Hays Family Road Trip - Day Two in Austin

We kicked off day two in Austin with another excellent breakfast.  Kerbey Lane was sooooo good, that Magnolia Cafe had it's work cut out for it.

Although there was no queso on our eggs, everything was fantastic...

and so charmingly strange!  See that random pterodactyl skeleton hanging from the ceiling?!

After breakfast, we drove to Zilker Park.  It was a gorgeous day, full of sunshine.

After the girls played at the huge playground, we walked down to the water, near Barton Springs.

It was picture perfect!

We all took some time to enjoy the view...

and then walked down the river until we came to the Kayak hut.

Let's do this!

Lila, Cami and Jared hopped in their canoe first...

Then Jackson and I got in our kayak and caught up to them.

So far, so good!

Did I mention this was a pretty day?

We kayaked all the way past this bridge, around the honking geese...

and then back again.  Such an awesome way to see the city!

Our next stop was pretty cool, too. 
The top of Mt. Bonnell, where Jared proposed to me almost 17 years ago!  

My goodness, we sure have come a long ways since then. 
My heart was full being able to show our kids where our family began!

We made a pit-stop at the Oasis on our way out of town.  It was the perfect spot for a refreshing beveridge and snack.  

And one heckuva view! 
Our next stop was Kerrville, TX.  Stay tuned for lots of animal pics!

Hays Family Roadtrip - Austin, TX

We woke up early Sunday morning and headed further south towards our favorite city in Texas--Austin!!!  We wanted to spend as much time there as possible, and let's be real, there isn't a whole lot else going on in Waco that we care too much about.

We found a close parking spot to Kerbey Lane Cafe that just so happened to be in front of the
UT Tri Delt house.  Very cool.

Even though our waitress may have had purple hair, and maybe the hostess had about 5 too many piercings, the food was excellent!  The kids were in awe of the weirdness around us, but no one could deny how yummy the Eggs Francisco were, which included queso on the eggs--genius.

Who loves queso?  This girl!

After we stuffed our bellies, we set off on a walk through the UT campus.

These cool new murals were one of the first things we noticed.

We spotted the tower and crossed the street to enter the campus.  Cutest little longhorns ever.

The campus is so neat!

All of us thoroughly enjoyed our walk...

and we loved taking the kids to see where I went to college.  We went shopping for UT gear at the Co-op and then set our sights on the Capitol.

It was a gorgeous day to be out and about!

Jackson and Lila both loved all of the rich history of Texas, 

especially Lila, who kept asking me to document this monumental occasion from every angle.

They thought this monument to the Alamo was really cool, too.

Everything is so grand in the Capitol building, even the staircases!

The rotunda was impressive...

and so was the House of Representatives.  The kids even got in a little real world education!

As much as we loved bebopping all around Austin, we were in desperate need of a good nap.  These beds were phenomenal and soon Cami and I were fast asleep.

We rebounded well that night and made it out to an awesome dinner at the original Matt's El Rancho on South Lamar.  Such a lively atmosphere with great drinks and food.

Full day in Austin was up next!

Hays Family Roadtrip--Waco, TX

We decided it was high time for a Hays Family Roadtrip.  We kicked it off on Saturday morning by heading south to Waco for the UT/Baylor game.

It was a gorgeous day and our first time at the new Baylor stadium on the river.

After sitting in a lot of traffic on 35, then waiting a long time for an Uber, we finally made it to the tailgate to meet our friends!  Some of Lila's best friends are big Baylor Bear fans.

Cami had Delaynie and a few other kiddos to hang out with, too.  

I had some of my friends as well.  Fun for all!

After hanging out for a little while, it was time to walk to the game.

Game on!  Let's go Horns!

Hook' em!

Even though our team wasn't playing so well, we were still enjoying the afternoon.  It was the first time Lila or Cami had been to a college football game and they loved the whole experience.

It was cool to sit near the UT cheerleaders...

and have such great seats.  The Horns got vastly outplayed in the second half and lost the game.  Bummer.

We chose to look on the bright side, though, which included having this amazing tailgate spot.  We grilled burgers with friends and the kids ran around on the turf for a while.  Such a fun way to kick off our roadtrip, but the best was yet to come!

Kindergarten Feast

The Friday before Thanksgiving was a big day for a certain group of Kindergarteners.

Miss Cami was so excited. 
She woke up on time, put on her pumpkin outfit and even let me curl her hair.  So pretty!

A few hours later, I arrived at school to help set up the feast for 90 kids.  

They each had on these silly turkey hats...

and my favorite little turkey was thrilled to see me!

The room was full--the feast included Chick-fil-A nuggets, mashed potatoes, mac and cheese, corn, fruit and cookies.  A 5 year old's dream meal!

Ashton wanted a picture with Cami--he tells everyone at school that he's going to marry her! 
So adorable.

Allie, Cami, and Finley loved celebrating with all their best friends.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Sting wins it all!

It's been a while since Lila's team won a tournament.  The Veterans Heroes Cup started off slow, but they began picking up speed halfway through.  By Sunday afternoon they were rolling.

This fierce little girl was ready to bring home that big trophy!

These girls all fought hard and the game ended in a 2-2 tie.  Since it was the finals, though, it went into penalty kicks.  Coach Pat chose his top five to take the shots--Elle, Carolina, Izzy, Lila and Ryleigh.  It was so intense!  The other team went first and missed.  Elle took her shot and made it!  The other team shot and Hayley saved it.  Carolina went next and made it!  Our goalie made a fantastic save.  Izzy shot it hard past their goalie and we won!!!  Whew!  My heart was beating so hard.  Lila's was, too.  She was terrified about having to shoot next, but so relieved when she didn't have to.

Pure happiness!

These girls played three games that day and Lila never got subbed out, I don't think. 
Her little legs were like noodles, but she powered through.

That big medal and trophy were so worth all the sweat!

And as a bonus, Gigi was there to see it all, too!

Way to go, Lila.  We couldn't be more proud of you if we tried.