The Pilot Breezes In!

My brother, Erik, has been in pilot training for the last month or so and was able to sneak down on Memorial Day weekend for a quick visit.  We had such a great time with him.  We took him to Galveston and packed in the day.  We first took the Port Bolivar ferry and fed the seagulls.  We're always scared the seagulls are going to land a present on us when we ride the ferry.  Well, Erik played a great prank on Ben by filling a lid of a water bottle with water and then pouring it down Ben's neck.  Ben thought for sure he had been pooped on. 

 

Then we headed to lunch at the Rainforest Café. 

 The girls loved it.  We even got to ride the water ride they have there. We happened to get a table by the waterfall, but that is also near the door where all the waiters come out.  Everytime they bring out a volcano cake they say "v--o--l--c--a--n--ooooo!" really loud.  Well, after hearing it for a hundred times we started joining in and laughing every time.  We still joke about this all the time.    

 Alyssa lounging with the frog outside. . .

 All of us outside.  Next we rented pedal bikes and headed around town.  We had a great time but didn't last the full hour. 

Finally we headed to the beach where we enjoyed a few hours of sun and sand.  Kira would have nothing to do with the water or the sand really.  Despite repeated attempts, she spent most of the afternoon on my lap snacking.  The girls loved the ocean and had a great time playing in the waves and even building a sand toilet.   

 I love this picture because Kira loved having Erik around.  This shows how far she has come recently.  Usually she'd have nothing to do with anyone outside of our family.  It only took one day and Erik had her wrapped around his finger.  Here they are snuggling on Sunday afternoon looking at some of the blog books from previous years. 

A final picture before Erik headed back to Little Rock.  He's an awesome brother who is a great example to me.  He's done some amazing things with his life.  I still can't believe my little brother. . . who I used to play army with around the house. . .  can fly a C-130 plane!  It was actually really neat to spend the Memorial Day weekend with him.  We were able to talk with the girls about why we celebrate Memorial Day and what it means to be a hero.  We're so proud of Uncle Erik and all he has done to serve our country!