In our previous post, we talked about getting down to Texas. Once there, we had an absolute blast. There were a lot of firsts: First time for my Grandma (Memaw) Sweaney to meet Kiley; First time my parents got to meet Kiley; First time my sister and her husband got to meet Kiley; First time for us to spend time at my sister’s new lake house; and the first time Gus went to the lake and enjoyed the water.
After arriving in the Metroplex, we relaxed the rest of the day at Katie’s house. The next day, Katie, Laura, Kiley and I drove down to Arlington to see my grandmother, Kiley’s great grandmother, Nona. We picked up Chipotle and brought it to Bethesda Gardens, where Memaw lives, and shared lunch with her while she held the new baby for the first time. Kiley was, of course, a huge hit, both with Memaw, and with the staff and others there. My aunt and uncle arrived for a chance to hold her too. Afterward, we headed over to Iva Roxburgh’s house, a dear family friend who is now 97 years old. She still drives, and even mows her own lawn, so we all hope for genes as great as Iva’s. She enjoyed meeting Kiley, and thankfully, we left Iva’s before the tears and crying showed up.
The next day, Wednesday, it was time to head out for the Lake House. Katie and Scott would arrive later, so our family got there with a few hours to settle in and take in the beauty of this new place. iPhone control lets the thermostat get turned down remotely so the house was nice and cool upon our arrival. What a place this house is — five bedrooms, gourmet kitchen, and a wonderful view of lake Palo Pinto out the front windows. Katie and I have been coming out to this lake since we were tiny because our grandparents have property there, with a little cabin. Katie built a new “cabin” to replace the small, aging one we grew up visiting.
Kiley stayed inside most of the time, while Gus chased down several deer, and gave one little fawn a real run for its money. We all enjoyed being on the wake boarding boat, even Gus! Kiley road along, but slept the entire time and didn’t really get to appreciate the beauty of the lake or the colors of the sunset. 
Oh well, maybe next time. I hurt my finger getting up on the surfboard, so my action was limited. Laura still couldn’t get into the water because of her small surgery after giving birth and Scott had a bum knee from a tough crash the prior weekend. So, it was up to Katie to wow us on the wake board. The highlight of being on the water for me was when Gus, with his little doggie life jacket on, jumped into the water off the back of the boat and swam to me — brave little Chorkie!
It was a nice, long relaxing weekend to just hang out and be with family again. My parents were really happy to finally be able to hold Kiley, instead of just looking at pictures of her on the internet. The only thing that would have made the weekend better would have been fireworks (the actual kind, not family feud type of stuff), but they were restricted because of a local burn-ban policy. The awesome food we ate helped make up for the lack of fireworks — Cowboy Burgers, gourmet burgers, and grilled and smoked meatloaf were just the start.
We had no problems boarding the flight back to Ohio and got to sit with each other again. Gus was a trooper and stayed quiet the whole way home, and Kiley pretty much did the same. The trick is to feed her right before we board, and right after we deplane, and she sleeps in between the feedings. All in all, it was a really great trip and was so much fun. We are so glad my family was able to see our new baby girl, and we look forward to the next chance to get back to the amazing lake house with amazing family!