The Alamo & San Antonio

We took a little trip this long weekend and had a great time in San Antonio. Both Mark and I enjoyed it. The kids seemed to have a great time too, but then if you feed them and let them run around, they don't really care where they are. The Alamo was very pretty; I don't know what I was expecting and I think that helped me enjoy it even more (as well as the fact that it's free!).

Here is a brief history of the Alamo (which I didn't know anything about).
Originally named Misión San Antonio de Valero, the Alamo served as home to missionaries and their Indian converts for nearly seventy years. Construction began on the present site in 1724. In the early 1800s, the Spanish military stationed a cavalry unit at the former mission. The soldiers referred to the old mission as the Alamo (the Spanish word for "cottonwood") in honor of their hometown Alamo de Parras, Coahuila.
The Battle of the Alamo (February 23 – March 6, 1836) is the most famous battle of the Texas Revolution. After a revolutionary army of Texian settlers and adventurers from the United States drove all Mexican troops out of Mexican Texas, Mexican President Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna led an invasion to regain control of the area. Mexican forces arrived in San Antonio de Bexar on February 23 and initiated a siege of the Texian forces garrisoned at the Alamo Mission. News of the Alamo's fall prompted many Texas colonists to join Houston's army. On the afternoon of April 21 the Texian army attacked Santa Anna's forces in the Battle of San Jacinto. During the battle many Texians shouted "Remember Goliad! Remember the Alamo!" Santa Anna was captured and forced to order his troops out of Texas, ending Mexican control of the area, which subsequently became the Republic of Texas.

This is the front of the mission. You enter directly into the main building and then the grounds are around it.







Our own little Davitta Crocket enjoying her new raccoon skin hat (she was so sweaty from that thing!).



The River Walk
This is such a pretty walk, it is located below street level and is lined with restaurants. Very pretty and our favorite part of San Antonio.





It isn't too hard to guess what Asher is smiling at. Eve can make him laugh like no one else, and that makes her laugh in return, it is hilarious.




Our little nutcase being exactly that! A nut! Notice the curls, all from that sweaty hat she refused to take off until it was getting fury pieces in her mouth.

Our little buddy is growing

I can't believe how quickly Asher and Eve are both growing; but with Asher, he changes almost every day. Eve is now all about dancing. She follows the dance routines in her two favorite shows: 'Easter Parade' & 'Meet Me in St. Louis'. She has to get her pretty shoes on and dance her little heart out. She even will sing along with the songs, in fact last night while helping me make dinner she was wishing me a 'Happy Easter' in song.
Asher loves to smile and make as much noise as he can. He will now copy me when I coo at him. He will try and make his little lips vibrate as well. He is so bright eyed and smiley that it is alright that he is still waking up 3-4 times a night. One look at his big blue eyes and huge smile and my heart melts.
Eve is a lot more cuddly now that Asher has come along and I am soaking it in. She loves to sit on my lap and read books. I can't get enough of it. She will even lay her head on my lap and let me hold her- she usually isn't that cuddly. Well, even if it was jealousy that started it, I will take it.
Eve is now (almost) completely potty trained. She only messes up if she thinks she isn't supposed to bug me (like when I am putting Asher to sleep). She will let us know that she doesn't have to go when we ask her by saying 'No, I'm bine!' (I think she has a bit of an adenoid problem.
Anyways, here are some more pictures to enjoy.








Poor little Evie got a big mosquito bite right by her eye. She is so sensitive to them that her eye swelled up and is all red. Poor little lamb.

She's a NUT!

Where to begin... well, this picture sums up Eve's personality quite perfectly. She loves the camera and the best part about the camera is making faces for the camera. Eve could spend all day in the pool if I let her. She sings while dumping the water over her head (she's afraid to sit down in the water, but not dump it over her head).



Eve chooses her outfits herself and if my sunglasses & hat are within reach, they go on her.

I promise she did the 'Charlie's Angles' pose herself, I was just lucky to have a camera to capture it.


I should have taken a video of her. She is sitting on the deck playing with her water works toy and singing at the top of her lungs. She had been doing this for over 20 minutes when I finally got the camera.


Apparently singing can take a lot out of you, check out her cheeks!

More Pictures of the Cuties

Well, as you noticed Asher has now started smiling. After he eats he is full of smiles. Eve makes him smile with her singing and dancing when she sneaks into his room in the mornings to keep him from crying. I decided that I needed to capture this moment (especially since he is still colicky and cries often). He has also started cooing when he smiles. I absolutely love it!!!

Eve and Asher's glam shots

My lovely kiddies, it was torture trying to take these photos. Eve had to be in everything and she had to adjust Asher's head the right way, then she wouldn't hold still when I finally was ready to take the photos. She is so helpful




Eve had her own camera and she was taking shots too; too bad it actually doesn't take photos perhaps they would have turned out.


I was racked with guilt that I didn't have a lot of photos of Asher so we did our best to get a couple. I am no photographer and so these are the results after taking over 100 and photo-shopping all of them. Good thing my babies are adorable.

A Brand New Addittion

Our Asher Jordi Struk. Born @ 1:05am Sunday, April 26th 2009. He weighed 7lbs,6oz. and was 20inches long. We were a bit surprised (to say the least) that he was a boy. After 7 or 8 ultra sounds you would think that the Doctor would have corrected his first assessment that he was a girl. Oh well, we are happy to have our wonderful baby boy and besides having to purchase a few extra things we were set.





Mark was able to stay with me during my stay at the hospital, so when Eve came to see Asher we were worried that she would be upset because she hadn't seen us all day. On the contrary she had a great time hanging out with Grandma and Grandpa and was as happy as can be to spend time with us at the hospital. When it was time to leave she gave us all kisses, said good-bye and was off to play with cousins. No looking back.


Eve immediately fell in love with Asher. She can't get enough of him. She loves holding him, patting his head, and soothing him when he cries. We just have to watch her because she also like to climb on him and lay on him (she thinks she is laying beside him). She is not yet aware that she is stronger than him and that he is still delicate.

Graduation& Adios Barcelona

We can hardly believe that the time has come to leave Barcelona. Mark has finished his MBA and now a new adventure awaits us in Texas (the culture might be just as new to us as Spain was).
Graduation was so much fun and the last few days of our time in Barcelona we spent taking in as much of the sights and the beauty as we could. We woke up early on the Sunday we left to go to Montjuic one last time. It was so peaceful and quite at 8am on a Sunday morning.
Here are some of our pictures of Graduation.

This was the graduation brunch at ESADE campus the day of graduation. It was so beautiful outside...thank goodness, it had been raining for a week and a half.
Mark was the poster boy for ESADE and so here is a shot of him and his friends enjoying the larger than life photo of Mark...It is hard to tell but Mark is actually wearing the exact same outfit, good thing he had a sweater that day.


Since Mark will be working long hours, maybe we can get one of these posters for our home so the kids will know him when they see him.


Our good friends and some of their family at the graduation brunch


Mark giving his speech for graduation. He was asked to speak on behalf of the english section of the MBA program...he did an amazing job.


Mark receiving his degree. YIPEE!!! We are so proud of you.


Mark and Tricia at Graduation


Guillermo & Nicole and us at the after-party


Spouses and friends at graduation


The building that graduation was held in. One of the first stock exchanges in the world.


Mark and some of his classmates



Mark&Rob


Mark&Novak


Christian, Adriana, & Us


Our good friends the Deweys, they came as guests from the American Consulate.


Sylvia and her lovely daughters (they were so sweet to babysit Eve for us while we went to graduation).