WPS

Woo Pig Sooie!  It sure has been a long, long time since I blogged! 

Fall is in full swing despite what the thermometer here in Texas reads!  We had one or two days in the low to mid-70's but mostly its been in the 80's. It's almost Halloween and the A/C is still on.
The nights have been a little cooler and Coach is enjoying his homemade, outdoor big screen for football games. He has a nice little set-up out there ... he's got a 6ft+ screen, beautiful outdoor patio furniture, the fire pit ... he has a couple of Blue Moons or I join him for some Moscow Mules ....

So our 49th birthdays came and went without a terrible amount of fanfare.  T sent me a gorgeous Kendra Scott bracelet, coach bought me a new camera lens and he and KJ made me breakfast in bed and lasagna for dinner.  KJ also bought the most delicious red velvet bundt cake from "Nothing Bundt Cakes" and a Charming Charles gift card.  Coach had practice on his b-day so KJ and I surprised him with cupcakes and balloons on the field and we celebrated with burgers at Dutch's.

Our 24th wedding anniversary was also kind of quiet.  KJ had lax practice so Coach made a delicious shrimp scampi. Love a man who cooks!

KJ's birthday is a whole 'nother story.  It's a never-ending celebration.  She had a lax game on her b-day so the weekend before some friends took her out to dinner and they all came back here for a bonfire and s'mores. One of her friend's decorated her car the morning of her birthday and they met t Starbucks for breakfast before school.

We went to the Texas State Fair this year and had so much fun!  We didn't go last year because we had either just come back from Europe or were just about to go and didn't have much time. It was a GORGEOUS day and I loved the art deco buildings that make up the fair grounds. Got to see Big Tex and even tried some fried fair foods!

And then came our weekend at the U of Arkansas. The drive up on Friday was nice, about 5 hours from our house.   KJ had the afternoon tour but we were a little early so we parked and had lunch on campus. Fall was definitely in the air, it was only about 60 degrees, and the leaves were just starting to change in the Ozarks. It was soooo nice being in the mountains!  It felt like "home" -- New York in autumn, State College, West Point, Vermont, etc.  Coach's sweet nephew had made arrangements for a goodie bag to be left in KJ's name and he had a can koozie in there for her, a pig nose, a Razorback blanket, a  Tervis Tumbler and a bunch of other stuff.  She felt so special!  Coincidentally KJ's tour guide happened to be from Texas, lives around the corner and went to Marcus HS.  Campus was beautiful, big but not too big, great little downtown area and everyone was very welcoming. I could totally see Daughter #2 there. With her grades she should qualify for in-state tuition so that's a bonus!  Of course Alabama and Ole Miss are high on her list but I'm encouraging her to branch out and make her own memories.

After the tour were drove around for a bit and looked at the different sorority and fraternity houses. KJ wanted to stop and take a pic in front of the AOPI to send to T when all of a sudden I hear a big scream and some crazy girl starts running towards us!  I was totally blown away!!  Coach and T had been scheming for weeks and surprised the hell out of me and KJ!  We had dinner at a neat gourmet grilled cheese place and watched the homecoming parade. We went back to the hotel but KJ dragged T to the pep rally and they walked around campus a bit more. Saturday we parked by the baseball fields and tailgated. The family next to us had one daughter who was a sophomore at Ole Miss and one was a freshman. The tailgaters on the other side of us were a combo of Pig and Rebel fans and one of the ladies was from Pony Boy's hometown and knew his family. Although the game didn't turn out the way T and Coach would have liked, KJ had a blast doing all the Woo Pig Sooie cheers!!  And, coincidentally the tour guide from the day before sat next to us with her parents. It was too funny!! 

Last weekend KJ took the ACT's Saturday morning and had a tournament in downtown Dallas immediately following. Coach had the purple vs white scrimmage game last Sunday and this weekend is going to be jammed packed, too!  Tomorrow we are going to the TCU vs Texas Tech game and tailgate with some friends and Sunday night we're going to see Stevie Nicks!!! #WPS!!!

Wait!!! I'm not ready yet!!!

I am so incredibly embarrassed to admit this but I am horribly horribly behind in Christmas this year.  The Fall seemed to have it me like a ton of bricks this year and I just haven't been able to recuperate and recover!!

First and foremost, our cruise was unbelievable.  We had the most amazing, relaxing trip. Our flight to Barcelona was great, boarding the ship was stress-free, our cabin was great, food was excellent and our excursions were awesome!  Mallorca was beautiful and we had a wonderful day walking around the city.  I loved Marseille and Florence and Rome are always magical (so glad Cosmo got to see the Sistine Chapel!).  We both really enjoyed Pompeii, too!

After the cruise we had our anniversary, Cosmo's b-day and KJ's 16th birthday in that order.  KJ actually had a volleyball game on her birthday but she celebrated a few nights earlier with some friends at a Mexican restaurant.  After her volleyball game, several of the girls on her team took her to Whataburger (she had never been and apparently it's a Texas thing).  She finally got her permit and had 3 straight weeks of drivers Ed classes and has also been doing her drive times with her instructor.  Little Miss Jet-setter flew to Baltimore in November and spent a couple of days with her friends from Damascus.  Volleyball season is officially over and we had a great end-of-year banquet at one of the local country clubs.  This weekend she's down in Fredericksburg celebrating a friend's birthday at their family cabin.  They drove down after school on Friday, went zip-lining Saturday and today they are shopping.  She'll come home Monday.

For Cosmo's b-day we somehow ended up at a Rangers play-off game vs. The Blue Jays. It was hot as hell that day and we tried to keep cool by using the rally towels as hats.  We looked like idiots.

Early November we met the Martin's outside of Memphis and went to the Ole Miss vs. Arkansas game. The weather was cold and dreary but we still managed to have a good time!  AG and KJ spent Friday night with T so they thought they were cool and Pony Boy and Z put up our tailgating tent in the pouring rain while the 4 of us hit Oxford.  The highlight of the weekend, according to KJ, was her selfie with Tim Tebow. 

Right before Thanksgiving, Coach had his first collegiate game of his coaching career.  I love the campus at TCU and the guys were really great.  The team has a lot of potential. 

We had a fun Thanksgiving with Cosmo's nephew and his family. Eva and Eli are incredibly well-behaved children and it is a joy to be with them.  Friday we took them to the Gaylord to see the ice sculptures and go sledding. KJ was a trooper and was the "DS" (designated sledder). 

T and Pony Boy got to our house late last Sunday night after dealing with a flat tire in Arkansas and brought their puppy Maria with them.  Other than farting really bad, she's a great dog and liked jumping in the pool.

Tuesday night Cosmo took them to a Dallas Stars hockey game (Dew's first NHL game) and they met up with friends after the game.  Friday Cosmo's buddy from college (also KJ's Godfather) flew in for the weekend. We had a great dinner and walked around the town of Grapevine (voted one of America's Top 10 Christmas towns). It was so beautiful!  The town itself is super cute anyway but at Christmas they go all out!  Every shop, every restaurant, every building has some type of display or lights.  The gazebo was all decked out, there was a life-size Nativity set, a light tunnel, an inflatable igloo, Mistletoe every where, etc.  Saturday the guys went to the Cowboys vs. Jets game (Go Jets!!!) and Bob flew out early this morning.  Pony Boy and Maria left Saturday morning and T and I did some Christmas shopping while the guys were at the game.

So, this is why I'm so behind this year!  Nothing is wrapped and I haven't sent out a single Christmas card.  I guess there's always next year!

Too Early??

Is it too early to be excited about football season? 

This house does not discriminate.  We love it all . . . college, professional, peewee, high school.  Shoot.  I think Cosmo even watches Canadian football once in a while.  Hopefully we'll get to a bunch of games in the Grove this season and if

Saw this the other day on the Girl Meets Gameday blog (I think she posted it way back in May but I'm just now seeing it.  I need to catch up on some blog reading I guess!). 

I'm a total Martha.  Everything coordinates in a classy, elegant way . . . the outfit, the accessories, the tailgate menu, the tailgate décor. 
http://girlmeetsgameday.wordpress.com/2013/05/04/which-tailgater-are-you/

Friday! Friday!

Yay! It's Friday!

Should be a fairly "quiet" weekend for us. It's all relative: "quiet" for us is insane for someone else. T has two lax games Saturday and Champ has 1. I will be at T's game in case she makes it to 100.

Sunday friends have invited us over for a craw fish boil which should be tons of fun. Her husband is a chef so I'm sure it's going to be delish!!! And, they are from Louisiana. = Guaranteed deliciousness.

We've got our hotel reservations for a couple of Ole Miss games in the fall. Hotty Toddy! Can't wait to tailgate in the Grove. We've been Alabama fans for years & years (way before we even moved here) and that will never change. However, I have started to be on the look-out for some fun Ole Miss tailgating supplies.

Cosmo & I have been working on our big b-day/anniversary trip for the fall (20 years of wedded bliss!). We've narrowed it down to: St. Thomas, St. Kitts and/or Jamaica. We went to Jamaica for our honeymoon but this trip would be to a different part of the island. We've been to St. Thomas before, too and really liked it. We've never been to St. Kitts so that might be interesting. I just need to do a little more research and see what kind of activities/attractions/dining are nearby. Even though the plan is to totally and completely vegetate on the beach, we still like to snorkel, etc. I think I'd like to give zip lining a try. Hey, YOLO!!!

Football Fans

Heard some funny stuff on the radio this morning. One of the guys was complaining about girls/women who spout off during football games but really have no idea what they are talking about (and won't shut up and just end up making themselves look silly). If you don't understand the game or aren't sure what exactly is going on, it's perfectly acceptable to say something generic like "nice catch" or "nice run." Or even throw your hands up in the air after a fumble or an interception. One of his biggest complaints was women who think wearing a cute outfit and attending a tailgate party makes you an expert. One of them also made a snarky comment about "unless you are a super hot 20-something year old, please keep your school spirit outfits age appropriate."

I do love me some weekend !!!

What a wonderful, busy weekend! This weather is amazing and I love the slight chill in the air! The windows are wide open and sleeping has been very snuggly & cozy!

T had her senior Halloween dance Thursday night (there was some really, really creative costumes!) and from there she & Cosmo drove to ATL to spend the night. She had a 7 AM (Eastern time) flight and landed around 9 AM. She was met at the airport by a grad student (who, on Sunday, met w/ producers of MTV's Real World for an audition) and met the lax coaches and her freshman host for the weekend. They had lunch and she was supposed to go to class w/ her host but it was cancelled. She practiced with the team that afternoon (they had snow flurries during practice!) and the coach took the whole team out for dinner. The football team played away this weekend so Saturday morning she somehow participated in a charity kick-ball tournament on campus and went to the soccer game with a couple of the girls. The grad student and her host drove her back to the airport and she landed in ATL around 9 PM Saturday night. She really liked the campus, she really liked the dorms and she really liked the weather. She called from the airport before departure and we had a really deep conversation about her expectations from college. She's got a lot to think about, the decision is entirely hers but she made some extremely mature observations about the schools she's visited so far and I think, in the end, she'll make the best choice based on her needs and her personality.

Saturday night KJ had her 12th b-day party and we celebrated w/ a tailgate theme. Cosmo set up the TV and the Wii outside, we had a roaring fire, we roasted hotdogs, we had the popcorn machine going and made s'mores. Her invitations were cute and had a poem about "let's see who cheers for who on game day" and everyone wore their favorite team colors / jerseys. All the kids were pretty into the Alabama game and afterwards played the new Wii dance 3 game. Friday she has a costume party to go to which is going to be a problem. She hasn't even begun to think about a costume which is very, very unusual for her. She usually starts thinking about her Halloween costume during swimsuit season. Looks like we'll be hitting Party City or Halloween Express this week!