Hardys in Houston

Todd's sign for me and Theo when we got off the plane.

Favorite gift for the win! (Next to Lotso the Bear from Toy Story 3)

Herman Park

I realized  that I hadn't blogged in a while, so I figured I should give an update to how are little family is doing in the great state of Texas. We've been here since the last week of June and it has been HOT every single day. Lots of humidity, but we expected this and coming from NC, it's not too bad of a shock. The biggest shock is the bugs, I HATE bugs and I have seen a couple of roaches... Yuck!

We love that there is so much to do in Houston, especially me since I am home with Theo. We purchased a zoo pass and we have gone a ton! It's great because we can go for an hour or two then leave without feeling like we wasted money. We also go to the Children's Museum a bunch thanks to friends with passes. Theo loves the toddler room, I just don't love all of the germs!

We also took Theo to his first baseball game on the Fourth of July and it was awesome! We loved the Astro's indoor baseball dome, it made watching the game so much more enjoyable. 

Theo was pretty sick last week/the week before and it was heartbreaking. Fortunately, he is all better and happy as ever. He is so close to walking, but refuses to walk without his little walker toy. He also loves pushing his car around. We also celebrated Theo's FIRST birthday in August. What?! I can't believe it. (More pics of his birthday party on the Hunter Girls Blog.) He's so fun right now, strong willed, but fun. He's wild and such a little boy. He loves playing in the dirt.

We are slowly adjusting to life in Texas. The traffic is miserable, but we try to avoid it as much as possible. We get a little homesick for Chapel Hill now and then, but we are slowly making new friends and starting to feel more at home. Hopefully the crazy heat goes away sometime soon!

-Makenzie

Roadtrip to Utah

We got to spend a week in Utah for Todd's family's reunion, visiting friends that we haven't seen in two years, and showering my sister. Unfortunately, the day we got to Utah Theo got really sick. We had a scary couple of days mixed with a nasty virus, teething, and allergies. Poor guy. It was brutal, but we survived. We also survived the road trip to and from Utah with only two stops each way! It's amazing how much longer it takes to do anything with a baby! (I'm sure I'll be writing a blog post on surviving road trips with an infant on the Hunter Girls Blog soon!)

Despite Theo feeling so miserable, we were still able to see a few friends that came over to visit, I got to attend a bridal shower hosted by some of my best friends for my sister Taylor, and we got to spend time with Todd's family. We had a great trip, even though it was crazy hot! Fortunately it cools off in the evenings, so we got to enjoy some beautiful summer nights. My favorite part of the trip was introducing Theo to his great-grandpa Hardy. We got to visit his cute house where Todd played as a kid and we got to see Todd's childhood home.

We had a great time and Theo had so much fun meeting all of his cute cousins. We also made it back to Colorado in time to have a birthday dinner and celebration for Todd's birthday. Unfortunately he spent his actual birthday the next day driving to Houston, but at least we got to celebrate before the long drive!

Until next time, Utah!

-Makenzie

Family Time in Colorado

You don't need need to me very well to know that I love everything about Colorado and would do just about anything to move back! We've had two opportunities, grad school and fellowship interviews, where we could have moved to Colorado, but decided to pursue other opportunities. I'll get back someday and in the meantime, I'll just have to visit a lot!

This past visit, we got to stay for two whole weeks and I was in heaven! Unfortunately both Theo and I arrived with pretty bad colds that are still holding on, so we had a lot of down time watching movies, napping, and going to bed early. We still managed to have some fun and do some of the fun things on our list. Todd and I celebrated our fourth wedding anniversary with dinner at Flemings and Beauty and the Beast at the Buell Theater downtown. We also snuck in some pool days, trips to the movies, and s'mores in the backyard, hiking, and we celebrated my mom's birthday.

Summertime in Colorado is truly the best. I get to go back for a couple of days before flying down to Houston, so I get to enjoy a few more cool summer nights before heading to the extreme humidity!

-Makenzie

Carolina Beach

We had a ton of packing to do when we got home from our Italy trip, but we wanted to cross off a few more North Carolina bucket list items before our move. Most of our list included places to eat, like biscuits and cinnamon rolls from Sunrise Biscuit Kitchen. YUM! We would pass by every morning on our runs and smell the deliciousness, so on one of our final runs we stopped and threw the food in the bottom of the stroller. Nothing makes you run faster than knowing you have amazing food at the end!

We also wanted to squeeze in one last day trip to the beach. We decided to check out Carolina Beach and it did not disappoint. We had beautiful weather and a happy baby despite the start of what turned into two weeks of a cold+teething. We were so excited to take Theo to the beach for the first time, but he was skeptical about the water and didn't like the crashing waves. During our walk on the beach, Theo was hanging off of Todd's shoulder watching the water to make sure it didn't come up to high. After a while, he warmed up to the water and let Todd put his feet in. Todd and I also built sand castles for him and showed him how to play in the sand. 

I had also wanted to eat at a hole-in-the-wall place with fresh seafood served in buckets. Fortunately Todd made it happen and found the Shuckin' Shack, and it was everything I had dreamed! Our food came out in a tin bucket and we really had to work to get our food. Our bucket included shrimp, oysters, clams, crab legs, and corn.We learned how to shuck oysters and crack crab legs open. Seriously so fun! We made a mess, but it was great! The food smelled and tasted like it had just come from the ocean.

I am going to miss the beaches in North Carolina. The waves may be smaller than the west coast, but the water is warm and everywhere you go feels like the setting of a Nicholas Sparks novel. We are missing our friends and it still hasn't hit us that we aren't going back, but we are excited to get to Houston at the end of the month and settle in to our new home.

-Makenzie

Italy Trip

 Glass on the Island of Murano

Hotel room in Venice. Todd: "This is the most romantic place that I have ever stayed!" So true.

Private balcony and view from our room in Siena.

Sleepy boys.

Oh the David!

Making wishes in the Trevi Fountain

We bought this little hat to keep Theo's face and ears out of the sun. He looked so cute in it!

Olive tree on the Palatine Hill

Marble from the original floor of the Emperor's mansion on the Palatine Hill

Always looking for ways to entertain Theo...

The Pope was at the Vatican during our visit! He was in St. Peter's behind us in the morning which shut down most of Vatican City for the morning.

Taylor wanted to try carrying Theo. Taylor: "I feel invincible in this thing!"

Tired baby

Italy is the most picturesque place that I have ever visited. Everywhere you go you want to stop and take a picture, it’s unreal!  We left for Italy the day after Todd’s graduation with my parents and sisters. This was Theo’s first trip outside of the country, and being only nine months old, I was a little nervous about the flights, but he did great! He was a happy traveler and we had four extra family members wanting to hold him whenever we got tired. We even snuck in a date night in Florence. We couldn't have done the trip without our Ergo 360 carrier. He was able to take tons of naps and adjust to multiple positions to give our backs breaks. Seriously, if you are traveling with a baby, you need one! A stroller is only feasible in a handful of places.

On our trip, we hit Rome, Siena, Florence, Venice, and Milan. I have to say my favorite place was Siena, I felt less like a tourist and more immersed in the culture during our stay. I also tried the best gelato and the most interesting pizza combination during our stay (American style pizza topped with hot dogs and French fries… yuck!). We also made a dance video for the Sonnet James contest on the balcony of our room. If you haven't seen it, or you need a good laugh today, head over to my Instagram account (@thetravelingrunner) and check a few posts back.

I also loved Rome and all of the history, I am fascinated by the rise and fall of the Roman Empire. We booked an incredible tour through LivItaly that allowed us access to the entire Colosseum, which included the Colosseum floor, the underground, and the third tier, which are restricted to general admission. Our tour also included the Roman Forum, and the Palatine Hill. Our guide Rachel was very knowledgeable and also happened to be a Tarheel!

I can’t even begin to describe how amazing the food was, all I can say is it’s a good thing we were walking everywhere hauling a 20 pound baby, otherwise we would have been in trouble! Some of my favorites included Nutella pizza, fresh macaroons, daily pastries, sandwiches at Luini in Milan, and of course tons of pizza, pasta, gelato, and chocolate bars.

We had some travel delays on our way home which resulted in spending an entire day in the Milan airport followed by a night in a hotel, more waiting in lines the next day, motion sickness on the flight home, and lost bags. BUT we made it home all in one piece and loved our trip! We are happy to be back in the United States, but I hope we can go back someday! 

I'll be posting travel tips (specifically international travel with a baby), AirBnB vs, Homeaway, what to see, and more on the Hunter Girls DIY Life blog in the coming weeks.

-Makenzie