This was our last regularly scheduled softball Monday. Hopefully we have a makeup game which means one last time to sit and visit with the girls this season.
This weekend was filled with many fun things: a baby shower, a wonderful friend's birthday, and a great date night!
So after the weather turned so cold, we had to put any plans we had to work in the yard on hold (which was fine by me!) Saturday morning I headed down to Reata to help celebrate Alisia's birthday! It was so fun to see her parents and catch up with some friends I don't see very often and meet a new one. After that, I headed to a shower for Kylene and baby Brandon who will be here before we know it.
That afternoon, Brad and I headed over to AFI Dallas to take in one of the films. This was our first film festival experience, and I don't know if we got lucky or what, but we loved it. The film we saw was Peter and Vandy, and it was a chronologically out of order love story. The film's director Jay DiPietro was there, along with the two lead actors, Jason Ritter and Jess Weixler. They took questions at the end, which was pretty cool.
After the movie, we headed over to Deep Ellum for dinner at Twisted Root Burger Co. just in time to see the end of the Louisville game. That just about did it for both of our brackets.
Sunday was a great day of rest and worship. God has blessed us so much with a wonderful church family, and it is so refreshing to be in the house of the Lord.
Below is the trailer for the film I had hoped to catch this weekend, but we didn't make it. It will be released in some theaters this summer, and I can't wait. That Zooey Deschanel is so cute.
Wasn't the weather absolutely beautiful this past weekend? I am excited about spring, yet anticipating the one last freeze or snow we most likely will get.
Brad took some time to work in the yard on Saturday and get things ready before we replant our flowerbeds and fertilize the yard. Last year right after Easter everyone in the neighborhood got a sweet little threatening love note from the HOA administrator saying that we needed to take care of the weeds in our yard. He's already headed them off at the pass. Bring it on HOA! (I felt a little sorry for him while he was out there working and a lawn company pulled up across the street. They were in and out in about 30 minutes. Bless his heart.) He also planted two twigs trees in the backyard, so one day it won't look quite so much like a western prairie out there.
The rest of the weekend was spent doing one of our favorite pastimes--hanging out with friends. In particular on Friday night, one of the couples in our Sunday school class had a housewarming party. The husband has wired a media room with surround sound AND strobe lights that respond to loud noises. So when there is a loud BOOM in a boy movie, the lights flash, and I believe the seats are wired to vibrate as well. It was pretty much awesome. We had dinner on Saturday with friends from the newlyweds' class and lunch and dinner on Sunday with more friends from church (and I got to squeeze baby Cooper's sweet little legs on Sunday night!)
There is nothing I love so much than being surrounded by my friends, sharing a meal, and encouraging one another whether that is in our faith in the Lord, in being a wife, bargain shopper, home decorator, cook, or what have you. Reflecting on the past weekend, that's what I think the most fabulous weekends are about: living, loving, and apparently...eating!
-that hardworking and cute man of mine -a good footwarmer at my desk -a new cheap necklace from Forever 21 -fresh pineapple in the fridge -Diet Cherry Dr. Pepper
Because of the gross weather towards the end of last week, we decided to spend Friday night at home, but randomly ended up checking out some local homegrown restaurants in Fort Worth over the course of the weekend. They're an alternative to some of the chains around town, so I am sure we'll be going back.
Saturday night we tried out a place outside the loop in west Fort Worth called Margie's Original Italian Kitchen. From the outside, it looked like a dive. The food was great--better than Macaroni Grill and in the same price range. The inside was cozy, with candles atop each red and white checkered table cloth. Word to the wise--you might want to consider splitting an entree. I ordered the spaghetti, and the leftovers were enough to feed Brad and me at lunch today.
Tonight we ate at J&J Oyster Bar off of University. It's been around for a long time and is pretty well-known, but we had never tried it out. I did not eat oysters because I do not eat oysters, so I can't really vouch for them. I think I prefer Flying Fish, but the food was still good. Brad was a definite fan.
Otherwise, we spent the weekend hanging out, watching movies, making landscape plans, doing the laundry, and shopping. My sandals and me are so ready for some spring weather!
I finished The Catcher in the Rye last week and have already taken up with the next book on my list, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce. When I took it up to the counter at Borders, the college dude who rang me up told me he read it in high school. I told him that I probably should have but didn't, thankyouverymuch, but at least I was reading it now.
This reminded me of a time while I was dining with my wonderful husband and had my pager sitting on the table. (For those of you that don't know, I am often on call for work.) The kid also known as our waiter laughed at me and told me that the 80s called and wanted their pager back. And then I laughed and cut his tip in half. Moral of that story: don't make fun of paying Customers, especially those who might be sensitive about the 80s or their giant pagers..
Anyway, back to the book. I knew there was some controversy regarding The Catcher in the Rye so that's one reason I decided to read it this year. I can definitely say that while I am not a proponent of censorship, I am definitely a fan of good judgment, and not every book is suitable for its intended audience. I think this one would be most appropriately read on a college level for content, not difficulty, so that is my thought on that front. It's about a young man who keeps flunking out of different boarding schools. I could talk about the realities of coming of age, loneliness, etc. but that's not why anyone reads this blog, so we'll keep it simple and say I thought it was a sad story.
So far A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man hasn't captured my attention, but I have high hopes that it will get better.
Almost everyone I know has a book going at all times. What are you reading right now?
I picked up this chair at Canton, and added a little bit of love, some paint, and new fabric. I'm so pleased with how it turned out! I like it in three different places in my house, so now I guess I'm on the hunt for more chairs to makeover.
This weekend has flown by. How does that happen? You spend most of the week looking forward to the weekend, and then it's over. So sad.
Friday evening we made a stop by the hospital to meet the newest member of the Cook family, who is absolutely precious. From there, we headed on to Waxahachie to meet my parents for dinner at Don Jose's, which is always a family favorite. We haven't seen them much since Christmas because life has just been busy, you know? It was good to hang out.
Saturday morning started off with a 3 mile run, where I was joined on the last mile by my dear friend Laura who just happened to be on the trail. It was an unexpected treat to catch up. This Saturday was much nicer than last Saturday's freezing cold weather, and it was nice to be outside to enjoy it.
After treating myself to a new book and pedicure, I spent the rest of the day prepping for dinner with friends. We are so blessed to have many wonderful couples in our Sunday school class to fellowship with, and we had two of them over for Italian and the game Compatability. If you haven't played it, you should definitely check it out.
Today we made a quick trip over to Texarkana for a visit with Brad's family, and now we are back and getting ready for another work week. Only 5 more days until the weekend!