Words

Beauty

Sentiment

Fulfillment

Heartstrings

Happiness

Hopeful

Strength

Perseverance

Worthiness

Integrity

Promise

Legacy

Contentment.

I chased dreams.

And then I caught some.

Seeing Stars

Yesterday we toured the new Dallas Cowboy Stadium on a homeschool field trip. It was well worth it...this coming from a self-declared non-sports fan. The boys were elated that Opa (my Dad) came to town to go with us. I have lots of pictures to post, and I'll share snippets of trivia that I learned too.

We started our tour in the pro shop, which is more like a pro mall. We window shopped only.

Price for a Romo jersey? $270.00! Yikes! Some jerseys of older players went for even more. (Am I missing something? Did Georgio Armani design these?? Ha!)

It brings all new meaning to "watching the big screen".

Seriously, y'all. Here's the scoop....

*It's the largest flat screen TV in the world.

*Know where the second largest flat screen in the world is located? On the other side!!!

*Total cost of TV console...$40 million

*Made by Mitsubishi

*2,000 of my living room TV screens could fit inside the parameters of this big screen.

*A 747 could fit on it.

*There is an LED star on top of the TV, directly above the star in the center of the field. It can be seen from five miles above the stadium!

*Before a recent concert, the Jonas Brothers asked Jerry Jones if they could play video games on it, so they spent two hours before their show playing Halo 3 together.

*It's really big. Really.

*The seats in the stadium are cushioned, and are made from recycled materials imported from Australia.

*Each seat is 19 inches, and pretty comfy! However, they will all be replaced with 17" chairs for the Super Bowl to accommodate a total of 125,000 fans.

View from a luxury box. Each luxury box is custom designed and available on a 30 year contract. Fancy.

Again, from the lap of luxury.

The end zone!

Our family was somewhere the players haven't managed to be yet this season. :(

The field was immaculate, and very soft! I was surprised by how long and furry the turf was. Although, I'm sure it doesn't feel too soft when getting sacked by an NFL player!

The "ring of honor" was brought over from the old Texas stadium. Here, the triplets...Michael Irvin, Troy Aikman, and Emmitt Smith.

Dad called the plays...

...Opa was benched...

...and the boys split things up 50/50!

Any part of the stadium can be rented out for special events. You can even be married on the field or have a reception in the dining area! The locker room was rented out twice recently; once for a 21 year old's birthday party, and another time for a fantasy football draft party.

We each chose a favorite player and had our picture made by their locker. Dad chose Felix Jones because he played for Arkansas.

See this cute kid in the press room? He isn't mine. I had to settle for a picture of someone else's kid, because mine were...

...already running down the tunnel! Only Dallas Cowboys are allowed to run down this tunnel. Visiting teams and college players come out separate entrances for their games. At the end of the tunnel, on either side, there is a Miller Light bar. You don't really get a feel for that from these photos, but the fans can be right up next to the players as they come out. Of course, you have to be quite a VIP to have access to the Miller Light bar. On the visitor's side, which is across the stadium, there is plexi-glass to separate the players from the over exuberant fans.

Honestly, the huge highlight for my boys was getting to play on the field for as long as they wanted. They were in heaven. Cowboy heaven.

Until they got dragged here, completely against their will. :) They are probably a few good years away from fully appreciating this place, which is fine by me!

It really was a thrill to wander the field and know what a big deal this place is to many sports fans!

We were totally spent by the end of the day, and all agreed it was really something special!

Other fun facts to share...

*There are 1600 potties in the stadium; 60% of them for women.

*There are a total of 3,000 flat screen TVs stationed around the stadium.

*There are 700 points of sale for concessions, so if you want a hot dog during half time, you have 700 lines you can choose to stand in!!

*There are 6,500 employees working on game day, and they will employ 10,000 on Super Bowl Sunday.

*The stadium is TALLER than the Statue of Liberty and LONGER than the Empire State Building.

*It is 3 million square feet and covers 73 acres

*It is the world's largest dome structure, the world's largest arched structure, and the largest stadium in the NFL.

*The steel in the arches was imported from Luxembourg. (It is said that Jerry Jones didn't want any part of Philadelphia in his stadium!!)

*Each of the speaker components, which are suspended from the arches, is the size of an 18 wheeler flat bed.

*It's a fun place to visit when an Opa comes to town. :)

The Grands

Opa and Granna came for a visit this weekend. We went downtown to pick up something from the quilt shop and they were hosting a Santa Fe festival on the square. There was Native American dancing and music.

We strolled a bit and enjoyed the cool temperatures.

We went to the old fashioned soda fountain and had greasy burgers with cheese fries and homemade potato chips for lunch.

Opa was in charge of feeding the monkey.

We got donuts for breakfast on Sunday morning and Miss Early Bird had her very first donut. I'm thinking Cheerios are not going to look so good from here on out.

We had a good visit, even though it went by too fast! Thanks for coming to town, Opa and Granna!

A Book Look

Well, the visit with Cousin Judy is going extremely well. Every time I call over to my Mother's house the two of them are giggling like a couple of little girls. Yesterday we took Judy to a gourmet food market here in town, then we came home and had a pot of Aztec Chicken for dinner. After our meal, we pulled out our family cookbook and got down to some serious family business. Invariably, this book makes an appearance at every. single. family. reunion!! We spent hours with Judy hashing through recipes and debating the hot topics...do you use butter or shortening in the chocolate chip cookies? How do you frost your Lazy Daisy cake? Which recipes are always on your Thanksgiving table? And, of course, the pressing matter that I can't seem to get a handle on....why, for the love of all things potato, when I make Cousin Suzie's famous potato salad, is it not as good as when Suzi makes it??

Food is a huge part of my extended family's identity. We celebrate and fellowship with food, and certain recipes help define our history and heritage. Many years ago, my Mother spearheaded a family cookbook project. Everyone submitted their tried and true, most loved and cherished dishes. There were even attempts to capture in writing some family favorites for which there were no exact measurements or precise instructions. The concept for the cookbook was born before home p.c.'s and word processing were commonplace, and I still remember my Mom sitting at her light blue electric typewriter at night with her little envelopes of recipe cards which had been carefully submitted from family members across the country. And thus was created a cornerstone of our family's existence; a treasure dear and meaningful that has come to be known simply as "THE BOOK".

My copy of The Book is tattered and worn. The original binding failed me years ago, and for a decade my precious recipes were bound together with paperclips and rubberbands. Recently, I put all my pages into plastic sleeves and inserted them in a large binder, which is a permanent fixture on my kitchen counter. I use it many times each month, and of course, pull it out to use for an entire evening's worth of entertainment when family comes to town!

It was fun going through it with Judy because she showed me some of her favorites which I had never even tried. Apparently, I've been missing out all these years by not having the celery dip out at the holidays! And I wasted no time in directing Judy toward my favorite cookie and insisting that she make it for Christmas this year. The Book is good for reminiscing over old memories. Very, very good.

I wanted to share about The Book today as a tribute to my Mom, with whom I share a love of cooking. :) You're the best, Mom. Happy Birthday!! I love you very much. It's been a great week, and I'm thankful for this fun time of celebration.

Crazy Carvers

Last night we went to a pumpkin carving social. My kids had never carved a pumpkin before. I think perhaps I've always been deterred by the mess. One year, I did hand my kids a pumpkin and some colored markers. Very festive, indeed. Last night, our hostess Sheri was definitely not intimidated by the mess. In fact, she and her husband spent the better part of the afternoon preparing plump little pumpkins.

Then, they generously welcomed us into their home to eat, visit, and get creative!

Emma made a little friend. She was quite sweet on the idea of a friend. Isn't this just the cutest little pair of pumpkins??

Oh, friend. Why you sad???Uh oh. Friend not so happy with Emma. It might have had something to do with the fact that she tried to crawl on top of his adorable, bald little head. I think she made him BOO hoo, no pun intended.

We enjoyed a yummy spread of snacks, pizza, and homemade sheet cake, then the kids set out for gourd greatness. They taped little patterns on the pumpkins as cutting guidelines. The patterns were quite creative and they turned out really well!

It was a perfect night to be outside, and the kids had a great time visiting with one another. We ended up with some pretty spook-tacular pumpkins, and I think we have happily established a brand new fall tradition!