Our Anniversary Weekend

One of the things I look forward to every year is our anniversary getaway.  Every year we make it our mission to find somewhere special to go for a night or two, just the two of us.  Some have been more memorable than others ( the 7F Lodge in College Station is amazing, Fredericksburg during their music festival was entertaining, and our stay in the _ at Salado was really unique--in a good way!).  We planned this year to make our way down to Gruene, but hit a snag.  In years past when we've headed south, our trip usually ends in Austin for the state basketball tournament (It's a family tradition.  Some people go skiing; my family watches basketball.).  Because Kevin is self-employed, he only gets paid if he works and taking off an entire week can be costly.  So...we opted to put Gruene on hold (it would be better in summer anyway) and find somewhere closer to home.

I'm usually the one to search out some cozy little bed and breakfast, but this year Kevin took the reins after I suggested going to Grapevine.  Next thing I know, he calls me and lets me know that he has two nights booked at the Gaylord Texan. 

Awe. Some. 

As much as I love the bed and breakfast experience, getting the chance to be pampered after five months of being a mother of three sounded like Heaven.  And this weekend was all about pampering.  My husband knocked this weekend out of the park.

When we got to our room on Friday, Kevin and arranged for flowers to be delivered and have the "romantic turn down service" ...so many sweet little touches. 

If you know me, you know that taking pictures on weekends like this isn't my strong suit.  Trust me when I say we had a great time.  We spent most of Saturday in the Relache' Spa inside the Gaylord.  I'm such a spa freak.  It was one of the best massages I've ever had.  Of course, after carrying a carseat for five months, any massage would probably be a good massage! :)

Saturday afternoon we ventured to historic downtown Grapevine. If you haven't been there, I highly recommend it. 

Saturday night we went to Pappas Bros. Steakhouse.  Oh my.  It's a special occasion place, for sure. But it was delicious! 

After we slept in just a bit on Sunday, we packed our bag and headed back to Van.  I love that our weekend fell at the beginning of our spring break, because now I'm refreshed and ready for a week with my kiddos!

Of course, I may need another massage by the end of the week. :)

Lucky 7

Seven years ago today I married my prince.

In those seven years, I've discovered not only is he my Prince Charming, he is my Prince Funny, Prince Practical, and Prince Dirty Old Man (Yes I know you're shocked. Yeah right.).  He is also the smartest person man in the room. ;)  He makes my life easier even when it makes his more complicated.  He knows the cracks in my armor and chooses not to chip away at them.  He treats me differently than he treats anyone else, and it makes me feel special.

He is the best best best best thing to happen to me. Ever.

I love you babe.

Day 30: A picture of someone I miss

This is Meme.  The adorable little cherub on the other side of the fence is me. :)

I miss Meme. She was such a feisty little woman.  I wish I could have spent more time with her and really gotten to know her.  I love thinking back to the times I spent at her house with her and Papa Peden.

Her name was Lubie Clyde.  She would be 98 on her birthday this Sunday.

We would sit at her kitchen table, and she would simultaneously teach me how to play dominoes while telling me to keep my feet off the railing under the table.

She always seemed to have all the lemon drops and angel food cake on hand.  Lemon drops never tasted as good anywhere else, and her angel food cake was amazing. One day not so long ago I asked my mom if she had Meme's angel food cake recipe. She smiled and said, "I think she got it from a box mix."

Her and Papa always sat on the second row at church.  When I would sit with them, they would play tic-tac-toe with me to keep me quiet.

We spent a lot of time on the swing in her back yard.

Christmas Eve was at Meme's every year for the first several years of my life.  The only tree I ever remember her having was a stick painted white and decorated with lights and ornaments.  I knew it wasn't the way our tree looked, but I never remember thinking that it was odd.  It took a while for it to feel like Christmas when we stopped going to her house on Christmas Eve.

I don't remember her voice or her laugh, but I can remember laying on the floor in the middle of her den, playing dominoes, her with a toothpick in her mouth saying, "'Let me see...' said the blind man."

I remember going with her on a regular basis to the nursing home to visit Aunt Pudd and Miss Ada.  She always took bananas to Miss Ada.  I thought that was nice. It was years later when I realized that Aunt Pudd was Meme's sister.

When she got sick, she went to California for treatment.  She brought back a pearl for me and had it set in a ring.  I still have that ring and it is still very important to me.

The stories of her that my dad tells are some of the funniest I've ever heard.  One involves her hurling stuff at him when he climbed a tree to get away from her. :)

If I try really, really hard, I can still smell her house.

She was strong and stubborn and funny.

Her funeral was the only time I saw my Papa cry, and had the largest amount of flowers I ever saw.

After she died, my Papa needed to repaint their house.  Apparently, choosing the paint color had always been Meme's job.  It was always a nice, muted yellow. When we drove by and saw that Papa had chosen the brightest most horrific yellow imagineable, we wondered what in the world made him choose that color.

"Clyde liked yellow," he said.