Spring 2017

SPRING 2017

Photos from March, April, and May

We played a lot of baseball starting in March and continuing on until May.

Ben was number 17, and Will was number 8.  

Ben played coach pitch and Will was on the 10U team with kid pitch. 

Over spring break we went to 3 different nurseries looking for flowers and plants for our yard. 

I started a new flowerbed and naively thought I could finish it in a week or two.  

Two months later, and it's not finished yet.   

At Open House this year, Will did a living history museum presentation.  He chose Moses Austin.  At first I thought it would be a challenge because he's an obscure figure in Texas History.  Will made the comment, "Mom, you're the only one who knows who he is." I told Will that's because I am a Texas History teacher and that no one else would.  At first I panicked about the costume, but then we decided the costume would be easy since no one knows much about him.  Will was able to dress like he wanted to.

Ben's class had a fun space theme for Open House.  This is an alien he created. 

We planted bluebonnet seeds in the fall, and we had some small bluebonnets come up! 

April 8th the boys went to the coolest Nerf gun party for their cousin Sam.

April 9th the ladies from my church and I hosted a vintage cowboy themed baby shower for a sweet couple that attends our church.  I enjoyed having it at our home and decorating for the shower with the ladies from our church.

Spring Decor on the mantel 

Easter 

April 16, 2017

Our first Easter in the new house.  

Holidays have been extra special this year.

We hosted Easter Sunday lunch for Mark's side of the family,

Easter egg hunt for the kids

We watched our niece Maggie compete at the Regional and State Tennis Tournament

Regional Tournament in Tyler, Texas

State Tennis Tournament in College Station, Texas

We walked around the campus of Texas A&M.

I've already tried my best to persuade the boys to choose this as their future university.

For now, this is where they both want to attend college.  Whoop!

Mark got a new mower.

We've been grilling out and eating meals on the back porch.  

Or if we say it as the Europeans do, we've been dining al fresco. ;)

May 1st 

Ben performed in the 2nd and 3rd Spring Musical and the theme was school spirit and Tiger pride. 

May 6th 

Will and the Intermediate Honor Choir participated in the Sandy Lake Fun Fest Singing Competition.

They performed songs from The Sound of Music.

SLIME!!!

The boys and I made slime.  We followed a video I saw on Facebook.

There were terrible storms that afternoon and evening and it was a good distraction.

That's all for now.  There are several things I've left out.  I still need to share photos from our end of year awards assembly, the last day of school, our niece's graduation, and Mother's Day.  

I'll get around to it.  Thanks for catching up with us this spring.

Dallas on Friday

My dear friend, Kayreen, was visiting Texas last weekend.  We wanted to see Dallas since we're usually in the suburbs north of Dallas or even farther north where I live in the middle of nowhere.  The perfect place to visit in Dallas was the Bishop Arts District in Oak Cliff.  Kayreen and I have traveled together before and she made the comment that the area reminded her of the Haight in San Francisco.  It's been almost 15 years since I've been there with her, but I agree that it's a good comparison. We had pizza at Eno's, which was a good recommendation from a friend at work.  My favorite shop was We are 1976.  They had a friendly staff and great collection of prints.

We had cold brew coffee at Cultivar before heading home.  It was recommended to Kayreen by the people at Slate in Seattle.  

It was a wonderful, spring day with a beautiful friend.  I wished we lived closer and could hang out more often.  

Spring Break 2016

Last week was spring break for us, and we headed south down I-35 for a quick getaway.  We had the perfect excuse to take a road trip.  One of my best friends from college had a baby and I wanted to visit her.  Being the baby hog that I am I couldn't hold the precious little fella enough.

When in Austin...

You visit the State Capitol of Texas.

When I'm not a wife and mom, I'm a history teacher, more specifically a Texas History teacher. I love any chance I get to visit Texas landmarks. 

We visited the Capitol on Sunday afternoon after we attended Brentwood Oak Church of Christ in north Austin.

The boys enjoyed our quick tour.

After our tour of the State Capitol we were going to try to eat at one of the well-known BBQ places around the area. Guess what?  So was everyone else in Austin that afternoon.  First we went to Franklin's but the line was too long.  We drove to Micklethwait, but they sold out.  Next we tried Stubb's but they weren't serving at that time.  Our BBQ luck had run out.

No problem, because our nephew is now a student at the University of Texas and he was going to give us a tour of the campus.

Y'all know I'm an Aggie, but even this old Aggie could appreciate seeing the UT campus.  If I wanted to get sentimental and reflect,  I'd tell you that our nephew Max was the age of Ben when Mark and I started dating.  That's so crazy because now he's studying at UT and living the college dream.  We're so proud of him.  Someone please tell me where all those years have gone!

We headed to Gruene (pronounced green) and our plan was to eat at the Gristmill since we weren't able to get any tasty BBQ earlier in the day.

The boys and I in front of Gruene Hall.  I think it's the oldest dance hall in Texas or maybe it's the oldest one still in use.  We didn't go inside because it was crowded but we did hear some good music being played.

Huge live oak trees in front of the Gristmill Restaurant in Gruene.

On our way home from Austin, we stopped by the Magnolia Silos in Waco.

Yes, THE Magnolia Silos that are seen on Fixer Upper.

About a year ago, we went to the Magnolia shop on Bosque but I hadn't had a chance to visit the new location. 

The weather forecast had projected storms on the day we planned to visit and the crowds were low.  I think they were very low compared to what others experience.  We didn't have to wait in line at all.

I purchased a few items for the new house.  The kids played outside and had a blast playing a pickup game of baseball with other kiddos playing in the outdoor area.  Chip and Joanna did an awesome job of creating a space that everyone in the family could enjoy.  Mark and I especially liked the food trucks--crepes and coffee from Common Grounds.

Sorry for the blurry iPhone photos.  It's the best I can do right now with limited internet access.  

If y'all are wanting a house update...we're hoping we move in less than a month.  Follow along on Instagram where I share more regular updates. There's more than I can begin to blog about, but one day I promise I will try.