They Call it the Hill Country, I Call it Home

Over the weekend, Cody and I ventured to San Antonio for some much needed time with my parents and sis. Cody drove in on Thursday evening and joined Mom and Kirby to cheer on Dad's football team,Wagner HS, as they took on New Braunfels Canyon. I flew in late on Friday night, so we just hung out until Dad got home and rested up for the Aggies' big game against LSU on Saturday. Though the game didn't turn out as we would have hoped, the Ags did put up a good fight for being such a young team. After getting our fill of football, we went to the Parade of Homes just outside of SA in Comal County. Cody and I took several mental pictures for our "dream home", and had so much fun seeing all of the latest trends in home construction. I especially loved one particular rustic-styled house that was furnished and decorated completely in Restoration Hardware and Anthropologie. I'm pretty sure they could have just handed me the keys right then and there and I would have been perfectly satisfied to call it home for the rest of my life. After viewing the amazing homes, we met Dad for dinner and then came home to an intense game of cards. I always love having the family together, even if time seems to fly by too quickly. We're really looking forward to being together again for a minute at Thanksgiving and for a whole week at Christmas!!

Cody and me outside the Parade of Homes

Mom, me and Kirby in the Pumpkin Patch before beginning our tour of homes.

Kirby wasn't as "gung-ho" about viewing the homes as we were, so to make things more exciting, we took several photos with the props in each home. Here she is clearly displaying disappointment that the wine is indeed fake. "What is a parched girl to do?"

Tea time on one of the fabulous outdoor sitting areas. Again, the tea was not real.

One of the homes boasted an amazing art/crafts room, in which Kirby felt particularly compelled to pose with the life-sized pencil.

One of my favorite rooms was the perfect place for a little princess. This girl's room was modeled after Paris, and had everything from a wall mural to sweet treats throughout the room. Cody used his landscaping expertise to give the flowers a little extra water.

Though they were plastic, Kirby channelled her inner Marie Antoinette and proclaimed "Let them eat cake."

When there is a life-sized painting of a Parisian street, why wouldn't we pose and look as chic as possible in front of it?

There's never a dull moment with our family, that's for sure!

Goin' through the Big D and DO mean Dallas...

Cody, Rio and I were very excited to take a much needed trip to D/FW this past weekend to spend time with some of our best friends. We had lots of fun meeting Wes and Nicole's sweet baby Hadley, catching up with Nathan and Morgan and loving on baby Brooks via Morgan's baby bump, and spending time with my beloved roo, Carrie. We had a low key weekend full of lots of college football and relaxation, and can't wait for our next annual get together. We are so blessed to have such wonderful friends in our life for so many years, and to be able to get together even though we're separated by many miles now.

Cody and I had so much fun loving on Hadley. She is such a sweet little girl! After spending time with Hadley and our niece, Addie, we think it's safe to say that the baby girls just seem to flock to Cody. 

Morgan and Nathan are expecting a baby boy in February, so they got some good practice in with Hadley. These two are going to be amazing parents and we can't wait to meet their little man.

Wes and I have been friends since our days at Churchill High School, and I was so proud to see what an awesome daddy he is. He and Hadley were ready to cheer on the Aggies!

We all laughed about how things have changed. It was a Saturday afternoon and we were drinking beer/wine, watching college football and building a high chair. What a difference from our college Saturdays! Haha.

I was SO happy to spend some quality time catching up with my Roo. I miss this girl so much!!!

Mama Nicole and Princess Hadley- love these girls!

Carrie and Hadley

Hadley, Morgan and me

Nicole and her Princess-- isn't Hadley just the cutest little fashionista? 

The whole group after brunch in downtown Wylie. It was so fun seeing the little shops and this sweet old house that had been redone into a yummy restaurant. 

Next stop, San Antonio... stay tuned!

Target Practice

This weekend has been one of the few that Cody has been in town for the past month, so we took full advantage of lots of bonding time just the two of us. We cooked some tasty ribs and homemade mac and cheese after watching the Aggies BTHO Arkansas on Saturday (Whoop!), and yesterday after church and brunch with our sweet Bible Study friends, we decided to head out to the country for a little dove hunting and target practice for me. I was pretty pumped, as my mule deer hunt is now just over a month away. After shooting the 20-gauge and 243, I feel pretty confident that I can shoot a buck bigger than my husband when my hunt rolls around. :)

The hunter and his bird dog. Turns out Rio might be more of a duck hunting dog than a dove hunting dog... he wasn't too fond of the taste of the dove and its feathers in his mouth. In fact, when Cody told him to "fetch it up", he picked it up, spit the bird out, and simply rolled the dove to Cody's feet with his nose and paws. Our dog is quite resourceful. Cody was a little disappointed in his first performance, but I can't say that I blame him for not wanting a mouth full of feathers. 

Shooting the 20-gauge for the first time. I may not have shot any birds, but I sure did achieve an excellent arm workout while holding that gun. My father-in-law commented that I looked a little prissy though... I guess you can take the girl out of the city, but you can't take the city out of the girl!

 My target during my first experience shooting the "240-something". When Cody's dad first told me the gun I would be shooting for my deer hunt, I couldn't remember the numbers and called it this, so it became a running joke on both my side and Cody's side of the family. I was quite proud of my shooting skills with the 243, and feel a little more confident about trying my hand at deer hunting in November. Hopefully I'll live up to all the hype that my hubby is creating. No pressure, huh?

The hubs and me with his collection of birds. He's quite the hunter, I must say! 

When we were driving home from our hunt, Cody commented that these kind of experiences help him to feel more at home. It's true- I guess there's something to be said about enjoying the great outdoors. I'm thankful that I have a husband that is patient enough to take me, despite my constant need for conversation and short attention span! 

While the Hubby's Away...

Most of you that know my husband know that he has an incredible passion for hunting. Now that we live in New Mexico where land is public, he is super excited to be able to experience hunting at its finest, thanks to the hunting lottery system. Basically, each year, you enter for a chance to be drawn for specific hunts, and this year, Cody was drawn for an elk bow hunt and a mule deer hunt. I will also be trying out my huntress skills in November, as I was drawn for a mule deer rifle hunt, too-- but we can discuss that more later.

Cody and his dad, Lynn, departed for the big elk bow hunt in the Gila National Forest on Thursday evening. I was so happy that Lynn got to accompany Cody on this trip, and know they're having so much fun spending some quality time together. Cody's mom and I joke that Johnson men spare nothing when it comes to packing, and this was certainly the case for this trip, too. Cody and Lynn loaded down a flatbed trailer and the bed and backseat of Cody's truck for their 5 day hunt. They had to make sure every necessity was accounted for-- everything from food to Cody's homemade cooktop made the cut. I am so anxious for them to return so that I can hear about all of the fun adventures and *hopefully* see a huge bull elk trophy!

While the guys were gone, my mom and grandparents decided to make a pit stop in New Mexico to stay with me on their way home from a week in California. They had been visiting my Aunt Julie and her family, and it just worked out perfectly for them to fly into El Paso on the way back to San Antonio. I was so grateful that they were there to keep me company while Cody was gone on his hunt. We ate well, shopped hard and did a few projects around the house that I've been wanting to scratch off my to-do list. Aren't moms and grandparents just the best?

Chocolate cake is always a necessity in the Johnston family. Thanks to Tami for the delicious recipe-- it was a hit! We did rename it "Death by Chocolate" though. :) It is sinfully good!

On Saturday morning, we ventured out to the Farmers' Market. Grandma and Grandad had not been yet and were interested in seeing all that the "Top Farmers Market in the US" had to offer. It did not disappoint! Grandma found some cute jewelry and Grandad enjoyed the fresh blackeyed peas and tomatoes that we purchased for dinner that night. He even shelled the peas for us while we shopped all afternoon. What a guy!

Mom, Grandma and Grandad at the Farmers' Market

Love my Grandma and Grandad so much!

Grandma and me doing one of the things we do best- shopping!

Mom and me- we didn't realize how long it had been since she had last visited. It was time! 

While they were here, Grandad decided that it was high time for me to learn how to play a game of 42. We had so much fun during my "training sessions" and I now feel fully confident that I can hang with my domino playin' husband, though I'm not sure my skills are quite up to par for being his partner yet. Cody and I can be quite intense in game-playing situations where we are on the same team, thanks to both of our competitive spirits. :)

The 42 master and his student

It was such a fun weekend and I loved every minute that I was able to spend with my family. Being so far away makes the time we're together absolutely priceless, and I can't wait to see everyone again at Christmas. Cody and I are so blessed with grandparents and parents that are just amazing people! 

Oh, and in case you're wondering about the outcome of the elk hunt, I'm hoping to have those pictures to post very soon!

Go Shorty, It's Ya Birthday...

And yes, we did party like it was all of our birthdays. I'm going to go ahead and apologize for those of you who may now be unable to remove the "classic" 50 Cent song "In Da Club" from your head after reading the title of this post. Rest assured though that it is perfectly appropriate for the summary of my sister, Kirby's, 21st birthday celebration.

After our visit with Cody's family in Houston, we headed over to College Station to begin a day fully focused on Princess Kirby. We ate a yummy lunch at one of our favorite restaurants, La Bodega, and then Mom treated us to pedicures at a rather entertaining nail salon. (Ask us about that experience later-- it's a great story.) After being pampered for a bit, we ate a tasty dinner that Mom so graciously cooked for Cody, me and Cale, as well as Kirby's 3 roomies and a few others. We were all stuffed but definitely saved room for a delicious birthday cake and a few cocktails. After all, we had to ring in her 21st in style! Kirby's roomies were so sweet to decorate everything for her and it turned out so cute. Brace yourselves for the pictures though-- there's a LOT of pink (which of course I loved)! We had so much fun celebrating in Aggieland and wouldn't have missed it for the world. You better believe we got some great dancing action shots, too.

I must admit, it's still hard to believe that my baby sister is old enough to "enjoy Northgate" now. It seems like just last week she was begging me to play house and baby dolls with her, and I would only settle for Barbies! :) Love you, Sister!!

Opening presents

The girls

Love my sis!

Kirby and PJ--carrying on the tradition of their brother and sister!

Jon and Kirby

Hayli, Kirby and Caitlin (two of Sister's sweet roomies)

We were so excited that Cale made the trip to College Station with us!

I have the best brother-in-law.

Clearly performing her best rendition of "Knuck if you Buck"...on a chair for added dramatic effect.

Kirby and Ty

Friends since 12 years old. You're the best TWC, even if I do have better Hunger Games skills than you.

Friends since Kindergarden! Meagan, Caitlin, Shannon & Kirby

Birthday princess is official at Northgate!

Party girls

Northgate! Sorry Haylie, not sure why this pic turned out blurry...

Ty, me, Luke and Kirby-- the best guys!!

And the dance party begins...

Had to end the night with a visit to the Dry Bean. Thanks, Northgate!

Of course the weekend flew way too quickly, but we are anxiously awaiting the next TX getaway. One thing is for sure- Aggieland always delivers a great time!