fireplace without any logs in it and roasted marshmallows on the open flames spouting from the pipe. It was a sight to be seen, I'll tell you. We all enjoyed s'mores in the comfort of our living room (my kind of camping) and chatted the evening away while Gatlin and Christiana played in Gatlin's Cars tent.

After a while, Kyle got the bright idea to stuff as many of the big marshmallows as possible into his mouth (aka Chubby Bunny). He got five the first time and was quickly told by Bobo that his attempt was weak. Can you see where this is going? A challenge was made and Bobo was up next to stuff his face. His technique was fantastic, poking the marshmallows into the corners and crevices of his cheeks until he had stuffed eight into his mouth. We were all laughing so hard, it was great. Kyle then tried again using Bobo's technique and got a whopping seven thereby handing Bobo the "chubby bunny" victory. At the end of the night, we were sufficiently stuffed on s'mores and slept in our cozy beds instead of in the windstorm that continued throughout the night. Again, my kind of camping!

Attempt #1, five marshmallows

Bobo working on a grand total of eight marshmallows

Attempt #2, stuffing number seven into his mouth

Ahh, the sticky sweet taste of victory!

Gatlin and Jordan hangin in the Cars tent

Gatlin's impression of "Chuggy Buggy" as he calls it

Camping Part One

About a month ago, we took Gatlin on his first official camping trip; complete with tent, campfire, and s'mores. We stayed at the Guadalupe River State Park just a mere 30 minutes from the house and what a beautiful place it was. We went with two other couples who live right next door and right across the street. One couple has an 18 month old and it was her first camping trip as well and the other couple is expecting their first in March so they started him off very early! I have to say it all went wonderfully, especially the kids. We did get there a little late and had to set our tents up in the dark but, while some of us were doing that, Jordan got to cooking the burgers and by the time we were all set up, we were also ready to eat. Dinner was great and we followed it up with too many s'mores. Gatlin loved roasting the marshmallows until they fell off into the fire and then, he started all over again. Who knows the marshmallow casualty number; what a pity. After dinner and dessert, the kids retired to bed and we sat around the campfire singing worship songs thanks to the accompaniment of Bobo's guitar. What a blessed evening.

During the night, we were visited by raccoons and armadillos who were not afraid to come right up close to the site but did very minimal damage. Not the most comforting feeling in the world to be using nature's facility and simultaneously hearing the rustling of leaves right behind you, let me tell you.

The next morning we packed up our gear, ate some breakfast tacos (courtesy of Kyle) and headed on a short hike down a very steep hill to the Guadalupe river. You can bet I was channeling my inner "Man vs. Wild" down the narrow hill and past the "what kind of plants are those?" We stayed for a few minutes enjoying the scenery and taking pictures and then, it was back up the hill to head for home as it was beginning to drizzle. We really had a great time thanks to great friends and warm weather. Gatlin is still talking about it to this day.

Amy, Bobo, and little Christiana

Setting up the tent and, yes, that is an air mattress. If I'm going to camp, I will be comfortable!

Kyle and his "hat lamp". It actually came in handy that night!

Jordan, Kelci, and baby Benjamin (in his momma's tummy)

Gatlin attempting to play the guitar

The whole crew!

Horton Hears a "No Way, Jose!!"

OK, so I got the bright idea to dress Gatlin as Horton the elephant from "Horton Hears a Who". I browsed online for a costume and gave Gatlin several options. He picked his favorite and the countdown until it arrived began. When it got here, Gatlin was so excited.... until he actually tried it on! A fit, the likes of which I can honestly say I haven't seen in a long time, commenced. I decided to take pictures for prosperity in case I could never get him back into it and after 5 minutes of sobbing and screaming my son said "NO MORE PICTURES!" I just died laughing and put him out of his misery by taking the costume off. After he tried it on, I quickly realized that the costume needed some work if it was to be what I had envisioned it to be. The head piece was so floppy that it wouldn't stand upright. Also, it was missing the most important part of Horton; the flower that the Whos live on! So, I went to Hobby Lobby and bought all I needed to make the flower and hot glued it to the trunk. Then, I went to a fabric store and purchased fusible webbing to get the head to stand up. After much frustration, the costume was ready for its Halloween debut. But, Gatlin was not!

Kyle forced him into the suit and crammed the hat on his head while Gatlin completely lost his mind in a fit worse than the first time (welcome to age 3!) I could hear Kyle telling Gatlin he had no choice and he would trick or treat no matter what because "your mother worked very hard on this" so "man up!" Yes, my husband told our three year old to "man up". I must admit, it was hard to contain the laughter at that point.

So, Kyle dragged my son out the door and across the street to our friends' house where Kelci promptly saved Halloween by giving Gatlin a sucker. Crisis solved, why didn't we think of that? We only made it to about four houses before Gatlin was done trick or treating but, he did wear the costume for an hour after that waiting to pass out candy.

Fit #1. (Notice the floppy head)

Fit #2

Fit #2, still going... this time, no costume malfunction

As usual, the girls were not left out of the Halloween fun. They walked around with us and wore their costumes like good girls. I torture them, I know.

Scout the Chicken

Sortie, our monkey

Fall Festival

We went to a fall festival hosted by a local Methodist church in the area. It had carnival games, "trunk or treating" (where kids trick or treat at cars parked in the parking lot) and a hay ride. Gatlin loved the hay ride we went on at a different farm last year so we decided to go this year at the church. The church is located right off of Hwy 281 and the hay ride took us alongside the highway and down an exit to a quarry area. About two minutes into the ride, we passed a dead deer that had been hit by a car several days ago. The stench was enough to nauseate even the toughest of stomachs and one lady said "I guess that's the scary part of the hayride!" We all got a good laugh out of that one! Once back at the church, Gatlin headed straight for the bounce house and bounced his little heart out. The church also had a great pumpkin patch where we got some pumpkins this year. I also talked to a lady about their preschool and I am going to look into enrolling Gatlin in the spring! What a great find considering we just happened to drive by!

Birthday Boy!

Saturday was Kyle's birthday! I won't reveal his age but will say that he is relieved to be an even number age again. He has this thing about that! His parents drove in for the weekend to help us celebrate. Take a walk down memory lane, won't you?

Happy birthday sweetie, I love you more than ever!

Happy Birthday Grammy!

September 28th, Kyle's grandma turned 90 years old! We went up to Farmersville to help her celebrate and had a great time. Kyle's parents threw her a birthday party worthy of 90 years with about 40-50 people there and even flew in Grammy's nephew as a surprise. Kyle's mom also asked people to send birthday cards to add up to 90 and, of course, she received that many, if not more! She is loved by all and has the best sense of humor and accurate memory of anyone I have known. We are so blessed to have her in our lives and so thankful that she is still so healthy and happy.

We love you Grammy and Happy Birthday!!!

Brandt, Grammy, and the Birthday Bear

Ya Mon!

Do I have the sweetest husband or what? Kyle decided to plan a surprise vacation for us and kept it a secret from everyone, including his mother. I had no idea where we were going or what to pack so, the night before we left, Kyle told me to pack something warm and a bathing suit. The next morning, (4:30 am to be exact) we headed out in the car to who knows where. We finally ended up at the airport and only after we checked in for our flight did I find out we were going to Montego Bay, Jamaica to stay at the Sandals resort!

We had the most wonderful time just relaxing by the ocean and living on island time. We got recertified in Scuba and dove a couple of times while we were there. Kyle's favorite past time was sailing on the Hobie cats they had available. He was right at home on that boat until one day when he got a little cocky and decided to race the clock back and forth along the beach. It was during one of those passes that I overheard someone say "Hey, it looks like someone on a Hobie cat needs rescue!" After a quick count of boats, I realized it was my husband. Needless to say, he was quite embarrassed when he returned to the beach in a rescue boat. Fortunately, the only thing he hurt was his pride.

We also took part in a dance contest one night to decide the "Jamaican Dance King" and in a separate contest, the "Jamaican Dance Queen"and both Kyle and I made it to the finals but didn't win. We did, however, get comments from the staff that they were surprised we could "shake it so well". My response was "thanks... I think."

After 6 days and 5 nights in paradise, we returned to our normal lives and, of course, were so happy to see our sweet boy and fur children again. If you are ever looking for a romantic, relaxing vacation, look no further than Sandals. What a wonderful trip!

The view from our room

Safe and sound after his "rescue"!

Take me out to the ball game

We took Gatlin to see San Antonio's minor league baseball team, The Missions, play a few weeks ago. He loves to watch the players hit the ball and run the bases and screams "foul ball!" whenever someone hits a foul ball or just misses a pitch. He especially likes watching the mascots dance around and act silly. Gatlin's good buddy, Jeremiah, was there also with his Dad and Grandpa. What a hoot to watch these two interract and dance to the music. We are so blessed to have such a good friend for Gatlin to play with. The Missions decidedly won the game and we went home triumphant and drained from the heat and humidity that San Antonio is notorious for.

Silly boys!

So Funny!!!

This video of Obama is too funny not to share! The dancing with Ellen is classic! Enough said...

Make sure you turn off the music at the bottom of the blog before pressing play.

*DISCLAIMER: The views expressed in this video do not necessarily reflect those of the Goldstein family

Swimming lessons

We decided earlier this summer to start Gatlin in swim lessons. Kyle and I both love the water so much, we wanted to be sure that Gatlin would love it too. So, this past week, Gatlin had a week of private lessons with the head lifeguard, Kyrenda. He really took to her the first day and trusted her right off the bat. By the end of the week, he was swimming back and forth between us underwater! I wouldn't say he is Olympic ready quite yet, but I am so thankful that he will finally put his face under the water! That was our biggest obstacle up to this point. Much thanks to Kyrenda for your patience and TLC with Gatlin. Watch out world, a new swimmer is born!!!

Playing "treasure hunt" with Kyrenda's charm bracelet

Getting ready for his first dunk in the lazy river

Look at me go!!!

Enjoying his graduation sucker with Kyrenda

Lovin' the lake!

A few weeks ago, we met Kyle's parents and brother and family at Lake LBJ for a weekend of food, fun, and festivities. While there, we celebrated both Billie and Hayley's birthday. Hayley celebrated the big 1-0 and it was quite a birthday indeed. We stayed at the same lake house we stayed at in January but, this time, we were able to use Jerri's boat as well. It was all the kids' first time on a boat and it was definitely Gatlin's first time in lake water! I must admit that he didn't enjoy it quite as much as we had thought he would. I think he was afraid since the water wasn't clear like it is in our community pool at home. The other three kids had a blast and the boys (Kyle included) enjoyed being towed behind the boat on the "floating donut" (I like to call it). We had such a wonderful time, we were sad to leave. Thank you, Jerri and family, for another wonderful weekend at the lake!

Ready for a fun filled day on the lake! He can hardly contain his excitement!

Boys on the "floating donut"

Hayley enjoying her first boat ride!