Heritage, History and Hullabaloo

A couple of weeks ago, the boys and I took a quick trip to Austin and College Station with my parents. It really was a whirlwind of a trip but we packed a lot in in 2 days.

My blood runs deep in Texas. I am a 7th generation Texans with roots that reach all the way back to the second colony of Stephen F. Austin. Texas is a very special place to me and my family and so we want to instill that Texas pride in our boys. Although Steve isn't from Texas, his heart is and he is just as proud of our heritage as I am. We have had several significant ancestors in Texas History. This trip was focused on visiting one special site. There is a memorial placed near a small creek in North Austin. It is the site of the Wilbarger Massacre of 1833. My great great great grandfather, Thomas Christian, was part of a surveying expedition when Comanche Indians surrounded them and attacked. Thomas Christian and another man died there but Josiah Wilbarger, although scalped and left for dead, survived and managed to live another 11 years. An article about my grandmother and her story is HERE. The boys and I went to the memorial as well as the river embankment where they were attacked.

We also went to visit the capital building and the museum. This was a very fun and educational day for us. We spent hours exploring, reading and learning about government and the amazingly rich and diverse history of Texas.

And of course, on our way home, we had to go through Aggieland!! We have not been back in so long that Ethan and Isaac don't remember. Texas A&M is another family tradition and one we hope to pass on to the boys. I think they got a little Aggie fever when we were there. We drove by mine and Steve's little trailer we lived in while he was in school. Then we took the boys by our first home we owned and Ethan's first house. Next was the most important stop..... Freebirds for lunch of course. Best burritos EVER!!! Last but certainly not least, was a stop on campus to take the boys to the College of Architecture where Steve lived for 5 years of his life. It was completely surreal to see the boys walking the halls that Steve and I did before they were ever even a thought to us. It is so amazing how time flies by like that. It's been 11 years since we lived there. While on campus, we also had to stop by and take a picture of the Visualization Lab in the College of Architecture. This is where only 18 of the best of the best of programmers go to learn to make CGI movies. These kids are drafted even before graduation to Disney, Pixar and/or LucasArts. So you know Ethan's new goal now. Get in that college! He hasn't stopped talking about it or stopped wearing his A&M sweatshirt since. AWWWW... gotta be proud.

Short but sweet update. Life is zooming by at an alarming speed and I am definitely in the slow lane. I also thought I would try my hand at online scrapping. I HATE to scrapbook but with a program like Picnik, it's really fun!

Until next time.......