Skippin' Town

Once upon a time, David and I would use our get-out-of-town card every 5 years without the kids  (way, way too long of a wait in-between).  We'd drop them off with or fly down grandparents to watch over the darlings.

However, after our 20th anniversary road trip (two years ago, here and here), I told him no way.  Not anymore. We would not be waiting every five years to get away by ourselves.  We need to seriously refuel more often.

So last week, for 30 hours, we skipped town!

We left to celebrate  # 22!   (Sans kids.  Sans a babysitter.  Teen girls are old enough to hold down the fort.)

I told him I just wanted a pool with a good drink and a book to read.

We ate delicious food.

We shocked our teenagers by sending them a mirrored selfie!  Ha ha ha!

And wowzer!  We had a room with a view!

We were on the top floor with the outside wall being one, enormous, floor-to-ceiling window that presented a stunning view.

It was so relaxing.  Oh my gosh.  It felt so good to be just the two of us for a little bit of time.  Now I'm thinking, we need to do this more than once a year ;)

Feeling so grateful (and refreshed)!

Patty

Preparing for TSG Camping Season

Stan the man (and David) have been part of TSG (Troops of St. George) for going on 4 years now.  Stan is now a senior cadet and with that comes responsibility such as knowing how to set your own tent and prepare your own food on the camp out.  In other words, daddy isn't going to be doing this for him anymore.

David was thinking ahead and purchased a beginner's tent for our young man.  :)   Today, in the terrible heat, he taught Stan how to set up the tent.  He took him through the steps, one at a time.

Then, David took it all apart and had Stan do it himself.  Three times for good measure ;)

Stan did a GREAT job and David is an awesome dad :)

~  Patty ~

Dallas Arts District Field Trip (Post Ortho Visit)

My little man had another ortho visit in Dallas yesterday.  (We won't have any more back-to-back ones until the end of August.)  Like last week, we wanted to get as much out of our drive into the city as possible.

We packed a lunch before we left the house.  After our visit to the ortho, we parked the car near the Cathedral, (popping in to visit Jesus real quick), and then walked to Klyde Warren Park for a picnic lunch.

Since it was 7/11, 7- Eleven was giving out their free Slurpee's.  The 7 Eleven truck was there and we got right in line for our freebie ;)

The park is so unique!!  There is so much to do for people of all sizes.  We decided to have a hand at ping pong, but it was really so hot it didn't last too long.  (Beside, the old lady was whoopin' his butt!)

We watched children cooling off in the fountains...

...before crossing the street to enjoy the Dallas Museum of Art.

Admission into the general exhibits is FREE, so we took advantage of that deal to cool off in the air conditioning.

We have had a lot of fun the past 7 days.  I'm not sure if we will be able to be as adventurous next month since his visits will coincide with his school.  I know we both have enjoyed this one-on-one time :)

Patty 

Consider the Lilies (Scripture Study)

I am so excited to have started this new Scripture study, Consider the Lilies, by Elizabeth Foss!

This can be done on an individual bases (like I am doing) or with a group (online or in real life).  Put together and published by the wonderful group, Take Up and Read,  you can purchase your Scripture study on Amazon and sign up to receive daily prompts through your email.

Take Up and Read officially began the six week study on July 10, but you can also do this on your own time.

I was so excited to be encouraged to buy my first set of big-girl markers/highlighters/colored pencils for this Scripture study!

Along with my Catholic Bible and a pen, all I need is my Double Duty Caddy from Thirty - One Gifts (that should be arriving in the mail soon)!

If you have bought the Scripture study, too, blessings to you for a fruitful journey with God!

Patty 

Perot Museum Field Trip (Post Ortho Visit)

Stan the man had an orthodontic appointment in Dallas last week.  It was one of those quick, in-and-out visits.  So we decided to make the most of our drive into the city and visit the Perot Museum of Nature and Science.

Just the two of us :)  

Having a nifty coupon to get us in made the visit even more fun!

We took in the exhibit, Maya : Hidden Worlds Revealed!

And he had a blast programming and playing with the robots.

After a little splashing around outside, we decided to hit the road for home, hoping to get a jump start on the rush hour traffic.

This was another spontaneous bucket filler for our summer.  We are actually heading back into the city to see his ortho again tomorrow with more fun things planned for afterward.  I love spending the one-on-one with this kiddo!

~   Patty  ~

No-Bake Strawberry Blueberry Trifle

I made my first-ever trifle for the Fourth of July and it was SOOOO delicious!  This was an easy-to-assemble dessert that was so festive and patriotic for the Fourth.

Ingredients :
17 oz angel food cake, (I used a pre-made Sara Lee frozen pound cake), cut into 1" cubes.
1 pound fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced
1 pound fresh blueberries
4 or 5 quart trifle dish (I found a $6 one at Walmart.)

Lemon Syrup Ingredients: 
1/4 cup water
2 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp lemon juice

Frosting Ingredients:
2 packages (8oz each) cream cheese, softened at room temp
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 cups heavy whipping cream
1/2 tsp vanilla

Instructions:

How to make lemon syrup -
1.  In a measuring cup, combine 1/4 cup water, 2 Tbsp sugar ,and 2 Tbsp lemon juice and stir until sugar is dissolved.  Set aside until needed.

How to make the trifle cream -
1.  Beat together 1 lb cream cheese and 3/4 cup sugar (with the whisk attachment) on medium speed until creamy and smooth, scraping the bowl a couple times.

2.  With mixer on, pour in 2 cups heavy cream then turn mixer to medium/high and continue beating until whipped and fluffy.

3.  Add 1/2 tsp vanilla and beat until incorporated.

Assembling the berry trifle -

1/. Place 1/3 of your sliced cake into the bottom of your trifle dish and brush with 1/3 of your syrup.  Add 1/3 of your cream and loosely spread it over cake pieces.  (I even used my washed finger tips to help with the spreading.).

2.  Add 1/2 of the sliced strawberries.

3.  Repeat with remaining ingredients (adding 1/2 of the blueberries for the second fruit layer).

4.  Frost the top with last 1/3 of cream and decorate with remaining fruit.

A perfect dessert to bring to a party!

I found the recipe on Pinterest and it linked to here.

Happy Fourth!

Patty