Texas Girls Trip 2016: THE VIDEO!

Remember back in May when I went on a girls trip to Texas with my mom and sister?? 

I know it was about a zillion years ago, so here are a few pics for a refresher:

 

 

 

Oh man, you guys. It was SUCH a fun time! Best birthday trip ever. 

(If you want to see my blog posts about it with all sorts of pics and details, go here: Waco & Magnolia, everything Dallas, and McKinney)

But any who... I FINALLY made a video of our trip! It was so fun to go back and remember all of those fun/ funny memories. Now I'm ready for another trip! haha. (P.S., Jordan is the movie making expert in our family, so this is the first one I've ever done! It may be a little rough, but it was so fun to make!)

Enjoy!!

{Girls Trip} Part III: McKinney, TX!

I can't even tell you how weird it was to be somewhere without my kids. It's the first time I've ever done anything sans children/ a baby since being a mom, and it was kind of trippy. And pretty awesome. I missed them SO BAD, but it was so good for my soul to laugh with my mom and sister, to eat good food, to walk around shops at night, and lay by the pool.

One morning Sydney had to go to work early, so I slept in as long as I wanted. Then I made myself a ginormous breakfast in her quiet kitchen (SO GOOD) before I snuck off to the pool to read for a couple of hours. It was so simple, but it really was heaven.

^Scrambled eggs with fresh marinara, sliced turkey, avocado w/lime, and strawberries. DELISH.^

^Pool time!^

After Syd got home, we got ready and headed to McKinney Square for dinner and some window shopping! It was seriously adorable. The antique shops, the little restaurants, just everything. So quaint and perfect. Also, we ate the most delicious pizza of my life.

^Half chicken margarita, half pulled brisket. Amazing!^

^This is super flattering of me. I'm making a really attractive face.^

^I pretty much wanted to buy everything in all of the shops.^

^Then we went to a candy store and bought a zillion things. And we ate all of these sour strips.^

^She is a really good sister. We were missing our other sister, Whitney!! (Girl, you're coming next time.)^

^I could not get enough of the big Texas sunsets!^

A little bit later we grabbed Syd's friend Katie and ventured out for more food. Because what else is vacation for, but to eat yourself silly??

We ended up with some pretty sub-par burgers from Hop Doddys, but we diiiiiiid find the best popsicles of my life. Toasted coconut!! Just out of this world.

^See the line? Out the door. As it should be!!^

^This is a super flattering picture. She is going to love that I'm posting this.^

On my last day, we went to McKinney Square just one last time so that Syd could take me to Snug. It was basically the cutest brunch spot I've ever seen. Also, the omelette I ordered weighed as much as a small child. It was HUGE. And soooo good!

 

As sad as I was to leave, I was sooooo ready to be back home to Jord and the babies. Especially when I kept getting FaceTime calls and snaps like this:

 

Yeah, I couldn't WAIT to kiss their sweet faces again. Also, isn't Jord just the best? Not only did he keep all of the babies for a few days, but he took them out and did such fun things with them. I am seriously so lucky to have that Jordan McMurtrey in my life. He is my favorite.

But anyways. Syd dropped me off at the airport, and I just happened to be on a flight with my brother's CLONE. I legitimately thought it was him for like five minutes. So I creepily stalked him and took a photo. Because obviously. 

^TANNER! This guy is YOU.^

^Refreshed, relaxed, and ready to be home with my boys.^

Guys, this trip was so good for my soul. It helped me to unwind, and to be grateful for everything I have. Being away for a bit helped me to remember what kind of mother and wife I wanted to be when I got back home. It was just what I needed.

Thanks for the amazing time, Syd & Momma Gillman! And thanks for everything you did so that I could go, Jord. You're incredible. Best birthday/ Mother's Day gift in the world!!

(Video of our trip, hopefully coming soon!)

{Texas Girls Trip} Part II: Everything DALLAS!

Hey guys. Have I told you how much fun I had in Dallas? Maybe like once or twenty times? Okay good, just checking. BECAUSE IT WAS SO FUN!!!

We crammed so much fun and food and sight-seeing into a few short days, and it was awesome. My mom and I only overlapped a couple of days, so we tried to do as much as we could while all three of us were together. I can't even tell you how many times we looked at each other and said, "Why don't we do girls' trips more often??" After this trip, we definitely resolved to do more.

And so! The photos. Because what else is a blog post for?

^We were dying when we saw this photo of my mom lovingly gazing at Syd. DYING!^

^We got to visit Syd at her office at Brain Balance, and she was the cutest.^

While Syd was at work one day, my mom and I went to the Dallas, Texas LDS Temple! It was so good to be there together. It's pretty incredible how no matter where you are in the world, stepping into a church building or temple immediately makes it feel like home. We loved going there!

^Best pic we could get of the temple. iPhone propped up on the car for the win!^

After Syd got off work, we headed to grab some food at Torchy's Tacos! And oh my gosh. They were soooooo good. I almost died when I tried the shrimp taco. AMAZING.

^This is like the worst photo ever. But I have to post it, because it was just that good.^

After dinner, we treated my mom to her FIRST EVER pedicure. You guys, she had never had a pedicure before. Can you believe this madness??? Four kids, one thousand moves, endless hours and hours of PTA meetings, countless minutes of driving us to and from activities, months of nursing school.... Yeah. I'd say it was high time for this lady to get a pedicure.

And let me tell you what, they did not disappoint. AMAZING.

 

^We are goobers.^

^This moment tenderly brought to you by Snapchat.^

...And then it was time for an ice cream run. Because when in Texas, you must get the bluebell!!!!!!

^My mom took this photo of me, happily eating a pint of bluebell in my bed. People, this is all I need in life.^

Another day, we headed downtown to wander and ride the trolley around Dallas. I'm pretty sure we could have spent daaaaaaaayyys exploring just downtown, because holy cow, there were so many cute places to shop/ eat at/ see. Such a fun vibe!

^Riding the cute trolley!^

^We ended up at this INCREDIBLE Thai place. Best Tom Kha gai of my life!^

^Love that sunset.^

After my mom left, Syd and I went downtown again one day to squeeze in some more sight-seeing! First up on our list was Dealey Plaza and the JFK memorial.

^Behind me is where JFK's car was when he was shot.^

^This is the building where he was shot from. The third window up!^

^Syd on The Grassy Knoll^

^ I took this photo in the visitor's center...and then I got in trouble for it. Whoops.^

After JFK, we hopped in an Uber and headed to the Dallas Farmers Market! It was such a cute place. I was so busy soaking it in, that I literally only got one picture there. Oh well! Haha.

Then we hopped in another Uber and went to the Dallas Museum of Art! (Oh, blessed Ubers in the 150 degree heat.)(Just kidding, it wasn't that hot.)(I'm just a wimp.)

But the museum! It was so cool! And it was free, which is always awesome.

^"Hey Syd, do what that statue's doing."^

^This one weirdly reminded me of my kids?^

^Also, a chair made of stuffed pandas. Because OBVIOUSLY.^

^Favorite!!^

^Then we had popsicles. Because we were hot.^

So much fun. Seriously.

One more batch of photos + a video, coming up soon!!