National Tequila Day 2011

If you know Paul Simon you know that his favorite alcoholic beverage is...Tequila! Some might gag at the thought of enjoying Tequila over ice but Paul loves it! So, it was only appropriate for the Simon's to host a party in honor of National Tequila Day - July, 24th! (We actually celebrated Saturday, July 23...but who really cares, right?)
We had several friends over to take part in Jose, Cabo Wabo, and Patron -- all the favorites! We mixed pitchers and pitchers of margaritas to enjoy by the pool. It was a lovely day -- the sun was shining bright, the burgers were bbqing on the grill and the pool floaties were all in use! Let me also mention that the party turned into a true Fiesta when Dustin brought over a Pinata... Imagine 30-year-olds, Tequila, and a Pinata... oh boy!
We finished off the night with some good ole' fashion Midwest Euchre! I'm getting better and better at this game and I think I might even be able to play with the big kids at Christmas this year ;-)

Painting with a TWIST

Last Wednesday we had a girls night at Painting with a TWIST in Frisco....and the Twist is that it's BYOB ;-) Now, that's my kind of painting party! Wine, snacks, girl time and a little painting too! We all learned to paint a dress portrait on a large canvas using reds and greens for background. The entire process took a lot more time than I anticipated...probably had to do with teaching all the non-artists in the room and partially because our attention span lowered with the more wine we drank! We all did the same portrait but everyone's turned out so different. It was fun to see all the girls personalities revealed through the project. Some people are so carefree and relaxed about the painting and others (myself) want every paint stroke to be absolutely perfect! What a great time with friends!

Here's part of our group!

Here's my (almost) finished masterpiece!

Oregon...

Over the fourth of July weekend Paul and I met his mom/dad and brother/sister-in-law out in Oregon to spend the holiday with his extended family = Grandmother, Aunts, Uncles, ect. As you can imagine the weekend was filled with laughter, angst, chaos, and love. Highlights include: Portland Zoo, Pacific Coast Beach House, Tillamonk Cheese Factory, Whale Watching Center, and some delicious seafood all weekend!
A big thanks to the Simon's for a lovely trip - we had a wonderful time seeing everyone and the 75 degree temps in Portland were a nice break from the heat! They say Portland had the best weather they've seen all spring/summer -- must of known I was coming?! I need my sunshine! ;-)

The whole family!

Grace (Grandmother) with Matt and Paul on the Beach -- her request ;-)

Paul and me at the Tillamonk Cheese Factory -- his favorite cheese. It was like visiting his Mecca ;-)

Two "Jules" -- at the Beach House

Matt and Julie -- getting ready for our campfire on the beach!

Campfire on the beach -- it was a little chilly! Can you tell?

What's up July?

Hard to believe summer is half over already? We're feeling some serious heat down in Texas. For example, its 90 at 9am - no joke! We're on a triple digit streak with what looks like no end in sight...heat advisory in affect! But the sun is shining and people are beating the heat with cool drinks and pool time. And that's exactly what we've been doing the last few weeks. Here's a preview of July thus far....

My girlfriend Lesley and I hosted a baby shower for our friend Kerri who is expecting August 18th. This is Kerri's first little one and she couldn't be more excited. I always love to throw a good party but baby showers are a tad different....for one thing, there is not as much alcohol needed to host! And second, I really don't know what all the gifts are....You should of seen me in babies r us... I looked like a lost idiot! I'm going to need some serious help when we have kids, whoa! But the party went great and there was yummy cake from Celebrity Bakery!In other news...our little Milo baby turned 4 years old on June 30th! He really is the happiest little dogger and brings me joy each and every day. I'm so glad I talked Paul into going to "just look" at the puppies labor day weekend 2007...Also, we celebrated my girlfriend, Haley's birthday at One2One on Friday with 8 couples. It was a lovely dinner filled with laughter, jokes, yummy food and CAKE. Yes, you gotta check out this amazing LV cake that we had made for her. If you know Haley you would understand that this cake is a perfect fit for our girlie fashionista birthday girl!

On Saturday Haley hosted a Ladies Luncheon at Stonebriar CC for her birthday. Again it was great girl time followed up with yummy treats and eats. However, I just wish I was feeling better...My 12 mile run that morning had left me feeling icky, dehydrated and nauseas. So, I'm convinced now that my two favorite things no longer go well together (especially in this heat) wine and running must part ways... and running wins (for now)
So many fun things yet to come this summer ...August is going to be great!