Fireworks, Fish, Gators, Crabs, and Dogs...Oh My! - Updated

I totally butchered the order of events when I first posted. Andrew has since corrected me and the post should now be accurate. I can thank my pregnant brain for my forgetfulness.

For the 4th of July, one of my best friends in the whole world and her husband game to visit! Greta has been in Scotland all semester and really hasn't seen me in all my pregnant glory. We wanted to be able to spend some time together before the Tater man gets here. I don't think she or her husband Russell had ever really been to this area and experienced any of Southeast Texas life.

Friday night Andrew cooked his famous red fish on the half shell. (Before pic)


The after pic could easily be an expensive entree at some fancy restaurant. Fresh fish is one of my faves and I can't wait to have it again! Gulf fish/shrimp has been off limits. :-(

Saturday, we slept in (sort of) and then made pancakes for breakfast! I say "sort of" slept in because even on the weekend, my body (and the dogs!) are still on a weekday schedule. It was probably a good thing we didn't sleep in too late, because we all wanted to watch the World Cup game. I've already forgotten who played, but I think it was Germany. Greta and I ran a couple errands and then we all decided to take the boat out. There's no better way to see Southeast Texas than from a boat going through the marsh! :-) We got Greta and Russell hooked up with a one-day fishing license so they could partake in all the excitement.






The gators were out in full force and VERY interested in our bait












A little too close!




Greta's first fish since childhood (2nd fish ever!)... who cares that is was a gar!




Greta's first redfish!






The trout were hitting like crazy here!


Preparing for a little crabbing!


Ready!


Two in one try!




Big Daddy!


Don't get too close!


Delicious! (and off limits for me, boo!)


Pretty sunset! (Get out before the mosquitoes start attacking!!!)


Snagged me an itty bitty croaker!


Cleaning the catch!








Saturday night we went to Larry's French Market for a little cajun food and zydeco music. Larry's is definitely a Southeast Texas landmark. Greta enjoyed BBQ crabs and fried shrimp. I also ordered boudain balls for everyone. Yummy!

Sunday we slept in a little bit more than on Saturday (thank goodness). We went to church and then headed over to Luby's for their all you can eat breakfast buffet. We have recently discoved this and are now big fans! :-) After breakfast, we pretty much did nothing, which was awesome. All four of us piled on the couch and watched movies on TV. Greta also finished her Scotland video documenting her 5 months there. It was AMAZING! No doubt it was an experience of a lifetime!

The pups were also a big part of the weekend. We had FOUR in the house. WOW!

Greta and her precious Huck!


Greta and Sadie (who likes ANYTHING within reach, whether in plastic or not...including non-food items like chapstick!)


Trying to get all 4 to sit still wasn't going to happen!


Three of the four... they got to be good buddies by the end of the weekend!












Greta and Russell's dogs do all the agility training stuff and we found one of the tricks at Ross for $6.99, so we were going to give it a try. We also tried to see if my pups could figure it out. Treats were involved, so they did pretty good!




Yay Shooter!














One of the most fun things about a small town is that the fireworks in the city law doesn't really apply. I think it's still a law, but no one cares. We were able to sit in our back yard and eat a good 'ole American 4th of July dinner of hamburgers & hot dogs (and Cheetos) and witness an amazing fireworks display from all directions. We let other people spend their money on the fancy artillery shells, and we just watched. It sounded like we were in the middle of a war zone. The only bad part about all this is that people tend to hoard fireworks and you continue to hear something throughout the year. It's usually the small stuff, but still, it does get old.

I remember we used to have to go drive out near Lake Ray Hubbard (or was it Cedar Creek) to the city limit sign to shoot off fireworks. We usually just went and sat at the top of Arborside Drive and watched them at Royal Oaks. Or... we were in Wimberley accidentally setting a fire across the river (thanks to bad aim with a Roman candle or bottle rocket).

Let the fireworks begin!






Gotta love sparklers!







Monday morning Andrew made breakfast and sadly, Greta & Russell had to leave shortly after breakfast to make the long trek back to Dallas. It was SO great to spend the weekend with them! Being so far away, we really never get to spend this kind of time together. Love you both!!!

New Baby-Mobile! (aka Andrew's "Man Truck")

We've been talking about needing to get a "new" car for quite some time. Mine is almost 10 years old and Andrew's Tacoma is not exactly family friendly. We didn't know how un-family friendly it was until we went to go install the car seat in the jump seat in the back (it's just a little access cab, not full double or crew cab). We got the car seat in; however, unless the passenger has no legs, it just wasn't going to work. You had to have the passenger seat all the way forward to make the car seat fit. Well...that just wasn't going to work. Andrew's truck was also a standard, which I didn't mind driving around town or in any familiar places; however, I have definitely had several "anxiety moments" at the sheer thought of getting stuck at a light on a hill. Anxiety. Major anxiety. Pretty much the only anxiety I have ever had. Also, even with the 4-wheel drive pulling the boat was always a little bit of a struggle. Last, when we go anywhere, we were loaded down with all or junk and the two pups... not sure where a baby and all its junk would go.

Long story short, we decided to trade in Andrew's truck for 2 reasons. All the functionality issues mentioned above and the fact that my car was paid for. I don't drive much since I work from home, so I wanted to milk the "free" car for as long as possible. Given the uncertainty of how a baby will affect our budget, the last thing I wanted to go was to get in over our heads and have two car notes. Andrew's truck was almost paid for, so we ended up not having to finance that much and were able to get an awesome rate.

We had been pouring over various dealership websites and Ebay Motors for a couple weeks and then finally stumbled upon this truck below right here in Nederland.

It's amazing how few 4WD, 4-door Tundras are out there. We had a plethora of 2WD Tundras to choose from, but hardly any 4WD. The few that were out there were fancier trim packages that were a little more than we wanted to pay. Or, by the time we found the listing and called, they had already sold the truck. Multiple dealerships said that the 4WD Tundras don't stay on the lot long. We lucked out and found this 2008 truck with a little less than 50,000 miles for what seemed like a very fair price (especially after a little negotiation). Andrew's 2006 Tacoma had 120,000 miles on it and he had never had any issues. From day one, we were pretty confident that Toyota was the way to go. This truck already had a custom grill guard and bumper and a small lift. Definitely made for "man truck" material. I don't know all the specs, but it definitely had the power Andrew wanted. He has always wanted a "man truck" and I am so happy that he finally has it. I can tell how much he loves it already! After we bought it, he took it straight to Discount Tire and got some better tires put on. They currently had street-grade tires that were just about bald. I have to give Edgar at Philpott Toyota/Ford some props because this was definitely a positive car buying experience. We got a great deal on our trade-in and were able to negotiate the price down. We actually ended up spending LESS than what we had targeted as our ideal net price range (truck price less trade-in). The "just walk-away price" that we had in our heads when we walked in was actually a couple thousand higher than what we ended up paying. So... in other words, we were happy!

I'll post some new pics of the truck soon with the new tires. He plans on adding a tool box and spray-in bed liner too. I'm fine with my little Pathfinder for now, but I will definitely be ready for a "new" car in the next couple of years. So far, with my 130,000+ miles, it seems to be doing okay. I've had some AC issues on the really, really hot days, but then it seems to work fine on others. We'll probably have a real Baby Mobile after I get rid of my car... hello Suburban! :-)