One down, one to go!

We have a first grader in the house!

How many grades are there, mama?

Well, there are 12 in school then 4 more in college.  You can decide after that.

So there are 16 grades and I'm just in the 1st?

Yes son, don't rush it.

He's a proficient reader, he LOVES math and he's already dissected sheep eyes, made crystals and learned the history of several presidents.  I'd say he's ready for at least 7th grade.

Jackson started 1st grade at Harpeth Valley Elementary on August 1.  He started earlier than most schools around because they are beginning a modified year round schedule that will give him a few more breaks in the school year.  We are totally ok with it.  We have been SUPER happy with his school.  It was a very researched decision to live in this school district and I feel like it has been validated dividends!  He has learned so much and all the teachers seem wonderful.  His teacher this year is young.  She's a cute little athlete that just started last year.  Jackson has had  the best of both since last year his teacher retired after his class!  She was wonderful too and he still misses her!

He walked into class without hesitation and got right to work.  He claimed when he got home that the teacher asked him how he felt about the 1st day and he said he was "a little shy and nervous".  I'd say he's also a follower and heard someone else say that.  He's never been shy a day in his life.

He gets pretty serious about the snack he chooses each day and riding the bus.  He LOVES that bus and begs to ride it every day.  I can't complain, I love the bus too.  She delivers my son every single day and I never even have to leave the neighborhood!  Car rider lines are for the BIRDS!

We stared this first day of school photo and I made him promise he'd do it through high school.  We'll see if he follows through.  Next year, he'll be taking this photo at a different school.

 Most likely in a different state.  Probably Texas.

Out with a Bang...bang, bang

It's my last night as a temporary single parent of 2 rambunctious boys.  It couldn't come soon enough.  I sit and type with my (ahem) second glass of much deserved wine.  They really tested the limits at times, especially tonight.  It started when Jackson got home from school and within seconds, I was ready to send him back to the bus and home with Ms. Martie the bus driver!  He started making Lincoln scream about who knows what.  I discussed just today with my friend Mari, WHY in the world do siblings act so perfectly when they are separate but so atrocious when they are together?  Why does being together bring out their worst characteristics?  I would happily take either one of them on errands, to publix or even antique shopping but I'd pay BIG money just to leave them home when they are together.  I'd eat McDonald's not to take them to the grocery store together. (and I HATE McDonald's!)

We knew from the beginning that Jason would have an internship and that it likely would not be in Nashville.  We knew it would mean 3 months away from him but we'd done 3 deployments, 3 months would be a piece of cake.  Well, it was a piece of SOMETHING but I wouldn't call it cake!  I didn't realize how hard raising boys would be without their father (whom they LOVE) would be.  Apparently he's far superior to the one who feeds them and give birth to them!  Not a day went by without his mention or missing him.  We all missed him.  I missed his help in breaking up the fights and doing half the bedtimes.  I missed him taking out the trash too!
Tonight was one of those nights. The final straw (you know, the one that broke the camels back).  I had a coupon to Wendy's that bought me 2 kids meals for $2.  You can't pay me to wash dishes for that so  we had Wendy's after an hour at the park that is in front of the house.  While getting ready for bed upstairs, I hear BANG, BANG, BANG and I jump up to scale the stairs and survey what is making such a racket.  Before I hit the top stair, Jackson is crying and Lincoln is at the stairs apologizing to me.

He had taken his wooden toy hammer and given his sweet Daddy a "welcome home" present in the form of 15 dents in the walls of the house we RENT.  I'm sure his dad will be thrilled.  Me, well, I sent that boy straight to his OWN bed, alone without a story.  If he got up, he would get "the spoon".  Of course, he cried.  It was hard to put him to bed crying but he knew better and did it anyway.

Later I went in there and consoled him with a lesson in forgiveness.  He said he forgave me for being a mean mom. It wasn't cracking me, I told him we do not say that.  I punished him for his wrong doing and now God forgave him and so did I.

But alas, there are still holes in the wall and I'm still sleeping alone.

Tomorrow, oh, Tomorrow!

It's Tuesday! Time for 10!

It always seems to creep up on me, the blog, Tuesday, the laundry.  Right now, I can only come up with 5 of the 10 things needed to fulfill the title.  It things get lame at the end, you'll know why.

1.  Jason comes home FRIDAY!  We are all pretty excited.  Not post deployment excited.  That's a whole other world of excitement.  But we can't wait to have him back here with us to help with baths, bedtime and discipline   I'm sure he'll be fun too!  His final presentation is tomorrow and after that, his final interview.  I know he'll do great and maybe this time next month, he'll have a job waiting for him!


2.  My sister's baby shower was this weekend.  It was filled with all kinds of pink and cuteness.  She's having a girl in October.  We are all so excited!  It's the first girl in this family in 30 years!  What are the chances I'll  be next?  *fingers crossed*

3.  Jackson and I recently watched Mirror, Mirror.  It was a cute movie and mimicked snow white but with a twist.  We especially loved the feisty seven dwarfs in the movie.  After that, we were somewhere in Nashville when we crossed paths with a little person.  Jackson innocently said "Look mom!  That man looks just like one of the seven Dorks!"  Yep, we had a politically correct talk right then and there.

4.  Jackson started school on Wednesday but he was off on Thursday so we had a fun day!  He chose to go to the Science Museum and since it's cool inside, I did too!  He LOVES that place.  It was kinda crowded but we managed to hit all the high points.  I got pretty annoyed at the end of the day as there were unmonitored children from a childcare facility that were doing things (climbing on things, over rails and into places) that they weren't supposed to do.  It was ruining the fun for all the other kids.  I used it as a lesson in "don't do wrong things, even if no one tells you no to."

5.  Yesterday Lincoln and I bought groceries and on the way home, I decided that I couldn't cook AND put the groceries away so we needed to go to the Mexican place.  It's just a place up the road and the kids LOVE it.  Mostly because they have a gumball machine and they bring their quarters to get gum if they eat well.  Lincoln immediately asked me for gumball monies and I got him out a quarter.  He handed it back to me and said it was NOT gumball money.  Well, I know a quarter when I see one and I was certain it was. After a few minutes of arguing with him, I said, take it or leave it here on the table, that's your gumball money.  He then proclaimed "It's NOT gumball money.  It doesn't have an eagle on it!"  Wow, stubborn kid.  It was a state quarter.  I got out all the quarters I had and we had a little lesson in currency right there in the Mexican cantina.  I had 2 state quarters and 2 eagle quarters.  He took the eagle quarter and said, "No this is gumball monies!"  And all was right in the world.

6.  Last week, my parents came for a little visit.  My dad lived here for 18 years and had never visited the Loveless Cafe.  It's an iconic place way out here in Bellevue.  A Nashville original, visited by all the celebrities.  Proof lines the walls of the old house as it is covered in signed celebrity photos.  But most come here for the biscuits and we were not different.  You can even watch the workers make the biscuits through a window in the wall here.  We had a fantastic meal of comfort food and came home stuffed.  I highly recommend the Loveless Cafe if you're in the Nashville area.

7.  One kid is easier than 2.  I quickly remembered how much easier it is to entertain one child and drag him around on errands with me.  When they are together, loudness and fighting ensue.  But one of them is usually an angel.  (as long as I fork over the gumball money)

8.  Crickets....(chirp, chirp).....

9.  Tonight we headed over to the Opry Mills mall for the free Lego build at the Lego store.  It was much more crowded than normal but after we all built a Lego shark, we headed to Chuy's to find out there was an hour and a half wait.  No way I'm waiting that long for Mexican food!  Food court for us.  On the way there, we stopped by the bathroom and as we're entering we see NOT one but TWO Elvis' walking out.  Jackson gasp, "Look mom!  2 Elvis's!"  Later we figured out that there was an Elvis tribute that evening and that explained the crowds and the table of 7 Elvis' including the Asian Elvis we saw at Johnny Rockets!

10.  You might be a mom of boys If...you get excited about the release of the new mini figures in the Lego collections. You might be a Christmas fanatic if you're over the moon about the prospect of one of them being Lego Santa Claus!!  Only 139 days till Christmas, ya'll!
http://www.xmasclock.com/

Ten on Tuesday

It's the LAST day of summer in the deFoor house but we've been busy the last few weeks.  We have really made the most of our summer!

1.  The boys are enjoying blueberry smoothies this morning, compliments of the 7 pounds of fresh blueberries I picked last week from a farm in AL.  I picked until it was so dark, I could hardly see the berries.  It was the only time it was cool enough to stand outside!

2.  We're in the 2 week home stretch of Jason's stint in Houston.  I came to the realization today that no matter how long the time you're away, when the end approaches, everyone involved is DONE.  Whether it's a year, 15 months, or just 3. It seems the last mile is ALWAYS the hardest..

3.  I can't be alone.  Sure, I've been alone the last 3 months but I mean, I can't be alone "without my phone".
I had to drop my phone off at the Sprint store for a doctor visit.  It was having some serious stress related issues.  While without my phone for an hour, I succumbed to actually writing down all the things I reached for my phone for.  The list was impressive.  Here are just a few of the examples.
-text mom and ask if she ordered something
-call dad to tell him I'm on my way after the phone check up
-call Stella & Dot customer and tell them their style rewards from last night's show
-check time (who has a watch these days!)
-update facebook with how disconnected I am without my phone.
-google the price of something on my target visit
-call dog groomer for an appointment
-check with my workout partner on our meeting time next week
 And that's just to name a few.  It's a terrible beautiful addiction to technology but I am not alone!

4.  I made a new dip that is pretty awesome.  I saw it on another blog and of course pinterest to the rescue, I found it there.  It's called Poolside Dip and you should probably make it tomorrow.  Whether or not you'll be poolside but we highly recommend poolside.  That's where we wanna be!

Skinny Poolside Dip: 1 red pepper, 2 jalapeños (unseeded), 1 can of corn, 1/2 can diced olives, 16 oz fat-free cream cheese (softened), and 1 packet Hidden Valley Ranch dip seasoning mix. Serve with crackers


5.  While making the above dip this weekend, I improvised and used a skinny green pepper from my grandpa's garden for the jalapeno.  I knew the first bite I took that it was a HOT HOT pepper but the cream cheese made it edible.  The next day life went on as usual until I took a shower and prepared to head back to Nashville.  I told my mom I noticed my left hand was really burning and I put ice on it.  It kept getting worse and worse.  It was NO joke!  So, my mom started googling solutions.  We tried ice, rubbing alcohol, bleach, WD40, mechanic orange hand cleaner, half & half all with NO avail.  I even stuck my fingers into whole tomatoes to relieve the burning.  Right before amputation was placed on the table, we tried buttermilk.  Believe it or not, IT WORKED!  I could not have been more relieved or thankful for grandparents and their love of buttermilk (yuck)!


6.  It's consignment season and that means shopping and selling!  Both are great feelings,seeing the old stuff gone and new clothes coming in.  I scored Jackson a sweet pair of cowboy boots this year and let's face it, Lincoln looks adorable in most anything I force him to wear!  I lucked up on 2 pair of my "worlds best pajamas" by Hanna Andersson for Lincoln!  A whole new dynamic to shopping this year is the ability to FINALLY look for girl clothes!  No not me.  With Tracie due in October, I'm girl clothes crazy.  Heaven help us if I ever have that girl.  Jason better look out (and take out a loan)!


7.  Kids say the darndest things.  Especially my kids (bet everyone thinks that!)!  Yesterday Jackson was looking out the back window and said "Look mom, it's a onecan!  You know that bird with a long yellow beak!"  Son, did you mean a toucan?  Yes, that's right, a toucan!  
Then today at the pool, I'm sitting with Lincoln in the chair at lunchtime.  I'm taking down a turkey sub when he looks down and says "Wow, mOoom, you're leg is fat like Asher's."  (Asher is a 6 month old chunky monkey boy my parents are friends with.)  I'm not sure which was more insulting, being fat or compared to a 6 month old.  Thanks a lot Lincoln!

8.  I shamelessly take the kids to get their haircut at Sports Clips.  It's pretty cheap, they do a pretty good job and the boys LOVE it.  I fondly refer to it as the Hooters of Hair.  I also jokingly claim it's "hooterific" when people ask me if I like it.  Sure, it's good enough.  I had two Bieber wannabe's this summer.  I had been referring to the boys as Jackson Bieber and Lincoln Bieber because of their long, in the eyes hair that I had let grow out while ignoring haircuts in lieu of pool time.  With school starting soon, I had to do something about the Bieber do so I broke down and visited our local Sports Clips.  I also made some before and afters so we would always remember the Bieber generation.  

9.  It's summer and styling people in Stella & Dot jewelry is way easier and more appealing to them in the fall and spring but this week in our team email (about 30ish people, I think) I was listed as the TOP seller!  I was pretty happy to see what seemed like a mediocre month to me, had been profitable!  Besides, it NEVER seems like work because it's just that much FUN!  On top of it all, I rewarded myself with THIS beauty!  

10.  Is it strange that I like to keep my two favorite vices side by side?  I see them as the forces of good and evil however, they change places during the day.  The coffee is good in the morning and the wine wouldn't be so great but at night, that coffee would be the evil and the wine a good thing.  Either way, both vices and both mine.  At appropriate times of course!

And one last photo because I could not help it.  We've been playing musical beds lately.  I have been putting both boys down in Jackson's twin after Lincoln decided he couldn't sleep alone (he's almost always been that way though).  Lately, I go upstairs LATE for bed and flip on my light to find those two turkeys in MY bed together.  I put them both in their respective beds so that I can sleep and Jackson bouces back out of bed and asks to sleep with me.  I allow it but then somehow, he ends up back in his bed and Lincoln arrives for an early morning snooze about 6am.  Musical beds.

Friday Funday!

It's the last Friday before school starts back for my little 1st grader.  Am I seriously old enough to have a 1st grader?
I was determined to make this day fun.  I've spent most of the summer trying to make days they will never forget.  There are certain summer childhood memories I keep and I want the boys to remember their summers fondly also.  I specifically remember my mom taking me swimming.  It was the most fun I could have and I could do it for hours.  We try to swim any chance we get.  We have needed a haircut every day for, oh, about a month now but every day we plan to get haircuts, someone calls and asks us to swim and we decide haircuts can wait another day.  No one ever remembered the time they went to get their haircut!

Today we woke up and made blueberry pancakes with fresh picked blueberries.  We topped them with REAL maple syrup.  There was no time to make photos of them, they were devoured!
We made a quick trip to the gym. It was a necessity,  No good pancake goes unpunished!

After the gym, we had a little pre-pool picnic at my friend Stephanie's pool.  There is no doubt lunch has been consumed out of that lunch box more than at home this summer.  That's when you know you've had a good time!

  The pool was refreshing, in a bath water sorta way but the kids were off on fun hand standing, back flipping, swim to me adventures.  No photo collage would be complete without a pic of Lincoln crying.

   After 2 hours of more fun that we could stand at the pool, we picked up a papa murphy's pizza for dinner.  They are 4 bucks on Friday's and I can't cook anything that cheap or that good!  Next up on the Friday Funday agenda was a stop in our favorite froyo place.  Sweet CeCe's was having a fund raiser for our YMCA (ironic, I know!) so we patronized them with a cup of frozen yogurt for each of us.

  We stopped by a redbox and picked up a copy of Mirror, Mirror that I had reserved earlier before going home for naps and showers.  We were then invited to an Olympic Ceremonies Viewing party at my friend Stephanie's house.  Several girls from church have husbands on a mens retreat so we all got together like a deployed spouses club to watch the 2012 London Olympic Opening Ceremonies.  There was a grand total of 8 moms and 15 children between us.  Sure, it was chaotic but there was dip...and wine.  Most of the kids began their meltdowns right about 8pm so we all made our exits.

 My two put on pajamas and we watched a thrilling episode of fear factor before putting one in his own bed and one asking to sleep in mine.  Oh well, it IS Friday Funday after all and I'm pretty sure one day too soon, sleeping in my bed won't be so cool.  Cherish the time.

I've Been Schooled

 After the earth was scorched from days of record heat, Nashville has been getting some pretty significant storms rolling through.  Recently, the boys and I went outside and sat on the front porch and watched the storm roll in.  I was pondering and hoping to engage them in conversation so I said, "Have you ever noticed how dark and black the storm clouds are when they are rolling in but when the rain starts falling heavy and it's right on top of you, it doesn't look dark anymore.  I wonder why that is?"

Jackson perked up and said "oooh, I know!  You see, when the clouds are building up, they are collecting all the water inside them and they become hard as a brick.  Then when they can't hold anymore water, they burst open and it rains.  Then that rain goes into the ground and the oceans and is evaporated back up into the clouds.  That is called the water cycle.

My mouth hung open for a second before I collected myself and asked him where he learned that.  He said he'd learned it in school.  Kindergarten to be exact.

It was more than a proud mom moment.  I was dancing in the rain over the fabulous school choice we made and how wonderful it is to have your child tell you something you didn't even know yourself.  Now what in the world am I going to do when he's bringing home algebra and functions in 4th grade!

After Jackson read a book to us (and this was no "easy reader" book either) before bed, I read the next book about animals in the woods.  One page had a monarch butterfly.  It had the caterpillar too so we talked about it.  I did a little point and tell me on the caterpillar to cocoon to butterfly.  Then I said "Do you know what it is when it's inside the cocoon?  Thinking I was going to be the smart and interesting mom...Jackson spoke up and said "Yes, it's a chrysalis!"

I ain't got nothing on that boy.

First Impressions

So me, myself and I boarded a plane for BIG TEXAS.  Jason has spent the last 7 weeks here in Houston working and I had planned to come out and see him.  Living with a roommate, we didn't think the guy would appreciate 2 LOUD kids coming to visit so we let the boys stay at Camp NanaPawpaw while I'm gone.  I can't say I was sad to leave them for a few days.  This temporary single parenting ain't easy.  I am grateful daily that this is only for the summer and not for a year!

I'll admit, it was strange to fly  without my entourage.  I'm used being loaded down and armed with movies and snacks to mute the LOUD little people that usually follow me when I enter the jetway with "family boarding" and watching as people roll their eyes hoping I didn't sit beside them!  That didn't happen this time, or at least I don't think anyone rolled their eyes when I sat down.

Jason was able to get off early to come and get me, I only had a short wait time.  I waited inside baggage claim and only exited when he told me he was in the pick-up line.  I walked to the curb with all my luggage and caught a glimpse of an incredible hunk of a guy wearing a suit and tie and driving a pick up truck.  This was my kind of man, I was going home with HIM! Then it him me.  The HEAT.  I realized how sweltering hot it was underneath the eaves of the airport baggage claim.  I automatically assumed it was the back draft of all those air conditioning vents it takes to cool the gigantic airport.  It couldn't actually BE that hot outside with such extreme drafts of hot air.  Yes, it must be the industrial heat coming from underneath the building.  After kissing the man of my dreams, I asked him, "Is it this HOT up there?"  He laughed and said "Up where?"  I told him I meant out from under the building.  He laughed again and said,"No, it's not...It's probably HOTTER!"  Now I was expecting it to be hot.  Really hot.  But I had just left Nashville with temps approaching 101 and 102 this week.  It was hot where I was too.  BUT NOT THIS HOT!  It is a different hot and humid.  MORE so and with a hot wind blowing that you just can't get away from.  I had a fun time imagining what my daddy would say about this extreme heat.  He tends to exaggerate the weather a bit a LOT so this would push him over the edge!  So if you need clarification, it was HOT when I arrived.  

One of the first few things I noticed about Houston is I was expecting BIG and it was but it was far more spread out than I anticipated.  Flying in, I was looking for "downtown" where Jason works and I spotted a group of high rises and immediately thought that was it.  But as the plane got lowered, I saw another larger group of high rises and assumed that was downtown but then in the distance I saw yet another larger group of high rises.  I was a little confused.  There were pockets of high rises scattered around the city.  Amidst those, there were single solitary high rises randomly placed among houses and apartments.  It was a strange appearance from the air and I had lots of questions.  Jason said it was different energy corridors and that makes sense but it's still interesting to see.  We came back to Jason's place which is over near the galleria area (yet to be visited...soon!)  I gave myself a pat on the back for scoring him a place not too far from work in a very affordable place!  It's pretty nice too.  He can't complain.  We were both approaching hungry and had already decided to indulge in Tex Mex for the full Texas experience.  We had decided on Guadalajara and it was a place nearby.  As we walked in, Jason mentioned he would get guacamole but not the "made at the table kind" because it was more expensive.  I protested and asked "is it that powdered kind of guac, you know the flavored sour cream kind?"  He laughed at me again and said "no, here everything is fresh and good, don't worry!"

He was right.  We arrived in time for happy hour margaritas (yes 2!).  We ordered guacamole and it arrived as a plate of chopped avocados with all the good stuff sprinkled on top.  I had quick flashbacks to our days at the Excellence resort in Mexico.  There, the guac was so good, I would enter what we called a guacamole coma in the afternoons after consuming so much of it!  It was a great memory.  One I decided right then and there to recreate one day!  After the guacamole was long gone, we ordered and they deliveered more food than I could have expected to eat.  They do say everything is bigger in Texas.  It may be true!  My plate included 2 palm size pieces of steak, chicken, portabella mushroom, onion and squash.  Alongside it was 2 grilled bacon wrapped shrimp and a fantastic butter sauce that made me sigh a little too loudly.  It was fantastic!  I didn't even come close to consuming it all but that just means I get to re-live my culinary experience at lunch time!

After dinner, I got the driving tour of Houston.  Jason lives just across the 610 from the Houston Galleria.  I'm pretty excited about the opportunities that holds for my shopping addiction.  He's probably not aware of the damage that can happen with that proximity.  He drove the other way down Westheimer showing me all of the upscale shopping areas that included the largest anthropologie and restoration hardware that I have ever witnessed.  I'm talking 3 stories folks!  I also got to see some of the thrift/vintage stores that I've been reading about shopping at so I know where I'm headed next week!  We arrived in midtown and I got to see some of the favorite hangouts in H-town along with the building Jason works in.  It stands alongside 2 larger glass buildings that were former Enron buildings.  We even got to give a friendly wave to the local angry homeless guy on their corner.  

We actually went to bed relatively early (guacamole coma) and although I woke when Jason left for work, I was able to snooze until an hour I'm not sure I've seen in possibly the last 5 years.  You won't hear me complain.  

Overall, my first impression was a pretty good one.  I always thought I could like it here and from the current looks of it, I think I'm right.  Sure, it's HOT and the traffic is significant but it has promise and the possibility of a job Jason loves so I think I could get used to it!  

Day 2:  This addendum comes at my expense.  Feel free to laugh if you want.  I did, when it was over.
Jason lives 1.7 miles from the Houston Galleria.  I felt pretty certain I could cross UNDER the 6 lane highway and weave my way through the traffic to get to a mall.  I mean, I was born to shop!  So with my phone GPS utterly useless in finding parking decks, I did what any shopaholic would do.  I looked for the Macy's and took a left.  It was in fact a parking deck.  I wasn't certain that Jason's truck was going to fit but it squeezed by and after making a couple of rounds up the deck, I found a place I could strong arm that truck into without it sticking out into the driving lane.  I was feeling pretty proud of my first solo outing in Houston driving.  Then I got out of the truck.  I locked the doors and made a photo of my parking location (saw that and thought it was a GREAT tip!) and started walking toward the .....um, well, I knew I was in the mall parking lot but there were NO signs leading to the mall.  I knew not to go down but right or left?  Your guess was as good as mine.  I wandered down one isle until I knew it was wrong and then turned around.  I thought the driving part was going to be hard but apparently it's finding the entrance that's the real challenge.  A man was returning to his car and had seen me wandering by.  On our second chance meeting, he asked me, "Are you lost?  You look lost What are you trying to find?"  Sheepishly, I had to admit, I just wanted to find the ENTRANCE to the mall.  The big scary parking deck had me all turned around and I couldn't find my way in.  How was I ever to find my way home?  Oh well, I guess I could worry about that later.  There was a gigantic mall waiting for me!  Gigantic it was.  Complete with more high dollar stores than Green Hills  (in Nashville) has ever dreamed of!  It also boasts 3 stories and a full size ice skating rink.See, bigger in Texas!  I spent the day there and I know I couldn't have seen every store.  The better news?  Yes, there's more!  That's not the only mall in 10 mile radius.  There are about 5, yes 5.  I've conquered 3 of them now.  Who doesn't love a place with a plethora of malls!

 Below is the random sky rise right outside of Jason's complex.  It's oh, about 50 stories and it's all by itself out here in West Houston.  Obviously, things are bigger in Texas and land is not a commodity!

Day 3 found us in Galveston.  Jason had set my expectations pretty low of this place.  It's been ransacked by hurricanes so many times that insurance is now hard to come by and the houses that were once being built are no longer, leaving it a bit of a ghost town.  It wasn't nearly as bad as I had it pictured though. It was nice but a little reminiscent of . Jersey Shore.  He took us to a seafood place that he'd boasted about before.   It was a great restaurant that had been in business a long time.  It was across the street from the stairs down to the ocean. 

 I had possibly the best (and largest, bigger in Texas!) tuna steak topped with a crawfish cream and blue cheese grits that would be a meal in itself.  A meal like that made me like the place that much more!  We had a fantastic day to go to the beach with a little rain and MUCH cooler temps that this places sees in the summer, it was a good day.  The waves were bigger but so was the huge mound of seaweed that was piled up on the beach.  We considered a trip to Pleasure Pier but we couldn't justify the cost, especially without the kids here.  They would LOVE it!  It's a pier filled with amusement park rides including a pretty big roller coaster, swings and giant farris wheel.

 We decided to walk around the historic district and it more closely resembled New Orleans with it's open doors, beer/drink in hand as you stroll the streets or sit and people watch.  It wasn't crowded or busy but leisurely and nice.  Galveston actually exceeded my expectations for an hour drive to the beach.  It ain't Destin but it'll do!