On their early morning ride

Sunday at Zilker

David took his favorite girls to Zilker on Sunday afternoon to enjoy the beautiful weather and kick around the soccer ball.

And I Said Nothing Exciting Ever Happens....

I told David that I haven't been blogging recently because we have been in a pretty uneventful routine with Ruby the last few weeks. Little did I know, however, that things were about to get exciting....

Ruby, David, and I met up with Jo Cassandra for an afternoon of fun and food in South Austin. I picked up David and Jo on the north side of the Capitol a few minutes after 12pm. As they were walking to the car, several state trooper vehicles went flying through the Capitol grounds with their sirens on. Once in the car, we drove around to the southern side of the building (not very smart when I think about it now) and saw troopers with their shotguns out at the front entrance. We had no idea what was going on, but figured we were safer leaving for lunch and headed to Freddie's for hamburgers and some time on the playground. David and Jo spent the majority of our lunch date checking their emails, tweeting, and calling other staffers for updates. It turns out that a gunman fired several shots on the South side of the Capitol and was quickly apprehended by troopers. Luckily, no one was hurt during the incident.

David swinging with a faceless Rubina during his tweet break.

Jo and Ruby talking about important girl stuff like fashion and boys.

The shooting actually extended our lunch date an extra hour, as the building was on lock-down and there was no way for David and Jo to get back inside. We took full advantage of the extra time and headed to Sugar Mama's for some dessert.

Rubes was excited.

Mmmmm, carrot cake cupcakes with cream cheese icing.

Ruby's been laying down on the job lately

But she promises to update more.

Eat Your Heart Out, Candice Olson

Gigi and Baba were kind enough to come into town to watch the National Championship football game this past weekend (we love you, Colt). Because Gigi is a superstar with the caulking gun, I asked her if she would help us recaulk Ruby's bathtub while here. Recent pictures of Ruby splashing in the tub had highlighted just how desperately the tub needed some TLC. Little did Gigi (or David) know that the re-caulking of the tub would turn into a weekend long bathroom redo project.

Here are some before pictures:

And some after pictures:

Please note the fancy new kid-friendly shower curtain, adorable curtain hooks, matching bath mat, new plugs and plates, and the frame around the mirror. David was a trooper, talking apart the toilet, replacing parts, and building the frame on the mirror himself while Gigi caulked and painted. And thanks to Baba too for being a great babysitter while the renovation project was taking place. Ruby loves her new bathroom!

Stay tuned in the coming weeks for more pictures as we finish up the renovation. David and Mark will be removing the pendant light fixture, taping and floating the hole in the ceiling, and putting in a new fixture above the mirror. I'll be redoing the vanity and replacing the hardware. I can't wait to see it all done.

Toddler or Teenager?

This is just a blurry camera phone picture, but it cracks me up. As soon as I saw it, I could see Ruby as a teenager, rolling her eyes at me and telling me that I have no idea how hard her life is. I can't wait.

Ruby's Christmas: 2009

Apologies for the wait in getting this put together, but we took about 30 short videos with our new camera (thanks Gigi and Baba), so the task appeared overly daunting.  I wish I had been able to get more video of Lauren and Jacob.  Fortunately they, Gramma and Grandpa, and the great-grandparents will be visiting Austin in just a few weeks.

With that said, a slightly delayed Merry Christmas to all.

Silly Ruby Tricks

It's been almost a week since I've posted! We've been enjoying time at home and getting back into our routine but have not taken any pictures since getting home from Houston. In lieu of pictures, I have some observations about the little lady that I'd like to share with readers and document for myself...

Ruby gets goofier every day. I think she's already got her dad's wacky sense of humor and I love it! Some of my new favorite "tricks" that Rubes can do:

-she dances in her high chair when she is eating something she likes
-she pats the bed with her hand to invite the dogs up
-she knows her hair, ears, eyes, nose, mouth, toes, hands and belly. she can also say eye, nose and mouth and will do so as she shoves your finger into your corresponding body part
-she insists on smelling the flowers in books
-she loves to run around the house naked and stick out her belly, suck it in, then stick it out again...it cracks her up
-she dances and sings to herself when there is no music
-she is fearless in the bathtub. she even gets down on her belly and kicks her legs.

I love her more every day.

Christmas 2009

We've been home since Sunday, but I'm just now getting around to posting about our Christmas. We went to Houston to be with my parents and Lauren and Jacob (who were having a Ross family Christmas in Spring). We spent the week hanging out with friends and family, playing Wii, enjoying happy hour, and chasing Ruby up and down the stairs. The food at the Guerin Resort was top notch, as always, and the free childcare services are great too! Thanks, Gigi and Baba, for a wonderful Christmas vacation.

Pictures after the jump ...

Flashback Friday

Christmas 2008 (David: yes, we know Ruby looks like a monkey here.  We think someone must have switched her out with a chimp right before the photo was taken)

Christmas 2009

 What a difference a year makes.