On a beautiful sunny weekend, we checked out 2 new wineries just outside of Houston- Bernhardt Winery & Retreat Hill Cellars.
We celebrated our 4th wedding anniversary with a trip to Belize (To Ambergris Caye, Xanadu Resort, Around Ambergris Caye [Ricos + Wine de Vine], I’m Not a SCUBA diver, Sunset Bar & Grill, Catamaran Cruising, Snorkeling at Shark Ray Alley, Caye Caulker, Snorkeling at Hol Chan, Downtown Ambergris )
Marched started out with Rodeo as we went to the BBQ Cook-off, and then the Keith Urban concert, then bowling at Lucky Strike for a friend’s birthday & a visit to see an awesome Impressionist Exhibit at the MFAH.
We did our usual family dinner for Hunter’s 17th birthday, but I missed his big party. I discovered & quickly became addicted to Yoga and we checked out another Houston wine bar- The Tasting Room.
We spent a Saturday evening listening to live music with friends & then went camping with friends at Buescher State Park the following weekend before I went to Baltimore (Camden Yards, Downtown, Inner Harbor, Baltimore Sunrise) for a week for a week of training classes.
Mia longed to be in the great outdoors so she could chase the squirrels in the yard and Zoe had a very bad day when she was attacked at the park and we suffered through Mia’s Terrible Two’s. Hunter had a rockin’ Spring Break that continued for weeks and Haley was loving life as a freshman.
Spring arrived in all its glory as we soaked it up at the Woodlands Waterway Art Festival & the puppies enjoyed some park time.We wrapped up April with a long weekend in Nashville to run the Country Music Marathon & do some sightseeing (Ryman Auditorium, Broadway, Capitol grounds, Parthenon, Misc Nashville)
Mia & Zoe played in the yard & in the pool, while I got crafty with a calendar journal, reminisced over some letters from the past and we played Pictionary with friends.
For our long 4th weekend, Hubby went up to Denver with his friend to drink microbrews to see another baseball stadium while I hung out with my family, and then we went on a Motown Cruise with our friends on Clear Lake.
We took of on one of our mini-vacations this year to Costa Rica (San Jose, Downtown, Parks, Grano de Oro, Springs Resort, Adventures at the Springs, Rappelling in Arenal, Hanging Bridges, Flying to Tamarindo, Los Altos de Eros Spa & Resort, Surfing, Zip Lining, the town of Tamarindo) while my brother & sister when to CR on a mission trip.
I had to buy a new P&S camera for all my adventures & the girls headed to Dallas for a wine weekend.
Trying to stay cool, we took 7 kids ice skating & Hubby got the itch for a new car & bought our home’s second Jeep Grand Cherokee.
The end of August started hubby’s busy season at work, but we still did a clubhouse tour of Minute Maid Park & I bought a sweet lens to add to my lens collection.
Met some fellow Houston bloggers at my first Htown Blogger meetup.
September marked a transition in my life, with doors opening, Zoe taking cover, reflections through my Pathfinder course, exercising my right brain, completing 30 days of list (Part 1 & Part 2), traveling around the country and around the world (in my mind).
I joined Twitter (@ClicktheGoodnew), participated in a link-up as a photoblogger, visited Cha wine bar, took new (dog) family pictures.
Hubby attended his first Uof H football game as an alumni season ticket holder & Haley celebrated her 16th birthday
Flew to Philly to visit my best friend Stephanie and run the Philadelphia Rock n Roll Half-Marathon, hang out with her boyfriend Ken, walked Ginger, did some minimal sightseeing, including the Betsy Ross house.
Started off by running the 2011 San Antonio Rock n Roll Marathon (preparations, recap part 1, recap part 2) in San Antonio where we also visited the Riverwalk & the Tower of the Americas.
Exploring Houston, I toured the Art Crawl and did a Segway tour of Houston with hubby.
Finally got a real macro lens & took Vizsla macro pictures.
Gram showed me how to make her family recipe pound cake for our Thanksgiving meal, and the puppies played in their favorite field.
Read some great books & also the Proverbs in 31 days during November.
Parque del Tercer Milenio)
Amanda!! I love this!!! It was SO inspiring and I want to be just like you when my blog grows up. Just beautiful.
Thanks! My blog is turning 5 & I feel like I’m finally getting to the place where I’ve found my rhythm and what I want to blog about consistently. I got behind on “saving” my links as I went along last year & it was a nightmare to do them all at the end of the year- so glad I didn’t make that mistake again! It’s easier for me to find things this way since I have the yearly posts linked at the top rather than using a search box to find specific posts.
What a wonderful snapshot of your past year. Nicely put together, I love all the photos you chose.
Donna and the Dogs recently posted..One of the Perks of a Protective Dog
That was a busy year! Happy, happy anniversary!
Tina@GottaRunNow recently posted..This and That
Thank you- I can’t believe it’s been 5 years! Time flies so fast