Summer Travels: Beach, Baylor, Broadmoor

As it turns out I'm not so good at this blog thing...sigh! :) I suppose in time I will get better, and I'll get over my fear of boring the blog world with my "oh-so-insightful" ideas about the world and just do it... if you are bored you'll sign-off, right?! Promise?

Justin and I have just completed our last trip for the summer. Thanks to both of our very generous families we had two exciting vacations to look forward to this year and a very momentous celebration smack dab in the middle of the two to keep us on the go!

First, we headed back to the beach! We spent four days in July laying on the gulf coast taking in all of the sights and sounds of Mustang Island near Port Aransas. The motion of the ocean was just what we needed to take us away from the craziness that we call "normal" life into a memorable time with our family! Unfortunately for Caden and I, we had a "weigh-in" the day we got back from our trip...after eating a literal boat-full of the sea's finest creatures we felt lucky to get by with just a few extra pounds! Did I mention that we preferred our sea creatures fried with sides of french fries and hush puppies? Don't judge until you've had them... it is almost impossible to turn down!

Here are a few pictures from our adventures at the beach...

This is how we spent most of our time... zero gravity chairs and a good book! Zero gravity chairs you ask? You can buy them a lot of places but Sam's Club has the best deal... thanks to my Aunt Martha they have become a Cox family favorite! 
Justin and I about to embark on our first meal... watch out fishies the Coxes are ready to eat!
Last night... all with a healthy summer glow... Justin, his sister Cori and her hubbie Trent! We are so over fried food at this point!
The inlaws! Thanks for a great vacation Mr. and Mrs. Cox! Can't wait until next summer! :) 
I'm such a sucker for a guy in a backwards baseball cap... the fish is just icing on the cake. Hunting and gathering is a highly underrated characteristic we women look for in our mates! How can you resist a guy who can feed you when the store is closed?

Next stop on our journey was good 'ol BU for Mr. Cox's graduation celebration! Mr. Cox earned himself the proud right to wear the goofiest of hats, which also means that he holds one of the highest degrees in the land. One doctorate down, how many more to go, Mr. Cox? In truth, I think that big smile on his face represents it all... FREEDOM! Mr. Cox is now head principal at McGregor High School where he will no doubt go far in shaping the young minds of America's youth. Congrats again Dr. Cox!
A graduation celebration is never complete until you take the family pic in front of the Judge! Who can object? Get it... judge... object... ha!
Justin and I with the grad! 

And last, but certainly never least was the Evans Family Vaca to Colorado Springs, CO. Luckily, all six (7 counting little Caden) of us were able to make our schedules mesh long enough to enjoy five gorgeous days in the mountains! Of course the thinner air did make it harder to breathe so it was absolutely essential that we ALL spent our first day at the spa! Most spa-goers tend to get the treatments of their choice and then head out... but not us... tragically lazy and overly eager to drink every ounce of citrus water they could make, we lounged in the Mountain Room for the remainder of the day, enjoying the breathtaking views of one of three golf courses gracefully guarded by the lush colorado mountain ranges.

The boys of course found time to play 54 holes of golf, 18 of those with their women in tow. For the girls it was a little more spa and a lot more cabana! We made a few new friends every where we went at the Broadmoor. A little girl named Maddie at the pool and a coin collector and his wife by the fire one night. We ate and drank to our heart's content, and for some "too much" was the theme of their after dinner conversations. 

In typical Evans style we had too much fun enjoying all that Colorado had to offer and didn't capture but a few things on camera, although one of our most special nights made the reel...
Happy Birthday! On my 26th birthday my family treated me to a 7 course dinner at the Penrose Room, complete with wine pairings (of course I skipped the wine, but did have plenty of flavored water). The meal was wonderful but the experience was unforgettable! Before each course we were analyzing the new silverware they placed at our plates and the wine selections chosen to perfectly compliment what was to come. The reaction to each course was the same. We each leaned back in our chairs in order to let our waiters place the dishes in front of us. We smiled and said thank you, straightened the napkins in our laps and leaned in for a closer look at the sights and smells of the creation we were about to consume.  Crab bisque, fois gras, hickory smoked lobster, lamb, turbot, and two chocolate-y desserts (one of these was a creme brulee birthday cake my Dad had made especially for me, thanks Dad!)... it was certainly an evening to remember. 

Other evening highlights include the very thoughtful gift from Josh and Emily (my brother and sister-in-law). It was a necklace in every girl's favorite blue box (it was actually my first blue box gift) with a "c" dangling from the chain. They explained that the "c" was for Caden... immediately the tears started flowing... I put it on that night and have yet to take it off. Thank you Josh and Emily... this is something I will always treasure... I can't wait to tell Caden the story. 

Of course once the tears start they don't stop...toward the end of the meal I looked around the table and burst into tears again, exclaiming how happy I was and how much I loved each member of my family. My tears were of course met with laughter... "somebody control the preggo!! Justin go spin her around the ballroom... that'll dry her up!" And so we did take a stroll around the dance floor with a most adorable couple who had been the topic of our conversation earlier in the night... they had been married for 45 years and now come to the Penrose Room EVERY Saturday night for dinner and dancing... and this my friends is how you keep a romance alive!

Okay this I must explain. This is my sister-in-law, Emily. I know she looks a little intense, but you must know that this same girl makes frequent use of words like "baby, precious, sweet, and darling." She is simply showing us here, how her pallet reacts to red wine... this is no grape jolly rancher! It was still like this the following morning! Thanks for the laughs Em! She really is a good sport! :)
Awww... the rents! Thank you both for a great trip! I love y'all! Aren't my parents hott? Hottie and Handsome... that's what Caden will call them! 
Zooming out to take in the sights of the Broadmoor's main building. 

Now that you've been back to the beach, Baylor AND the Broadmoor with us, you deserve a vacation! BUT, be sure to post pics on your blog when you get back! Until next time...

Shedding Light Into the Darkness

Happy Monday! I regret that I was not quicker to get these photos posted. I thought I was in business when I was able to post my first baby bump picture, but then our scanner decided to play technology-tag and I was unable to share our first pictures of Baby Cox with all of you!

But now, after great anticipation a light has been cast into the shadows and Baby Cox is ready for his unveiling! Both his name and his face are ready for a place in your hearts! Please allow me to introduce the one, the only...CADEN FORD COX!

What better way to start the pictures than with a Sic 'Em Bears! 

Caden at just 8 weeks! He's a little lima bean!

Caden is very proud of his hands...here is one of two!
We were talking "bad" about Caden because he was not cooperating with Jody... he decided to let us know that yes, he was listening to us! See his little hand up by his ear?

A profile shot! Who do you think he looks like?! I vote Justin...what about you?

I Can Post Pics!

Yay! I am finally able to post pictures! This will be a fun day indeed. Stay tuned for more pics of Baby Cox!

This is my first official baby bump picture.  Starting my 5th month! My sweet husband has been wonderful to indulge my refusal to be a "frumpy preggo" and bought me this great dress to wear to a friend's wedding in Dallas last weekend. We also took this weekend to celebrate our babymoon aka our last trip with a double income! Have to enjoy this stuff while we can. What a great weekend... a perfect way to prepare for the excitement to come!

Baby Cox is a...

Today was a momentous day in the Cox Household, one that we will not soon forget. August 4, 2008 will probably always be a day that sticks out as one of the best! I realize that our first official blog post starts in the middle of our story and not to worry because I'll be sure and go back in time and fill you in on all the rest, but for now this blog post and probably the many to follow will be dedicated to our very first Baby Cox!

So back to our big day... Baby Cox, Justin and I went in to see Jody, our ultrasound technician, today and found out that Baby Cox is definitely not an "it!" He is most certainly a BOY and a very proud boy at that! :) It was very clear within the first 5 minutes with Jody that Baby Cox had something to share with the world. Standing at attention, he was ready to announce his manhood to his mom and dad. Dad, as anyone who has ever spent 5 minutes with him would have guessed, was beyond excited. Fist pumping, table shaking, repetitive use of the word "awesome..." all coming from a very proud Dad! Mom of course was equally as excited but not all that surprised and was more anxious to see all of those organs she had been specifically praying for by name, and guess what?! They are all there and functioning just as they are supposed to! Good work God!

As promised there will always be a little laughter in our posts and today's bit of laughter is courtesy of Baby Cox who decided to measure-in exactly on target with his due date in all body parts with the exception of his HEAD and TUMMY! He apparently is quite a good eater and has his daddy's head. Coming from the guy who had to have special baseball hats made for him growing up it was no surprise that his head was a little ahead of schedule! My poor dad was already worrying about me trying to birth this big-headed baby... no worries dad, Baby Cox WILL come out, we'll be sure of that! :)

We have tons of pictures to post and stories to write. Be patient with us as we adjust to our lives as official bloggers!