Out of Sorts

For months now, I feel like I've been on a roller coaster that won't stop to let me off. Now that we are in the second half of 2010, I'm taking a moment to realize how much the first half affected me.


We were ambitious enough to have a completely handmade Christmas that certainly took it's toll on personal time around the Hardy home. It won't stop me from doing it again, but we'll need to downgrade the extravaganza.

Weddingpalooza really taken over our lives this year in so many ways. Since Christmas, I've hosted three bridal showers. As much as I love party planning, I think I've worn out my welcome on checking all the hostess blogs for ideas. I designed and printed the programs for Kendall and Trevor's wedding, which seemed like a simple offer of my time but turned into a huge debacle that went down to the wire. I ended up using two different printers and not getting the correct product until after the rehearsal dinner. Yikes! Fortunately, the bride never knew about the complications, but I was definitely stressed and worn out over this issue. My sister's wedding a few week's ago was what really put me over the edge. We had just three weeks to plan and I used every minute available, sleeping just a few hours each night to allow for enough time to complete all the projects. Everything turned out beautifully, but I was just too tired to even know what was going on during the wedding.

For the school year, it seemed that I became the go-to parent for the kids' class parties. This seemed to be never-ending. Have you ever realized how many occasions we have for parties? I think I was just catching up at work from taking a day off for a party when it came time to begin organizing the next party. May was the big one when we had program performances, dress rehearsals, costumes to be sewn, projects to be made, teacher gifts to be bought, etc. It definitely seemed to be piled on too much in one month.

Now, the school year and weddings are over and, on the surface, I have recovered from this craziness. I'm caught up on checking the mail, bills are all paid, I'm blogging again, the house is finally clean (that was the most neglected item), and I'm starting to feel caught up on my sleep. However, I still don't feel recovered mentally. I can't stand feeling like I'm jumping from one project to another like a chicken with my head cut off, and I want to know how to prevent it. I don't want to become a recluse and not take on anything outside of our home. I love being creative, helping other people, and having projects outside the home. But, I've got to take a stand for my own well being.

How do you avoid overcommitting yourself? How do you find the balance between taking care of your family but still volunteering outside of the home? Help!

We're So Cultured, We're Almost Yogurt

We have new neighbors, Sergei and his wife, Tamara, and their son, Yuri, who just moved in next door. Upon getting to know Sergei a bit more, we discovered that he is also from Odessa, however he is from the other one, in the Ukraine. Moreover, he has a very interesting job as a full-time musician in the The Flying Balaika Brothers, a Russian folk band. He plays the balalaika, a Russian instrument shaped like a triangle and very similar to the guitar.

Since the kids are gone, and Daniel was in the middle of a week-long break between shifts, we've been staying up late, sleeping in late, and trying to occupy our time with outings that aren't convenient with small children. I would definitely say a concert that doesn't begin until 9:30 falls into that category, so we headed to South Austin on Monday night to hear The Balaika Brothers.

The nine-member band was amazingly talented and beyond impressive.  They played two sets over a two hour period, and it was foot-stomping, dance-inducing fun that we can't wait to go back to hear. I think we'll even try to find a show that the kids can attend, as they will love the dancing. See for yourself...

Father's Day

Since we were in San Antonio for Kendall and Trevor's wedding over Father's Day weekend, the kids found their own ways to squeeze in Daddy time.

While Abigail and I attended the bridal breakfast, Daniel and Cooper spent the morning at Bass Pro Shop. They didn't bring photographic evidence, but Cooper does have a new bow and arrow set to show for his trip. Even though Cooper was the one who walked away with the new toy, I think Daniel was the privileged one to spend time with his little man in a Man Store.

Later that day during the wedding reception, Daniel and Abigail slipped away from the festivities to have some daddy-daughter time, and it was certainly a treat. I love the way Daniel treats Abigail to special time and showers her with attention. I see the way he is preparing her to have certain expectations from a man some day, and I love it!


They enjoyed a private carriage ride through downtown San Anotonio in a carriage fit only for a princess!

We are lucky parents to have these two taking this ride with us!

Wedding Extravaganza Part I

The first big event of June was Kendall & Trevor's wedding. Now, Trevor is Daniel's cousin. But, Kendall may be one of my favorite relatives! Ha! We do love Trevor, but he certainly did do a great job of adding to the family.

The wedding was a weekend-long event in San Antonio that we all thoroughly enjoyed. After the rehearsal, we were treated to a great dinner at County Line on the Riverwalk. That was a blast! Great food, entertaining speeches/toasts. Apparantly I was enthralled that I didn't bother to take my camera out even once. Oh, well. You'll have to take my word for it. It was a great night!

The wedding day began with a bridal breakfast at our hotel. And, this was a new experience for me. Abigail, being the main guest from our family as the flowergirl, was seated at a table with some of the bridesmaids. I was seated elsewhere, with the moms. Yes, that's right. I was relegated to the Mom Table. I'm trying not to take anything bad away from this experience, but I certainly didn't feel young and spry. Alas, I only have this far-away shot of my princess at the breakfast.



Daniel's sister, Daniel's mother and I took the flowergirls out for a stroll above the Riverwalk (read: panic trip to find the right size of shoes for the other flowergirl to wear to the wedding due to a last-minute growth spurt) after the breakfast. Yeah, it was sticky and sweaty and a good cause for either a shower or a trip to the rooftop hotel pool, but the girls were too cute and attracted attention and comments from tourists all around us.






Once we enjoyed our afternoon in the pool, a nap and another shower, the main event was calling our name. I must say, my babies have never been more lovely.








And, we didn't disappoint as a family, either!




Once the wedding was in the books, the party began and it certainly disappoint. We had the entire Buckhorn Museum & Saloon to ourselves, plenty of food and drinks to fill us up and a wonderful band to entertain. My kids were the stars of the dancefloor, especially Cooper. I never could talk him in to dancing with me, but I don't think there was a pretty sorority girl in attendance that left without getting a dance with the Coopster!









I did see Cooper getting his shoes tied by more than one girl and I'm afraid he may have been setting them up to be able to look down their dress. Ha!



I wish I had pictures of Kendall and Trevor, but you'll have to trust me that they did get married! It was absolutely beautiful and we can't wait to hear all about their new life they've just begun this week in OKINAWA!

Summertime!

School was out a month ago, but my summer started last week! The kids are gone for a few weeks to visit grandparents, and I am in true summertime. The first few days were spent overcoming exhaustion, tackling neglected housecleaning and catching up on all the life I had missed in the busyness. Now that I'm all caught up, I'm getting to play a little.

Yesterday we drove down to Lockhart to check out the world famous barbecue mecca. We met Kelly Ann and Taylor at Black's BBQ for our first foray into the BBQ scene. Next time we'll plan to go on a Saturday when Kreutz is open, as that's where we really wanted to eat. But, we weren't disappointed with what Black's had to offer... all kinds of tasty bbq with live music to set the atmosphere.


It was Sunday, so there weren't many shops open in Lockhart, but Daniel and I did peruse a few cute antique stores and I picked up some paintings in one of them. (Now I can't wait until I can talk Daniel into painting my bathroom so I can hand my new decor in there.)

After lunch, Taylor and Daniel went to a watering hole for a few rounds of pool while Kelly Ann and I roamed around to see if we could find any shops open. We did see this comical sign for a Chinese takeout restaurant...


Ha ha! Small towns just crack me up. They are too cute!

When we drove back into Round Rock, we decided to lengthen our day of outings and go to a baseball game at the minor league park near our house. Unfortunately, our team is an Astros farm team, meaning they stink this year, but we still had fun.


Tonight we're off for more excitement and something we've never even come close to doing. I can't wait to share it with you tomorrow...

Hitting The Range

I've picked up a new hobby. Well, I guess one night on a driving range doesn't make a hobby, but that's the plan.

I now have my own set of golf clubs!


After trying them out by hitting balls down the street one night, Daniel and I made a date night of it at a nearby driving range. It was great! 


Of course, I'm used to hitting balls in this fashion...


But, I'm getting the hang of this new-to-me sport. And, it's awesome to be able to share something outdoors with Daniel. This is definitely going to be a great date-night past time.

May Madness Part IV: AWANAs Awards

If you spend any time with me during the week, you know that Wednesday is a helacious day for our family, schedule-wise. There are just too many irons in the fire on one day. But, one thing on our schedule is very much worth the racing around. We love AWANAs. Abigail has learned so much scripture and true Bible knowledge in the past two years that I wouldn't trade my tired body at the end of Wednesdays for anything.

This year, she was in her first year of Sparks, which is for kindergarten through second grade.  She completed the yearly book as well as an additional bonus book at the end of the year. By the time she completes the Sparks program (in two more years), she will have memorized 107 verses. Suffice it to say, she is definitely spending her time in the right place on Wednesday nights. I can't think of anything better to occupy her time than committing the word of God to memory.

I am truly proud of what she accomplished this past school year in AWANAs!

May Madness Part IV: Kindergarten Graduation

Abigail's kindergarten graduation was presented immediately following the musical presentation of "Arf". Again, this was a big deal that makes me wonder what we're setting ourselves up for when a real graduation comes around. But, it was cute to see them in full dress of cap, gown and tassle.







Although it was a quick trip, I was thankful both events were combined into one night and Gran & Grandad were able to attend everything.



Aunt Kelly (and Uncle Taylor) even made the trip up from San Antonio to witness this historic (ha!) time.

May Madness Part III: Abigail's Musical Program

After a weekend spent sewing a dalmatian costume (non-traditional, mind you, I went for cuteness over actual canine representation), I was anxious to see the kindergarten class' presentation of "Arf". It turned out pretty cute, and Abigail, of course was absolutely brilliant. Ha!

I wish I had some decent photos to share, but I haven't talked myself into being one of the parents who shoves her way in front of everyone and gets in the way of all the other photographers, just to get a closeup of her baby. Alas, I have these crummy shots (and not even one full-length shot of the crafty pillowcase dress and pantaloons I made from dalmatian spotted fabric!).









She didn't have but one or two speaking lines in the musical, but she was featured with a group of girls in one of the songs. Enjoy!

May Madness Part II: Abigail's End of Year Rodeo

Abigail's school has a kindergarten tradition of hosting a rodeo for the kids as the end of year party. Let me tell you what... They aren't messing around. I (and the kids, in my opinion) would have been pleased as punch with pizza and free play for a few hours. But, these moms and teachers in charge are serious about the party planning. This shin-dig was no small deal. (I can't imagine what we're getting ourselves into by the time it's real graduation time if this is what we're into for just kindergarten graduation!)

My cowgirl was dressed for the event, for sure! Doesn't even rodeo girl show up in silver glitter boots?!


The event began with an introduction of each child as they paraded their stick horses to a round of applause from the parents.



Abigail's stick horse, named Oolah (short for Oo-la-la) was made from a jeans pants leg and adorned with a feather boa mane and all the pink accessories we could think of.




Daniel and I then took over a group from Abigail's class and ushered them through the rest of the day.



The next few hours were followed by endless games of waterguns, jewelry making, sack races, hay digging and a plethora of other silly games the kids enjoyed.















We all enjoyed a picnic lunch to wrap things up.



Aside from being a hot, sweaty mess, the kids had a blast. And, the parents were relieved to return to work for the afternoon!

May Madness: Cooper's End of School

May was certainly a month of madness for us. Parties, programs and more parties took up most of our time. Cooper's class was first up for presentations at the Pre-K graduation. No, no, no, he didn't graduate. His class was just a part of the program.


The last song they performed is one of Cooper's favorite sing-alongs. Of course, it's about food! Ha!


The day before the program, they celebrated the end of the school year with a Hawaiian themed day of fun. Cooper enjoyed the beach hat and "sunglasses" he sported all day, even at program practice.


We didn't go to the trouble of roasting a pig in the ground, but they did enjoy some ham and pineapple pizza. I know, I know, silk flower leis and non-traditional luau food... I should know better, but they don't!


For Cooper, the best part of all of the fun was his BFF Luke. They have been buddies all year and Cooper will certainly miss him in the fall when Luke moves up to the four-year-old class.


Cooper's consolation prize for being red-shirted and hanging out in the three-year-old class again will be staying with his favorite teacher, Mrs. Monica. Until then, I'm enjoying having Cooper all to myself this summer.