I LOVE the fall!

I used to really love the summer, but after this one: no more.  I Love the Fall! Here's why:
1. I love the opportunity to be outdoors in the sunshine & not be gross sweaty. (It's an issue here in Tx).
2. Soccer is back in action.  While some days can get very long, I love watching the games while I can.
3. Festivals. I love festivals. And right now, there are about 5 every weekend.

Tonight we are heading to the Lewisville Western Days festival to see the Josh Abbot Band.  I think we're going back tomorrow to see one of our all-time-favorites, Pat Green.

Happy Weekend!

Labor Day is always a hectic 3-day weekend around our house & we were prepared for the fun! Our 100+ degree record temps finally got down to mid-90's over labor day weekend, which means we can now soak up some sunshine! Finally! Unfortunately the drought is not over. 

We kicked off our weekend with a sleepover with cousin Ezra.  He had to head home Saturday morning to go to his first UT football game. Lucky boy!

Sunday we packed up our bags and headed to Mansfield for Creek Fever at Walnut Creek Country Club.  This is usually an all-day marathon for us, starting early in the morning with the fishing contest, spending the day with Kid Events & Pool Games, and then there is a live band playing on the driving range until 10pm.

But this year was a little different for us.  First, we picked up a friend in Midlothian to join us, so we didn't get to the Club until 1pm.  The kids played all day with their friends while I sat stationed on the patio by the pool.  It was a no brainer - no wondering where everyone was, who they were with, did they fly off of a bounce house? We then decided to forego the concert and watch the A&M football game at our friend's house.

So the day wasn't such a whipping after all.



Katie, Addison, Reagan - sporting their Tattoos



Monday we met some friends at a new restaurant in downtown Arlington, the Grease Monkey. This is a burger joint with great garage-door walls which allows for a great place to sit and enjoy the beautiful day. We're so excited that downtown Arlington is starting to get some really great restaurants, a new gallery, and some boutiques to accompany the outdoor concert pavilion. The city is working to develop a nice area for residents & students to visit....and not have to travel East or West.

A friend of Eric's gave us tickets to a charity concert on Monday night, Pickin' for Preemies, which raises money to support Cook Children's NICU in Fort Worth.  There were 15+ Texas Music artists featured, performing an acoustic concert.  All of these artists are people that Eric & I love. Addison & Preston....not so much.  But they were patient (at least as long as we expected them to be) and we got to enjoy some music for about an hour & a half before heading out.  Maybe next year we'll be able to stay for the whole event.


Francie & Addison at Pickin' for Preemies Concert

Pickin' for Preemies Concert, Billy Bob's Texas



Labor Day Weekend

It's Labor Day weekend again; at our house Labor Day = Creek Fever.  We're gearing up for the all-day play-a-thon on Sunday.  I think this will be the first year that the kids are both old enough to manage themselves with no direct adult supervision.  I knew this day would come.

Ezra James, the newly 4 year old, spent the night with us this weekend. It's always fun to have some extra energy around to keep us all moving.  I think as our kids get older, we all slow down a little bit.

A late night swim for Preston & Ezra.

Late to Bed, Early to Rise. A friendly game of PacMan at 7am.



And here's Addison.  Her nose is always in a book. Always.



Weekend Wrapup

Well, the weekend turned out pretty nice. I started the Saturday at Ezra James' 4th birthday party. I have decided not to post my pics because I am certain his mom's will paint a better picture of the event. I only wish I had a video camera to get the obstacle course live in action.

It was nice to see my cousin Ann and her two girls. I completely forgot she was in town and hope to get to see her more.

Eric and I had a nice Saturday evening all to ourselves. We tried out a new restaurant in Frisco, Social 121. I have a friend involved in the management there. Delicious meal from start to finish! It's such a luxury to dine at gourmet restaurants, and I don't like to take that for granted.

Sunday, Eric and I have decided to pursue living a healthier lifestyle by ridding our bodies of some of the man-made toxins we ingest everyday. He made me a fabulous egg and sausage breakfast first, and then we proceeded to visit three stores (farmer's market for veggies, Whole Foods for proteins, and Grocery store for the other basics). And after half of the day had passed, we chilled out in the pool.

Now it's back to the grind, driving 90 miles everyday to McKinney because another Administrator has jumped ship. A year ago, I had never been to McKinney Texas. Now I loathe it.

I decided on Thursday evening, as I was making my 90 mile round-trip drive home from work that I was going to have myself a Gringo Honeymoon weekend.  This has been a crappy week at work.

What is a Gringo Honeymoon weekend, you ask?

I've taken the lyrics to one of my favoirte Robert Earl Keen songs and tweeked it.  Since I can't have another honeymoon, I'll be interpeting this as a laid back, good ol' fashioned fun, kind of weekend.  There may be some beer drinking, some music listening, some pool or lake floating. That would be an ideal weekend.

Of course, I do have Ezra James' 4th birthday party in the morning, so I'll have to work around that. 

We're starting the evening out by frying up some bacon and making eggs.  In honor of this breakfast-for-dinner dinner, I've whipped up a Screwdriver Martini. 

Cheers everyone! Happy Weekend!