The Birds

Have you seen the movie? You know, the 1963 Alfred Hitchcock horror movie?

Lately I feel like I have been living in this movie. During the winter the birds migrate south, right? Ever stop to think about where, south? Try San Antonio. I swear every bird and its mother is here in SA, squawking and chirping and literally killing the tops of trees because so many of them swarm the poor tree tops.

Here is a photo I took this morning on my way home from the gym (don't worry mom, I was NOT driving). Does that NOT look like a horror movie? The fog? The birds? Crazy.

I feel bad for that Camero that tried parking away from the cars to be safe. Car wash anyone??

Out for a Walk

This weekend was another exciting one, even when I thought it was going to be a slow one. I'll touch more on our Saturday festivities later, but since I've been hearing that it is actually starting to feel like winter up north, I am going to share a good-weather post to help ya'll cope with the approaching blizzard!

On Sunday when we woke up it was beautiful outside; the sun was shining, it was the perfect temp with just a slight breeze every once and a while. Instead of having a lazy Sunday, we decided to make the most of it and went for a hike at Eisenhower Park near one of the military bases called Camp Bullis. It's about a 20 minute drive from the house, so not too far to drive for a nice hike. It is free to park/enter, dogs are allowed, and the weather was just perfect, so we figured, why not?!

Jason, Dan, Kyle and I, along with the two dogs, really enjoyed ourselves. We started out on the trail called "Hillview" but I'm pretty sure we ended up going on random trails throughout. We weren't too worried about getting lost, so we just walked. The dogs didn't get too hot, and it was good scenery. This particular hike had a bit more hills to climb and elevation change than the last one we did so it was fun. In the ended we walked for a total of 4 miles. And of course, I took pictures!

Starting out on our walk! Jason &; Koda, Dan, Kyle &; Tucker. I always seem to bring up the rear!

Some parts were actually slightly steep! The boys had troubles keeping up with the dogs at some parts.

I promise I was there. See! I took a picture this time to prove it.

All the boys. Literally. Dogs, too!

Going down the hill. At one point Dan had both dogs and was running back and forth with them.
All three of them had energy to burn!

The view from the "top." If you look dead center and way in the back...that is downtown SA. Huge, isn't it? Just kidding!

In the end it was a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon. After we got back Tucker got a bath and we settled in for a night watching the Oscars Red Carpet and a movie. Perfect end to a weekend! Hope everyone stays safe and warm for the upcoming "blizzard!"

Let's Rodeo, SA!

On Monday night Kyle and I had a "date night" as he got us tickets for the rodeo and event show. We even got to enjoy the surroundings of the suite his company got again this year!

Date night!

As always, they put on a good show with the events kicking of with a laser show, national anthem, flag formations, and then of course, the rodeo events...which are always SUPER fun to watch because the level of competition at this rodeo is very high.

Opening ceremony with flags and march and anthem

Team Roping.

Bucking Bronco's. Saddle & Bareback

Gotta love watching the little kiddos ride the sheep! They can really hold on tight!

Calf Scramble. They let loose a certain number of calves and let more kids loose to chase them down. the first one to get one, tie a rope to it and drag it to the finish line wins $1000. Ever kid that pulls a calf across the line gets $500. Money is put towards their 4-H or FFA animal projects for the next year.

And then, after the rodeo events finished instead of a country singer (last year we saw Easton Corbin) we were treated to a comedy show. Ventrilzquist Terry Fator put on a great show! He has a show in Vegas, at the Mirage, that he normally does. He had about 6 different puppets, and even turning a real life person into a puppy! And instead of mostly jokes, he SANG. He would sing Aretha Franklin, Garth Brooks, Lady Gaga, and even some Elvis. He has an excellent voice, but to think he can sing like that without moving his lips is just crazy! If you have never heard of him, or ever find yourself in Vegas, look him up! Here is a link to a YouTube video of him.

As always, a great night out!

Parents Come to Town

On Wednesday evening, Kyle's parents, Steve & Jill and a former forign exchange student, Philipp from Austria, came to visit! After driving straight through the night, they were pooped from the 19 hours in the car. We went out to eat and chilled the night and caught up on talking. Steve was in the mood for shrimp so we enjoyed Pappadeux while dining on the patio during a very nice evening of weather.

Thursday headed downtown to the Riverwalk while Kyle and I went to work. Philipp was able to see the main tourist-attractions such as the Alamo, Riverwalk, and different shops and good food. They had fun looking at all the souvenier shops and sayings. That evening we walked down to Rudy's BBQ and enjoyed some amazing Texas brisket, turkey, sausage, and their famous cream corn.

Enjoying some good ol' BBQ

Friday they explored some Caverns near Boerne, and Kyle and I made it home and we invited Dan & Jason over for a fun night of games and homemade shrimp gumbo thanks to Jill! Lots of laughs, as usual! Saturday we walked all around the rodeo, exploring shops and livestock barns. Always some good finds, there! We went out to eat at Red Robin (YUM!) for Philipp...he loves nothing more than a good burger and endless fries! It was so nice on Sunday that we drove down to the Pearl Brewery and walked the entire Riverwalk (since we followed the river it totaled about 3 miles one way). Once we got down to the main area we enjoyed some good ol Mexican food before taking the hike back.

Kyle and I outside the Chocolate store along the Riverwalk

It was a pleasant weekend with family- full of laughs and adventures! Always good to have family visit!

A BEAUTIFUL day for a walk!  

Until next time!

Blue Star

After visiting the Coors Brewery in Golden, CO, Kyle and I decided we would love to visit as many breweries as we can. Between our love of microbrews and traveling, I find it to be a perfect combination (and an easy date for Anniversary, Birthday, etc). We were scheduled to go to the Rodeo on Saturday but due to a ticket mis-hap, Kyle and I were not able to go. Instead we met our friend Dan and went to a few new places we had never been before.

Enter Blue Star Brewery.

Blue Star opened in the mid-90s and has been going ever since. Although they don't have the classic "tour" associated with a brewery, it is this very fun place downtown, right across the street from the Riverwalk and the Pioneer flour mill. It is right next to a bike shop, and has a ton of character. At the time they only had 4 beers on tap that they brew, so I tried them all! (And their pizza was exceptional as well!)

The first beer I had was amazing. As was the second. The second one I got a little adventerous and tried their Crowned King Beer. It is a mixed, or layerd rather, beer. It had their King William beer (King William Ale is a barley wine style ale) on the bottom and the Stout beer (Creamy, robust, Irish-style dry stout) on the top. Literally. See below...crazy, isn't it? After every drink it would reform to going back to look like this. Crazy.

Anway, it was a great place, awesome location and setting. I will definately want to go back there sometime!

Another brewery checked off the list ;)

18 Already?!

Seems like just yesterday I was playing horse with her. Taking pillows and making "pens" and using tupperware on the bottom of her hands so make the "clop-clop" sound of a horses hooves.

Or maybe it was the day before that I was teaching her how to make mac 'n cheese (face it...it's a survival food) or helping her when she almost started a fire trying to make mini corn dogs in the microwave. (I tended to cook lunches after that)

I can't believe she is 18. A legal adult. My little sister! (Who, can't believe I will admit this in type, is not littler than me. She is taller than I am!)

Happy 18th Birthday, Little Sister & Forever Friend!

Time flies when you are having fun ;)

G Love & SuperBowl

This weekend was a pretty fantastic weekend. Lots of laughs, lots of fun.

On Saturday we helped our friends paint their house, we got about 3.5 rooms finished, and only like 4 more to go! After painting, Jason, Dan, Kyle and I loaded up the car and went to Austin for a concert. G Love & Special Sauce. Never heard of him? Neither had I. Dan has been following him for years and loves him, so we figured, "why not?" It was pretty awesome, to tell you the truth.

We got to Austin early enough to chill at a few places before the concert doors opened. Here we are chillin' at a place called Shiner Saloon.

Then we found a place called Kung Fu Saloon. They had Pac Man Machines built in. How sweet? Dan and Jason even tried out some Ski Ball.

The concert itself was pretty sweet. Austin has a ton of little venues, it is considered the "Live Music Capitol of the US." Now that is according to Texans, so don't quote me on that. I thought maybe Nashville would've been, but anyway. That is besides the point. A lady named Kristy Lee opened for G Love. She was awesome. Kinda think of an Adele and Jack Johnson mixture. Pretty sweet.

Kristy Lee.

Here is a link to listen to Kristy Lee on You Tube (I didn't get the best video)

Then onto G Love. He is from Pittsburgh, and I guess him and Jack Johnson go way back. Anyway, I didn't last through the entire concert, but the parts I did hear were fantastic.

G Love. I didnt have the camera at this point so the pics aren't the best.

Here is a link to G Love on You Tube. Seriously, check him out. Awesomeness.

I did find out that night, in the hotel room, that Jason and Dan can saw logs. Like, they should consider switching professions to lumberjacks. Whew!

Sunday we went out for breakfast at an amazing place in Austin called Zax. If you are ever in the area- check it out. Make Your Own Bloody Mary Bar (which, I had never had one, and it was the perfect cure ;) We headed south of San Antonio for a birthday party and then back up north of San Antonio for a Super Bowl party. I gotta say, I am happy the Giants won!

Favorite commercials? I have three. I linked them to You Tube in case you missed them...

Working out Dog
M&Ms
Here WeGo

Overall, it was a successful weekend, but I wish I had another weekend to recover!