What've you been up to?

I get asked this alot and my answer is usually, 'not much'. By that I mean not-much-out-of-the-ordinary.  I started looking through my phone today and realized that June was actually pretty eventful. Below are some pictures from our June in no particular order.

Here are a few shots from Preston's All-Star game. This is the first season that we have allowed him to tryout for All-Stars. It's hard for all of us to commit to this summer team but we were told the season usually doesn't last very long for the Midlothian team.  And the coaches were right.  After a few weeks of practice, Preston missed the 1st game because he was at the beach. That was the 1st loss of a double elimination season.  So we made it to game 2, in 108 degree heat, to watch a 13-0 loss. So we are not terribly upset that the season is over and are glad that Preston was able to participate on the team.

Preston's 1st All-Star Baseball Game

It was a loss for us, but you couldn't tell by this face.

Midlothian All-Stars

 Next up, look who has some new metal in her mouth! She started with the top braces and a plate in the bottom of her mouth. She will likely get her bottom braces on too. It should be a 2 year process.

Eric and I have spent 2 weekends in Glen Rose, the first by ourselves and the 2nd with the kids (blog post to follow). We don't usually spend much time out there this time of year but we now have access to a great pool down the road which makes a BIG difference when dealing with some dry, hot weather.

Eric & Lucky

At the beginning of the month, we took a girls trip to the Kimball Museum of Art to see the Impressionists exhibit. 

Rose, Addison, & Reagan

Eric & I spent a day in the Oak Cliff area, wandering around the Bishop Arts District. We had a yummy breakfast and then strolled through the few blocks they have filled with boutiques, specialty items, a bicycle shop, etc. It was a beautiful day and a fun change of scenery.

Eric recently installed a wall-mount for a TV on the patio so we've been spending alot of time outside at night, watching many Texas Rangers games. 

Lucky & Addison enjoying some family time in the pool.

Eric testing out some Agave Tamale Company dishes.

And finally we have come to the 4th of July.  Traditionally we have the kids during this time every year, but our schedule was adjusted a little this summer to accomodate their mom's school schedule. 

The City of Arlington held several Indedpendence Day events. We went to the North Arlington fireworks display last night.  Today we enjoyed some breakfast tacos at the Marquez Bakery, did a little Houseboat-vacation-shopping, and spent some quality time lounging in the pool.

A fabulous day to soak up the freedom we enjoy and think of those who have done so much to preserve those freedoms and liberties that we have.

Eric & Francie, a self-portrait

So that's some of what we've been up to. We have a SUPER FUN July ahead of us with Tennis Camp, a Houseboat Trip with friends in Hot Springs, Arkansas, a Ranger game, and wrapping up the month with a week at Camp Thurman.  I'm so ready for some 'kid weeks' and some vacation!

Father's Day 20.12

364 days of the year, we are spoiled.  So when Father's Day comes around it's time to show the best Dad ever how much he means to us.

This year we started Father's Day early by going to a Ranger game on Friday night.  It was a great game (a win!) followed by a Fireworks show set to the Tunes of the 80's. 

Eric took Preston to All-Stars practice on Saturday while Addi & I did some last-minute gift shopping.  We had our best friends over Saturday night for swimming & a cookout.

Then Sunday arrived.  The Big Day.

We always try to work in a family bike ride on Father's Day because that is Eric's favorite thing in the whole world.  I hope that we can go on a family bike ride every year for the next 50 years.

Lunch was 'Dad's Choice' since he vetoed my Sushi suggestion.  That's just the kind of guy he is - he loves Sushi but knows that it's not the kids' favorite.  So instead he opted for cheeseburgers. 

We were then able to squeeze in 9 holes at the golf course right down the street from our house.  We've lived in our house for 6 years and have said countless times 'we need to go play this golf course'.  So we finally did it.  

All in all, I think he had a great day.  And he really loved the new pictures he got for his office.  I can't wait to do something new for the wall in our living room with these pictures. So fun!

I love Caprese salads (I mean really love them), so when I saw this recipe on Pinterest last week, it immediately went on the menu for the week. I will be the first to admit that I have absolutely no creativity when it comes to creating a dish, but I'm getting pretty darn good at finding recipes we like and recreating them. This is my Susie Homemaker alter-ego coming out.

Caprese Chicken with Roasted Asparagus

Here's the link to the master that I stole it from. This was my first successful Reduction. I'm no good at sauces!

Father's Day Pictures

We spent our Saturday morning hanging out with Cowtown Camera Girl last weekend and are SO excited about some of the pictures we've seen so far.

This was my (our) 4th time to take pictures with her and it was such an enjoyable experience, once again. There are many things I love about her photography, but I think that one of the most impressive things to me is that she seems to capture the spirit of my family each time. I really think you can see who my kids are in these photos. Not staged. Not perfectly still. That's rarely the case!

We met in downtown Arlington (a place we spend a lot of time these days). Eric and I walked around the area for a while during the session so that she could capture some unsolicited moments with Addison and Preston alone. We then stopped by the Arlington Farmer's Market (and picked up a few goodies while we were there). Next stop: Shipley's donuts. And then we wrapped up using some backdrops from Abrams St buildings. I know that Eric will treasure his Father's Day pictures for a lifetime!

Click on this link to see a few more of her pictures.

All Star!

Preston was offered the chance to try out for All Stars this year & he made the team! 

We're so proud of all the hard work he has put into his first year playing Kid-Pitch. He was given the opportunity in several games to be the starting pitcher. He also played Short Stop & First Base this year.

His season is supposed to start the 3rd week in June.  If you're from around here, you know that it is SUPER hot this time of year.  We were told that the Midlothian All-Star team typically only plays well-enough to last 1 week. 

So what are the chances that this year they do well & it lasts all summer?  Ahh!