Nicole and Philip Adventures

So I got crafty this past week and had the bright idea to sew a cloth doll for my niece's 2nd birthday. awww so sweet right? A NICE, CUTE little doll she'll have forever. Problem is, have you ever tried to sew a doll? Or tried to sew anything for that matter, the needle just starts running away from you when you push that peddle to the metal. Instead of this.... Or this.... I got this Yes, she's a bit of a creeper and maybe Tim Burton will put her in his next film, the niece will either love her or run away screaming.

August 3rd was Philip's 35th birday party and we had some friends over for a nice day of burgers on the grill and beer. And I carved up this little bad boy.

Caught this big daddy in a crab trap in Galveston a few weeks ago. Unfortunately he was missing his small claw and a few legs so we threw him back :o( Philip and I recently took some fly fishing lessons and I took out my new salt water fly rod to give it a try in the bay. I had some nice casts and some not so nice casts. But didn't catch anything. I was feeling kind of nervous since I'm still learning so when people stopped to watch I got kind of shy and would sloooooowly reel in my line hoping they'd move along. Two guys drove over on their golf cart because they couldn't believe a girl was fly fishing. I told them I hated to disappoint but I was just learning so there sadly wasn't much 'fishing' going on. Once I practice some more I'll call them over to pay to watch my fishing skills next time!

I've had several projects in the works and most of them are still incomplete, but I did manage to finish one. It's a table for our backyard that sits under an oak tree. It's perfect for hanging out in the evening or eating outside. We picked up the table for $30 from a garage sale store that had all kinds of junk in it. Philip was nice enough to let me bring it home to clean up. I'm sure he had his doubts but I made it happen. It was an old white-washed blue color and that just would not work for me, so I sanded, washed, sanded and sanded some more before i finally reached for the paint remover and made quick work of the job. Then I stained the top and proceeded to paint the legs. As luck would have it one of our neighbors down the street was selling four chairs for only $25 on our neighborhood facebook group. So I snapped those up and painted them too!

Last night I hosted a little bunco party at the house for our group. If you haven't heard of it, it's a dice game similar to Yahtzee. No skill required, just the luck of the dice. We play for money which makes it more competitive.
I fixed up some snacks and had to post a photo of my Devilish Eggs for you to see. Idea stolen from Martha Steward- but the recipe I used was they way anyone would normally make them.

The horns are roasted red bell pepper
Chive mustache and a green onion beard

I forgot to post some photos from back in May. Philip and I went to Pinot's Palette, it's a painting class where you learn how to re-create some famous and non-famous paintings. I had originally gone with my book club and we had a blast. It's a fun date night, or to spend with friends and you don't have to be artistic at all (I can't even paint a straight line)

They give you a palette of colors that you'll be using for the evening. Then there's a teacher that shows you step by step what colors to use and what shapes to make to create your masterpiece. You also get to bring your own snacks and drinks and hang out with random strangers. We had a great time and our paintings turned out pretty nice...well one of them did, the other one didn't get completed because the painter was too busy talking to everyone around him/her....I'll give you two guesses who it was!

Near the end of May we made a trip to Midland, TX to visit cousin Jim and his wife Quay for the Baptism of their son Michael Kyle. They asked me (Nicole) to be godmother which was very exciting. So we took off on a Thursday and made our way though Texas. On Friday we took a trip over the state line to New Mexico to visit Carlsbad Caverns. I had been there a long time ago probably when I was 10 years old with my family, but Philip had never been and I thought he’d like it and we’d see some scenery.

So we left Friday around 7am for the three hour drive to the caves. It’s a flat drive in Texas for the most part but towards the end you pick up on some rolling hills through the desert with the Guadalupe Mountains in the foreground as you approach the caves. Just before entering the park you drive through a town called Whites City. All there is , is a Shell Station, restaurant, general store and that’s about it. Then you enter the park and drive a corkscrew up and around the mountains for 7 miles until you reach the visitors center. We decided to take a tour in addition to the main public self-walking tour. Our ranger guide lead us to a part of the cave for only our group and gave us some lanterns to light the way. He would let us enter a room in the dark and talk about it. You could make out shapes in the darkness and feel the cool air, but when he turned on the lights the room illuminated into a whole new world entirely. Huge spaces and gorgeous delicate features were everywhere. At one point he had us sit down while he turned out all the lights including the lantern and told us to wave our hands in front of our faces. It was so dark you couldn’t even see your own hand, though your brain was sending signals to your eyes that could resemble a shadow of a hand passing back and forth in front of your face. He then took the opportunity to tell us of the giant cave spiders, worms and man eating bats residing in the very room we were sitting ;o)

After that we went on the main tour which is a 2km loop around a large room that showcases some the various formations. We then jumped in the car, snapped some photos in Philip’s city and headed back to Midland for the Baptism.

Day of the Baptism little Michael was in high spirits, laughing and babbling to everyone and hamming it up for the many paparazzi flash bulbs pointed his way. The ceremony was just us family and he received the sign of the cross on his forehead from the priest, his parents, and god parents (John Suchecki & Nicole.) When the water was poured over his head he didn’t even cry. I think he really liked it! We went back home for some celebratory cake which was enjoyed by all! It was a great trip all-in-all!