Short Version...Kinda

Lot's going on.

I don't feel like typing, so here's the very short version.

* Since Ryan is finishing out the month working from home before he starts his new job,

we're enjoying lots of together time before his schedule gets craazay.

Yesterday we started with lunch at Campisi's

where I asked Ryan what pepperonis were made of,

which prompted him to google it on his phone,

which led to him discovering that Slim Jim's are made from cow's lips.

Never will I eat one again.

Lunch is over; on to Dave & Busters.

We played old school Galaga...our favorite.

Dorks.

I know.

Next up, Ryan killed me in air hockey,

which we followed up by playing several of those games where you shoot people.

I found it oddly therapeutic.
Today, after going by his old office for the last time, we decided to try out a new restaurant called
Whiskey Cake
Totally cool place.
The decor was very urban/ industrial/ Anthropolyish.
Check out this chandy pulled straight out of the Anthropology catalogue.
Love.

And this metal bad daddy with an Edison bulb.

I thought of you Coco.

(Pardon the bad iPhone pic.)

Now for the food.

Let's start out with some deviled eggs.

Awesome.

Say hello to my little friend,
Mr. Fried Green Tomato BLT Sandwich.
Yum.

Okay.

This is called the OMG Burger:

Onion Rings, Mushrooms, Goodness

Holy largeness.

We'll be back fo sho.

* Ryan and I tailgated all day last Saturday with lots of friends for the Jimmy Buffett concert.

People go all out for this thing.

Like really all out.
I personally saw it as a guy's chance to replicate the whole
"Show me your boobs for beads" kind of thing.
Exhibit A:

We saw another golf cart full of college age guys that had a sign that said,

"Boobies for Coozies"

They told me that I really needed a coozie.

No thanks.

My boobies are for his eyes only.

Just sayin.

* With this school year coming to an end shortly,

I have found myself thinking about one thing in particular.

"The Teenager"

He will be a freshman in high school next year.

High school.

My dear blogger girls, picture your first born.

Now imagine him...or her...going to school with guys that have full beards

and girls that have way bigger lady lumps than I do at 37 years old.

Not good.

Period.

* So, I have been doing Zumba lately.

Anyone tried it?

I heart Zumba.

It's 1 hour of constant cardio with a sassy Latin dance flair.

Try it.

* TAKS is over.

Thank the good Lord above.

Our boys did well.

Lots of hard work and commended performances.

We are so proud of them!

* One last note.

Dear Mother Nature.

WTH is up with all the tornadoes?

We have currently TRIPLED the number of tornadoes from this time last year.

This is NOT normal.

I am convinced the world is coming to an end.

Don't act like the thought hasn't crossed your mind.

Seriously.

Too many people have lost their homes and their loved ones.

Enough.

Annnnnnnnnd done.

That was the short version.

Kinda.

Just for you, Sass, I won't say,

Happy Wednesday.

Have a good one, friends!!

Our Future Digs!

In less than 4 weeks when the builder finalizes the changes we want in the original plan,

we will be paying the deposit on this:

So that we can build this:

You likey?

We are so excited!

The best part?

The the right side of our lot is on the golf course.

Ryan is stoked.

This time next year, we will be homeowners!

Happy Wednesday, friends!!

Ch-Ch-Changes!

Hello friends!

Usually I would post a weekend recap being that it's Monday,

but pardon me while I make an exception.

I have been hinting to something huge going on lately,

and I can finally make the big announcement!

Well.

For our little family it's big.

Huge actually.

See this handsome man pictured below with me:

He is now officially the

South Central Regional Sales Manager for Simplex Grinnell,

an international Tyco Company!!!

I am so incredibly proud of Ryan.

This is a huge change as he is leaving the computer industry

and venturing into (for him) a completely new field with so much room for growth.

It will require travel which will be another huge change for our family.

I am totally freaked out about that part, but we will learn to adjust.

This move also allows us to move forward on so many plans we have made.

I'll save that for later this week...today is all about Mr. Soladay!

I love you, Ryan, and I know that your father

is looking down with a smile on his face.

He is so proud of you...

Weekend Recap

Super fun weekend!

Newlywed time for 48 hours straight.

Awesome.

Lots of celebrating took place.

More on that to come soon!

I started the weekend early on Friday by going to Carter and Preston's school for a picnic.

Love these 2 guys.

Notice my lilac nails?

Took a break from my acrylics only to give in and got them back on today.

Ah...I feel like me again.

Later that day,

and after I shared a few glasses of wine and lots o' laughs with

a couple of friends I used to teach with,

Ryan and I hit our usual every other Friday spot at the Shops of Legacy.

Good times for all.

We woke up Saturday morning,

with no real plans, so we decided to wash the dogs.

Why not.

Random and exciting.

I know.

They're having a blast.

Can't you tell?

We spent the rest of the day at out friend's pool

at his new apartment.

We're not talking your average apartment pool.

He lives over at the Shops of Legacy in one of those "Uptownesque" places.

The pool was brand spankin' new.

Vegas style with cabanas, huge layout pads, music blaring.

It was packed.

A haven for singles.

Not a kiddie pool in sight.

Perfect for our friend.

Not our scene, but we had a blast.

When the sun started to set,

we walked over to RA for sushi and sake.

Awesome.

Mother's Day was wonderful.

Breakfast made by my sweet hubby and eaten on the patio,

lunch with family, watching the Mavericks sweep the Lakers, more time on the patio.

Perfection.

The only thing missing was Trysten who was celebrating the day with his mother.

I snapped this quick picture on Sunday right before my battery died.

Ryan is so sweet with our nieces.

Totally melts my heart,

and makes me sad...for a VERY BRIEF moment...that we don't have any little ones together.

Precious.

He would have been such a great father to a little girl. 

Annnnnnnnnnnnnnnd done!!

I hope your weekend was just as fun!!

Happy Monday!

Hello!

Hello, friends!

It's been awhile.

Get ready for a random list of what's been up.

* Carol was in town for a week recently.

With such beautiful spring weather lately, time was spent at the winery and on the golf course.

Carol is quite a golfer.

Makes me seriously nervous to think about playing with her.

Seriously.

My handsome hubby

The Soladays!

* Speaking of perfect weather, we are living outside on our patio lately.

And not just Ryan and I.

The kids are right there too.

I love this little guy.

* The golf tournament planning is going great, and the foursomes are really starting to fill up!

I have received sponsorships as well as fantastic prizes donated.

If you live in the area and would like to participate,

feel free to email me for registration information!

* I don't know how it is where you live, but teachers here in Texas are in a panic

in fear of losing their jobs due to major cutbacks in education funding.

I know a few teachers who have lost their jobs for next school year, and I feel awful for them.

I'm glad I'm not looking for a job, because there are no teaching jobs to be found.

It makes no sense at all.

* Despite all the beautiful weather lately,

Sunday was a totally different story.

Cool and rainy.

All day.

It was fine with me because it meant familytime all day.

Lots of this took place:

And lots of these were played:

There was even a little bit of this:

(Try to make it to the end.)

That's about it, friends other than being knee deep in baseball tournaments almost every weekend.

Hope you're having a great week!

W.A.F.G.T

What a freaking good time.

Seriously.

The tailgating and concert were an absolute blast.

Can't wait to do it again in a month for Jimmy Buffet!

I don't have a ton of pics.

Too much going on to pick up the camera.

Here are a few for your enjoyment.

Sheryl, Jennifer and I.
Love these girls!
Could they be any cuter!?
Inside and out. =)
It is always a good time when we're together.
I have not laughed that much in a long time!

Ryan and Jen's hubby, Brandon,

How hot is my man in his Red Wings from his frat boy college days!

The obligatory kissing shot. =)

Sheryl and her hubby, Mike.

Once inside, we couldn't get over how incredible our "seats" were.

Behold:

                      

I have no idea where this pic came from or what was going on.

The crew!

Horrid pic of me, but I had to include it.

Can't wait to do this again next month!

Okay.

One more.

Good times!

Hope your weekend was just as fun, friends!!

Taking the Good With the Bad

The Bad:

All the work Ryan and I did over the weekend to our back yard blew away Sunday night.

Literally blew away.

We had 80 mile per hour winds and hail the size of golf balls.

Nice.

Our roof has to be replaced

as well as all the gutters on the west side of our house and pipes and vents all over the roof.

Let's talk about my car.

It lost it's spot in the garage after Ryan brought his new toy home, so it sat outside during the storm.

It is now covered in dings.

Literally covered.

My back right taillight is broken too.

Nice.

The Good:

We are going with 2 other couples to this on Saturday night at Cowboy Stadium:

I am so incredibly excited!

SANDBAR seats right next to the stage!

The concert starts at 4:30, but we're heading out around 1:30 to tailgate before the show.

Ryan and I are HUGE fans of both Kenny Chesney and the Zac Brown Band,

and only craziness can be expected with the 3 couples going.

It is going to be such a great time!

You have to take the good with the bad!

Have a great week, friends!

Welcome Back Spring!

What an absolutely beautiful weekend!

The weather was perfect.

Spring, how I missed you so.

In Texas, you have to enjoy every second of spring...because that's about how long it lasts.

A few seconds.

Annnnnnnnnnnnnd DONE!

It's summer.

Ryan and I were kid-free this weekend,

so we kicked it off Friday with happy hour on the patio at RA for drinks and sushi.

Good times.

We spent all day Saturday working in the backyard getting our green thumb on.

Results?

I thought you'd never ask

These are the roses I planted last spring.

They came back and are bigger than last year.

I'm kind of proud of my skills here.

Look how huge the blooms are!

Hydrangeas. My favorite.

They won't make it deep into the summer, but for now they're awesome.

Yellow hibiscus.

Petunias

Are you bored yet?

Don't answer.

Have ever seen these before?

They're called Chicks and Hens.

They remind me of Mexico.

Ryan and I picked out some funky little cactus for the table.

How cool are these guys!

Can't forget the front porch.

These are double petunias.

Ok.

Enough of that.

After all that work,

we cleaned up and went out to the art festival in downtown McKinney to see an old teacher friend's work

and ended up at the winery.

Good times as always.

Welcome back spring!!

We enjoyed you all weekend long while at happy hour,

eating breakfast and watching the Master's on the patio, working in the yard,

relaxing at the winery, taking late night golf cart rides and spending time with family.

So glad to see you again!

Thanks for sticking around, friends!

Just When You think...

Just when you think you're coping...the loss becomes real.

And it hurts.

What's Going On

Here's what's going on in our neck of the woods.

Please pretend to be interested.

• We made it in the Prosper Press again this week. The boys think we're famous. 

• The weather has been BEAUTIFUL here lately. Especially on the weekends. This past weekend, Ryan and I spent all day Saturday hanging out with friends at their pool watching a little March Madness and later cooked steaks on the grill. We were determined to eat outside...eventhough the temp dropped about 15 degrees when the sun went down. Yes, I am wearing an Auburn sweatshirt. That's all my friend had. Ryan was not happy.

My husband the Unabomber.

• Baseball is in full swing here at Casa de Soladay. For real. We have practices and games during the week and a tournament nearly every weekend. If I didn't keep a calendar, I would be lost. Ryan tries to get me to keep all my dates in my phone, but I'm old school. I have to have an actual calendar that I can write on. Arcaic. I know. Am I the only one that still uses an actual calender?

• We decided to sign another year lease on our house. The plan was to buy after 1 year, but the people renting our lease house needed a little longer to build up their credit in order to buy house, and we need them to buy our house so we can buy the kind of house we really want to buy. We LOVE the home we're renting, but after living in it for awhile, we have realized that we need 1 more bedroom, and a 3 car garage is a must. All we know right now is that we're definitely staying in Prosper (preferrably in the same neighborhood), but haven't decided if we want to buy an existing house or buy a lot and build. Here's to another year of renting!

• I have been consummed with planning the golf tournament. I want everything to be perfect. I want Ed to be proud. The response has been overwhelming. I have even received emails from people in New York wanting information. Just goes to show how loved Ed is. On a side note, when we were at the funeral home in New York, the funeral director told us that he and his wife had lost their son in a car accident when he was very young and in order to keep his memory alive, they light a candle in rememberance of him everytime their family gets together. Carol and I loved the idea, so when she was recently in town, I suprised her with our own memory candle. We let it burn all evening long. The candleholder and sand have sentamental value as it was used to hold Ryan's and my unity candle at our wedding, a time when Ed was with us. Sometimes after the boys go to bed, Ryan and I light it and just sit on the couch and talk about Ed. Miss him so much. It still doesn't seem real.

That's it, my friends.

I hope you had a wonderful Thursday,

and have a fantastic weekend!!!