Minneapolis

We had a wonderful trip last weekend to Minneapolis. It was a great reunion with Avery & Christina and Mom & Dad, and we got to meet Christina's family. We also got in a little sight-seeing including a trip to the Mall of America and a Twins game at their new stadium (Target Field). The ballpark was beautiful!

On the way home we realized that we got to attend ballgames in 3 different major league stadiums this summer (the Rangers in Arlington, the Astros in Houston, and the Twins in Minneapolis). Thanks for a great trip Avery...we had a blast!

USA! USA! USA!

We had a wonderful weekend cheering on the Unites States Davis Cup team in their Quarterfinal match against Spain. The team lost, but we had a great weekend in Austin and got a chance to see some family and friends that we hadn't seen in quite a while.

I love this picture of Mom and Dad overlooking the court. We had great seats!

It was great to see Kim and Rick on Sunday for the last match. Mardy Fish lost in 4 sets but it was a great match and had lots of excitement. Yes, Kim's arm is in a cast, but she took the opportunity to use the cast to provide support for team USA!

Here is a picture of the rest of the group in our seats. Mom and Dad and the Marables. We all wore matching T-shirts for the matches on Friday (Roddick and Fish's singles matches) to show our team spirit.

Here are the teams during opening ceremonies. The had kids hold the flags for all the participating countries around the edge of the court. There were fireworks when they announced our team and during the National Anthem.

The Net-Heads sat in the section below us. We couldn't see all of their antics but they were definitely a sight!

Here are the Bryan brothers during their doubles match on Saturday. They won in 4 sets and provided the only USA victory for the weekend. They put on quite a show!

Here is one of the Bryan brothers signing some autographs after the match.

After the doubles match on Saturday, Roddick practiced and let the audience stick around for a few minutes to watch. Here he is warming up his forehand while Jim Courier (US Davis Cup captain) looks on. Courier wore a suit to all the matches.

Courier took a brief time out during Roddick's practice session to do an interview with Justin Gimmelstob for the Tennis Channel.

We had a great time in Austin! It was too bad the US team lost, but there were some great matches and it was really fun to be part of such an enthusiastic crowd!

Adi's Adventures

Adi is having a wonderful summer (as are her parents)! The other day we went for a walk at a local park around a lake. Bryan plays softball nearby and I always thought Adi would like walking there so we got up and at 'em the other morning before it got too hot. Adi loved it! She thought every person there needed to pet her, and she especially wanted to go play with the ducks (I didn't let her do either).

We got the house painted inside and out last week. We finally got everything put back together and the house is beautiful! But, Adi was cooped up a lot (as were we) and she didn't get all of her regular naps. The other evening she was so tired she didn't mind when Bryan laid down beside her bed.

But, after the painting, Adi found a toy she had misplaced beside the couch. She has been chewing on this bone all evening!

She even rolled around with it as if to say, "Oh hello lost friend! I am so glad you are back!"

She probably chewed on it for over an hour. Doesn't this pose look comfortable?

Summer Fun

The summer heat is definitely going to be a challenge. So, we thought we'd get a little wading pool and see if Adi wanted to use it to beat the heat. She ran right to it and did a thorough inspection. But, she didn't really want to get in. Bryan picked her up and put her in it, but she immediately jumped out.

But, when I sat down beside it and put my feet in, she eventually decided it might not be so bad. She never got in it, but she took some big drinks of water out of it! Works for me...it was nice and cool on my feet! I forsee lots of summer afternoons with Adi and I out by the wading pool...cold drink, reading a book, getting some sun! Nice!!!

Vacation!

After the birthday party in Memphis, we traveled with Bill & Lou (Bryan's aunt and uncle) on a whirlwind tour of New Orleans and south Texas. Our first stop was New Orleans. Of course we had to hit Cafe Du Monde for a snack (and breakfast the next day).

Look at those beignets and cafe au lait! Good stuff!!

The French Quarter is an amazing place. Here is a really cool statue of Joan of Arc.

There was even a jazz band playing outside Cafe du Monde.

I love this picture of a horse-drawn carriage outside St. Louis Cathedral.

And, of course I love this one of my handsome hubby beside the Mississippi River. There were riverboats and tugboats and barges.

Here we are beside the fountain in Jackson Square (just across the street from the St. Louis Cathedral).

When we left New Orleans we traveled to Houston. We took a tour of Nasa and saw an Astro's game at Minute Maid Park (only a couple of years old). Then we went on to San Antonio and the Hill Country. Every time I go to San Antonio or Gruene I remember how much I love it! The riverwalk is so much fun, as are the outlet malls and the Gristmill restaurant.

Happy Birthday!

Last weekend we traveled to Memphis to celebrate with Bryan's Grandfather. It was his 90th birthday!
We had a wonderful party with family and good friends from their Sunday school class!

Happy Birthday! We love you so much!!!

Weekend Get-Away

We just got back from a weekend in Oklahoma City! Bryan ran in their marathon this morning, so we turned it into a fun weekend. We left Friday after school, and got a call on our way out of town that some good friends from Abilene were in the Metroplex for a bike race. We got to meet them for a rushed dinner on our way out of town...what a great surprise! Saturday morning we went to the marathon Expo in downtown Oklahoma city. We got to have lunch with a friend of Bryans' who was also in town for the marathon. We took in the art festival in downtown and even caught some free high school baseball at the minor league stadium in Bricktown. It was a beautiful day capped off with a yummy steak dinner at Toby Keith's restaurant. Sunday morning the weather changed for the race! Bryan did a great job on his race despite rain, wind chills in the 30's and even pea sized hail at the finish line! It was fun to support him and cheer for him along the route...but I'd be lying if I said I enjoyed hiking all over downtown in the pouring rain and hail. But, it was still a great weekend, and we needed the rain. Sorry I don't have pictures...I forgot the camera on Saturday and was limited as to how much I could tote in the rain.