Perot Museum

My sister and I wanted to take the kids somewhere for Spring Break. We thought about the zoo, but the weather didn't look too good for the day we wanted. We decided on the Perot Museum in downtown Dallas. They have a special children's museum on their lower level. The kids had a great time running around, touching/tasting the exhibits, and being a kid.

They sat around a "campfire" to roast their food.

Marley holding the fruits.

This little guy wouldn't stand still because he was too busy playing.

He was playing peek-a-boo with a little girl in the tent.

Love this sweet guy

He started to play peek-a-boo with me

And tasting the tongs that I'm sure every other child had a taste of that day.

Uncle Shelby helped Eli go down the slide.

He loved that slide

This face makes my heart melt.

They played in the farmer's market picking flowers and putting food in their basket.

Rearranging all of the flowers at the flower stand.

We took them to the space part of the museum. Eli was not too enthused about this part.

But, he liked spinning the bowling ball to see what it weighed on each planet.

I think they will enjoy the museum a little better when they're older. We didn't stay long as it was very crowded and we were running into lunch and nap time. Chris met us for lunch and Eli fell asleep before out food made it to the table. I take that as a sign of a good time for Eli.

Meal Prep Party #2

A few posts ago, I talked about going to a Pampered Chef Freezer Meal Party where we created 10 meals to go straight in the freezer for future use. You can read the post here. I'm almost out of all of my meals, which were amazingly good. I decided to host one during Spring Break to create 10 more meals. I had a great turnout of cousins, friends, aunts, and my mom. 

My mom and I went to Sam's the day before and bought all of the meat in bulk as well as the majority of the canned goods to split between us to save money. It was a pretty funny sight to see us trying to cut a huge pork tenderloin and 10lb log of ground beef!It was harder to cut the 5lb block of mozzarella. My wrists still hurt from that.

We got so busy with prepping meals that I only took a few pictures. I chose a kid friendly menu that included more pastas and chicken. In addition to the 10 meals, we also offered another menu that included 4 meals.

My sis prepping sweet potatoes to go into the Kid's Chicken Chili.

My aunt preparing one of the meals.

One of my meals waiting to be sealed for the freezer.

This was really fun and busy. I felt out of breath from prepping and talking so much. I made the Parmesan Garlic Pizza Casserole this week and it was delicious. Eli and Chris ate it up!
It was such a success that I'm thinking about hosting again in a few months with a different menu to try new foods. There are more dinner menus and there is also a dessert menu!!! I can't wait to try them all.

Valentine's Day 2015

Valentine's Day fell on a Saturday this year, so Eli celebrated with his friends at daycare on Friday. I managed to get one pic of us before heading out the door.

He loved wearing his Mickey Mouse shirt, but didn't want to stand long enough to get a good picture by himself.

I procrastinated too long and didn't get Eli new Valentine's cards. These were leftover from last year with puppies and kittens on them. I tossed in a few chocolates in a bag for his friends.

He wanted to show off his shirt before I left for work.

 

I came home that evening to a beautiful orchid(that I will probably kill with my black thumb) and a teddy bear that Eli claimed in the first few minutes. 

 

On Saturday, Valentine's Day, I had Marley over while her parents were at work. We drove around the farm and headed to Grandad's house to wish him a Happy Valentine's Day.

Grandad was happy to show the kids around, but they thought they were the tour guides.

That evening we went to see Alex Meixner play at the KJT. We had a great time dancing and hanging out. The kids wanted their Poppy to hold them so they could see the band playing.

We couldn't get them to stand still because they were dancing the whole time.

They loved to watch the band and shake their butts.

I love this picture of Eli and his Poppy. At the end of the night Eli didn't want Chris nor I. He only wanted his Poppy.

You can read last year's Valentine's Day here

Lent 2015

Last Wednesday marked the beginning of Lent. Eli and I got up early to attend 6:30 am Mass. He was so good during Mass that it tempts me to change our regular Mass time on Saturday night to 7:00 am Sunday morning. He was a little confused by my ashes so I turned the camera on him so he could see and this was his face of confusion. He would've had a better marking of ashes, but he turned his head to look at me while I was receiving mine and Father tried his best to mark him.

I went to school after Mass and was bombarded by so many curious students. I think I explained what Ash Wednesday was about a hundred times by the end of the day. Explaining the meaning of Lent helped me remember why we, Catholics, do what we do. 

I found this quote on Instagram and thought it was the perfect way to describe why we mark ourselves with ashes. 

This Lenten season I am working on reading a new devotional called The Gargoyle Code that a friend gave to me. It is much different than previous Lenten devotions I have read and really makes me think about where I am at in my relationship with God. 

This is the first year in a long time that I have given something up, in addition to doing extra things. The night before Lent, I thought about some things that I feel like I cannot live without and chocolate was the first thing to come to my mind. Obviously, I can live without chocolate, but I some times feel that I HAVE to have it. I will scrounge my cabinets looking for chocolate when I'm really having a moment. I feel like I have to have chocolate at some point everyday. And that is unnecessary. I am focusing on offering up my urge for chocolate to Jesus every time I feel that need. 

I am also starting new traditions with Eli this year. I want to bring him to Stations of the Cross. I know he won't understand them, but I feel that the more I bring him to church the more he is acquainted with the atmosphere and how to act.(Yes, he's only one and his attitude changes with the wind, but I do see a difference.) By incorporating him in Mass he quiets down a bit better. I will ask him, "Where is Jesus?" He will usually stop and point to the crucifix or the stained glass windows. Or we will tell him that Father is coming and move him further to the aisle so he can see Father walking down. 

I pray that we all find time during this season to focus on Christ's journey in the desert and drawing ourselves closer to Him. 

Read last year's post here.

Party in New Orleans

My best friend from college is getting married in a few months and I am honored to be a bridesmaid in her wedding. Her sister and mother invited me to attend her bachelorette party in New Orleans a few weekends ago and I couldn't resist a fun weekend. 

My early flight gave me some time to reflect on some Scott Hahn.

When we got to the hotel, Mari's sister and mother had these cute bags made for us. It was a NOLA Bachelorette Survival Kit with chocolate, mouthwash, gum, face mask, Tums, and a few other goodies. It was a cute and thoughtful gift.

After dropping our stuff off at the hotel, we headed to a local restaurant called Deanie's where I tried oysters for the first time. I was a little skeptical, but they were really good.

Taking our first shot.

We took a walk down Bourbon Street and found a hurricane at Pat O'Brien's.

That evening, Mari's sister arranged for us to watch one of the many Mardi Gras parades from a restaurant rooftop. 

All of the girls of the weekend.

It was one of the neatest sites I've ever seen. So many floats, people, and marching band after marching band.

It was so cold, but these kiddos braved the weather.

I thought this was the coolest trick. Parents brought these ladders that had boxes attached to them for their kids to sit in so they could see the parade. In the parades I have attended they don't last much longer than 30 minutes. These parades went on for HOURS!!! This was a smart idea so parents didn't have to hold their kids the entire time.

Afterwards, we rested and marveled at our beads. [No nudity was involved to attain the beads.]

The next morning, we went to brunch at The Ruby Slipper, a very popular restaurant.

I got their famous Bananas Foster and it was the tastiest breakfast I have ever had. I would go back just for this breakfast.

While we were there, we threw Mari a lingerie party.

Her cute lingerie displayed.

While Mari went to the spa in the afternoon, I went to the casino and made my donation. I was not a big winner :(

I found some time to attend Mass at St. Louis Cathedral on Saturday night. The Cathedral is breathtaking.

That night we went out to Bourbon Street. It was WILD! I had never seen so many unique people in all my life.

I had a great time being with a great group of girls that weekend. It was nice to celebrate Mari before her big day in April.