Discovery Park

At Emily’s volleyball tournament (now a few weeks back), JMO and I hung out in Discovery park for a bit. We tried laying in the grass and then encountered ants; we moved on to these half circles. We each sit in one and your voice just carries to the other end. On my end, some girls asked if I could step aside so they could take pictures. I don’t think they knew how it worked. I went down to JMO’s side and we listened as they talked about taking photos for their myspace page. Every time I began to giggle, I was told to shhhhh. If they heard me giggle, they would realize we could hear their discussions of their photography sessions.

Point is- go to Discovery Park. It is awesome. If you sit in the half circles, your voice carries.

Rainbows and sunshine.

I’m burning cds right now for the possibility of a car ride. I am no longer positive I will be spending 20+ hours in the car with my little brother. Car difficulties. Details to be determined. I have a one way ticket to Orlando on Saturday morning. I still plan on going, I still plan on escaping my work life for a few days, but all the fun day to dayness will have to be flexible.

It is already decided that Savannah MUST stay on the trip itinerary. Biloxi can go. New Orleans can go. Grandparents stop must happen if there is a car ride. But Savannah must happen. I have grown excited and am in awe of the charm of the city. I need to see it. Paula Deen must make me a meal and I need to run into Ruby on a street corner.

So cross your fingers that my trip turns out to be exactly what I need and not a reminder that cars are the worst investment in our lives.

I sound semi prepared for something.

Mike and I just finished our road trip brainstorming session. I’m flying out to Orlando on Saturday to pack my brother up and take a week to drive from Orlando to San Antonio. I haven’t been off an entire week since this time last year and I need to escape. I desperately miss summer and holiday vacations and think my mental health is deteriorating without these breaks. I have high hopes for this trip. I hope to bond with my brother, who I haven’t spent this much time with since we lived in the same house. I hope to bond with my grandparents a little. I hope to get a tan and to RELAX.

The line up right now looks like this:
Saturday: Arrive in Orlando. Michael is organizing a community garage sale. We’ll pack up whatever is left. That night we will go see Pete Yorn at the House of Blues and go out with his friends for a last hoorah.
Sunday: Start the driving. Stop in St. Augustine. Remark that it is the oldest city in America. Sit by the beach. Drive to Savannah.
Monday & Tuesday: Stay in Savannah. Details to come. Rent bikes on a tiny island? Eat at Paula Deen’s restaurant? Go on a ghost tour? Go on a swamp boat tour? More details to come here.
Wednesday: Drive 8 hours and land at grandparents home.
Thursday: Bond with grandparents.
Friday: Drive over to Biloxi. We were planning on staying here at our dear dear Martin’s Lake, but if you stay a weekend you have to stay 2 nights, and that was a little too much. Now we will ride paddle boats swim around and rinse off in the communal shower area before or after eating at a casino buffet. I heard Boomtown was no more, which is slightly upsetting. But we will drive by one, feel nostalgic about it and choose it. Then we will play black jack because we never could when we lived there. Then we will drive to New Orleans.
Saturday: Spend the day in New Orleans walking around and buy art and sno-cones and margaritas.
Sunday: Head on home. Not sure if we’ll make it all the way back to San Antonio or just Houston. So between a 6 to 9 hour car day. I need to get some music together and possibly a book on tape we would both enjoy.
I’m excited.
P.S. Does anyone want to take me to the airport on Saturday morning?

Emily Rocks.




I spent my weekend at Emily’s volleyball tournament at the George R. Brown. It gave me some opportunities to try some different functions on my camera. The “burst” mode which takes pictures one after another, which is nice for action, but also if you take enough pictures, your bound to come up with a few decent ones. There was an action mode as well, these modes, combined, provided many photos of Emily about to hit a ball or 2 seconds after she hits a ball. I seem to miss the actual moment of Emily to ball contact. Credit for the action shot below goes to JMO, he was far more patient than I, you can pick out the ones he took by the amount of action actually occurring in the shot.




Now I may be biased, but Emily is damn good. She’s serious, she serves amazingly, she is tough, she hits the ball hard or to an uncovered area on the other side. I am not athletically inclined, so talk up from me doesn’t really say much, but she is AWESOME. I have never been, and probably won’t ever be as athletic as my sister. I lack hand – eye coordination, not to mention the determination it takes to make you an actual athlete. I don’t know my sister as well as I would like too. We live in different cities and are 10 years apart, but I like the person I see. I like the girl I talk too. She isn’t petty and girly like 14 year old me. I was busy trying to figure out how to fit in with Mississippi girls, maybe I needed a sport. I’m not sure Mississippi was classy enough for club volleyball though, or club anything beside football.



These girls are in sync as a team. They are cohesive. They are confident. Teenage girl athleticism sounds like a good start to solving the world’s problems (at least the one’s that originate from female self esteem issues). Watching teenage girls and observing them 10 years after you’ve been through the horrific preteens, was a good reminder of that former lil me life. Emily doesn’t seem to mess with as much of the teenage girl drama as I did; I’m glad and I’m sure my parents are too. She doesn’t need it, SHE IS FABULOUS. Above: Emily serves the winning point.

Christian and me.

I think after this I will be done stalking Sandra’s family for a bit. But… isn’t he the cutest baby? She really does know how to make some good looking kids. Christian didn’t want to open his eyes the whole time we were there, but I hear they are blue. He is just some peaceful and calm, like his mother.

Tooth brushing.

Devin came to hang out with me the other night. He went to the bathroom and pulled the stool to the sink. When I came to check on him, he was using my toothbrush.
He was very proud that he got the toothpaste himself. He took enough for a week’s worth of brushing.
Maybe dental school is in his future?