Burgers, Burgers, everywhere ...

Buffalo Bill burger with Parmesan Truffle fries!

I suggested we use our Saturday to check out a new burger place that a co-worker and I visited this past week.  We are determined to continue to find the very best burger in Dallas.  Not the one determined by any magazine, but by us!

On Saturday we visited, Hopdoddy in Addison.

So you must know that Ellie and I have a variety of categories on which we judge each location.  The burger is just one of them.  The components of the burger count too.  Taste of the burger, burger bun, and choice of toppings all play a part.  And there's the rest.  How are the fries?  Do they have Coke?  Do they have the good ice?  And were the people nice?

This place was a 4 and half stars out of 5 for us!  We loved the burgers .. we loved the fries .. and the rolls were darn amazing!  They bake them onsite and that's the smell when you walk into the place.  They have a cool condiment station and neat decor.

They only thing keeping them from 5 stars is that they don't have Coke.  They have Maine Root products.  Somehow we survived.  And loved, loved, loved the burgers.

And then Ellie finished off her meal with a Red Velvet shake ... that without a doubt qualified as dessert!

We'll be back for sure .. we just loved it here!

Wolf Howl

Ellie introduced the song giving thanks for the hero in our lives at school this morning!  It was awesome!!

Ellie and Mary Kay

We had a mother-daughter skin-care and make up afternoon while Grammy was in town.  Robin and Dawn joined us to make it even more festive!  Ellie and Robin learned about skin care, and the proper way to put on and care for make up.

This is the result of Ellie making a wish list from all the Mary Kay products!  YIKES!  Some of those colors scare me and I don't even know if it's lipstick or nail color!

I just love that she got as excited as we did to have an afternoon of pampering and laughter with just the girls!

Wylie Cup Weekend - 2nd Place!

Ellie kicks the ball for a clear from her end.

Ellie with Kirby and Lea

Ellie and Grace - the super star goal scorer!

Ellie getting her 2nd place medal in the Wylie Cup!

Uncle Julio's for table side GUAC!

Ellie and Grammy

Jude, Ellie and Bill waiting for our table....

Pretending it's a date night ...

Blue Bell Returns

If you don't live in Texas, you don't really understand how good ice cream can really be!  Blue Bell had some troubles this year with a listeria outbreak, laying off hundreds of people while two huge plants closed for many months (like 6 months!) and all the while Blue Bell stayed above water.  They have an amazingly loyal fan base, of which we belong.

These are actually half gallons .. not somewhat shy of a half gallon ... but an actual half gallon filled with wonderful, ice cream goodness.

No, Stewarts isn't better, no Haagen Daas isn't better.  You have to be here to truly understand the impact of Blue Bell.  So the first day it was available Ellie and I went to get some.  And there was a two gallon limit.  So we went to two stores, silly!  That's what I call problem solving.

I can honestly say I've never had 4 half gallons of ice cream in the house at once, but THIS was a special occasion!  BLUE BELL WAS BACK!

And Grammy was coming to our house ....

Soccer Family

Seems like we spend quite a bit of time with our 'soccer family' in the Spring and Fall.  These girls are fierce!  They play hard, and don't like to lose!

In the back:  Coach Mario and Coach Cheryl (each with a daughter in the crowd)
2nd row: Grade, Caja, Ellie and Marian
3rd row: Katie, Jade, Jackie, Leah and Kirby
Front: Hannah, Lea, Iona and Jenna

What a proud and happy group - when they are winning!  Thank goodness they had a season filled with lots of wins!

Halloween!

Robin and Ellie
Ready to Trick or Treat together!

The entire Trick or Treat crew at Robin's house
Too many to remember all their names
Two additional girls and three boys - two more families!

The front of the Schuler's house!
So cool how they made their doorway into a monster!

School Assembly and Halloween Parties

Ellie's school assembly and Halloween parties were on Friday.  She loved her costume and being able to be dressed up for the event.

She's also looking forward to trick or treating with friends on Saturday evening!  The weather may be rainy, so we're trying to come up with a contingency plan.  She's all over the weather app that tells her what's happening by the hour.  So I think we will have a good plan come evening!

Report Cards!

Ellie received her first 9-week report card on Thursday.  She did amazingly well!

Social Studies:  97

Citizenship:  100

Language Arts:  89

Writing:  90

Math:  95

Science:  96

Art:  Pass

Music:  Pass

Computer:  Pass

P.E.:  Pass

Although I can tell you she was upset.  Her goal is to achieve high honor roll this year.  That means all her grades at a 90 or higher.  As you can see, one grade is 89.  Since this isn't a college entrance exam I explained she has time to focus in the next 9 weeks to achieve 90 or higher for each class again.  This way she can focus on what she wants to achieve.  

We'll see what happens now ....

American Girls

This little mini-me is not a doll ordered to look like Ellie, it's actually last year's girl of the year - Isabelle!  And now they have pjs the match.  I must have ordered those pajamas close to two years ago - and when they shipped the wrong size I put them at the bottom of the drawer.

Well, lo and behold, we cleaned our her closet and drawers on Saturday to rid her of all the too small items.  And we found that these lounging pajamas might now be just perfect!

As you can see they made her very happy.  She and Isabelle did everything together on Sunday.

What to do in the rain?

Ellie and I had the day to ourselves on Friday to make some fun while Bill was off to the office for the day - lots of his team was participating in an OT day.

So off we went to a new library.  We normally visit Sachse Library because that's our mailing address.  Yet, when I found out that Wylie Library is bigger and brighter, I knew it was just the cure for a rainy day!

We arrived early and got started.  Of course in the rain and so early there were few people around which allowed us to wander about freely.  What a great family spot.  A huge story time room that is framed by a huge tree.  Lots of activity and community rooms, and plenty of spots to just sit and flip through books.  And need I say, the kids' section is big and bright with these great walk up card catalogs!

Ellie is eagerly awaiting the new release of Dork Diaries.  I believe this is #11, or could be #12.  She's read them all.  It arrived on shelves this past Tuesday.  And I have promised her she'd have it in time for our flight to California.  Barnes and Nobel sent me a note on Tuesday that it was en route .. so it should arrive anyway.  And, no, there were no copies on the shelf either.  I guess she's not the only pre-teen eager to read the next in the series!

Friday Night Lights

Mrs. Teamann (Whitt Principal) and her posse of Whitt Wolves at Wylie Stadium

We attended the game on Friday night ... well we attempted to watch the game on Friday night.  They moved it from 7:30 to 6pm game time to try to avoid the heavy rain.  Although what we found is that there is no way to avoid the thunder and lightening.

When we arrived at the stadium about 5:40 we found they were not letting anyone on the field or in the stands due to the weather.  A little rain these Texans could handle.  It was the lightening that was holding the crowd back.

They would make a call at 6:15 if they planned to wait another 30 minutes or they were calling the game.  So we waited inside the stadium out from under the rain.  So imagine the scene - lots of high school kids, parents, Whitt Night brought out the elementary school kids, marching band .. and oh, the people that were handling out COW BELLS.

It got a little loud in there.  And so just about 6:30 we gave Ellie the choice.  We could stand and wait it out, or we could go home, get dry and in comfy clothes and watch The Voice.  She voted for The Voice.  And we trudged back to the car and eventually dried off!

The game was eventually played.  Whitt won 47-12.

Wolf Howl

Wolf Howl is a pretty big deal when you're a 4th grader.  You and your classmates get to lead the school assembly with songs and cheers from the bleachers in front.  Each member wears this cool black t-shirt that says 'Wolf Nation' and it's a pretty big deal.

Friday was no exception.  It was Wylie High Homecoming game and it was Whitt Night at Wylie Stadium.  So the morning was rowdy and loud.

The great part for me as I was attending this one solo, was that I sat with Dawn (Robin's mom) and then managed to sneak in a quick catch-up chat and hugs with Natalie (Kalayna's mom) too.  Dawn and I made arrangements for a girls' afternoon when my mom is in town and for the families to celebrate Halloween together too.

It resulted in a 'good time had by all'!

Pay It Forward

When I drove through the Starbuck's drive-thru lane to get my Pumpkin Spice Latte this morning I was surprised to find the car in front of me had paid for mine!  What a treat!

Can't tell you how many times I've done that .. and smiled as I drove way..knowing the person behind me would be wondering who bought their coffee!!

Did I pay it forward?  But of course, isn't that the whole reason to do it!

School Board Member for a Night!~

Ellie and Mrs. Goss the Wylie School Board President

Ellie had an amazing opportunity on Monday evening.  She was one of 10 4th graders chosen in the Wylie school district to shadow a School Board member for the evening and ride on the homecoming float.

When I say one of 10 4th graders, that's because there are 10 elementary schools in Wylie.  Ellie was the only student chosen from all of Whitt Elementary School.  Her teacher submitted her name with a write up of Ellie's character and she was chosen!

Her principal, Mrs. Teamann was also there.  She told us how impressed she was with Ellie from her first interaction this year.  Part of Ellie's 4th grade assignment the first 6 weeks was Road Guard which included rotating providing the announcements over the school's public address system.  Mrs. Teamann said, "Ellie shows such leadership and confidence.  She's going to be in charge of something one day!"

During her time with Mrs. Goss, Ellie got to act as the School Board President!  She called for motions, announced that they passed 'unanimously!' and pretty much kept us laughing the entire time!  She is a natural to be in charge, to make people laugh - and does it with a huge, warm smile!

It was an amazing night for all of us.  What a great school district!  We met all the school board members, rode the activity bus behind the float in the parade and celebrated with the little downtown of Wylie all the fun and excitement of homecoming.

It's truly the first time in our time here that it felt like home.  That we fit in, belong and are part of something bigger than our family of three.  It is an amazing feeling to watch Ellie grow and develop in such a nurturing and caring school system.  We know we chose the right spot, and we're reaping the benefits of it for sure!

Ellie and Mrs. Goss on the Homecoming Float
WISD (Wylie Independent School Distric)

Dr. Vinson using a selfie stick to take a photo of the whole group!

Ellie on the float getting ready for the parade to start

"Keep Calm and Bang the Gavel"

Sometimes you lose

Yes, our princess wears soccer cleats.  She runs, kicks, plays hard and now has lost her first game of the season.  With so many wins behind her team this season, they didn't quite know how to process a loss.

They were outplayed.  Fair and square.  The other team didn't have two or three strong players like ours, it had 9 strong players .. on the field at the same time.  They were quick, their passes were accurate and they played together extremely well.

And our girls didn't know what to do with themselves.  Several shut down before the game was over.  They weren't used to processing the emotion of losing.  Of Grace and Kirby not on constant breakaway to pass and score.  Of being able to celebrate a victory.

Losing teaches us so much.  And yet, it can be a painful lesson.  Ellie kicked the grass and pouted on the way to the car.  "I don't like losing," she said.  And things like, 'well you can't win them all,' don't mean much at that point.

So we went home and got her something to eat, into a hot shower and then talked about what losing means.  I talked about what happens when the other team scores.  How can she bounce back from that?  I told her about how I used to watch my brother John shake off being scored on in youth hockey, and how Jeremy explained how he wouldn't worry about the batter that just got a hit but only on executing the next pitch when he played baseball in college.

I talked to Ellie about how to focus.  Not on what just happened, and not on what is going to happen. To focus on what is happening at that moment.  Because there is where she can make a difference.  We talked about how to get herself back in the game after a player gets by her and then scores on the goalie.  And even if she masters all of that, sometimes you're going to lose.

Losing is part of life, I told her.  Sometimes losing motivates you to play harder.  Sometimes it reminds us how very sweet winning can be.  But most of all it reminds us that we don't win each time.

Even Babe Ruth, who hit 714 home runs also struck out 1,330 times.

I'm glad she's on the field.  That she loves being part of her team.  I love to hear her help the other girls find their place on the field.  "Girls!  Move up!" she'll yell to them as they position themselves for an oncoming player.  I know one loss won't take her down.  They may lose again before the season is over.  What I do hope is that next time it doesn't sting so much, and reminds them, 'you can't win them all!"

Night Soccer

At least we were not the only parents at this 7:30 start soccer game that were thinking, 'how's my daughter going to get to bed on time and get up for school in the morning?!"

The girls had fun.  They worked together.  And they won.  Again.  9-0 this time.  Since we were up by so many goals Coach Mario was rotating the girls and Ellie didn't get to play the whole game - but about three quarters of it for sure.

And they had fun.  Which makes it all worth while to lose a little bit of sleep in the end!

4th Grade photo

Here's the gorgeous shot of Ellie from her fourth grade photos!

Yes, her hair has grown.  Yes, she has a bit of lip gloss on.  And yes, she sure does look grown up!

Her parent teacher conference was also today.  Her teacher, Mrs. Freeman, said that "Ellie is sweet and polite.   Always responsible and its important to her to turn her work in on time.  She is wonderful with helping her peers that need it.  She is serious about getting her work done!"

Those kind of Parent/Teacher conferences are a pleasure!

Dallas Aboretum and Botanical Gardens

"WANTED - Reward for Cuteness" !!

Love this one!

Family Shot in the family garden

In the pumpkin patch

Pretty as a picture

Sunny day and the two girls are smiling!

Children's Adventure Garden

Deep in the heart of Texas

Pumpkins galore!

Morning Sky

graphic courtesy of earth sky.com

Ellie and I have been watching the sky all week.  This  morning we took time to go out figure out exactly what we could see!  Since it was certainly before dawn, we know these are the planets that we saw.

She was so excited to be able to see Jupiter and Venus.  Although the planets are in the same place in the sky that the above picture depicts, Jupiter was much smaller and fainter than Venus.  Which Ellie was quick to point out to me that was because Venus is much closer to Earth ... and she had me there!

And since she's a technology girl, she also used an app on my phone to validate this information.  I downloaded Night Sky which uses GSP to determine your location.  You point it at the sky and pictures appear to tell you which constellation and in our case which planet we could see.

The cool part for us was that Jupiter through the app REALLY looked like the Jupiter you learn about in school, not just a little star-blob in the sky.

Needless to say, we were very excited .... until we realize what we were going to see TOMORROW ...  MERCURY!!!

graphic courtesy of earth sky.com

#Lucky13

October 2015

We celebrated out 13th anniversary with a date night and dinner at Bob's Steak and Chop House in Plano.  It's a traditional steak house complete with Sinatra playing, dark wood, a wedge salad and delicious steaks!

It was fun to recall lots of the delicious meals we've shared - Vegas, Key West, Mohegan Sun, Chicago, New York and our cruises.  We've added Dallas to our list, as this meal was delicious too!

October 2002

Remembering a friend

I lost a friend this week.

We'd know each other since I was 19.  It was my first summer at Roaring Brook Ranch in Lake George.  The summer after my first year at college.  I waited tables for breakfast and dinner, spent days by the pool and evenings listening to the Stony Creek Band.

It was a pivotal summer for me.  I was away from home without the obligation of college classes.  It was a time that I learned about alternative music, worked on a great tan, did Jane Fonda's workout regularly and made new friends.  Some of those friends I still keep in touch with today.

I had my '78 VW Rabbit that summer as one of the only ones with a car I could rely on.  One evening we all went to Albany from Lake George to see a concert at JB's Theatre.  The band was Squeeze and the opening act was The Hooters.  They were all the rage in the '80s.

We split up to drive there and in my car was Allison Jacobs, her brother Michael Jacobs and Ed Klan.  We laughed and sang songs from the concert on the way back.  We became friends.  Ed and I developed a special bond back then and stayed in touch for a while.

About two years ago we reconnected.  He'd married, had two kids and followed his father's footsteps and became part of the NYPD.  In fact he was 4th generation NYPD.  A sergeant, and he was proud to be part of that brotherhood.

We became friends again.  In a different way this time.  We caught up.  Nearly 20 years of stories to share.  Griffin and Emme were on either side of Ellie age-wise and that gave us plenty of laughs!  We thought they'd have made good friends too if we had lived closer.

Ed Klan was a good man.  A great dad and a wonderful friend.  Those are all the stories that have come out this week as he died on September 30th.  This photo above was the scene outside my front door on the day I found out.  I'd like to think I have another angel in heaven who's watching out for me.  Truly if nothing else I'm glad I knew him and that we had the chance to evolve our friendship from teenagers to grown ups.

An Old Irish Blessing

May the road rise up to meet you. May the wind always be at your back. May the sun shine warm upon your face, and rains fall soft upon your fields. And until we meet again, May God hold you in the palm of His hand.

Hawaiian Girl

Ellie celebrated Kulana at school and was encouraged to wear Hawaiian attire.  Strangely enough we put an outfit together that without much effort!  It really just came together and then Ellie remembered she had a water bottle in the shape of a pineapple and we knew this would be a hit!

Here's some photos from school that day:

Ellie and Robin on the far left side

Robin on the right side, Ellie is 3rd from the right!