I'm back.....

It is just so easy to drift away from this blogging thing. I so appreciate all those people I follow who are so prolific and dependable. I am not. But I am well intentioned, just distracted.

There is no great way to play catch up on this thing, but I will just begin where I am.
We have just finished a wonderful long weekend with Christine in Montana. We rented a ski in/ ski out cabin at Moonlight Basin and skied there and at Big Sky. Great timing as they had 8 to 10 inches of snow the night we arrived. Great powder (for those experts), but truth be told, I struggled. Then the groomers went to work, and oh my! Everyone teases me about how I love the groomers, but they change my life! I feel like a pro when I get on those groomed trails. We had so much fun that we are going to attempt to get all 4 "kids" together for some spring skiing in CO. We'll see...

So, here I sit in Salt Lake waiting to head home and realizing that our lives are about to get really busy. A quick trip to NC in about a week to see Z, and then off to Spain in early March followed immediately by a long weekend in New Orleans. Then, hopefully we will be moving to downtown Dallas. We hope to find a great "lock and leave" condo/townhouse close to "the action" in Dallas with proximity to the Katy Trail. It's time to experience the city up close and personal. We will keep you posted.

Life is Good.

We spent part of last weekend in Fort Worth. The Fort Worth Stock and Rodeo show is in town for the better part of a month. What fun! Cowboys and their gals everywhere!
There is a whole different feel to Fort Worth. Very comfortable, and very friendly. Jeans and boots are the norm at even the finest restaurants.
We had dinner at The Lonesome Dove. Oh my goodness! One of our new favorites. The chef has quite a reputation and can be seen on the food network on occasion.
This weekend we are off to Austin with friends and know there will be more opportunities for some great food and hopefully some music as well. Giddy-up.

Back in the great state of Texas!

We spent last week in Romania and had a wonderful time reconnecting with our friends there. We spent a couple of days in Poiana and then went to Cluj for a couple of days. The weather was just what we had expected, snowy and cold. It is such fun to enjoy winter for a limited amount of days. ( Sure wish I had hung on to some of my warm winter coats. In my haste to get rid of things, I donated them to Goodwill once I knew we were moving from NC to TX. )Oh well, I survived.
We spent a couple of days in Oradea as well and then took the train to Budapest, Hungary where we had an entire day to walk around the city. What a special place. The architecture is amazing. Our favorite thing to do is to walk along the river after dark and see the beautiful bridges over the Danube and the buildings all lit up. Spectacular.
We caught an early flight back on Saturday morning and got UPGRADED! Watched 3 movies and ate everything they put in front of me. No complaints. We even landed 20 minutes early. When does that ever happen?
Got on the scale this morning and OH MY GOSH! It is time for me to hop on the treadmill. Gotta Run! :)

What a Merry Christmas!

Sometimes holidays don't measure up to expectations and then sometimes they really do. This was one of those times. Everyone arrived safe and sound (eventually) and a good time was had by all.
Three generations under the same roof for 5 to 6 days. You never know quite how the experience will play out, but we had such fun sitting around the table enjoying great conversation, great food, and on occasion even some great wine. We reminisced and even heard some stories never shared before by the grandparents.
We were able to get to church on Christmas Eve despite the snow and wind. Beautiful service and hymn singing. All our favorites.
Slowly but surely, everyone is finding their way back to their respective homes and as much fun as it is to get together, I know everyone is looking forward to sleeping in their own beds, watching all the things they "tevoed" (Is that a word?) and catching up with friends. Hopefully, it won't be long before we all get together again!
Happy New Year!

Christmas, Here we come!

What a wonderful time of the year. After a quick trip to Montana last weekend, and a stop off in Minneapolis to have dinner with college friends, I had had enough snow and cold weather to feel that the holiday season is upon us. Landed in Dallas and hit the ground running.
Spent the week tweaking the house so that we can make 8 additional family members comfortable for the coming week. They start arriving tomorrow night. Thankfully our kids are flexible and fine with aero beds. They will have full run of the upstairs bed, bath, and media room. I wonder how often they will come downstairs? ( I plan to cook some gourmet meals to entice them.)
Three generations in the same house for the week of Christmas. Lots of opportunities to share stories, bake cookies, go for walks, see some movies and just enjoy being together. We are so blessed to have healthy parents who can still travel to spend time with us. It may get a bit chaotic at times, but it promises to provide opportunities for some new memories.
Can't wait for the fun to begin.

Waiting for some status!

Every time Steve and I get ready to travel, which is pretty often these days, I check in on line to print my boarding pass and expect some bells and whistles to go off. Maybe some words to pop up on the screen to say that I now have achieved silver or maybe even gold status on my favorite, American airlines. But no, no such luck yet. How long must I wait? Today, I am trying to get back to the big D from Orlando, Fl where we have had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend with all 4 "kids". I have discovered that trying to find an empty seat on an earlier flight on the Monday after Thanksgiving is IMPOSSIBLE. And, I have a Christmas party at my house tomorrow night! Yikes! So what's a gal to do?
1. Make a list of things to do when I get home.
2. Get a Coldstone.
3. Finish reading "Going Rogue", which I am really enjoying by the way.
4. Clean out my purse.
5. Decide what to serve to my guests tomorrow night.
6. Make a grocery list.
7. Return as many phone calls as possible.
8. Purchase magazines.
9. Walk some laps pulling my carry-on that is ever expanding due to airport purchases.
10.Make sure I get my quota of Starbucks since it is here and I love it!
Let the chaos of the season begin! It wouldn't be late November if I wasn't experiencing some sort of pre-Christmas jitters. Happy Holidays!

Time flys when you are busy!

Then month of November will go down in history as a BLUR! After the quick trip to Minnesota, I got involved with a wonderful young woman who was diagnosed with breast cancer 2 years ago when her baby was 3 months old. She already had 3 children. Upon diagnosis, her husband left her. Long story. She has just recently had surgery to help with painful scar tissue that resulted from the intensive radiation she had. This woman is courageous and trusting in God's provision for her every day of her life. I am blessed beyond measure to be getting to know her and count her as my friend. She is an absolute delight.
I flew in to Raleigh for 5 days to check in with Steve's mom who just had a lumpectomy to remove a cancerous tumor. She had some drs. appts. to go to and we just wanted to treat her like a queen for a few days: cooking some meals, cleaning a bit, etc. She is doing so well and won't need to start radiation until January. Her prognosis is very good.
That weekend was Louise's sorority parent's weekend and Steve and I loved taking she and Zach out for dinner before the big party. What a fun night. We tailgated with her on Saturday before the game and enjoyed spending a picture perfect day sitting in the stadium. Sometimes the outcome of the game isn't part of the memory. Just enjoying one another's company is enough.
The WHOLE family will converge on Orlando this Tuesday to spend a week reconnecting. We rented a fun house not far from Disney and will squeeze in as much cooking and eating; watching football games; parks; and whatever else we come up with. Can't wait. Lots to be thankful for!