This Weekend Felt So Long

Friday seems so far away from today (Sunday).  I think it's because we packed in so much stuff!  Friday afternoon was our week 32 baby appointment.  Nothing new to report.  Baby is still doing it's thaaaang.  Growing and moving around.  Doctor said I looked perfect on paper and to continue doing what I'm doing.  We had a list of about 9 things we were going to ask him but left it at home on accident so that was a bummer.  Next appointment is at 34 weeks then we start going every week!

We got home a little after 5pm with dinner plans at 7pm with friends.  The restaurant we were meeting at was right down the street so we decided to go check out our house on the way.  See if they had any progress.  They did!  The dry wall was up and they have started bricking.  Having the dry wall up really made it easier to visualize the house.  Here are some of the pictures.  I'm not going to post them all, I took a lot.  I was excited!  Here are the basic rooms, no bedrooms or laundry, etc.

The Brick

This is the view when you walk in the front door.

 

This view is standing in the kitchen.  There is the island and then the family room with fireplace, etc.

Back of the house. I love all the windows.

Standing in the family room looking into the kitchen.

Looking out to the front door.

This is upstairs in the room we don't know what to call still. Bonus/Game/Media room.

Looking down the stairs.

Top of the stairs looking into the family room and kitchen.

I love it so far and very pleased with how it is coming along.  In the next couple of weeks they are going to finish the bricking and start working on the stone.  Then they will put in the hardwood floors! Ekkkk!  We then went on to dinner. After dinner we all went to see the movie The Maze Runner.  The girls had read the book so we were super excited about it.  The movie was at 9pm and we got there a little after 8:30 so we had some time to kill.  The theater we went to had an arcade by the concession stand.  While roaming around, the guys found cash on the floor! It didn't take long for them to start playing some games.

The movie was good, but it's so hard to put a book in film.  There are just so many emotions missing.  Still, I liked it.  The next morning we were up for our 3 baby class.  Baby Care Basics!

 

 

This class was from 9am -12:30pm.  It covered all the basic info like bathing, feeding, changing a diaper, how to swaddle, etc.  Once again we were happy we went as there were things we learned that we thought we knew, but clearly didn't.  They gave us dolls to practice the diaper and swaddling exercises as well as burping.  It was like Home Economic class all over again.  Our little guy was so well behaved. 

 







By 12:30pm we were pretty hungry.  Luckily for us there was another festival going on Dallas!  It was the Greek Food Festival.  We know some awesome people that are Greek and over the years have gotten the honor of attending some amazing family celebrations.  The Greeks know how to throw a party.  So off to the festival we went!

This Gyro was sooooo good.  Preston described the pita bread as a "cloud in his mouth". 

A new item this year was Feta Bites with orange marmalade.  They were good, but strong!

We ran into one of our friends and her daughter was performing so we watched that for awhile.  It was fun to see them all dressed up in their outfits and such.

Polished off the day with Baklava and Sesame Cookies!

I was pretty beat after all that sitting in class then walking around at the festival along with a belly full of food.  We went home and both fell asleep on the sofa watching the Texas A&M football game.  It was then time to get ready for Game Night!  Oh' I laughed so hard, such a good time.  I didn't win, but had fun playing it.  Our friends that hosted provided dinner, drinks, games, and prizes.  We are going to try to do it more often with rotating houses. 

This morning we slept in until Ashe woke us up to inform us that he was out of food and it needed to be corrected ASAP.  I ran up to Albertson's and picked up Starbuck's on the way.  It was right there, I couldn't help it.  My friend Summer came over soon afterwards for our annual Breakfast Lasagna.  We both enjoy pasta meals for breakfast so we try at least once a year to meet to partake in the best breakfast ever.  We also both have shirts that say, "Let's Go Wine Tasting on the Couch" which go very well with our breakfast.  Not pregnant Sarah would have joined in with the drinking of wine while eating lasagna at 10am like you would for dinner, naturally.  Texas Toast is our dessert.

 Summer also surprised us with some gifts! She will be out of town for our baby shower so she gave them to us today.  We are so grateful!  She gave us some diapers, our diaper bag, and an adorable hat and mittens that look like a football.  So perfect!  Thank you Summer and Bill, we love it!!

And Ashe loved the wrapping.....

Festival Season is Upon Us!

Many months ago one of my best friends from High School told me about a comedy show that was coming through Dallas in September.  She really wanted to go and asked if I would be interested.  Even though I didn't know a lot of comedians listed, spending a weekend with her was an obvious yes!  That weekend finally came!! So excited.

Last weekend (Friday) I left work a little early and picked Lauren up from Love Field.  We headed straight towards Gexa.  Lauren got us REALLY good seats in the VIP section with primo parking, a dinner buffet, and much more.  It was amazing.  We got there a little after five and helped ourselves to some dinner and sat on the "patio" of the lounge enjoying our meal and drinks.  The beers were HUGE!  Lauren got a Shiner and I got my Dasani (classic).

We then headed towards our seats.  Knowing I was going to be 7 months pregnant at the time this show came around, Lauren got box seats that were sooooo comfortable.  They were like movie theater seats that were cushioned, tall backs, and leaned back.  Awwww.  We also found out we had our own waitress!  And a menu! We didn't have to leave our seats for anything, it was awesome.  Well....except to go to the restroom. 

We ended up getting some popcorn and nachos along with more beverages during the show.  The comedians were hilarious! I was surprised at home much I enjoyed Whitney Cummins.  I was looking forward to Sarah Silverman the most, but Whitney made me laugh more.  The headliner was Louis CK and he was great!  All in all a great night of comedy.

The next morning we got up and went to book club.  I loved having Lauren meet my friends that I hang out with on a regular basis here in Texas.  We all brought a yummy brunch dish and discussed books, house décor, babies, movies, and just stuff.  After that I took Lauren by our house and then back to the apartment for lunch and rest.  Preston was doing some volunteer stuff for work and picking out the speakers for the house.  Once he got home we got ready and headed up the street to the Addison Oktoberfest!  We were sad to leave the Uptown area as there was so much right down the street from us, but we are slowly finding new things to do that are now right down the street from us.

I went to Germany for the first time in 1998 with Lauren so it was especially fun for us to go to Oktoberfest together.  Preston and Lauren got their steins of bier and we walked to the main tent.  Finding a table was tasking, but once we did we watched some dancing and listened to some music.

 

We went back outside and found ourselves on the side with the children's rides and stuff.  We started to keep walking by until this "attraction" caught our eye.  So there are these blow up balls that the kids get inside and are pushed into a big pool.  They float around trying to stand up and stuff.  Oh My Goodness.  We couldn't stop watching.  It was so hilarious.  I'm sure we looked like creepiers pointing and laughing, but it was totally worth it.

 

 

Next up was food.  Preston got schnitzel and Lauren and I got potato pancakes with applesauce.  We all took funny pictures highlighting our dinner.

 





The rest of the night was calm, going to bed fairly early.  The next morning we took Lauren back to the airport and Preston and I headed on to the hospital for baby preparation classes.  I highly recommend taking them to ANYONE that is having a baby for the first time.  It sounds boring and lame and silly.  And it can be, but after taking them we are both so happy we did.  We really learned a lot and I thought I new a lot from having nieces/nephews and friends with kids.  There was only one part that I couldn't take seriously bc I couldn't stop laughing.  And that was the breathing exercises.  I just couldn't focus and "pretend" to be in labor.  Nope.  But they still had us bring 2 pillows and a blanket.  I think our mat was the most colorful.

 

We signed up for several more classes after taking this one we were so impressed.  Baby Basics, Infant Safety and CPR, and Breastfeeding.  We also have a scheduled car seat check with the hospital that is done by the Texas Department of Safety.  This way we will know that our car seat is installed correctly.  Maybe we should put a Zero Harm sticker on the base.  (A little BBC humor there)

 

Things are about to get super busy with more festivals, social events, baby showers, and a trip to Oklahoma.  October will fly by and the next thing you know I will be blogging about our baby.  As if I will have time, but I'm going to try.



Southbound, 35! or 67...Still Headed South.

This is going to be a long post, but is going to be 80% photos.  This past weekend we went down to Austin/Bastrop for a quick vacation.  I really don't like the term "Babymoon" bur for all meaning of the word....that is what it was.  One last vacation before we have the baby.  We are 9 weeks away from my due date so this was our last chance.  We would have liked to go somewhere like Santa Fe or D.C., but we ran out of time and I can't fly anymore.

So here it is, our weekend in review.  We took 67 south instead of 35 so we could see all the little towns and stop off for some fun pictures.  First stop, breakfast in Midlothian, TX.

It was good! They even had a smoking and nonsmoking section.  Classic.  It was then back on the road.  Next we stopped in Glen Rose, TX.  So many Dinosaurs!

Thank goodness I jumped that fence at the last min! It almost got me.

Same with Preston! That fence saved our lives.

 We then stopped along the way in both Hico and Hamilton, TX.

 

Glad we did stop because at one point, it turned into a full blown panic of us both setting our lineups for Fantasy Football.  We begin our trip on a Sunday around 7:30am.  With the stopping and such it was getting close to noon game time.   

 

We rolled into Austin around 11:45am.  There's the capital folks!

It was then on the way to our first resort of the trip.

We found a beach ball so it was only fitting to put it back where it belonged.

 We found a hiking trail! 

and miniature golf.....

I wasn't wearing the best hiking clothes, but you work with what you have.  A maxi skirt works just fine.

 After our hike we went back to the room and watched some football and relaxed.  It was nice to not have to be anywhere by a certain time.  It was perfectly ok to just lounge around.  For dinner that night we drove up the street to a place that got good reviews.  I ordered the crab cake salad and it was wonderful!

Next day we enjoyed breakfast at the resort and coffee on the back patio in the rocking chairs.  Preston had to join in on a webinar for work at 11am so we went downstairs to the lounge/library.  I thought I would read my book, but the business meeting behind me about HEB was to interesting to focus.  I would tell you what I learned, but I would have to kill you.  Let's just say one should never have a business meeting in a hotel lounge in public.  Really people.  Or don't talk so loud! Get a conference room or something.  None the less it passed the time.

 

We checked out soon after that and went to Hopdoddy's for lunch.  There is one by my work and one by Preston's work in Dallas.  Neither one of us have gone there yet and weren't that interested.  However, it was recommended by some friends and it started in Austin so we thought we would try it out.  Pretty good burgers! I'm a once every 3 months burger type person so I doubt I will be going to the one by office any time soon.  Next it was on our way to the next resort.  I don't have any pictures of the sign, but it was Lost Pines Resort.

 

First stop....a massage....

 

 

This was my first prenatal massage.  It was nice, but different.  The spa itself was really nice though!  I mean, it had free cookies.  Afterwards we went for some golf.  I've never officially golfed.  I've done Top Golf and Miniature Golf.  I even was the bar cart girl at the Oaks Country Club one summer.  So point is, I rode around with Preston while he got in 9 holes.  It was so much fun! I was his caddy and he fully let me play the part.  Telling him about blades of grass and lifting the flag, etc.  We even saw some wild life!

 

 

 There was one really great shot that Preston had that was just like you see on TV! The ball wasn't on the green yet and Preston chipped it up.  It landed on the green and looked like it wasn't close to the pin.  It then started to curve! I started yelling, "oh my gawd, oh my gawd!" Preston was silent.  It was slow motion.  It was going towards the hole!! The it stopped with just an inch to go.  Ugggh.  You could practically hear the crowd moan.  So close.  It was only when the ball stopped that Preston finally spoke (and I think breathed).  He too was disappointed but happy he had a witness!

Dinner that night was spent at the resort with us sitting around the fire pit afterwards.

 

Next morning we enjoyed pastries and coffee before heading out for a hike! 

 

 

 

ummmmmm.......

more tracks.......

Not long after we found the coyote and deer tracks we heard a rustling and animal cries in the woods.  Preston investigated.  I stayed back to take pictures.  Nothing was found.



We were pretty muddy after the hike so it was back to the room for showers and hydration.  It felt good to just lay there and not move.  That was probably the first time on the trip that I felt like I was 7 months pregnant.  I was ready to not move.  It was soon time to pack up and head back to Dallas.  There were so many things to do at Lost Pines! We didn't even get to the pool/water park/lazy river.  But we will be back for sure!

For lunch we decided to get some good ole fashion Texas BBQ.  We drove to Taylor, TX for Louie Mueller BBQ.

 

It was really good! We only had to stand in line for about 20 mins.  We got brisket, ribs, and sausage with a side of potato salad. 

 

 

Before

After

So full and so happy.  Back on the road we went.  We stopped briefly at Round Rock outlets for some shopping.  I bought some "future sarah" post baby sweaters that I just couldn't not get.  I loved them! Preston got some clothes for work and then we also got some baby clothes.  Why not! It was then on to the must stop place on 35......

 





We didn't get much at the Czech Stop.  Just one fruit kolache and one sausage kolache each.  Saved for breakfast on Wednesday and Thursday. Our last stop was in Waxahachie, TX to meet up with Preston's friend for dinner.  He made homemade chicken tacos with corn on the cob and cantaloupe.  It was nice to have a homemade meal after eating out for the past 3 days.  It was a good visit and we got to meet his daughter who was adorable!

It was close to 8:30pm by the time we pulled into the garage at our apartment.  We quickly unpacked and changed clothes.  Ashe seemed pretty excited to see us as well.  It was great to get away.  We were very happy with the resorts and will more than likely go back to them in the future.  Especially Lost Pines.  You can easily take a child there, but still go without children and have a good time.

I'm looking forward to this weekend of book club, Oktoberfest, comedy festivals, and hospital classes.  I'm telling myself the hospital classes will be fun.