First day of 2nd grade

Griffin started 2nd grade yesterday. He was very excited to head off to this new adventure. He had a great first day. He seems to really like his teacher and is eager to go back to school!

Soldier Field, Chicago

We had an awesome opportunity to go to Soldier Field to have a behind the scenes tour and to hang out with June Jones, head football coach from SMU. The Chicago Alumni group from SMU (Southern Methodist University) planned this event. There were probably 300 people there for food, drinks, fun and a great tour.

1. June Jones, head football coach, SMU

2. Soldier Field

3. Visitor's locker room. Interesting fact: no one is allowed in the Bears locker room. There has only ever been a handful of visitors that have seen it. Solely reserved for the players and the organization.

4. Dallas and I

5. and 6. Griffin making what will most likely be his only catch and pass on Soldier Field.

7. Griffin in the press box.

8. Autographed helmet that was raffled off during the event.

9. View out on Lake Michigan from atop Soldier Field.

Living Room Makeover

Before:  When we moved in this house 3 years ago, there was very little decorating done by the prior owners. They were only here for 9 months before being transferred to NC. One of the things they did was put up these rust drapes in the living and dining room. They had beads on them but I got rid of those right after we moved in. I'm not a "drapery bead" girl. Honestly, I never liked them. So about 2-3 months ago I couldn't stand them another minute so I took them down. This was the perfect opportunity to introduce GREEN into my home. I love green but after having so much of it in our Texas house I completely omitted it here. But as you can see from the "After" pictures I got my green!                                                   

 

After:

I got new panels in a burlap fabric from, of all places, Meijers! I love them and I decorated the room around them. I used the same rods that were already there. The adorable polka dot chair is from Overstock.com. It was a little scary ordering it site unseen. I love it! The rug is from Tuesday Morning. I exchanged out a rectangle mirror for the round one seen in the after photo from another room. The coffee table/foot stool is from Home Goods. I didn't get a before picture of this but we had a HUGE armoire in the dining room and it is GONE! The last after picture shows what I have there now. I'm still trying to decide what to hang on the wall over the table. I also added the 2" wood blinds in a bright white, some new pillows and a lamp. Oh and a few accessories all from Home Goods.

These two rooms are now bright and cheerful! I enjoy them so much now. It was fun to do and I owe a special thanks to my friend Gail for the great advice.

Squeakers

I got a very fun Mother's day present this year! It was love at first site! She's precious! The animal shelter had named her Tangerine but after spending 15 minutes with her yesterday, I quickly determined that Squeakers was a much better name for her! It's amazing that in the 24 hours that she's been home, she has become part of our family. We love her already!

Soccer

Griffin is having fun in Spring Soccer. They are getting better each week. This is the last season of co-ed and 3 on 3. It's all boys in the fall and I think (and hope) it's 5 on 5 at least!

Shelby

Goodbye Shelby. We loved you so much and are going to miss you terribly. You were such a good kitty and brought so much joy to our family. Thank you for being with me for 16.5 years.

Kayaking - Spring Break

My dad.

My mom.

Me.

My boat.

Griffin.

Griffin. You would have thought he kayaked every week. He did great. His favorite thing to do was get real close to the edge and try to get stuck. When he got back in, his boat had all sorts of branches, leaves, etc. inside it!

We went to Jasper Park yesterday and enjoyed the beautiful weather. All four of us decided that it would be fun to kayak. It was wonderful as you can tell from the pictures. They were having a Spring Fling at the park so we had a picnic lunch and listened to a great bluegrass band. Griffin enjoyed the playground and bounce house/slide. It was a perfect day.