Sunday, March 29, 2009

Family, friends, fun

Whew, life's been a blur! And will continue on in much the same fashion for the next week! But all in a good way.
Last weekend, my uncle Alan and aunt Jolene and their oldest daughter Jenny and her three sons Shawn, Mikey and James came to visit. We all met up at the ranch, along with my grandparents (briefly) and aunts Becky, Kathy and Lissa and cousins Dylan and Tessa (briefly). I got almost zero pictures because I get so caught up in what is going in, 9 times out of 10 it completely slips my mind that I should capture the moment. Reese loved seeing everyone, and I did catch a particularly funny interaction she had with baby James. She kept saying to him, "Oh, honey. It's okay." Over and over. And then giving him a kiss. Which may have been disconcerting to the lad because he was not a tiny bit distressed at the time. But I guess that's what she thought she should do...


I know it's okay, silly girl. I just want to stare at Buddy in peace.



Tessa turned 21 last weekend! Happy birthday, Tessa! Woohoo!

These cupcakes were a highly sought after commodity out at the ranch amidst all the youngsters...

I love spring. We have been outside as much as humanly possible lately, oak allergies be damned. We go out and play, eat, hang out, I sit by the pool while R naps, whatever. Just to be out in the beautiful weather. Then I take loads of meds so I can do it again the next day, although allergies or a cold or something caught up with me a few days ago and made life miserable. We're finally getting over it--oddly, R wasn't bothered by it, so maybe it's D and my allergies, honed from many years of living in an allergy hotbed. Either way, here are some of the outdoor shots.
Reese, ready for fun in the sun!

Fun w/ GvG


Wheeeee!


Here's where my photos start to get pretty dodgy. So, a few of us surprised Erin with an early birthday gathering on Friday night. This is the only shot that even makes sense posting. None of the others turned out. She was quite surprised, and sadly, I could only stay for about 10 minutes after she arrived, because it was my grandmother Margaret's 87th birthday. I was late to that and flustered and apparently failed miserably at getting any decent shots there!

But luckily, there was another much better shot I got in an email from Erin's surprise--thanks for sending it, M!

Then, D's parents and sister and fam came in town for the Capital 10,000. Here are the "racers" lined up in our yard before heading out this morning. It was chilly! Blake ran most of it and Christine walked really fast. The rest of just had fun finishing...

And the cousins hung out at our house with a sitter. Reese was in heaven playing with her cousins last night and this morning! And is taking a much needed long nap!

So much fun. And it's Sunday, so here comes a new week, so let's do it again...not exactly the same things but the same pace...I'll see you on the flip side of the week, most likely! Have a good one!

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Handsome Billy D


Many of you knew Billy Dingo. He was a sweet, goofy, crazy dog. I can't believe it's been already been a year that we've been without the spirited Dingo-dog. He was a dear dog, and I still love him tremendously. I just know he is keeping all of the cats on their toes in Heaven! I miss him so very much--he was my "first doggy love" and will always hold such a special place in my heart. Please give your dogs and cats some extra special love today in honor of Billy Dingo. xoxoxo

Friday, March 20, 2009

And we have a name!

She is Callie Ann!!

Thursday, March 19, 2009

Beautiful, beautiful baby girl

What a blessing! Baby girl ?? arrived today. And as part of a family tradition, Ash and Ryan have not yet selected a name for the beauty, so I'm calling her "AJ" for Ash Jr. She is truly a gorgeous baby and seems very sweet, not making a sound the entire hour I visited. She is one of the cuddlebug babies that are such a joy to hold. So precious!
I love this pic of Ash and "AJ". The expression says it all: Mom, I've already got you wrapped around my thumb, don't I?

She sure knows who her Mama is!

These two are a little blurry but she's already grown used to her papparazzi, as the flashes hardly seem to register.


Apparently, Mama and RJ also sleep with their mouths open...

Hmmm, thinking really hard...and I promise I was holding her well, but her neck looks all kinds of jacked up here.

Without her hat on, and nom nom nom, delicious baby cuteness!

What an angel!

Baby girl, you are already so loved and I was so thrilled to finally meet you today! I can't even begin to imagine what your wonderful future may hold! xoxo

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

"We're wearing green..."

"...so nobody can pinch us today!" I swear I've heard this about 15 times already. I guess the traditions of St. Patrick's Day have made an impression on little Reese. She is pretty sure she doesn't want to be pinched! Can't say I blame her, I never wanted to be pinched either. To this day, I am pretty careful about wearing some shade of green at all times on March 17th.





So I've obviously lost the Barbie battle. Sigh. R's been wanting them for about a year now, and our sitter got her the Cinderella doll for Christmas and my folks got her Sleeping Beauty under the auspice of "but it's not really Barbie, it's a princess doll!" Riiiight. Oh well, you win some, lose others.
R was belting out Rihanna's "Umbrella" on the way to the ranch yesterday (we've popped out there for 2 day trips as part of our spring break week). She also calls Cinderella "Cinder-ella, ella, ella, ey, ey." Barbie and Rihanna, such great role models! Ay ay ay.
We have yet another green ensemble to wear today, so there may (or may not) be another post later this afternoon....

Friday, March 13, 2009

Back in black

Thank you friends for all the input and advice! I went with the black dress, obviously! There was such a range of attire at the event, but I am glad I was wearing a dress. I tried a lot of the suggestions--a long necklace, tights, a belt, and went with most of them, but couldn't find the right belt for the outfit. I did, however, find an insanely cool pair of shoes, as did David.
Here we are, ready for the party:

We rarely get this dolled up these days! And here are our shoes, the "red hot" part of our ensembles! Fer-rosh!

Still don't have the bday party pics, but I will get them! Here's R showing off her school project yesterday, a necklace. And yes, she gets in her nightie as soon as she gets home from school. This particular one is the beloved Cinderella "naughty." It's got tears and holes and is basically a shredded ugly thing, but R adores it.

Pleased with the necklace.

Showing me her favorite shape on the necklace, the sun!

Off to run around today. Will post more later.

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

I feel pretty...or, tell me what to wear so I will!

Okay, so we had a great weekend, went to a RW neighborhood happy hour party on Friday at a house up the street and had a great time--kids everywhere, nice folks, etc. Then on Sunday we went to Emmylou's really fun and cute 3rd b-day party. Of course we took pics, but David took them on his camera and despite (because of?) constant badgering, I still haven't been able to get (force?) him to email them to me. So I will post those as soon as I, ahem, get them.
A few quick pics of our frou frou doggie girl, Miss Greta von Gretszky, as we like to call her. She went to the groomer yesterday for the first time, and my, oh my, how fancy is she? She's fluffier than any other dog I have ever seen, softer than I could have imagined, and smells better than most humans do, blogger included. Oh yes, and she came home with a bow!!! Much to David's horror and mine and R's delight! Check it out:




So, yes, she feels pretty, oh so pretty.



Now, moving on, quickly....
I need some advice, blog buddies! My lovely friend Jane invited us to an event she is co-chairing, the Texas Film Hall of Fame Gala. I have always heard such great things about this event and have wanted to go, so I am beyond excited! And also having a major wardrobe meltdown! The theme of the event is "Red Hot," so red is a natural choice. Mother Nature decided to be awesome and it is going to 35 degrees and pouring (much-needed) buckets of rain on us. At least that's what they tell us. Anyway, the event isn't black tie, it's apparently got a more hip, cool vibe to it (some folks dress up more, some wear jeans). I have this one-shoulder ruffle black cocktail dress--which I would wear with stilettos and bare legs. I'm thinking it's too dressy and not exactly weather-appropriate. I also have this new blouse that I am liking quite well--red and very pretty--which I would wear with black pants and either dressy wedges or heels. The event is Thursday and it sounds like there will probably be a celeb seated at our table. I'm not telling who until I know that it's okay for me to say. Now I need your input--have you been to this one? Do you have a good vibe about either ensemble? Scratch them both and start over? Talk to me, people.

Sunday, March 1, 2009

Up to the highest height

Yee-haw for the Austin Kite Festival! And for all of our fun friends who were able to make what will surely become an annual event: parking and breakfast at our house and a walk down to the park for the festival.
Hold on to your seats--I have a lot of pictures in this post! I don't have one of every single person but it seems like we tried!
Reese, Tatum, and Ainsley pausing for a brief moment.

Quinn reflecting upon Greta.

Beckham trying to make his escape.

Neal and Nico smiling for the camera.

Kellen enjoying kolaches.

Janna, Melissa and Simone all bundled up. It was chilly! And a short two days ago, we hit a record 91 degrees. Sigh.

Herding cats. No, really, everyone got out and packed up in an impressively quick amount of time.

And the stroller brigade is off!

Here we come, Zilker! (thanks Monique for this pic!)

A, R, T and Q all lined up, from behind.

And from the side.

Daddy and Reese, and the maiden voyage of the $4 Cinderella kite.

Jax, with his awesome hat. Cute little man.

Kellen takes an unconventional approach to kite flying.

Cord, rocking the Elmo kite.

Melissa and Simone and their super cute hats. Where did all these kids find their adorable togs??

Kites in the air. I took a lot of pics like this, but you know, I think just posting one will suffice.

One of the "big guys."

Reese watching the big guys.

We got home and Reese decided to do some core work after all those donuts and kolaches.



Good idea, Reese. I am off to yoga to repent for my morning indulgences. ;) Thanks to everyone for turning out and making it such a fun outing. And save the date for 2010, y'all.