REPLY
Bittersweet memories ran through my mind as we drove into the tiny town of Kingsville. I wasn't going to visit the town I grew up in, but wanted to show my kids where I was raised, who I was, how I found myself, and the place where traumatic things happened that helped me find my way to a better life.
When we came home from our trip to Texas we realized that we hadn't gone to the orchard as much this summer. So after getting much needed rest we went the next day to Terhune orchards to pick some blueberries. Well, as soon as we got there we had a change of heart and decided to pick blackberries instead. The last time we went blackberry picking Chelsea and Noah were ten and five! It had been too long since we went blackberry picking, and I'm so glad we chose to pick those instead of blueberries!
I will always remember the first time we went to a sunflower field and it was the most gorgeous thing to do during summer. I couldn't let the summer pass us by without venturing out to one, and luckily we have so many here in the garden state! I discovered one much closer to us in Manalapan and it was beautiful. We went on one of the hottest days this summer, and still had fun. The kids wandered around traipsing along the field trying to find that perfect sunflower. Sweat, and the words "I'm hot, can we go now" were constantly uttered by Noah. It didn't take us too long to meander, and pick because all the flowers were perfect, and capturing moments of this day was pretty easy. That is until Noah began to complain about how "toasty" the sun was getting!
On our way to see my momma in Corpus we decided to make a pit stop in San Antonio. Like our day trip to New Orleans time spent here was really short. We had enough time to eat some yummy Mexican food, see the Alamo, and walk along the Riverwalk. Even in this heat we had a nice time. Noah was mesmerized with the Alamo. He had a gazillion and one questions about what happened here, and luckily I know my history about this place because we didn't have time to do the tour in its entirety. He loves everything that deals with historical monuments, generals, guns, and soldiers which in this case totally suited him because of what happened here.
On our way back from seeing my mom in Corpus Christi we timed it perfectly to stop by the Houston Temple. I have never been to this temple, and was soooo excited that we made it here. It is my favorite temple in Texas. I've seen all the temples in Texas in person and so far Houston is at the top of my list. All temples are beautiful and bring light in their own way, but there was something about the Houston temple that shined a light so bright on me that day. Maybe it's because we stopped in when I needed it the most. Maybe it's because the exterior of the building is as white as snow. Whatever the reason was the peace I felt on the temple grounds was so real. I felt so much peace and felt as if I was in another world. So grateful it was in our path as we were in route back home to Jersey, and that the kids also enjoyed it as much as we did.
More pictures of this beauty below...
Sebastian is the cutest, sweetest lovable baby that you'll ever meet. He reminded me of my kiddos because he had the same demeanor as my kids did when they were babies. It was such a joy to have finally met him, and to see my niece again whom I hadn't seen in almost 15 years!! It definitely had been too long!
I totally neglected my little blog this past month but I have a good excuse. So much has happened since my last blog post, and to be honest it has been a really nice break not having to write so much. I love it, and have to admit missed documenting our adventures, but alas I felt the urge to do a little catching up, and share a bit of what has been happening this last month.
