Reconnaissance...complete?

Sorry the posts have been few and far between. A lot of it has to do with the fact that for some reason, I feel the need to post a picture every time. So, this post will be sans photo. The last week and a half have been spent driving around Texas again. You would think we'd be used to it by now--we haven't exactly been the most stationary couple over the past 8+ years. At least the kids are older (and easily entertained with new hotel rooms every couple of days and pit stops at Grandpa and Grandmas house). The car DVD player is definitely paying for itself!

So, what's the verdict? Let's just say the older I get, the more indecisive I am. It takes me weeks of internet research to decide which shaving cream to try next--how can I be expected to bear the weight of where our family will spend the next 20+ years living happily (I hope)? Time is against us at this point--we really do need to make a decision within the next couple of weeks.

Who's in the running--initially Athens was the only real option. Port Lavaca was thrown into the mix (mainly 'cuz if we're gonna stay in Texas I wanted to at least consider the coast). Some last minute research from Kari pulled Decatur into the viewing. And after a phone call from a rep has us searching for Mt Pleasant we noticed we had overlooked Sulphur Springs. So, those are probably the Final Four (although the phone still rings frequently with other offers). Now it's just distilling all the myriad of variables to see which town will be the most compatible with our family.

Any suggestions?

1,2...3

Rachel had her big day on Saturday. It only took us 3 days of prepping her (both before and after the actual day) to help her realize that she was "2" and now she's "3". It was nice that her birthday fell on a Saturday. We could do the family thing as well as have a party with her friends all on the same day. Rachel had her friends over in the morning for her "My Littly Pony Party" (not trademarked--please don't sue me Hasbro). It was a nice enough day that the majority of the party was spent just playing with odds and ends (read: junk) in the back yard. The only game played was "Pin the Tail on the Donkey (I mean pony)" and it was a real hit. It looked like some pony came into the house and puked pink everywhere--pink cake, pink lemonade, pink ice cream--Rachel's heaven (and my hell).

The evening was spent rubbing elbows with Waco urbanites at Peter Piper's Pizza. I think the kids are developing a bit of a gambling habit. I had to pull Jacob away from those ticket games like ten times. Remind me not to take the kids to Vegas--I think they'd hawk their dad if it meant sticking a quarter in a machine for a single ticket!

All in all it was a good day. Thanks for the presents and calls. It has been like a big long "Pony Christmas" for Rachel--now, where to put them all!