Piano lesson

Alex is taking piano lessons at school. His GG (Frances) has been a piano teacher all of her life. She's giving Alex some piano instructions in the picture.

Christmas Tree Farm with Kate/Don/Gerrick & Dianne/Marc/Alex

We went to Elgin last weekend to help Kate & Don find a Christmas tree. They had hay rides, horses and pigs. During the hay ride, Alex told everyone how much fun he was having. After picking out the perfect tree, we went to a local bbq joint for lunch and had ice cream for dessert. Yummm.


Hay ride

Dianne & Alex pet a nice horse.

Marc and Don secure the Christmas tree to Kate's car.


Gerrick gave Alex some pointers on eating ice cream and hamming it up for the camera.

Wurstfest

We enjoyed another fun day at Wurstfest last week. Wurstfest is Oktoberfest, Texas Style! Alex loved the kiddie rides and we all partook of the German music and food.

Alex takes charge of his own sport stroller.

Uncle Nick, Aunt Kate and Don enjoy some beer and sausage while listening to the German band.


Wurstfest music is everywhere.


Wurstfest grounds


The Wurst Halle

Where in the world is Uncle Gavin?

Gavin in Fernando de Noronha

Fernando de Noronha is an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, part of the State of Pernambuco, around 354 km offshore from the Brazilian coast.

The islands of this archipelago are the visible parts of a range of submerged mountains. Consisting of 21 islands, islets and rocks of volcanic origin, the main island has an area of 18 km², being 10 km long and 3.5 km at its maximum width. The base of this enormous volcanic formation is 756 m below the surface. The main island, from which the group gets its name, makes up 91% of the total area; the islands of Rata, Sela Gineta, Cabeluda and São Jose, together with the islets of Leão and Viúva make up the rest.

The climate is tropical, with two well defined seasons: the rainy season from January to August, and the dry season for the rest of the year. The island was mostly forested until the 19th century, when it was cleared to prevent prisoners from building rafts.

The main attraction is the maritime flora and fauna; one can spot sea tortoises, dolphins, albatrosses, among many others.

Spiderman and Batman

Alex and his friend, Shabbir, went trick-or-treating at their school the day before Halloween. They had a great time. Alex didn't want to take off his mask for the picture. =)
Alex also went trick-or-treating on Halloween with Brook, Matthew, and Holden. Here's a picture of Alex and Holden (both were Spiderman).


Aunt Kate and Don came over with pumpkins to make Jack-o-Lanterns.

Allyson was a witch and Brooke was a pirate.

Matthew was Buzz Lightyear.

Here's a few pictures Roxanne and Nick (Malia's future Godparents) took of the television during the "ESPN College Gameday" broadcast on the UT campus this morning. As you can see, both Roxanne and her sign were on national television! Malia - we hope you will be a Longhorn fan too!! Hook 'em Horns!

Spiderman for Halloween

Alex chose a Spiderman costume for Halloween this year. We did have to stop and admire the Ariel costume (The Little Mermaid) because Alex has a mad crush on her. :)