First Soccer Season

The kids both played their first season of soccer this fall, and it was quite an adventure. I also got to experience what it is to be a soccer mom and learned some lessons along the way.

Rylan's team was made up of a group of kids from his class last year, aptly named "Los Elefantes" based on their classroom animal. Most of his teammates played in the spring, but Ry wasn't three yet, so he didn't join in on the fun until the fall.

He was so excited for his first practice, and I think the new gear was his favorite part.

But despite his enthusiastic practices, Rylan refused to step foot on the field for most of the first few games. 

Unless I was on the field with him (totally saving this picture for when he is a future soccer star)...

 Rylan finally warmed up to the game days, got his stride, and scored his first goal (followed by two more that game). I was so proud!

While the Elefantes had trouble keeping five players on the field most games, they sure had a lot of fun. 

And of course there were medals for all :).  

Ava's team, the Sparklers (best name ever), was made up of a group of kindergarten girls from her school. Through the mom of one of Ava's preschool besties, I was introduced over the summer to one of the moms who organized the Sparklers team. I'm so happy she made the introduction, because I loved meeting all the kindergarten moms, and it's been great for Ava to get to know some kids outside her class. 

Ava had such a great first season!

Both kids learned so much, had a ton of fun, and made some wonderful new friends (the parents are so great too!). It's so fun to think that these girls could be together all the way through high school. 

We can't wait for the next season!

Merry Christmas

Taking a break from the blog catch-up to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and happy everything!

A Superhero Halloween

Unfortunately, the kids actually had opinions about their costumes this year (I suppose it was inevitable), so all my 80s movie ideas were out. But they still opted for coordinating outfits, and I didn't get a single hot-glue burn. Win-win.

Rylan is currently obsessed with Batman, so his costume was an easy choice. And Ava was all in on Wonder Woman as soon as she saw the red boots.

They were quite the dynamic duo.

The rain stayed away, and we had such a fun night trick-or-treating around the neighborhood. 

The kids were so happy with their candy hauls!

State Fair 2017

Fall is my absolute favorite season for so many reasons, including the State Fair of Texas. And with a kindergartener in DISD, this was our first year with an official "Fair Day." Josh and I both took the day off so we could take full advantage.

Per tradition, our first stop was a picture with Big Tex.

Then it was time for the breakfast of champions: Fletcher's corny dogs. 

We decided to hit up the rides and midway games before it got too hot, and the kids were both tall enough for all the rides this year.

Be still my heart.

Winner winner, chicken dinner!

It's so fluffffffyyyyyyyyy.

By that point it was really getting hot, so we stopped for food in both the indoor pavilion and a nice shady patio.

Get in my belly...

The Cuban roll is my absolute favorite.

And the bacon-wrapped mozzarella sticks and fried Texas sheet cake were both delicious new finds.

We saved the shows for last to try to beat the heat a bit, starting with the pig races. 

Not pictured is the wild west pet show, which was amazing.

It was a wonderful, fun-filled (and very hot) day. Until next year!

BB's Memorial

In late September, on what would have been his 83rd birthday, we celebrated the life of a wonderful man and grandfather. Because of BB, I will forever love the Texas Hill Country, traveling, reading, llamas, salty food, Christmas traditions, skiing, s'mores, gin cocktails, The Sound of Music, and always making time for adventures.

I'm so very grateful that my children were able to meet him.

BB didn't want a sad memorial, but rather a "celebration of life." After looking into various venues, Scholtz Biergarten was the clear winner. It offered a low-key venue complete with lots of fond memories.

We spruced up the room a bit with Sarabeth's gorgeous flowers as well as a bunch of framed photos.

We also had a slideshow playing on one of the walls. I am so happy with how it turned out, and going through all the photos brought back so many wonderful memories.



The food was delicious and salty just as BB would have liked it.

 



We also had cookies on hand from Hayley Cakes & Cookies. I had them make an assortment of designs, which were all things that reminded us of BB. They turned out so great!



The llama was clearly my fave.

And of course there were family members and friends who traveled from near and far to fill the room with love and memories. 

It was such a bittersweet night, but we did our best to hold back the tears and focus on BB's long and fun-filled life. 

We continued that theme when a smaller group met at Dad and Rhonda's house after the memorial. It's not that often that we are all together, and I know BB would have loved to be there laughing, drinking, singing, and dancing along with us.

Cheers to BB!

Piggy night night, BB. We love you so much!