The end of staycation week

Friday was the last big day of our staycation - we headed out to Fort Worth, first to the museum for a quick visit. Meredith was super happy just to do some grocery shopping and Jillian truly enjoyed it for the first time too, since this was our first trip there since she was walking. They both had a blast! Then we headed to the Stockyards to see the Longhorn Cattle Drive. Meredith planned out her outfit accordingly that morning, which included cowgirl boots and a hat. Both girls loved watching the longhorns as much as they loved the horses the night before. Plus there were all the cowboys on their horses too!

I think this is the closest Jillian had been to a horse and she loved it! She was a little scared when it would whiny, but then she would just laugh and laugh!
The highlight of the stockyards for both girls were the mechanical rides - they were everywhere, if only we had an endless supply of quarters!
This one was probably their favorite - it was on super-speed and it looked like it could possibly cause shaken baby syndrome, but again, they thought it was great!
All smiles after her ride - she was ready for more!

After all the rides we did a little window shopping and then had lunch. This fun little cow was on our shopping path and Meredith couldn't resist asking for a picture.

While walking around, Meredith and Jillian couldn't help but show their love for the country music playing...

So, even though that was technically the end of our staycation, we still had the whole weekend to spend together, so we took the opportunity to hit up a few pools with family and dear friends throughout the weekend. When the alarm went off this morning, we definitely weren't ready for Neal to head back to work (and I think he was dreading it just a bit too!) but we were so grateful for the time together. Really, my favorite moments of the week were watching how much Jillian bonded with him. She has always loved him, of course, but if I am in the room, I am who she wants to be with (if I leave, then of course, she turns off the act for me and becomes his best friend) - that is until this week. After all of our fun together, I really felt like she was just as happy with him as she always is with me, if not more. I really couldn't have asked for more! Just loved it all!