Ava's Ballet Recital: The Little Mermaid.

Ava just completed her second year of ballet, this year trading her one-hour ballet and tap class for their three-hour Lunch at the Theatre offering, combining ballet, tap, theatre, storytelling, puppetry and arts and crafts. One of my all-time favorite things about her taking ballet is the year-end recital, and an added bonus is that it always takes place over my birthday weekend, and my in-laws come into town as well!

Here's our little ballerina, starring as one of the magical crabs in Dance Discovery's production of The Little Mermaid:

Is that not the cutest crab you've ever seen? Love my sweet girl!

Ava's End of Year Show at The Little Gym.

Summer is now upon us, as the 98 degree temperature reminds me almost daily, and as such, another school-year season of gymnastics at The Little Gym of Round Rock has come to a close! A couple weeks back - in fact, the same weekend as my birthday, Ava's ballet recital, and her grandparents visiting for the weekend - Ava capped off another great year of gymnastics. Show week gives children the opportunity to invite parents, friends, grandparents, and other special people in their lives  into the gym for an exhibition of the skills they've been working so hard on all year.

Her class split into three groups, each with a different instructor leading the way and assisting where needed, with some on the beam, some on the floor, and some on the bars. They then took turns demonstrating their skills for the audience, not only showing off all they've been learning and practicing, but allowing each child to take the stage and build their self-confidence.

Here's my little funny bug:

Happy handstands, friends! We're so excited to start our summer session of gymnastics and continue on this wonderful journey!

The Domain's 7th Annual Taste of North Austin!

Bring the entire family out to The Domain on Saturday, June 21, from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. to experience Taste of North Austin. The 7th annual FREE event features live music from Skyrocket, children's entertainment including face painting, caricature drawings and balloon twisting, prize giveaways, and more! Sample a delicious array of food from North Austin’s favorite restaurants. 

The event is FREE but you do need to purchase a wristband for the tastings. For just $20, you will get 10 tastings. For an additional $10, you can get VIP access which includes entry into the VIP tent with shaded, soft seating, two drink tickets (beer/ wine) and a goody bag! There are a limited number of VIP wristbands available. The wristbands can be purchased at Guest Services at The Domain. 


Participating Restaurants Include: Abel's North Grill and Taphouse, BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse, Blackfinn Ameripub, Blue Baker, Cru - a wine bar, Daily Grill, How Do You Roll?, Kona Grill, The League, Maggiano's Little Italy, McCormick & Schmick's Seafood, North Italia, Nothing Bundt Cakes, Punch Bowl Social, Sushi Zushi, Tiff's Treats Cookie Delivery, Tony C's, Top Golf Austin, urban-an american grill, Zed's Restaurant AND MORE! 

What: The Domain's 7th Annual Taste of North Austin

When: Saturday, June 21, 2014

Time: 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Where: The Domain, 11410 Century Oaks Terrace, Suite 210, Austin

To find more details and updates about the event, follow along on the Facebook event page or The Domain's website.

Gourmet by Numbers: A (Tasty!) Review.

If you know me, you might know that I love food. Really, really love food. I even love to cook. The problem always seems to be the planning ahead. Meal planning, list-making, grocery shopping, food prep...who has time for that? Luckily for me, that answer to that question came in the form of a local company, Gourmet by Numbers, owned and run by lovely Austinite Heather Amalaha.

Taking the dinner process and simplifying it to fit a busy, family-centric, city lifestyle, Gourmet by Numbers offers customers fully-prepped, ready to go meal kits for delicious sounding recipes. Choosing from a menu of delicious classics, such as Roasted Cornish Hen with Creamed Spinach and Wild Rice; Pan-Seared Steak with Red Wine-Mushroom Sauce with Blue Cheese Smashed Potatoes and Sauteed Spinach; or Herbed Baked Chicken Fingers, Three Cheese Mac-and-Cheese and Sauteed Swiss Chard with Bell Peppers (my mouth is watering just thinking about these!), your meal kit arrives fully prepped and includes everything you need - including step-by-step, user-friendly instructions - to tackle dinner on even the busiest of nights! You can even send her your own recipe for her to shop and prep for you - how awesome is that?

For my review, I chose the Greek Lamb Sliders with Garlic Oven Fries. Full disclosure: I wasn't sure how I would feel about the lamb. This was a more adventurous departure from my usual chicken, grain, veggie type of meal, and let me tell you: It did NOT disappoint. 

Here's how my food arrived:

 (bonus points for the super cute cooler bag that I've used twice since!)

And here's a bit of the cooking process:

I was worried that not being familiar with lamb, the prep work would be more difficult, but thankfully, it was as easy as if I were making sliders with ground beef. Just smash the meat together with the packaged ingredients thoughtfully marked "2" (for "second step", the first being garlic oven fries), and voila!

pre-oven...

...post-oven!

Slider filling/topping

Oven fries!

This meal was super simple to make - so much so I was able to throw it together after sitting in traffic post-pool with both kids and still pull it together in time! Not only was it simple, but it was delicious! I ate seconds, and then ate it again for lunch the next day!  

A big thank you to Heather for allowing me to sample her delicious meals at Gourmet by Numbers! Next on my list? The pan-seared steak!

Hiking at Walnut Creek Park!

We've discovered a new outdoor activity that we can enjoy as a family, all thanks to my local babywearing group: hiking!

This past week, we were invited to join some fellow babywearers for a hike around the nature trails at nearby Walnut Creek park, and I'd be lying if I didn't admit I reluctantly agreed. You see, I'm a bit of a city gal myself. I liked nature and all that jazz as a child, but it's been a good twenty years since I've camped. And, aside from wandering around the woods like the lonely only child I was, this was my first official hike. I may have googled, "what to take while hiking" - no joke. Anyhow, in the spirit of the summer and our transition to staying at home (and as a result, me having to be increasingly creative with free things we can do...), I said yes and laced up my tennis shoes, and off to Walnut Creek Park we went.

I wasn't sure what to expect with Ava. She can be a bit hit or miss when it comes to walking for long periods of time, but she surely wouldn't accept a stroller ride, not that the trails were appropriate for that. Anyhow, I was worried she'd need a bit of coaxing, so at the suggestion of my friend that went with us, packed a large ziploc, a notebook and a pen that she could write down observations and keep specials leaves, rocks, etc. in case she got bored. Luckily, she did GREAT! She took to hiking really well, despite the heat and long walk. I'm assuming a good deal of this had to do with the creek we came upon during our hike and the dogs that joined us (she's a little animal lover!), but either way, I was thankful. She refrained from any complaints and was a trooper, even if she did keep calling it "camping" instead - LOL. Jack was also a trooper, rotating between wide awake but silent with interest, taking it all in, and fast asleep in a back carry.

Here are some photos from our hike:

Can you believe that this gorgeous gem is in a major metropolitan area? I was shocked by how native the land was! I think we may try to make this a regular thing, though maybe opt for a shadier trail next time, as it's getting hot hot hot here in Texas! Any locals have any suggestions of great, family-friendly trails?

My Summer as a SAHM!

I don't think I've talked about this previously, but today starts my first day as a stay-at-home mom! If you've been reading for any length of time, you know how badly I've wanted to be at home with my kids, but also how emotionally torn I am about this, since I loved the girls I have worked with for the better part of six years so fiercely and completely.

Back in September, just prior to Jack being born, my boss let me know that after this school year - since the girls were getting older - they would no longer be needing a nanny. I know this was to be expected: I started when the girls were five and two, and they're now heading into second grade and middle school (!!!), and my hours have dwindled down over the years from full-time to part-time, but it still shook my soul to think of not being with them every day. Even as I write this, I feel the familiar twitch of my lip and burn in my eyes that indicates I'm just seconds away from a nervous breakdown, so I'll sum up the last nine months by saying I'm really fantastic at denial, and used that technique to get through until yesterday, when I had a complete, pull over on the side of the road because I can't see through my tears or breathe through my sobs type of nervous breakdown. Luckily, I'm about as good at picking myself up as I am at breaking myself down, so I wallowed last night, and then woke up this morning to this lovely and beautiful fact:

For the next several months, I am a stay-at-home mom!

In the fall, I'll head back to my second job a mere ten hours per week (unless I decide to get a second job to supplement, which I'm looking into currently), but until the end of August, we're unencumbered by the to-dos and schedules of another family. There is an endless world of possibilities ahead of me, and I refuse to dwell on my sadness and miss out on this great gift! So expect to see a lot of new adventures this summer, from day trips to Houston to exploring new places in our city.

So, tell me: what are your favorite day trips near Austin? What's on your summer bucket list? I'm all ears!

Joy.

Ava is nothing if not exceptionally brave. Seriously, the courage and tenacity that she possesses in her pinky finger trumps any I had prior to striking out on my own at seventeen, and it is something that amazes me and makes me so proud of her. She'll try anything once, and she never approaches a new situation as if she won't be able to do it, or figure something out. It's always a matter of "when", not "if". I hope she retains this belief her entire life, and continues to be so confident and self-assured.