A Very Happy Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is always a holiday where for the most part, I never know what to expect. I have been so excited over the past few weeks for this upcoming Thanksgiving and I had a feeling in my heart that it would be the best one yet. David and I have been smiling and counting down the days to come in to our Home Town. David's mom even got so excited she had a layout plan of the house and where everyone would sleep. On Wednesday afternoon we finally left Austin, after my day and a half of running around do laundry, cleaning and getting everything ready for the people that would be Dog/House sitting for us. (Thanks Pata, Lucy and Cameron!) So we left Austin with the truck packed up and ready to go, and David even had his new Google application for his phone that told him turn by turn directions, even though we have done that drive over 100 times already. It ended up taking almost 2 hours to get to David's parents house where it would usually take an hour. We had dinner reservations at 6pm and of course because of me, we were just a tad little late. We got to have dinner with David's little brother Ben, his Grandparents, his Parents, and his aunt and uncle, Allison and Tony. It was a great night of food, catching up and maybe a shared bottle or two of wine. We finished our dinner and got to meet up with the friend that introduced David and I to each other. Cara, my wonderful friend and maid of honor. We had a great night of catching up and having a drink or two at the bar that David and I met, which is now call 'The Gatsby'. After midnight I started to feel myself turning into a pumpkin, so we paid our tab and headed home. The best surprise of the night is that when we got home, David's cousins Beth and Lisa had arrived sometime right before we got home. The walkway that is right in the middle of the house was filled with laughter, smiles, hugs and a little bit of screams from excitement. Catching up with Lisa and Beth was so great that even David's mom stayed up til almost 2 am! It was so great to see that everyone had been doing great. We finally found our way to our bedroom and passed out since we were going to have to wake up early for a busy day of Thanksgiving.
On Thursday Morning I woke up to the chitter-chatter of little kids running around the house and decided I would wake before David so he could get a little extra sleep and I went downstairs and hula hooped in the front yard to get some exercise in before a full feast day of turkey and stuffing. I took a shower, got all ready and left David's parents house around 11 which was the exact time I told my mom we would be at her house. We got there a little earlier than everyone else which resulted in her putting me to work like the child slave I am. She got everything done in time right when everyone finally showed up. Her Thanksgiving dinners are always the best ever! From my grandmother's stuffing all the way to the green been casserole. Everything you could think of is there to stuff your face with. I ended up being so full from the one plate of food that I ate, I couldn't even enjoy any dessert what so ever. David and I sat around with family and friends and watched some football and just talked and talked. We had such a great time at my Moms. :)
We had to hurry and head off to Allison and Tony's since that is where the next Thanksgiving dinner was. We got there just in time to enjoy hanging out with all the family, listening to good music and wonderful bottles of wine. I even brought out my Hula Hoops for the kids, which ended up being a huge hit! Everyone loved it and everyone got to swing it around their hips a time or two. Even the little little ones got to give it a try. I was so excited and happy to see it go so well.
After a drink or two the adults went out and gave it a try for their selves! We had such a great time that involved laughing, hooping, and wonderful conversation. We finally got to eat our yummy Thanksgiving dinner around 6 or 7 and everyone had a full plate! After dinner we just sat around and let out tummys settle everything that we ate and just kept talking. I know it sounds like all we did was talk, but this is the Balentine Family and we havent caught up like this in forever. The best part of the night is when Bruce brought everyone to the main room and said he wanted us to listen to something. He has made a CD of Doug singing and it really was the greatest thing to have heard. We lost him this past year and we miss him everyday and it was so great to have him part of our Thanksgiving Dinner. He even found another song where Cathy (our cousins Lisa and Leanna's mother who passed away a long time ago) singing with David's dad playing music in the background. This entire family is very musically talented and is not afraid to belt out a song or two.

So today is Friday and we are all sitting around the kitchen still talking, laughing and having a great time. I am so thankful this year for such a great husband, beautiful happy dogs, such a great family and my new family. Every year keeps getting better and I can't wait for our next Thanksgiving! Happy Thanksgiving to your family from ours.
- The Balentines

David is the big 3 0 !!!

I know I haven't written in the past few days but there are always good reasons when I am not able to keep up with the blog. This entire weekend we celebrated David's Birthday! On my 25th, which I celebrated in July was absolutely amazing and David put it together for me. I knew that I had to find some way to make his birthday over the top. For the past few weeks I have been reminding my husband about a new decade starting and he would always respond with a smart remark about how he is getting too old and death is on the way. I told his mother about his comments and she would call him a "Big Cry Baby" and remind me to tell him to suck it up and enjoy the new year coming up.
Actually when it comes down to it, on Thursday we started celebrating David's Birthday weekend. We enjoyably hung out with all of our friends and starting planning officially what we would be doing for David's big weekend. We all decided that we would go out on the town and enjoy his last few days of his 20's. David and I also had a chance to go and hang out by ourselves and chat up like we always have on our dates.
Friday was a whole day of getting ready and pretty for a big big night. I wasn't completely understanding of timeline for that night, so I was pretty surprised when my husband informed me at 6pm that we were going to be meeting our friends at 7 for pre party celebration. Surprisingly I was able to be officially ready in almost an hour... I might have pushed it a few minutes after but I still was ready. We were able to meet up all our friends at our local watering hole and waited for everyone to arrive before we went out. A good friend of mine was even able to show up as a surprise. Everyone was buying David a drink or a shot while I kept sipping my diet coke. We all ended up ready to go around 9 or 10 and headed down the road. We got to the club and had so many tables put together for our group. We had the best time ever, with talking, dancing, laughing and enjoying life. David and I ended up leaving around 1 and headed straight home to pass out from a busy, busy night.
Saturday, in my opinion was the best of the weekend. David enjoyed his day of football and I just relaxed and hung out. At the end of the night David and I played Pandora and put it on the Miles Davis channel. We sat around in the living room with our dogs and just talked the entire night. Everything was discussed of whatever we could think of. Our future, our pasts and our goals of life were right there in that wonderful cozy living room. We welcomed David's birth into this world with a great night and some big smiles.
On Sunday where David was officially 30 I woke up early to let him enjoy sleeping in the whole bed by himself. He finally woke up with a full intention of having a gourmet grilled cheese sandwich. He also decided that he wanted to enjoy sloppy Joe's for dinner. I went to the store (since it is something he really hates to do) and got everything we needed for Sunday Night. When I came home I made home made french fries while he put together the sauce and meat for our yummy yummy sloppy Joe's. To be nominated for the 'Best Wife of the Year' award I even did the dishes and took the trash out for David. I would have to say the best part of the whole weekend was when David announced that he loves being 30 so far. I really wanted to try to give David and amazing memory of the last few days of 29, and the best first days of 30. Another year and another birthday has gone by and David and I still keep getting closer and closer. The memories and stories that we share together are priceless and I am so happy to be part of #30 and can't wait for #31!

Sick of being Sick

I am so sick of being sick. On Monday morning I went to work with the feeling that I just had the worst allergies. After being at work for an hour my head was throbbing and there was no way I would have been able to get any work done. So I talked to my boss, told him I was going to go home and headed home with all intent to fall asleep. The only problem with that is once I am awake I can't fall asleep until I am actually tired. So I sat home all day just trying to get a bit better. I eventually did and decided to go meet David for dinner and a drink, then headed out to my friends house so we could have a meet and greet party before they went downtown. I was feeling so much better and decided to go enjoy a night on the town. I really wish I thought it out to the fullest since by 11 pm I was so exhausted I started falling asleep in a chair. I wanted to go home but took a ride out there to save on parking and be safer. So we all finally went home and being so tired I fell asleep right when I got home and was excited to wake up feeling better and go to work.
Tuesday I woke up feeling worse that I did Monday. I really didn't expect to feel that way at all. I was coughing up a storm and even sneezing up one too. Tissues, everywhere, water and hot tea. Fresh Lime and Honey were all over my kitchen. I had apples and crackers for lunch and really tried to take care of myself as much as I could. I do have to also admit that I did spend the whole day watching horrible reality TV and re watching all my favorite shows on HBO and Showtime. I don't think that there could be anything better than sitting on a comfy couch with a hand made knitted blanket, a hot cup of tea, and the first two seasons of Big Love. :) So after nursing my sickness I really started to feel as if I was getting better and I would be ready to go back to work the next morning. Then right around 8 o'clock last night I started to feel even worse. I started getting a stomach ache and really did not have a great end of the night. I finally fell asleep and again expecting to have a better morning.
Well today is Wednesday, and the only reason I can even write in my blog for today is because I am at home and sick. I woke up this morning feeling worse than I did the day before. But the good news is that I am feeling better today than I did yesterday. I can't really figure out what I ended up having, and I really am my father's daughter since I hate going to the doctor since I find it a waste of time an money. All together I can only figure I had the flu. And it's always good to know sometimes that no matter how quick and active you can be in life, there are always some moments that slow you down a bit to really notice what is important and how to be better on focusing on your health. I'm pretty bummed that I don't think I will be able to enjoy a night of Hula Hooping with the sickness I have had from this week. But the bonus of all of this that I got some quality couch time with my favorite dogs and relaxing night time with my husband. But I am just really tired of being sick. So pray for a speedy recovery and I will blog to you soon!

A Hard Lesson to Learn

For a while now I have wanted a haircut. I knew I wanted something different but couldn't put my finger on it. I avoided it at all cost since I wasn't ready to make a decision. And for me haircuts are never about change and that's how I felt when I went out to get a hair cut. I usually go to Toni and Guy.
I once had a stylist long time ago that was absolutely fantastic and got my hair done by her for two years. Then one day she called to let me know she was packing up her stuff and moving to California. I was heartbroken and I realized how hard it would be to find someone to replace her that could promise me they would never leave. Impossible, I know. So I decided to find a place I could go to wherever I was and after the first time I went to Toni and Guy I fell in love. They always make my hair looking beautiful and I've never left unhappy. But over that past few months of deciding for a change I was worried Toni and Guy wouldn't be able to help me in a new style for my hair. So I drove around on Sunday afternoon looking for a new place. I have heard about Bird's Barbershop and heard they do a really great job so I had that as a place of interest when driving around. I found something close to it, and decided to give it a try. Floyd's Barbershop. So I walked into the hip edgy place and sat in a chair. I decided to play it safe and just ask for layers and face framing with a long bang that I could just sweep to the side and not have it in my face. Next thing I know the woman cutting my hair starts giving me shorter and shorter hair. I started getting nervous. I told her it looked fine and I wanted it blow dried to make sure everything was the way I could hope it to be. So she started blow drying my hair and there I see in the mirror bangs! Crooked Bangs! Uneven, Choppy, Horrible BANGS!It took everything out of me to not burst out in tears. I told her that everything looked great and I had to go and was in a hurry. I paid my bill, walked to my car, and the second I started the engine I couldn't hold it any longer, I burst out in tears and tried to get home as quick as possible. David was sleeping on the couch when I got home and of course I had to wake him up to let him know how miserable I was. He was such a great husband holding me while I cried about my horrible haircut, and the super smart man that he is suggested I go somewhere else and get it fixed. The only place I could think of the great faithful Toni & Guy. I showed up being prepared with them not being able to help me out at all. I was so relieved that she said she would be able to fix it for me. My layers weren't so much worth the task but the bangs were really the bigger issue. She worked on them for a good 30 minutes and finally turned me to the mirror to leave me as one of the happiest people in the store. I really was so happy that a horrible situation that landed on my head turn to something better. It is still taking a little time getting used to hair on my face but I am really liking it. It's something different and new and in the end, exactly what I wanted. :)

I'm Engaged!

Two years ago was my three month anniversary with David and the day that he proposed. I remember that day so well as it was just yesterday, and how it blows my mind that the time i have shared with him has flown by so quickly. Since most people don't know the story in full, I figured today would be a great day to share this amazing story.
David came in town from Austin to come visit me on a Friday afternoon. I had been waiting for him all day to come pick me up since I wanted to take him to the Japanese Tea Gardens and just enjoy a beautiful afternoon with him in the park. But of course, nothing ever goes to plan (and he was getting my engagement ring and waiting for the diamond to be placed in the setting). He picked me up so late that we ended up getting stuck in traffic and had to cancel all of our day plans for that day. Of course being me, and so focused on plans and schedules, I was not a happy camper. He ended making me laugh, smile and forgetting about the whole situation all together that I just had to enjoy the rest of the night.
Saturday of course was a different story. November 10, 2007 was the first time he was going to meet my parents. My mom had heard about him before, especially since I had talked to her about going on a first date with this fantastic man named David. He met with my parents at the famous Willie's and enjoyed some small talk while having a great lunch (so I thought), until my father asked the big question... "So, Elizabeth just mentions this relationship and now we're meeting for lunch. Why is that?" I had no idea how to answer the question, so I just smiled and said I wanted my parents to get to know who I was spending all of my time with. :) Yes, I know very smooth. So smooth that the rest of the lunch ended up great that David and I decided to enjoy downtown before we had to meet his parents for dinner.
We walked around the market square, going into little shops and acted like tourists while holding hands and killing time before dinner. While walking down near the Majestic we noticed that STOMP! was playing. I had seen them when I was younger and David had never seen them before, so the amazing man that he is decided we should go see the show, even if it meant missing dinner with his parents. He reassured me that his parents would understand and we bought the tickets, killed some time with some coffee, and saw an amazing spontaneous show of Stomp! Of course, the show was amazing and we ran off to his parents house to catch the rest of dinner.
Well, when we showed up I really had no idea what to expect. I was so worried that they would have been frustrated that we missed dinner and not be in such an inviting mood. I couldn't have been happier at the fact that they were completely understanding, ever so welcoming, and even had a warm plate of dinner waiting for us while we talked over a glass of wine and even a special Italian made lemon liquor. The entire time they were so warming, nice, and better than I could ever imagine future-in-laws to be. We left after a while and the hugs and smiles that they had gave made me feel like I was already part of their family.
When we left the Balentine household, David suggested that we go to our favorite bar in San Antonio, Cigar Club and go hang out with some friends that were already there. For some of you that may not know, Cigar Club was where we had met for the first time. We walked into the bar and all of our friends were there. Even Justin was playing with his band that just so happen to be playing the first time we met. The entire day was so magical and as wrapped as I was in the best time I was ever having with David, I had no idea what was about to happen. After a couple of beers and conversation with our friends, David leaned near me and whispered in my ear "Do you want to go out to our spot?" (Our spot was a place out in the hill country where we would bring a blanket and lay out under the stars and just enjoy our time together.) I of course answer back with a big smile and a yes. We said bye to all of our friends and jumped into the truck and head out to our little spot in the big beautiful hill country. As we laid out under the big Texas stars and cuddled up on our big blanket David held me in his arms and whispered in my ear "We're gonna get married!" I smiled back and the little smarty pants that I am said, "I haven't said yes yet." He all of a sudden had the biggest smile on his face and said "Let me ask you again" while he grabbed for something laying right above my head and leaned up with a little black box in his hands. That's when it hit me, this little moment that I had been waiting my entire life has finally come and here is the man of my dreams laying next to me with the best ring I have ever seen right in front of me. My natural reaction was complete shock where I couldn't help but shout "Really? really? Really?" While he is laying there waiting for an answer, he finally got a little nervous and said "You have to answer!" Realizing that I never officially gave him a yes or no, I started screaming "Yes! Yes! Yes! I will marry you!"
The entire day that I spent with David had to have been the best day I had ever had in my life. And following every day since then has been nothing but greatness. Before I met David I had no idea that life could be as great as it is. He has changed my world upside down for the better and every day I have with him makes me excited for the next day ahead.
So there is the story. Our wonderful little story that was the beginning of our time together. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I remember it and telling it. Two years ago I met a man on a "blind meet" and fell in love that night. I knew he was the man for me after our first date. We have continued to grow and love each other every day, and I for one, look forward to updating our blog about our little stories that we share just so this crazy world that we live in can know that there is such a thing as true love.

Balentine Bath Time

For at least once every few months we try to give Ella a bath. Copland and Johnny usually get one twice a year, but Ella still is a puppy and has a habit of getting dirtier than her older brothers. I had made a deal with David that if he could do the dishes (since I hate to do dishes) I would give Ella a bath. In all honesty, I thought I got the best part of the deal since Ella really likes getting a bath since she gets all the attention for 10 minutes and she usually shows her affection during bath time with a lot of kisses. So as my husband got started on a big pile of dishes, I got everything ready and picked up Ella and placed her in the bathtub. She was doing fine, just like she normally handles bath time. And then I started the shampoo. Rubbed it all over and I had one soapy dog. So soapy that when she decided she was tired of bath time, she jumped out and for what felt like a minute of chasing after her and not being able to grab hold since she was covered in soap! There was water and soap every where, I could barely stand up without slipping. I finally cornered her, and to show me how she felt, she laid down in protest so it would be harder for me to pick her up and put her back in the tub. After getting her in there, I rinsed her off and started to put conditioner on her. This is very special conditioner, and I love the smell so much! So while rubbing this $10 doggy conditioner I squirt too much out and so now I'm slippery, wet just like Ella. Then what happens next? Ella jumps out again so get even more water and soap over everything! Just my luck! So I grab her one more time, held her down and rinsed her off and tried to squeeze all the water off of her. Dried her off with a big fluffy towel and even used the blow dryer to help the process. In the end of the the whole situation I finally had a clean little puppy with big fluffy hair a
nd a big smile!We've had other situation where she'd gotten covered in mud, and for some reason bath time isn't as much work than the situation we had today. Maybe she is going through her new stage of life of trying to be rebellious little girl and showing how cool she is to her big brothers, but she always be my little girl that is always going to get a bath every couple of months and there is nothing that she can do about it.

Truth: I used to be a Brat.

I decided to go through some old pictures I have saved on my Computer and retouch any of them that I might need to fix or make new again. And what did I come across? Two pictures that made me look like a total and complete brat. While looking deeply into these pictures, memories started to revisit and now the truth has come out, I was a brat. I remember little situation from my past of not getting what I wanted, and I really thought I expressed my feelings in a mature well spoken way for a 5 year old, but in all honest it was just me screaming at the top of my lungs crying crocodile tears and turning my face red in hopes that it would actually get me what I wanted.
My mom told me a story a while back that I wanted something and my parents decided I didn't deserve what I wanted so I threw a tantrum. Apparently I was so focused on what I wanted I cried for almost 2 hours. The crying would stop from time to time, so my parents decided to sneak around the house and look through my window to see what I was really doing. I remember this part specifically. I was playing with my dolls, brushing their hair from what I remember, and whenever I heard a sound I would start crying again. My parents saw the same thing through the window. For two hours just crying and stopping, crying and stopping. Wow, I was relentless!
The picture I found is a memory that is very vivid and occured when I was 5 years old going to St. John Berchman's, my parents decided to place me in Softball. I remember being so excited to be a part of a great team! But then I realized that I was not good at softball at all. They put me in the outfield where no ball would roll out, and I couldn't even hit the ball well when I was up to bat! I couldn't stand this game! It was boring, infuriating, and I hated it. So during one game I had forgot to grab my glove on the way to the game. I didn't really care since I knew the coach wouldn't let me play, and then the worst thing ever happened! I had to play outfield! With no glove! My dad had to go borrow one from some weird kid that smelled funny, and his glove was way to big for my hand. So what did I do? I acted in a very mature way for a 5 year old and expressed how I felt. I threw a tantrum, cried and threw my self on the ground. My dad had to actually come on the field, pick me up, and carry me to the sideline.
So there's the truth. I used to be a brat. And that was a long, long time ago. I like to think I've grown so much from that. Some might disagree, slightly. But I will always be me and dare I say... Always get what I want. In the end, I like to think growing up as a brat has taught me some lessons. When David and I get are blessed with a little girl of our own one day I like to think that I can handle her with some finesse. Sure the words "Don't even pull that, I invented that!" might come out of my mouth, but in the end, I really did invent it! After all, I was the best at being a brat!

I Finally Won Something!

Last Night David and I went to our Local Pub - The Red Shed Tavern. I had explained in a previous post about hopping and avoiding downtown, I even explained about past Halloween Costumes. And I do have to say last night was a great night. David got to watch his Texas Football, we both got to hang out (not downtown), I got to hoop and David got to watch me :) and the topper of the whole night was that I won the Best Costume Contest!!! As you see from the picture above David dressed up as Walker Texas Ranger... The Infamous Chuck Norris, and I dressed up as the annoying, media loving, Octo-mom! And if you haven't heard the Octomom, then please go to google and look it up, because you won't be able to appreciate the amazing point of this costume.
It took me about an hour to put together this whole costume, excluding getting my hair died black. That really is a whole other situation in itself, and maybe one day I will blog about the story of my black hair but today is not the day. So back to the story at hand, I finally won something! I got a $25 gift card to a bar downtown (how ironic) and the applause of the entire bar, because really... my costume was rockin! Every where I walked I would hear people scream "OCTOMOM!" My costume was so popular I even had requests of people wanting to try on my homemade baby Bjorn to give the kids a try. (See Picture Below). It was really great to go out and have a safe fun time with a bunch of people! It just goes to show that the spirit of Halloween is still alive in all!
Unfortunately, we didn't have any Trick or Treaters, but we didn't have our light on anyway. And we didn't even get any candy. So if we did have a little one knocking on our door we would be in a bit of trouble and probably get a Trick for not having a Treat.
Here are some pictures of fun people we got to me last night. Hope everyone had a great Halloween and can't wait for next year!